Iraq war weakens US human rights clout: Robinson (former Irish president)

sabra

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Mon Nov-21-05 02:06 PM
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Iraq war weakens US human rights clout: Robinson (former Irish president)

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-11-21T183408Z_01_SIB166817_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRELAND-ROBINSON.xml

Iraq war weakens US human rights clout: Robinson

DUBLIN (Reuters) - The Iraq war has weakened the moral authority of the United States and its allies to tackle the likes of China and Russia over their poor records on civil liberties, human rights campaigner Mary Robinson said on Monday.

Robinson, named by Time Magazine this year as one of the world's 100 most influential people, told Reuters that disregard for human rights by western democracies made it more difficult to promote them in countries where people enjoy less freedom.

"It's much harder now for President Bush in China to talk to China about human rights," the former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said in an interview. "Where's his credibility?"

...

Robinson, a former Irish president, said new laws in the United States, Britain and Australia designed to reduce the risk of militant attacks had also curbed civil liberties.

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wookie294

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Mon Nov-21-05 02:14 PM
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1. Yep, Bush can now SHUT UP

Bush has no credibility. Nor does Condos and Sleazy Rice have any credibility.

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Spazito

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Mon Nov-21-05 02:14 PM
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2. Weakens it??? It totally destroys it!

What country is going to do anything but howl in laughter when the U.S., under the bush admin, tries to criticize them for abuse of human rights?

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rodeodance

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Mon Nov-21-05 03:07 PM
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3. I recall all the good work Mary Robertson did while in Ireland. She is

a well respected person. Glad to hear her speak out.

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rodeodance

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Mon Nov-21-05 03:10 PM
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4. beatiful statement below.

...."It has been a terrible tragedy of responding to acts of terrorism, that governments have forgotten what it is that they are really defending," she said.

Robinson cited Russia as another example where the weakening moral clout of these countries was having a knock-on effect.

"The checks and balances will kick in, more or less, in our democracies but the damage that's done is to other countries ... I think particularly of (Russia's) President Putin: he's no longer under any kind of scrutiny in relation to Chechnya."

Rights groups say government troops are behind numerous civilian killings, abductions and rapes in Chechnya where separatist rebels have been fighting federal forces for more than a decade.

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rodeodance

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Mon Nov-21-05 03:13 PM
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5. also says "It was not a legitimate war...."

"What I find living now in the United States is an encouraging, wide sense of some of the checks and balances kicking in ... In Congress you have, at last, a sense, of 'we were misled, we should have been more attentive.'"

Democratic Representative John Murtha said on Sunday that he expected more people to come round to his views that U.S. troops should be withdrawn from 2006 and that the military occupation was making the situation in Iraq worse.

Robinson, in Dublin to launch a campaign against violence to women, said she hoped that what followed would be analysis of how Congress acquiesced so easily to a war where "the poor, beleaguered people of Iraq are not better off."

"It was not a legitimate war and I am glad that more and more people, including President Carter, are coming out to say so."

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rodeodance

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Mon Nov-21-05 03:14 PM
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6. she is glad our Congress is waking up (paraphasing).

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