generalspeaking

When Sudan was elected at the end of January as Vice-President of the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), UN Watch, together with film star Mia Farrow rightly objected.
ECOSOC is a top U.N. body, regulating human rights groups, shaping the composition of
 key U.N. women’s rights bodies, and adopting resolutions on subjects ranging from Internet freedom to female genital mutilation. Thus, genocidal Sudan seemed a highly inappropriate choice.

Yet, UN Watch’s calls to condemn this appointment fell on deaf ears, with neither UN chief Ban Ki-moon nor human rights commissioner Navi Pillay, making a statement against this absurdity.
Last week, however, Sudan’s appointment became even more outrageous when ECOSOC President, Néstor Osorio of Columbia, informed delegations that Sudan would be chairing the humanitarian affairs segment of the Council’s work.

Thankfully, in a later meeting of ECOSOC that week, some delegations, including Canada, the United States and the European Union, called into question the Sudanese Government’s commitment to human rights, questioning their suitability for the position.  In particular they pointed towards the “devastating” humanitarian situation in Darfur, as well as in Blue Nile and South Kordofan states.
Sudan of course rejected these allegations, calling them “wholly unfounded,”  while other delegations spoke up in support of this appointment, including: China, Venezuela and Cuba.

Due to the disagreement on the matter, the President agreed to postpone a final decision. Meanwhile, the US has continued its campaign against the appointment. Although this deferral is encouraging, it is hardly sufficient; the prospect of having Sudan as chair of anything connected to humanitarian affairs is not only laughable, but utterly ludicrous.