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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| US elected to UN rights council | US elected to UN rights council |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| The United States has been elected to a seat on the UN Human Rights Council for the first time. | The United States has been elected to a seat on the UN Human Rights Council for the first time. |
| The council had been shunned by the Bush administration, which accused it of admitting states with poor rights records and having an anti-Israel bias. | The council had been shunned by the Bush administration, which accused it of admitting states with poor rights records and having an anti-Israel bias. |
| But the Obama administration has reversed its predecessor's policy of boycotting the Geneva-based body. | But the Obama administration has reversed its predecessor's policy of boycotting the Geneva-based body. |
| The US was one of 18 countries elected to the 47-seat council in a vote by the UN General Assembly. | The US was one of 18 countries elected to the 47-seat council in a vote by the UN General Assembly. |
| After the vote, the US Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, told the BBC America was not blind to the council's flaws. | |
| "Obviously there will always be some countries whose respect and record on human rights is sub-par," she said. | |
| "We have not been perfect ourselves but we intend to lead based on the strong principled vision that the American people have about respecting human rights [and] supporting democracy." | |
| Ms Rice added that the US looked forward to the review of the council's workings due in 2011. | |
| 'Era of engagement' | |
| The US was elected unopposed with 90% of the vote because countries agree in advance which of them will stand for election, the BBC's Laura Trevelyan reports from New York. | |
| It is these uncompetitive elections, say critics, which allow repressive countries to get on the council and then use it to block scrutiny of their behaviour. | |
| The Obama administration announced in March that it would be seeking to join the Human Rights Council as part of a broader strategy to create a "new era of engagement" with the rest of the world. | The Obama administration announced in March that it would be seeking to join the Human Rights Council as part of a broader strategy to create a "new era of engagement" with the rest of the world. |
| Previously, the US government had accused the council of being hijacked by countries with a strong bias against Israel, and had criticised it for its failure to condemn perceived human rights violations by the Sudanese government in Darfur. | Previously, the US government had accused the council of being hijacked by countries with a strong bias against Israel, and had criticised it for its failure to condemn perceived human rights violations by the Sudanese government in Darfur. |
| A number of countries whose human rights records have been criticised by the US - including Cuba, Saudi Arabia, China and Russia - are also represented on the council. | A number of countries whose human rights records have been criticised by the US - including Cuba, Saudi Arabia, China and Russia - are also represented on the council. |
| The council was set up in 2006 to replace the UN Commission on Human Rights, which had also been dogged by accusations of anti-Israeli prejudice. | The council was set up in 2006 to replace the UN Commission on Human Rights, which had also been dogged by accusations of anti-Israeli prejudice. |