THIRD COMMITTEE APPROVES DRAFTS ON RIGHTS OF CHILDREN, ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN, INTERNATIONAL DECADE OF WORLD'S INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
Press Release
GA/SHC/3344*
THIRD COMMITTEE APPROVES DRAFTS ON RIGHTS OF CHILDREN, ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN, INTERNATIONAL DECADE OF WORLD'S INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
19951205 The General Assembly would urge all States to join the current 181 which have ratified or acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child in order to achieve universal adherence by the end of the year, according to a draft approved without a vote this morning in the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural).By the terms of the six-part orally revised text, the Assembly would urge States parties to the Convention that had made reservations to review them. Also, the Assembly would strongly urge all governments to take urgent measures to prevent the killing of street children.
The representatives of Sweden and India made statements in relation to that draft.
By the terms of another orally revised text on the rights of children, also approved without a vote, the Assembly would call upon the international community to take into account the rights and the particular needs of the girl child and to eliminate negative cultural attitudes and practices against her. States, international organizations and non-governmental organizations would be called upon to mobilize the necessary financial resources and political support to achieve goals relating to the survival, development and protection of the girl child in all programmes for children.
The representative of Côte d'Ivoire made a statement related to that text.
In one of two drafts considered this morning on the advancement of women, the Committee approved without a vote an orally revised text under which the Assembly would request the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), as one of the operational bodies of the United Nations, to take into
* Press Release GA/SHC/3348, dated 4 December, should have been numbered GA/SHC/3343.
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account the need to strengthen its activities to eliminate violence against women as part of system-wide efforts of the United Nations towards this goal. Action on the second draft on traffic in women and girls was postponed, following the introduction of amendments. Statements in connection with the second draft were made by the representatives of the Philippines, Germany and Iran.
Under the terms of an orally revised draft approved without a vote, the Assembly would decide to adopt the programme of activities for the International Decade on the World's Indigenous People contained in an annex to that resolution. In addition, it would appeal to governments and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to support the Decade by identifying resources for activities designed to implement the goals of the Decade, in cooperation with indigenous people.
Statements relating to that draft were made by the representatives of Nigeria, Austria, Colombia, Morocco, United States and Japan.
Also this morning, by the terms of a draft approved without a vote, the Assembly would decide that the Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations should also be used to assist representatives of indigenous communities and organizations to participate in the deliberations of the open-ended inter- sessional working group of the Commission on Human Rights as well as in the deliberations of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations.
The representative of Japan made a statement in relation to that draft.
The Committee also heard statements in exercise of the right of reply related to human rights questions by the representatives of Viet Nam, Iraq, India, Turkey, Pakistan, Albania, Greece, Kuwait, and Cyprus.
The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. on 6 December to take action on outstanding draft resolutions.
Committee Work Programme
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met this morning to take action on several draft resolutions on the advancement of women, the promotion and protection of the rights of children, and the programme of activities for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People. The Committee was also expected to hear statements in exercise of the right of reply relating to human rights questions.
Under the terms of the first of three draft resolutions on the advancement of women, the General Assembly would invite Member States to attach greater importance to the improvement of the situation of rural women in their national development strategies, paying special attention to both their practical and their strategic needs (document A/C.3/50/L.24).
By that text, the Assembly would request the international community, along with relevant United Nations bodies and agencies, to promote the realization of the programme and projects aimed at the improvement of the situation of rural women within the framework of integrated follow-up to relevant global conferences. In addition, the World Food Summit, to be held in 1996, would be invited to give due consideration to the improvement of the situation of women in rural areas. Also, the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) would be invited to consider the gender aspects of rural urban migration and its impact on the situation of rural women.
That draft is sponsored by Bangladesh, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, China, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Greece, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mongolia, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines and Viet Nam.
By a resolution on the role of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) in eliminating violence against women (document A/C.3/50/L.25/Rev.1), the General Assembly would request the Fund, as one of the operational bodies of the United Nations, to take into account the need to strengthen its activities to eliminate violence against women, particularly at the national and local levels, and in accordance with the measures set out in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women. It would also have the Assembly request the Fund to cooperate closely with the relevant organs and bodies of the United Nations in order to ensure that its activities form part of the system-wide efforts of the United Nations to eliminate violence against women.
