special committee on decolonization to hold caribbean regional seminar,

 

17 – 19 may in saint vincent and grenadines

The Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, also known as the Special Committee of 24 on decolonization, will hold a Caribbean regional seminar on Canouan Island, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, from 17 to 19 May 2005.

Conducted within the framework of the Second International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism (2001-2010), the Seminar will focus on practical steps to advance the decolonization process in the Caribbean.  Among the issues to be discussed during the Seminar are the strategies for the successful completion of the Second International Decade, including a mid-term assessment of the level of implementation of the Plan of Action for the Decade and priority action that should be taken by the concerned parties to speed up the implementation of the decolonization mandate.

Representatives of the Territories will inform the Seminar of the situation in individual Territories, and individual experts and representatives of non-governmental organizations will present discussion papers on issues relating to the decolonization process in the Caribbean region.  Representatives of the United Nations system in attendance will address the issue of assistance available to the Territories.

The Chairman of the Special Committee, Ambassador Julian Hunte (Saint Lucia) will preside over the seminar.  The participants will include the delegation of the Special Committee (China, Congo, Cuba, Dominica, Ethiopia, Grenada, Indonesia, Russian Federation, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Syria, and Tunisia) and other United Nations Member States, representatives of the administering Powers, elected representatives of the Non-Self-Governing Territories and a number of experts on decolonization in the Caribbean.

The contributions of the participants will serve as a basis for the conclusions and recommendations of the Seminar, which will be studied by the Special Committee at its forthcoming session with a view to submitting proposals to the General Assembly concerning the fulfilment of the objectives of the Second International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism.

The current members of the Special Committee of 24 are:  Antigua and Barbuda, Bolivia, Chile, China, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, Ethiopia, Fiji, Grenada, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Mali, Papua New Guinea, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Sierra Leone, Syria, Tunisia, United Republic of Tanzania, and Venezuela.

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