ASSEMBLY WOULD CONVENE 1998 SPECIAL SESSION ON DRUG ABUSE, TRAFFICKING, ACCORDING TO TERMS OF DRAFT APPROVED BY THIRD COMMITTEE
Press Release
GA/SHC/3387
ASSEMBLY WOULD CONVENE 1998 SPECIAL SESSION ON DRUG ABUSE, TRAFFICKING, ACCORDING TO TERMS OF DRAFT APPROVED BY THIRD COMMITTEE
19961113 United States Questions Financing of Special Session; Committee Approves Texts on Follow-up to Beijing Conference, Refugee MinorsThe General Assembly would convene a special session in June 1998 to find new ways to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking, according to the terms of a draft resolution approved this morning by the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural). The text was one of three approved without a vote.
The three-day session, which would be funded through the United Nations regular budget, would propose new strategies and specific measures to strengthen international cooperation on the drug problem. The Commission on Narcotic Drugs would act as the preparatory body for the special session and Governments would be invited to make extrabudgetary contributions to meet preparatory costs.
Speakers expressed reservations about "inaccuracies" in the statement submitted by the Secretary-General on programme budget implications for the proposed special session. Mexico said the statement did not reflect adequately the draft text on the special session and should be revised before it was submitted to the Fifth Committee.
The representative of the United States said his Government could not support actions which increased the United Nations regular budget beyond the cap adopted by the Assembly for the current biennium. Effective prioritization should allow all the programme budget implications to be absorbed within the budget cap. If, after additional efforts, the costs in question could be accommodated fully within the budget ceiling, the United States would co-sponsor the text in recognition of its support for the substance of the resolution. He regretted that it could not do so today. And it would not support the expenditures when they were presented to the Fifth Committee.
By the terms of another text, also approved without a vote, the Assembly would decide to appraise follow-up to the United Nations Fourth World
Conference on Women (Beijing 1995) on an annual basis. It would call on Governments to invite active participation by other institutional actors to implement the Platform.
A draft resolution on assistance to unaccompanied refugee minors would have the Assembly call on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in cooperation with other United Nations bodies, to incorporate into its programmes policies aimed at preventing refugee family separation. It would also call on all Governments, the Secretary-General, the UNHCR, all United Nations organizations, and other international and non-governmental organizations to exert maximum efforts to assist and protect refugee minors and to expedite reunification with their families.
In concluding its consideration on the promotion and protection of the rights of children, the Committee heard statements by Tunisia, Canada, Latvia and the Czech Republic.
The Committee also heard the introduction of draft resolutions on the advancement of women, the elimination of racism and racial discrimination, and the right of peoples to self-determination.
The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. today to begin consideration of the implementation of human rights instruments.
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Committee Work Programme
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met this morning to conclude its consideration on the promotion and protection of the rights of children. (For background information see Press Release GA/SHC/3384 of 11 November and of GA/SHC/3382 of 8 November.)
The Committee was also expected to take action on draft resolutions on a special General Assembly session to eradicate drug abuse and trafficking, a draft on follow-up to the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing 1995), and a text on unaccompanied refugee minors. A number of draft resolutions were also expected to be introduced.
Draft Resolutions
The Committee was scheduled to take action on the following resolutions:
By the terms of a draft resolution on international action to combat drug abuse and illicit production and trafficking (document A/C.3/51/L.9), the Assembly would decide to convene a special session for three days in June 1998, to consider the fight against the illicit production, sale, demand, traffic and distribution, of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and related activities, and to propose new strategies, methods, practical activities and specific measures to strengthen international cooperation in addressing the problem. The Commission on Narcotic Drugs would act as the preparatory body for the special session which would be funded through the United Nations regular budget, and Governments would be invited to make extrabudgetary contributions to meet the preparatory costs.
The Assembly would decide that the special session will promote adherence to and full implementation by all States to the Single Convention on Narcotics of 1961, the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971 and the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs of 1988; adopt measures to increase international legal cooperation; adopt measures to avoid the diversion of chemicals used in illicit drug production and to strengthen control of the production of and traffic in stimulants and their precursors; adopt and promote drug abuse control programmes and policies to reduce the illicit drug demand; adopt measures to prevent and sanction money- laundering; encourage international cooperation to develop illicit crop eradication programmes and promote alternative development programmes; adopt measures to strengthen coordination within the United Nations system in the fight against drug trafficking and related organized crime, against terrorist groups engaged in drug trafficking, and against the illicit arms trade.
