General Assembly Session 59 meeting 104

The President

I give the floor to the representative of France to introduce draft resolution A/59/L.62.

Mr. De La Sablière (France)

I welcome the fact that the General Assembly is meeting today in order to officially adopt a text that is important for our Organization -- important not only for its day-to-day work, but also in terms of the values that it represents.

As the Assembly knows, it was the intention of the founding fathers, in establishing the United Nations, to create a forum for dialogue and discussion -- a forum that, in the words of the Charter, would encourage all peoples "to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours". Languages play a crucial role in giving real meaning to this appeal for openness because they are much more than a means of communication. By bringing people together, they give expression to an intellectual and moral vision of the world.

Striving for multilingualism means, primarily, striving for respect for cultural diversity, for the promotion of universal values -- in brief, for a new humanism. Reinforcing multilingualism also means defending ourselves against the risks of uniformity, whatever they may be, and uniting in our respect for the identity of each other. Linguistic and cultural diversity can reconcile without diluting, bring together without eclipsing and unite without replacing.

Under agenda item 156, the General Assembly will today adopt a draft resolution that we believe is both ambitious and balanced. It is ambitious because, for the first time, it stresses the need to fully implement the provisions of the resolutions that set out the linguistic rules for our common home, with regard to both the working languages of the Secretariat and the official languages of the United Nations. It is ambitious because the text, although not exhaustive, covers the entire spectrum of issues relating to languages in the United Nations: the work of the Secretariat, communication among delegations, modalities for recruitment, Internet sites and so forth.

The text is ambitious also because it is not limited only to the official languages of the Organization. In a spirit of openness, and in order to increase the impact of the universal message of the United Nations, Member States would take note with appreciation of the work done by the United Nations information centres.

The text is also balanced, because it does not alter the overall philosophy of the rules governing the Organization, but reaffirms its fundamental principles and calls on the Secretary-General fully to implement them.

The draft resolution is balanced also because it reflects the two principles that guided our actions during the negotiation process, transparency and collegiality: transparency, because our meetings were open to all; and collegiality, because all were able to contribute their added value to the text.

I welcomed the fact that a large number of delegations participated on a regular basis in the informal meetings conducted by the French delegation. I believe that that attests to the interest of Member States in the issue of multilingualism. I am therefore pleased that, by combining intellectual standards with the power of consensus, we were able to reinforce those values in the draft resolution and to keep multilingualism alive, since it is the cornerstone of our Organization.

Finally, I thank the very many sponsors of the draft resolution who wished to demonstrate their full support. One hundred and two Member States, including five that came forward today, sponsored the resolution. That sends a strong message, and we appreciate it. I am convinced that it will be fully reflected and concretely manifested in the daily work of our Organization.

Mr. Siv (United States)

The United States is a country of great ethnic diversity. As such, we support and fully appreciate multilingualism. Nearly 47 million Americans speak a language other than English at home. In fact, English is just one of nearly 180 languages spoken in the United States. Residents of Queens, across the river from here, constitute the greatest level of ethnic diversity anywhere in America. There, 46 per cent were born abroad, coming from over 100 countries. Most notably, nearly 140 languages are spoken in Queens, making it one of the most diverse places in the world. In no similar area will one find represented so many different ethnicities and cultures. As former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said in this Hall on 1 October 2001: "Americans are not a single ethnic group. Americans are not one race or one religion. Americans emerge from all nations."

We fully respect the principal of multilingualism and relevant United Nations rules and regulations. However, my delegation notes that the application of multilingualism in the United Nations context does not equate with universality or cultural diversity. When considering multilingualism, we believe that the United Nations should continue to keep in mind the needs of those whose principal language of education is not one of the six official languages. We should be careful not to take decisions having the effect of diminishing the universal and multicultural character of this Organization.

Mr. Iosifov (Russia)

Multilingualism in the United Nations, manifested in particular in the use of its official and working languages, is the foundation of the Organization's universality and an important means of achieving the fundamental purposes of its Charter. The Organization's 60 years of experience have shown that, unless it pays due attention to maintaining linguistic diversity in its day-to-day work, the harmonious integration of a growing number of countries into its practical activities will hardly be possible.

