A/65/PV.109 General Assembly

I have the distinct honour and privilege to introduce, on behalf of the sponsors, the draft resolution contained in document A/65/L.86, entitled “Happiness: towards a holistic approach to development”. The draft resolution is the result of two open- ended consultations and several rounds of bilateral negotiations. I wish to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to all delegations for their active participation, constructive contributions and remarkable spirit of cooperation throughout the process. The draft resolution was inspired by the belief that we need to begin discussing a topic whose moment has come at the United Nations. In recent times, our world has been confronted by a series of crises. These are becoming more pronounced and perennial despite our best efforts to tackle them. The solutions may at best be temporary and symbolic unless we address the very fundamentals of conventional economic and development structures and models. We are deeply encouraged that an increasing number of thinkers, economists and political leaders are moving in this direction. They are searching for ways to make development more sustainable, humane and holistic. In this endeavour, several Member States have taken initiatives to develop indicators for happiness and well-being. The draft resolution reflects this important spirit and invites them to elaborate additional measures that better capture happiness and well-being, with a view to guiding their public policies. It also invites those Member States that have taken such initiatives to develop new indicators to share such information with the Secretary-General. This, we feel, would be a timely and important contribution to the United Nations development agenda, including the Millennium Development Goals. Encouraged by this interest and in order to jumpstart the process of discussion on happiness at the United Nations, my Government has offered to convene a panel discussion on the theme of happiness and well- being at the next session of the General Assembly. The yearning for a fulfilling, meaningful and happy life is a fundamental goal of every person. In fact, that is what makes us human. The search for happiness is a serious matter, and we feel that the time for its discussion at the United Nations should not be delayed. The number of sponsors of the draft resolution only confirms that. We are confident that the draft resolution will be the start of an enriching and rewarding discussion on happiness and well-being at the United Nations. In conclusion, my delegation requests the adoption of the draft resolution by consensus. Let me conclude by wishing all members very happy lives.

We shall now proceed to consider draft resolution A/65/L.86, entitled “Happiness: towards a holistic approach to development”. I give the floor to the representative of the Secretariat.

In connection with draft resolution A/65/L.86, entitled “Happiness: towards a holistic approach to development”, I wish to put on record the following statement of financial implications on behalf of the Secretary-General, in accordance with rule 153 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly. Under the terms of paragraph 4 of the draft resolution, the General Assembly would invite the Secretary-General to seek the views of Member States and relevant regional and international organizations on the pursuit of happiness and well-being, and to communicate such views to the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session for further consideration. The report to be communicated by the Secretary-General to the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session constitutes an addition to the documentation workload of the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management. Consequently, additional requirements of $52,300 would arise under section 2 (General Assembly and Economic and Social Council affairs and conference management), in 2012 to translate and issue that report, with an estimated 8,500 words, into all six official languages. Should the General Assembly adopt the draft resolution, the Secretary-General will make every effort to provide those documentation services to the extent possible, subject to the level of resources to be authorized by the General Assembly for the biennium 2012-2013.

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/65/L.86. I again give the floor to the representative of the Secretariat.

I should like to announce that, since the submission of the draft resolution and in addition to the countries listed therein, the following countries have become sponsors of draft resolution A/65/L.86: Andorra, Croatia, Cuba, Iceland, Monaco, Montenegro, New Zealand, Panama, Peru, San Marino, Serbia, Solomon Islands and Viet Nam.

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/65/L.86?

The General Assembly has thus concluded this stage of its consideration of agenda item 13.

Statements will therefore be limited to explanations of vote. The positions of delegations regarding the recommendation of the Special Political and Decolonization Committee have been made clear in the Committee and are reflected in the relevant official records. May I remind members that, under paragraph 7 of decision 34/401, the General Assembly agreed that “When the same draft resolution is considered in a Main Committee and in plenary meeting, a delegation should, as far as possible, explain its vote only once, i.e., either in the Committee or in plenary meeting, unless that delegation’s vote in plenary meeting is different from its vote in the Committee”. May I also remind delegations that, also in accordance with General Assembly decision 34/401, explanations of vote are limited to 10 minutes and should be made by delegations from their seats. Before we begin to take action on the recommendation contained in the report of the Special Political and Decolonization Committee, I should like to advise representatives that we are going to proceed to take a decision in the same manner as was done in the Special Political and Decolonization Committee, unless notified otherwise in advance. The General Assembly has before it a draft resolution recommended by the Special Political and Decolonization Committee in paragraph 6 of its report. The Assembly will now take a decision on the draft resolution entitled “Comprehensive review of the whole question of peacekeeping operations in all their aspects”. The Special Political and Decolonization Committee adopted it without a vote. May I take it that the Assembly wishes to do the same?