In addition, the Assembly would call upon States to intensify their actions to promote effective cooperation in the efforts to combat drug abuse and illicit trafficking, including cooperation with the United Nations
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International Drug Control Programme and implementation of the Global Action Plan.
The text is sponsored by Algeria, Argentina, Austria, Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Honduras, Iceland, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Luxembourg, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal, Romania, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay and Venezuela.
A statement on the programme budget implications for the proposed special session of the General Assembly (document A/C.3/51/L.22), indicates that, should the Assembly adopt the resolution contained in document A/C.3/51/L.9, additional requirements of $976,500 would arise under section 14, International Drug Control, of the approved programme budget for the biennium 1996-1997. Of those, $372,100 could be met from extrabudgetary resources and $313,900 from extrabudgetary resources. The balance of $290,500 would be subject to procedures governing the contingency fund. Resources totalling $174,700, $353,900 and $307,100 respectively, for sections 1, 14, and 26E, required to implement the draft resolution in 1998, would be included in the proposed programme and budget for the biennium in 1988-1999. Out of the $353,900 foreseen in section 14, it is expected that $130,000 would be funded from extrabudgetary resources.
By the terms of another draft resolution on follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing 1995) (document A/C.3/51/L.29), the Assembly would decide to appraise progress on an annual basis and to retain the agenda item in its forthcoming sessions to assess in the year 2000 the progress in implementing the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women and the Platform for Action in an appropriate forum. It would call on Governments to invite and encourage the active participation by a broad and diverse range of other institutional actors to implement the Platform.
The Assembly would also call on States to strengthen international cooperation and allocate sufficient resources for gender impact analysis in order to develop successful national implementation strategies. It would reaffirm that adequate financial resources be committed to implement the Platform in developing countries, particularly in Africa, and the least developed countries.
Further, the Assembly would call on States to commit to gender balance through the creation of special mechanisms in all government-appointed committees, boards, and international institutions and mechanisms by promoting more women candidates. The Assembly would ask the Secretary-General to formulate a new system-wide medium-term plan for the advancement of women to
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cover the period 2002 to 2005, to submit a new draft plan to the Economic and Social Council at its substantive session of 2000 in order to guide the medium-term plans of the individual United Nations organizations, and to submit a draft plan to the Commission on the Status of Women at its forty- fourth session.
By the terms of a draft on assistance to unaccompanied refugee minors (A/C.3/51/L.15/Rev.1), the Assembly would call on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in cooperation with other United Nations bodies, to incorporate into its programmes, policies aimed at preventing refugee family separation. It would also call on all Governments, the Secretary-General, the UNHCR, all United Nations organizations, and other international and non-governmental organizations, to exert maximum efforts to assist and protect refugee minors and to expedite reunification with their families. The Secretary-General, UNHCR, Department of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other organizations would be called on to mobilize adequate assistance for the relief, education, health and psychological rehabilitation of unaccompanied minors. The Assembly would condemn the exploitation of unaccompanied refugee minors, including their use as soldiers or as human shields in armed conflict, forced recruitment in military forces, and any other acts that endanger their personal safety and security.
The draft is sponsored by Bangladesh, Burundi, Morocco, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria and Turkey.
The Committee was also expected to hear the introduction of a number of draft resolutions.
By the terms of a draft on traffic in women and girls (document A/C.3/51/L.18), the Assembly would call upon Governments to criminalize trafficking in women and girls in all forms and to condemn and penalize all offenders involved, including intermediaries, while ensuring that the victims are not penalized, and to penalize persons in authority found guilty of sexually assaulting trafficking victims in their custody.
By the terms of the draft resolution on measures to combat contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (A/C.3/51/L.23), the Assembly would call on Governments and intergovernmental organizations, with the assistance of non-governmental organizations, to continue cooperating with and supplying relevant information to the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights.
The Assembly would urge Governments to cooperate fully with the Special Rapporteur to enable him to fulfil his mandate and would urge the Centre for Human Rights to facilitate his work. It would request the Secretary-General, without any further delay, to provide the Special Rapporteur with human and
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financial assistance to carry out his mandate efficiently and expeditiously, and to enable him to submit, in a timely manner, a report on this question to the Assembly's fifty-second session.
The draft is sponsored by Costa Rica and Turkey.
