The former President and current UN Commissioner for Human Rights Ms Mary Robinson, has criticised America for its approach to the Johannesburg Earth Summit.
Speaking on RTE radio, Mrs Robinson said the US was participating in a `squeeze out' of references to human rights in the conference's final declaration.
While noting that she herself was not involved in the negotiations, Mrs Robinson said there was a weakening and a removal of language from the initial drafts of the summit's final declaration.
She also said the US was being `unhelpful' and was working with `strange partners' to affect the final declaration and that it had been a trend in recent years for civil rights to be perceived as civil `liberties'.
