FIFTIETH VOLUME OF UNITED NATIONS YEARBOOK PUBLISHED
Press Release
PI/1102
FIFTIETH VOLUME OF UNITED NATIONS YEARBOOK PUBLISHED
19981207 The fiftieth volume of the Yearbook of the United Nations has just been published by the Department of Public Information (DPI). The 1,552-page reference book covers all major activities in 1996 of the United Nations and its family of organizations.The Yearbook, as the primary comprehensive and authoritative reference work on the United Nations, is widely used by diplomats, government officials, scholars, journalists and others with a serious interest in international and United Nations affairs. It is fully indexed and reproduces in their entirety the texts of all major General Assembly, Security Council and Economic and Social Council resolutions and decisions.
The 1996 Yearbook provides an overview of the whole range of activities undertaken by the United Nations to address major global challenges. Its 53 chapters are divided into six parts: political and security questions; human rights; economic and social questions; legal questions; institutional, administrative and budgetary questions; and intergovernmental organizations related to the United Nations.
Among the major events and activities recounted are: the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty by the General Assembly on 10 September 1996; the ongoing work of 19 United Nations peacekeeping operations deployed worldwide during the year; the consequences of turmoil and civil strife in many parts of Africa, generating massive flows of refugees; and the observance of the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty, as well as two major international conferences -- Habitat II (City Summit) and the World Food Summit.
The Yearbook provides extensive coverage of complex political and military situations in which the United Nations was involved during 1996, including the implementation of the peace agreements in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, and endeavours to find a solution to conflicts in Rwanda, Burundi, Liberia, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Georgia and Cyprus, among others.
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The series of weapons inspections in Iraq, developments in the Middle East peace process, and programmes of assistance to Palestinians were also detailed.
United Nations efforts actively to promote human rights through various instruments and mechanisms are set out in the Yearbook. Alleged violations of human rights in a number of countries throughout the world are chronicled, as is the work of two international tribunals created by the United Nations to prosecute war criminals - one for the former Yugoslavia, the other for Rwanda.
With the number of refugees and displaced persons worldwide exceeding 26 million, the work of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is highlighted, as are United Nations humanitarian assistance programmes.
United Nations work in the economic and social fields receives comprehensive coverage in the 1996 Yearbook, including important issues related to development policy, international trade, natural resources and energy, population and human settlements, food, and statistics, among others.
Information is also provided on the launching of the new System-wide Special Initiative on Africa to address that continent's critical needs and priorities; the Joint and Co-Sponsored United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS; continued efforts to implement the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action adopted at the 1995 World Conference on Women; and activities of the United Nations Children's Fund, which in 1996 celebrated its fiftieth anniversary.
Important new United Nations agreements to protect the global environment -- on desertification and on illegal trade in wild fauna and flora -- are detailed, as are efforts to combat organized crime, drug and arms trafficking, and international terrorism, among others.
International legal concerns are highlighted in Part IV. The workings of the International Court of Justice are described, as is the progressive codification of international law by the International Law Commission. The implementation of the Convention on the Law of the Sea is given attention, as are preparations for the establishment of an International Criminal Court and measures to eliminate international terrorism.
In its section on institutional, administrative and budgetary matters, the Yearbook records the election of a new Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, and updates the Organization's efforts to advance reform measures, with the goal of tackling new and persistent problems in innovative ways. Overall, the
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accounts of United Nations activities and events as presented in the 1996 Yearbook provide a comprehensive picture of how international cooperation is working to better the lives of the world's nearly 6 billion inhabitants.
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NOTE:The 1996 Yearbook (ISBN 90-411-1042-9; United Nations Publication Sales No. E.97.I.1) will be available soon in the United Nations Bookshop, room GA-32, United Nations, New York, NY 10017, U.S.A., and the United Nations Bookshop, Door 40, Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland. This and other volumes of the Yearbook of the United Nations may also be obtained in North and South America by Kluwer Law International, 675 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, U.S.A., and in all other countries from Kluwer Law International, P.O. Box 85889, 2508 CN, The Hague, Netherlands. The retail price is $150.