A/59/PV.50 General Assembly

Pursuant to General Assembly decision 42/450 of 17 December 1987, the Assembly elects the members of the Committee for Programme and Coordination upon their nomination by the Economic and Social Council. The Assembly has before it document A/59/131, which contains the names of the countries nominated by the Economic and Social Council to fill the vacancies in the Committee that will occur as a result of the expiration, on 31 December 2004, of the terms of office of China, Ethiopia, Japan, Nigeria, the Republic of Korea, Tunisia and Uruguay. Those States are eligible for immediate re-election. I should like to remind members that, after 1 January 2005, the following States will still be members of the Committee: Argentina, Armenia, the Bahamas, Benin, Brazil, Canada, the Central African Republic, the Comoros, Cuba, France, Gabon, Germany, India, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mexico, Monaco, Nicaragua, Pakistan, the Republic of Moldova, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States of America and Zimbabwe. Therefore, those 27 States are not eligible in this election. I should now like to inform members that the following Member States have been nominated by the Economic and Social Council. The three African States, for three vacancies, are Algeria, Ghana and Kenya. The three Asian States, for three vacancies, are China, Japan and the Republic of Korea. The one Latin American and Caribbean State, for one vacancy, is Jamaica. In accordance with rule 92 of the rules of procedure, all elections should be held by secret ballot, and there shall be no nominations. However, I should like to recall paragraph 16 of General Assembly decision 34/401, whereby the practice of dispensing with the secret ballot for elections to subsidiary organs when the number of candidates corresponds to the number of seats to be filled should become standard, unless a delegation specifically requests a vote on a given election. In the absence of such a request, may I take it that the Assembly decides to proceed to the election on the basis of dispensing with the secret ballot?

Since the number of States nominated from among the three regional groups corresponds to the number of seats to be filled in each of those groups, may I therefore take it that the Assembly wishes to declare those States nominated by the Economic and Social Council from among the African States, the Asian States and the Latin American and Caribbean States — namely, Algeria, China, Ghana, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya and the Republic of Korea — elected members of the Committee for Programme and Coordination for three- year terms of office beginning on 1 January 2005.

I congratulate the seven States that have been elected members of the Committee for Programme and Coordination. We have thus concluded our consideration of agenda item 16.

As indicated in document A/59/107, and as the terms of office of Austria, Ethiopia, Jamaica, Jordan, Nepal, Tunisia and the United States of America will expire on 31 December 2004, the President of the General Assembly is required to appoint, during this session of the General Assembly, seven members to the vacant seats on the Committee on Conferences. The new members will take up their functions for a period of three years, beginning on 1 January 2005. After holding consultations with the Chairmen of the regional groups of the African, Asian, Latin American and Caribbean and Western European and other States, I have appointed Austria, China, Egypt, Jamaica, Kenya, Nepal and the United States of America as members of the Committee on Conferences for a term of office commencing on 1 January 2005. May I take it that the General Assembly takes note of those appointments?

May I take it that the General Assembly decides to conclude its consideration of sub-item (g) of agenda item 17?

