A/44/PV.94 General Assembly

I should like to invite the attention of members to a note by the Secretary-General (A/44/9S7) i'nforming the General Assembly that the President of the General Assembly has received a letter from the Permament Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations requesting that the Assembly consider emerqency assistance to the Islamic Republic of Iran followinq the devastating earthquake that struck that country last week. In order to enable the Assembly to take the required action it will be necessary to re-opefi consideration of sub-item (a) of aqenda item 88, "special economic and disaster relief ~ssistance: (a) Special programmes of economic assistance. It Under the circumstances may I take it that the Assembly has no objection to re-opening consideration of sub-item (a) of aqenda item 88? It was so decided.

Before we beqin our consideration of the item on our aqenda may I, on behalf of all meflt)ers of the Assembly, extend to and throuqh the delegation here nresent our deepest sympathy to the Government and the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the immense and traqic loss they (The President) have suffered. wtuan' or!! meets with a traqedy of such dramatic proportions one becomes very hU1\'ble, and other facts and considerations in a way fade into tbe background or become irrelevant. In the midst of sorrQrl I think it is very heartening to note that the world community has reacted unanimously with compasaion and sympathy, a compassion and sympathy already turned into concrete and prompt rol ief action. That is really qrati fying. May I express the hope that we here in the General Assembly this morning will also show our soUdadty throuqh prompt and unanimous action. As members know, the Secretary-General of the United Nations has sent a message of condolences to the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran and has appointed the United Nations Disaster Relief Co-ordinator as bis Special Representative for the Emerqency in Northern Iran. I have requested the Secretariat to circulate draft resolution i\/44/L.66, which is being submitted for consideration by the Assembly. Before takinq up consideration of the draft resolution, l should like to quote from rule 78 of the rules of procedure in regard to proposals before the Assembly. Rule 78 r~ads, in part: -As a general rule, no proposal shall be discussed or put to the vote at any meeting of the General Assembly unless copies of it have been circulated to all delegations not later than the day preceding the meetinq. The President may, however, permit the discussion and cons.ideration of amendments, er of motions as to procedure, even though such amendnents and motions have not been circulated or have only been circulated the same dayo" In view of the limited time available and the desire of members to consider this item expeditiously I would like to suqqest, with your concurrence, that we (The President) proceed to take a decision on draft resolution A/44/L.66, even though it has been circulated only this morninq. I might, however, also pOint out that the basic text of the draft resolution was actually circulated yesterday, together with the letter from the Permanent Representative of Pakistan that appears in document A/44/957. Unless I hear any objections, I shall take it that the Assembly aqrees with my proposal. It was so decided.

I now call upon the representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Mr. KHARRAZI (Islamic Republic of Iran): Mr. President, first and foremost I would like to express my appreciation for respondinq so quickly to the request of the Group of Asian States to convene a resumed session of the General Assembly and to re-open the discussion of agenda item 88, ·Special economic and em~rqency assistance". I should also like to thank the Secretary-General for his timely decision to appoint a Special Representative to co-o~dinate and mobilize international efforts. I am also qrateful to you all for your support and participation. The expressions of sympathy conveyed to my deleqation and to the people and .. Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran in this period of great sorrow and qrief are soothing. I am truly touched and encouraged by the extent of the sympathy and support extended to the Victims of the earthquake. Allow me to qive a very brief report on this devastating earthquake and an account of the current situation. (Mr. Kharrazi, Islamic Republ ic of Iran) On Thursday 21 June, an earthquake reqistering 7.3 on the Richter scale struck the north-west of Iran in Zanjan and Gilan, provinces with 4 million inhabitants. This earthquake, which came to be known as the world's deadliest since 1976, flattened dozens of towns and hundreds of villages, and turned them into mass qraveyards. The number of casualties and the dimensions of the devastation portray the extent of the