GENERAL ASSEMBLY FILLS SEATS ON ADMINISTRATIVE, LEGAL UNITED NATIONS BODIES, INCLUDING INTERNATIONAL LAW COMMISSION, ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL, ACABQ
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| Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York |
Sixty-first General Assembly
Plenary
54th & 55th Meetings (AM & PM)
GENERAL ASSEMBLY FILLS SEATS ON ADMINISTRATIVE, LEGAL UNITED NATIONS BODIES,
INCLUDING INTERNATIONAL LAW COMMISSION, ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL, ACABQ
The General Assembly today filled several vacancies, through elections, appointments and confirmations, to subsidiary organs of the Assembly and other United Nations bodies concerned with administrative and legal matters, including the International Law Commission and the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ).
In two meetings today, the Assembly also filled seats on the Committee on Contributions, the Investments Committee, the Administrative Tribunal, the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), the Committee for Programme and Coordination (CPC), the Committee on Conferences and the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU).
A number of the actions were based on recommendations of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary), including the selection of five new appointees to the 16-member ACABQ for a three-year term of office beginning on 1 January 2007. They were Andrzej Abraszewski of Poland, Collen Kelapile of Botswana, Stafford Neil of Jamaica, Mohammad Mustafa Tal of Jordan and Nonye Udo of Nigeria.
Also based on the Fifth Committee’s recommendation, six new members were appointed to the 18-member Committee on Contributions for three-year terms beginning on 1 January 2007. They were Kenshiro Akimoto of Japan, Petru Dumitriu of Romania, Ihor Humenny of Ukraine, Meshal Al-Mansour of Kuwait, Gobono Susan Maitse of Botswana and Lisa Spratt of United States.
Further to that Committee, the Assembly named five new appointees to the
9-member Investments Committee. Appointed to three-year terms beginning 1 January 2007 on the basis of the Secretary-General’s recommendation were Emilio Cardenas of Argentina, Fernando Chico Pardo of Mexico and Khaya Ngqula of South Africa. Afsaneh Beschloss of Iran and Ivan Pictet of Switzerland were reappointed as ad hoc members for one-year terms beginning on the same date.Again acting on the Committee’s recommendation, the Assembly appointed Bob Hepple of the United Kingdom and Jacqueline Scott of the United States to the 7-member United Nations Administrative Tribunal for four-year terms beginning 1 January 2007.
The Assembly also took a number of decisions with regard to the 15-member International Civil Service Commission, also on the Committee’s recommendation. Appointed to four-year terms, also beginning on 1 January 2007 were Daasebre Oti Boateng of Ghana; Guillermo Enrique Gonzalez of Argentina; Kingston Papie Rhodes of Sierra Leone; Anita Szlazak of Canada; and Eugeniusz Wyzner of Poland.
Also with respect to the Commission, Vladimir Morozov of the Russian Federation was appointed to a term of office effective today and ending on 31 December 2008 to replace a resigned member from the region. Mr. Rhodes of Sierra Leone was designated as Commission Chairman for a four-year term beginning 1 January 2007. Commission member Wolfgang Stockl of Germany was designated Vice-Chairman for a two-year term from 1 January 2007 to 31 December 2009.
Next to be taken up was the election of States nominated by the Economic and Social Council to fill seven vacancies on the Committee for Programme and Coordination. The five delegations that will begin serving three-year terms on 1 January 2007 would be from Comoros, Haiti, Russian Federation, Venezuela and Zimbabwe. Two vacancies from the Western European and other States would be filled following their nomination by the Council.
In a single round of secret balloting, the Assembly then completed the election of the International Law Commission’s 34 members for five-year terms, as occurs every five years on the basis of recommendations by States.
To fill seven vacancies on the 21-member Committee on Conferences, the Assembly took note of the following six appointments by Assembly President Sheikha Haya Al Khalifa ( Bahrain): Germany; Grenada; Honduras; Nigeria; Senegal; and Syria. Their delegations will serve three-year terms beginning 1 January 2007. The Assembly also took note of continuing consultations to fill the remaining vacancy from the Eastern European and other States Group.
Finally, to fill five vacancies arising in 2008 on the 11-member Joint Inspection Unit, for which recommendations are made by States on a regional basis, the Assembly held an advisory vote by secret ballot and elected Egypt as the nominating State from the African States Group. It would join the other regional nominating States of China, Russian Federation, Cuba and the United States.
The Assembly will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow, Friday, 17 November, for a resumed Tenth Emergency Special Session on illegal Israeli actions.
Background
Acting on the recommendation of its Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary), the General Assembly met today to fill vacancies on several United Nations bodies, including the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ); the Committee on Contributions; the Investments Committee of the United Nations Joint Staff Pensions Fund; the United Nations Administrative Tribunal; and the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC).
It was also expected to appoint members of the Committee for Programme and Coordination; the International Law Commission; the Committee on Conferences; and the Joint Inspection Unit (JIU).
