In progress at UNHQ

SOC/4536

COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT CONTINUES CONSIDERATION OF AGREED CONCLUSIONS

14 March 2000


Press Release
SOC/4536


COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT CONTINUES CONSIDERATION OF AGREED CONCLUSIONS

20000314

The Commission for Social Development today considered proposals on what action to take regarding its draft concluding document for the thirty-eighth session.

The session was to have concluded on 17 February, but the lack of consensus on the Commission's "agreed conclusions" on progress and obstacles in implementing the commitments made at the World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995) led to the current situation.

Entitled "Overall review and appraisal of the implementation of the outcome of the World Summit", the document was to be the Commission's contribution to the General Assembly's upcoming review of the World Summit, to be held this June in Geneva. The Commission's sessional theme was its contribution to the General Assembly's special session; it had been requested by the Preparatory Committee for the special session to undertake an overall review of implementation of the Copenhagen agreements to date, and report to it.

In today's discussion, two draft texts were being considered. By the first, the Commission would adopt the agreed conclusions and decide to transmit them to the Preparatory Committee, through an annex to the text. The second draft contains the draft agreed conclusions.

Currently, there are four paragraphs with brackets in the draft agreed conclusions, although Cuba's representative tonight reminded the Commission that in negotiations nothing was agreed until everything was agreed, and the entire document was still open. Nigeria's representative, on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, proposed that the Commission adopt the agreed conclusions without a vote. The representative of the United States said amendments proposed by his delegation, distributed last week, should be considered and reflected in the text.

The representative of Canada said that the Commission should either make a good faith attempt to secure consensus on the conclusions, or adjust the transmitting text so that it would not include reference to adopting them. The representative of the Russian Federation proposed that the document be adopted by consensus. Then, those delegations that wished to could express their reservations in writing, and those would be attached to the annex for

Commission for Social Development - 2 - Press Release SOC/4536 10th Meeting (Resumed) 14 March 2000

consideration by the Preparatory Committee. Pakistan's representative said that the Commission should either adopt the text, or admit that it had failed in its mandate for the session. He did not think a bracketed document should be transmitted to the Preparatory Committee, as it would set a negative precedent.

Statements were also made by the representatives of Algeria, Japan, Iraq, Sudan, Syria, Egypt, China and France.

The Commission will meet again at a time to be announced.

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For information media. Not an official record.