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Riyadh: The head of the Saudi government's human rights body yesterday said that electing his country to a new UN Human Rights Council would boost the kingdom's efforts at home as well. On Tuesday, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, China and Russia won seats on the council. Turki Bin Khalid Al Sudeiri said electing Saudi Arabia was "a recognition of its efforts and interest in human rights issues in the world and in the kingdom. "This gives it a boost to continue its efforts and its interests in this field." Human rights groups said they were generally pleased with the 47 members elected to the council, which will replace the highly politicised Human Rights Commission.
It was discredited in recent years because some countries with bad human rights records used their membership to protect one another from condemnation. The 47 were chosen from 63 contenders.
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