GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT HIGHLIGHTS ATMOSPHERE OF COOPERATION, RESPECT DURING FIFTY-FOURTH SESSION, DESPITE POLITICAL DIFFERENCES

Press Release
GA/9697

GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT HIGHLIGHTS ATMOSPHERE OF COOPERATION, RESPECT DURING FIFTY-FOURTH SESSION, DESPITE POLITICAL DIFFERENCES

The President of the fifty-fourth General Assembly, Theo-Ben Gurirab (Namibia), in his closing statement before suspending the Assembly today, highlighted the atmosphere of cooperation and mutual respect that had prevailed during the session, despite the divergence of views and political differences on a wide variety of agenda items, including Security Council reform, implementation of the outcome of the 1995 World Summit for Social Development and the causes of conflict and the promotion of a durable peace and sustainable development in Africa.

Concerning the Security Council, he said, the issues of humanitarian intervention, sanctions and reform were addressed. Expansion of the Council was subsequently addressed by some 85 speakers during the plenary session. Most delegations continued to insist on a more representative Council, to reflect global changes since the Second World War and to enhance the Council’s credibility, legitimacy and effectiveness. Clearly, that was one of the main challenges the United Nations faced in 2000. However, he added, although all seemed to agree on the need for changes in the Council’s composition and working methods to prevent endemic gridlock, there was no concrete agreement on the form of those changes.

In the Assembly’s discussion on implementation of the World Social Summit, he continued, among the major issues were: globalization and the international financial crisis; the decline of official development assistance and debt relief initiatives; people-centered development; and the eradication of poverty. While some countries enjoyed economic growth and the benefits of globalization, he said, vulnerable economies continued to be negatively affected by uncontrolled circumstances. In that light, the special session on the Social Summit, scheduled for Geneva in 2000, should serve as a crucial pillar in the deliberations on a redesign of the global financial architecture.

On Africa, the President noted the Secretary-General’s statement that Africa was an “urgent priority”, as well as his suggestion that the Assembly establish a working group to take stock of the progress made in implementing the proposals in his report on the causes of conflict in Africa. “To make the conflicts in Africa a fixation, even an obsession, would not do justice to the people who are trying so hard every day to make the necessary political, economic and legislative reforms and devote their time and energies to ensure sustained peace, stability and development”, he said.

Other issues highlighted by the President, among the 148 items considered by the Assembly during the session, included: the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa, which he said was a threat to the very existence of many African countries; emergency assistance to individual countries; dialogue among civilizations; oceans and the Law of the Sea; assistance in mine action; and the scale of assessments. In the Main Committees, the items under consideration ranged from nuclear weapon proliferation to a convention to combat the financing of terrorism.

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) held a debate on missile proliferation and missile defence that culminated in the Assembly calling for the Russian Federation and the United States to preserve and strengthen the 1972 Treaty on the Limitation of Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Systems.

The Second Committee (Economic and Financial) debated diminishing official development assistance, trade and development, foreign debt reduction initiatives, the international financial architecture and foreign direct investment, against the backdrop of globalization. At the recommendation of the Committee, the Assembly called for increased international cooperation to address the challenges of globalization through such means as enhanced participation of developing countries in international economic policy decision-making.

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, Cultural) devoted 27 of its 56 meetings to human rights questions. Forty-five of the 70 resolutions and 6 decisions that it recommended to the Assembly were on a broad range of human rights issues, with others concerning the advancement of women, international drug control, crime prevention and criminal justice, the elimination of racism and racial discrimination, and refugees.

The Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) also addressed the issue of humanitarian intervention during its consideration of peacekeeping, with speakers emphasizing the need to base such intervention on the United Nations Charter and to clarify principles for the use of force. It also considered such issues as information, Israeli practices in the occupied Palestinian territories, the peaceful use of outer space and the effects of atomic radiation.

The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) approved a budget of $2.536 billion for the 2000-2001 biennium, which was adopted by the Assembly at a night meeting on the session’s final day.

On the recommendation of the Sixth Committee (Legal), the Assembly adopted a treaty designed to cut off funding for terrorist activities, which supplements 11 existing anti-terrorism instruments on such acts as bombing, hostage-taking and hijacking. The new convention will open for signature on 10 January 2000 and enter into force once it has received 22 ratifications. The Assembly also requested States to enact legislation to ensure that violators of the anti- terrorism instruments were brought to trial.

Summaries of Plenary and Committee action follow. Plenary

Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, at the opening of the Assembly’s general debate, stressed that efforts to combat war and poverty would only succeed if the United Nations was adapted to a world of new actors, new responsibilities and new possibilities for peace and progress. That theme -– adapting the United Nations to a changing world –- was reflected in many of the issues the Assembly dealt with, in particular humanitarian intervention.

