A divided vote for the UN’s human rights chief: Volker Türk’s second-term appointment election sees the USA side with Russia and North Korea
The UN General Assembly recently voted to reappoint Volker Türk as High Commissioner for Human Rights, making him the first person to serve two terms since the post was created in 1993. The 144 votes in favour marked a clear victory for human rights. But the 10 votes against, including by the USA, along with 13 abstentions and 26 no-shows, demonstrate the fragility of a system that depends on states cooperating and providing funding. At a time when major powers are attacking the international system, states that voted in favour of Türk’s second term must give the UN’s human rights functions their political and financial support.
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Some states that might have been expected to vote against Türk, however, supported him. Among the 144 who backed his reappointment were the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan and Syria, all states subject to active UN scrutiny. This suggested that hostility to a specific human rights mandate doesn’t necessarily extend to the whole system, and even heavily scrutinised states may see value in a working relationship with the OHCHR.
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Among the smaller states that ducked a decision, some likely faced economic or political pressure from the most powerful states to stay quiet, while others may have judged themselves insufficiently protected from the consequences of taking a visible position. This means the vote may reflect vulnerability as much as it measures support for the High Commissioner. As the most powerful states increasingly throw their weight around in the international system, smaller states may have to make calculations about when they can afford to take a position and when they need to stay quiet.
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Institutional continuity is the immediate outcome, and Türk has signalled what he intends to do with it. In a June speech, he described an ‘unprecedented, shameless onslaught against international law’ that’s causing appalling human suffering, insisted the international community must stay focused on fundamentals and declared the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the core treaties ‘ever more important’. His message to the G7, meeting nearby, was blunt: put human rights at the centre of discussions as a force for stability, not an afterthought.
Legitimacy and moral authority, however, won’t pay the OHCHR’s bills. Over the next four years, Türk must resist China, Russia and the USA as they work to undermine the UN bodies that protect human rights. The 144 states that backed Türk now carry the responsibility of turning their votes into action. They should ensure the OHCHR is adequately funded and work to bring on board states that abstained, particularly if they did so out of fear. They must show that collective commitment to human rights still counts for something.
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https://lens.civicus.org/a-divided-vote-for-the-uns-human-rights-chief/Open linkView original on mander.xyz
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This time I think China shouldn't be included in the chastised countries unless he is obviously bought.
I don't fully understand the opposition. Why vote against him? There will be reports anyway. Is it to invalidate his criticism?
As an addition: In October 2025, the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) published a report that shows how, for the first time in history, a small group of States led by China and Russia are obstructing and hijacking budget negotiations at the United Nations (UN) to defund human rights bodies and investigations.
ISHR’s report ‘Budget Battles at the UN: How States Try to Defund Human Rights’ (pdf) finds that China and Russia - fueled by the failure of the United States (US) - have led a sustained effort to build influence, disrupt proceedings, and politicise technical discussions at the UN General Assembly’s Fifth Committee (5C), where States negotiate the UN’s budget,
As the report shows in detail, Chinese influence within these bodies has expanded sharply over the years. Beijing has invested heavily in building its representation at the 5C, the ACABQ and other related bodies to push heavy budget cuts to human rights. Russia has frequently played the role of outspoken spoiler in negotiations, enabling China to deploy its influence more quietly but effectively behind closed doors.
‘Russian and Chinese diplomats have weaponised UN budget negotiations to serve their own interests and shield allies from scrutiny, at the expense of human rights. Budget negotiations should be solely guided by the goal of adequately funding the UN’s work, not serving as a political tool to weaken accountability and rights protection,' says Madeleine Sinclair, Director of ISHR’s New York office.
Because America is run by anti-human scum. No duh.