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| Caribbean-Latin America |
| Boucher responds to Cuban HR chargers |
| 2004-04-23 |
| Excerpt from State Department Daily Briefing for Thursday. QUESTION: All right. And my last question is: In Geneva today, earlier today, the Cubans withdrew their resolution that was going to condemn the United States for human rights abuses of the prisoners at Guantanamo. And when they withdrew it, they said the reason they were withdrawing it was that the United States and its allies were preparing a no-action motion to prevent this -- to prevent the resolution from being debated, and that they gave up because they realized they weren’t -- now, I’m wondering, in light of your past criticism of countries using no-action motions to prevent debates, specifically last week when you went after China and Zimbabwe on this score, why is it not a double standard for you guys to try and -- to use the threat of a -- or to even move to consider using a no-action motion to stifle debate or to stop debate on something that another country, for whatever reason, feels needs to be talked about? MR. BOUCHER: Well, first of all, there was a debate. Many countries felt it was sufficient, and I think we were looking at an end to that debate. But it was not the no-action motion that other people have used to stifle all discussion, period. The bottom line is that Cuba was forced to withdraw its resolution because they didn’t have support. We think the Cuban resolution was a diversion, an attempt to discredit the Commission, which has just condemned Cuba for its domestic human rights practices; and it was therefore purely political move on their part, and not any serious attempt to address a human rights situation. I would point out that the situation in Guantanamo is under careful scrutiny. The United States has made very clear our commitment to treating people there in a humanitarian fashion consistent with the international Geneva Convention requirements for prisoners of war; that there is, indeed, a domestic judicial process that reviews the situation of the prisoners down there, and that case was -- there was a case argued just this week in front of the Supreme Court. And I’d point out that the Red Cross has visited as well. In fact, the only prison in Cuba that the Red Cross has visited is the one in Guantanamo. So I’d just leave it at that. I believe that’s set and match. |
| Posted by:Super Hose |