UN Update
Bangladesh elected member of UN HR Council
Bangladesh was elected one of the 47 members of the newly formed Human Rights Council of the United Nations by a large margin of votes in the council's first election held at the UN General Assembly in New York. A total of 63 countries were nominated for 47 seats in the newly established council, whose resolution had been passed by the general assembly on March 15. President of the UN General Assembly Jan Eliasson coordinated the election. This was one of the most hotly contested elections in the world body in recent times.
Among the 13 elected Asian countries, Bangladesh bagged 160 votes, coming next to India with 173 and Indonesia with 165 votes. Bangladesh will serve on the council for a full three-year term. China, Jordan, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia were also voted to serve full three-year terms while India will serve on the body for a year. Bangladesh also received more votes than bigger countries like Japan and China who received 158 and 146 votes respectively.
"The victory of Bangladesh in the Human Rights Council elections signifies strong international endorsement for the government's commitment to upholding and promoting human rights in Bangladesh which is recognised by the global community as well as by the regional and other international communities," Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan told a hurriedly called press briefing. He said when a conspiratorial campaign is launched at home and abroad trying to brand Bangladesh as a country of human rights violations, Bangladesh's victory is an apt reply to the critics and campaigners. "The victory is also a milestone in the achievements of Bangladesh's foreign policy," the foreign minister added. He said the council will have much more power and weight to go into action against any violation of human rights.
Ghana topped the race for 13 African seats. The other 12 went to Algeria, Cameroon, Djibouti, Gabon, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia and Zambia. India received the highest number of votes in the race for 13 Asian seats. The other 12 went to Bahrain, Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Republic of Korea and Sri Lanka. Brazil received the highest number of votes in the race for eight Latin American and Caribbean seats. Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay got the other seven. Germany received the highest number of votes in the race for seven seats allotted for Western European countries and other states. The other six seats went to Canada, Finland, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Azerbaijan, the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Russia and Ukraine obtained the six seats allotted for Eastern European states.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan welcoming the result of the election said, "This will give its members the chance to show the depth of their commitment to promote human rights both at home and abroad."
Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations, described the results as 'a great victory for Bangladesh and Bangladeshis'. Speaking to the media, he said this is a fitting recognition of the country by the world community. "Today every Bangladeshi should have a reason to feel proud", he added. "We must now show the world that we are capable of discharging the heavy responsibility the international community has imposed on us", he said.
The creation of the 47-member Human Rights Council comes following the UN's plan to overhaul the organisation. The new council replaces the now defunct Human Rights Commission, which was criticised for inefficiency and for including countries with bad human rights records as its members. The new council will hold its first session on June 19.
Source: The Daily Star.