By the terms of a draft resolution on the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (A/C.3/51/L.24) the Assembly would call upon States parties to fulfil their obligation, under the Convention, to submit in due time their periodic reports on measures to implement it. The Assembly would urge States parties to accelerate their domestic ratification procedures on the amendment procedures regarding the financing of the Committee and to notify the Secretary-General in writing of their agreement to the amendment. The Assembly would also ask States to ratify or accede to the Convention; and States parties who have not done so to consider the possibility of making the declaration provided for in article 14 of the Convention.
The draft is sponsored by Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Morocco, Netherlands, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
The Committee will also hear the introduction of three draft resolutions on the right of peoples to self-determination. By a text on the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination (document A/C.3/51/L.25) the Assembly would reaffirm that right and express the hope that the Palestinian people would soon exercise it in the current peace process. It would urge all States and the United Nations system to continue to support and assist the Palestinian people in their quest for self-determination.
The draft is sponsored by Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Cyprus, Denmark, Djibouti, Egypt, Finland, France, Greece, Guinea, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Kuwait, Lesotho, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Viet Nam, Yemen and Zambia.
In a Nigerian sponsored draft on the use of mercenaries to violate human rights and impede the right of peoples to self-determination (document A/C.3/51/L.26), the Assembly would call upon all States that had not yet done so to consider signing or ratifying the International Convention against Recruitment, Use, Financing, and Training of Mercenaries. It would urge all States to exercise the utmost vigilance against the menace posed by the
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activities of mercenaries and to take necessary legislative measures to ensure that their territories were not used for the recruitment, assembly, financing, training and transit of mercenaries for the planning of activities designed to destabilize or overthrow the Government of any State or threaten the territorial integrity and political unity of sovereign States. Taking note of the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the use of mercenaries and related activities, the Assembly would request him to report, with specific recommendations, his findings on the new elements identified in the use of mercenaries to undermine the rights of people to self-determination.
By a draft on the universal realization of the right of peoples to self- determination (document A/C.3/51/L.28), the Assembly would call upon all those States responsible to cease immediately their military intervention in and occupation of foreign countries and territories and all acts of repression, discrimination, exploitation and maltreatment. It would deplore the plight of millions of refugees and displaced persons who have been uprooted as a result of the aforementioned acts and reaffirm their right to return to their homes voluntarily in safety and honour.
The text is sponsored by Albania, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Costa Rica, Egypt, Honduras, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.
Also to be introduced was a draft resolution sponsored by Costa Rica on the Third Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (document A/C.3/51/L.27) which would have the Assembly decide to convene a world conference to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance by the year 1999. It would urge all Governments to take all necessary measures to combat new forms of racism and call upon them to cooperate more closely with the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on contemporary forms of racism, xenophobia, and related intolerance.
The Assembly would also call upon all Member States to consider signing and ratifying or acceding to the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families. It would further urge the Secretary-General, the United Nations system, Governments, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations to pay particular attention to the situation of indigenous people in the implementation of the Programme of Action for the Third Decade. In addition, it would strongly underline the importance of education as a significant means of preventing and eradicating racism. The Secretary-General would be requested to accord the highest priority to the Programme of Action for the Third Decade.
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Statements on Rights of Children
WAHID BEN AMOR (Tunisia) said his Government has shown the will and desire to respect its commitments to children. It had demonstrated this by naming 11 January every year as the National Day of Children and by establishing the Prize on The Rights of the Child, which was made annually to distinguished and outstanding individuals, parties or organizations that have done great service in the rights of the child and its well-being. The Government has also revised the personal statute family code and various laws to consolidate the rights of children. In the area of health care, the Government had stressed efforts in the areas of mother and child health, vaccinations, and general coverage to the population in all areas. Forms of childhood diseases were being eradicated, and the mortality rate for children less than five has decreased to 38 per 1,000.
The international community's efforts in the area of the promotion and protection of children should not lose sight of the many things that need to be done, especially in Africa and Southeast Asia, where children suffer from malnutrition and starvation daily, he said. Graca Machel's report on the impact of armed conflict on children was important, and its recommendations made it clear that the international community must assume its responsibility in the face of the tragedy in the Great Lakes region.
JOHN HUGHES (Canada) said his Government was determined that the report of the Expert of the Secretary-General on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Children remain a focus of international attention in the years to come. For that reason, Canada supported the Expert's recommendation for the appointment by the Secretary-General of a special representative. With a clear and focused mandate, a special representative could play a critical role in raising awareness and in coordinating the international community's response to that tragic situation.
