Abstract

The article provides a comprehensive picture of the human rights diplomacy of the five most important groups of states (sub-Saharan African states, Asian states, Muslim states, the EU, and Latin American and Caribbean states) in the UN Human Rights Council (UN HRC). This paper intends to debunk the myth that the UN HRC has become a platform for the “clash of civilizations”. An analysis of bloc behavior proves that the dividing lines are not between civilizations, but within each group, between governments aiming at establishing a strong global human rights regime and those, seeking to undermine it.