Secret prisons unacceptable: UN

8220;That is why secret prisons have no place in our struggle against terrorism, and why all places where terrorism suspects are detained must be accessible to the International Committee of the Red Cross,8221; he said clearly hinting at the US, which is holding hundreds of terror detainees at the Guantanamo Bay Naval base in Cuba.

Annan said 8220;leading promoters of human rights undermine their own influence when they fail to live up to these principles.8217;8217;

Addressing a meeting organised by Human Rights Watch on Thursday, Annan also strongly condemned international community for its failure to halt bloodshed in Darfur, saying sixty year after the liberation of the Nazi death camps and 30 years after the Cambodian killing fields, the world body8217;s promise of 8220;never again8221; sounds hollow.

8220;To judge by what is happening in Darfur, our performance has not improved much since the disasters of Bosnia and Rwanda,8221; he told a select audience of more than 500 guests.