As indicated in document A/59/108, the General Assembly is required, during the fifty-ninth session, to appoint four members to fill the vacancies in the Joint Inspection Unit that will arise from the expiration of the term of office on 31 December 2005 of Ms. Doris Bertrand-Muck (Austria), Mr. Ion Gorita (Romania), Mr. Wolfgang M. Münch (Germany) and Mr. Louis-Dominique Ouédraogo (Burkina Faso). As is also indicated in document A/59/108, in accordance with article 3, paragraph 1, of the Statute of the Joint Inspection Unit, the President of the General Assembly shall consult with Member States to draw up a list of four countries that would be requested to propose a candidate for appointment to the Joint Inspection Unit. After holding the necessary consultations, I should like to communicate to the Assembly that the information that I have received from the Chairmen of the respective Groups of States. For the single seat from among the Group of African States, the Group has nominated Senegal. For the single seat from among the Group of Eastern European States, the Group has nominated Hungary. For the two seats from among the Group of Western European and other States, the Group has nominated France and Turkey. In accordance with article 3, paragraph 1, of the Statute of the Joint Inspection Unit, France, Hungary, Senegal and Turkey will therefore be called upon to submit the names of candidates and their curricula vitae highlighting their relevant qualifications for the posts to be filled. After holding the necessary consultations referred to by article 3, paragraph 2, of the Statute of the Joint Inspection Unit, including consultations with the President of the Economic and Social Council and with the Secretary-General in his capacity as Chairman of the United Nations System Chief Executives Board for Coordination, I shall propose to the Assembly a list of qualified candidates for appointment to the Joint Inspection Unit. We have thus concluded the current stage of our consideration of sub-item (h) of agenda item 17.

It is my understanding that there is no request to consider this item during this session. May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to defer consideration of this item to the sixtieth session, and to include it in the provisional agenda of the sixtieth session?

Members will recall that the Assembly held the debate on this agenda item and its sub-items (a) through (t) at its 38th to 40th plenary meetings, on 21 and 22 October 2004. I give the floor to the representative of Chile to introduce draft resolution A/59/L.5/Rev.2.

I have the honour to announce to the General Assembly that, following intensive and fruitful consultations among the interested parties, we have reached a consensus on draft resolution A/59/L.5/Rev.2, on cooperation between the United Nations and the Inter- Parliamentary Union. We wish to thank the more than 100 sponsors of the draft resolution from all regions of the world. The following countries have joined the list of sponsors: Australia, Burundi, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Estonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Tunisia. We understand that the phrase “the usual courtesies” in operative paragraph 3 of the draft resolution means that there will not be any exclusion of participants in the second World Conference of Speakers of Parliaments at United Nations Headquarters in September 2005.

I give the floor to the representative of Sao Tome and Principe to introduce draft resolution A/59/L.14.

On behalf of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, Timor-Leste and Sao Tome and Principe, I have the honour to introduce draft resolution A/59/L.14 under agenda item 56 (t), entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries”. The Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP) was founded on 17 July 1996 and became a United Nations observer on 18 November 1999. The CPLP brings together 240 million people in eight countries on four continents. Its member States belong to regional organizations such as the European Union, the African Union, the Organization of American States and the Association of South-East Asian Nations. The CPLP is devoting special attention to the political situation in Guinea-Bissau. Last week, the CPLP Council of Ministers met in Lisbon and decided to establish a temporary CPLP office in Guinea-Bissau. That office will assist Guinea-Bissau in its national dialogue and reconciliation and also in determining its specific and urgent needs so that the country can return to the path of stability. In collaboration with the Economic Community of West African States and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Guinea-Bissau, we are helping to rebuild confidence at the national level. The CPLP is certain that the United Nations and the regional organizations to which Guinea-Bissau belongs will work in close cooperation to rescue the country from the cycle of violence, poverty, instability and isolation. The actions of the CPLP demonstrate that we have been implementing the rules of multilateralism and have been cooperating with the United Nations. Now we want to formalize that role and broaden that cooperation by contributing to development and international security. For example, we would like to see the establishment of fruitful cooperation with the United Nations, so that the CPLP can contribute to the implementation of the goals of the Millennium Declaration. In operative paragraph 1 of the draft resolution, the General Assembly invites the Secretary-General to undertake consultations with the Executive Secretary of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries, with a view to promoting cooperation between the two secretariats. In that regard, joint efforts aimed at political facilitation, such as in Guinea-Bissau, constitute one area that could be explored. In operative paragraph 2, the Assembly requests the specialized agencies and other bodies and programmes of the United Nations to cooperate to this end with the Secretary-General and the Executive Secretary of the CPLP. I wish to draw the attention of members to the fact that the CPLP has already signed cooperation agreements with a number of United Nations organs and agencies — namely, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the World Food Programme and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development — but that much more work remains to be done. Finally, the draft resolution asks the Secretary- General to submit a report on the implementation of the present resolution to the General Assembly at its sixty-first session. The members of the CPLP are introducing this draft resolution to the Assembly for its consideration. Our delegations thank all Member States for considering the draft resolution. We hope that it will be adopted by consensus.

