OVER-RELIANCE ON CLOSED CONSULTATIONS, SLOW RESPONSE TO AFRICA"S NEEDS FAULTED, AS ASSEMBLY ENDS DEBATE ON COUNCIL REPORT

Press Release
GA/9639

OVER-RELIANCE ON CLOSED CONSULTATIONS, SLOW RESPONSE TO AFRICA’S NEEDS FAULTED, AS ASSEMBLY ENDS DEBATE ON COUNCIL REPORT

United Kingdom Says United Nations, ‘Tested As Never Before’, Must Change, and Council Must Be Part of Change

As the General Assembly concluded its discussion of the report of the Security Council this morning, the representative of Chile said that beyond the report’s ceremonial function, its purpose was to inform. It was, therefore, necessary to ascertain whether its present format could sustain that function.

“What kind of information do United Nations Member States require, and what other means are available to find information?” he asked. Moreover, Member States should be kept informed in timely fashion, particularly on matters concerning peace and security, so that they could intervene and contribute to the solution of conflicts. Permanent members of the Council had a duty to provide information to non-members, and to find out what those States felt and thought. Transparency could not affect the privileges of the permanent members the Council, but it would give more legitimacy to their actions.

The representative of Libya said the report’s reference to the 239 closed meetings held by the Council last year did not clearly indicate the opinions of members during those sessions. Too much reliance on those closed settings could destroy the Council’s transparency and prevent participation by the majority of Member States. When and why did the Council start that practice? he asked.

The Council was master of its own decisions -– but could it make decisions behind the back of the international community and without its participation? The Assembly should not simply take note of the Council report. While the Council was entrusted with the maintenance of international peace and security, the Charter also provided for the participation of the Assembly in establishing the general guidelines for that process.

Addressing the subject of Africa and its related crises, the representative of Zambia said that it was one thing to hear about those situations in document reports, but quite another to summon the political will to do something about them. The Council was not acting quickly on the problem of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Proposals submitted by the President of Zambia on the matter in September were still on the Council's table.

General Assembly Plenary - 1a - Press Release GA/9639 37th Meeting (AM) 21 October 1999

The apparent slow response by the Council, he continued, had led to a breakdown in the confidence aroused by the ceasefire agreement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Council should be seen as consistent in its reactions to crises, irrespective of their location. It should, therefore, move quickly to erase the impression of double standards by according equal treatment to all countries in crisis.

Too many of the Security Council’s less satisfactory endeavours in the last year were related to the African continent, said the representative of Malta. Angola illustrated a high level of Council ineffectiveness. Not only were several resolutions on the situation sidelined by the parties to whom they were addressed, but sanctions had not been duly implemented. The Council, therefore, would require firm leadership and self-confidence if it was to provide the swift and solid support it had shown itself capable of mustering elsewhere. African members expected no less, especially as comparisons continued to be drawn with actions taken in other regions.

The representative of the Republic of Korea said issues that had traditionally been considered by the Assembly or other United Nations organs now required the attention of the Council. That organ should make further efforts to build an effective partnership with those bodies to strengthen its relevance in meeting challenges in a more comprehensive and coordinated manner. The Council also needed to make greater use of preventive action as an indispensable tool in coping with potential conflict situations.

Statements were also made by the representatives of the United Kingdom, Sweden, Cyprus, Jamaica and Yemen.

The Assembly will meet again on Monday, 25 October at 10 a.m., to consider the report of the Credentials Committee; notification by the Secretary-General under Article 12, paragraph 2 of the Charter; appointment of members of the Committee on Conferences; cooperation between the United Nations and the Organization of the Islamic Conference; cooperation between the United Nations and the Latin American Economic System; and election of 29 members of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Assembly Work Programme

The General Assembly met this morning to continue its consideration of the report of the Security Council. (For further background details see press releases GA/9637 and GA/9638 dated 20 October.)

SIR JEREMY GREENSTOCK (United Kingdom) said the United Nations was being tested as never before by the world’s demands for action on problems which everyone shared or which aroused widespread international concern. In an era of massive change the United Nations must also change or be seen to fail.

