Welcome to the club. Other beacons of human rights such as Pakistan, China, Saudi Arabia, (formerly) Libya and so on!
Despite Brutal Crackdown on Protesters, Syria’s Election to UN Human Rights Council “All But Assured”UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Human rights groups and a growing number of governments are working to prevent Syria from being elected to the U.N.’s top human rights body, as President Bashar Assad’s security forces crack down on pro-democracy protesters.
Syria’s election to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council is all but assured as one of four candidates selected to fill four Asian seats unless another candidate enters the race or Syria fails to win a majority of votes in the May 20 election in the 192-member General Assembly.
Since the 53-member Asian Group endorsed its slate — which also includes India, Indonesia and the Philippines — for the council in January, rights groups and some governments have engaged in a behind-the-scenes effort to keep Syria off the council.
Those efforts have gathered steam since a crackdown on pro-democracy protests since mid-March has left more than 350 dead and hundreds wounded, diplomats said.
One diplomat involved in the process, speaking on condition of anonymity because the consultations are private, said he was confident that another country would be found to contest the election but declined to say which countries were being pursued.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hlI8LLKHBvYl2AklKk-oFm87nvQw?docId=a6c81b171fac41e897d087ce7e10e3adNot that this council actually does anything for human rights.
