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U.S. to Focus on Cuba, North
Korea, Burma at Human Rights Meeting
Will not introduce resolution
on China at U.N. commission session
By Kurt Pyle. Washington
File Staff Writer.
Washington -- At this year's meeting of
the United Nations Commission on Human Rights,
the United States will sponsor a resolution
on Cuba and co-sponsor resolutions on North
Korea and Burma, senior Bush administration
officials say.
Speaking at a background briefing March
18, officials said the United States is
working closely with other nations and the
European Union to highlight human rights
issues in these countries. The annual commission
meetings open in Geneva March 21.
Since 1989, the United States has annually
sponsored a resolution on Cuba. U.S. officials
say they will do so again this year to keep
the issue of Cuba's human rights on the
record and to keep the personal representative
of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human
Rights in place within the country.
The officials said dialogue is not a valid
option for addressing Cuba's human-rights
record, noting Cuba's failure to live up
to a paper co-signed with Canada on human
rights and the general unwillingness of
Cuban officials to discuss meaningful changes.
The United States will also co-sponsor
other resolutions on democratic election
standards, torture, and counterterrorism
policy, and might sponsor a resolution on
freedom of association, with particular
emphasis on labor rights.
Officials also said that the administration
is watching developments regarding a potential
resolution on Sudan, but would support that
resolution only if it were of the same strength
as U.N. Security Council actions on Sudan.
Also announced were special briefings to
be held the week of March 20 for member
states and nongovernmental organizations
on controversial War on Terror policies
regarding detainees and detainee facilities.
Matthew Waxman, the deputy assistant secretary
of defense for detainee affairs, will lead
those briefings.
In addition, Pierre-Richard Prosper, ambassador-at-large
for issues involving war crimes, will give
briefings the following week to special
rapporteurs, or organizational reporters,
who have sought access to detainee facilities
on detainment policies. The briefings will
increase transparency and increase accountability,
officials said.
When asked why the United States had decided
not to introduce a resolution on the human-rights
situation in China, the officials said that
recent actions by China were part of an
agreement to withhold the resolution. Those
actions included: an agreement to give political
prisoners the same rights to sentence reductions
and paroles as other prisoners; a statement
saying religious education of minors is
consistent with Chinese law; an announcement
of the opening of an office of the International
Committee of the Red Cross in Beijing; and
invitations to a number of special rapporteurs,
including those on torture.
The United States would still raise the
issue of Chinese human rights during proceedings,
officials said.
The officials also noted the imbalance
of resolutions regarding the Israeli/Palestinian
situation and said they hoped recent events
in the region would lead to positive developments
regarding the issue.
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