China remains untouchable by the UN Human Rights Council, with Beijing to emerge unscathed from the current session despite widespread criticism of its crackdown in Tibet, activists and diplomats say.
The Council, which ends its four-week long session on Friday, will begin adopting a series of resolutions on Thursday, none of which will mention the situation in Tibet.
Although the Council held special sessions on small countries such as Israel and Myanmar, Beijing evaded any special attention to its response to the protests against Chinese rule in Tibet that have left, according to Tibet's government-in-exile, some 140 people dead.
During Tuesday's meeting in Geneva, the European Union, the United States, Switzerland, Australia and Canada made declarations about the situation in Tibet.
However, none of the 47 states that sit on the Council put forward a resolution on the issue, nor was any request made for a special session on Tibet.
"Only three countries told us that they are ready to support the idea of a special session on Tibet," said Julie Gromellon of the International Federation for Human Rights.
Even those few declarations on the issue were met with repeated interruptions from China's representative, with the president of the Council supporting China's point that the session was not meant to be focused on the situation in a single country.
"Large countries are untouchables in the Council," Human Rights Watch spokesman Julie de Rivero told AFP.
The 47-member Council, with its 13 African and 13 Asian members, was created in June 2006 to replace the old UN Human Rights Commission, which had been criticised for having no bite.
However, observers note that the new body appears to have no teeth either.
"China was untouchable by the Human Rights Commission, it remains untouchable by the Council," said de Rivero.
The International Federation for Human Rights' Gromellon noted that "China managed to exert pressure, even the Council president interrupted NGOs" which focused their speeches on Tibet.
"The Council operates on double standards," charged Ngawang Choephel from Tibetan UN Advocacy.
A European diplomat said that even before Tuesday's session, China's ambassador had asked the Europeans to drop their declaration.
"The economic might of China counts, but also its political engagement, notably in Africa," said the diplomat.
China has over the past few years increased its purchase of raw materials from and investment into African countries, while pointedly avoiding putting political pressure their leaders.
Beijing's reluctance to put pressure on Sudanese leaders has been viewed as a major handicap to international efforts to bring about a peaceful resolution to the crisis in Darfur.
While NGOs remain critical over the lack of action taken by the Council, Western countries appear to be satisfied with what they have done so far on the issue.
Ambassador Andrej Logar of Slovenia, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, said the EU's message is "significant" and was made at the right time.
"We have made a very clear declaration, showing that what is happening in Tibet is not acceptable for the European Union," he said.
"The intervention is a process, not a destination. We have told the Chinese that we will be very careful observers on what is going on in Tibet," he added.
The EU on Tuesday urged "the Chinese authorities to refrain from using force against those involved in unrest and call on demonstrators to desist from violence."
US Ambassador Warren Tichenor said the United States is "deeply troubled by the reports in recent weeks of violence, arrests and loss of life stemming from what began as peaceful protests in Lhasa."