Voting Results
International Law Commission
African States (8 seats)
Number of ballot papers:
190
Number of invalid ballots:
3
Number of valid ballots:
187
Abstentions:
1
Required majority:
94
Number of votes obtained:
Hussein A. Hassouna ( Egypt)
153
Amos S. Wako ( Kenya)
153
Fathi Kemicha ( Tunisia)
152
Pedro Comissário Afonso ( Mozambique)
148
Christopher John Rober Dugard ( South Africa)
148
Bayo Ojo ( Nigeria)
137
Salifou Fomba ( Mali)
134
Maurice Kamto ( Cameroon)
133
Guillaume Pambou-Tchivounda ( Gabon)
131
Abdelrazeg El-Murtadi Suleiman ( Libya)
129
Asian States (7 seats)
Number of ballot papers:
190
Number of invalid ballots:
3
Number of valid ballots:
187
Abstentions:
0
Required majority:
94
Number of votes obtained:
Chusei Yamada ( Japan)
144
Narinder Singh ( India)
141
Xue Hanqin ( China)
140
Ali Moshen Fetais Al-Marri ( Qatar)
138
Amrith Rohan Perera ( Sri Lanka)
138
Nugroho Wisnumurti ( Indonesia)
135
Mahmoud D. Hmoud (Jordan)
122
Djamchid Momtaz ( Iran)
92
Riad Daoudi ( Syria)
90
Nassib G. Ziadé ( Lebanon)
66
Arturo B. Buena ( Philippines)
60
Eastern European States (4 seats)
Number of ballot papers:
190
Number of invalid ballots:
0
Number of valid ballots:
190
Abstentions:
3
Required majority:
94
Number of votes obtained:
Roman Anatolyevitch Kolodkin ( Russian Federation)
185
Zdzislaw W. Galicki ( Poland)
182
Teodor Viorel Melescanu ( Romania)
177
Ernest Petric ( Slovenia)
177
Latin American and Caribbean States (7 seats)
Number of ballot papers:
190
Number of invalid ballots:
1
Number of valid ballots:
189
Abstentions:
0
Required majority:
95
Number of votes obtained:
Stephen C. Vasciannie ( Jamaica)
173
Gilberto Vergne Saboia ( Brazil)
170
Enrique Candioti ( Argentina)
164
Bernd H. Niehaus ( Costa Rica)
163
Marecelo Vázquez-Bermudez ( Ecuador)
155
Eduardo Valencia-Ospina ( Colombia)
150
Edmundo Vargas Carreño ( Chile)
144
Carlos López Contreras ( Honduras)
141
Western European and Other States (8 seats)
Number of ballot papers:
190
Number of invalid ballots:
0
Number of valid ballots:
190
Abstentions:
0
Required majority:
95
Number of votes obtained:
Ian Brownlie ( United Kingdom)
156
Georg Nolte ( Germany)
154
Donald M. McRae ( Canada)
149
Marie G. Jacobsson ( Sweden)
146
Giorgio Gaja ( Italy)
144
Paula Ventura de Carvalho Escarameia ( Portugal)
133
Alain Pellet (France)
127
Lucius Caflish ( Switzerland)
121
Michael Matheson ( United States)
114
Constantine Economides ( Greece)
107
Ruaf Versan ( Turkey)
96
Having received the required simple majority, the following representatives were elected to serve on the International Law Commission for five-year terms, beginning on 1 January 2007: Ian Brownlie (United Kingdom), Lucius Caflish (Switzerland), Enrique Candioti (Argentina), Pedro Afonso Comissário (Mozambique), Christopher John Robert Dugard (South Africa), Paula Ventura de Carvalho Escarameia (Portugal), Ali Moshen Fetais Al-Marri (Qatar), Salifou Fomba (Mali), Giorgio Gaja (Italy), Zdzislaw W. Galicki (Poland), Hussein A. Hassouna, (Egypt), Mahmoud D. Hmoud (Jordan), Marie G. Jacobsson (Sweden) and Maurice Kamto (Cameroon).
Also elected to the Commission were: Fathi Kemicha (Tunisia), Roman Anatolyevitch Kolodkin (Russian Federation), Donald McRae (Canada), Teodor Viorel Melescanu (Romania), Bernd Niehaus (Costa Rica), Georg Nolte (Germany), Bayo Ojo (Nigeria), Alain Pellet (France), Amrith Rohan Perera (Sri Lanka), Ernst Petrič (Slovenia), Gilberto Vergne Saboia (Brazil), Narinder Singh (India), Eduardo Valencia-Ospina (Colombia), Edmundo Vargas Carreño (Chile), Stephen C. Vasciannie (Jamaica), Marcelo Vázquez-Bermudez (Ecuador), Amos S. Wako (Kenya), Nugroho Wisnumurti (Indonesia), Xue Hanqin (China) and Chusei Yamada (Japan).
The Assembly then turned to the appointment of one country that would be requested to propose a candidate to fill a vacancy in JIU. The Assembly President noted that, in accordance with the Unit’s statute, and following regional consultations, the following groups had endorsed one representative apiece to propose a candidate from his or her respective region to serve on JIU: Asian States (China); Eastern European and other States (Russian Federation); Latin America and Caribbean (Cuba); and Western European and Other States (United States). Since the African States Group had endorsed three candidates -- Egypt, the Sudan and United Republic of Tanzania –- the Assembly proceeded to hold an advisory vote by secret ballot to select one representative from that group.
Voting Results
Joint Inspection Unit
Number of ballot papers:
165
Number of invalid ballots:
1
Number of valid ballots:
164
Abstentions:
0
Required majority:
83
Number of votes obtained:
Egypt
85
United Republic of Tanzania
73
Sudan
6
Having received the required simple majority, Egypt will be requested to propose a candidate to fill the vacancy in the Joint Inspection Unit.
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