Daily Multilateralism
Monday, November 2, 2020
The New York Times scrutinizes the World Health Organization’s investigation into the pandemic’s origins:
On the surface, an investigation into the virus’s origin is progressing. Beijing recently approved a list of outside investigators. The health organization has agreed that key parts of the inquiry — about the first patients in China and the market’s role in the outbreak — will be led by Chinese scientists, according to documents obtained by The New York Times. The documents, which have never been made public, show that W.H.O. experts will review and “augment, rather than duplicate,” studies undertaken by China.
Even as it has heaped praise on the Chinese government, the organization has refused to disclose details of its negotiations with Beijing and hasn’t shared documents with member states outlining the terms of its investigations.
Meanwhile, the WHO director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, is quarantining after contact with an infected individual.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is set to release a blistering report on the situation in Belarus, one of the organization’s participating states. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has obtained an advance copy:
The OSCE report claims that the main purpose of Lukashenka's crackdown was “to punish demonstrators and to intimidate them and potential other protesters."
The report adds that the legal system of Belarus today can be characterized as based rather on “rule by law rather than the rule of law,” and concludes that freedoms of the media, assembly, and association, and the right to liberty and security, as well as the safety of journalists, are “under massive attack.”
The report on the situation in Belarus came about after 17 OSCE member states triggered the so-called “Moscow Mechanism” to examine alleged human rights violations in Belarus.
Paul Gicheru, a Kenyan lawyer accused of tampering with witnesses, has turned himself in to the International Criminal Court (ICC). The case against Gicheru stems from an ICC investigation into Kenya’s 2007-2008 post-election violence. The investigation, launched in 2010, was an important one for the court, as it was the first time the ICC prosecutor’s office initiated an investigation on its own (rather than after a referral by states or by the UN Security Council). Over the course of several years, however, the ICC cases against several senior Kenyan leaders fell apart as evidence disappeared and witnesses refused to testify. The charges against Gicheru (and another individual) are among the court’s first attempts to punish interference with an investigation.
The UN’s Human Rights Council begins one of its regular reviews of national human rights records this week. The practice of “universal periodic review” has become a signature activity of the Council, which replaced the UN’s Human Rights Commission in 2006. In this month’s session, the Council will assess the record of fourteen countries, including the United States. Other countries to be reviewed include Belarus, Croatia, and Libya. The Trump administration chose not to pursue membership on the Council, but UN officials report that U.S. officials have been engaging in the UPR review.
Virtual negotiations about the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam have resumed. Officials from the African Union, the European Union, and the World Bank are reportedly joining diplomats from Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan in the discussions.
Briefly noted:
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, one of the smallest ever Security Council members, takes its helm this month.
Coronavirus is complicating further the last stages of the World Trade Organization’s leadership selection process.
South Korea and the International Atomic Energy Agency will hold high-level talks this week.
Bank to bank: The World Bank approves $250 million to help launch a development bank in Ghana.