The question of the legitimacy of intervening in a State’s affairs for humanitarian motives outside of the framework of the Security Council, and its implication for sovereignty and the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, dominated both the general debate and the session. Whereas some stressed the paramount importance of intervening promptly in the face of gross and systematic violations of human rights, others felt that such actions could destroy the Charter, undermine State sovereignty and overthrow legitimate governments.

Those repeated references to "unauthorized" humanitarian intervention fueled the long-standing call for reform of the Council. Throughout the general debate, consideration of the Council's annual report and a two-day debate on that body's reform, a number of speakers underscored the Council's "paralysis" in times of crisis, and charged it with "secretive, rigid and exclusionary working methods". The suggested remedies included expansion of the permanent and non-permanent member categories, curtailing use of the veto and its abolition, equitable geographic representation and more transparency in the body's work.

The Assembly held 10 days of general debate (20 September - 2 October) which was punctuated on 27 and 28 September by a special session on the "Review and Appraisal of the Implementation of the Programme of Action adopted at the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (Barbados,1994). During the debate it heard from 180 nations, including addresses from: 36 heads of State, one Vice President, one Crown Prince, 19 Prime Ministers, 14 Deputy Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers, and 104 Foreign Ministers. Among the issues addressed were: globalization, poverty eradication, the international monetary system, conflict, disarmament, the Organization's financial situation, the debt burden, the effect of sanctions and the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

During its substantive segment the Assembly adopted 250 resolutions, 19 of which were on the strengthening of the coordination of humanitarian and disaster relief assistance of the United Nations. Resolutions and debates on those 19 texts focused on those countries either engaged in conflict or recovering from it and those devastated by natural and man-made disasters. During the debate, speakers highlighted the bias and imbalance in international assistance that yielded more to some parts of the globe than others. Also, during consideration of the causes of conflict in Africa and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development, speakers drew attention to the international community's lack of support for African problems.

Of note during the session were the Assembly's commemoration of the tenth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child -- the most broadly ratified United Nation treaty. The Assembly also decided to convene a special session in September 2001 to review the achievement of the goals of the 1990 World Summit for Children at the highest possible level. It commemorated the thirtieth anniversary of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). It also decided to convene a conference on the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects in June/July 2001.

In other matters, the Assembly reiterated that the special session to review the outcome of the 1995 World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen), scheduled to be held in Geneva from 26 to 30 June 2000, would reaffirm the Declaration and Programme of Action adopted in Copenhagen, not renegotiate them. It also, for the eighth consecutive year, asserted the need to end the United States-imposed embargo against Cuba.

Addressing the issues of the question of Palestine and the situation in the Middle East, the Assembly reaffirmed the necessity of achieving a peaceful settlement of the question of Palestine, which it identified once more as the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict; and declared Israel's jurisdiction over Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan null and void. During the debates broad support was expressed for the Sharm-el-Sheikh Memorandum and the Wye River Memorandum. The conclusion of the Final Status Talks was also urged.

The Assembly also adopted an international convention designed to criminalize the provision or collection of funds for terrorism. The new convention will open for signature on 10 January 2000, and enter into force with 22 ratifications. The Assembly also adopted an Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, by which victims of sexual discrimination will be able to submit complaints directly to the United Nations. The Protocol was opened for signature on 6 October and will enter into force once ratified by 10 States.

The Assembly removed the question of East Timor from its agenda and next year will consider a new agenda item entitled, "the situation in East Timor during its transition to independence". It also: established the International Civilian Support Mission in Haiti to consolidate the results achieved in that country; and extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA) through 31 December 2000.

The Assembly admitted as its 186th, 187th and 188th Member States, the Republics of Kiribati and Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga respectively. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural resources, the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization, and the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries were invited to participate in the sessions and the work of the Assembly as observers. The Assembly also decided that the day most sacred to Bhudists –- the Day of Vesak -– should be observed in May each year at United Nations Headquarters and other United Nations offices.

Fulfilling its Charter duty to elect non-permanent Security Council members, the Assembly elected Bangladesh, Jamaica, Mali, Tunisia and Ukraine to two-year terms effective 1 January 2000. The five other non-permanent members, who will serve for another year, until 31 December 2000 are Argentina, Canada, Malaysia, Namibia and the Netherlands.

Five judges were elected by the Assembly and the Security Council concurrently to the International Court of Justice to fill terms of office that will expire on 5 February 2000. Gilbert Guillaume (France), Rosalyn Higgins (United Kingdom), Gonzalo Parra-Anguren (Venezuela) and Raymond Ranjeva (Madagascar) were all re-elected while Awn Shawkat Al-Khasawneh (Jordan) was elected to sit at the Court for the first time. All five will begin their new nine-year terms on 6 February 2000.

