Human Rights Council

The Bush administration was right to hold out for high principle when the ground rules for membership on the new United Nations Human Rights Council were being debated earlier this year.

Unfortunately, the United States lost that fight, and the council's opening session this week was tarnished by the participation of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Cuba, all flagrant abusers themselves and poorly suited to judge the human-rights performance of other nations. Other questionable members include China and Russia, which not only circumscribe the rights of their own citizens but also use their clout regularly to defend the indefensible behavior of allies like Uzbekistan or Sudan.

Iran, a nonmember, flaunted its contempt for human rights by sending Saeed Mortazavi, the fearsome public prosecutor of Tehran, as an observer to the opening session. Mr. Mortazavi has been implicated in torture, and Canada holds him personally responsible for the death in custody of an Iranian-Canadian photojournalist, Zahra Kazemi.

Despite losing the fight over membership rules, Washington has pledged to help the new council succeed. Regrettably, it passed up an obvious chance to do so by choosing not to seek a seat itself this year. An American voice on the council would have been a spur toward greater candor and understanding. While it is hard to feel optimistic about a human-rights group that includes Saudi Arabia, where women's rights are virtually nonexistent, or Pakistan, where possible sentences include stoning and judicial gang rape, the problematic members only make up a fraction of the 47-member group.

The United Nations did struggle to create a council that would be an improvement upon its discredited predecessor, and many human-rights experts have expressed some optimism and hope. The secretary general, Kofi Annan, spelled out the challenge clearly: "This council represents a great new chance for the United Nations, and for humanity, to renew the struggle for human rights. I implore you, do not let the opportunity be squandered."