He said the entire international community must accept responsibility for the ongoing and intolerable sexual and economic exploitation of children. And recent events had demonstrated that the problem could occur in both developed and developing countries. The report of the Commission on Human Rights Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography made an important contribution to the understanding of the problem and to the search for solutions. The Optional Protocol to the Convention of the Rights of the Child was one of the most promising solutions to that problem, and Canada was strongly committed to its early and successful conclusion.
The economic exploitation of children was also a matter of profound concern, he said. Canada was encouraged by the work done to date by the International Labour Organization (ILO), particularly its International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour, and supported an integrated
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strategy to address the problem with a focus on poverty alleviation, education, enhanced participation of women in economic development, and greater involvement of civil society. The Government actively supported the elaboration of a new ILO Convention on exploitive forms of child labour and was examining its development assistance programmes to ensure that they contribute to ending the economic exploitation of children.
JANIS MAZEIKS (Latvia) said his Government had made great efforts to meet its international obligations under the Convention for the Rights of the Child. Problems such as street children and violence against children were of special concern. The Government had paid particular attention to ensuring the right of children to education and to their unimpeded development in a favourable economic and social environment. A Latvian language training programme had been established in close cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the support of a number of bilateral donors, including Sweden, Netherlands, Finland, Norway and Denmark.
Latvia believed that the report by Graca Machel on the impact of armed conflicts on children and its recommendations would serve as a guide for future work in that field, he said. The destiny of the so-called "invisible children" -- the children affected by armed conflicts -- had been brought to the attention of the Member States. Cooperation between government and civil society, as well as the international community, was the cornerstone of the protection of the rights of children. Strict observance of international humanitarian law, compliance with obligations assumed by governments, strengthening of non-governmental organizations and efficient work of human rights protection institutions were the basic means to ensure observance and promotion of the rights of the child.
ZDENKA MACHNYIKOVA (Czech Republic) said increased concern over the brutal crime of commercial sexual exploitation of children was due to the dramatic increase in the number of children abused in prostitution and pornography, sale and trafficking for sexual purposes. The international community had also become more aware of the problem, and it had become clear the protection of children must remain on the political agenda.
The international instruments for protecting children, particularly the Convention on the Rights of the Child, provided a strong basis for the protection and recognition of children's rights, she said. However, legislation was not enough. States needed to concentrate their efforts on its full implementation on the international as well as on the national level. Preventive action also needed to be taken to provide assistance to the victims in their recovery and reintegration into society. International cooperation, which was no longer just a matter of States but also non-governmental organizations, was essential and must be strengthened by all possible means.
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The World Congress against commercial sexual exploitation of children held in Stockholm was a practical example of international cooperation, she said. It directly addressed the problem and provided an open forum for discussion and the exchange of information among delegates. The Czech Republic would use the declaration and agenda for action adopted at the Congress to analyze and define the scope of the problem at the national level and develop its own plan of action in the near future.
Introduction of Draft Resolutions
The representative of Egypt, speaking on behalf of the resolution's sponsors, introduced the resolution on the right of the Palestinian People to self-determination. He said he would submit a list of the resolution's 60 co- sponsors to the Committee's secretariat. The resolution expresses the hope that the Palestinian people would express its destiny in the context of the current peace process. He also said that Uganda had been added to the list of co-sponsors.
The representative of Nigeria introduced the draft resolution on the use of mercenaries to violate human rights and to impede the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination. He said the name of the draft's co-sponsors would be submitted later on. The resolution was similar to the text submitted the previous year, and it called upon the members of the international community to work in concert and determination to prevent the use of mercenaries.
The representative of the Philippines, speaking on behalf of the resolution's other sponsors, introduced a draft on violence against women migrant workers. It was the fourth update since the resolution's adoption in 1992.
The Philippines also introduced the draft on traffic in women and girls on behalf of the co-sponsors of the resolution.
The representative of Slovenia, speaking on behalf of the resolution's co-sponsors, introduced the draft on the international Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Australia, Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Guatemala, Iceland, Federated States of Micronesia, New Zealand, Norway and Poland were added to the list of the co-sponsors.
The representative of Pakistan, speaking on behalf of the resolution's other sponsors, introduced the draft on the universal realization of the right of peoples to self-determination. He said Djibouti had been added to the list of co-sponsors.
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Action on Draft Resolutions
The Committee then took action on a draft resolution on international action to combat drug abuse and illicit production and trafficking.
