At UN
HRC, Spats of
Syria &
Saudi, Japan
& DPRK,
Hypocrisy on
Sri Lanka
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, March
2 -- The UN
Human Rights
Council first
day back in
session Monday
ended with
replies by
Syria and
Saudi Arabia,
North Korea
and Japan --
and Ethiopia
to Norway.
The first two
standoffs were
routine, about
Saudi Arabians
funding
terrorism and
the death toll
in Syria,
Japan's “past
crimes” and
the recent
North Korea or
DPRK report.
Ethiopia
defended its
law on
non-governmental
organizations;
its reply did
not mention
the Zone
9 Bloggers
being jailed.
Mexico praised
the US FCC's
Net Neutrality
decision; HRC
chair Joachim
Rucker played
time keeper at
the end,
telling DPRK
to wrap it up,
and saying
only two
minutes on
second
replies.
Saudi Arabia's
statements did
not mention jailed and
flogged
blogger Raif
Badawi.
Nor did Prince
Zeid's opening
remarks
explain how
his criticism
of countries
claiming
exceptions to
human rights
law was
consistent
with his
obtaining a
six month
deferral of
the HRC report
on Sri Lanka.
The UK's Joyce
Anelay said
the report
should be
published no
later than
September; as
she spoke in
Geneva, the UK
delegation in
New York went
into the UN
Security
Council to
meet with
incoming
Council
president
France. Why
was the
slaughter in
Sri Lanka
never put on
the Security
Council's
agenda? What
is the UN's Jeffrey
Feltman saying
in Sri Lanka?
We'll have
more on this.
, 