The Security Council must be part of that change, he said, and the General Assembly debate on the Council’s annual report was an important opportunity to discuss it. The United Kingdom vigorously supported change, which was why his country had been active in the debate on Council reform. Reform meant enlargement in both the permanent and non-permanent membership, with the allocation of new Permanent Member seats reflecting the vital role of the non-industrial countries, as well as the contribution of Germany and Japan to the work of the United Nations. He also called for greater transparency and communication in the daily work in the Council.

Turning to the challenges facing the Security Council in the future, he said there was a renewed determination to bring its weight and authority to bear on issues such as Kosovo, Iraq, Sierra Leone and East Timor. But he believed the greatest ongoing challenge to the Council was the problems of Africa, where ongoing conflicts had damaged political and economic structures as well as ordinary people.

He said that the United Kingdom was committed to bringing greater stability and prosperity to the continent, but in order to find long-term solutions a special kind of cooperation between Africa and international leaders was needed -- as well as a redefinition of the real objectives of such cooperation, and deeper and more frequent communication.

On the issue of humanitarian action, he said that he sensed a general trend of international support for greater activism by the United Nations, but that there was a need to build consensus in the Council and elsewhere, around a pragmatic set of principles and conditions. He ended by calling for greater transparency in the work of the Security Council, but acknowledged that this year’s report had seen some improvement.

LEE SEE-YOUNG (Republic of Korea) said that over the past year, the Council had faced a much wider range of complex issues directly or indirectly related to international peace and security. One of the reflections of that trend was that the Council organized more open discussions on a number of issues addressed as separate agenda items. Issues that had traditionally been considered by the General Assembly or other United Nations organs now required the attention of the Security Council. Therefore, the Republic of Korea believed that the Council should make further efforts to build an effective partnership with those bodies in order to strengthen its relevance in meeting the challenges the Organization faced in a more comprehensive and coordinated manner. The Council also needed to make greater use of preventive action as an indispensable tool in coping with potential conflict situations. Korea called on Member States to make financial and other resources available to the United Nations Trust Fund for Preventive Action to enhance the Secretary-General's capabilities in that endeavour. Additionally, the issue of transparency of the Council had been, in recent years, a key area in the debate surrounding the report. The growing role and responsibility of the Council in dealing with crisis situations throughout the world had generated Member States’ interest in participating (particularly when they were directly or potentially involved parties) in the Council’s decision- making process. Korea shared the concern that transparency might undermine the efficiency of the Council's conduct of business. However, when it came to decision-making which had financial or other implications for non-members, the need for efficiency should give way to transparency for the sake of mustering broader support of the general membership.

In addressing "technical aspects" of the report, he observed with satisfaction that the report now included an addendum of optional monthly assessments by former Presidents, as well as information on the work of subsidiary bodies of the Council. His country was particularly satisfied, he added, that for the first time the Council had decided to incorporate the annual reports of sanctions committees as appendices.

GUMA AMER (Libya) said more improvements to the report of the Security Council would enhance the efficiency of that organ. The report indicated an increase in the number of open meetings. However, given the importance of the subjects discussed, non-members of the Council should be informed of those meetings beforehand so as to be prepared prior to the discussion process. Many States found themselves confronted with resolutions that had already been prepared. According to the report, the Council had held 239 closed meetings. Yet the report did not clearly indicate the opinions of the members during those sessions. Too much reliance on those closed settings could destroy the Council’s transparency and prevent participation by the majority of Member States. When did the Council start the practice of closed discussions, and why? Although it was master of its own decisions, could the Council make decisions behind the back of the international community, and without its participation? More open and public meetings were needed.

The Assembly should not simply take note of the report. Member States should be given the opportunity, in accordance with the Charter, to make their opinions known. It was also unacceptable that the Council was still using rules of procedure that were over 50 years old. While that body had held many meetings devoted to the problems of African countries, it paid close attention only to issues linked to the Council’s own concerns -– and not to issues of primarily African concern, which were paid mere lip service. The Council should aim to break the cycle of violence that was plaguing the continent. While the Council was entrusted with the maintenance of international peace and security, the Charter also provided for participation by the Assembly in establishing general guidelines for that process. The report of the Sanction Committee had addressed the problems of sanctions against his own country. Libya had fulfilled its obligations in light of Council resolutions, yet the United States had prevented the lifting of sanctions.

