Once threatened due to the UN Migration Pact and recently accused of being anti-Israel, a portrait of an “unrepentant multilateralist.”
Jürg Lauber calls himself an “unrepentant multilateralist” and presides over the UN Human Rights Council this year.
It looked like a wanted poster. “Do you know this man?” was written in bold letters on posters put up by Austrian extremist Martin Sellner in Zurich in 2018. A red arrow pointed to the photo of a smiling man in a black suit, Jürg Lauber. He had helped craft the UN Migration Pact in New York, which aimed to regulate migration – and according to critics, also promote it.
In addition to Sellner, SVP politicians also ranted: Thomas Matter vaguely called for “consequences” against Lauber, while Andreas Glarner demanded a prison sentence. Social media exploded.
However, Lauber was just doing his job: at the request of the UN, he served as one of two chief negotiators, an honor for him and Switzerland. But neither the Federal Council as a whole nor Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis protected Lauber from the attacks, criticized an insider. The question after such an episode is: Do you retreat into internal exile and wish for a post in Canberra? Or do you continue ambitiously?
Jürg Lauber chose the latter. He wanted to become the UN Ambassador in Geneva, lead Switzerland back to the UN Human Rights Council, and become the first Swiss president of the controversial council. He achieved all of this.
And so President Lauber concluded his first six-week session on Friday. It was at times tumultuous: Russia’s representative denigrated the UN, and Lauber was accused of being anti-Israel.
Why does he endure this? Who is he? And what does he aim to achieve in the Human Rights Council, where notorious human rights abusers also sit?
Lauber was a Peace Soldier in Korea
To understand this, three experiences that shaped Lauber, as he shared during an interview in Geneva, are helpful. First: his service as a soldier in the international peace mission on the border between North and South Korea in the early 1990s.
The young Jürg Lauber, raised in the canton of Zug, was enthusiastic and “a bit naive” when he moved from Zurich to Panmunjom after completing his law studies. He learned about the millions of torn-apart families living on both sides of the border, and reunification seemed imperative to him. Until he realized that many political forces were working against it.
Lauber learned his first lesson in realism – and now knew he wanted to become a diplomat. Immerse himself in a country, delve into its politics, economy, and society for a few years, and represent Switzerland’s interests. That’s how he started in Thailand.
But then came the second formative experience. In the mid-1990s, Lauber was a desk officer at the Swiss Foreign Ministry in Bern. He oversaw international negotiations on banning anti-personnel mines for Switzerland. Many countries were resistant, NGOs pressured, a coalition led by Canada surged ahead.
In the end, the necessary minimum of 40 states signed the so-called Ottawa Treaty, including Switzerland. “It was a good example of collaboration between civil society and governments,” says Lauber. This collaboration is also important to him in the Human Rights Council. “In hindsight, it was also my first multilateral experience.”
The third formative experience definitively shifted Lauber from traditional bilateral diplomacy to multilateralism. At the Swiss UN Mission in New York, he discovered his enjoyment of representing Swiss interests not only in one country but on the world stage – “in alliance with others, against others.”
Micheline Calmy-Rey praises him as a significant Swiss voice
According to his colleagues, Jürg Lauber has become Switzerland’s Mr. Multilateralism over the past 20 years. Several interviewees showered him with praise.
Lauber credibly and objectively defends international law, says former Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey – thanks to people like him, Switzerland is heard internationally.
Lauber is a true civil servant, says the insider mentioned earlier. He is a “diplomat’s diplomat,” universally respected by his colleagues for his great accomplishments and humble ego.
Thomas Greminger, the director of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, might envy Lauber. After all, Lauber, born in 1963, snatched a post in New York from the slightly older Greminger. Instead, Greminger says, “In Swiss diplomacy, there is no one with a better background to be the president of the UN Human Rights Council.”
So, the Human Rights Council: no easy task. The United States has just withdrawn under President Donald Trump. Israel and Argentina followed suit. China and Cuba remain, extolling the great human rights situation in their countries. What is the purpose of this body?
According to not just Jürg Lauber, the Human Rights Council is the only UN body that still functions, says Michael Möller, former UN Director-General in Geneva. Because the Security Council in New York, with veto powers like the US and Russia, is blocked. And the General Assembly, while lacking vetoes, also lacks power.
Somewhere in between lies the Human Rights Council: no veto powers, minimal power, but considerable influence. The 47 members are elected for three-year terms. Additionally, every state can participate as an observer.
The Human Rights Council Reflects an Unpleasant World
Of course, it is absurd that dictatorships are involved. The members are supposed to uphold the “highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights,” as stated in a UN resolution. But ultimately, defenders of the council argue that it reflects the power dynamics in an unpleasant world. UN members decide who they elect to the council – and they prefer to criticize Israel over North Korea.
In this complex situation, the council can hardly end injustice. It can mainly name human rights violations, in the hope that the public will take an interest. And that one day, the perpetrators will be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court, like recently arrested former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.
On Lauber’s first day as president in January, the focus was on the war in Ukraine. In the magnificent council chamber on the Geneva UN compound, a special rapporteur gave an update: Russia had killed another 35 civilians through drones, executed 62 people summarily, and systematically tortured many through rape and dog attacks.
Lauber looked grim. He must have been disgusted, as were almost all the attendees. Yet, he dutifully carried out his duties almost robotically, as the council must function smoothly: Lauber let Russia’s representative rant against the West, then interrupted the Ukrainian when she exceeded her speaking time.
A Trump Ally Criticizes Lauber
At the end of February, Lauber cut off an American NGO representative who referred to Hamas killers as “Palestinian barbarians.” Lauber deemed the wording as defaming all Palestinians. However, Trump ally Elise Stefanik accused Lauber of censorship and an anti-Israeli stance, with other usual suspects echoing the sentiment. If Lauber was affected, he didn’t show it.
More important to him than the theatrical proceedings in the council chamber is what happens behind the scenes, in confidential discussions between diplomats who wouldn’t even look at each other otherwise. “That’s where the real action takes place,” says Lauber.
One of these formats is monthly meetings by Lake Geneva, organized by the longtime chief secretary of the Human Rights Council, Eric Tistounet. Who attends and what is discussed there, Lauber, like many other topics, shrouds in diplomatic silence.
He prefers to talk about his approach: genuine interest in people, trying to read them. Explore consensus possibilities, develop common positions. Like with the UN Migration Pact, accepted by the UN General Assembly but rejected by the Swiss Parliament in December. Lauber refrains from commenting on the failure.
But as a self-proclaimed “unrepentant multilateralist,” he is accustomed to setbacks. For example, anti-personnel mines, whose ban he contributed to 30 years ago, are back in vogue since the Ukraine conflict. What did the Human Rights Council do? It passed a resolution against anti-personnel mines on Friday. We must envision Sisyphus Lauber as a contented diplomat.