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of agenda item 53?

It is an honour for me to introduce draft resolution A/65/L.85, entitled “Multilingualism”, which is the result of intense meetings of negotiations, throughout which a constructive spirit truly prevailed. Allow me to express my great appreciation to all delegations for the interest that they took, in particular all the many that actively participated in the relevant consultations. I would also like to make special mention of all of the Member States that agreed without hesitation to sponsor the draft resolution based on the shared desire to strengthen multilingualism, which is the strength of the United Nations. This is also an opportunity for me to commend the outstanding work done by the Under-Secretary- General for Communication and Public Information and Coordinator for Multilingualism, Mr. Kiyotaka Akasaka. His commitment and readiness to promote this matter that is so dear to Member States has enabled us to make notable progress since his appointment. I would also like to highlight the invaluable availability and sound service of the Secretariat, which throughout the process clarified and provided information on various items in response to our questions. The equitable treatment of the six official languages of the United Nations remains a central element of our desire to establish exemplary cooperation and effective partnership, as described in the Charter of the United Nations. That is all the more necessary given that it guarantees the possibility for each Member State to explain, promote and defend its position in its language of choice, thus forming the very bedrock of effective and efficient multilingualism. That fundamental necessity was underscored by the Secretary-General in his report on multilingualism (A/65/488). The report served as a broad basis for draft resolution A/65/L.85. By recalling the principle of strict compliance with the United Nations rules on multilingualism, the draft resolution reiterates the need to improve the availability of official documents of the United Nations in all six official languages. Likewise, the text highlights the need to take on board the multilingual diversity of Member States in terms of managing the Organization’s human resources, through guidelines on promoting cooperation between the United Nations and the institutions that train language specialists. Living multilingualism clearly contributes to more effective communication among the various departments and services of the Secretariat. It is important to urge the United Nations to devote particular attention to external communications. With that in mind, the draft resolution highlights the critical role of multilingualism in peacekeeping operations in ensuring understanding of local populations and also among personnel involved in peacekeeping operations. In order to carry out its role successfully, the United Nations must convey its message to the peoples of the world in their own languages. In order to do that, the United Nations must continue to modernize its communication tools based on the diversity of languages in order to ensure fair and equitable access for all to information. In conclusion, I also wish to reiterate our desire to see the draft resolution contained in document A/65/L.85, entitled “Multilingualism”, adopted by the customary consensus.

The Assembly will now consider draft resolution A/65/L.85, entitled “Multilingualism”. I give the floor to the representative of the Secretariat.

In connection with draft resolution A/65/L.85, entitled “Multilingualism”, I wish to put on record the following statement of financial implications on behalf of the Secretary-General, in accordance with rule 153 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly. Under the terms of paragraph 28 of the draft resolution, the General Assembly would urge the Secretariat to translate all peacekeeping training documents into the six official languages of the United Nations, within existing resources, to ensure that all Member States can use them. Paragraph 28 refers to translation into the six official languages. It is noted that the working languages of the Secretariat are English and French, and currently, peacekeeping training documents are translated from English into French where funding is available from voluntary contributions. Furthermore, paragraph 28 refers to translation to be undertaken within existing resources. In that regard, the translation of peacekeeping training documents into the six official languages will be met, to the extent possible, from voluntary contributions available to the Secretariat for that purpose. Thereafter, the Secretary- General will make every effort to provide translation services to the extent possible within existing resources for the biennium 2010-2011 and subsequently, subject to the level of resources to be authorized by the General Assembly, for future bienniums. Accordingly, should the General Assembly adopt draft resolution A/65/L.85, no programme budget implications would arise.

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/65/L.85. I again give the floor to the representative of the Secretariat.

I should like to announce that, since the submission of the draft resolution, in addition to the countries listed in document A/65/L.85, the following countries have become sponsors of the draft resolution: Armenia, Australia, Chile, Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Ecuador, Egypt, Finland, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Ireland, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Lithuania, Malta, Panama, Portugal, Saint Lucia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/65/L.85?

May I take it that it is the wish of the Assembly to conclude its consideration of agenda item 121?

The General Assembly has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of agenda item 126.