The UN’s Ad Hoc Committee’s proposal to criminalize religious freedom unanimously passed the Human Rights Council (for more on the Ad Hoc Committee, click here). The resolution was tabled by South Africa for the African regional bloc, but had been challenged by an alternative text proposed by the United States (click here for the final draft as orally amended and click here for the proposed US draft text). Ultimately, the US withdrew its resolution and endorsed the African group’s text after long negotiations to incorporate changes proposed by the Ad Hoc’s Cross-Regional group. The European Union, staying out of the fray, did not join consensus on the resolution. Traditionally voting no, the EU did not call for a vote, which allowed the Council to adopt the resolution by consensus.
