SOCIAL COMMITTEE APPROVES DRAFT RESOLUTIONS ON YOUTH, WOMEN, PALESTINIAN CHILDREN; BEGINS DISCUSSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES

Fifty-eighth General Assembly

Third Committee

34^th & 35^th Meetings (AM & PM)

SOCIAL COMMITTEE APPROVES DRAFT RESOLUTIONS ON YOUTH, WOMEN, PALESTINIAN CHILDREN;

BEGINS DISCUSSION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today approved draft resolutions on issues related to women, youth and children, and began its consideration of human rights hearing from Bacre Waly Ndiaye, Director of the New York Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

A draft resolution on the situation of Palestinian children was approved in a vote of 86 in favour to 4 against, with 58 abstentions (see Annex).  The text would have the General Assembly stress the urgent need for Palestinian children to live a normal life free from foreign occupation, destruction and fear in their own State, and demand that Israel respect relevant provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and relevant provisions of the Geneva Convention.

The Committee also approved a draft on policies and programmes involving youth, which would have the General Assembly recommend that two plenary meetings be devoted to reviewing the situation of youth in 2005, and reiterate its call for Member States to consider including youth representatives in their delegations to the Assembly and other relevant United Nations meetings, thus, broadening channels of communication and enhancing the discussion of youth-related issues.

A draft resolution approved on women and political participation would have the General Assembly urge States to promote and protect the right of women to associate freely and urge them to ensure equal access to education, property rights and inheritance rights, in addition to the promotion of equal access to information technology and business and economic opportunities.  States and the United Nations system would also be urged to increase participation of women at decision-making levels in conflict-resolution and peace processes.

Introducing the reports before the Committee on the implementation of human rights instruments, Mr. Ndiaye gave an update on new developments within the United Nations system for the implementation of human rights, including within the Human Rights Committee, and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.  He also reported on the status of the International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Civil and Political Rights, and the Optional Protocols to the latter Covenant.

He said the most notable event since the last session of the General Assembly was the entry into force of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families in July 2003.  The report of the Secretary-General on the status of the Convention highlighted the activities undertaken to celebrate the Convention’s entry into force and to encourage its ratification or accession.  The Committee was also told that two more States had become party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

As delegations began their general discussion on human rights issues, speakers stressed the importance of strengthening the effective functioning of treaty bodies in order to ensure the promotion and protection of human rights.  Mention was also made of the need for States to respect their reporting obligations concerning human rights treaties.

The representative of Venezuela also stressed the need to strengthen multilateral institutions dealing with human rights.  However, she warned that when addressing human rights, it was necessary to avoid selectivity and politicization of the issues.  The key focus must be on cooperation, not condemnation.  In that respect, she expressed concern about the proliferation of human rights draft resolutions and said that human rights work needed to be streamlined and focused to be effective.

Speaking on behalf of the European Union, the representative of the Italy elaborated on action by the European Union concerning democracy and human rights in the context of conflict prevention and the struggle against terrorism, the death penalty, the eradication of torture, and impunity.  She said the Union believed that the death penalty violated the right to life and constituted cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment, and it was committed to working towards that penalty’s universal abolition.  The European Union was also working towards the prevention and eradication of torture worldwide.

On the advancement of women, the Committee today also decided to endorse the recommendations made by the Committee for Programme Coordination on the in-depth evaluation of the advancement of women programme.

Also addressing the Committee on issues related to human rights were the representatives of Peru and Chile.

The representative of the International Labour Organization also spoke.

The Committee will reconvene tomorrow at 10 a.m. to continue its consideration of human rights and the implementation of human rights instruments.

Background

Today, the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) is expected to begin its consideration of human rights questions and the implementation of human rights instruments.  The Committee is also expected to take action on three drafts on issues related to social development and women’s issues.

Summaries of Drafts

Social Development

A draft resolution on policies and programmes involving youth (document A/C.3/58/L.11) would have the General Assembly recommend that the United Nations system continue to provide opportunities for dialogue between governments and representatives of youth organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council through forums, open-ended dialogues, meetings and debates.  The text would also have the General Assembly decide that the organization of a future world youth forum should be based on a decision emanating from the General Assembly.

By the terms of the draft the Assembly would decide to devote, at its sixtieth session, in 2005, two plenary meetings to review the situation of youth.  Finally, the General Assembly would reiterate the call made in the World Programme of Action to Member States to consider including youth representatives in their delegations to the General Assembly and other relevant United Nations meetings, thus, broadening channels of communication and enhancing the discussion of youth-related issues.

