THIRD COMMITTEE APPROVES TEXTS ON RIGHTS OF GIRL CHILD, MIGRANT WORKERS, CONTINUES DEBATE ON HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES
Press Release
GA/SHC/3398
THIRD COMMITTEE APPROVES TEXTS ON RIGHTS OF GIRL CHILD, MIGRANT WORKERS, CONTINUES DEBATE ON HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES
19961120 The General Assembly would call for the equal and non-discriminatory participation of girls and young women as partners with boys and young men in social, economic and political life, according to the terms of a draft resolution approved by the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) this afternoon. It was one of four texts approved without a vote.States and international and non-governmental organizations would be called on to implement gender-sensitive strategies to address the rights and needs of children and take into account the rights and needs of the girl child. The Assembly would call for social support to enforce the laws on the minimum legal age for marriage, particularly through educational opportunities for girls, and to strengthen and reorient health education and services. It would also call for special attention to protect adolescent girls from sexual exploitation, harmful cultural practices and abuse.
By the terms of another text, the Assembly would call on 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, as a matter of priority, and express the hope that it would enter into force at an early date. It would ask the Secretary-General to provide facilities and assistance to promote the Convention through the World Public Information Campaign on Human Rights and the programme of advisory services in the field of human rights.
The Assembly would approve the request to allow the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women to hold two three-week sessions annually, each preceded by a pre-session working group, starting from 1997, for an interim period, by the terms of another text approved this afternoon. The open-ended working group of the Commission on the Status of Women would be authorized to meet for 10 working days, within existing United Nations resources, in parallel with the Commission on the Status of Women's forty- first session.
The Assembly would convene a ceremonial one-day meeting on 10 December 1998 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, according to the terms of a fourth text approved today. The
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Assembly would call on all organs and agencies of the United Nations to intensify contributions to system-wide efforts to promote and protect human rights. It would invite governments to assess progress in the field of human rights since the Declaration's adoption and develop educational and information programmes.
The Committee also continued its general debate on human rights issues and heard statements by Kazakstan, Colombia, Croatia, Viet Nam, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, El Salvador, Pakistan and Nigeria.
Burundi spoke in exercise of its right of reply.
The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. Thursday, 21 November, to continue its joint consideration of human rights questions, including follow- up to the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action and the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Committee Work Programme
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met this afternoon to continue its general debate on human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the effective enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms. (For further background information, see Press Releases GA/SHC/3388 of 13 November, 3390 of 14 November, 3391 and 3392 of 15 November, 3393 of 18 November, 3395 of 19 November and 3397 of 20 November.) The Committee was also expected to take action on a number of draft resolutions.
By the terms of a draft resolution on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (document A/C.3/51/L.21), the General Assembly would approve the request made by the Committee and supported by States parties to the Convention for additional meeting time, within the overall existing budget, to allow the Committee to hold two sessions annually, each of three weeks' duration, preceded by a pre-session working group, starting from 1997 for an interim period. It would also urge all Member States that have not yet ratified or acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women to do so that universal ratification of the Convention can be achieved by the year 2000.
The Assembly would urge States to the Convention to take appropriate measures so that acceptance of the amendment to article 20, paragraph 1, of the Convention by a two-thirds majority of States parties can be reached as soon as possible in order for the amendment to enter into force. It would also urge States to formulate any reservations as precisely as possible, to ensure that no reservation is incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention or otherwise incompatible with international treaty law, to review their reservations regularly with a view to withdrawing them and to withdraw reservations that are contrary to the object and purpose of the Convention or that are otherwise incompatible with international treaty law.
The Assembly would authorize the open-ended working group of the Commission on the Status of Women to meet for 10 working days, within existing United Nations resources, in parallel with the Commission on the Status of Women, at its forty-first session.
The text is sponsored by Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Barbados, Burkina Faso, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Greece, Guatemala, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kyrgyz Republic, Luxembourg, Mongolia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Sweden, Togo, Turkey, Venezuela and Zambia.
By the terms of the draft resolution on measures to combat contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (document A/C.3/51/L.23), the Assembly would call on governments and intergovernmental organizations, with the assistance of non-governmental
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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 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 Turkey and Costa Rica, on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China.
