Human Rights & the Bigger Picture…
current events September 27th, 2009
Relief work of any kind takes place at the discretion of the host government- President Al-Bashir of Sudan’s decision to expel multiple aid agencies from his country in March of 2009 was a sharp reminder of this reality. Often, the international community plays a key role in how open or closed host governments are to humanitarian action on their soil.
Recently, the New York Times ran an Editorial discussing these issues- Backsliding on Human Rights. It ultimately argues that:
“The current disputes over human rights will crystallize over the next two years, as 2011 will see an inter-governmental review of the Human Rights Council. China, Russia and other illiberal powers may try to set further limits on the U.N.’s human rights role.The European Union, the United States and their remaining allies on human rights (such as the Latin American democracies) should form a high-level working group to prepare for the review. They should also talk directly to Moscow and Beijing about how to stop power politics in the Security Council from undercutting humanitarian aid, as it did over Sri Lanka. There is no point in celebrating America’s return to the U.N. if the U.N. cannot help the vulnerable.”
Meeting this past week, the Security Council was able to avoid a stalemate over issues such as Iranian nuclear power: some are breathing a sigh of relief. However, Turkey– a member of the Security Council for 2009/2010– is preparing to raise the issue of potential war crimes committed by both Israelis and Palestinians during the recent war in the Gaza Strip. Turkey would like “accountability” for war crimes committed- but the US has insisted that this is an issue to be addressed by the Human Rights Council in Geneva, not the Security Council and may veto the issue. (Glance at Turkey Wants UN body to discuss Gaza ‘war crimes’ for a fuller discussion of the situation).
If the US uses its veto power to stop a discussion of the independent Gladstone Report covering war crimes by both sides, the issue may well be forced to the Human Rights Council, of which the US is a new member (the Human Rights Council was boycotted under President George W. Bush). Either way, the handling of this issue will further define the parameters by which Human Rights violations can and cannot be addressed in today’s world– this directly impacts the Humanitarian community at large. Stay tuned.
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:00 pm
An excellent analysis of the challenges facing policy makers in the post-American world– As a multi-polar world brings heightened insecurity, the Security Council may be confronted with veto-wars among the great powers, beyond even those that occurred during the Cold War. As the case of Cambodia demonstrates, it is a tragedy when human rights are studiously ignored by bickering security-seeking states. While examining historical records, we may find that the Security Council is not the forum for protecting human rights, especially in the face of rising powers, like China and India, who have shown a blatant disregard for human rights, both internationally and within their own borders. Therefore, it is critical that policy-makers in diverse fields carefully assess and evaluate how to insure human rights worldwide in a post-American world, before it is too late.
March 19th, 2010 at 6:45 am
Often, the international community plays a key role in how open or closed host governments are […….
В этом что-то есть. Теперь всё понятно, благодарю за помощь в этом вопросе….
April 20th, 2010 at 11:01 pm
В этом что-то есть. Большое спасибо за помощь в этом вопросе….
Often, the international community plays a key role in how open or closed host governments are […….