It’s not a "unilateral action" to join human rights conventions; US should commend Palestine

The following are 9 of the 15 conventions on human rights Palestine has decided to accede to:

• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 1966
• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 1966
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women 1979
• Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989
• Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2006
• International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination 1965
• United Nations Convention Against Torture, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1984
• Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide 1948
• Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid 1973

It is worthwhile mentioning that the US itself has not yet acceded to the following conventions:

• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 1966 (signed, but not ratified)
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women 1979 (signed, but not ratified)
• Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 (signed, but not ratified)
• Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2006 (signed, but not ratified)
• Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid 1973

Instead of claiming that the Palestinian decision is a “unilateral action”, the US should commend Palestine, and should also follow suit.