Also before the Committee 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.
By the terms of an omnibus draft resolution on the girl child (document A/C.3/51/L.31), the Assembly would call upon States and international and non- governmental organizations, individually and collectively, to set goals and develop and implement gender-sensitive strategies to address the rights and needs of children; to generate social support for the enforcement of laws on the minimum legal age for marriage, particularly by providing education opportunities for girls; to give attention to the rights and needs of adolescent girls, which called for special actions for their protection from sexual exploitation and abuse; to ensure the equal participation of girls and young women on the basis of non-discrimination and as partners with boys and young men in social, economic and political life; and to strengthen and reorient health education and health services, particularly primary health- care programmes.
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The Assembly would call upon States and international and non- governmental organizations to mobilize all necessary resources, support and efforts to realize the goals, strategic objectives and actions set out in the Platform for Action of the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995). It would also call upon all States, all the relevant organizations and bodies of the United Nations system and non-governmental organization to implement commitments to goals and actions relating to the girl child.
The draft is sponsored by Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belgium, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, Congo, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Sweden, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Viet Nam, Zaire, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
By the terms of a draft resolution on the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (document A/C.3/51/L.32), the Assembly would call upon all Member States to consider signing and ratifying or acceding to the Convention as a matter of priority and express the hope that it would enter into force at an early date. It would request the Secretary-General to provide all facilities and assistance necessary for the promotion of the Convention through the World Public Information Campaign on Human Rights and the programme of advisory services in the field of human rights.
The draft is sponsored by Argentina, Cape Verde, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Turkey and Uruguay.
A text on the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (document A/C.3/51/L.35/Rev.1) would have the Assembly decide to convene, during its fifty-third session, a ceremonial one-day meeting on 10 December and to review during its fifty-second session preparations for the anniversary. The High Commissioner for Human Rights would be asked to continue coordinating preparations.
The Assembly would call on United Nations organs and agencies, in coordination with the High Commissioner, to mark the anniversary by
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intensifying their contributions to system-wide efforts to promote and protect human rights. It would also invite governments to assess progress in the field of human rights since the Declaration's adoption and develop educational and information programmes. It would invite non-governmental organizations and national institutions to participate in anniversary preparations and to intensify their campaign for greater understanding and better use of the Declaration.
The draft is sponsored by Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Chile, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Panama, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Slovak Republic, South Africa and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
Statements
AKMARAL KH. ARYSTANBEKOVA (Kazakstan) said that the globalization of human rights had prompted the international community to make realizing human rights a priority, especially countries in transition. In Kazakstan, which was a country in transition, the maintenance of civil peace and social concord, as well as basic freedoms, was becoming important because they would benefit main fields, including sustainable development. In the five years since Kazakstan's independence, attention had been paid to State sovereignty and finding a political and constitutional model. There was now a real chance to tackle more fully the problems relating to the observance of rights and freedoms, as well as inter-ethnic relations. The Government was aware that there would be an intense, evolutionary struggle to define and guarantee human rights.
The Government of Kazakstan attached great importance to a comprehensive approach to human rights and was working on a basic human rights instrument, she said. It was hoped that that could lend a more purposeful and systematic character to human rights activity. One problem had cropped up, however, and that was the need to teach people to defend their rights. Great attention had since been paid to the role educational programmes played in the protection and promotion of human rights. Many citizens were not aware of legislation and rights, so they could not actively defend them. That was the objective of the human rights decade, 1995-2004: to teach people to defend their rights. Kazakstan was establishing an educational centre on human rights and was looking forward to receiving assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Centre for Human Rights to promote universal education in the field of human rights.
ALEJANDRO BORDA (Colombia) said that the report of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudiciary, summary or arbitrary executions covered a four- year period and could convey an erroneous impression of situations that had evolved favourably over the years. The Commission on Human Rights was the appropriate forum to comment on the report. The presentation of reports by the special rapporteurs directly to the General Assembly could politicize
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human rights issues even more and, hence, distort and weaken the Commission's work. His Government would continue to oppose any attempt to supplant the multilateral mechanisms to evaluate the conduct of States.