One argument used by the United States was that Libya supported terrorism. That had been refuted by the Secretary-General, he said. The fact was that his country supported legitimate struggle. The second United States argument was that Libya had not cooperated with the Scottish Court on the Lockerbie issue. As stated previously, his country was more than willing to cooperate with that body in order to have sanctions lifted. The United States also argued that Libya should pay damages to victims of Pan Am Flight 103. Damages could be paid only when a court decision was taken. The United States claim undermined international law and human rights. A suspect was innocent until proven otherwise. If that was not the case, Libya could request damages for the seven years of suffering inflicted on it and the tremendous material and human losses. Only one State was disregarding the position of the other Member States and the positions of the Non- Aligned Movement, the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the League of Arab States , who had all repeatedly opposed sanctions against Libya.

JUAN LARRAIN (Chile) said the purpose of the report of the Security Council, beyond its ceremonial function was to inform. It was, therefore, appropriate to ascertain whether the present format of the report could sustain that function. “What kind of information do the United Nations Member States require? What other means are available to find information?” he asked. Moreover, such information should be available to Member States in timely fashion, particularly on matters concerning peace and security. Non-members of the Council must be informed in order to intervene and contribute to the solution of conflicts. The permanent members of the Security Council had the duty to provide that information to non- member States more fully than in the past, and to find out what other States felt and thought about Council activities.

Information would be richer where there was transparency. Far from affecting the privileges of Council members, transparency would give more legitimacy to their actions. However, he recognized that progress had been made, particularly the inclusion of assessments carried out by former Council Presidents.

PETER L. KASANDA (Zambia) said the Council had recently demonstrated its readiness to respond positively to the call of the majority of Member States for an increased flow and sharing of information with non-members of the Council. Also, the fact that interested Member States who were not Council members had been able to participate in some of its open debates, as well as the practice of daily briefings and monthly reports by the Council President, were encouraging signs pointing towards a more open and transparent Security Council. However, more needed to be done to promote greater transparency and accountability on the part of the Council. Closed-door meetings would continue to reinforce the negative view that it was disregarding its duty of accountability to other Members of the Organization. Zambia, therefore, joined the call for more frequently held open meetings.

Addressing the subject of Africa, he noted that the Council had dealt with a great number of topics that affected the continent. It was one thing to hear about those situations in document reports, he stressed, but quite another to summon the political will to do something about them. While proposed action on Sierra Leone was appreciated, the Council was not acting quickly on the problem of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Proposals submitted by the President of Zambia regarding the matter last September were still on the Council's table. The apparent slow response by the Security Council had led to a breakdown in the confidence aroused by the ceasefire agreement. The Council should endeavour to be seen as consistent in its reactions to crises, irrespective of their location, he stated. It should, therefore, move quickly to erase the impression of double standards by according equal treatment to all crisis situations in the world.

HANS DAHLGREN (Sweden) said events in Kosovo, Iraq and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia had seriously called into question the credibility of the Security Council.

In Kosovo, despite the fact that everyone agreed that massive violations of human rights merited resolute action, such action had proved out of reach because of the possibility of a veto. In December 1998, discussions by Member States of n United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) report on flagrant Iraqi violations of its United Nations-mandated obligations was interrupted by news that two permanent members of the Security Council had taken unilateral action on the issue. In the case of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the veto of another permanent member at the height of tensions in the Balkans had effectively ended the United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP), one of the most successful of the Organization's preventive missions.

The key question now was how the Council’s credibility could be restored, he said. Better use of preventive tools, many of which were provided for in the Charter, would greatly enhance the Council’s ability to act when confronted with emergencies. Human security was as important as the security of States, and should be promoted by putting greater emphasis on the protection of civilians. Sanctions should be better targeted to avoid humanitarian side effects, and Member States should take responsibility for the rapid deployment of adequate personnel, both civilian and military.

The Security Council must also endeavour to act even-handedly in matters of peace and security all over the world, and the veto system should not be allowed to frustrate such action. Enlargement of Council membership, as well as measures increasing the General Assembly’s involvement in its work, would increase the Council's credibility and authority.