catastrophe. According to the latest reports, around 50,000 people are dead and 110,000 injured; 500,000 have been made homeless. In the stricken area, which covers about 11,000 square kilcmetres, three 'cities are almost completely destroyed and 12 others have suffered extensive devastation. The reports also indicate that in the rural areas more than 1,500 villages have been ravaged a: severely danaged. s.::>me villages in the lush green hills of Gilan have virtually disappeared, and their residents are almost all dead. The disaster was of such horrifying magnitude that in some villages not a single person survived to bury the dead. In some other affected areas, there is not even one sinqle house standing. Moreover, 400 aftershocks have struck the devastated reqion, some as strong as 6.5 on the Richter scale. The only way of seeing the devastation caused by the earthquake is from the air. Following the disaster, all available national resources were mobilize and the rescLe 0geration started immediately. The rescue and relief operations have continued non-stop. Being well experienced, thousands of Iranian rescuers, alongside 500 foreign rescue workers, toiling rapidly round the clock, pulled more than 100,000 victims out of the rubble within the first 60 hours. Tens of thousands have bp-en flown by helicopter in more than 2,000 flight-hours to nearby hospitals and emerqency medical centres. The Iranian air force has also flown thousands of hours, carryihl;j in medicine, food and tents and transportinq thousands of rescue workers to the reqion. Some constraints have hampered the rescue operation, S!Jc:h as aftershocks, bad weather in some areas, and landslides which cut off roads and threatened the rescuers. Villages perched atop the heiqhts are accessible only by helicopter. Althouqh seven ddYS after the earthquake the likelihood of findinq any survivors is remote, the decision to l1lOve from the rescue phase to the next phase is not an easy one to make. With very hiqh temperatures in the quake-stricken areas, prevention of outbreaks of epidemics from the unburied bodies hds become an urqent task. Immediate plans for the provision of safe drinkinq water and for sanitation have been identified as the priorities for this phase. In this ·regard, more than 100 teams have been sC't up to fiqht disease and disinfect the area, but more supplies and equipment are required to fulfil .that important task. Work crews are evacuating ruined settlements, burying dead bodies and sprayinq rubble with disinfectant. According to public health officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the possibility of the outbreak of infectious diseases is slim, but not zero. As soon as the news of the earthquake was aired on the r'lIdio, thousands of Iranian people lined up to donate blood, relief items and financial aide The response to the appeal by the Iranian Red Crescent society for donations was such that in just 24 hours' the supply of empty blood baqs ran out and there ,,-as no need for blood from abroad. In many ci ties, people have established special ccmmltteee to collect relief items for the quake zone. Popul~! efforts and private support have been enormous and overwhelminq. F';)llowing the disaster, many countries announced their readiness to extend emergency relief assistanc'!, which was welcomed by the Govemllent of the Islamic Republic of Iran. I should like to take this opportunity to thank all those who have rendered emergency assistance to the victims of this disaster. Up to now, 171 planeloads of relief aid' fram 86 countries have reached Tehran. (Mr. Kharrasi, tslaale Ref!lbl1c of lra~) The le~der of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ithatlene!, has ex~r:e.sed thanks. to .very country in the world that rushed to assist the vietf.lIl1 of the earthQuake in Iran. Lauding the people for their sincere assistance, he said, "Muslims from everywhere~ together with other countries of the world, rushed to aid the people of Iran with a feelinq of responsibility. I thank them all.· Mr. Hoori, Interior Minister and appointee of the Cabinet in charqe of the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the quake-stricken areas, has also underscored the importance of this assistance, sayinq, "The timely presence of foreiqn relief teams with advanced and COMplete equipment has been eftective in search, rescue, treatment and sanitation efforts." AllOW' 1ft! now to point out some of the destructive impact of this natural disaster en tile economy of our country. I have to emphasize that this is a very tentative assessment of the damaqe caused by the earthquake, whose dimensions !MV very well be worse than what we knOll at. this time. Beinq located in a fertile zone and hostinq many industries and dams, the two provinces whidl werb 'lard hit by the earthquake played a crucial role in the econOlftY of the country. Those areas are known