UNITED NATIONS, Jul 10 (APP): Top UN human rights officials have voiced serious concern over the imposition of sanctions by the United States targeting Francesca Albanese, a UN-appointed expert on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and a strong critic of Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza.
They’re calling for the decision to be reversed, warning it could undermine the wider international human rights system.
The sanctions were announced by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday under a Presidential Executive Order.
Rubio alleged that Ms. Albanese had “directly engaged with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute nationals of the United States or Israel, without the consent of those two countries,” which he called a “gross infringement” on national sovereignty.
The US and Israel are not parties to the Rome Statute, the international treaty that established the ICC.
Reacting to the announcement, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that the imposition of sanctions on Special Rapporteurs sets a “dangerous precedent.”
“The use of unilateral sanctions against Special Rapporteurs or any other UN expert or official is unacceptable,” he said on Thursday at his regular news briefing in New York.
He also highlighted the independent mandate and role of the Special Rapporteurs, noting that Member States “are perfectly entitled to their views and to disagree with” the experts’ reports.
“But we encourage them to engage with the UN’s human rights architecture,” he added.
In a statement issued on Thursday, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called for the “prompt reversal” of the sanctions against the Human Rights Council-appointed Special Rapporteur “in response to work she has undertaken under the mandate” she is tasked with.
“Even in face of fierce disagreement, UN Member States should engage substantively and constructively, rather than resort to punitive measures,” he said.
The UN rights chief also called for an end to attacks and threats against mandate holders appointed by the council, as well as key institutions like the ICC.
“The solution is not less, but more, debate and dialogue on the very real human rights concerns they address,” Turk urged.
Jurg Lauber, President of the UN Human Rights Council, also voiced regret over the punitive move by the US.
In a statement, he highlighted that Special Rapporteurs “are an essential instrument” in fulfilling the Council’s mandate and urged all nations to “fully cooperate” with them.
“I call on all UN Member States…to refrain from any acts of intimidation or reprisal against them,” he said.
Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch, a New York-based human rights group, said in a statement:
“The US government’s decision to sanction Albanese for seeking justice through the International Criminal Court is actually all about silencing a UN expert for doing her job, speaking truth about Israeli violations against Palestinians and calling on governments and corporations not to be complicit.
“The United States is working to dismantle the norms and institutions on which survivors of grave abuses rely. UN and ICC member countries should strongly resist the US government’s shameless efforts to block justice for the world’s worst crimes and condemn the outrageous sanctions on Albanese.”
Special Rapporteurs are appointed under what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council.