By that text, the Fund would be further requested to include in its regular reports information regarding its activities to eliminate violence against women and girls and to provide such information to the Commission on
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the Status of Women and the Commission on Human Rights. In addition, the Assembly would invite the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to consider the possibility of establishing a trust fund within the existing structure and management of the United Nations Development Fund for Women, in support of national, regional and international actions, including those taken by Governments and non-governmental organizations, to eliminate violence against women.
The draft text was sponsored by Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Canada, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Fiji, Ghana, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Singapore, South Africa, Swaziland, Thailand, United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Under the terms of a draft resolution on traffic in Women and girls (Document A/C.3/50/L.26), the Assembly would invite governments to combat trafficking in women and children through nationally and internationally coordinated measures, at the same time establishing or strengthening institutions for the protection of the victims of such trafficking and to ensure for victims the necessary assistance, including legal support services that are linguistically and culturally accessible, towards their full protection, treatment and rehabilitation.
The text would also have the Assembly invite governments to consider the development of standard minimum rules for the humanitarian treatment of trafficked persons, consistent with internationally recognized human rights standards. In addition, it would urge concerned governments to support comprehensive, practical approaches by the international community to assist women and children victims of transnational trafficking to return home and reintegrate into their home societies.
Also by the terms of that draft, the Assembly would recommend that the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights include the traffic in women and girls among his priority concerns. It would further recommend to the Centre for Human Rights of the Secretariat that it include the traffic in women and girls in its programme of work under its advisory, training and information services. It would also decide to focus the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, 2 December 1996, on the problem of trafficking in human persons and to devote one meeting of the fifty-first session of the General Assembly to the discussion of this problem.
The draft resolution was sponsored by Argentina, Armenia, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Guinea-Bissau, India, Israel, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines and Thailand.
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The Committee is scheduled to consider two texts on the promotion and protection of the rights of children. According to Part I of a six-part resolution on the rights of the child (Document A/C.3/50/L.28), the Assembly would welcome the unprecedented number of 181 States that had ratified or acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as a universal commitment to the rights of the child. It would then urge all States that had not yet done so to sign and ratify or accede to the Convention, with a view to reaching universal adherence by the end of 1995. It would also urge States parties that had made reservations to review the compatibility of their reservations with article 51 of the Convention and other relevant rules of international law, with the aim of withdrawing them.
It would also call upon States parties to ensure that the education of the child was carried out in accordance with article 29 of the Convention and was directed to the development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, for the Charter and for different cultures and to the preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society.
Under Part II of the draft resolution, the General Assembly would call upon States to fully respect the dispositions contained in the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 and the Additional Protocols thereto, of 1977, as well as those in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which accorded children affected by armed conflicts special protection and treatment. In addition, it would urgently request that appropriate measures be taken by Member States and United Nations agencies to facilitate the extension of humanitarian assistance and relief and humanitarian access to children in situations of armed conflict and the immediate aftermath of such conflict.
Part III of the draft resolution would have the General Assembly request that all States support efforts in the context of the United Nations system aimed at adopting efficient international measures for the prevention and eradication of the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography and consider contributing to the drafting of an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
By the terms of Part IV, the Assembly would call upon governments to take legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to ensure the protection of children from economic exploitation. It would also urge governments to take all necessary measures to eliminate all extreme forms of child labour, such as forced labour, bonded labour and other forms of slavery.
Part V would have the Assembly urge governments to continue actively to seek comprehensive solutions to tackle the problems of street children and to take measures to restore their full participation in society and to provide adequate nutrition, shelter, health care and education. It would also strongly urge all governments to take urgent measures to prevent the killing of street children and to combat torture and violence against them. It would
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call upon the international community to support, through effective international cooperation, the efforts of States to improve the situation of street children.
By the terms of Part VI of the draft, the Assembly would invite governments, United Nations bodies and organizations, including the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and relevant mechanisms of the Commission on Human Rights, and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to cooperate with each other to ensure greater awareness and more effective action to solve the problem of children living in exceptionally difficult conditions by, among other measures, initiating and supporting development projects that could have a positive impact on the situation of those children.
The draft resolution was sponsored by Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guinea-Bissau, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mongolia, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Togo, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
Under the terms of another draft resolution on the right of children, the Assembly would call upon Member States and the international community to take into account the rights and the particular needs of the girl child and to eliminate negative cultural attitudes and practices against her (document A/C.3/L.31/Rev.1). States, international organizations and non-governmental organizations would be called upon to mobilize the necessary financial resources and political support to achieve goals, strategies and actions relating to the survival, development and protection of the girl child in all programmes for children.
