UN creates new human rights body

The United Nations has created a new body in an effort to repair its frayed reputation on human rights.

In spite of strong opposition from the United States, the UN General Assembly has overwhelmingly voted in favour, by a margin of 170-4, of a new organization to replace the discredited Human Rights Commission with a new organization, the Human Rights Council.

For years, the Human Rights Commission has been stacked with members from some of the world's most notorious human rights abusers: Sudan, Zimbabwe, Saudi Arabia and Cuba have long used it to shelter themselves from criticism.

"This draft resolution represents a unique opportunity for a fresh start for human rights," said the president of the General Assembly, Sweden's Jan Eliasson, after the vote Wednesday to create the new council.

"For many of you adopting this draft resolution," said Eliasson, "would mean compromise on some points which you had felt and still feel strongly."

Under the new rules it will be harder to become a member and stay a member of the body.

Nations will be elected, not appointed, as they have been in the past, and new members will face scrutiny of their own record.

"The General Assembly, by a two-thirds majority of members present and voting, could suspend the rights of membership of a council member who commits gross and systematic violations of human rights," Eliasson said.

But the rules are still a little too loose, according to the United States.

"On too many issues the current text is not sufficiently improved," said U.S. Ambassador John Bolton, who cast a vote against the creation of the new commission.

"We must not let the victims of human rights abuses throughout the world think that UN member states were willing to settle for good enough," he said.

Along with the United States, Israel, the Marshall Islands and Palau voted against the creation of the new council, with Venezuela, Iran and Belarus abstaining.

Canada voted yes, but with the same misgivings other nations and human rights groups expressed, that the new council is hardly ideal.

Even UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who said the former rights body cast a long shadow over the credibility of the entire UN, said he believes this compromise is better than nothing.

"No country will be wholly satisfied with every paragraph in the resolution, but such is the nature of international negotiations," said Annan in a statement.

The next step is the election of the 47 members of the new Human Rights Council, which will hold its first meeting in June.