To: African delegations to the United Nations
Your Excellency,
As a diverse coalition of human rights organizations, we write in advance of the 2009 Human Rights Council elections to welcome reports that African states plan to present a competitive slate for election to the Council.
General Assembly resolution 60/251, which established the Council, specifies that Council members shall be elected directly and individually, and that, in casting their ballots, Member States "shall take into account the contribution of candidates to the promotion and protection of human rights and their voluntary pledges and commitments." These provisions underline the spirit of the resolution: that UN Member States be given a real choice in the elections to select members that "uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights" and "fully cooperate with the Council."
As organizations that have closely followed and supported the Council's development, we believe it is essential to the Council's success that candidates be assessed on the basis of their human rights records and pledges. "Clean slates," where the same number of candidates is presented as seats available in the region, undermine this principle and permit Council members to effectively be selected on the basis of rotation or reciprocal vote trading agreements. By contrast, competitive slates allow UN Member States to elect the best candidates proposed from each region of the world. We therefore support competitive slates in every region.
In the past three elections, we have been disappointed by the decision of African states to present clean slates. For the 2009 election, we welcome reports that African states will present a competitive slate with more than five candidates for the five available seats in the region. By reversing the trend of clean slates, African states will send a strong signal that they are committed to principled Human Rights Council elections in which candidates can be judged by their dedication to promoting human rights. We firmly believe that a competitive slate will be to the benefit of African states, and the region more generally, and hope to see such an election.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. Representatives of the undersigned organizations would be pleased to meet with you to discuss the upcoming elections.
Sincerely,
Hannah Forster, Executive Director, African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies
Yap See Seng, Executive Director, Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
Basil Fernando, Executive Director, Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC).
Bani Dugal, Principal Representative, Baha'i International Community
Nabeel Rajab, President, Bahrain Center for Human Rights
Moataz El Fegiery, Executive Director, Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)
Karin Ryan, Director, Human Rights Program, The Carter Center
Francis M. Ssekandi, International Legal Consultant, Center for War/Peace Studies (CWPS)
Ingrid Srinath, Secretary General, CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
Juan Carlos Gutiérrez, Executive Director, Comisión Mexicana de Defensa y Promoción de los Derechos Humanos, A.C. (Mexican Commission for the Defence and Promotion of Human Rights)
Maja Daruwala, Director, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative
Lucia Nader, International Relations Coordinator, Conectas Direitos Humanos
Radwan Ziadeh, Director, Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies in Syria
Dokhi Fassihian, Executive Director, Democracy Coalition Project
Hassan Shire Sheikh, Chairperson, East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (EHAHRD-Net)
Souhayr Belhassen, President, FIDH - Fédération internationale des ligues des droits de l'Homme/International Federation for Human Rights
Dieudonne Zognong, President, Fondation Humanus
Paula Schriefer, Director of Advocacy, Freedom House
Omowumi Asubiaro, Senior Project Officer, Gender and Affirmative Action Issue Based Project in Nigeria
Tad Stahnke, Director of Policy and Programs, Human Rights First
Iain Levine, Program Director, Human Rights Watch
Hélène Sackstein, Permanent Representative, International Alliance of Women
Dr. Gyarmati István, Ambassador, Professor, President & CEO, International Centre for Democratic Transition (ICDT)
Dr. Lukas Machon, Representative to the United Nations, International Commission of Jurists
Isabelle Scherer, Executive Director, International Service for Human Rights
Jarrett Blanc, Sr. Policy Analyst, Multilateral Affairs, Open Society Institute.
Eric Sottas, Secretary General, Organisation Mondiale contre la Torture/ World Organisation against Torture
Itoro Eze-Anaba, Managing Partner, Partnership for Justice
Andrew Albertson, Executive Director, Project on Middle East Democracy
Carlos E. Ponce S., General Coordinator, Red Latinoamericana y del Caribe para la Democracia
Mike Gesa Munabi, President, Students for Global Democracy Uganda
cc:
- Secretary-General of the United Nations
- President of General Assembly
