Russia, China elected to UN Human Rights Council despite dubious track records, Saudi Arabia fails to secure seat

This appeared in The Millennial Source

Apart from Russia and China, Pakistan and Cuba were also elected to the council despite their poor image as defenders of human rights.

On Tuesday, October 13, Russia and China were elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), much to the dismay of several human rights groups as the two countries are widely believed to have dubious human rights records.

Saudi Arabia was expected to win a place on the 47-seat body but failed to make the cut, delivering a severe blow to the country’s efforts to improve its image on the human rights front.

Cuba and Pakistan were also elected to the council despite their poor image as defenders of human rights.

The UN General Assembly elections aimed to fill 15 seats in the 47-nation council through a secret ballot vote conducted at the UN headquarters in New York. The openings belonged to five regions — Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin America-Caribbean and Western Europe.

France and the UK were elected unopposed to represent Western Europe.