He ended by commending the Council for its work in East Timor, Sierra Leone, the Central African Republic and Guinea Bissau, and called for renewed effort in dealing with Iraq, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a number of other countries.

CONSTANTINE MOUSHOUTAS (Cyprus) conceded that progress had been made towards improving the working methods of the Security Council, especially in transparency, though more needed to be done. That progress was reflected in the report, which included a report of the Sanctions Committee, as well as personal assessments from former Council Presidents.

However, improvements could be made through changes in a number of areas, including opening Security Council consultations to the general membership. The Council could hold open debates on draft resolutions, for example, before voting on them. Informal consultations by the Council should be held to a minimum, and more restraint shown over issues that might be considered within the domain of the General Assembly. There was a general need for closer coordination between the Council and the Assembly.

He was willing to discuss Germany's proposal whereby the Council would report use of the veto to the general membership. He also supported India’s proposal to incorporate an assessment of the Council's actions in the annual report.

He concluded by thanking both the Assembly and the Council for working towards a solution to problems in Cyprus.

PATRICIA DURRANT (Jamaica) said the report clearly illustrated the symbiotic relationship between the General Assembly and the Security Council. She expressed her delegation's satisfaction at the Council's efforts to give effect to the principle of transparency. However, she noted, it would be more useful if the report could be more analytical in content. Noting that attempts had been made to improve the Council's methods of work, he said he hoped that recommendations by past and present members to that end, if taken into account and implemented, would serve as a basis for action in the Council.

Threats to peace had become pandemic, and the Security Council could not afford to divorce itself from that phenomenon. It must, therefore, pronounce itself and react pragmatically. The past decade had been a period of tension and difficulty for the Organization in fulfilling its collective security mandate. Earlier this year, the Council had been precluded from intervening in the Kosovo crisis, due to disagreement among its members on whether such intervention was legitimate. Questions concerning the principle of intervention, the use of force, the scale of military intervention and the Council's role were all relevant.

Atrocities committed in the name of ethnic cleansing must be condemned and halted. However, the principles of international law affecting sovereignty and the use of force could not be ignored. Jamaica advocated the adoption of an approach that had enjoyed the confidence of the international community. It shared the Secretary-General's view that enforcement actions taken without the consent of the Council threatened the core of the international security system founded on the Charter.

OMER ABDULLA IBRAHIM (Yemen) welcomed the improvements made in the report of the Security Council, particularly the section concerning the work of the Sanctions Committees. However, it was essential to expand the analytical nature of the report.

Regarding sanctions, he said that, in many cases, they had not met their goals, merely caused problems to civilian populations. Therefore, while recognizing the right of the Security Council to impose sanctions, he stressed that before imposing them it was necessary to study their consequences.

Turning to Africa, particularly to the Horn of Africa and Central Africa, he said that Yemen supported efforts to settle conflicts and reach solutions there. In that context, he called upon the Security Council to deal more systematically with African situations.

Regarding the Council reform, he said that it was necessary to bear in mind the continuing changes taking place in the world. Such awareness would help the Security Council become more democratic and transparent.

WALTER BALZAN (Malta) said that non-Council members’ interest in understanding the rationale behind Council actions would remain unsatisfied so long as the Council continued to rely excessively on informal consultations. Involvement of the general membership of the Organization in the working of the Security Council was, therefore, still hampered by the Council's practice of keeping its real debates and deliberations behind closed doors -- while only the official adoption of the resolutions took place in open sessions. That being so, it would be a move in the right direction to have the Council's briefings from the Secretariat delivered in open session.

He said that taking action in areas experiencing precarious humanitarian situations was central to the Security Council's role. He, therefore, welcomed proposals for open debates on humanitarian topics, and particularly, on protection for those delivering humanitarian assistance.

Too many of the Security Council’s less satisfactory endeavours in the past year related to the African continent. The case of Angola illustrated a high level of Council ineffectiveness. Not only were several resolutions on the situation sidelined by the parties to whom they were addressed, but the sanctions imposed had not been duly implemented. The Council would need firm leadership and self-confidence if it was to provide the swift and solid support that it had shown itself capable of mustering elsewhere. African members expected no less -– especially as comparisons continued to be drawn with actions taken in other regions.

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