Cuba, US Elected to UN Human Rights Council

HAVANA TIMES, May 13 – Cuba has been re-elected for a second three-year period as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC) based in Geneva, Switzerland, while the United States was elected for the first time.

A total of 18 of the Council’s 47 seats were up for election by region and by secret ballot. The countries elected were Bangladesh, Belgium, Cameroon, China, Cuba, Djibouti , Hungary, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Mauritius, Mexico, Nigeria, Norway, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, United States and Uruguay.

With 191 UN General Assembly members voting, thirteen of the countries were re-elected with five, the United States, Hungary, Belgium, Kyrgyzstan and Norway being the new additions. Losing a seat was Azerbaijan, while Canada, Germany and Switzerland rotated off the current Council and didn’t stand for re-election.

Cuban authorities have expressed their satisfaction because the multilateral body —formed in 2006— eliminated the special rapporteur on the human rights situation in the island, in force under the now defunct UN Commission of Human Rights, reported IPS.