April 3, 2018 | The Hill

How to fix the UN’s anti-Israel club of dictators

In his latest piece for The Hill, FDD Research Analyst David May explains why the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) desperately needs reform, as well as how its disproportionate focus on Israel – the only democracy in the Middle East – in fact allows many of the atrocities occurring in and around the region to flourish, essentially making the UNHRC a “club of dictators.”

An excerpt from the op-ed follows:

“While treating Israel as a pariah, the Council recently offered a platform to Alireza Avaei, Iran’s Justice Minister, who has been sanctioned by the European Union for his role overseeing torture against pro-democracy dissidents. He and other serial human rights abusers scapegoat Israel, and ensure that the Council is so hyper-focused on the Jewish state that it cannot properly address humanitarian issues elsewhere.

As U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said, the UNHRC has become a “haven for dictators.” Their outsized role at the UNHRC has undermined the Council’s legitimacy.

The need to reform the Human Rights Council is painfully obvious. The UN should have a permanent body dedicated to the investigation and condemnation of the atrocities that remain disturbingly common. Israel should certainly not be exempt from criticism. Yet for as long as some of the world’s worst human rights abusers hold positions on the Council, many of the most egregious human rights violations will languish in darkness.”

Read the complete article from The Hill here.

David May is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

Follow the Foundation for Defense of Democracies on Twitter @FDD. FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

Issues:

International Organizations Israel