New York, April 7, 2022.- The United Nations General Assembly met today at the behest of the United States, to vote on a draft resolution regarding the suspension of the rights of the Russian Federation as a member of the Human Rights Council, within the framework of the conflict in Ukraine.
The Permanent Representative of Cuba to the United Nations, Ambassador Pedro Luis Pedroso Cuesta, warned about the dangers imposed by the use of the suspension mechanism, which has no parallel in any other UN organ, and can be easily used in a selective manner, especially against the countries of the South.
He recalled how the most enthusiastic supporters of the membership suspension clause, when the establishment of the new Human Rights Council was being negotiated, were developed nations with a proven tendency to accuse countries of the South that do not abide by their alleged models of democracy, while remaining silently complicit in the face of flagrant human rights violations in Western countries.
Today it is Russia, but tomorrow it could be any of our countries, particularly nations of the South that do not bow to the interests of domination and staunchly defend their independence, Pedroso Cuesta stressed.
The Cuban diplomat explained that Cuba has always advocated and worked for a Human Rights Council capable of coping with the complex challenges the international community faces in this area, from which no country escapes. However, the Caribbean nation opposed the membership suspension clause, due to the serious peril that it would be used by certain countries that privilege double standards, selectivity and politicization of the human rights issues.
The island has always defended objectivity, impartiality and transparency in the work of that body, and that its procedures and mechanisms are implemented on the basis of truthful and verified information.
While in order to be elected as a member of the Human Rights Council, a country needs to obtain at the very least, in a secret ballot, the endorsement of the majority of UN members, that is, no less than 97 votes; the suspension clause can be activated by the support of only two thirds of those present and voting; therefore, abstentions do not count and not even a minimum number of votes required for the suspension to be approved, is established.
Thus, the rights of a member of the Council can be suspended by the will of a number of States, even smaller than those that decided to elect it and grant it those rights.
The Russian Federation, which was elected as a member of the Human Rights Council in 2020 by 158 votes, could be suspended today by a smaller number, the Ambassador stated.
The use of the Council´s membership suspension clause will, in no way, favor the search for a peaceful, negotiated and lasting solution to the conflict in Ukraine; much less will it help to foster the spirit of cooperation, dialogue and understanding that should prevail when addressing the issue of human rights, Pedroso Cuesta underlined.
(Cubaminrex-Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations)