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U.S. : The Human Rights "We" Care About

This comes to me from Danny Schechter, posted on his News Dissector blog (and is partially re-posted here, with the kind permission of Danny):


HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES—THEIRS AND OURS


Its that time of the year when the State Department issues annual reports on human rights in other countries—not this one of course, or about any of our close allies. For example, this report by Human Rights First on Command Responsibility into the deaths of detainees in US custody is not cited.

Read it and weep: www.humanrightsfirst.info

What does the Condi Department of State care about?

”Countries in which power is concentrated in the hands of rulers that cannot be held accountable for their actions were among those cited as having the poorest records on human rights in the U.S. Department of State's annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices released March 8.

“Such regimes, which include the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea), Burma, Iran, Zimbabwe, Cuba, China, and Belarus, seriously restrict fundamental human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including freedom of speech, press, assembly, association, religion and movement, the State Department said in the introduction to the report.

"The 2005 reports, which provide analyses of the human rights situations in 196 countries, are designed to assess human rights conditions worldwide. The reports, according to the introduction, demonstrate that the United States is committed "to working with other democracies and men and women of goodwill across the globe to reach an historic long-term goal: " 'the end of tyranny in our world.'"

ALSO NOT CITED

This report from the AP was not in the US report either:

”Illegal Settlers Terrorizing Palestinians with Impunity, Attacking Children on their Way to School, and Destroying Farmers' Trees and Crops, According to a UN Report

GENEVA (AP) -- (Illegal Israeli) Jewish settlers are terrorizing Palestinians with impunity, attacking children on their way to school and destroying farmers' trees and crops, a U.N. expert on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict said in a report.

“John Dugard, a South African lawyer, called the withdrawal of Israeli troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip last summer a positive step. But the Jewish state effectively controls Gaza through targeted killings and sonic booms from warplanes flying over the region, Dugard said in a report prepared ahead of next week's annual meeting of the 53-member U.N. Human Rights Commission.

“Dugard said settler violence has been particularly egregious in the West Bank city of Hebron. His 22-page report made no reference to Palestinian resistance, but said Hebron settlers "terrorize the few Palestinians that have not left the old city and assault and traumatize children on the way to school."

ISRAEL THEATENS TO KILL HAMAS LEADER

Here’s how Arab News reports the threat according to Progressive Review:

"It is official. The elected leadership of the Palestinians will become targets for assassination if there is a suicide attack and Israel and Tel Aviv decides that Hamas is responsible. No evidence will be needed. Israel’s defense minister, Shaul Mofaz, has said so. This chilling threat demonstrates the contempt in which Israel and Washington hold the democratic process if the result of the election does not suit them."

www.arabnews.com

ANOTHER VIEW:
Guardian Co.uk

....READ MORE HERE

posted by Annamarie at 12:45 PM