Women’s Issues

A draft resolution on women and political participation (document A/C.3/58/L.17/Rev.1) would have the General Assembly urge States to promote and protect the right of women to associate freely, and to express their views publicly; to ensure equal access to education, property rights and inheritance rights; to promote equal access to information technology and business and economic opportunities; to promote the goal of gender balance in all public positions; to encourage greater involvement of indigenous and other marginalized women in decision-making at all levels; and to address and counter the barriers faced by marginalized women in accessing and participating in politics and decision-making.

By the draft’s terms, governments, as well as the private sector, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other civil society actors, would be invited to develop mechanisms and training programmes that encourage women to participate in the electoral process and improve women’s capacity to cast informed votes in free and fair elections.  States and the United Nations system would be urged to increase the participation of women at decision-making levels in conflict resolution and peace processes.

A draft resolution on the situation of and assistance to Palestinian children (document A/C.3/58/L.24) would have the General Assembly stress the urgent need for Palestinian children to live a normal life free from foreign occupation, destruction and fear in their own State and demand that Israel respect relevant provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and comply fully with the provisions of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War to ensure the well-being and protection of Palestinian children and their families.

The draft would also have the General Assembly call upon the international community to provide urgently needed assistance and services in an effort to alleviate the dire humanitarian crisis being faced by Palestinian children and their families and to help in the reconstruction of relevant Palestinian institutions.

Reports on Human Rights Questions, Implementation of Human Rights Instruments

Before the Committee, there is a note by the Secretariat transmitting the report of the chairpersons of human rights treaty bodies on their fifteenth meeting, held in Geneva from 23 to 27 June (document A/58/350), addressing the implementation of international human rights instruments.  The chairpersons considered follow-ups to the recommendations of the fourteenth meeting and reviewed recent developments relating to the work of the treaty bodies.

The chairpersons underlined the necessity of providing sufficient financial and human resources to treaty bodies to enable the measures to strengthen the human rights treaty-body system.  They recommended that treaty bodies should harmonize their approaches to pre-sessional working groups which should draft lists of issues and questions to be considered by States parties.

The chairpersons also recommended that an inter-committee meeting be convened annually, immediately prior to the annual meeting of chairpersons.  The meeting of chairpersons should focus on technical and organizational issues and maintain responsibility for dialogue with States parties, the Commission on Human Rights, the Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and other partners, including United Nations entities and NGOs.

Before the Committee there is also a report of the Secretary-General on the status of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (document A/58/326).  As at 22 August 2003, the Convention had been ratified or acceded to by 134 States.  In addition, 12 States had signed the Convention.

A report of the Secretary-General on the status of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (document A/58/221) states that, as at 10 June 2003, the Convention had been ratified by 22 States and that further details on the signatures and ratifications of or accession to the Convention may be found in the Web site of the Office of Legal Affairs of the Secretariat (untreaty.un.org).

Also before the Committee is a report of the Secretary-General on the status of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Optional Protocols to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (document A/58/307).  The report states that, as at 1 July 2003, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights had been ratified or acceded to by 146 States; the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights had been ratified or acceded to by 149 States; and the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights had been ratified or acceded to by 104 States.

The Committee will review a report of the Secretary-General on the financial status and activities of the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery (document A/58/306).  The purpose of the Fund is to provide financial assistance to representatives of NGOs that deal with issues related to contemporary forms of slavery and to extend assistance to individuals whose human rights have been violated through contemporary forms of slavery.

The report invites donors to contribute to the Fund by the end of the year in order that the contributions may be duly recorded by the United Nations Treasurer in advance of the annual session of the Board.  According to the Board, the Fund would need at least $300,000 more before the eighth session of the Board scheduled for the end of January 2004, in order to satisfy all new applications envisaged for 2004.

Before the Committee is a report of the Secretary General on the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture (document A/58/284).  The report describes the recommendations adopted by the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture for grants made to beneficiary organizations on the basis of contributions received between May 2002 and May 2003.  The recommendations also address fundraising and cooperation with other United Nations bodies working on the question of torture and the United Nations presence in the field.

The report analyses trends over the past seven years in the various types of assistance offered by beneficiary organizations.  It further urges the Commission on Human Rights, the High Commissioner and the Board of Trustees, all governments, organizations and individuals in a position to do so to contribute to the Fund every year before the annual Board meeting.

Also before the Third Committee is the fifth report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the question of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, in accordance with Assembly resolution 57/200 of 18 December 2002 (document A/58/120).  The Special Rapporteur reports that he visited Uzbekistan from 24 November to 6 December 2002, during which he met various senior officials and representatives of civil society organizations, as well as alleged torture victims and their relatives.  He has recommended the adoption of measures to put an end to torture in Uzbekistan.

