Geneva NGO accuses Beijing and Moscow of blocking funding at UN

A Geneva-based NGO is accusing a group of countries, including China and Russia, of exploiting negotiations at the United Nations in New York to cut funding for human rights mechanisms. In a report published on Tuesday, it calls for the reform of these bodies. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox From 2019 to 2024, the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) conducted dozens of discussions with diplomats and officials and analysed confidential internal documents. According to the NGO's findings, China is trying to recover the audit of finances linked to the Human Rights Council and is using its seat on the oversight committee to obtain information about the staff of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. In the UN General Assembly's Fifth Committee, it "is the most hostile, followed by Russia", an NGO official told the press. Its influence has also increased on administrative and budgetary issues. While Moscow is openly more "disruptive" ...