Eighteen Members were also elected to fill vacancies on the 54-member Economic and Social Council. The new members, who will begin their three-year terms on 1 January 2000 are: Angola, Austria, Bahrain, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Costa Rica, Croatia, Fiji, Greece, Portugal, Sudan and Suriname. Cuba, France, Germany, Japan and Mexico were re-elected.

The following 29 States were elected by the Assembly as members of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme for a four-year term beginning 1 January 2000: Bahamas, Benin, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Denmark, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, India, Iran, Italy, Libya, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Poland, Republic of Moldova, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Slovakia, Suriname, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda and the United Kingdom. Those countries, representing the African, Asian, Eastern European, Latin American and Caribbean and Western European and Other States, will replace those whose terms of office expire on 31 December 1999.

The assembly elected 20 members to serve on the Committee for Programme and Coordination for a three-year term beginning 1 January 2000. They were: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, Gabon, Germany, Indonesia, Iran, Italy, Mauritania, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, San Marino, Ukraine, United Kingdom and Zimbabwe.

Five members were elected by the Assembly to the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ): Gerard Biraud (France); Norma Goicochea Estenoz (Cuba); Vladimir V. Kuznetsov (Russian Federation); Susan M. Shearhouse (United States); and Roger Tchoungui (Cameroon). They will take up their appointments on 1 January 2000. The Assembly filled six vacancies on the Committee on Contributions for terms beginning 1 January 2000 by electing Alvaro Gurgel de Alencar Netto (Brazil), Ju Kuilin (China), Sergei I. Mareyev (Russian Federation), Angel Marron (Spain), Hae-Yun Park (Republic of Korea) and Ugo Sessi (Italy), and elected the Auditor-General of South Africa to fill a vacancy on the United Nations Board of Auditors.

The Assembly also re-appointed three members of the Investments Committee for a further three-year term commencing 1 January 2000. They were: Francine Boyish (United States), Takeshi Ohka (Japan) and Peter Stormonth Darling (United Kingdom). Julio Barbozai (Argentina) and Mayer Gabay (Israel) were both elected to the Administrative Tribunal for terms beginning 1 January 2000, while Amjad Hussain Sial (Pakistan) was elected as an alternate member for the United Nations Staff Pension Committee for a term beginning 1 January 2000.

The President of the fifty-fourth Assembly session is Theo-Ben Gurirab (Namibia). The 21 vice-presidents are: Algeria, Bolivia, China, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, France, Grenada, Iceland, Iran, Iraq, Lithuania, Monaco, Nigeria, Russian Federation, Seychelles, Tajikistan, Thailand, United Kingdom and the United States.

First Committee

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) held an unprecedented debate on an issue of growing international concern -- missile proliferation and missile defence – culminating in the General Assembly’s adoption of two new resolutions on missiles, including one calling for renewed efforts by the Russian Federation and the United States, to preserve and strengthen the 1972 Treaty on the Limitation of Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Systems.

On the Committee’s recommendation, the General Assembly adopted 51 disarmament and security-related drafts and decisions, of which 17 concerned nuclear weapons. It also adopted a text on the question of Antarctica, recognizing that the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, which provided for the demilitarization of the continent, is in furtherance of the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter.

Prior to introducing the draft on the 1972 ABM Treaty, the representative of the Russian Federation warned that any attempts to revise the Treaty would return the disarmament dialogue to the days of the cold war and render impossible the fulfilment of both the START I and START II treaties, as well as the continuation of the process of strategic offensive arms reductions. [START I is the Treaty on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms signed in 1991 by the Russian Federation and the United States, and START II, signed by them in 1993, is the Treaty on Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms.]

The representative of China voiced similar concerns, saying that amending the ABM Treaty for national missile defence would “tip global strategic balance, trigger a new arms race and put the world and regional stability in jeopardy”. In the post-cold-war era, the Treaty had enabled the bilateral reduction of nuclear arms and had supplied the necessary security framework for progress on bilateral nuclear disarmament. Now, in seeking its own absolute security and strategic advantage, one State party to the Treaty was not only vigorously pursuing its own national missile defence programme, but was pressing rapidly ahead with its joint theatre missile defence programme with some other countries.

Taking strong exception to the ABM text, which was sponsored by Belarus, China and the Russian Federation, the representative of the United States said his country had not made a decision to deploy a limited national missile defence, nor would such a decision change the basic strategic calculus underlying the ABM Treaty. An obsolete treaty did not produce stability, he said. It only created the illusion of stability. His country could not ignore the emergence of new threats or new technologies that might be used to protect against them and it rejected the idea that a 27-year old treaty could not be amended to reflect the current reality.

