Published February 15,2023
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The Biden administration withdrew the candidacy of a number one rights activist Tuesday on account of his criticism of Israel, simply days after nominating him to serve on a number one human rights panel.
State Department spokesman Ned Price stated the choice to withdraw James Cavallaro’s nomination to function the commissioner of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights was revamped his “inappropriate” previous statements.
“His statements clearly do not reflect US policy. They are not a reflection of what we believe. And they are inappropriate to say the least,” Price informed reporters. “Judging by some of the statements that have since been uncovered, it is fair to conclude, it in fact is true, that we were not aware of these statements and writings that he produced.”
Cavallaro, who has an extended monitor report working in human rights, was knowledgeable of the choice throughout a gathering on the State Department on Tuesday morning.
He stated the choice was “due to my statements denouncing apartheid in Israel/Palestine.”
“Today, the State Dept informed me that they were withdrawing my candidacy because of my view that the conditions in Israel/Palestine meet the definition of apartheid under international human rights law,” he wrote on Twitter.
Cavallaro stated he was requested to signal a joint assertion withdrawing his nomination however declined to take action, “as I played no part in making this decision & was ready to commit to another term as a Commissioner.”
On Friday, when it nominated Cavallaro to serve on the Organization of American States fee from 2024-2027, the State Department hailed the activist as a “leading scholar and practitioner of international law with deep expertise in the region as well as the Inter-American human rights system.”
He serves because the founder and govt director of the University Network for Human Rights, which trains undergraduate and graduate college students in human rights, and held positions at Harvard, Stanford and Yale Law Schools. He additionally served on the rights fee from 2014-2017.
The Algemeiner, a Jewish outlet primarily based in New York City, printed over the weekend an article by which they raised Cavallaro’s previous tweets that criticized Israel and help for the nation amongst US politicians, together with Representative Hakeem Jeffries, who’s now the highest Democrat within the House of Representatives.
Jeffries, Cavallaro wrote in December, was “Bought. Purchased. Controlled” by pro-Israel teams. He was replying to an article concerning the lawmaker’s acceptance of lobbying funds from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and comparable teams.
The tweet and several other others have since been deleted, and Cavallaro stated he did so “because I was proactively & in good faith addressing concerns the @StateDept had raised during the vetting process about public expressions of my personal views on U.S. policy.”
Other tweets referred to Israel as an “apartheid state,” a reference to the rights abuses dedicated in South Africa which activists say are mirrored in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. Cavallaro additionally stated Israel was accountable for “atrocities.”
The Biden administration’s determination to axe Cavallaro’s nomination attracts stark parallels to a latest saga at Harvard University by which a famend human rights activist had an employment provide rescinded after which reinstated amid widespread criticism.
The college’s Kennedy School reversed course Jan. 19 after initially denying a fellowship to Ken Roth, the person who led Human Rights Watch (HRW) for 3 a long time.
The faculty’s determination got here after Dean Douglas Elmendorf initially blocked Roth from receiving an illustrious one-year fellowship on the faculty’s Carr Center for Human Rights Policy. Roth led HRW since 1993 earlier than lately retiring and has been dubbed the “godfather” of human rights by The New York Times.
Elmendorf didn’t specify why he modified his thoughts however stated he had been in “error.”
“The withdrawal of my appointment comes on the heels of the @Kennedy_School withdrawal of a fellowship offered to @KenRoth due to his advocacy for human rights in Israel/Palestine (a decision that has since been reversed),” wrote Cavallaro.
“Censorship of human rights advocates who denounce apartheid in Israel also affects countless Palestinian academics, activists & students who do not have the platform that @KenRoth or myself have,” he added.
Source: www.anews.com.tr
