29 April 2002

U.S. Regains Seat on U.N. Human Rights Commission, April 29, 2002

(Amb. Siv Says U.S. looks forward to resuming its commission role)

By Judy Aita Washington File United Nations Correspondent

United Nations -- The United States has been elected to a three-year term on the U.N. Human Rights Commission beginning January 2003, after being dropped from the body in 2002 for the first time since it helped found it in 1947.

The United States was unopposed for one of four regional seats open to the Western European and Others Group (WEOG) on the 53-member commission. Australia, Germany, and Ireland were the others elected in the group. In total, the U.N. Economic and Social Council elected 15 members to the commission.

The United States was not on the commission in 2002 for the first time since it helped found the organization in 1947.

Ambassador Sichan Siv, U.S. representative to the Economic and Social Council, said after the vote: "We are very pleased that we are back on the Commission on Human Rights. Human rights is a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy. We have spoken and will continue to speak on the issue whether we are on the commission or not."

"But now that we are back on the commission we look forward very much to working to continue to promote this very important issue," Siv said. "There is a lot of hard work in front of us but we will give our best to make sure that issue is addressed properly."

The significance of U.S. membership on the commission "is that we are able to introduce resolutions, sponsor resolutions, which we could not do when we were just an observer," he said. "Last year it was quite difficult because, as an observer, we were not able to introduce resolutions and, unfortunately, we lost a few resolutions on Iraq, Chechnya and Zimbabwe.

"So when we get back, we look forward to providing some leadership at the commission," Siv said.

The United States lost its seat last year when several nations in the Western European and Others group vied for three open seats. In the current elections, two states dropped out in order for the group to endorse a single slate of four candidates for the four vacancies.

Siv said that decision was "a friendly change."

"Spain and Italy decided to withdraw their candidacies," the ambassador said. "They thought that the collective interest is more important than their national interest, especially on this issue."

"We are pleased and we are grateful that Spain and Italy decided to do so," he said.