The delayed entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) prompted the Committee to approve, and the Assembly to adopt, a resolution calling on States to sign and ratify the test-ban treaty, maintain their nuclear testing moratoriums, and sustain the momentum generated by the October Conference on Facilitating the Entry into Force of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, by continuing to remain seized of the issue at the highest political level.

News of the rejection by the United States Senate of the Treaty’s ratification reached delegations during the Committee’s general debate and drew some sharp reactions. The Russian delegation called the decision a "serious blow" to the entire system of agreements in the area of nuclear disarmament and the non- proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The representative of Canada said it was deeply disturbing that the country that had championed the cause of disarmament had now “retreated from the battle” to bring the landmark CTBT into force. Failure to do so would be a serious blow to the global non-proliferation and disarmament regime, and reflect a rejection of multilateralism in favour of a strategy of narrow self-reliance. The United States representative insisted that, despite the recent Senate rejection of the CTBT, his country’s commitment to arms control and non-proliferation was “unwavering”, adding that “we will complete the task of bringing the Treaty into force".

Further reflecting the Committee's expressed concern at the impasse on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, the Assembly adopted, for the second time, a resolution entitled "Towards a nuclear-weapon-free world: the need for a new agenda". It called for the examination of ways and means to diminish the role of nuclear weapons in security policies, so as to enhance strategic stability, facilitate the process of the elimination of those weapons and contribute to international confidence and security.

Although the nuclear question dominated the debate, the Committee also addressed the regional and international security threat posed by conventional weapons, adopting seven drafts on the subject, including three on small arms. Convinced of the need for a comprehensive approach to promote, at the global and regional levels, the control and reduction of small arms and light weapons, the Assembly decided to convene an international conference on the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in 2001.

Several African States emphasized the effect of small arms and light weapons on inter-State conflicts. The representative of Sierra Leone said the bitter experience in his country had convinced him that conventional arms could pose perhaps as much of a threat to both national and international peace and security. Of grave concern was the absence of internationally recognized standards to curb the illicit traffic in small arms and light weapons, the representative of Togo said. The representative of Ghana said that powerful new tools to prevent war, such as early warning detection of conflict and preventive diplomacy, should be integrated into a permanent global security system.

The Chairman of the First Committee is Raimundo Gonzalez (Chile). Vice- Chairmen are: Gunther Siebert (Germany); Kestutis Sadauskas (Lithuania); and Tarig Ali Bakhit (Sudan). The Rapporteur is Carlos D. Sorreta (Philippines).

Second Committee

Globalization was the backdrop against which countries in the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) debated such issues as the diminishing flow of official development assistance, trade and development, environment and development, foreign debt reduction initiatives, the eradication of poverty, transfer of technology, international cooperation, new international financial architecture and foreign direct investment. The Committee approved 37 draft resolutions and 10 draft decisions.

While it was generally thought that globalization offered many opportunities for economic growth, many developing countries felt it had widened the gap between rich and poor. However, as one of the delegates put it, “globalization was neither good nor bad; it was like the weather, one had to adjust to it”. Several States noted the important role of the United Nations in securing globalization with a human face. The international community needed to discuss how to manage globalization, noted Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Nitin Desai. “Concerns about globalization arose from the belief that there was no one in charge”, he said.

By a text recommended by the Committee, the General Assembly would call for increased international cooperation to address the challenges of globalization through the enhanced participation of developing countries in the international economic policy decision-making process; integrated consideration of trade, finance, technology transfer and development issues by the relevant international institutions; and continuation of a wide range of reforms of the international financial system. Further by another text, the Assembly decided to convene a high-level intergovernmental event in 2001, to address national, international and systemic issues relating to financing for development in the context of globalization and interdependence.

Diminishing flows of official development assistance (ODA), together with the international financial crisis of the last two years, caused the Assembly to call upon developed countries to achieve the agreed target of 0.7 per cent of their gross national product for overall ODA. Several delegations stressed the need for adequate and predictable financial resources for implementation of development programs and for an increase in foreign direct investment.

With the onset of two major global forums on trade –- the World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial meeting in Seattle and the tenth United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD X) in Bangkok, the stage had been set for the intense debate on trade liberalization that ensued in the Committee. Developing countries called for greater access to global markets with preferential treatment. The Committee recommended a text by which the Assembly would invite members of the international community to consider the interests of non-members of the World Trade Organization in the context of trade liberalization. It would also deplore any attempt to bypass or undermine multilaterally agreed procedures on the conduct of international trade by unilateral actions inconsistent with the multilateral trade rules and regulations.

In one of three contested actions, the Assembly adopted a draft resolution on unilateral economic measures as a means of political and economic coercion against developing countries. It urged the international community to adopt urgent and effective measures to eliminate the use of such measures against developing countries that are not authorized by the United Nations, or inconsistent with the Charter, and that contravene the principles of the multilateral trading system.