as the bread-basket of the country, produci"9 meat and a wide variety of agricultural products including rice, wheat, corn, sugar cane, olives, tobacco, tea and various kinds of fruit. Under the current clrcuutances - with shattered irrigation systemsg the destruction of the husbandry system and the death of thousands of aqricultul&l workers • the region will be able to play hardly any of its Drevious agricultural role for the next three years at least. Reports from the affected areas indicate that the industries located in the regionp including the Qazvin industrial zone, have suffered severely; in BaDe cases the duaqce is irreversible. Moreover, much econOlftic: (!r. Kharrazi, Islaaie !Gpublic of Iran) infrcatructute - ~in and tutal toade, electricity networks, ir~iqation syete.sv sanitary drinking water supplies, hospitals, health care centres and other cc..unity facili~ies - has been destroyed. Settling ~ore than half a ~illion homeless - let alone rehabilitating them - is a great task. Bearinq in mind that winter is cominq, settling the survivors is a priority. The tellporsry settlement C')f the survivors is qoing on thr\')uqh the distribution of tents. Relief workers have begun buildinq 10,000 prefabricated homes in ManjU and Roudbar, areas which are prone to hiqh winds that IMke tents unsuitable f« use as temporary shelters. '!'hat is just the startinq-point. (Mr. Kharrazl, Is1aale Reeub1le of Iran) Mate than SO per cent of the half a IIUlion survivors are children under 15 years of age. In addition to ahelter and health care, this large nUftlber of children have special needs that "ust be IIl6t. '!'beir education requires the very basic facilities for schools and qualified personnel. Many schools need to be tall1t. This qreat task calls for international co-operation aimad at rehabUitati"n of the people and reconstruction of the region. The magnitude of the ruins is incredible, and the area's recovery cannot be brOU'1ht about by relief and short-htm emergency assistance alone. Enormous efforts wUl be required to aUeviate the qrave situation caused by the disaster. President PAfs~njani, after his visit to and a flight oyer the re~ion by helicopter, stated "Nothir~ worth mentioning is left ••• It is like a small country that mst be rebuilt from scratch". He added "The catastrophe is so qreat that Iran would have to have outside help·. Moreover, the Secretary-General's envoy for co-ordination of earthquake aid, visiting the qu~ke-tarn areas, told reporters that the mass media's repOrts about the depth of the disaster in Iran was "far less than the reality·. HI! added that on his return to New YOl'k, he would co-ordinate with the Government (')f Iran, the Internati"lnal COIIlJ'iiittee of the Red Cross, the Red CE:escent and other related o~ganhations for continuation of rel ief aid. He a~l.so expressed optimism that the United Nations would aSk international organizations and institutions to help in reconstruction of quake-stricken areaSe The reconstructiQn of is cities and hundreds of villages in the north-west of the country requires thorough, scientific plannin:) that meets the standards for protection aqalnat earthquake. R~habilitation of a larqer area ~y plove ft~••a£\· if the infliction of such heavy loss of Ufe elsewhere in the future is to be prevented. Suchlarqe-scale planning and execution require the co-operation and assistance of the specialized aqencies and Member States with experience and know-how, as ! believe the report of the Speci~l Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. ESlaafi, will confirM. In view of the gravity of the disaster and its lo~-term effects, thfue will be a continued need, as a complement to the efforts bein:j ",ad8 bv \::he people and Government of the Islamic Republic of tran, for international co-operation to Initigate the adverse impact of the earthquake. The quick response to the request of the Asian Group to convene this Reet~nq of the General Assembly clearly illustrates the respnnslveness of the United Nations syste,m and its Member States and their recoqnltion of the urqent and continued need for international ~operation, not only to alleviate present human suffering, but 51so to make the area as safe as possible 1n the future.

