U.S. skips first full human rights review in two decades
Washington’s absence on Tuesday marks a historic break from the U.N. process that checks all 193 member states.
By Amit Chukwu ·
The United States is set to miss its scheduled human rights review in Geneva on Tuesday. This will make it the first nation to fully ignore the universal periodic review since the U.N. Human Rights Council began the process 20 years ago. The administration has already skipped one previous appointment, and the current review has been pushed back to this date in hopes that Washington would reconsider.
The Trump administration pulled the country out of the council last year. Officials accused the body of an anti-U.S. and anti-Israel bias. They also claimed the council did not uphold the values it promotes. A State Department spokesperson told The Associated Press in an email that the department gives no credibility to the agency.
The spokesperson called the council an irredeemable body. They argued that it makes a mockery of human rights by failing to uphold its own standards. The statement also alleged that the council consistently pushes anti-American rhetoric while failing to condemn major rights violators.
The Geneva-based council examines the rights records of all 193 U.N. member states every four to five years. Usually, national delegations of a dozen or more officials present their case and answer questions from other envoys. The process is designed to act as a mirror for governments to improve their policies. Without a national representative present, the council says the review cannot move forward.
Critics of the U.S. decision warn that this walkout could set a precedent. Other nations often bristle at intense scrutiny from human rights monitors. They may now feel emboldened to skip their own reviews. This could weaken the consistency of the global oversight system that the council established two decades ago.
Jamil Dakwar, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s human rights program, addressed reporters in Geneva on Monday. He said the administration is telling the world that it does not care about being reviewed. He added that the U.S. intends to continue violating human rights unabashedly. Dakwar stated that the council should hold the United States accountable to its commitments.
The ACLU and its allies have asked the U.N. human rights chief to present an update on rights in the United States early next year. This move aims to raise awareness of the country’s record while it is absent from the formal process. The group seeks to keep the U.S. under the microscope despite its official withdrawal.
Eric Tistounet, a visiting professor at the Geneva Graduate Institute and the council’s first secretary, said the absence affects the credibility of the review system. He noted that the United States is the predominant global power. Tistounet said that when a major power claims to adhere to human rights norms but does not show up to justify its actions, the system faces a serious problem.