I now give the floor to the representative of Lebanon to introduce draft resolution A/59/L.19.

I have the honour to take the floor on behalf of the francophone group and the sponsors to introduce draft resolution A/59/L.19, entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the International Organization of la Francophonie”. Lebanon — which had the honour to host the Ninth Summit of la Francophonie in 2002, devoted to the theme “Dialogue of cultures” — remains faithful to its francophone heritage and will continue to play its role in the International Organization of la Francophonie (IOF). I should like to thank the Secretary-General for the high quality of his report (A/59/303) submitted under agenda item 56, entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and regional and other organizations” — particularly section X of the report, on the International Organization of la Francophonie. I should also like to thank the Secretary-General of the IOF for his constant efforts to promote both the role of the IOF and the development of its relations with the United Nations. The draft resolution before us was sponsored by 77 countries. It includes a 10-paragraph preambular part and a 16-paragraph operative part. The preambular part reflects the importance of regional cooperation in multilateral relations and the establishment and development of democracy, as well as respect for the dialogue among civilizations and for cultural and linguistic diversity. It recalls the importance of the fight against poverty and the principles on which cooperation between the IOF and the United Nations is based. The operative part underscores the positive participation of the IOF in the work of the United Nations and the cooperation between the two organizations in conflict prevention and other fields of mutual interest, as well as the role of the IOF in international conferences, under the auspices of the United Nations. The operative part also welcomes the fact that the tenth summit conference of la Francophonie will be devoted to solidarity for sustainable development. It reflects the cooperation that exists between the IOF and the United Nations and between the IOF and the specialized agencies of the United Nations system to promote development and the elimination of poverty. Lastly, on behalf of the sponsors, it is my pleasure to invite the General Assembly to give its full support to draft resolution A/59/L.19.

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolutions A/59/L.5/Rev.2, A/59/L.11, A/59/L.14 and A/59/L.19. We turn first to draft resolution A/59/L.5/Rev.2, entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union”. Since the introduction of the draft resolution, Cameroon has joined the list of sponsors. May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/59/L.5/Rev.2 without a vote?

We turn now to draft resolution A/59/L.11, entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the Pacific Islands Forum”. I give the floor to the representative of the Secretariat.

I would like to inform representatives that in operative paragraph 17 of draft resolution A/59/L.11, the Assembly would call upon the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to provide technical support to Pacific Islands Forum members to contribute to the regional efforts in promoting awareness and knowledge of all international human rights treaties. It is envisaged that this activity would be financed from extrabudgetary resources. Hence, the adoption of the draft resolution would not entail any additional appropriation for the biennium 2004-2005.

Before taking action on draft resolution A/59/L.11, I would like to inform the Assembly that since its introduction, the following countries have joined the list of sponsors: Armenia, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Grenada, India, Indonesia, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lithuania, Malaysia, Nepal, the Republic of Korea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, Thailand and Ukraine. May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/59/L.11 without a vote?

Draft resolution A/59/L.14 is entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the Community of Portuguese- speaking Countries”. May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/59/L.14 without a vote?

Draft resolution A/59/L.19 is entitled “Cooperation between the United Nations and the International Organization of la Francophonie”. Before we take action on the draft resolution, I would like to inform the Assembly that, since its introduction, the following countries have joined the list of sponsors: Costa Rica, Liechtenstein and Thailand. May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/59/L.19 without a vote?

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of sub-items (i), (j), (q) and (t) of agenda item 56?