From UN Watch:
Despite having just voted to suspend Libya from its ranks, the UN Human Rights Council is about to adopt a lengthy report hailing Libya’s human rights record. The report, which is on the council website, is the outcome of a recent session that reviewed Libya’s human rights record. Although the “Universal Periodic Review” mechanism is described by council defenders as its saving grace, the vast majority of council members and observers falsely praised the Gaddafi regime for its alleged promotion of human rights. The regime’s reps also declared the same — click here for quotes — though now they admit that the opposite is true. The report is on the council website and set to be adopted during the current March session.The report shows how much other states with horrendous human rights records praise Libya's own stellar adherence to human rights standards.
Iran, Syria, Jordan, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, North Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, Egypt - on and on it goes, countries falling over themselves to praise Libya.
Will anyone from those countries hold their leaders to account for their words?
Oh, I forgot. Their people generally aren't allowed to criticize their regimes. My bad.
Unfortunately, even Western countries tempered their criticisms of Libya in the report:
Australia welcomed the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya’s progress in human rights and its willingness to facilitate visits by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, which demonstrated the country’s commitment to engaging with the international community on human rights. Australia remained concerned over restrictions on freedom of assembly and expression; the detention of political prisoners; limited rights to fair trial under the new State Security court; enforced disappearances; deaths in custody; discrimination towards minorities; lack of legal protections against domestic violence; and the application of the death penalty. Australia made recommendations.
Canada welcomed improvements made by the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in its respect for human rights, specifically the recent legislation that granted women married to foreigners the right to pass on their Libyan nationality to their children, as well as the acknowledgement of the deaths of hundreds of Abu Salim prisoners in 1996 and the first incountry release of a report by an international non-governmental organization in 2009. Canada made recommendations.
The US statement wasn't bad:
The United States of America supported the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya’s increased engagement with the international community. It called on the country to comply with its human rights treaty obligations. It expressed concern about reports of the torture of prisoners and about the status of freedom of expression and association, including in its legislation, which often resulted in the arrest of people for political reasons. The United States made recommendations.
Only one state showed the bluntness and truth necessary when dealing with regimes like Libya:
Israel noted that The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya should live up to the membership standards set forth in General Assembly resolution 60/251 and serve as a model in the protection of human rights; while, in reality, its membership in the Council served to cover the ongoing systemic suppression, in law and in practice, of fundamental rights and freedoms. Israel made recommendations.
If you need just one document to show how morally corrupt the UN is, this is it.
(h/t Folderol)