The Assembly, by a recorded vote, adopted a draft resolution entitled “Towards a stable international financial system, responsive to the challenges of development, especially in the developing countries”. The text would have the Assembly call for the renewal of national, regional and international efforts to promote the greater involvement of the private sector in the prevention and resolution of financial crises, and underscore the importance of a more equitable distribution of the cost of adjustments between the public and private sectors, and between debtors, creditors and investors.

In recognizing that economic development posed different challenges to different countries, the Committee particularly addressed the needs of Small Island Developing States and landlocked developing countries. In addition, there were several texts addressing various concerns dealing with Africa’s development. They included texts on the Second Industrial Development Decade for Africa, cooperation between the United Nations and the Southern African Development Community, and conservation and sustainable development of Central African forest ecosystems.

The Committee recommended 12 draft resolutions on environment and sustainable development, including a text on international cooperation to reduce the impact of the El Niño phenomenon, which called for the establishment of the international research centre on El Niño at Guayaquil, Ecuador. By another text, the Assembly called on the Caribbean countries to develop an integrated management approach to the Caribbean Sea area, and on Member States to give priority to improving their emergency response capabilities to allow for a timely, effective and coordinated response to natural disasters and for the containment of environmental damage in the Caribbean Sea area.

In a recorded vote, the Assembly adopted a draft resolution on the permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian People in the occupied Palestinian territory. Once again, it called on Israel, the occupying Power, not to exploit, to cause loss or depletion of, or to endanger the natural resources in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan.

In addition, the Committee recommended action on texts related to: the Economic and Social Council; operational activities for development; training and research; and implementation of the first United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty (1997-2006). In closing remarks, Chairman Roble Olhaye (Djibouti) said that while it had been a somewhat difficult session, considering the heavy workload, it had also been a wonderful learning process. The Committee’s Vice-Chairmen were Daul Matute (Peru), Giovanni Brauzzi (Italy) and Alexandru Niculescu (Romania). Hassam Edin A’Ala (Syria) served as Rapporteur.

Third Committee

Issues related to human rights were again a major part of the deliberations of the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural), with 27 of the Committee’s 56 meetings devoted to human rights questions.

On the recommendation of the Committee, the General Assembly adopted 70 resolutions and 6 decisions, of which 45 were on a broad range of human rights issues, with others relating to the advancement of women, promotion and protection of the rights of children, international drug control, crime prevention and criminal justice, the elimination of racism and racial discrimination, and refugees.

Diverse approaches to various aspects of human rights resulted in recorded votes being needed for 13 of the 44 human rights resolutions. Texts were adopted by the Assembly on the situation in a number of different countries -- Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kosovo. During the Committee’s meetings on human rights questions, Special Rapporteurs and Special Representatives engaged in discussion, with members. The Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance said a strategy of prevention was urgently needed to curb such intolerance, with a focus on education and dialogue. The Special Rapporteur on the question of torture called for the protection of human rights defenders who were “in the front line” and often the targets of government repression.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, told the Committee that only political will and resources were missing in efforts to implement the required standards for conflict prevention and respect for human rights. There was no shortage of early warning or conflict-prevention capacity; for years, there had been warnings of trouble in both Rwanda and Kosovo. Only action had been lacking.

Concern was expressed in the Committee about the impact of the process of globalization on basic human rights; many delegations said that to benefit mankind, the process should include the active participation of developing countries in global decision-making.

Another highlight of the Committee’s session was intense discussion on a proposed draft resolution, sponsored by the European Union, calling for a moratorium on the death penalty wherever it existed. Some developing nations, opposing, said capital punishment was an issue of crime prevention and criminal justice rather than human rights; the draft neither respected diversity of cultures nor different judicial codes. The sponsors of the draft ultimately decided not to consider it during the present session.

On issues related to women, the Assembly adopted a draft from the Committee designating 25 November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Another text urged Member States and observers to ensure women’s representation at a high political level in the Assembly’s special session entitled "Women 2000: gender equality”. The Committee also discussed implementation of the outcome of the Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995.

During consideration of the promotion and protection of the rights of children, the Committee heard presentations from the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, who warned of the danger that such a practice might come to be regarded as normal, and from the Special Rapporteur on the Commission on Human Rights on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, who called attention to the strong link between abuse at home and commercial sexual exploitation.

The Assembly also adopted a Committee-recommended report on activities for the International Decade of the World’s Indigenous People (1995-2004). There was widespread participation in the Committee’s debates on international drug control and crime prevention and criminal justice, and the Assembly adopted a resolution on the high-level political signing conference for the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime to take place in Palermo, Italy, before the end of next year’s Millenium Assembly. The Executive Director of the Office for Drug Control and Drug Prevention told the Committee that development of alternative crops and projects to support the production of illicit drugs was the way of the future, so that whole communities would lift themselves to a better quality of living.

