After the realisation of the true devastation World War II had caused, 51 member states joined forces to form what is known as the ‘United Nations’. An internationally neutral organisation aimed at stopping future wars and promoting peace, this organisation provides global stability by ensuring that member states are scrutinised and conflicts deescalated before tragedy can strike for the third time. To this day, the UN is a remarkable organisation for global security, peace and humanitarian efforts.
Years of growth led to many new member states joining on board and new ‘organs’ being formed. The main organs, being the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council, Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice and UN Secretariat serve as the hub for all international issues and conversations.
We stand today living in a time where the UN has 193 member states and a range of more than 35 different sub-organisations, from providing humanitarian aid, to education, and international security. The UN is a vital organisation for peace and prosperity across the globe.
The establishment of the United Nations Human Rights Council
In 2006, the General Assembly established a sub council known as the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). The UNHRC is tasked with upholding and protecting human rights around the world. With 47 member states, the Human Rights Council has worked diligently to ensure that people’s rights are promoted and protected, whilst ensuring that nations are held accountable for their actions.
The downfall of the United Nations Human Rights Council
Unfortunately, many find the actions of the UNHRC to be flawed. A number of the members apart of the council are flagrant violators of basic human rights. Countries like Cuba, who have been accused of unfair imprisonment along with other violations, China, who as of recently, detained a large number of Muslims, and Egypt, whose citizens lack free speech and imprison opposition. These are just some of the member states that have a place on the Human Rights Council, and offer opinions on human rights issues.
Nevertheless, Israel has taken the full force of the Human Rights Council. Holding the leading numbers of resolutions against them, despite this, they are still not provided a position to defend themselves against these contentious issues. What further counteracts the UNHRC’s objective is that a large number of the member states on the council still don’t provide women with rights while some slaughter their own citizens. How can countries of this sort be involved in a body that prides itself on protection and promotion of human rights?
For a council whose sole role is to ensure nations are upholding human rights, it does not provide a comforting perspective seeing a large number of the members being of the worst violators of human rights to date. No, Israel is not perfect, they are in contention for violating human rights, but it is not just to compare them to nations that murder their own citizens, send their citizens to hard labour camps, and don’t provide women rights. Yet, they are able to sit and represent themselves.
During 2018, we saw the rise against these misdoings from the Human Rights Council with the United States withdrawing. This action was as a result of the member states being among some terrible human rights violators. At the time, the United States UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley commented that the UNHRC is “hypocritical”. This forthright remark comes with the bold move of leaving the Council, showing the rest of the world that the US will not be involved with an institution acclaimed to be protecting human rights, if its members are glaring abusers themselves.
The UN Human Rights Council is currently in their 40th regular session. During this session, we will expect to see a number of resolutions against a range of nations, with a strong onus on Israel. It has been placed in agenda item 7, an agenda purely for them, with the other countries in agenda item 4. This has caused some controversy with both Australia and Denmark speaking out against this action. Further lacking on the agenda, we are yet to hear about a resolution against China for their imprisonment of Muslims, despite numerous NGO’s reaching out for answers to this cruel abuse of power and human rights.
To call the United Nations corrupt would show a great deal of ignorance to the good it has accomplished. But does the Human Rights council need to further investigate member nations who violate human rights? Yes.
With Australia and Denmark recently coming out in support of the removal of Item 7 of the Agenda, I look forward to the following days and weeks to see how the session concludes.
