Though often a force for good, particularly in the resolution of conflicts on this continent, South Africa's foreign policy has sometimes belied its declarations of its commitment to human rights and its universally admired constitution. In 2007, we infamously joined China and Russia in voting against a UN Security Council resolution calling on Burma's military junta to stop ethnic killings, the use of rape as a weapon and forced labour.During the Mbeki era, we shamelessly propped up Robert Mugabe with our ''quiet diplomacy'' - which allowed him to steal an election that the whole world knew was neither free nor fair.We've kowtowed to China, our biggest trade partner, by repeatedly refusing to grant the Dalai Lama a visa.We've even allowed Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, accused of genocide against his own people, to flee our country despite a High Court order.But this week we outdid ourselves by voting, along with 13 other countries, including North Korea, Sudan, Syria, China, Russia and Zimbabwe, against the adoption by the UN of a resolution intended to protect defenders of human rights from the threats so frequently made against them.There were 117 votes in favour of the resolution, 14 against and 40 abstentions.Human rights lawyers have pointed out that there was no compelling reason for South Africa not to sign on for the resolution. The rights it seeks to protect are all enshrined in our constitution.But this is not the case in many of the other countries that voted against the resolution, among them our Brics partners China and Russia. The less said about North Korea and Syria the better.Pretoria's capitulation is a measure of how far we have fallen. Nelson Mandela's government was fiercely nonpartisan in its foreign relations and loyal to a fault to countries that supported the ANC during the struggle.But it would never have denied protection to people who fight for human rights...