The Assembly adopted five resolutions on the elimination of racism and racial discrimination and three on the rights of peoples to self-determination. Concern was expressed over the increase in racism and hatred on the Internet. Advances in science and technology should be used to better society, not to destroy it, representatives said. One resolution proclaimed the year 2001 as the International Year against Racism, Xenophobia and Other Forms of Intolerance. Another dealt with the convening of the World Conference against Racism and Racial Discrimination in 2001 in South Africa. The Special Rapporteur on the Use of Mercenaries told the Committee “privatization” of security and armed conflict spared States from their obligations to defend their citizens and seek peace, and this was dangerous in terms of human rights. The Special Rapporteur on Racism, in a statement made on her behalf, said racist sentiments had been on the increase and that special attention had been called to the aborigines in Australia, the “so-called untouchables” in India and groups of gypsies in nearly every country of Europe.

As in past years, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Sadako Ogata, addressed the Committee. She said refugee issues could no longer be discussed without reference to security --- the security of refugees, of States and of humanitarian staff. All were jeopardized and it was imperative to devise remedial measures. This involved achieving stability and post-conflict recovery. Concerned States should consider helping, by looking at “middle option” components of recovery, such as equipping the local police, providing training or deploying liaison officers. The Assembly adopted five resolutions on refugee issues.

In the area of social development, the Committee for the first time took up a report from the Secretary General on cooperatives. In debate, it was emphasized that cooperatives could become sources of self-reliance for the aged, of enterprise for youth and the disabled, as well as of the provision of care for children. They promoted self-help and collective self-reliance by the pooling of resources. At the grass-roots level societies provided themselves with health care, education and other basic services without awaiting affirmative action by States.

The officers of the Third Committee are: Chairman Vladimir Galuska (Czech Republic); Vice-Chairmen Amina Mesdoua (Algeria), Monica Martinez (Ecuador) and Kirsten Geelan (Denmark); Naif Ben Bandar Al-Sudairy (Saudi Arabia) as Rapporteur.

Fourth Committee

Concern over the concept of humanitarian intervention was the focus of the Fourth Committee's (Special Political and Decolonization) debate on peacekeeping operations during its fifty-fourth session.

Before deciding to keep the whole question of peacekeeping operations under review, the Committee examined all aspects of that issue, including: a legal framework for enforcement action; safety of international personnel; delays in reimbursement for troops and equipment; organizational changes in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations; and transparency in procurement procedures.

Echoing the debate in the plenary on the scope and methods of international intervention, most speakers agreed on the need to base such measures on the United Nations Charter and to clarify principles for the use of force. Concern was also expressed about interference in the internal affairs of sovereign States. Contrary to the newly popular notion that intervention was permissible in cases of humanitarian emergency, many speakers supported the Non-Aligned Movement's position calling for a distinction between humanitarian assistance and all other United Nations activities, including peacekeeping. There was strong support for the Organization's central role -- and that of the Security Council -- in the maintenance of international peace and security.

The Fourth Committee approved 27 resolutions and three decisions this year. The General Assembly also took direct action on two decolonization texts relating to the Committee's work. The Committee heard a total of 223 speakers over the course of 24 meetings. Besides peacekeeping questions, it considered issues relating to information, Israeli practices in the occupied territories, Palestine refugee relief, the peaceful uses of outer space, the effects of atomic radiation and decolonization matters.

Regarding information questions, the Committee decided that, while continuing his efforts to achieve the most effective balance between new and traditional media, the Secretary-General should pursue further multilingual development and enrichment of the Organization's Web sites, and continue to develop proposals for achieving parity among all the official languages. Discussion of public information issues underlined the need to reduce disparities in information flows, to increase assistance for the development of communication capabilities in the developing countries and to ensure journalistic freedom.

Much attention was paid during the session to the resumption of the Middle East peace process following the signing on 4 September of the Sharm el-Sheikh memorandum. Taking up the related issues of Israeli practices and the activities of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the Committee stressed that the positive momentum of the peace process must be maintained. It reaffirmed that Israeli settlements in the occupied territories were illegal and demanded complete cessation of all such activities. It called upon Israel to prevent violence and guarantee the safety and protection of Palestinian civilians.

There was widespread agreement that the work of UNRWA, which has just marked its fiftieth anniversary, must continue, as more than 3.5 million Palestinian refugees remain displaced. Those refugees had borne the brunt of cost-cutting measures necessitated by the Agency's financial crisis. Most speakers welcomed UNRWA's new unified budget structure and expressed hope that the changes would result in greater transparency and efficiency.