According to the Declaration on the Right to Development, States had the fundamental obligation to create favourable national and international conditions to realize the right to development, he continued. That premise was even more relevant during the current period of increasing globalization, given the abysmal differences in the rate of development between States and the serious obstacles to development which still prevailed. Efforts by the High Commissioner for Human Rights in support of the right to development were welcomed. His Government was confident of the results of the High Commissioner's dialogue with international financial institutions and development agencies on practical methods for strengthening their economic and human rights programmes. His Government supported the restructuring of the Centre for Human Rights, which would lead to improved capacity to accomplish its mandates to protect and promote all human rights. His Government had taken a number of measures over the last year as part of an integral policy to protect human rights and humanitarian law, including the signing of an agreement with the High Commissioner on the terms of reference for the opening of an officer of the High Commissioner in Colombia. The Colombian President had also signed a bill on 5 July that established mechanisms for the compensation for damages to victims of human rights violations.
LJUBINKO MATESIC (Croatia) said his Government could not but express dismay that it was the only country in the world whose human rights record was a sole and separate issue before the Security Council. A country's human rights situation was a legitimate matter of concern of the Security Council if it posed a potential threat to international peace and security; however, in the matter of Croatia, this was not the case. If the Council was to deal with human rights situations, in particular countries irrespective of their potential threat to international peace and security, there were countries with more tarnished human rights records than Croatia. Therefore, discussions of human rights situations should be dealt with in appropriate forums, such as the Third Committee.
The recent admission of Croatia into the Council of Europe was a positive initial step which would help to solidify Croatia's commitment to democracy and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, he said. In that regard, the Government wished to point out that Croatia was a State with numerous national minorities. Even after migrations, minorities still comprised approximately 15 per cent of its population. The Government had undertaken various legal measures to guarantee the protection of individual and collective rights to members of national minorities. Croatia had no intention to become an ethnically pure State, and it had no minority problem. More precisely, it had a problem with a segment of one of its minorities. A segment of the Serbian ethnic minority in Croatia allowed itself to become an
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instrument in the aggression against Croatia, and its members served as proxy forces. That was not true of the entire Serbian minority in Croatia, many of whose members remained loyal Croatian citizens and suffered the consequences of aggression. Hopefully, the matter would be resolved positively in the near future, and one more legacy of the war which was waged against Croatia would be put to rest.
While allowing for cultural, economic and societal differences, States had a duty and responsibility to respect all human rights, he said. The principles of State sovereignty or non-interference in internal affairs could not be used as jurisdictions for the lack of respect of human rights. The issue of human rights must be approached from an objective and principled perspective and should not be used to pursue a primarily political agenda.
PHAM QUANG VINH (Viet Nam) said there was a need to restructure the Centre for Human Rights, and while he commended efforts by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, there was a need for extensive consultations with States and guidance from the General Assembly before action was taken. The right to development must be fully respected. There was concern about the tendency towards more field operations which could divert energy and resources to other activities at the expense of the right to development. Development- related activities must be assured of a firm financial base.
Viet Nam had travelled a long journey in its efforts to safeguard the independence and freedom of its people and homeland, he said. The target of its socio-economic development strategy to the year 2000 was "a prosperous people, a strong country and a just and civilized society". The well-being and living conditions of all its people were the centrepiece of that strategy. Efforts to overcome the country's economic difficulties had led to positive developments in all aspects of economic, political, cultural and social life. The Government's commitments had also been reflected in the second country report on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. He stressed that the universal recognition and promotion and protection of human rights should be guided by the principles of impartiality, objectivity and non-selectivity, in the spirit of constructive dialogue and cooperation on an equal footing. Universality went together with the respect for specific conditions and the history, culture and traditions of a nation.
ABDULRAHMAN AL-RASSI (Saudi Arabia) said his Government believed that the concept of universality of human rights should not be explained in an abstract manner. The attempt to impose definite explanations on the concepts of human rights meant restricting the provisions of human rights and the applicability of those rights to a small segment of the international community. The diverse and specific historical, religious, cultural and social connotations of those rights should be taken into consideration when applying human rights. The High Commissioner must take into consideration the
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cultural differences and study the technical aspects of that issue. The responsibility of supporting and protecting those rights were the domain of the States which must follow the policies and established frameworks that were suitable on the national level. His Government placed great importance on people and their rights, and "human dignity" was protected without any discrimination.
