Abstract: The U.N. Human Rights Council has failed to consistently fulfill its mandate to hold governments accountable for violating basic human rights and fundamental freedoms and to promote and protect human rights. Two years of U.S. membership on and engagement with the council have…
The killings and other atrocities committed in Libya, if confirmed, likely rise to the level of crimes against humanity, which are under International Criminal Court (ICC) jurisdiction in the Rome Statute. But the ICC is supposed to be a court of last resort, becoming involved only if national authorities prove…
Testimony before The Committee on Foreign Affairs United States House of Representatives Thursday, March 3, 2011 My name is Terry Miller. I am the Director of the Center for International Trade and Economics at…
The United States underwent a three-hour review of its human rights record before the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) on November 5 under that body’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR). As predicted,[1] the farcical nature of the process was immediately apparent as serial human rights violators Cuba, Venezuela,…
Thanks to a certain immigration law, the Obama administration isn’t very happy with Arizona these days. But did you know the White House has gone so far as to put Arizona “on report”? And to the United Nations, no less. That’s right. Apparently the federal government…
The United States recently released its report to the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC). This report will serve as the basis of the U.S.’s first examination under that body’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR).[1] Although the U.S. report gives undue attention and credit to the actions of the…
In the aftermath of the recent gun battle aboard a Turkish aid ship heading for Gaza, international leaders have been queuing up to attack Israel. From Ankara to Brussels, the condemnation of the only longstanding democracy in the Middle East has been swift and unequivocal. The United Nations, the European…
Abstract: The U.N. Human Rights Council’s record over its first four years is gravely disappointing. Contrary to claims made by the Obama Administration, U.S. membership on the council has not appreciably improved its performance. However, the council can…
The 54th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) concluded last month at the United Nations, with even more feminist fanfare than in recent years. The CSW is a functional body that meets annually to discuss and review the situation…
Sixty years ago this month, the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which some have dubbed a Magna Carta for mankind. Coming on the heels of World War II, the Declaration was supposed to show the world that the United Nations would not tolerate the terrible abuses of human rights committed…
Testimony Delivered Before the Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Democracy and Human Rights of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the United States Senate on July 26, 2006 Mr. Chairman, thank you for providing me with the opportunity to testify on how the new United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) has performed in its first…
(Delivered September 6, 2006) Since the very birth of the United Nations, protecting and advancing fundamental human rights has been one of the primary objectives of the organization. The drafters of the Charter of the United Nations included a pledge by member states "to reaffirm…
Washington, Feb. 24, 2006-Anne Bayefsky, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, Danielle Pletka, vice president for foreign and defense policy studies at AEI, and Brett Schaefer, Jay Kingham Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs at the Heritage Foundation, today issued the following statement on yesterday's release of the text of a resolution establishing a new Human Rights…
For the past several years, the United Nations Human Rights Council and General Assembly have adopted resolutions recognizing and promoting the concept of "defamation of religions." Proponents seek to establish an international ban on any speech that would insult, criticize, offend, or disparage any person's religion. Specifically, the Organization of the Islamic Conference has suggested that…
The United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) was established in 2006 to replace the discredited U.N. Commission on Human Rights (CHR). Despite minimal safeguards against capture of the HRC by human rights abusers-the source of the commission's ineffectiveness-HRC supporters, including U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour, were quick to declare that the new body…
President George W. Bush's final address to the United Nations was, in many ways, an encapsulation of America's primary objectives in the U.N over the past eight years. Several issues were featured prominently in the speech, including: An appeal for the organization and the member states to more forcefully confront…
The United Nations General Assembly voted in March 2006 to replace the Commission on Human Rights with the Human Rights Council. The Commission, dominated by human rights abusers who used their influence to block scrutiny or criticism, proved to be a poor champion of human rights. Nearly two years after it was created, the United…
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is currently blocking implementation of voter ID laws in South Carolina and Texas....…
On July 5 the Russian Human Rights Council published its report on the now infamous—and mysterious—death of the lawyer...…
On March 18, the United Nations Human Rights Council is scheduled to consider its final report of Libya’s human rights...…
Was it wise for the Obama administration to reverse the Bush administration’s policy of distancing the U.S. from the...…
President Obama has submitted his administration’s legal dispute with Arizona over immigration to the U.N.'s Human...…
Last week, we noted that the U.S. State Department had submitted its “Report of the United States of America” to the...…
The fact that the Obama Administration mentioned the Arizona law involving illegal immigration and the federal...…
This morning, the U.S. State Department announced that the U.S. had submitted its “Report of the United States of...…
As the season of human rights meetings progresses at the United Nations, support for the proposed new entity dedicated...…
A story by CNSNews today discussed how the U.S. State Department has been quietly holding meetings and soliciting...…
Bernard and Barbara Lomas Fellow
Jay Kingham Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs