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<<<<Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kavan, whose country sponsored a motion to censure Cuba last year that was passed by 22 votes to 20 after a diplomatic tussle, wasin Lima last week and said Peru was conducting "informal negotiations" on the subject. >>>> This issue of 'human rights' in Cuba must obviously be of great significance to Peruvian officials given that they need reminding from the European bastion of human rights, the Czech Republic as to its importance; and 'bastion', to the extent that oppposition and dissent towards to its government's policies is expressed in private ( that is, muttered under one's breath). mart-remote wrote: > .....And Peru is such a paragon of "human rights" and "democracy" too. > The U.S is really scraping the bottom of the barrel this time.mart > From:"Karen Lee Wald" [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject:Reuters coverage of US attempts to censure Cuba > Date:Mon, 18 Mar 2002 20:06:35 -0800 > > > Peru mulls position on U.N. resolution against Cuba > > By Jude Webber > > LIMA, Peru, March 18 (Reuters) - Peru, which hosts U.S. President George > W. Bush in Lima this weekend, said on Monday it had not decided where > it stood on a possible censure vote against Cuba at an annual U.N. Human > Rights commission session but denied it was under American pressure to > give its support. > > Meanwhile, 50 Peruvian lawmakers -- nearly half the 120-strong Congress > -- urged the government not to back any censure, which Washington cannot > sponsor since it lost its seat last year on the rights body it helped > found in 1947. > > Peru's role came into the spotlight after it was reported last week to > be under U.S. pressure to present a resolution against Cuba at this > year's session of the 53-nation commission, which began in Geneva on > Monday and ends in April. > > Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kavan, whose country sponsored a motion to > censure Cuba last year that was passed by 22 votes to 20 after a > diplomatic tussle, wasin Lima last week and said Peru was conducting > "informal negotiations" on the subject. > > Referring to Peru's return to democracy after the hard-line 1990-2000 > rule of disgraced former President Alberto Fujimori, the lawmakers who > opposed the censure said in a statement: "Because of its history and own > experience Peru, which has never voted against Cuba even under its worst > governments, could not now condemn it." > > They said Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Venezuela and Ecuador had already > counted themselves out of any censure of the Caribbean island, the > hemisphere's only communist country, which is subject to a > four-decades-old U.S. embargo. > > "The Peruvian government will take the decision it considers most > appropriate in the light of its own evaluation of the facts, its > relations with other Latin American countries and of what it can do most > conveniently and efficiently to promote an improvement in the human > rights situation in Cuba," Foreign Minister Diego Garcia Sayan told a > news conference. > > "There is enough time, in such a delicate subject as this, for a country > like Peru to act in good measure in coordination and in line with our > Latin American brothers," he said. > > U.S. WORKING WITH 'MANY COUNTRIES' > > The Washington Times reported last week that the Bush administration had > asked Peru to sponsor a resolution condemning Cuba, but Garcia Sayan > said Peru would not make decisions "based on pressure, from whatever > quarter" and the subject of Cuba was not on Bush's agenda. > > Asked if the United States had been leaning on Peru, which sees itself > as a key regional ally of Washington and a promoter of human rights, a > Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said: "No." > > Under Fujimori, Lima twice sided with Cuba in similar U.N.votes. It has > otherwise abstained, including last year when Peru was ruled by a > transitional government, the Cuban Embassy said. Despite criticism that > it represses free statement, harasses and jails opponents, Havana denies > it abuses human rights. > > A U.S. Embassy official said Washington saw censure of Cuba as > "essential" because of what it considered its "abysmal" rights record. > The United States was working with "many countries ... on the > possibility of sponsoring a resolution, " the official added, declining > to say if Peru was one of them. > > Kavan said last week the Czech Republic would back any Latin American > initiative against human rights violations. > > "We greatly appreciate the attitude of the Republic of Peru in this > subject of human rights because we know that it has conducted, and will > continue to conduct, a series of informal negotiations on the subject," > he said. > > But he added: "The Czech Republic does not think it possible to present > any resolution on the subject if it cannot count on backing from the > European Union and other friends." > > ========================== > Karen Lee Wald > 2175 Aborn Road, apt. 164 > San Jose, CA 95121 > telephone 408-532-6147 > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > --------------------------------- > Do You Yahoo!? > Yahoo! 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