The Special Rapporteur reports that he met with representatives from Bolivia, China, Georgia, Nepal and Spain with a view to exploring the possibility of undertaking fact-finding visits to these countries.  The report notes the Special Rapporteur has strengthened his cooperation with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States (OAS).  With a view to strengthening collaboration within the United Nations system on the issue of torture, the Special Rapporteur met again with members of the Committee against Torture and with the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture.

Finally, there is a letter dated 13 June 2003 from the Permanent Representative of Liechtenstein to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General (document A/58/123) transmitting the report of an international meeting of experts on the theme of treaty-body reform, held in Liechtenstein from 4 to 7 May 2003.

Summaries of remaining reports under this agenda item will be provided when the reports in questions are available.

Action on Draft Resolutions

The Committee had before it a draft resolution on Women and Political Participation (document A/C.3/58/L.17/Rev.1/Corr.1).

The draft resolution was approved without a vote, as orally amended, by the representative of the United States.

After the approval of the draft resolution, the representative of Pakistan said Pakistani women enjoyed equal rights to participate actively in politics and all spheres of national life.  She said her delegation was pleased that the Committee had approved the draft resolution.  She explained that Pakistan did not join the list of co-sponsors as her delegation’s concerns were not reflected in the draft text.

Before the Committee were the recommendations made at the fortieth session of the Committee for Programme and Coordination (CPC) on the in-depth evaluation of the advancement of women programme (document A/58/16).  Recommendations mostly covered issues related to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and dealt with the reduction of the backlog of reports to the Committee, measures to reduce outstanding reporting obligations, and efforts to ensure that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were informed of State party presentations of reports to the Committee.  The CPC recommended that the triennial review and its conclusions thereon be submitted to the Commission on the Status of Women for review and action, as appropriate.

The Third Committee endorsed the recommendations without a vote.

Before the Committee, there was a draft resolution on policies and programmes involving youth (document A/C.3/58/L.11).

The draft resolution was approved as orally revised without a vote.

The Committee also had before it a draft resolution on the situation of and assistance to Palestinian children (document A/C.3/58/L.24).

The representative of the United States said that everyone was concerned about the suffering of Palestinian children in the Middle East.  However, he was concerned not only by the suffering of Palestinian children, but also Israeli children who were indiscriminately killed by suicide-bombers and terrorists.  Those terrorists were mistakenly thinking that that road of violence would lead the region to peace.  Furthermore, the suffering of children in all countries resulting from the lack of peace also concerned the United States.  As a matter of principle, the United States did not agree with attempts to politicize the plight of one group of children over the suffering of other children.

In explanation of vote before the vote, the representative of Croatia said that the protection of children was a must, regardless of their ethnic or national background.  Croatia would have preferred a draft resolution on the situation of and assistance to Palestinian and Israeli children.  It was hoped that a joint draft resolution would be presented before the plenary, but her country would abstain from the vote in the Committee.

The representative of Israel, explaining his vote before the vote, said that for the second year in a row the Palestinian delegation had initiated a biased and distorted draft resolution.  That draft avoided any reference to the destructive effects of Palestinian suicide-bombings and terrorism on Israeli life and Israeli children.  Was one group of children more deserving of a single draft than any other group of children suffering around the world?  Furthermore, the draft ignored the cynical abuse of children in Palestine for the purpose of suicide-bombings, a practice that had been condemned by the overwhelming majority of Member States.  The draft had also failed to mention that Palestinian terrorism, that had presently killed over 900 Israelis, had often deliberately targeted children.

Only an end to terrorism could ensure the safety and security of Palestinian and Israeli citizens.  Only resolutions that addressed that issue on a universal level would be productive, he said.  If that draft was to be approved, then surely Israeli children deserved a draft resolution focusing on their suffering from terrorism and suicide-bombings.  It was in that connection that Israel had submitted a draft resolution on Israeli children.

Delegations were asked to show equal concern about Israeli children, he said.  No one party could claim monopoly to being a victim.  If, even at this stage, the sponsors would withdraw the current draft, Israel would be more than willing to withdraw its own draft.  The United Nations must be concerned by the situation of all children.

The representative of Canada, before the vote, explained her delegation’s vote, calling on all parties to end the violence and to resume the implementation of the Road Map.  She said Canada would abstain, as it had serious reservations with regard to singling out a specific group of children and believed that rather than creating a hierarchy of children, it could best protect children by doing so on a global basis.

The draft was approved in a vote of 88 in favour, 58 abstentions, with

4 against (Federated States of Micronesia, Israel, Marshall Islands, United States).  (See Annex.)

