Continuing its debate today on Cluster I from the report of the International Law Commission, Sixth Committee (Legal) delegates dissented on the Commission’s inclusion of dispute-settlement mechanisms and a non-exhaustive list in its draft conclusions on “Peremptory norms of general international law (jus cogens)”. (For background, see Press Releases GA/L/3605 and GA/L/3606.)
Emphasizing that the benefits of outer space must be accessible to all countries, regardless of their development level, delegates said today that they should not be restricted to those with space programmes, as the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) began its general debate on international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space.
The Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2492 (2019) today, urging States to recommit themselves to its women, peace and security agenda — now approaching its twentieth anniversary — including by creating safe environments for women leaders, peacebuilders, human rights defenders and political actors around the globe.
After approving without a vote a request for observer status, the Sixth Committee (Legal) continued its consideration of Cluster I of the International Law Commission’s report, with delegates debating if a convention based on the draft articles on “Crimes against humanity” was appropriate and, if so, whether the time was right for such an instrument.
While delegates largely agreed that new universal legally binding regulations must tackle new and emerging security threats online and in outer space, they exchanged divergent views on how best to do so amid an environment of eroding international trust in both domains, as the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) continued its thematic debates on these and other issues.
United Nations mandate holders tackled a range of issues today, from the privacy rights implications of collecting sensitive health‑related data to the updated legal frameworks needed to punish modern forms of racism and xenophobia, as Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) delegates continued their interactive dialogues with human rights specialists.
Member States in the Fifth Committee (Administrative and Budgetary) today supported the Secretariat’s ongoing efforts to complete a $40.2 million construction project by 2023 that will make the headquarters of the Organization’s regional commission in Bangkok a safer and more efficient working space for more than 600 employees.
The Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process underlined today the urgent need for preventive diplomacy to ensure a fair and lasting peace as “new dangerous flashpoints emerge” in the region.
As the Sixth Committee (Legal) began its consideration of the International Law Commission report today, speakers addressed the first of three clusters of topics, critiquing the Commission’s working methods and offering competing views about the future of draft articles and conclusions on “Crimes against humanity” and “Peremptory norms of general international law” (jus cogens).
Whereas long-standing restrictions on the importation of weapons have largely prevented their flow into the hands of Al-Shabaab — a group responsible for ongoing terror attacks across the Horn of Africa — those measures require updating to better reflect reality on the ground, the head of the Security Council’s Somalia Sanctions Committee said today.
