U.S. should recoil from UN rogues (Bill Frist Op-Ed)

Chicago Tribune ^ | March 10, 2006 | Senator William Frist

[RWR8189]

If the United Nations doesn't agree to major reforms of its Human Rights Commission, the U.S. should stick to its principles and withdraw from the body.

Since it began operations in 1946, this international human rights monitor can point to few successes. It failed to speak out against communism, failed to act against Rwanda's genocide and failed to condemn nations that sponsor terrorism. Instead, it has singled out Israel--the Middle East's only democracy--for continued criticism while overlooking serious human rights abuses throughout the Arab world. Today, emissaries from Cuba's communist dictatorship, Sudan's genocidal military rulers and Zimbabwe's kleptocratic regime sit on the commission and cast judgment on other nations' human rights records.

With such serial human rights abusers helping to call the shots, it's no surprise that the current commission simply doesn't work. Every day, governments from Venezuela to China, and from Saudi Arabia to Eritrea, take actions that belie any commitment to human rights. The commission, however, remains virtually silent.

While the UN bureaucracy has proposed a plan that has won a thin veneer of global support, it would make only superficial changes to the current commission structure. The Bush administration has proposed an alternate plan that would put the commission on a path to real reform. We know the plan makes sense because some of the world's worst human rights abusers object to it.

If the UN doesn't approve a meaningful reform package by the commission's March 13 meeting, the U.S. should seriously consider joining with other responsible countries to create a new human rights body outside of the UN system. We could jump-start such an initiative by withdrawing the U.S. share of funds that would otherwise go to the Human Rights Commission and giving those resources to the new organization.

[Logical me]

Finally, some sanity. Better still I think we should withdraw from the UN and kick the organization out of the US.

[SouthernBoyupNorth]

I'll second that!

[River_Wrangler]

My only concern with this article is that it was written by Senator William Frist. Bill hasn't been right about much in his career.

[MonroeDNA]

I'll third that!

[edcoil]

Pres Bush should sgn an executive order to remove ourselves from the UN as he should do with drilling in Alaska.

It takes a 2/3 vote to over-ride an executive order.

To hell with the democrates that are stopping America from moving forward.

[Paul_Denton]

The UN should be abolished and the building turned into a dump.

[livius]

If the UN doesn't approve a meaningful reform package by the commission's March 13 meeting, the U.S. should seriously consider joining with other responsible countries to create a new human rights body outside of the UN system. We could jump-start such an initiative by withdrawing the U.S. share of funds that would otherwise go to the Human Rights Commission and giving those resources to the new organization.

Yes! This is Frist????

[proud_yank]

The UN should be abolished and the building turned into a dump.

A dump certainly would be fitting, but I would like to see it turned into the world's largest Super WalMart.