US rejects new UN human rights council proposal (Reuters)

[Up2Late]

(Guess who? Yup, our distinguished Ambassador Bolton.)

US rejects new UN human rights council proposal

Mon Feb 27, 2006 12:35 PM ET

By Evelyn Leopold

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States on Monday called a compromise proposal for a new U.N. Human Rights Council unacceptable and said it would vote against it unless negotiations were reopened. "We are very disappointed with the draft that was produced last Thursday. We don't think it's acceptable," U.S. Ambassador John Bolton told reporters.

He said his instructions were to reopen negotiations "and to try and correct the manifold deficiencies in the text of the resolution, or alternatively to push off consideration of the resolution for several months to give us more time."

The new council would replace the discredited Geneva-based Human Rights Commission, where a number of rights-violating nations have seats. The United States had submitted proposals calling for a smaller council and more restrictions on admitting members.

Bolton said that if U.N. General Assembly President Jan Eliasson, who drew up the compromise proposal after months of negotiations, insisted on a vote this week, the United States would vote "no." The United States does not have a veto in the 191-member General Assembly, so it depends whether a vote would be called for over U.S. objections.

(more at link below)

<http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=11352679§ion=news>

[mom cat]

1. Right now the US is one of the biggest if not the biggest human rights

violator on the planet.

[Rex]

2. The BFEE scoffs at human rights.

Bolton is their idiot messenger.

[Jack Rabbit]

3. The Bushies are irrelevant on human rights

What Bolton or any other member of the Bush regime has to say about human rights is not relevant.

We should no more take seriously the views of the Bush regime on this subject than the view of Cardinal Torquemada.

[tecelote]

4. If you can't condone torture in your Human Rights proposal

then the United States can't accept it!

Come on, give up your values and let's make a deal.

[tridim]

5. Bolton is not the "US"

It's a shame that I have to point that out.

Another reason why we have to impeach NOW.

[Mandate My Ass]

6. Bolton is a pox

I hope they vote on this and tell Bolton to go pound sand. He should be restricted from that commission until the U.S. cleans up its human rights act but this scum thinks he should be able to point fingers. Filth.

[Eugene]

7. If Bolton is there to wreck the place...

tying the system up in knots by insisting on line-by-line negotiations
is a good way to go about it. Otherwise saying "F*ck consensus!
It's my way or the highway" only serves to isolate the U.S.

I'm counting the days until January 3, 2007 and he is gone.

Edit: fixed the date

[katty]

8. bush to world: human rights? what are those?

[MasonJar]

9. Please God, can we have a real man at the UN? We would and

should be held accountable.

[Briar]

10. The biggest deficiency

in US eyes is simply that it would (a) require the US to see itself as just another nation among others, not the dominant nation and (b) to submit itself to international standards, not set them.

This isn't just Bolton - this is a long heldn belief on the part of the US that it can make laws to suit itself - that America's might is right and America's will is law. The supernation is above good and evil.

[hack89]

11. What's wrong with wanting this?

Annan, the United States and others had wanted a two-thirds majority to make it easier to keep countries with poor human rights records off the new council. They also wanted a smaller, more nimble body of about 30 and Bolton proposed disqualifying any nation under sanctions in the U.N. Security Council.