That draft is sponsored by Afghanistan, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, United States, Uruguay, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
By the terms of a draft resolution on the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations (Document A/C.3/50/L.29), the General Assembly would decide that the Voluntary Fund should also be used to assist representatives of indigenous communities and organizations to participate in the deliberations of the open-ended inter-sessional working group of the
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Commission on Human Rights as well as in the deliberations of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations. It would request the Secretary-General to invite Member States to consider contributing to the Voluntary Fund.
The draft resolution was sponsored by Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Finland, Greece and New Zealand.
Action on Draft resolutions
The Committee took up draft resolutions on the advancement of women.
It first took up the draft resolution on the role of the United Nations Development Fund for Women in eliminating violence against women. The United States, Suriname, Togo, Nepal, Philippines, Netherlands, Cambodia, and Uganda joined in the sponsorship of the draft resolution.
The Committee adopted the draft resolution without a vote.
The Committee next took up the draft resolution on traffic in women and girls.
RUTH S. LIMJUCO (Philippines) announced that Belgium, Marshall Islands and Ukraine had joined in sponsorship of the draft resolution. Kyrgyz Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, Nepal and Togo also joined in the sponsorship.
She then announced amendments in penultimate preambular paragraph of the draft text and in operative paragraphs 6, 7, 8 and 11.
AURELIO FERNANDEZ (Spain) said that the language in operative Paragraph 3, referring to "internationally recognized human rights standards" was not used in the Beijing Programme of Action.
Ms. LIMJUCO (Philippines) said that the paragraph was a direct quote from a resolution adopted during the last session of the Commission on the Status of Women.
Mr. FERNANDEZ (Spain) said that there was a long discussion in Beijing and it was agreed that the term human rights should be used rather than internationally recognized human rights standards.
Ms. LIMJUCO (Philippines) proposed that the paragraph be amended to accommodate the proposal by Spain.
MOSTAFA ALAEE (Iran) then proposed some new amendments. He suggested that further consultations be held on the draft resolution if those amendments could not be accommodated.
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Ms. LIMJUCO (Philippines) said that the amendments proposed would dilute the draft resolution. Also, three of the points proposed by Iran had been accommodated in the draft resolution. Iran should withdraw the proposals.
UGYEN TSHERING (Bhutan) said that further consultations should be held on the draft resolution.
The Committee decided to postpone action on the draft resolution.
The Committee then took up two draft resolutions related to the promotion and protection of the rights of children. They first turned to the orally revised draft on the rights of the child.
ANDERS RONQUIST (Sweden) said the following States had joined in co- sponsoring that text: Andorra, Burkina Faso, Canada, Croatia, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Monaco, Poland, Philippines, Bulgaria, Ghana, Russian Federation, Kenya, Senegal, Niger, Nigeria, Gambia, Papua New Guinea, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea, Fiji, Tunisia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Singapore, Cote d'Ivoire, Azerbaijan, Benin, Botswana, Mali, Sri Lanka, Solomon Islands, Malta, Turkey, Albania, Bhutan, Kyrgyz Republic, Georgia, Lithuania, Gabon, Rwanda, Cambodia, Sierra Leona, United Republic of Tanzania, Samoa and Mauritania.
The Committee then approved that draft without a vote.
MANIMEKALAI MURUGESAN (India) said she regretted the lack of transparency at various stages of the consultations. In dealing with drafts, it was more important to cooperate. She wished to improve the way such consultations were conducted.
The Committee then took up the revised draft on the girl child.
The following States joined in co-sponsoring that text: Viet Nam, Nicaragua, Nepal, Sierra Leone, Russian Federation, Croatia, Mauritania, Bolivia, Uganda, Indonesia, Malta, Solomon Islands, Egypt, Argentina, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Kyrgyz Republic, Barbados, Georgia, Albania, Rwanda and Greece.
DJENEBOU KABA (Cote d'Ivoire) said her Government had proposed an amendment to proclaim a "world day for girls". Originally it was intended to be part of the draft. However, since a few European States had threatened not to approve that text, the proposal was put on hold. She appealed to States, especially the Scandinavian ones, to consider such a proposal again. Such a paragraph would be important for a few countries where girls were not well treated. It could further raise public awareness in improving the situation of girls world wide. Such a proposal should be considered for the future. She did not intend to slow down approval of the draft.
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The Committee approved the text on the girl child without a vote.