Saudi Arabia welcomed the restructuring of the Centre for Human Rights to increase its effectiveness, he said. However, it was necessary to take into account fair geographical distribution. It was also important to take into consideration the quality and competence in the different projects that were concerned with planning and monitoring. Restructuring was not, in itself, the objective, and it was only a beginning for reforming the Centre. Increasing the responsibility and effectiveness of what the United Nations was doing in the field of human rights and ensuring that its services were of a high quality were the goals.
SUTJIPTOHARDJO DONOKUSUMO (Indonesia) said the international community had for too long been denied a constructive human rights process, obstructed by extraneous political agendas and conspiratorial designs. Important progress was made with the recognition of the right to development as a universal and inalienable rights at the World Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, 1993). A more focused effort was needed to promote that right. He welcomed efforts by the High Commissioner for Human Rights to establish closer contacts between regional commissions and the United Nations human rights programmes. That would contribute not only to a bridge between the economic and human rights sectors, but also allow for a better reflection of the various backgrounds and experiences of Member States in the human rights programme.
He said Indonesia had established a national commission on human rights and finalized its national plan of action in the field. It had been an ardent and vocal supporter of the rights of the child and had often stated that it was working to eradicate child labour and improve child protection. Indonesia had long been a proponent of the rights of women and other vulnerable groups which had too often been marginalized. The human rights situation in Indonesia, as in all countries, could be improved. But his country would not accept that efforts by any country to improve human rights should be supported by any form of politically motivated criticism, nor the needs of some members to unilaterally project their political concepts and systems to advance self- serving goals. Rather, the international community should serve as a framework of support, ready to lend assistance where needed and when requested. It was telling that when it came to undertaking any initiative to improve economic, social and cultural rights, the countries which were always ready to offer their criticisms were often conspicuously silent. Or they often sought to attach conditions that, in effect, placed one set of human rights over another, thereby negating the balanced approach agreed to at Vienna.
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MARIA SOLEDAD ARGUETA (El Salvador) said that fundamental rights and freedoms continued to be violated and disregarded, despite progress in the field of human rights and pledges of faithful compliance with the principles and purposes agreed to almost 50 years ago. In December 1998, the international community would celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and, therefore, it should redouble its efforts so the event would not be merely commemorative. It should be a milestone which would show that there had been an implementation of human rights and a will to promote and protect fundamental freedoms. There must be coordination of governments, organizations, non-governmental and governmental organizations to support initiatives and implement international and universal programmes on human rights.
El Salvador had illustrated how interdependent human rights, peace and development really were, she continued. The country had witnessed considerable legislative and judicial achievement in the field. Tangible progress had been made, and many aspects and problems had been overcome. However, a greater awareness and understanding of situations awaiting resolution was still required to prevent a return to the past. Since the 1992 signing of peace agreements, a general amnesty law was promulgated with the agreement of all parties involved. It was the result of the true spirit behind peace agreement and was needed to promote reconciliation. Through constitutional reform, El Salvador had set up a prosecutor's office for civil rights and established a national civil police force to protect and guarantee the free exercise of rights and freedoms. Those laws were closely related and ensured the interdependence of both of those bodies. The prosecutor's office could monitor and investigate any violation of civil rights, and contributed to a comprehensive approach of preventive action.
AHMAD KAMAL (Pakistan) said the conflict between civil and political rights and economic, social and cultural rights continued to haunt the world. No meaningful efforts were being made to bridge the gap between the North and the South. The collapse of ideological barriers after the cold war had not created new opportunities for consensus mainly because of the unwillingness of the developed countries to address the issue of development. The widespread perceptions that the rich and powerful States continued to manipulate the great majority of people and to impose common values on them had hampered a decision-making process. Despite cultural diversities, the struggle to protect human rights must forge ahead. The collective good should mean the defence of the rights of the common people, not of the vested interests of élites. The concepts of sovereignty and monolithic cultures should not be invoked to justify violations of human rights. At the same time, the naivete underlying the assumption of cultural homogeneity that led to unnecessary intrusiveness should be dismissed.
