Parody takes another hit

Oh dear, the symbolism is appalling. Ha'aretz reports that

The President of the United Nations General Assembly tried to prevent Israel's ambassador, Professor Gabriela Shalev, from speaking at a special commemorative plenary session marking 60 years since the UN adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, scheduled for Wednesday.

The General Assembly President, Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann, tried to cancel speeches that were to be given by representatives of the unofficial regional group known as "Western European and others," after he learned that Israel's ambassador was to represent the group as its rotating chairman.

So an Israeli giving a talk at the UN on the occasion of a universal declaration of the kind of rights that Israel has abused en masse since its inception. Indeed, Israel's existence as a state specially for Jews is predicated on its human rights abuses. You can't parody that.

Still, fair play to old Brockman, he tried to exclude Israel. And Israel has really excluded itself from a human rights framework. I guess that makes the State of Israel a present-absentee at the function.