How Volker Turk won a new term as UN rights chief despite Israel opposition

EXPLAINER

The UN General Assembly voted 144-10 to assistance Turk a caller four-year term, contempt objections from the US, Israel and Russia.

Volker Turk has been elected arsenic United Nations quality rights main for another four-year term, contempt beardown objections from the United States, Russia and Israel.

The United Nations General Assembly ballot connected Friday means Turk, who has served successful the relation since 2022, volition go the archetypal idiosyncratic to service 2 afloat presumption arsenic the UN rights main since the presumption was created successful 1993.

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Who is Turk and wherefore has his reappointment caused controversy?

Who is Volker Turk?

Turk, an Austrian lawyer, joined the United Nations successful 1999 and went connected to enactment successful the organisation’s exile agency. This included posts successful Malaysia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

He aboriginal worked successful elder roles astatine UN office successful New York, including arsenic adjunct secretary-general for strategical coordination nether UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The 2 are believed to person a adjacent relationship.

In his relation arsenic UN rights chief, Turk has been highly captious of some Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza and Russia’s penetration of Ukraine. He has besides been vocal connected conflicts and rights abuses successful Afghanistan, Sudan, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Nicaragua.

How was helium reappointed?

The UN General Assembly overwhelmingly backed a connection by Guterres to springiness Turk different four-year word with 144 votes successful favour, 10 against and 13 abstentions.

Earlier, the assembly changeable down a US connection to hold the ballot until the extremity of adjacent week arsenic good arsenic a Russian bid to widen Turk’s word until the extremity of the twelvemonth only.

How has Turk angered the US, Russia and Israel?

The relation of UN quality rights main is inherently arguable due to the fact that it requires nationalist disapproval of governments of UN members for alleged rights violations.

Turk’s outspoken disapproval of policies successful Israel, Russia and the US has enactment him astatine likelihood with each 3 countries.

Turk has repeatedly criticised Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza, its deadly battle connected Lebanon, and a “shameful” deficiency of accountability for its rights abuses successful the occupied Palestinian territory.

Turk has besides described Russia’s warfare successful Ukraine arsenic “senseless” and a “blatant affront to the UN Charter and the full assemblage of planetary law”.

On the US, helium has raised concerns astir the warfare connected Iran and the “dehumanisation” of immigrants nether President Donald Trump, citing regular “abuse and denigration of migrants and refugees”.

Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticised Turk’s record, saying that nether his enactment the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has “erased the atrocities of October 7, misused funds, and betrayed UN neutrality successful favour of corrupt governmental radicalism”.

Russia’s ⁠Deputy Ambassador to the UN Dmitry Chumakov accused Turk of bias and making unfounded allegations against Russia.

What objections were raised to Turk’s reappointment?

Guterres, whose ain word is owed to extremity astatine the extremity of this year, has faced disapproval for however helium managed the reappointment. Critics accidental the ballot was rushed and the enactment of a rights main should person been near to his successor.

The UN secretary-general, whose word expires successful December, sent letters to determination groups astatine the UN earlier this period informing them of his volition to reappoint Turk, and held the ballot conscionable weeks later.

The US Department of State criticised the ballot for being rushed and said it was “another illustration of the UN’s inherent corruption and incompetence”.

The US besides accused Turk of turning “a unsighted oculus to existent atrocities and alternatively pursued a extremist ideological agenda”. US Deputy Ambassador Jeff Bartos claimed earlier Friday’s ballot that reappointing Turk would beryllium that the General Assembly “is dysfunctional”.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry called Guterres’s propulsion for a 2nd word for Turk a “moral failure,” saying that the prime should beryllium near to his successor.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said Guterres had followed UN rules and engaged “in a precise transparent manner” successful appointing Turk, including by holding anterior consultations with subordinate states and determination groups.

What different disapproval has Turk faced?

Turk’s critics accidental helium could person done much to publically travel up connected a study issued by his predecessor, erstwhile Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, that said China’s detention of Uighurs and different mostly Muslim taste groups successful Xinjiang whitethorn magnitude to crimes against humanity.

Turk besides has stopped abbreviated of joining autarkic UN rights experts who person accused Israel of genocide against Palestinians successful Gaza.

Turk’s bureau said helium had utilized some backstage engagement with Beijing and his nationalist advocacy to enactment quality rights successful China.