In an International Study to evaluate the performance of the State members in the UN’s Human Rights Council:
Bahrain adopts a wholesale of negative positions towards the promotion of human rights at the international level
Bahrain displayed negative results in its positions in human rights issues at the international level. Bahrain, as a member State in the UN’s Human Rights Council, took an opposing position towards 9 of 11 key issues regarding the promotion of human rights at the international level. While it declined taking a positive position in the remaining two issues.
In an International Study to evaluate the performance of the State members in the UN’s Human Rights Council:
Bahrain adopts a wholesale of negative positions towards the promotion of human rights at the international level
Bahrain displayed negative results in its positions in human rights issues at the international level. Bahrain, as a member State in the UN’s Human Rights Council, took an opposing position towards 9 of 11 key issues regarding the promotion of human rights at the international level. While it declined taking a positive position in the remaining two issues.
The results were among the worst in the group of countries who took negative positions in those issues, and they were governments of countries that belonged to the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the African Union, and other countries such as China, Russia, Cuba and India. On the other hand, seven countries representing the EU displayed positive positions in all those issues, and other countries were close to doing so such as Finland, Canada, and South American countries, Japan, Switzerland, Ukraine and South Korea.
Those results were among lists that were included in an analytical study issued by an international organization called the “Democratic Alliance project”, which is concerned with the evaluation of the performance of member States at the UN’s Human Rights Council during its first year of establishment. The study was based on the proceedings of the Council’s meeting in Geneva, and on the official statements issued by those countries or by the coalition it belongs to. Indicators related to the positions of all countries were used in 11 issues divided into four parts, as following:
Finding a credible mechanism to review the record of each country in human rights
To protect the independency of the UN’s mechanisms that are related to monitoring human rights situations around the world, or what is known as special procedures
To deal directly with the human rights situations in certain countries or what is called country-specific mechanisms
The Darfur issue
In the first part of the indicators, Bahrain was among the countries who opposed to having the non-governmental organizations and the independent experts a main role as a key and direct source of information when reviewing governments’ record in relation to human rights. On the other hand, it supported relying on the government itself. Bahrain also refused to have the process of reviewing State records be run by independent experts, but rather keeping it in the hands of government representatives. Bahrain also opposed to adopting the final recommendations by a vote between government representatives, but rather have it done unanimously, and that those positions of the process of reviewing State records will be emptied of its impact and content.
In the second part of indicators, Bahrain refused that appointing officials for the UN’s mechanisms who monitor human rights be through the Council’s presidency from a list proposed by the other concerned governments and parties, but that the selection should rather be through the governments’ representatives only.
Bahrain’s government supported the decision of creating a code of conduct, decided by the governments and committed to by those responsible for the UN’s mechanisms. Bahrain did not support a decision that the UN’s committee in Darfur be made of independent experts instead of political representatives.
As to the third and fourth part of indicators, Bahrain did not support the decision of keeping the UN’s mechanisms, which are related to the situations of human rights in certain countries. Accordingly, it was among the ones opposing the continue of examining human rights situations in the countries that had Special Rapporteurs appointed for, for examining human rights situations. Bahrain also declined to support a proposal of holding a special session to evaluate the situation in Darfur, and declined to support a decision of adopting the outcome of the UN’s mission report in relation to human rights in that area.
The international organization, which issued the study, recommended the need to develop regional alliances in order to build UN human rights mechanisms, in which they become more credible and more efficient. The study, which will be issued regularly, aims at reforming the methods of selecting member states at the Human Rights Council based on its actual positions towards human rights issues, and not based on political alliances and interests.
More information can be found in the charts related to the aforementioned study in the following links:
http://www.demcoalition.org/2005_html/undem_offic.html#Report2007
http://www.demcoalition.org/pdf/HRC%20Table%20of%20Indicators%20for%20Year%20One%20-%20Full%20Chart.pdf
