Meetings Coverage

The Security Council today adopted its annual report to the General Assembly for the period 1 August 2013 to 31 July 2014.

While piracy off the coast of Somalia was at its lowest level in years, progress was “fragile and reversible”, the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs told the Security Council today, stressing that the underlying political instability and lack of alternative livelihoods in the East African country must be addressed if gains were to be sustained.

The principle of linguistic parity in the United Nations required adherence to equity and balance and could not be superseded by resource considerations, a speaker stated at the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), as it continued its annual debate on questions related to information.

As the Sixth Committee (Legal) took up criminal accountability of United Nations officials and experts on mission, speakers agreed that such personnel must not be able to commit crimes with impunity, but held accountable if the Organization were to maintain its credibility.

With factional fighting and massive displacement continuing in South Sudan, the top United Nations official for that country this morning urged the Security Council to move the warring parties to translate verbal commitments into peace on the ground.

Rapid response to and prevention of human rights violations had the power to stop crises, from the Ebola outbreak to bloodshed in conflict hot spots around the world, the United Nations top human rights official told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) today, as it continued discussions on the protection and promotion of human rights, hearing from experts and almost 60 delegates participating in interactive debates on a range of issues, from the death penalty to water and sanitation.

“A fair multilateral trading system is essential to ensure sustained growth in global trade and create new market access and opportunities for developing countries,” Malaysia’s representative told the Second Committee (Economic and Financial) today as delegates met to discuss international trade and development.

It was “ironic” that the weapons that propelled and sustained conflicts came from areas that enjoyed peace, a delegate told the First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) as it continued its thematic debate on conventional weapons.

Facing limited resources and expanding responsibilities, the Department of Public Information was striving to make the best use of its tools to fulfil its mandate and address new challenges such as coverage of the Ebola outbreak, the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization) heard today, as it began its annual consideration of questions relating to information.

Forensic science played a key role regarding the obligation of States to investigate and prosecute allegations of torture or other ill-treatment, a special rapporteur said today, as the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) began its discussion on human rights.