GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADDS AGENDA ITEMS ON PORTUGESE-SPEAKING COUNTRIES, SOUTH AFRICA"S PEACEKEEPING PAYMENTS, CHILDREN"S SUMMIT

Press Release
GA/9634

GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADDS AGENDA ITEMS ON PORTUGESE-SPEAKING COUNTRIES, SOUTH AFRICA’S PEACEKEEPING PAYMENTS, CHILDREN’S SUMMIT

Also Concludes Consideration of Secretary-General’s Report

Acting without a vote, the General Assembly this afternoon decided to include three additional items on the agenda of its current session: observer status for the community of Portuguese-speaking countries in the Assembly; a change in South Africa's classification with regard to apportionment for peacekeeping financing; and the follow-up to the World Summit for Children.

At the recommendation of its General Committee, the Assembly decided to consider the item on observer status for the Portuguese-speaking countries in plenary session. That request was initially submitted to the General Committee by the representatives of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and Sao Tome and Principe.

The Assembly also decided to allocate the sub-item on the change in South Africa's classification to its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary). The request for the reclassification consideration was made by South Africa in the General Committee. In addition, the Assembly further decided to consider the sub-item on follow-up to the World Summit for Children in plenary session. The Chairman of the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) made the original request to the General Committee.

Also this afternoon, the Assembly concluded its consideration of the report of the Secretary-General on the work of the Organization. The representatives of Yemen, Uruguay, Cameroon, Tunisia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Haiti, Cyprus and Bolivia made statements on the report.

The President of the Assembly, Theo-Ben Gurirab (Namibia), also informed the Assembly that the debate on the commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child would be held on 11 November in the morning, not on 15 November as originally scheduled.

The Assembly will meet again at a date and time to be announced.

Assembly Work Programme

The General Assembly met this afternoon to consider the second report of the General Committee recommending the addition of three new items to the Assembly's agenda. It was also expected to conclude its discussion of the report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization (for background details see Press Release 9627 of 6 October 1999).

Report of the General Committee

According to the General Committee's report (document A/54/250/Add.1), the Committee approved a request on 8 October from Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and Sao Tome and Principe (document A/54/232) for inclusion in the agenda of the Assembly, an item entitled "Observer Status for the Community of Portuguese-speaking countries”. The Committee referred the request for the Assembly to consider directly in plenary meeting.

The General Committee also approved a request from South Africa (document A/54/233), for inclusion, under the agenda item on administrative and budgetary aspects of the financing of United Nations peacekeeping operations, an additional sub-item concerning South Africa's classification with regard to the apportionment of that financing. The Committee recommended that the sub-item be allocated to the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary).

Also, on 8 October, the Committee approved a request from the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) (document A/54/438), for a sub-item allocated to that Committee, entitled "operational activities for development of the United Nations system,” to be considered directly in plenary meeting, in order for Follow-up of the World Summit for Children to be considered in that setting.

Action in General Committee Report

The Assembly without a vote adopted the General Committee’s recommendations and added three items to the agenda.

Statements on Secretary-General’s Report

MARTIN BELINGA EBOUTOU (Cameroon) expressed concern about the increasing number of conflicts, particularly those occurring among factions within countries. The proportion of civilians involved had grown considerably. The international community must react to those killings through mediation, negotiation, early warning and prevention. In that regard, the establishment of the International Criminal Court was promising. He called for the use of preventive diplomacy.

Africa, he said, had been devastated by conflicts. Peace and security were prerequisites to development and progress. Africa’s efforts to reach agreements between fighting parties showed that its leaders were anxious to remove their people from the spectre of war. Regional organizations were also working hard on peace maintenance and restoration. All such efforts must be carried out on the basis of the principles of the Charter.

Continuing, he said, humanitarian disasters must mobilize the international community, wherever they developed. A certain reluctance by the international community to cope with certain conflicts was difficult to understand, given that the global village was becoming more and more a reality. Promoting social development must be one of the main areas in which solidarity was manifested, such as social and economic assistance.

MOKHTAR CHAOUACHI (Tunisia) said it was important to create a culture of prevention that would be less costly in human lives and resources. Only preventive strategies could promote economic and social development. There was also a need to renew international cooperation to fight against poverty and unemployment.

Turning to humanitarian intervention, he said it was essential to preserve sovereignty as a national right and also to provide assistance to distressed civilian populations. He urged Member States to weigh carefully those issues and arrive at a consensus.

Regarding the theme of sanctions, he said that they must be used as a last resort, only after all other peaceful means had been tried.

JULIO BENITEZ SAENZ (Uruguay) said from any angle, armed intervention for humanitarian purposes that went beyond the limits of Charter, and the subsequent impact on the concept of State sovereignty, was the major issue before the Organization at this time. The future of the United Nations depended on its resolution of that issue. The Secretary-General had raised the question of restoring the Organization to its rightful place in international relations. The task of doing so was the responsibility of all Member States. The issue should be discussed with transparency and universality.

Today, the international community had no other universally acceptable legal base than the United Nations from which to respond to unjustifiable acts of violence, he continued. It was therefore essential for regional security organizations to have a proper mandate from the Security Council. No practical equitable and reasonable solution had been found as yet to respond to the issue of third-party States affected by sanctions imposed by the Council. States who were unjustly harmed by such measures must be compensated. United Nations peacekeeping was now using a multidimensional approach. Payment in full from Member States was necessary to the success of those operations. Electoral assistance cooperation by the international community should also be encouraged in order to stimulate national democracies.

OMER ABDULLA IBRAHIM (Yemen) said the Report of the Secretary-General had described the successes and failures of the Organization. If people and nations were to attach more importance to the role of the United Nations, steps must be taken to reform the Organization. Democratization, transparency and active participation were key in that respect. Human rights should be protected; flagrant violations must end. The international community could not just sit back and watch violations without doing anything.

