A/RES/42/100 GA

200 General Assembly-Forty-second Session Peace and for the Benefit of Mankind84 and the Declara- tion on the Right of Peoples to Peace, 85 as well as other relevant resolutions and decisions of the United Nations, Bearing in mind that, in its resolution 38/75 of 15 December 1983, the General Assembly resolutely, un- conditionally and for all time condemned nuclear war as being contrary to human conscience and reason, as the most monstrous crime against peoples and as a violation of the foremost human right -the right to life, Recalling its resolutions 37/189 A of 18 December 1982, 38/113 of 16 December 1983, 39/134 of 14 Decem- ber 1984, 40/111 of 13 December 1985 and 41/113 of 4 December 1986, Taking note with appreciation of Commission on Human Rights resolutions 1982/7 of 19 February 1982,57 1983/43 of9 March 1983,58 1984/28 of 12 March 1984,59 1986/10 of 10 March 198661 and 1986/29 of 11 March 1986,61 Conscious that the widening availability of technology and the achievement of scientific and technical advances bring new possibilities for peaceful and productive enter- prise, open new perspectives for the progress of civiliza- tion and provide increasing opportunities to better the conditions of life of peoples and nations, but, at the same time, present new dangers, if used for the creation of new types of weapons deadlier than those which already are ca- pable of transforming an armed confict from human tragedy to human annihilation, Conscious that, while it is only the creative genius of man that makes progress and the development of civiliza- tion possible in a peaceful environment, human life must be recognized as supreme, Convinced that all rights and freedoms, as well as all material goods and spiritual wealth that both man and na- tions possess, have a common foundation - the right to life, freedom, peace and aspiration for happiness, I. Reaffirms that all peoples and all individuals have an inherent right to life and that the safeguarding of this cardinal right is an essential condition for the enjoyment of the entire range of economic, social and cultural, as well as civil and political, rights; 2. Stresses once again the urgent need for the interna- tional community to make every effort to strengthen peace, remove the growing threat of war, particularly nu- clear war, halt the arms race and achieve general and com- plete disarmamant under effective international control and prevent violations of the principles of the Charter of the United Nations regarding the sovereignty and ter- ritorial integrity of States and the self-determination of peoples, thus contributing to ensuring the right to life; 3. Stresses further the foremost importance of the im- plementation of practical measures of disarmament to bring an end to the waste of valuable resources and to streamline them to fight economic backwardness and pov- erty and to accelerate social and economic progress, par- ticularly for the benefit of developing countries; 4. Calls upon all States, appropriate United Nations bodies, the specialized agencies and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations concerned to take the necessary measures to ensure that the results of scien- tific and technological progress, the material and intellec- tual potential of mankind, are used to solve global prob- lems exclusively in the interests of international peace, for the benefit of mankind and for promoting and encourag- 84 Resolution 3384 (XXX). 85 Resolution 39/11, annex. ing universal respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms; 5. Stresses that a world without nuclear weapons and violence would open vast opportunities for the joint efforts of all nations aimed at solving urgent humanitarian prob- lems and at co-operating in the areas of science, education, medicine, arts and others, thus guaranteeing the necessary conditions for the harmonious development of the in- dividual; 6. Again calls upon all States that have not yet done so to take effective measures with a view to prohibiting, in ac- cordance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, any propaganda for war, in particular the formulation, propounding and dissemination of and propaganda for doctrines and concepts aimed at unleash- ing nuclear war; 7. Looks forward to further efforts by the Commission on Human Rights to ensure the inherent right of all peo- ples and all individuals to life; 8. Decides to consider this question at its forty-third session under the item entitled "Human rights and scien- tific and technological developments". 93rd plenary meeting 7 December 1987 42/100. Human rights and scientific and technological developments The General Assembly, Noting that scientific and technological progress is one of the decisive factors in the development of human so- ciety, Recalling once again the great importance of the Decla- ration on the Use of Scientific and Technological Progress in the Interests of Peace and for the Benefit of Mankind, adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 3384 (XXX) of 10 November 1975, Considering that implementation of the Declaration will contribute to the strengthening of international peace and the security of peoples and to their economic and social development, as well as to international co-operation in the field of human rights, Bearing in mind the relevant provisions of the Declara- tion on Social Progress and Development, 14 Realizing that the science and technology of our times create possibilities for providing an abundance of wealth on Earth and establishing material conditions for the pros- perity of society as well as the all-round development of every person, Seriously concerned that the results of scientific and technological progress could be used for the arms race and development of new types of weapons to the detriment of international peace and security and social progress, hu- man rights and fundamental freedoms and the dignity of the human person, Emphasizing the growing importance of intellectual work, of interaction between science, technology and so- ciety and the humanistic, moral and ethical orientation of science and of scientific and technological progress, Convinced that in the era of modern scientific and tech- nological progress the resources of mankind and the ac- tivities of scientists should be used for the peaceful eco- nomic, social and cultural development of countries and for the