As the Sixth Committee (Legal) concluded its debate on the scope and application of universal jurisdiction today, delegates wrestled with the challenging balance between State sovereignty — along with the primacy of national jurisdiction in prosecuting serious international crimes — and ensuring perpetrators of heinous crimes do not enjoy impunity.
While commending the flexibility with which the Programme of Assistance in the Teaching, Study, Dissemination and Wider Appreciation of International Law responded to the COVID‑19 pandemic, speakers in the Sixth Committee (Legal) urged the Programme to incorporate more diversity — including different regions and legal systems — into its educational offerings, and called for the return of the in‑person trainings that foster deep bonds among the international legal community.
Laws that discriminate against minorities, people with disabilities and individuals affected by leprosy violate a range of human rights, at times relying on inaccurate and biased historical narratives, and promoting narrow visions of whom to include in future protections, Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) experts stressed today, as delegates drew attention to situations across the globe requiring action.
High-ranking United Nations officials outlined progress today on a range of issues, including the illicit trade in small arms, integrating gender perspectives into the mainstream, and the need to revive the stalled disarmament machinery, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) held its final virtual informal interactive dialogue.
Poorer nations will feel the full brunt of COVID‑19 as the crisis continues, suffering from rising hunger, poverty and heightened inequities, a United Nations official said today at a joint meeting of the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) and the Economic and Social Council on productive capacities and the post-pandemic world.
Delegates touched on a range of topics as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its general debate today, with some calling for collective action to end Israel’s impunity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and others urging the United Nations to redouble its efforts to achieve true multilingualism, especially in the wake of the COVID‑19 pandemic.
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its debate on human rights today, holding a series of dialogues with United Nations experts who called for a definitive break with exploitative systems that have left the world’s poorest without safe drinking water and healthy food, and struggling to avoid hazardous waste discharged by companies unconcerned by the planetary impact of their operations.
The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, set up to continue the vital legal work of bringing to justice the perpetrators of atrocities committed in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, made significant progress over the past year, despite obstacles due to the global health crisis, its President said today as he briefed the General Assembly on developments during the residual courts’ fourth year of functioning.
The United Nations senior management official told members of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today that the Organization’s budget process is locked in a vicious circle of annual liquidity shortages that are hampering the delivery of mandates.
Against the backdrop of profound anxiety wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic and escalating global challenges, the President of the General Assembly today urged Member States to “leave behind the uglier aspects of our history, from conflict to colonialism” and unite around a better future, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) began its annual general debate.
