States that the United States remains committed to the creation of a new Human Rights Council to replace the discredited United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC).
Urges the President and the governments of other U.N. member countries to continue with negotiations for the creation of a Human Rights Council.
Expresses the sense of the Senate that a credible Human Rights Council would: (1) establish membership criteria that would exclude the worst human rights abusers, including exclusion of member countries subject to U.N. Security Council sanctions; (2) include Israel's full participation; (3) set a size limit consistent with ensuring that only countries that respect human rights are members of the primary U.N. human rights body; (4) exclude any provision that prevents the consecutive election of member countries to the Council; and (5) utilize a formula for the distribution of membership among U.N. member countries that gives priority to countries that respect human rights, while also giving consideration to geographical distribution, the representation of different forms of civilization, and the principal legal systems.
[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 387 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
109th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 387
Recognizing the need to replace the United Nations Human Rights
Commission with a new Human Rights Council.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 2, 2006
Mr. Coleman (for himself, Mr. Smith, Mr. Voinovich, Mr. Coburn, and Mr.
Kyl) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the need to replace the United Nations Human Rights
Commission with a new Human Rights Council.
Whereas the United Nations Human Rights Commission (hereinafter ``UNHRC'') has
lost its credibility as an instrument for the promotion or protection of
human rights, instead allowing repressive regimes to shield themselves
from criticism for their human rights violations;
Whereas Secretary-General Kofi Annan has also acknowledged that, ``the
Commission's declining credibility has cast a shadow on the reputation
of the United Nations system'';
Whereas the primary deficiency of the Human Rights Commission is directly
related to its membership, where 6 of the 53 current members, namely
China, Cuba, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Zimbabwe, are listed as
the worst human-rights abusers by Freedom House, and many other members
have serious deficiencies concerning commitments to democracy and human
rights according to the Department of State Country Reports on Human
Rights Practices;
Whereas the lack of membership criteria of the UNHRC, particularly when combined
with the relatively large membership of 53 countries, hinders efforts to
filter out countries with poor human rights records from membership;
Whereas the UNHRC spends a disproportionate amount of time vilifying Israel, its
primary target for criticism, but fails to direct such sustained
criticism at states engaged in the systematic abuse of human rights,
with 30 percent of all country-specific resolutions critical of human
rights records over the history of the UNHRC have been directed at
Israel alone, while there has never been a single such resolution on
China, Syria, or Zimbabwe;
Whereas the UNHRC has consistently failed to take decisive action against member
states implicated in the massive violation of human rights, which is
evidenced by the fact that the UNHRC has never held a special emergency
session on Sudan despite millions of deaths over 2 decades in Sudan, but
the UNHRC has held a special sitting to criticize Israel on the death of
Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the leader of Hamas;
Whereas the UNHRC only meets for 6 weeks each year, providing the UNHRC with
insufficient time to review and take action against the most flagrant
human rights violators;
Whereas Israel has been consistently discriminated against by being denied full
participatory rights in regional group meetings associated with the
operation of the UNHRC, while non-United Nations members such as the
Holy See (WEOG) and the Palestinian observer participate in these
meetings;
Whereas the overwhelming failures of the UNHRC led to an international consensus
that it must be abolished and replaced with a new Human Rights Council,
and the United Nations Summit Outcome Document, signed by all United
Nations member states in September 2005, stated that ``Pursuant to our
commitment to further strengthen the United Nations human rights
machinery, we resolve to create a Human Rights Council. The Council will
be responsible for promoting universal respect for the protection of all
human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of
any kind and in a fair and equal manner. The Council should address
situations of violations of human rights, including gross and systematic
violations and make recommendations thereon. It should also promote
effective coordination and the mainstreaming of human rights within the
United Nations system.''; and
Whereas efforts by the United States and other committed democracies to carry
out the mandate of the Summit Document to create a new credible Human
Rights Council have been strongly opposed by human rights abusers at the
United Nations: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That--
(1) the United States remains strongly committed to the
creation of a new Human Rights Council to replace the
discredited United Nations Human Rights Commission (hereinafter
``UNHRC''), and the proposal for such a Council should work to
assure the integrity of its membership as well as provide a
strong mandate for action;
(2) the Senate urges the President to use the present
opportunity that has been generated by the international
recognition of the need to replace the current UNHRC, and to
refrain from supporting any proposal for a Human Rights Council
that would result either in only cosmetic changes or changes
that would even further degrade the membership and mandate of
the current UNHRC;
(3) the Senate urges the President and the governments of
other member countries of the United Nations to continue with
negotiations for the creation of a Human Rights Council that is
a credible human rights institution; and
(4) it is the sense of the Senate that an acceptable
proposal for a credible Human Rights Council would--
(A) establish criteria for membership that would
serve to exclude the worst human rights abusers, and
such criteria would include, but should not be limited
to, the automatic exclusion of member countries that
are subject to Security Council sanctions;
(B) include a provision allowing full participation
by Israel in all operations associated with the
Council;
(C) set a size limit that is consistent with the
goal of ensuring that only countries that respect human
rights are members of the primary human rights body of
the United Nations;
(D) establish a human rights review requirement
that is tied to a mandatory outcome and takes place
prior to elections for membership;
(E) exclude any provision that prevents the
consecutive election of member countries to the
Council; and
(F) utilize a formula for the distribution of
membership among United Nations member countries that
gives priority to countries that respect human rights,
while also giving consideration to geographical
distribution, the representation of different forms of
civilization, and the principal legal systems.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. (text of measure as introduced: CR S1657)
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