Western countries are leading a rare two-pronged push at the UN Human Rights Council to better scrutinize the human rights records of two big world powers: China, over allegations of abuses in Xinjiang, and Russia, over its crackdown on dissent and protest against its war in Ukraine.
Going after two such influential UN members — two of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council — might be no small political task, diplomats and rights advocates say.
It testifies to a growing rift between democracies and more autocratic countries, and is shaping up as a gamble of geopolitical clout, the outcome of which would resonate beyond the Geneva, Switzerland, conference room where the council meets.
Photo: AFP
Some Western diplomats say it is now or never.
The US, the UK, Canada and the five Nordic countries are leading a call for council members to agree a debate at its next session in March on alleged abuses against Uighurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic groups in Xinjiang. They aim to build momentum on an Aug. 31 UN report that raised concerns about possible crimes against humanity during Beijing’s push against “extremism” in the region.
On Tuesday, 26 EU countries — all members except Hungary — floated a proposal for the council to appoint a “special rapporteur” on Russia, citing a string of concerns about mass arrests and detentions; harassment of journalists, opposition politicians, activists and rights defenders; and crackdowns — at times violent — on protesters against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Both issues are to come up for a vote near the end of the council’s current session on Friday.
Intense backroom diplomacy is already underway. Developing countries in Asia, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East make up the majority of the 47 current members of the council. Stalwart allies of China and Russia, including Cuba, Eritrea and Venezuela, are members, as is China itself. Western and European countries have 13 seats.
Some European diplomats have expressed concern that the cultural, political and economic ties that many developing countries have with Russia and China could torpedo the Western initiatives.
However, international advocacy groups push for action on Russia on China at the UN agency.
Human Rights Watch global advocacy deputy director John Fisher last month said action on China and Russia are the group’s top two priorities, and they amount to “no small challenge.”
“There was a time when states like China and Russia felt to be almost untouchable,” he said. “But it now feels that states of principle are finally saying ‘enough’ and standing up to those who would seek to disrupt the international rules-based order.”
Western diplomats appear to feel more confident about success with the Russia measure.
However, the council has little power to force countries to act, and there is little certainty that Moscow would even allow a UN-backed monitor into Russia as part of the post — if the council seeks to create it.
The Xinjiang debate proposal is shaping up as the bigger task, diplomats and right advocates say.
“Regarding China, it’s much more complex,” said Nicolas Agostini, UN envoy of DefendDefenders, a group that promotes human rights in East Africa, alluding to “extreme Chinese pressure on African states.”
One African diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity because his country is still calibrating its response, said it has a “principled and objective approach” on the China resolution.
“We will have to consider our bilateral relations with the Chinese,” the diplomat said. “We’re not just going to jump in there.”
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