improvement of the living standards of all people, VI. Resolutions adopted on the reports of the Third Committee 201 Recognizing that the establishment of the new interna- tional economic order calls in particular for an important contribution to be made by science and technology to eco- nomic and social progress, Bearing in mind that the exchange and transfer of scien- tific and technological knowledge is one of the important ways to accelerate the social and economic development of the developing countries, Taking note with satisfaction of the report of the Secre- tary-General on human rights and scientific and techno- logical developments,86 1. Stresses the importance of the implementation by all States of the provisions and principles contained in the Declaration on the Use of Scientific and Technological Progress in the Interests of Peace and for the Benefit of Mankind in order to promote human rights and funda- mental freedoms; 2. Calls upon all States to make every effort to use the achievements of science and technology in order to pro- mote peaceful social, economic and cultural development and progress and to put an end to the use of these achieve- ments for military purposes; 3. Also calls upon States to take all necessary measures to place all the achievements of science and technology at the service of mankind and to ensure that they do not lead to the degradation of the natural environment; 4: Requests th_e specia)ized agencies and other organi- zations of the Umted Nations system to take into account in their programmes and activities the provisions of the Declaration; . 5. Req_uests the Commission on Human Rights to con- tmue to give special attention, in its consideration of the item entitled "Human rights and scientific and technologi- cal developments", to the question of the implementation of the provisions of the Declaration; 6. Invites the Commission on Human Rights to take appropriate measures and to assist the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities in preparing the study requested by the Com- mission in its resolutions 1982/ 4 of 19 February 1982, 57 1984/29 of 12 March 198459 and 1986/11 of 10 March 1986;61 7. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its forty-third session the item entitled "Human rights and scientific and technological developments". 93rd plenary meeting 7 December 1987 42/101. Question of a convention on the rights of the child The General Assembly, Recalling its resolutions 33/166 of 20 December 1978 34/4 of 18 October 1979, 35/131 of 11 December 1980: 36/57 of 25 November 1981, 37/190 of 18 December 1982, 38/114 of 16 December 1983, 39/135 of 14 Decem- ber 1984, 40/113 of 13 December 1985 and 41/116 of4 December 1986, Recalling also Commission on Human Rights resolu- tions 20 (XXXIV) of 8 March I 978, 87 19 (XXXV) of 14 March 1979,88 36 (XXXVI) of 12 March 1980,55 26 86 A/42/392 and Add. I and 2. 87 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 1978, Suf{1emenz No. 4 (E/1978/34), chap. XXVI, sect. A. Ibid., 1979, Supplement No. 6 (E/1979/36), chap. XXIV, sect. A. (XXXVII) of 10 March 1981, 56 1982/39 of 11 March 1982, 57 1983/52 of 10 March 1983, 58 1984/24 of 8 March 1984,59 1985/50 of 14 March 1985,60 1986/59 of 13 March 198661 and 1987/48 of 11 March 1987,26 as well as Economic and Social Council resolutions 1978/18 of 5 May 1978, 1978/40 of l August 1978, 1982/37 of7 May 1982, 1983/39 of 27 May 1983, 1984/25 of 24 May 1984, 1985/42 ;;f 30 May 1985, 1986/40 of 23 May 1986 and 1987/58 of29 May 1987 and Council decisions 1980/138 of 2 May 1980 and 1981/144 of 8 May 1981, Reaffirming that children's rights require special protec- tion and call for continuous improvement of the situation of children all over the world, as well as their development and education in conditions of peace and security, Profoundly concerned that the situation of children in many parts of the world remains critical as a result of un- satisfactory social conditions, natural disasters, armed conflicts, exploitation, hunger and disability and con- vinced that urgent and effective national and international action is called for, Mindful of the important role of the United Nations Children's Fund and the United Nations in promoting the well-being of children and their development, Convinced of the positive contribution which an interna- tional convention on the rights of the child, as a standard- setting accomplishment of the United Nations in the field of human rights, would make to protecting children's rights and ensuring their well-being, Noting with appreciation that further progress was made during the forty-third session of the Commission on Hu- man Rights in the elaboration of a draft convention on the rights of the child, 89 Bearing in mind that 1989 marks the thirtieth anniver- sary of the Declaration on the Rights of the Child90 and of the tenth anniversary of the International Year of the Child, Considering that these anniversaries could constitute an appropriate target date for completion of the work on a draft convention on the rights of the child and for its adop- tion by the General Assembly at its forty-fourth session in 1989, l. Welcomes Economic and Social Council resolution 1987/58, in which the Council authorized a meeting ofan open-ended working group of the Commission on Human Rights for a period of one week prior to the forty-fourth session of the Commission in order to facilitate comple- tion of the work on a draft convention on the rights of the child; 2. Requests the Secretary-General to authorize con- vening, if necessary and within existing resources, the open-ended working group of the Commission on Human Rights for an additional week at its January 1988 session in order to complete a draft convention so as to facilitate its conclusion in I 989, the year of the thirtieth anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of the Child and of the tenth anniversary of the International Year of the Child; 3. Requests the Commission on Human Rights to give the highest priority to, and to make every effort at its ses- sions in 1988 and in 1989 to complete, a draft convention on the rights of the child and to submit it, through the Economic and Social Council, to the General Assembly at its forty-fourth session; 89 Ibid., 1987, Supplement No. 5 (E/1987/18 and Corr.I and 2), chap. XIII. 90 Resolution 13X6 (XIV).

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