The United Nations should have explicit guidelines for the realization of the right to development with the help of governments, non-governmental and
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grass-roots organizations in developing countries, he said. Priorities should be set and clear criteria adopted for the removal of obstacles to that right. The Organization's early warning system for signalling an impending human rights crisis needed to be strengthened. The United Nations inability to react speedily and effectively to gross and consistent violations of human rights, because of cynicism, realpolitik or mismanagement, had cost tens of thousands of lives. When it suited, the international community could act with lightning, thunder and alacrity. When it did not, the world merely watched, while civil and political rights were trampled with impunity as in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Jammu and Kashmir, in Rwanda, Burundi, and now in Zaire. Apathy towards such crises emboldened the aggressors and encouraged other violators of human rights.
SAM A. OTUYELU (Nigeria) said he wished to confirm that the commitment of the current administration to the promotion of human rights was total. In June, the Government had established an autonomous and independent national human rights commission under a retired supreme court judge, Justice P.K. Nwokedi. Its members included professionals, members of the Bar association, human rights activists and representatives of the media and the press. Although the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others, who were found guilty of the murder of four other Ogonis a year ago, regrettably made Nigeria the subject of General Assembly resolution 50/199, the Government had since taken several actions to remove the obstacles to human rights following the visit by the Secretary-General's fact-finding mission to the country. It also welcomed the recommendations of the Human Rights Committee on his country's report. In their report, the members of the fact-finding mission had reported the programme of transition to a democratic rule in Nigeria was on course.
Meanwhile, the Government had intensified its efforts to implement most of the report's recommendations, he continued. The civil disturbances act under which Mr. Saro-Wiwa and eight others had been tried and convicted had been amended so that the verdict of the Special Tribunal could be appealed to a higher tribunal and subject to judicial review on an appellate level. Decree 2 of 1984 had been amended to allow for the review of the cases of detainees, and a review committee comprised of the Attorney-General, the Inspector-General of Police and the Chief of General Staff had been set up to review cases of detained individuals. All persons detained without trial were covered under the new dispensation. Decree 4 of 1994, which set aside the jurisdiction of courts to issue the writ of habeas corpus to persons detained under Decree 2 had been repealed. The military member of the Special Tribunal had been removed, and the 23 people detained under Decree 2 had been released. Yesterday, three others had been released. Senator Abraham Adesanya, Chiefs Ayo Adebanjo and Ganiyu Dawodu who had been held on reasonable suspicion in connection with the death of Mrs. Kudirat Abiola, were released on 14 October, in compliance with a court order that they be charged or released. All those actions showed the Government's respect for the rule of law and the independence of the courts.
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Action on Draft Resolutions
Prior to action on a draft resolution on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the representative of Norway read out the following corrections:
-- In the first preambular paragraph, line 3, replace the word "stipulated" with "reaffirmed";
-- In the fourth preambular paragraph, line 3, replace "fifty-three" with "fifty-four";
-- In the sixth preambular paragraph, line 3, replace "is" with "has been";
-- In operative paragraph 6, lines 2 and 3, delete the phrase "within the overall existing budget";
-- In operative paragraph 8, line 2, delete the phrase "within existing United Nations resources".
He said that the Bahamas, Belgium, Bhutan, Cuba, Guinea-Bissau, Peru, Thailand, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the United Kingdom wished to become co-sponsors. When the draft resolution was introduced, Argentina, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Dominican Republic, Eritrea, Fiji, Germany, Guinea, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Madagascar, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Republic of Moldova, Sierra Leone and Spain joined as co-sponsors of the draft resolution.
The Committee Secretary announced the terms of the budget implications of the draft resolution. She reported that based on the discussions on the 1997 calendar of conferences held in informal meetings of the Fifth Committee, and on further consultations in the Office of Conference and Support Services, it was understood that servicing capacity that would be released from other periods in the year could be used to service the open-ended working group with no real additional cost.
The representative of the United States said his Government must disassociate itself from the consensus of action on the draft resolution, and it would explain why after the adoption.
The Committee then approved the draft resolution without a vote.
The Chairperson proposed that the Committee recommend to the General Assembly that it take note of the Secretary-General's report on the Status of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
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(document A/51/277). The Committee approved the Chairperson's recommendation without a vote.
