The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) approved five draft resolutions today, four covering human rights situations in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Syria, Iran and Crimea, as well as one focused on a training centre for South-West Asia and the Arab region.
Delegates spotlighted the need to engage fully and equally with all Member States in order to improve the General Assembly’s working methods, authority and transparency, as the 193‑member organ concluded its annual debate on the revitalization of its work.
The 193 Member States of the United Nations must resist every temptation to turn the General Assembly into a platform for “red lines” and “static positions”, the world body heard today, as it adopted its annual “Olympic Truce” draft resolution ahead of a debate on how best to revitalize its work.
Delegates expressed concern today about protection for whistle‑blowers and managerial accountability as well as staff’s lack of knowledge of dispute mechanisms at their disposal as the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) examined the Organization’s track record for resolving conflict for tens of thousands of employees worldwide.
The General Assembly today, meeting independently from, but concurrently with the Security Council, failed to elect the last of five judges to the International Court of Justice for a nine‑year term, beginning on 6 February 2018.
Concluding its work for the main part of the seventy‑second session, the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) approved 10 draft resolutions today, of which 9 related to Israeli practices in the occupied Arab territories and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
As the Sixth Committee (Legal) concluded its seventy‑second session today by taking action on eight draft resolutions and one draft decision, delegates highlighted the existence of divergent views on one draft text, while extolling the importance of consensus-building.
Nuclear energy could help countries to achieve sustainable development, Member States said today, with many also expressing concern about recent nuclear testing activities by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as the General Assembly took up the latest report of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) approved six draft resolutions today, addressing free and fair elections, as well as migrants’ rights, while also taking up topics ranging from torture to terrorism.
Delegates in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) voiced support today for a proposal by the Secretary‑General to undertake a $14.19 million modernization of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) premises in Santiago, Chile.