The Committee then took up draft resolutions on the Programme of activities for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People.
The orally revised draft on the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Populations was taken up.
Turkmenistan, Bhutan, Bolivia, Solomon Islands, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Nigeria joined in co-sponsoring that text.
The Committee then approved that draft resolution without a vote.
SUNICHI MITSUDA (Japan) said that, as a State that greatly contributed to the Fund, Japan hoped it would assist those who really needed assistance.
SAM OTUYELU (Nigeria) said his country joined in the belief that the participation of indigenous people was non-negotiable. Most people in Africa were indigenous and supported anything that would promote their cause. More funds should be contributed by Member States to promote programmes for indigenous people.
The Committee then took up the Programme of Activities for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People.
Under the terms of a draft resolution, the General Assembly would take note of the final report of the Secretary-General on a comprehensive programme of action for the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People. It would decide to adopt the programme of activities for the Decade contained in an annex to the resolution. The programme could be reviewed and updated throughout the Decade and that at the mid-point of the Decade the Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly should review the results of the activities to identify obstacles to achievement of the goals of the Decade and to recommend solutions for overcoming those obstacles.
It would also have the Assembly recognize among the important objectives of the Decade the consideration of the possible establishment of a permanent forum for indigenous people within the United Nations, as recommended in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted by the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights. It would welcome the report of the workshop held in Copenhagen from 26 to 28 June 1995 on the possible establishment of a permanent forum for indigenous people.
Under the draft, the Assembly would appeal to governments and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to support the Decade by identifying resources for activities designed to implement the goals of the Decade, in cooperation with indigenous people.
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The draft resolution was sponsored by Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Finland, Mexico, New Zealand and Peru.
COLIN WILLIS (Australia) recalled the amendments made when the draft resolution was introduced. He then announced two new amendments in paragraph 53 of the annex. Solomon Islands, Bolivia and Estonia had joined in the co- sponsorship.
He said with regard to operative paragraph 8, concerning a review to be undertaken by the Secretary-General, it should be clear that the first step was the review. The possibility of convening a second workshop would be considered taking into account the outcome of that review.
Ecuador, Philippines and Bhutan also joined in co-sponsorship.
MAGDALENA PINZON (Colombia) speaking before action on the draft resolution, said that in the Spanish text, the title of the draft resolution did not contain the words United Nations.
YAMINA AKHAMLICH BENNANI (Morocco) said that in the French version, the words United Nations were also missing.
Mr. TSHERING (Bhutan), Committee Chairman, said that the Secretariat had informed him that the words were also not in the English text. The Secretariat would make the necessary correction.
LUCY TAMLYN (United States) said that for technical reasons, her country was dissociating itself from the consensus on the draft resolution.
The Committee then approved the draft resolution without a vote.
Mr. MITSUDA (Japan) speaking after the approval of the draft resolution, said that his country joined in the consensus, but that it would be better to leave it to each country to determine how to deal with the Decade according to its own circumstances. Some countries were of the view that their population did not contain indigenous people.
Statements in right of reply on human rights question
PHAM THI THANH VAN (Viet Nam) said the representative of Canada said human rights violations had been committed in her country. She questioned the motivations of that representative in view of the recently improved relations between that country and hers. "We should stop the practice of criticizing others without checking the situation of one's own country", she added.
MOHAMMED A. AHMED AL-DOURI (Iraq) said contrary to what the Kuwaiti representative had said, there were no detainees at all in his country. His
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country actively participated with the existing international committees responsible for the search for missing persons. Doing so "was a humanitarian issue not a political one". His country had made available very important information on some missing persons. Kuwait always did its best to continue the economic embargo on his country.
He opposed the comments made by the representative of New Zealand in regards to the situation of human rights in his country. That representative had based his criticism on the report of the Special Rapporteur. That report was completely biased. Unlike what it said, life in his country had been adversely affected by the economic embargo.
NALIN SURIE (India) said Pakistan had continued with its allegations against his country. The report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights accurately depicted the situation of human rights in his country. Pakistan, however was unhappy with it. The High Commissioner was content with the situation of human rights in his country which was an open society. The Government of Pakistan had been accused of many human rights abuses. The democratic forces in that country had not achieved positive results. In addition, there were problems of the judiciary system. Furthermore, Pakistan was involved in the conflict in Afghanistan. Pakistan's involvement in terrorist activities in the territories of Kashmir and Jammu were well known.