I thank the representative of the Islamic. Republic of Iran for his review of a terrible situation. I now call on the representative of Pakistan, who will introduce the draft resolution. M~. AHME~ (Pakistan): On behalf of the sponsors, I have the honour to ,.,troduce ~s:,;aft resolution.A/44/L. 66, of 28 June 1990, entitled WEmergency assistance to the Islamic RepUblic of Iranw• I am happy to state that 23 more countries have joined the list of sponsors listed in the document. The new additions are: Burkina Fao, Cambodia, the Congo, Costa Rica, ejibouti, Guatemal~, Guinea-Blsseau, Japan, Maldlves, Nicar~qu&, Niqer, ~he Philippines, Poland, Oatar, Senegal, Singapore, Thailand, Tunisia, the United Arab S_irates, the United States of A!IIedca, Viet Nu, zama and ZilbabwGl. That bdnqa t.~e total n\Oiilber of sponsors (:0 112. In its praambular portion the draft text underscores the deep distress of the international community ~t the massive devastation caused by the earthquake, in hu.n and material terms. 'l11e text: acknowledges the efforts of the Govemllent and people of the Islamic Republic of Iran in savinq lives and alleviatinq the 8ufferiaq of the victims, while noti~ the enormous efforts th&t will have to be made to overcome the C05\sequences of th is di SIllSter • The draft reso\ution recoqni2es the importance of international co-operation to mitigate the devastation caused by the earthquake and also the need to demonstrate international solidarity in order to ensure broad multilateral co-operation to meet the immediate emergency and to undertake the process of rehabilitation and reconstruction. Tbe text also notes with appreciation the prompt and qenerous response of the international coJ'llllunity in providi ng i1ll1lediate relief assistance to the victims of the earthquake. In its operative portion, which comprises four paragraphs, the tezt expresses the international communi ty 's solidari ty with and support for the Govemmant and people of the Isl~ic RepUblic of Iran in their hour of travail, and expresses gratitude to the international community for providing emerqency relief assistance to the victims. There is a small procedural addition to paraqraph 3 G The Secretary-Genenl's Special Representative is visi·tiB:; the affected areas to otepare a report .on the damage caused by the earthquake. It is therefore proposed that the fol1owin;c phrase be added at the end of ?~raqraph 3: "and requests the Secretary-General to present the report of the Soecial Representative to the forty-ft fth session of the General Assembly," Since this is merely a procedural. point, I hope it will be acceptable. In paragraph 4 an appeal is addressed to all Govern8enta, the various bodies ~nd orqans of the United Nations systell and non-qovernaental orqanlz&tiona to extend qenerous assistance to the Govern_nt of the Islaaic RepubUc of Iran for relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction in the aff~-ted areas. The occasian whi.ch ~aB brought us toqethet this IIOrnlnq is In~eed IlIOst traqic. Hundreds of thousands of innocent lives have been shattered by a devastatinq stroke of nature. The profound hu.an dimension of this traqedy beckons the entire international community to extend all possible assistance and co-operation to the Government and people of the Islallle RepubUc of ir2!n. It is in this spirit that I subMit to the Assembly the earnO$t desire of the sponsors that the draft resolution be adopted without a vote. (Mr. Ab_cS, Pald.tln) • 'fh. PRBSIDRH1': I "ish to lnfor. th. An4Mbly thllt w ...rQ eCMmtriti wlAh to be l!st4d as sponfiore of the dea ft l"1'!801ut!on: ChMile ~uc. an4 Rlf1eria. On the basis of "ut w. have tt_rei, uy t talc. it that It la the At• ..,1y·. "tah to adopt; the draft r..olutlan !n docuMnt W"./L.", .. .-nMd Dv tM sponsor., without a vote? The draft resolution, .....d, vas ac!opted 4reao1.utlon 44/242). 'fbll PP.BSIOIft: w. Mve thus conclucSec't our consider.tion of sub-lt•• (a) . of aCjenda It•• 88.

I have been requ.ated by the Preal·dent of the 3enera1 A._1Ib1y to lntont ..tlber8 ot the tentative proqr.... of VOR of the A8.elIb1y .At ita forty"fourth M.810n vith rec;ard to ltee 36, ·Oue8tion of ....lbia 8 • '!'tIe President. was hoping to bring this t tiltIII befete th. As••ly a. soon a. possible. However, there !lire a nUJRbar ef etepe that must b't-UIlcen in connect Ion with the recOflllendatlt.'ftS subMitted to the A••ulbl'! by the» Unit." Nations Councll for Nnibia before the ~••ellbly mav take up the qUtist10n of N.ld~la ln plenary .eetinq. In this respect the Advisory C~ittee on AdRi»!stratlve and 8udqetary Questiolt8 and the Fi fth CaaDlttee need to be 9ivoft .dequate tin to <.'On~ld.r the proqra-.e budget lapllcations of the dr~ft reaolution. su~itted bv the Council prior b) the Assellbly'. IIHtin; In plenaIV. Por the purpose of Mslstinq deleqattons in :the plannlnq of their wrk, tho President ~~uld like to outline the follo~inq schedule: on the week ~qln"inq 16 July, the Advisory COIImlttee on ~~iniBtratiYe and Budgetary O~at1on8 and the Fifth Coaanittee wUl, we hope, eompl'!te const'deration of the! pznqraellle budqet implications of the draft resolutions on the question of Nulbla, so that the followinq week, i{ possible on Monday, 23 July, the Assembly could consider the question of Namibia in plenary meetinq. For the information of delegations I should like to point out that the report ~,i the dtaft resolutions submitted by the United Nations Council for Namibia are contained in document A/44/24 and Add.l. The meeting rose ac 11.15 a.m. [ (The President)