After the vote, the representative of Italy, speaking on behalf of the European Union and explaining its abstention, said the European Union did not support the proliferation of resolutions on agenda items where the Committee had traditionally not dealt separately with country-specific situations.  It continued to support the practice of thematic resolutions that were all-encompassing and did not highlight one situation or another.  He stressed the European Union’s continued commitment to improving the humanitarian situation of Palestinians and their children and would continue to support the Quartet’s Road Map.

The representative of the Russian Federation said his delegation had voted for the resolution because it was convinced that all children in the region were affected.  It welcomed changes to the resolution that would make the text more balanced.

The representative of Norway said his delegation had abstained as it did last year, not because of a lack of concern for all children, but because it was not in favour of opening the Third Committee to country-specific approaches to the issue, preferring instead a thematic approach.

The representative of Switzerland said her delegation had abstained because it deplored the suffering of all children as a result of armed conflict.  She added that while a great deal still remained to be done, the international community had done much to advance the rights of Palestinian children, and the resolution could perhaps highlight this.  She added that her delegation also appreciated that the resolution’s sponsors had opened up discussions during the negotiations for the draft text of the resolution.

In a general statement, the Observer for Palestine thanked delegations for supporting the draft resolution.  Palestinian children did, indeed, live under a specific situation, since they had lived under occupation for the last 40 years.  It was hoped that those delegations that had abstained would change their minds by the time of the vote in the plenary.

The representative of Egypt echoed the sentiment expressed by the Observer for Palestine.  She drew the attention of the Israeli delegation to the fact that that draft had not been a Palestinian initiative, but an Egyptian initiative, since Palestine was under occupation and could not present draft resolutions to the United Nations.

Human Rights

During the afternoon, the Committee began its consideration of issues related to human rights.

BACRE WALY NDIAYE, Director, New York Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, introduced the reports before the Committee and gave an update on new developments concerning the United Nations’ instruments for the implementation of human rights, including the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.  He also reported on the status of the International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and Civil and Political Rights, and the Optional Protocols to the latter Covenant.

Since the last session of the General Assembly, two more States had become party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, he said.  The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights had considered the reports of 10 States parties and had adopted General Comment 15 on the right to water.  As follow-up to its day of general discussion on the right to education and the adoption of the of the general comment on that subject, the Committee had established a joint working group with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on the right to education and had held the first meeting in May 2003.

The Secretary-General’s report on the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture included information on recent trends, including those regarding assistance provided to victims of torture and their relatives through the Fund, as well as the impact of this assistance on beneficiaries.  He said the report indicated that $7.2 million had been allocated to 186 projects to assist victims in 68 countries, but requests for assistance amounted to more than

$13 million.  The Office of the High Commissioner had also initiated an independent evaluation of the functioning of the Fund, including the lessons and best practices learned from the Fund’s activities.

He said the Secretary-General’s report on the status of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families highlighted the entry into force of the Convention on 1 July 2003, following receipt of the twentieth instrument of ratification of the treaty in March 2003.  It also highlighted the activities undertaken by the Office, other parts of the United Nations and the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants to celebrate the Convention’s entry into force and to encourage its ratification or accession.

MARGHERITA BONIVER (Italy), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said the Union was taking systematic action, particularly on four main issues related to human rights:  democracy and human rights in the context of conflict prevention and the struggle against terrorism; the death penalty; the eradication of torture; and impunity.  The European Union rejected any unconstitutional seizure of power and emphasized that political changes should be undertaken in accordance with the principles of the rule of law and the democratic process.

She said respect for human rights was a crucial element of combating terrorism and called on the international community to renew its commitment to human rights as a rational strategy for the prevention of both conflict and terrorism.  Terrorists were less likely to find sanctuary and to prosper in societies where human rights were respected.  Democracy and human rights were the best weapon against terrorism.  Governments did not only have the right, but had the duty to protect their nationals and others against terrorist attacks and to bring to justice the perpetrators of such acts.  Human rights law established a framework in which terrorism could be effectively countered without infringing on fundamental freedoms.

The European Union believed that the death penalty violated the right to life and constituted cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment, and was committed to working towards its universal abolition.  It strongly appealed to States that still retained the death penalty for minors to act according to relevant provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which prohibited the imposition of the death penalty on persons below 18 years of age at the time of committing the offence.  It was also a priority of the European Union human rights policy to work towards the prevention and eradication of torture worldwide, she added.  The European Union expected all countries to comply with the unconditional prohibition of all forms of torture and urged all States to sign and ratify the Protocol to the Convention against Torture.

