U.S. elected back to Human Rights Council more than three years after previous administration quit the body
The United States has been elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council for the first time since the previous Trump administration left the international organization in 2018, labelling the council as “chronic bias” against Israel and for allowing human rights abusers as members.
The Department of State announced on October 14 that the United States won a seat on the council for its next term, starting in 2022.
The 193-member United Nations General Assembly voted in secret and the United States was unopposed by receiving 168 votes. The U.S. would begin its three-year term on January 1, 2022, challenging China and Russia, who are also members of the council.
The U.S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield recognized the member states of international body for “overwhelming support”, and vowed to “work to ensure the Council lives up to the principle that ‘all human beings
are born free and equal in dignity and rights”.
The U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also said in a statement that “we will work hard to ensure the Council upholds its highest aspirations and better supports those fighting against injustice and tyranny around the world.”
“The Council provides a forum where we can have open discussions about ways we and our partners can improve,” Blinken added.
Secretary Blinken emphasized that the UN Human Rights Council “suffers from serious flaws, including disproportionate attention on Israel and the membership of several states with egregious human rights records.”
“Together, we must push back against attempts to subvert the ideals upon which the Human Rights Council was founded, including that each person is endowed with human rights and that states are obliged to protect those
rights,” Blinken added.
The Human Rights Council has 47 member states from across five geographic regions that are elected to three-year terms by the UN General Assembly.
