General Assembly

Meeting for a second day on the concept of human security, the General Assembly today heard appeals for clarity on a notion that, to some, remained too abstract and imprecise for international application, but to others was forward-thinking, synergistic and adaptable to the work of the United Nations. The Assembly’s discussion this morning centred on the Secretary-General’s report on human security (document A/64/701).

The United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization continued its deliberations today at its Pacific Seminar on the Implementation of the Second International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism, discussing challenges in the Pacific, Caribbean and elsewhere, as well as the broader role of the United Nations in the decolonization process.

Citing the rise of borderless threats – pandemics, natural disasters and financial turmoil - and the ways in which such ills impacted the daily lives of millions of people worldwide, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon today backed the concept of “human security”, and urged Member States to consider the survival, livelihood and dignity of individuals as the fundamental basis for their security.

The first Preparatory Committee in the run-up to the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, known as “Rio + 20”, had decided at its conclusion last night to hold intersessional consultations, since the eight days originally allocated for preparatory meetings would not be enough, Committee Co-Chair John Ashe (Antigua and Barbuda) said at Headquarters today.

The first in a series of preparatory sessions leading to a follow-up in 2012 to the historic Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit of 1992 concluded today, following three days in which delegations strove to rekindle the spirit of Rio and shore up the foundation on which sustainable development had gained traction around the world.

In a message to open the Pacific Regional Seminar on the Implementation of the Second International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged all involved to undertake “fresh and creative efforts” towards full implementation of decolonization.

Against the still elusive implementation of the 1992 Earth Summit’s groundbreaking “Agenda 21”, delegations began a three-day session in New York today — the first in a series of preparatory meetings for the 20-year follow-on Conference in 2012 – hoping to rally renewed political will to meet the challenge of balancing economic growth and human progress with environmental sustainability.

Countries will open negotiations today on the road back to Rio, where, in 1992, countries agreed on the landmark Agenda 21, the blueprint for sustainable development. In 2012, countries will meet again in Rio de Janeiro to determine the next steps for achieving sustainable development — to manage and protect the ecosystem and bring about a more prosperous future for everyone.

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 its annual regional seminar in Noumea, New Caledonia, from 18 to 20 May 2010.

“Piracy may be the first international crime,” United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the General Assembly today, as he called for a “change in strategy” to combat the resurgent scourge through broader global cooperation and a new push for stability in war-torn Somalia, off whose coast pirates had, in the past year alone, hijacked some 56 ships and taken hostage nearly 750 crew members.