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The Hell-Hole Spectator
The Big Joke
The expensive comedy club at Turtle Bay celebrates Cuba and other human rights atrocities.
(Page 2 of 2)
Again, this is not from the pages of The Onion. It is from a debate before the Human Rights Council.
Needless to say, the Cuban government was pleased. The Cuban Interests Section (which acts as Havana’s de facto embassy) put out a press release headlined: “Cuba recognized in the Human Rights Council.” Havana grandly announced that it was accepting most of the Council’s recommendations, and “reaffirmed its commitment to the strengthening of international cooperation on human rights issues and to the UN Human Rights Council, which must be based on the principles of universality, objectivity, impartiality and non-selectiveness.”
Is there some way, in theory, in which the Human Rights Council might help advance the cause of human rights? Perhaps, but it certainly is not apparent how that might be. The official “Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review” of Cuba was as stomach-churning as the ensuing debate. Rather than advancing the cause of human liberty, the Council is providing cover for the oppressors and persecutors. Like the Castro Brothers & Co.
After receiving its UN whitewash, the Cuban government exclaimed: “The exemplary achievements of the Cuban Revolution in relation to human rights have been acknowledged once again by the international community. It has not been possible to silence the truth.”
Rather than going back into the Council, the U.S. and other serious states should make a quick exit. The problem is not Cuba. It is the UN. Saudi Arabia, too, received gentle treatment. Up the next day were Azerbaijan and China — the latter of which praised the records of Cuba, Saudi Arabia, and Cameroon. This incestuous process will continue, day after day, at the expense of the rest of us.
Human rights. United Nations. Never shall the twain meet, except in a tiresome comedy routine in an expensive club operating out of a famed high-rise in New York’s Turtle Bay.
About the Author
Doug Bandow is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute. A former Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan, he is the author and editor of several books, including The Politics of Plunder: Misgovernment in Washington (Transaction).
Letter to the Editor View all comments (33) | Leave a comment
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Danny Haszard | 6.15.09 @ 7:01AM
Jehovah's Witnesses UN hypocrisy.
The Watchtower Society took a conflicting stand with regard to the United Nations, claiming that it is the “wild beast” of Revelation that leads all nations in a fight against God and Christ at Armageddon, but signing on as an NGO member and publishing articles that present the UN in a favorable light.
'Reaping the whirlwind'{ Hosea 8:7 }
Louis Jenkins| 6.15.09 @ 8:18AM
"Angola, Egypt, Gabon, China, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan, Russia, and Cuba. " These are the leading nations for Human Rights? The foxes are managing the hen house. It is a farce and a spectacle that rivals network evening news. The UN should be bulldozed into the ocean, but unfortunately it would result in a fishkill. (Can't think of one good thing to say about the UN.)
2Anglico| 6.15.09 @ 8:32AM
The UN has always been and will always be... a joke. US out of the UN.
Jerry Jones| 6.15.09 @ 8:54AM
What the author does not tell readers regarding the treatment in Cuba of Jehovah's Witnesses and other religious cult members is that the WatchTower Cult attracts criminals and other social and political malcontents.
Some of the worst criminals in Florida are Jehovah's Witnesses from Cuba. The following webpage contains actual court case summaries of such:
http://jwemployees.bravehost.com/NewsReports/2033.html
Eric Damon| 6.15.09 @ 9:17AM
Jerry Jones:
What is your point about the Jehovah's Witnesses? The fact that many of the violent criminals in Miami are JW's has nothing to do with the organization, it has to do with the crimes of the people who commit crimes! I know a lot of drug dealers who went to prison who were nominal members of the Pentecostal Holiness denomination, yet that doesn't mean that these people who self identify as Pentecostal Holiness represent the denomination in any way.
The point here is not a defense of JW theology or Adventist theology; it is about the repression of religion by a Communist government. And more importantly, it is about a Human Rights Commission that lauds the governements that abuse, repress, imprision, and murder people simply for having beliefs that are contrary to the views of that government. I have my problems with JW theology, yet I am not going to say that any governement should have a right to attempt to destroy it for no other reason than that it is a religious faith.
Trotter| 6.15.09 @ 10:16AM
Why is the US still a member of the UN, and why is that collection of idiots still on US soil?
Trevor Spencer| 6.15.09 @ 11:32AM
To claim that Cuba has a "good human rights record" is akin to claiming that countries like North Korea or China are shining examples of democracies. There are clear breaches of evan the most basic human rights there, and I fail to see how the findings or opinions of this commission can hope to be taken seriously by anyone, even themselves.
As for Jehovah's Witnesses and other minority sects like them, they are often in opposition to governments. Their members don't join the military, and are discouraged from taking on alternative service in countries where conscription is in operation. They have no particular respect for any government, despite any claims they make otherwise. In short, their stance is an unpopular one with some governments, and while I hate to see discrimination on the grounds of belief directed against any group, it's easy to understand why some governments can become frustrated by the Watchtower's blatant disregard for their authority.
Big Leo| 6.15.09 @ 12:03PM
The measure of a country's freedom isn't determined by how well it treats those who conform to society, but how it treats the fringe groups, like Jehovah's Witnesses. They are annoying, anti-government, and theologically ridiculous. However, a lot of secular and atheist types say the same thing about a lot of Christians. If the government will persecute the Watchtower types, they will also persecute you if you do not toe the mark. As my father said about Nazi Germany, there was perfect freedom-- provided you were a Nazi.
Pingback| 6.15.09 @ 1:27PM
Cuba » Cuba links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
bobmontgomery| 6.15.09 @ 1:35PM
The US cannot get the UN to enforce its own sanctions. The US always has to go it alone. So be it. What is required is that when the Republicans regain the majority they DO WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. When the RSVP's are sent out, the non-responders can feel free to join the other side or get the hell out of the way.
Anthony| 6.15.09 @ 2:04PM
Maybe Obama will send Sec. Powell as our representative to this farce. After all, it takes one farce to know another.
Pingback| 6.15.09 @ 4:16PM
The UN again proves its uselessness and corruption « DPGI – the aftermath links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
stevor| 6.15.09 @ 4:40PM
Think about it. If you were somebody who wanted to rewrite the Constitution to "modernize" it, wouldn't be "rights" one of the things to "modernize". So, if one (such as Obummer) wanted to change people's rights, joining an organization with an obvious disregard for rights would be perfect!
Pingback| 6.15.09 @ 5:46PM
The American Spectator : The Big Joke | Cuba today links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Richard Baker| 6.15.09 @ 7:31PM
Trotter:
The reason the US is still in the UN is that, for the most part, we started and built up this organization. Call it regrets over the League of Nations and a desire to, hopefully, avoid the kind of killing that occurred during WWII, in the future. That's why, I think, we remain.
Alan Brooks| 6.15.09 @ 8:48PM
the UN exists to spread neo-totalist third world anti-Western values.
Richard Baker| 6.16.09 @ 6:37PM
Alan:
No disagreement with you but the United Nations were originally the Allied Armies which defeated the Axis powers. Call it a remembrance of better and more unified times, if you will.
Pingback| 6.18.09 @ 5:33AM
Doug Bandow » Blog Archive » Those Hilarious Jokesters at the UN Human Rights Council links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 6.21.09 @ 6:08PM
The UN and Human Rights: Never Shall the Twain Meet | Think Tank West links to this page. Here’s an excerpt: