With as many as 5 billion people around the world falling into a “justice gap”, the rule of law is crucial in the compacts between people and their Governments, and between States, a senior United Nations official told the Sixth Committee (Legal) today as it continued its consideration of the principle.
After calling numerous meetings on the question of Western Sahara for more than 40 years, it appears the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) is taking steps backwards instead of moving forward, a delegate told that body today, as it continued its general debate on decolonization.
Two nuclear‑weapon States, China and the Russian Federation, today said that a third, the United States, is contributing to global insecurity by failing to fulfil its obligations under existing arms control, disarmament and non‑proliferation instruments, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued its general debate.
Safeguarding land rights and providing effective access to justice are vital for the realization of indigenous peoples’ fundamental collective rights, delegates told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today in a half‑day discussion on the issue.
The United Nations senior management official told members of the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today that the Organization is confronting its worst liquidity crisis in recent years as she laid out the Organization’s key financial indicators for 2019.
With world hunger rising for the third year after decades of decline, delegates underscored the escalating impacts of climate change and the urgent need for more weather resilient farming, as the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) took up agriculture, food security and nutrition today.
Some petitioners described the desperate conditions in the Tindouf refugee camps while others demanded self‑determination for the people of Western Sahara, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) continued its general debate on decolonization today.
The General Assembly today adopted three resolutions including two containing political declarations on realizing universal health coverage by 2030 and addressing the priorities of small island developing States amid the rising threat of climate change.
Holding United Nations officials and experts on mission accountable for crimes required Member States to increase their exercise of national extraterritorial jurisdiction in order to ensure the integrity of the Organization, the Sixth Committee (Legal) heard today as it took up that topic, alongside the matter of the principle of rule of law.
Delegates highlighted improvements in children’s access to health care and vaccination coverage, while also underscoring the importance of young people’s participation in decision-making, as the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) continued its discussion on the protection of children’s rights today.
