A/52/PV.3 General Assembly

I should like to draw the attention of delegations to a matter concerning the membership of the General Committee for the fifty-second session of the General Assembly that has resulted after the election of Vice-Presidents of the fifty-second session. At the 1st meeting of the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee), which took place yesterday afternoon, His Excellency Mr. Machivenyika Tobias Mapuranga of Zimbabwe was elected by acclamation as Chairman of that Committee. At the 2nd plenary meeting of the General Assembly, held subsequently, Zimbabwe was elected as a Vice-President of the Assembly. Rule 38 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly stipulates that “No two members of the General Committee shall be members of the same delegation, and it shall be so constituted as to ensure its representative character”. The General Committee for the fifty-second session of the General Assembly was therefore not properly constituted in view of the fact that, contrary to the provisions of rule 38 of the rules of procedure, two members of the General Committee, namely the Chairman of the Special Political and Decolonization Committee (Fourth Committee) and one Vice-President of the Assembly, are members of the same delegation, that of Zimbabwe. Consequently, the General Assembly will have to proceed to the election of one Vice-President of the Assembly from the group of African States. I have been informed that the group of African States has endorsed the candidature of South Africa as Vice-President of the General Assembly. In accordance with paragraph 16 of annex VI to the rules of procedure, the election of Vice-Presidents of the Assembly by secret ballot will be dispensed with when the number of candidates corresponds to the number of seats to be filled. We will therefore proceed accordingly. I therefore declare South Africa elected a Vice- President of the General Assembly. I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate the State which has been elected a Vice-President of the General Assembly. The following States have thus been elected to vice- presidencies of the General Assembly: China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Guinea, Ireland, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Mongolia, Panama, Qatar, the Russian