April 6, 2006

U.S. Misses Opportunity on
UN Human Rights Council

Washington, D.C. -- Below is a statement from Don Kraus, Executive Vice President of Citizens for Global Solutions, which encouraged the United States to run for a seat on the new Human Rights Council at the United Nations:

“Beginning with Eleanor Roosevelt, the U.S. has historically played a decisive leadership role in establishing and advancing democracy and human rights. That leadership role was abandoned today by the Bush administration when it announced the U.S. would not to run for a seat on the Human Rights Council.

“This is a lost opportunity for our nation and undermines our position as a leader on these issues. It also weakens the newly established Council. It also runs counter to a pledge made by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton when he said our nation would ‘work cooperatively with other Member States to make the Council as strong and effective as it can be.’

“The U.S. will miss the formative session that will shape the Council’s agenda for years to come. The U.S. should have heeded the wisdom of Teddy Roosevelt. We should not sideline ourselves as the critic who points out how things could be done better. We should be in the arena making a difference.

“With so many vital human rights issues on the table, from genocide in Darfur to North Korea, what message are we sending to the world by abstaining? We need a seat at the table to address these issues—and now we won’t be afforded this opportunity."

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Notes to Editors:
Citizens for Global Solutions is a non-partisan membership organization that envisions a future in which nations work together to abolish war, protect our rights and freedoms, and solve the problems facing humanity that no one nation can solve alone.


Updated April 6, 2006

Howard Salter
Director of Communications
202 546 3950 ext 112