U.S. loses U.N. rights seat; China cheers

James Cunningham, acting ambassador to the U.N., says the U.S. will still pursue human rights issues

In this story: 'Historic contribution' Growing resentment Voting procedure RELATED STORIES, SITES

UNITED NATIONS -- China has lauded the United States being voted out of the U.N. Human Rights Commission.

The U.S. lost its seat the same day U.S. President George W. Bush expressed concern over China's crackdown on religious freedom, particularly on Falun Gong spiritual group members.

	MESSAGE BOARD
The U.S. and the UN

While managing to avoid censure at the Geneva meeting, China accused the U.S. of "politicizing" human rights as a tool of power and of having "undermined the atmosphere for dialogue."

France, Sweden and Austria were chosen for three seats allocated to Western countries on the 53-member commission.

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was first created in 1947 and chaired by the late U.S. first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, making the vote an embarrassing blow to the U.S.

'Historic contribution'

U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson said the U.S. has made "a historic contribution" and expressed hope it "will return speedily as a member of the commission," spokesman Jose Luis Diaz said in a statement.

U.N. Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson hopes the U.S. regains its seat

Diplomats and U.S. officials offered various explanations for the unprecedented slight, including the absence of a U.S. ambassador to the U.N. and retaliation against frequent American criticism of rights abuses in other countries.

"This won't at all, of course, affect our commitment to human rights issues in and outside of the United Nations. We'll continue to pursue them," acting U.S. ambassador James Cunningham said after the vote.

The vote "should come as a wake-up call" to Washington, said Joanna Weschler, the U.N. representative for Human Rights Watch.

At the same time, she and others expressed concern that Sudan, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Togo -- all countries with poor human rights records -- became commission members on Thursday.

They joined Syria, Algeria, Libya, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam which have also frequently been accused of rights abuses and were elected to the commission last year.

Vietnam said Friday that the U.S. should reconsider its own policies on human rights.

"(This) reflects the general assessment of the council's members on the real human rights situation in the United States," foreign ministry spokeswoman Phan Thuy Thanh said of Thursday's vote.

Growing resentment

A growing resentment toward the U.S. has been noted among both Western and developing countries.

China has been accused of a brutal suppression of religious freedom

In recent years, the U.S. has been on the forefront of efforts to condemn the human rights records of China, Cuba, and other countries.

The U.S. has also opposed international agreements including a treaty to abolish land mines and another that would create an international criminal court.

"It is absurd that rogue states such as Libya, Sudan and Cuba remain on the Commission and sit in judgment on the human rights practices of others, while the U.S. now stands on the sidelines," said U.S. congressman Tom Lantos, co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Commission.

"Gross violators of human rights" seek membership on the commission "to avoid scrutiny," said U.S. congressman Chris Smith, a member of the U.S. delegation to last month's commission meeting in Geneva.

"I think now more than ever, especially since there is so much hypocrisy on the commission, the U.S. should move even more aggressively to reclaim a seat," he said.

Voting procedure

The commission, which usually meets in Geneva, makes recommendations on the protection and promotion of human rights, either on its own initiative or at the request of the U.N. General Assembly or Security Council.

It is part of the U.N. Economic and Social Council, which chooses the commission's new members to three-year terms. About one-third are elected each year.

Candidates are nominated by regional groups, and the Western Europe and Others Group proposed four candidates for three seats.

France got 52 votes; Austria, 41; Sweden, 32; and the United States, 29.

Although the United States will now be unable to vote on commission resolutions, it can still initiate and co-sponsor resolutions and lobby other governments to vote a particular way.

Election to seats on U.N. bodies involves intense lobbying, and the United States has been at a disadvantage since the January departure of Ambassador Richard Holbrooke.

President Bush nominated veteran diplomat John Negroponte as U.N. ambassador in March, but his nomination has not yet been sent to the Senate for confirmation.

The Associated Press & Reuters contributed to this report.

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Office of the U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights

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