She said the European Union would continue to maintain a spotlight on human rights violations wherever they occurred.  It considered it useful at the present session of the General Assembly to table resolutions on Myanmar, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Turkmenistan.  Other cases also required specific attention by the General Assembly.  The European Union was currently engaged in a structured human rights dialogue with both Iran and China, and it was important that such dialogues produced concrete results.

ROMY TINCOPA (Peru) said that in recent decades, the priority given to human rights had reached unprecedented levels.  All human rights were interdependent, interrelated and interconnect.  Human rights constituted a universal system of values, and States must adhere to the international human rights obligations to which they had subscribed.  Democracy and the rule of law had emerged as a prerequisite for the achievement of human rights.  Those, however, were political and civil rights, and in order to achieve human rights, economic and social rights must also be enjoyed.  The Peruvian Government attached high priority to the eradication of poverty in order to ensure sustainable development, which was inextricably linked to consolidating human rights.

In the era of human rights and terrorism, she said that terrorism had caused the loss of more than 20,000 lives in Peru.  Her Government reiterated its condemnation of terrorism and supported the fight against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, regardless by whom its was carried out.

Concerning the human rights of migrants, she said that her Government hoped to be part of the International Convention of Migrants as soon as possible.  For Peru, comprehensive human development, overcoming poverty and equal opportunities for all were goals that must be achieved to ensure the respect of human rights.

CRISTIAN MAQUIEIRA (Chile) said his country had ratified the six universal human rights treaties, in addition to four of the five optional protocols to the treaties.  Chile shared and supported the efforts of the Secretary-General to modernize the system of human rights treaty bodies and, in particular, to review the procedures for the submission of reports, which were placing a growing burden on States.  His delegation shared the view that there was room for standardizing the guidelines for the submission of reports.

To better fulfil the obligation of States to prepare reports in accordance with requirements established by the committees, his Government, he said, had embarked on a Project for the Strengthening of Systems for the Management of Reports by States on International Human Rights Treaties in Force in the Country.

He stressed the need to ensure that the review of the reports submission process did not neglect the crucial element of capacity-building in States parties.  Those efforts at capacity-building must also include members of civil society in each State.

ADRIANA P. PULIDO SANTANA (Venezuela) said human rights were at the very heart of the national policies of her Government.  The multilateral institutions dealing with human rights must, therefore, be strengthened.  When dealing with human rights, it was necessary to ensure that there was neither selectivity nor politicization of issues.  The key focus must be on cooperation, not condemnation.  Countries must also refrain from establishing unilateral mechanisms to determine human rights situations in other countries.  Such practices went against the principle of the Charter of the United Nations.  Venezuela was party to all the international legal instruments currently in force dealing with human rights and complied with the obligations of the commitments made.

She said that in order for international monitoring to be legitimate, it must be carried out in accordance with the principle of non-interference in the affairs of a sovereign State.  It was necessary to be cautious to ensure that human rights were not invoked as grounds for unilateral action or aggression.  Respect for the most basic human right -– the right to life -– was crucial.  Venezuela, therefore, appealed to States that had not yet done so to abolish the death penalty.  In addition, her Government was concerned about the proliferation of human rights draft resolutions and believed that human rights work needed to be streamlined to be effective.

Ms. HERMOSA, representative of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said human rights remained a central pillar in the ILO’s efforts for social justice and decent work.  There could be no sustainable economic development without the creation and maintenance of decent employment, and decent work could not be created without relying on the human rights expressed in the ILO’s conventions and the Declaration of Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.

She said the ratification campaign for the fundamental conventions continued to be successful, and the ILO had been devoting major efforts to putting those obligations into practice.  She noted that more than half of all ILO technical assistance now focused on human rights.

She stressed the importance of considering the need of people in the globalization process, recalling the ILO Director General’s previous remarks to the Second and Third Committees that the greatest failure of globalization had been its failure to create jobs where people lived.  Unless the creation of decent work for all was put at the very highest level of priority, the work of the United Nations system for the protection of human rights would be seriously compromised.

(annex follows)

ANNEX

Vote on Palestinian Children’s Situation

The draft resolution on the situation of Palestinian children (document A/C.3/58/L.24) was approved by a recorded vote of 88 in favour to 4 against, with 58 abstentions, as follows:

In favour:  Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Cuba, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Iran, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Qatar, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Against:  Federated States of Micronesia, Israel, Marshall Islands, United States

Abstaining:  Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Central African Republic, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Samoa, San Marino, Serbia and Montenegro, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay

Absent:  Andorra, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Comoros, Dominica, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Fiji, Gabon, Guinea, Guyana, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Mauritania, Nauru, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Suriname, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu

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