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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: stockman_scott who wrote (18296)	4/29/2003 7:30:28 PM
From: Sully-	Respond to of 89467

Cuba Re-Elected to UN Human Rights Commission VOA News 29 Apr 2003, 21:40 UTC Cuba has been re-elected to the United Nations Human Rights Commission, angering U.S. officials who likened the move to choosing a gangster to protect a bank. Cuba was selected for a new three-year term Tuesday after the U.N. Economic and Social Council chose 24 countries to serve on the commission. The Council is the parent body of the Human Rights Commission, which sits in Geneva. The move prompted the U.S. ambassador to the council, Sichan Siv, to walk out of the meeting in protest. Mr. Siv said he was indignant because Cuba "is the worst violator of human rights in the Western hemisphere." White House spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters in Washington Tuesday the vote to seat Cuba on the human rights panel is inappropriate and does not serve the cause of human rights. Mr. Fleischer also says the vote raises questions about the commitment of the U.N. rights panel to human rights. The vote follows a recent Cuban government crackdown on dissent that has been criticized around the world. Cuba recently prosecuted nearly 80 pro-democracy dissidents, sentencing them to lengthy prison terms for treason and subversion. Authorities also executed three men earlier this month convicted of hijacking a ferry with the intent of reaching the United States. On Monday, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said the Bush administration is reviewing all aspects of its policy toward Cuba in light of what he described as the island's "deteriorating" human rights situation. President Castro has accused the United States and anti-Castro exiles in Florida of plotting to provoke a mass exodus of citizens from Cuba as an excuse for military intervention. Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters. voanews.com

To: stockman_scott who wrote (18296)	4/29/2003 7:33:20 PM
From: Sully-	Respond to of 89467

More on the UN & protecting Human Rights....... The commission is the primary U.N. organ responsible for human rights protection. The current chair is Libya. Yes, Libya. In addition to Libya, three of the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism are current members--Cuba, Sudan and Syria. On April 15, the commission adopted a resolution sanctioning the use of "all available means including armed struggle"--which includes suicide bombing--as a legitimate tactic against Israelis. Only five countries, including the U.S., voted against. The U.K. and France abstained, and Russia approved. More than a quarter of the commission's resolutions condemning a state's human rights violations passed over the last 30 years have been directed at Israel. There has never been a single resolution on China, Syria or Saudi Arabia. The current session ended by defeating a resolution to criticize anything about the situation in Zimbabwe, and by eliminating the 10-year-old position of rapporteur on human rights in Sudan. This was despite a report of the U.N. rapporteur on torture informing commission members of the Sudanese practice of "cross-amputation"--amputation of right hand and left foot for armed robbery, and various cases of women being stoned to death for alleged adultery. Commission meetings themselves are a platform for incitement to hate and violence. At this year's session, the Iranian deputy foreign minister threatened what he called a "vicious circle" of violence and future "extremism" resulting from the Iraq war. The Cuban representative demanded action against "the most critical case of . . . massive and flagrant violations of human rights [and] of the systemic institutionalization of racism--that of the United States." The Algerian delegate said: "The Israeli war machine has been trying for five decades to arrive at a final solution." The Palestinian representative called for the "elimination" of "Zionist Nazism." More generally, the U.N. has no definition of terrorism. Even in the immediate wake of Sept. 11, the General Assembly has not been able to adopt a comprehensive convention against terrorism. The members of the Organization of Islamic Conference and the League of Arab States have blocked consensus on any common understanding of terrorism. In the view of countries like Saudi Arabia, expressed again during the current commission, "we should distinguish between the phenomenon of terrorism and the right of peoples to achieve self-determination." The Syrian member of the Security Council likewise impedes the implementation of Council Resolution 1373, the resolution detailing post-9/11 responsibilities of states to fight terrorism.

To: stockman_scott who wrote (18296)	4/29/2003 7:35:57 PM
From: Sully-	Respond to of 89467

"``Everyone knows he <Bush> lied about weapons of mass destruction being the point of the war.''" Everyone? I wonder what you will post when evidence of WMD's are confirmed.

To: stockman_scott who wrote (18296)	4/29/2003 7:52:33 PM
From: westpacific	Respond to of 89467

Goodbye dollar, my old friend. Saluting as it sails off into the sunset....... What is to be expected when you piss off all the nations that hold your debt. And if you think Chinas way to defeat US is not to fire a single shot, they will crush us economically. Maybe we can give them Yosemite to keep them happy at some distant point down the road - would make a great theme park! Of course get ready for the Washington pack to announce a weak dollar was part of their plan.................of course.