UN:  India was re-elected unanimously to the UN Human Rights Council on Thursday for another three-year term. This term start from the year 2020 with a pledge to bring its pluralistic, moderate and balanced perspective to straddle various divides or differences in the Council.
India got 184 out of 193 votes cast in the election. India’s manifesto for the election emphasized that the promotion and protection of human rights were best served by dialogue, cooperation and constructive and collaborative engagement. A total of 18 seats were up for election this year under the system of rotating membership with three year terms on the 47 member Council.
The Asia group of countries unanimously endorsed India, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates for the five seats for the region that were up for election this year ensuring their unopposed election. Despite the unanimity, two spoiler votes were cast one each for Fiji and the Maldives. The other regional ballots were five for Africa, three each for the two groups, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Western and Other Countries, and two for Eastern Europe. They were also non-competitive as the various groups had endorsed only as many countries as there were vacancies.
The US rejoined the Council in 2021 after Joe Biden elected as President of US but with only 168 votes, the lowest number of votes of the 18 countries. The Secretary of State had said that Washington’s withdrawal had created a vacuum on the Council that authoritarian countries had taken advantage of and to redress this, the US must be at the table using the full weight of our diplomatic leadership.
Pakistan, China and Nepal are also currently on the Council with terms running till 2023. India was elected in 2018 to the current term that began in 2019 and after its election this time it will not be able to seek re-election in 2024 because the rules do not allow a country to serve more than two consecutive terms.
India in its manifesto for the re-election said the promotion and protection of human rights is essential to achieving the goal of socio-economic advancement of humanity in its entirety. India’s desire to serve as a member of the Human Rights Council is rooted in its belief that States members of the Council have a unique opportunity and responsibility to work towards the global advancement of human rights, it said.