Among Middle East-related draft resolutions approved by the Committee were texts on the applicability of the Fourth Geneva Convention to the occupied territories, and Israeli practices affecting the human rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied territories. Others involved: temporary emergency humanitarian assistance to displaced persons; offers by Member States of grants and scholarships for higher education, including vocational training, for Palestine refugees; Palestine refugees' properties and their revenues; and the proposed University of Jerusalem "Al Quds" for Palestine refugees.

The Committee's debate on decolonization issues included discussion of: military, economic and other activities affecting the interests of the Non-Self- Governing Territories; implementation of the decolonization Declaration; and the rights of the inhabitants of those Territories to their natural and other resources. While acknowledging the willingness of the administering Powers to participate in a dialogue with the Special Committee on decolonization, speakers said that they should allow visiting missions, which could provide objective information about the situation in Territories under their administration.

This year's debate on the peaceful uses of outer space concentrated on the needs of the developing countries in that area. Speakers stressed the unique role of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and agreed that the Third United Nations Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III), held in Vienna from 19 to 30 July, had contributed to the development of equal and mutually beneficial cooperation in space. The Committee urged the international community to implement the Conference's final document -- "The Space Millennium: Vienna Declaration on Space and Human Development" -- and proclaimed an annual celebration of World Space Week in October.

During the debate on atomic radiation, several countries drew attention to the effects of recent nuclear accidents and practices, citing the September accident at Tokai-mura, Japan, as well as the situation in Chernobyl, Ukraine, and the Semipalatinsk area in Kazakhstan. The Committee supported the role of the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation in its quest for a safe radiation environment. That Committee is expected to issue a comprehensive report in the year 2000.

The Fourth Committee's officers are: Chairman, Sotirios Zackheos (Cyprus); Vice-Chairmen, Carlos Morales (Spain), Yury Kazhura (Belarus) and Matia Mulumba Semakula Kiwanuka (Uganda); and Rapporteur, Gualberto Rodriguez San Martin (Bolivia).

Fifth Committee

The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary), accomplishing the largest task it was faced with for the fifty-fourth session, recommended that the General Assembly adopt a United Nations programme budget for the 2000-2001 biennium of some $2.536 billion -- a 0.2 per cent increase over the budget for 1998-1999. The proposed programme budget, which was presented to the Committee by the Secretary-General, was the subject of an intense part-by-part analysis by Member States and was not decided upon until the final day of the main part of the session.

As he introduced the text on the budget to the Committee for its approval, Nestor Odaga-Jalomayo (Uganda), coordinator of consultations on the item, said the budget was not perfect, but it was practical. Disappointment about the result was spread in a geographically equitable fashion. The draft contained the Secretary- General’s budget, taking into account the views of Member States, as well as of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) and the Committee for Programme and Coordination.

A contingency provision of $35 million was included in the budget for new political missions. Administrative costs were reduced and additional resources were reallocated to areas like the development of Africa, human rights and justice and international law.

In another resolution on the 2000-2001 budget recommended by the Committee, the Assembly decided to trim some $3.2 million from general temporary assistance, $2.03 million from resources for consultants and approximately $2.48 million from staff travel from the levels proposed by the Secretary-General. The allocation requested for the Office of Central Support Services was reduced by some $8.5 million.

The Committee also made recommendations on: modalities for the Development Account; financing for the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia; and financing for various peacekeeping missions, including the United Nations Transition Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) and the United Nations Interim Administration in Kosovo (UNMIK). The Committee also held discussions and made recommendations concerning the United Nations common system, human resources management and pattern of conferences.

Sixth Committee

The adoption of a global treaty designed to cut off funding for terrorist activities was perhaps the most conclusive action taken on the recommendation of the Sixth Committee (Legal). Little more than a year after its initial proposal by France, the new convention was presented to the Assembly at this session and adopted without a vote. The 28-article Convention on the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism requires its States parties to criminalize the provision or collection of funds for acts defined as terrorist offences, and to confiscate assets allocated for such purposes. Supplementing 11 existing anti-terrorism instruments, which cover such acts as bombing, hostage-taking and hijacking, the new convention will open for signature on 10 January 2000, and will enter into force once it has received 22 ratifications. During the Sixth Committee’s debates, several speakers suggested that it was time for a single, comprehensive convention to replace the step-by-step approach taken in the earlier texts.