Speaking before the vote, the representative of Mexico said that the special session on drug abuse would be a great success, with active participation of many delegations of all regions. Without any doubt there were great reasons for having such a meeting and there were many international benefits in this area. Preparation for this meeting should involve the implementation of the necessary instruments and international cooperation on substantive issues. This work, of course, should be done in an orderly way, based on the mandates of the resolutions of the Assembly and the Commission on Narcotic Drugs to keep the costs as low as possible.
The statement of budget implications of a proposed special session did not reflect what was set out in the draft resolution, she said. The reference to a call for a series of expert group meetings (section B, paragraph 5) was not a part of the original draft resolution. On this matter, section 4, paragraphs 7 and 8 of the draft resolution were very clear. Paragraph 7 referred to the preparation for the special session but not to expert meetings called for by Secretariat. Therefore, the Programme budget statement must be revised so it was brought in accordance with the mandate of the draft resolution on the proposed special session.
The representative of Ireland, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said he fully supported Mexico's statement and joined in the call for a revised statement of the budget implications to be presented to the Fifth Committee. The statement should adequately reflect the implementation of the draft resolution on the proposed special session.
The representative of Colombia said he supported Mexico's statement. The statement did not adequately reflect the draft on the proposed special session. He also had some difficulties with the Spanish translation of the text.
The representative of the United States said his Government could not support actions which increased the United Nations regular budget beyond the cap adopted by the General Assembly for the current biennium. According to the Secretariat, initial preparations for the 1998 special session would require resources which were not foreseen in the work plan of the current biennium. The Secretariat had worked diligently to find offsets for any entailed costs and was able to proved offsets for some of the resource requirements. He highly regretted that many of those offsets had significant implications for the ongoing programmes of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme and the International Narcotics Control Board. Member States should consider seriously that, unless a better plan was presented to
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absorb the costs, a number of those programmes and initiatives mandated in previous years would not be delivered.
He said effective prioritization should allow all the programme budget implications to be absorbed within the budget cap. Many of the imputed costs were for meeting or consulting services connected to the special session for which the Member States had not been given a mandate and which he believed were unnecessary.
The United States therefore would disassociate itself from the resolution at this time. He understood voluntary contributions were expected which could offset all or part of the costs in question. There would also be an opportunity to revise the budget impact estimate. If, after those additional efforts, the costs could be accommodated fully within the budget ceiling, the United States would co-sponsor the text in recognition of its support for the substance of the resolution. He regretted that it could not do so today. And it would not support the expenditures when they were presented to the Fifth Committee.
The representative of Cuba supported Mexico's statement. He regretted the situation on the draft where some delegations participated in negotiations on the text and, then, finally disassociated themselves from it. It was not pertinent to hold discussions on funding in the Third Committee when discussing political mandates. It was up to the Fifth Committee to discuss that. A doubt should not be cast on a mandate which had the support of the entire international community.
The Committee then approved the draft resolution without a vote.
Speaking after action, the representative of Iran said his delegation had participated in all negotiations on the text. It dealt with many aspects of the drug problem. However, he was concerned that preambular paragraph 10 conveyed a wrong message to traffickers about their human rights and that they might be exploited.
The following countries joined the list of co-sponsors: Bangladesh, Belgium, Croatia, Namibia, Tunisia, Belarus, Barbados, Georgia, Malta, Sri Lanka, El Salvador, Jamaica, Kazakstan, Guatemala, Kyrgyz Republic, Guinea- Bissau, Russian Federation, Slovakia, Peru, Saint Lucia, Mexico, Swaziland, Thailand, Slovenia, Poland, Morocco, Netherlands, Singapore, Togo, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Philippines, Togo, Kenya, Myanmar, Mozambique, Niger, Afghanistan, Haiti, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania and Equatorial Guinea.
The Committee than approved the draft resolution without a vote.
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The Committee took up a draft resolution on the follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women and full Implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
The Committee approved the draft resolution without a vote.
The Committee then took action on the draft resolution on assistance to unaccompanied refugee minors.
The representative read out the following oral revision:
-- The fourth operative paragraph, third line, "conscious of the importance of the family unit" should be added at the end of the paragraph after "separation".
The following countries joined the list of co-sponsors: Afghanistan, Guinea-Bissau, Iran, Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda and Zaire.
The Committee then approved the draft resolution, as orally amended, without a vote.
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