CLAIMANTS FOR SUFFERING IN 1990 INVASION OF KUWAIT TO RECEIVE $637 MILLION COMPENSATION IN FOURTH POST-WAR PAYOUT
Press Release
IK/212
CLAIMANTS FOR SUFFERING IN 1990 INVASION OF KUWAIT TO RECEIVE $637 MILLION COMPENSATION IN FOURTH POST-WAR PAYOUT
19961218 Revenue from 'Oil-for-Food' Formula Being Tapped by UN Commission; National Oil Company Will Initially Get $610 Million for Cost of Putting Out Well FireGENEVA, 16 December (UN Information Service) -- The Governing Council of the United Nations Compensation Commission closed its twenty-third session today, after approving a fourth instalment of more than 70,000 claims filed by individuals who suffered losses of up to $100,000 as a result of the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. With this instalment of $637 million, nearly half of the 450,000 claims filed with the Commission in category "C" have been resolved, with the total amount of compensation awarded exceeding $1.4 billion.
The Governing Council also approved the recommended award of $610 million to the Kuwait Oil Company for its $951 million claim concerning the costs it incurred in extinguishing the oil well fires that were burning upon the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from Kuwait. The panel considered that those were the verifiable costs within this claim. As to the balance claimed, the panel determined that the claimant was entitled to subject them to verification in the context of its related claims. Other claims for more than $3 million have been rejected outright by the panel.
Taking into account the amounts already approved for individual claims for departure from Iraq or Kuwait (category "A"); claims for serious personal injury or death (category "B"); and individual claims up to $100,000 (category "C"), the total compensation awarded by the Council to date adds up to $5.25 billion.
During this latest session, which opened yesterday, the Governing Council welcomed the resumption of Iraqi oil exports. Within the framework of Security Council resolution 986 (1995) -- containing the "oil-for-food" formula -- the United Nations Compensation Commission is to receive 30 per cent of Iraqi oil export revenues, or not less than $100 million a month, over a period of six months. Consequently, the essential needs of the civilian population in Iraq will be met at the same time as funds are made available for the benefit of the victims of the invasion of Kuwait.
The United Nations Compensation Commission confirmed that it was ready to pay out awards to successful individual claimants in categories "A" and "C"
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as soon as the resources was available in the Compensation Fund. Claims are to be paid by instalments in the order in which they were approved. In late February or early March 1997, compensation in the amount of $2,500 could be paid to each claimant in a first group of 57,000 victims from 61 countries.
The Compensation Commission, which until now has been able to pay only $13.45 million to nearly 4,000 persons who suffered serious personal injury or the death of a relative, would thus be in a position to meet its humanitarian goals in bringing actual relief to hundred of thousands of victims. During its latest session, the 15-Member Council, chaired by Italy, was addressed by delegations of the following non-member States: Kuwait, Iraq, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey, Lebanon, Yemen, Sudan, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Thailand.
It also took note of the developments associated with the processing of claims in categories "D" (individual claims above $100,000), "E" (corporate claims) and "F" (governmental claims), which had been hampered by a lack of necessary resources. Plans are under way to speed up the processing of the claims in those three categories once the Commission's budget for 1997 is approved. The respective Panels of Commissioners for those categories should then be able to start their review of the first instalments of such claims during the first quarter of 1997, after having held preparatory meetings with the Commission's secretariat.
The Council is scheduled to meet again in January 1997 to elect a new President and one new Vice-President.
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