Venezuela, SKorea, Afghanistan lose vote for UN rights body

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UNITED NATIONS — Venezuela, South Korea and Afghanistan misplaced contested races for seats on the highest U.N. human rights physique in Tuesday by the Basic Meeting, which confronted criticism for electing nations like Vietnam and Sudan, which have been accused of getting abysmal human rights data.

The 193-member meeting voted by secret poll to fill 14 seats on the 47-member Human Rights Council. Seats are allotted to areas to make sure geographical illustration, a rule that has frequently led to many areas placing ahead uncontested slates — as Africa, Japanese Europe and Western nations did this 12 months.

Human rights teams have lengthy criticized this apply, saying it denies U.N. member nations any selection of nations on the council and just about ensures seats for some nations with poor rights data.

On this 12 months’s election, probably the most hotly watched race was within the Latin America and Caribbean regional group, the place Chile, Costa Rica and Venezuela have been vying for 2 seats. The end result noticed Chile get 144 votes, Costa Rica 134 and Venezuela 88.

Venezuela narrowly received a seat on the Human Rights Council in 2019. Louis Charbonneau, U.N. director for Human Rights Watch, welcomed Tuesday’s end result, saying the Basic Meeting “rightly closed the door” on Venezuela’s try to stay on the council.

“U.N. investigators have discovered proof that (President Nicolas) Maduro and different officers might have been chargeable for crimes in opposition to humanity in opposition to their very own folks,” Charbonneau mentioned.

“A authorities going through these sorts of allegations has no enterprise sitting on the U.N.’s high rights physique. Now U.N. member states ought to search methods to carry accountable these Venezuelan officers chargeable for grave human rights violations, together with extrajudicial killings and torture,” he mentioned.

The opposite carefully watched race was within the Asia-Pacific area, the place Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan, Maldives, South Korea and Vietnam contested 4 seats. Bangladesh acquired 160 votes, Maldives 154, Vietnam 145 and Kyrgyzstan 126 and have been declared the winners, beating South Korea with 123 votes and Afghanistan with 12 votes.

Charbonneau mentioned that “electing abusive governments like Vietnam to the council solely undermines its credibility.”

The International Middle for the Duty to Shield, which campaigns in opposition to mass atrocity crimes, mentioned: “The election of Sudan — a state that’s at present implicated in extreme and deadly pressure in opposition to peaceable protesters and that has a historical past of perpetrating atrocities — undermines the credibility” of the Human Rights Council.

Within the uncontested areas, the meeting elected Africa’s slate of Algeria, Morocco, South Africa and Sudan, Japanese Europe’s candidates of Georgia and Romania, and the Western nations’ candidates of Belgium and Germany.

Basic Meeting President Csaba Kőrösi introduced the outcomes, learn the names of the 14 winners and mentioned the newly elected nations will take their seats Jan. 1 and serve till Dec. 31, 2025. Diplomats within the meeting chamber then burst into applause.

The Human Rights Council was created in 2006 to exchange a fee discredited due to some members’ poor rights data. However the brand new council quickly got here to face related criticism, together with that rights abusers sought seats to guard themselves and their allies.

On April 7, the Basic Meeting accepted a U.S.-initiated decision to droop Russia from the Human Rights Council due to the rights violations it dedicated in invading and taking management of elements of Ukraine.

The vote, 93-24 with 58 abstentions, was considerably decrease than on two resolutions the meeting adopted in March demanding a direct cease-fire in Ukraine, withdrawal of all Russian troops and safety for civilians.

The meeting voted overwhelmingly on Could 10 for the Czech Republic to exchange Russia on the council.

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