Meetings Coverage

Completing its fourth day of the resumed 2011 session, the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) today recommended special consultative status for 25 entities to the Economic and Social Council, and postponed consideration of 26 additional groups until the Committee receive answers to its outstanding questions.

Deadly Israeli-Palestinian clashes, along with the Palestinian reconciliation and state-building efforts, showed that the conflict between the two sides was not immune to the political changes sweeping across the Arab world, a top United Nations official told the Security Council today. “One way or another, change will come to it too,” said Robert Serry, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the Secretary-General.

While the global consensus that now stood behind the 2007 Declaration on Indigenous Rights should be celebrated, its implementation remained a “constant challenge” and strong efforts were needed, nationally and internationally, to make its principles “alive in the reality on the ground”, the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues was told today during a full-day discussion of human rights concerns.

Continuing its resumed 2011 session, the Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) today recommended special consultative status for 38 entities to the Economic and Social Council, postponing consideration of an additional 33 until answers to the Committee’s outstanding questions were supplied.

The Economic and Social Council today adopted three texts, the first a resolution endorsing the decision of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean to hold its thirty-fourth session in El Salvador during the first half of 2012.

The full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples must be regarded as a political, moral and legal imperative without qualification, the Permanent Forum was told today during a half-day discussion on human rights.

Pointing to progress in consolidating peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Security Council stressed today that a strong partnership between the United Nations and the Congolese Government was needed for the next phase of the country’s emergence from civil war.

Welcoming Burundi’s “remarkable transition” towards democracy, national dialogue and good governance, senior United Nations officials told the Security Council today that the Burundian Government’s peace-consolidation efforts should be matched by the international community’s commitment to help overcome the country’s “daunting” remaining socio-economic challenges.

The Security Council this morning extended the Panel of Experts that monitors the arms embargo and sanctions on those who impede peace in Sudan, particularly in the violence-wracked Darfur region, until 19 February 2012.

Despite progress made in ensuring the rights of indigenous communities around the world, indigenous peoples still lacked enough say in what happened on, and to, their territories, the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues was told today during a day-long discussion focused on the environment and free, prior and informed consent.