On June 19, 2018, the United States announced its withdrawal from the United Nations Human Rights Council. The decision was announced at a joint press conference by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Hiley and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Haley emphasized that in doing so, the U.S. in no way has the will to abandon U.S. commitments in the area of human rights.
Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley warned Monday (Jan. 25) that President Biden‘s rejoining the controversial U.N. Human Rights Council would run counter to the U.S.’s original intent to “protect human rights.
In a tweet, Haley said the UNHRC is a sordid place, full of political bias and human rights mongering. “If Biden rejoins this council of dictatorships and the worst human rights violators, it will be the opposite of our fight for human rights.”
The Trump administration withdrew from the U.N. Human Rights Council in 2018, when Haley was U.S. ambassador to the U.N. She announced her decision to withdraw at a press conference with then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who at the Time blasted the council as “a cesspool of political bias to protect human rights abusers “.
Critics point out that the 2020 Human Rights Council includes countries such as Cuba, China and Russia, and in 2019, the U.N. General Assembly also elected Libya, Sudan and Venezuela to the council. Critics also argue that the Human Rights Council is biased against Israel, often discussing and condemning it while “ignoring” the viciousness of human rights violations in other countries, including Council members.
Biden has pledged to rejoin the Council, but so far has not determined what reforms the United States would require of the Council in order to join.
Biden has told the press, “We will rejoin the UN Human Rights Council and work to ensure that the body truly lives up to its values.” He also criticized the selection of Cuba to the Human Rights Council during the Trump Administration – even though Cuba had also been a member of the council during the Obama administration.
Kelly Craft, another former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, also called for the Biden Administration to demand some reforms before rejoining the Human Rights Council.
“In its current composition and direction (of development), the council is not living up to its name.” Kraft said.
“To the millions of people around the world who are oppressed for trying to exercise their natural human rights, (the Human Rights Council) is an insult,” she also said in a December speech. “It (the Human Rights Council) is an affront to human rights defenders who aspire to the support of the United Nations.”
The U.N. established the Human Rights Council in 2006, consisting of 47 countries from around the world, with members serving three-year terms. the U.S. refused to join that year in 2006, arguing that the organization allowed countries with poor human rights records to become members. the U.S. joined the U.N. Human Rights Council in 2009 when Barack Obama became U.S. president.
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