The representative of the United States said it disassociated itself from the resolution, although it supported the Convention and supported the action at the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijng, 1995). It also appreciated the holding of the open-ended working group on the Commission on the Status of Women. Unfortunately, the United States was greatly disappointed that the Secretariat could not unequivocally state that it "would" accommodate the costs of the working group. Instead, it said that it "could". The Secretariat must have clearer idea of budgetary implications. His Government could not support resolutions that would increase the budget of the Secretariat.
The representative of Costa Rica introduced, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, a proposed amendment to the draft resolution on the rights of child, which were contained in document A/C.3/51/L.38.
The Committee Secretary announced a number of technical corrections to the draft resolution on the girl child.
-- In the third preambular paragraph, line 2, replace "Sex" with "Sexual";
-- In the seventh preambular paragraph, which begins with the words "Deeply concerned ...", the word "incest" should be inserted at the beginning of the list of harmful practices, so that the text would read: "and harmful practices such as incest, early marriage, female infanticide, prenatal sex selection and female genital mutilation";
-- In operative paragraph 8, line 1, the word "parties" should be inserted between "States" and "to fulfil";
-- In operative paragraph 9, line 1, the phrase "to protect women and girls from all forms of violence" should be inserted in the first line between "measures" and "in line";
-- In operative paragraph 14, line 4, replace the blank field with "forty-second" before the word "session".
The representative of Namibia said that Guinea Bissau, Samoa, Colombia, San Marino, Monaco and Jamaica wished to be added to the list of co-sponsors. The Kyrgyz Republic, Paraguay, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Belarus and Rwanda also asked to be listed as sponsors to the draft. At the time of introduction of the draft, the following delegations were announced as having joined as co- sponsors: Algeria, Bahamas, Fiji, Guyana, India, Mongolia, Peru, Seychelles and the United Kingdom.
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The Committee than approved the draft resolution, as orally amended, without a vote.
The representative of the United States said his Government joined the consensus on the draft resolution, and it interpreted operative paragraph 12 to mean that men and women had equal access to economic resources.
The representative of Malta said, in joining the consensus on the draft resolution, his Government recognized the rights of parents in the evolving capacity of the child. It had reservations about the definition of the term "reproductive health" in operative paragraph 3(f) in the context of Malta's national legislation. He asked that that position be reflected in the records of the Committee.
Before action was taken on a draft resolution on the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, the representative of Mexico said Yemen wished to become a co-sponsor.
Nigeria was also added to the list of co-sponsor of the draft resolution. When the draft resolution was introduced, the Kyrgyz Republic and Peru had joined as co-sponsors.
The Committee then approved the draft resolution without a vote.
The Committee then took action on the draft resolution on the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The representative of Mali said his Government had no problem with the draft resolution, but it would like to ask a question of the sponsors. In operative paragraph 1, the High Commissioner for Human Rights was asked to continue to prepare for the fiftieth anniversary, and he was mentioned again in operative paragraph 5. However, the Centre for Human Rights was not mentioned. Do the sponsors mean to include the Centre as part of the High Commissioner's office?
The representative of Poland, speaking on behalf of the initial sponsors, said the High Commissioner was the coordinator of human rights activities in the United Nations, so it was up to the High Commissioner to coordinate all bodies within the United Nations system, including the Centre, regarding human rights activities.
The Committee than approved the draft resolution without a vote.
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Right of Reply
The representative of Burundi, speaking in exercise of the right of reply, said she wished to thank delegations that had given assistance to her country. She also thanked the permanent mission of the Holy See for its statement this morning expressing support for the Government of Burundi. However, she said she would like to make clear that the suffering of the people of Burundi resulted from the unjust blockade perpetrated by its neighbouring countries. The crisis was extremely complex, and it could not be interpreted on the basis of media hype and stereotypical analyses.
In an earlier statement, the representative of Norway had stated that the coup d'état had not improved security in Burundi, and that it had contributed to increased suffering for the people of Burundi, she said. That was a surprising statement. The return of the Government was not based on political ambition, rather it was attempting to save a country in peril and stop the massacres. The Government had taken steps to stabilize the situation and establish peace and confidence. The number of human rights observers who had visited Burundi and the establishment of the international tribunal showed good faith. Burundi was counting on its partners in the international community, including Norway, to restore security and lasting peace.
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