However, he said, the decision to intervene on humanitarian grounds should only be taken after all peaceful means had been exhausted. Preventive diplomacy was key in that respect. Humanitarian policies should also be universal and not based on double standards. He supported Egypt's proposal to study the issue in the context of the Assembly. Regarding globalization and trade liberalization, he said a new, objective policy must be defined and international cooperation ensured. Globalization must have a human face. HAZAIRIN POHAN (Indonesia) said it was paradoxical that while the Security Council was venturing into new areas that lay within the purview of other United Nations bodies, it was being squeezed out of its role for maintenance of international peace and security. That occurred when regional security organizations undertook enforcement actions without the Council’s authorization. United Nations peace enforcement or intervention operations had proven to be "uncertain in outcome” or “a dangerous course". The loss of neutrality exposed the Organization to charges of violating national sovereignty.

Intervention had unacceptable implications for national sovereignty and was rooted in the undemocratic and unrepresentative character of the Security Council, he said. The principle of national sovereignty, one on which the Organization had been founded, was the only defence against injustice in relations between strong and weak nations. To blame that principle for the inability of the United Nations to come to the aid of suffering humanity anywhere was distortive, as provision of such assistance was a solemn obligation. Among the reasons for the ineffectiveness of the Organization in situations where it should act swiftly and decisively were resource constraints, lack of political will, misplaced media attention and dysfunction in the Organization's bodies.

He said Indonesia attached particular importance to the issue of peacekeeping operations, which he noted, must function on the bases of impartiality and the use of force only in self-defence. If United Nations forces were seen as partisan, they would not enjoy the support of all parties. On the issue of sanctions, he felt that there should be clarification, prior to their imposition, of their effects on the targeted country, and consideration of the damage that could be suffered by third parties. Sanctions should be terminated once their objectives were achieved.

OLUSEGUN AKINSANYA (Nigeria) said Member States must "cooperate in all areas of human endeavour to usher in a new world order devoid of ignorance, poverty, war and disease". The international community should serve notice of its rejection of breaches of individual rights, wherever they occurred. States could no longer shield violations of their citizens' rights under the cloak of sovereignty. A consensus had been emerging on the need for international action in cases of gross human rights violations. In all such cases, intervention must be carried out in accordance with a clearly defined and acceptable framework.

He said that the consequences of globalization could only be effectively tackled by concerted international action. As measures were being taken to address economic development and poverty eradication, such questions as external debt, foreign investment and official development assistance remained crucial. Member States must demonstrate strong political will, as well as greater commitment to provision of resources, to realize the objectives of preventive diplomacy. Post-conflict peacebuilding and rehabilitation measures must be intensified to achieve enduring peace. The plight of refugees and displaced persons, especially in Africa, had to be urgently addressed.

In addition, Nigeria reaffirmed its commitment to universal ratification of the Nuclear Test Bank Treaty and the Ottawa Convention. It also sought controls over the movement of small arms. Finally, the United Nations could not afford to be "an umpire urging democratic reforms in Member States while its own structures are devoid of democratic values". Africa must be given adequate representation, particularly on the Security Council. He urged the General Assembly to conclude its deliberations on modalities for reform and expansion of the Council during the current session, so that they could be adopted next year.

AZAD BELFORT (Haiti) said that the main challenges of the new millennium were poverty, unemployment, and economic and social problems. In that context, humanitarian assistance was a tool of international policy. Also, in order to create democracy, it was important to take into consideration the economic parameters of a country. In that respect, the Economic and Social Council had undertaken a great task in eradicating poverty. An essential step to that end was to strengthen the role of the United Nations. The main focus of the new millennium was the concept of the humanitarian challenge. To meet it, it was important to understand the causes of those crises.

CONSTANTINE MOUSHOUTAS (Cyprus) said that, although the United Nations was going through a crucial phase in the maintenance of peace, the Security Council had the primary responsibility for the maintenance of peace and security. Only through the Charter of the United Nations, should force be employed. Thus, there could be no substitute for the Charter, since its purposes remained the same.

Turning to the theme of intervention, he said that the international community could not remain apathetic when human rights were violated. However, intervention must be based on the principles of the Charter. Further, alongside poverty and economic decline, militant separatist movements were also the cause of conflicts. Moreover, such acts attacked the very substance of peaceful coexistence. Regarding preventive diplomacy, he stated that it, too, must be conducted in accordance with the Charter. Cooperation between the United Nations and regional organizations should also be strengthened.

ROBERTO JORDAN-PANDO (Bolivia) said the report was comprehensive and thought provoking. Last Friday the representative of Spain had identified the dilemma that existed between universal respect for sovereignty and non- universal principles for humanitarian intervention. The latter did not have a universal framework. One of the issues raised was that only the Security Council had the right to intervene under international law. What if the Council was paralyzed? Would the international community remain aloof because of the veto by one of its permanent members? If there was collective outrage, would that be suffocated because it was blocked by one country? Would the will of one or more powerful States prevail, or would the will of an international community that did not want to remain aloof and inactive prevail? Those questions raised by Spain, were philosophical and legal issues that would require long discussions before a resolution was reached.

He said the international community had not yet been able to completely assess the cost to the Organization and itself for not being able to determine or impose international legality, as had been the case of Kosovo, as one example. The current century's problems should not be handed over to the next century. The eradication of poverty could be an issue to be dealt with at regional and international forums. Resources for development were being reduced, due to the increasing costs to Member States for peacekeeping. The information revolution should also be taken up at regional and worldwide forums, to universalize education and technology. Countries outside of the information revolution would not be marginalized and would not be able to enter the twenty-first century. The Economic and Social Council should be supplemented and should become the Council on Science and Technology.

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