GA/AB/3783

BUDGET COMMITTEE SAYS REVISED GENERAL ASSEMBLY EMERGENCY SESSION TEXT ON DAMAGE REGISTER FOR ISRAELI WALL TO COST $2.3 MILLION

15 December 2006
General AssemblyGA/AB/3783
Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

Sixty-first General Assembly

Fifth Committee

33rd Meeting (PM)


BUDGET COMMITTEE SAYS REVISED GENERAL ASSEMBLY EMERGENCY SESSION TEXT


ON DAMAGE REGISTER FOR ISRAELI WALL TO COST $2.3 MILLION

 


The Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) this afternoon decided to inform the Assembly that the adoption of a revised text calling for the establishment of “the Register of Damage Caused by the Construction of the Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” would entail appropriations of up to $2.34 million under the Organization’s 2006-2007 budget.


An oral decision on the budget implication statement was adopted by a recorded vote of 128 in favour to 5 against (Australia, Federated States of Micronesia, Israel, Palau, United States), with 1 abstention (Côte d’Ivoire) (see Annex).


Earlier this week, on 11 December, the Committee informed the Assembly that the adoption of the original text (A/ES-10/L.20) would require an appropriation of up to $3.1 million in the 2006-2007 budget (see Press Release GA/AB/3779), but had to return to the matter today as the Assembly’s resumed tenth emergency special session has issued a revised draft resolution (A-ES-10/L.20/Rev.1).  Under its rules of procedure, the Assembly cannot vote on any draft on which expenditures are anticipated until the budget Committee “has had an opportunity” to state the effect of the proposal upon the Organization’s budget.


Presenting the Secretary-General’s revised statement on the draft’s financial implications (document A/C.5/61/13/Rev.1), the Director of the Programme Planning and Budget Division, Sharon Van Buerle, said that the resource changes are connected to the revision of operative paragraph 8 on the Verification and Assessment Unit, which would no longer be requested by the revised draft.  Accordingly, one D-1, one P-5, two P-4, one P-3 and two General Service positions would not be required.  The terms of operative paragraphs 3 to 7, as well as 11 to 15 of the revised draft would entail no change that would impact on the previously requested resource levels.  Under operative paragraph 16, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to report to it, within six months, on the progress made with regard to the establishment of the office of the Register of Damage, its operations and the establishment of the Register.


The Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) -- in an oral report presented by its Chairman, Rajat Saha, -- recommended informing the Assembly that the adoption of the draft would entail an appropriation of up to $2.34 million, and reiterated its opinion that every effort should be made to utilize existing available resources to the maximum extent possible.  Any savings that would be identified in respect of the 2006-2007 budget should be reflected in the performance report for the biennium.


The representative of Finland, speaking in explanation of the vote on behalf of the European Union, supported the draft decision, and said that the Union trusted that every effort would be made to utilize existing resources to the maximum extent possible.  Any savings that could be identified should be reflected in the performance report.  She regretted that the Committee had deviated from its customary working practice, and called on all Members to restore the consensus principle in the work of the Committee.


The Committee will hold its next formal meeting at 10 a.m. Monday, 18 December.


ANNEX


Vote on Budget Implications of Wall Register


The oral draft decision concerning the programme budget implication of the General Assembly draft resolution calling for a Register of Damage caused by the construction of the wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory was adopted by a recorded vote of 128 in favour to 5 against, with 1 abstention, as follows:


In favour:  Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Thailand, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.


Against:  Australia, Israel, Micronesia (Federated States of), Palau, United States.


Abstain:  Côte d’Ivoire.


Absent:  Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Benin, Bhutan, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gambia, Georgia, Grenada, Guinea, Kiribati, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lesotho, Liberia, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Moldova, Nauru, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu.


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For information media • not an official record
For information media. Not an official record.