Press Release: U.S. Withdraws Nomination of University Network Executive Director to OAS Human Rights Body for Criticizing Israeli Human Rights Record
(Middletown, CT, February 15, 2023) – In an alarming expansion of attacks on speech critical of the Israeli government’s well-documented human rights abuses, the U.S. State Department has withdrawn its nomination of our executive director, James (Jim) Cavallaro, to serve as a commissioner on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (“the Commission”). The decision comes following reports by a fringe, Trump-affiliated media outlet on Cavallaro’s outspoken criticism of Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians.
Principled human rights advocacy is precisely what qualifies Jim Cavallaro for this nomination. But the State Department apparently believes that Cavallaro’s principled positions disqualify him. We are appalled.
Cavallaro previously served as Commissioner (2014-2017) and President (2016-2017) of the Inter-American Commission. During his tenure, Cavallaro led the Commission through its most severe financial crisis in recent history and oversaw the creation of the first-ever expert group convened to address forced disappearances in Mexico (in particular, with a mandate to investigate the disappearance of 43 students from the Ayotzinapa teachers college). Expert groups have since become an important mechanism of the Commission to respond to human rights crises. As the body’s Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty, Cavallaro visited and documented conditions in scores of detention centers in the Americas, urging States to reduce mass incarceration, particularly of those facing trial and individuals in situations of vulnerability.
In its announcement of Cavallaro’s nomination last Friday, the State Department described him as “a leading scholar and practitioner of international law with deep expertise in the region as well as the Inter-American human rights system.” Prominent human rights experts across the region applauded the nomination, calling the Biden administration's decision “excellent” and describing Cavallaro as a “committed human rights professional who will be an asset” to the Commission.
Cavallaro has always been unwavering in his principled approach to human rights advocacy, applying the same standards to Israel/Palestine as he has to the many other contexts in which he has worked. There is consensus today across the human rights movement on Israel’s system of apartheid, and many other prominent voices—from the former UN Secretary General and Director General of Israel's Foreign Ministry to the South African government and French foreign minister—have referenced apartheid in relation to Israel's systematic subjugation of Palestinians. Similarly, leading human rights institutions, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Israeli human rights group B’Tselem and the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School, have each published reports finding that Israel’s policies and practices amount to apartheid. When it comes to human rights in Israel/Palestine, the U.S. State Department is the outlier.
While Cavallaro's potential participation on the Commission would have absolutely no impact on U.S. policy on Israel, the withdrawal of his nomination will have real consequences for human rights in the Americas. Cavallaro has been a courageous and committed voice for justice for victims of human rights abuse across the region; as an experienced Commissioner in his second term, he would have advanced the cause of human rights in the hemisphere significantly.
The withdrawal of Cavallaro’s nomination comes at a time when spaces for defending Palestinian human rights are shrinking across the United States. Recently, in response to widespread public outcry, the Harvard Kennedy School reversed its decision to rescind a fellowship offered to Ken Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, due to his advocacy for human rights in Israel and Palestine. Just last month, a group known for its “efforts to muzzle criticism of Israeli policies” launched a campaign to stifle and silence Dr. Lara Sheehi of George Washington University (GW). Despite massive support for Dr. Sheehi, GW’s actions have intensified the chilling effect for Palestinian rights defenders. Censorship of human rights advocates who denounce apartheid in Israel/Palestine affects countless Palestinian academics, activists, and students, most of whom do not have the kind of platforms from which Ken Roth and Jim Cavallaro benefit.
The University Network for Human Rights is proud of Jim Cavallaro. We would expect nothing less of our leadership than a consistent and unwavering condemnation of human rights abuse, no matter the perpetrator. We are deeply disappointed and dismayed that the State Department does not uphold a similar standard.
