A/62/PV.101 General Assembly

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The world today is marked by globalization and significant demographic change, resulting in unprecedented international mobility. Consequently, the need for dialogue on migration and development has become very important. The need for discourse is even greater in view of the fact that the issue of migration and development is a delicate one. In the past, all Member States worked hard to find a subtle balance enabling steps forward. Draft resolution A/62/L.25/Rev.l, which is being considered at today’s plenary meeting, addresses an important development in that field, namely, the Global Forum on Migration and Development, which is a State-led initiative designed with the purpose of enhancing dialogue, cooperation and partnership in the area of migration and development. With that in mind, the European Union believes that the current version of the draft resolution fails to represent the view of the wider membership of the United Nations on the Global Forum. Not only because of that fact, but also due to the firm conviction of the European Union that decisions in the General Assembly ought to be taken with the consensus of all Member States, we would like to ask for postponement of the consideration of this item for one week. The European Union regrets that the sponsors did not take the opportunity to engage with the troika of the conveners of the Global Forum on Migration and Development to find a constructive solution. However, the European Union would like to express its willingness to engage constructively in further open and transparent consultations on the basis of the text we have in front of us today.

I now give the floor to the representative of Mexico.

We have listened attentively to the request just made by the representative of Slovenia on behalf of the European Union to postpone action on the draft resolution entitled “Global Forum on Migration and Development” (A/62/L.25/Rev.1). I should like to point out that the draft resolution on which action is scheduled for today has been the subject of considerable consultation in various forums, including several open consultations, since December 2007. The draft resolution is the outcome of a lengthy process. We are grateful to the sponsors of the draft resolution, including those that have just joined, namely, Colombia, Chile and the Dominican Republic. However, having heard the request just made by the representative of Slovenia, the sponsors of the draft resolution are prepared, in a constructive spirit, to demonstrate additional flexibility by agreeing that consideration of the draft resolution be postponed to next week, with a view to achieving broader support for it. Given the far-reaching importance of migration in the context of globalization, which the Organization cannot ignore, the sponsors of the draft resolution believe firmly in the need to promote a comprehensive discussion of the phenomenon of migration as part of the international agenda. In that regard, we are also convinced of the potential positive impact of an exchange of experiences, consultations and closer cooperation between the Global Forum on Migration and Development and the United Nations. Moreover, it seems essential to us to welcome the fact that the issue of the human rights of migrants has been included on the agenda of the Forum’s second meeting, which will take place at Manila in October. Just a few months prior to the commemoration of the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we believe that it is crucial to emphasize the fact that full respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of migrants is a sine qua non to benefiting from the positive aspects of international migration. We are certain that, in addressing the issue of migration, the human person must be at the centre of our concerns. In conclusion, we trust in the commitment of all delegations to ensure that this additional time will be utilized to strengthen the draft resolution and to garner the widest possible support for it.

Members have heard the proposal made by the representative of Slovenia on behalf of the European Union. With the concurrence of Mexico and other sponsors of draft resolution A/62/L.25/Rev.1, action on the draft resolution will be postponed to a later date to be announced. The General Assembly has thus concluded this stage of its consideration of agenda item 116.