In another resolution on terrorism -- adopted by a recorded vote of 149 in favour to none against, with 2 abstentions -- the Assembly asks States to enact legislation to ensure that violators of the various anti-terrorism instruments are brought to trial. It strongly condemns all terrorist acts -- regardless of who perpetrates them or why -- as criminal and unjustifiable, and urges States to consider, as a matter of priority, becoming parties to the anti-terrorism treaties. The Assembly also decided that the Ad Hoc Committee on terrorism that it established in 1996 should meet next year to continue work on a draft convention for the suppression of acts of nuclear terrorism. Charged with supplementing the existing legal regime, the Ad Hoc Committee is asked to look at ways to further develop a comprehensive legal framework of conventions on terrorism and to consider the possibility of convening a high-level conference on terrorism.

The Assembly scheduled two extra sessions for the Preparatory Commission on the International Criminal Court to enable it to finalize two key texts -- Rules of Procedure and Evidence, and Elements of Crimes, which it must complete by 30 June 2000, and to complete work on other arrangements. In its third session this year, held from 29 November to 17 December, the Preparatory Commission completed preliminary work on both texts; they will continue to receive priority at its next two sessions, from 13 to 31 March 2000 and 12 to 30 June 2000. It has also begun work on a definition of the crime of aggression, which it will continue to elaborate at a session to be held from 27 November to 8 December 2000. Once such a definition is agreed upon, it is envisaged that the Court will be able to try individuals for that crime, in addition to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

By the end of the Assembly’s session, the Court’s Statute six ratifications (of the 60 needed for the Court to become operational) had been announced: Senegal, Trinidad and Tobago, San Marino, Italy, Fiji and Ghana (although Ghana has yet to deposit its ratification with the Secretary-General). Ninety-one States have signed the Statute.

Also at this session, the Assembly approved the continued work of the International Law Commission on draft articles aimed at preventing transboundary damage from hazardous activities and also its efforts to articulate criteria that would characterize unilateral acts of State. It approved the holding of the Commission's next session in Geneva in two three-week segments, from 1 May to 9 June and 10 July to 18 August 2000.

The Assembly also called -- in response to the increasing involvement of States in commercial activity, and a perceived need to articulate the circumstances under which they should be prevented from invoking immunity for themselves or their property in connection with legal proceedings in the court of another State -- for a Sixth Committee working group to consider outstanding substantive issues in a draft convention on jurisdictional immunities of States and their property, and also to decide on whether a convention is in fact the form in which the agreed principles should be codified. It decided to continue work on a set of draft articles aimed at preventing people from becoming stateless in such situations as transfer or separation of a territory or unification or dissolution of a State, with a view to adopting them as a declaration at its next regular session.

The Assembly called for higher priority to be given to the work of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), in view of the increasing value to global economic development of the modernization of international trade law, and authorized a slightly longer than usual session for the Commission in anticipation of at least two, and possibly three, new trade law texts being ready for adoption next year. The drafts on which the Commission has made substantial progress are: a draft legislative guide on privately financed infrastructure projects, uniform rules on electronic signatures and a draft convention on assignment in receivables financing.

The Chairman of UNCITRAL reminded the Sixth Committee that private investment in infrastructure projects provided an opportunity to reduce public expenditure and obtain high standards of service, while allowing the public sector to reallocate resources for other pressing social needs. However, an appropriate legal framework was necessary to attract private capital for such projects; UNCITRAL’s draft guide would help governments to assess the adequacy of their laws and regulations. The convention on receivables financing had the potential of increasing the availability of credit at more affordable rates, which would be particularly helpful to developing countries. He also drew attention to increasing demands from all over the world for training and technical assistance related to implementation of UNCITRAL treaties.

Much of the Organization’s work on legal issues was given impetus by the declaring of 1990 to 1999 as the Decade of International Law. During that time, more than 70 legal instruments were concluded under the auspices of the United Nations. The Decade was officially closed at a General Assembly ceremony on 17 November. In addition to the treaty establishing the International Criminal Court, notable treaties concluded during the Decade include the Comprehensive Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), the Ottawa Convention on Landmines and a host of environmental agreements adopted in the wake of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). A text on safety of United Nations personnel, and several anti-terrorism conventions, as well as numerous treaties on issues of trade and maritime law, are also listed among the Decade’s achievements.

The Assembly also adopted a resolution asking the Special Committee on the Charter of the United Nations and on Strengthening the Role of the Organization to give priority to the question of assistance to third States experiencing economic problems due to sanctions imposed on their neighbours or trading partners under Chapter VII of the Charter. Another resolution asks the Secretary-General to continue developing a methodology for assessing the adverse consequences of sanctions on third States, and the Security Council to make itself more accessible to consultation by those States, as provided in the Charter.

Phakiso Mochochoko (Lesotho) served as Chairman of the Sixth Committee. The three Vice-Chairmen were: Andres Franco Vasco (Colombia); Victoria Hallum (New Zealand); and Hiroshi Kawamura (Japan). Josko Klisaovic (Croatia) served as Rapporteur.

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