Indonesia Abstains in Vote to Suspend Russia from UN Human Rights Council

TheIndonesia.co - Indonesia chose to abstain in a vote to remove Russia from the United Nations Human Rights Council after the East European country’s invasion in Ukraine.

The UN General Assembly held the voting on Thursday, April 7, and from 193 members, 93 voted in favor, 24 voted against, and the remaining 58 abstained.

Indonesia was among the 58 member states, including other ASEAN countries, which were Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand – while the Philippines and Myanmar voted in favor of the suspension of Russia from the human rights body.

China, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Syria, and Vietnam were among those who voted against. 

The UN reported that the meeting marked the resumption of a special emergency session on the Ukraine war and followed reports of violations committed by Russian forces.

It also noted the photos emerged from the city of Bucha in the past weekend, where hundreds of civilian bodies were found in the streets and in mass graves following Russia’s withdrawal from the area.

Ukrainian Ambassador to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya urged countries to support the resolution before the voting.

“Bucha and dozens of other Ukrainian cities and villages, where thousands of peaceful residents have been killed, tortured, raped, abducted and robbed by the Russian Army, serve as an example of how dramatically far the Russian Federation has gone from its initial declarations in the human rights domain. That is why this case is unique and today’s response is obvious and self-explanatory,” Kyslytsya said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Russian Ambassador called for member states to “vote against the attempt by Western countries and their allies to destroy the existing human rights architecture”.