JERUSALEM — Richard Falk, the UN special rapporteur on Palestinian human rights, called on the UN Human Rights Council to shut down the watchdog organization UN Watch.
In an annual report on Israel’s violations of Palestinian human rights presented to the Human Rights Council this week, Falk sought an investigation of UN Watch leading to its closure.
Falk accuses the Geneva-based NGO of demeaning and defaming his character, damaging the credibility, effectiveness and substantive intention of his mandate.
He says this diverts attention from the message and shifts public interest away.
UN Watch was established in 1993 to monitor the performance of the UN by the yardstick of its own Charter, according to the groups website.
Read related commentary on the IJN blog, “Falk at the UN: Muzzle the opposition“
Falk’s comments come less than a month after UN Watchs draft resolution to remove him from his position in the wake of his comments blaming the Boston Marathon bombings on the American global domination project and Tel Aviv was published by the UN as an official document.
In the annual report, Falk slams what he calls Israels continued occupation of the Palestinians.
”Israel continues to annex Palestinian territory; Israel persists in demolishing Palestinians homes and populating Palestine with Israeli citizens; Israel maintains a policy of collectively punishing 1.75 million Palestinians through its imposition of a blockade on the Gaza Strip; and Israel prosecutes its occupation with impunity, refusing to accept the worlds calls to respect international law,” he wrote.
Falk also repeats his prior call for a boycott of companies conducting business with Israel or Israelis in the West Bank.
The US representative to the Human Rights Council, Eileen Chamberlain Donahoe, condemned Falks report last week and called on other member states of the council to denounce Falk and his outrageous abuse of the position he holds.
