UN Ambassador Craft calls for reform of Human Rights Council, as Biden likely to rejoin

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U.N. Ambassador Kelly Craft on Monday called for significant reforms to the controversial Human Rights Council, warning that the U.S. should not rejoin unless it fixes its membership, elections and anti-Israel bias – ahead of a likely change in policy from the incoming Biden administration.

“I am not here to dictate a singular approach, as much as I am here to say that the time is now, and the United States should leverage its current position outside the council to lead the charge for reform before we consider re-joining,” Craft said in a speech to The Heritage Foundation.

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The Trump administration pulled the U.S. out of the council in 2018, with then-Ambassador Nikki Haley describing it as a “protector of human rights abusers, and a cesspool of political bias."

Since its formation, the council has been packed with countries with poor records on human rights. Cuba, China and Russia were elected to the council this year, with Venezuela, Sudan and Libya seated in the council at the beginning of the year.

“In its current composition and direction, the council is failing to live up to its name,” Craft said. “It is an insult to the millions around the world who are subjected to oppression and persecution for seeking to employ their God-given rights. It is an affront to human rights defenders craving support from the United Nations.”

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She called for reforms based on three objectives: a stricter membership criteria, improved elections and the elimination of bias.

On membership, she suggested any member state under investigation or sanction by groups like the Security Council or even the Human Rights Council itself be prevented from running for the council.

On the elections themselves, she suggested seats be contested, with slates featuring more candidates, and for the threshold of an election to be raised from an absolute majority to a two-thirds majority, 

“Third,” she said. “We must deal with the insanity at the center of the Human Rights Council – persistent and egregious anti-Israel bias.”

Specifically, she called for ending agenda Item 7, a permanent agenda item that focuses on the “human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories.”

“Again, agenda Item 7 has a single purpose – to provide a platform for nations to target Israel. It does nothing to advance dialogue, human rights or the cause of peace, and it must go,” Craft said.

Biden has promised to rejoin the council, but has so far not set out a criteria of reforms he will demand before the U.S. reapplies. 

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“We will rejoin the UN Human Rights Council and work to ensure that body truly lives up to its values,” he said in a Medium post.

He has also criticized the Trump administration for Cuba being elected to the council – although Cuba had also been a member of the council during the Obama administration.

Fox News' Ben Evansky contributed to this report.