New York, September 10, SPA --The European Union's failure to strongly defend human rights has endangered human lives in Sri Lanka as more countries oppose interfering in domestic politics, dpa quoted the European Council on Foreign Relations as saying today. The body's UN experts said China and Russia this year blocked EUefforts in the UN Security Council to force the Sri Lankan governmentto release thousands of civilians caught in the fighting with TamilTigers rebels. China, Russia, the United States, France and Britain holdpermanent seats and veto power in the 15-nation council. A veto by apermanent member can decisively stop all actions by the UN. The fiveveto powers have mostly split in two camps in major human rightsdisputes. The EU also was outmaneuvered and outvoted in the Geneva-based UNHuman Rights Council, said Richards Gowan and Franziska Brantner,authors of the report on the EU and human rights at the UN in 2009. The two UN experts said the number of countries fiercely opposingthe EU's human rights policy has increased from 19 last year to 40this year. The EU has also lost its grip in the UN General Assemblywhen it concerned human rights, with at least 70 per cent of the 192UN members in the assembly having voted against the EU on humanrights issues, they said. "The Obama administration's enthusiastic engagement with the UNgives Europeans a new sense of hope after the Bush administration,"Gowan said. "But the EU must avoid the temptation to hang back andhope the US will fix everything. American diplomats want to see thatthe EU can deliver." The authors said the most glaring failure in defending humanrights was in Sri Lanka because of the opposition from China, Russiaand India. "Up to 10,000 civilians died," Gowan said. "The basic value ofsaving lives is falling victim to power politics in the UN SecurityCouncil." The report called on the EU to use "tough diplomacy" to counterpower politics played by China and Russia, and to urge the council toagree on measures to protect humanitarian access to areas under majorcrises. It said the US and EU should set up a working group to coordinatehuman rights positions in the UN and to include other liberal statesin it.--SPA www.spa.gov.sa/699418