PM Nawaz orders inquiry

Foreign Office told to determine which mission was responsible

ISLAMABAD: The ouster of Pakistan from the UN’s top human rights body has caught the attention of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who has ordered an inquiry to determine what led to the fiasco.

Pakistan’s current term at the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) is set to expire on December 31 and it was seeking re-election to the 47-member body. The UN General Assembly last week elected 18 members of the council through a secret ballot for the next three years. Pakistan failed to win the re-election after getting just 105 votes from the 193-member assembly.





Expressing his annoyance on Monday, the premier ordered the foreign affairs ministry to determine which mission was responsible for the failure. He asked the Foreign Office to report back to his office as soon as possible.

The inquiry would determine what efforts were made to secure the position and which specific mission was responsible for the negligence due to which Pakistan faced embarrassment internationally.

Pakistan has served thrice in the council and was eyeing a fourth term from the Asia-Pacific Group that had five vacant slots. The defeat comes as a shocking blow because it is the first time the country has lost a major election at the UN. Pakistan had polled 180 votes in the previous year to win a place in the UN’s economic and social council.



Sources in the federal government said the premier was annoyed with the performance of Sartaj Aziz, the PM’s adviser on foreign affairs, and Tariq Fatemi, special assistant to PM on foreign affairs.

The PM, the sources said, is keen to determine whether Pakistan’s permanent mission at the UN or the representative in Geneva is at fault.

They said the premier termed the lost opportunity a “diplomatic debacle” and asked Aziz to closely observe the performance of Pakistani diplomats in Geneva and New York.



The adviser on foreign affairs has already announced an investigation into the matter.

Despite losing the coveted seat, Pakistan will still be able to attend the proceedings of the UN council, which promotes and develops human rights norms, and investigates and highlights relevant issues and crises. The country, however, will not be able to argue on the issues of concern to it or block a resolution tabled against it.

According to a Foreign Office official, the major consequence of Pakistan losing the seat might be squandering the opportunity to raise the issue of rights abuses in Indian Kashmir.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 3^rd, 2015.