Political Quotes

“yesterday, I wrote a letter to President Bush expressing my strong opposition to the United States participating in the United Nations Human Rights Council. I believe the newly established body represents little improvement over the old and discredited commission it is intended to replace. Furthermore, any U.S. participation or financial support of the Council undermines our credibility as defenders of human rights around the world. I believe many of my colleagues share my assessment, which is why this resolution expresses the Senate's opposition to the Council and our strong belief that the United States should take no part. The United Nations Commission on Human Rights was established by the United States and our allies in 1946 to monitor and prevent human rights abuses throughout the world. It was charged to uphold the ideals embodied in the U.N. Charter and the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. However, in the intervening years, the Commission fell far short of these noble expectations. In particular, the Commission consistently granted membership to some of the world's worst human rights abusers. Sudan, Cuba, Libya, China, and Zimbabwe all have demonstrated egregious disregard for the human rights of their own citizens and shamefully were all Commission members. Moreover, the Commission repeatedly failed to act or condemn numerous cases of intolerable human rights abuses.…”