AHMET ARDA (Turkey) said the Greek representative had accused his country of human rights violations in Cyprus. His country's actions had been fully legal. If the Turkish forces had not gone to Cyprus, the Turkish people in that country would have suffered. In regard to issues relating to the displaced, such issues had been agreed upon by both sides in 1975. Also, there were statements by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) that clearly depicted the situation in Cyprus. Also, the Greeks had intended for years to eliminate the Turks through ethnic cleansing. Furthermore, there were many Turks in Cyprus who were missing. He hoped both sides in Cyprus could find means to reconcile their differences.
AHMAD KAMAL (Pakistan) said the representative of India had failed to recognize that Jammu and Kashmir was recognized by the United Nations as a disputed territory. That country had "equated diplomacy with duplicity". The right to self-determination in Jammu and Kashmir had been violated by the occupation of India. Over 600,000 Indian troops had been deployed in that territory. Arbitrary detentions and other human rights violations were being committed there, such as rapes. Furthermore, that country had a sickening caste system which decided even what one should eat. In addition, thousands of women in India were burnt for not bringing a dowry with them.
SOKOL BRAHA (Albania) said that the representative of Greece had claimed that considerable restrictions continued on the rights of the Greek minority in Albania. The Greek minority had been guaranteed its right to freely
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express, preserve and develop their ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious identity. That right was stipulated in the constitutional laws package which was in conformity with international standards and was observed in practice.
The Greek minority enjoyed the right to education in Greek language, he went on. Albanian legislation provided ample opportunity for the full enjoyment of the right to education in Greek language by the Greek minority. In Greek schools in Albania, there was one teacher for every seven pupils as against one teacher for every 18 pupils in other schools. Also, the Government spent 12,000 Lek on the education of every Greek minority child per year as against 9,000 Lek on an Albanian child.
DIONYSIOS KODELLAS (Greece) said that the statement by Turkey was an attempt to distort the facts. For the last 21 years, the Cyprus problem had been a case of violation of the territorial integrity of a State by a powerful neighbour. In July 1974, the first Security Council resolution on the Turkish invasion called for the withdrawal of the Turkish forces. A series of resolutions had followed, but Turkey had ignored those resolutions. The Secretary-General's report stated that the occupied part of Cyprus was one of the most militarized areas in the world.
The status quo in Cyprus had been considered unacceptable by the Security Council, he said. The Turkish side tried in vain to blame the Government of Cyprus for the stall in the negotiations but the lack of political will on the Turkish side was responsible for that situation. The flagrant violation of the human rights of the Greek Cypriots was a result of the Turkish occupation. He added that the mention of ethnic cleansing by Turkey could be equated with blasphemy.
ALI AL-SAEID (Kuwait) said that he had thought that in his statement, the representative of Iraq would have expressed the readiness of his Government to release the detainees it was holding. As usual, he had prevaricated on the issue on which only promises had been heard for the past five years. His claim that there were no detainees was contrary to information available to the Security Council. Kuwait wanted to settle the issue as soon as possible but Iraq wanted to use it for political gain in order to maintain the regime in power. Practical and sincere steps toward the release of all prisoners and detainees was the most important issue for Kuwait.
He said that his country sent humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people because it understood their suffering, having suffered under the occupation of the Iraqi regime and knowing that regime's capability for the abuse of human rights. When Iraq had fully met its obligations set out by Security Council resolutions, then the sanctions against it should be lifted by the Council.
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EURIPIDES L. EVRIVIADES (Cyprus) said that without the invasion of Cyprus by Turkey, there would have been no partition of his country. Turkey had dubbed its operation in Cyprus as a peace operation but that was not the case. The United Nations Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) was in Cyprus at the request of the Government of Cyprus. Turkey invaded Cyprus and was violating the human rights of the people of Cyprus. Turkey should simply withdraw from Cyprus.
AHMET ARDA (Turkey) responding to Greece, said that the facts showed atrocities committed in Cyprus by the Greek Cypriot side with the support of Greece. Greece had continued to violate human rights in Cyprus and applied double standards in its nationality laws. It discriminated against its own citizens on the basis of race.
Mr. KODELLAS (Greece) said the Turkish delegation left unanswered the questions raised by Greece. When the Lausanne Treaty was signed, there were 250,000 Greeks in Istanbul, but now there were only 3000 left. Ethnic cleansing had been carried out against Greeks in Istanbul. Other acts by the Turkish Government did not only affect Greeks but also affected other groups.
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