Ensuring parity among the six official United Nations languages is an intrinsic element of preserving the genuine diversity of languages in the Organization, which includes also providing for unimpeded communication in the official languages among the representatives of Member States in intergovernmental and expert bodies through high-quality conference services and the attainment of linguistic parity in the design of the United Nations internet sites and other areas of its information and outreach activities. We note in that respect the disturbing trend of chronic delays in the simultaneous issuance of United Nations documents in all official languages, as well as the emerging practice of issuing advance copies of documents, including reports to the Security Council, in English alone. Specific and immediate action is called for.

The maintenance and strengthening of the principle of multilingualism in the Organization are also essential to ensuring that the peoples of the world receive full information about the Organization's work and to enhancing international support. Nor must it be forgotten that the principle of parity among the Organization's official languages requires equal treatment for the linguistic services of the Secretariat by ensuring that its resource and staffing needs are met. To a great extent, that will determine the quality of the services provided to Member States.

Of course, the item on multilingualism is by no means restricted to issues of the United Nations official languages. The draft resolution before us today rightly recalls a number of provisions of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities. Inter alia, it reaffirms the right of all persons to use their own language, in private and in public, freely and without interference or any form of discrimination, and to be genuinely able to receive education in their own language. Unfortunately, it must be noted that, more than 12 years after the adoption of the Declaration, there remain countries in the United Nations for which that reminder has lost none of its relevance.

Russia attaches great importance to genuine multilingualism in the Organization and the world community as a whole as a means of attaining mutual understanding among peoples, exchanging knowledge, values and positive experience, and achieving mutual intellectual enrichment on the basis of a dialogue among cultures on an equal footing. We believe that the draft resolution on multilingualism is a serious step forward towards achieving those important ends of our Organization, and Russia, as a co-sponsor, calls on Member States to support it unanimously.

Mr. Oubida (Burkina Faso)

It is a true honour for me to address the Assembly on the issue of multilingualism.

I should like first to welcome the spirit of cooperation, understanding and concord demonstrated by all delegations throughout the consultations on the draft resolution before the General Assembly. I should also like to congratulate the coordinator, the Permanent Representative of France, who demonstrated the essential patience and vision without which we should never have reached consensus on the draft resolution on multilingualism.

Communication, everywhere and always, has been the best way for people to exchange ideas in the ongoing quest for peace, security and understanding at the national and international levels. The importance of today's draft resolution reflects that spirit. For an Organization such as the United Nations, multilingualism is a powerful channel for the defence and preservation of linguistic diversity and a special tool for dialogue among cultures. It promotes unity in diversity and international understanding, and reinforces the implementation of such United Nations instruments as the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities.

Multilingualism is one of the foundations of the culture of Burkina Faso. Burkina Faso is proud of having some 60 languages in our country, which clearly reflects the freedom and cultural richness of its people. With regard to sustainable development policy, the Government has made multilingualism a tool to effectively address the expectations of each linguistic group, bringing together the requisite energies to build a free, prosperous and peaceful society.

My delegation is of course proud to have shared its experience with other delegations during the negotiating process on this draft resolution on multilingualism. We are prepared to take any steps, and to participate in any initiative, to strengthen the practice of multilingualism in the United Nations system, as well as within our own States. Burkina Faso would therefore like to call upon all delegations to unreservedly support draft resolution A/59/L.62, which has been submitted to the Assembly for adoption.

The President

We have heard the last speaker on this item.

The General Assembly shall now proceed to take action on draft resolution on A/59/L.62.

I would like to inform members that, since it was introduced, the following countries have become sponsors of draft resolution A/59/L.62: Brazil, Croatia, Guyana, Saint Lucia, Paraguay and Ukraine.

May I take it that the General Assembly wishes to adopt draft resolution A/59/L.62?

The President

Before calling on speakers in explanation of position on the resolution just adopted, may I remind delegations that explanations of vote or position are limited to 10 minutes and should be made by delegations from their seats.

Mr. Akira Yamamoto (Japan)

My delegation is pleased that this resolution was adopted by consensus. We wish to thank the sponsors and all parties that participated in the drafting consultations for their resolve to reach consensus on the resolution.

As mentioned in the preamble of the resolution, we the Member States recognize that the United Nations pursues multilingualism as a means of promoting, protecting and preserving diversity of languages and cultures globally. We also recognize that genuine multilingualism promotes unity in diversity and international understanding. Therefore, multilingualism is an important item on the agenda of the General Assembly that we think requires careful consideration and time.

As part of our collective efforts to streamline the agenda of the General Assembly, my delegation suggested that the agenda item on multilingualism be triennialized. That suggestion is not reflected in the resolution just adopted. However, we hope that such a suggestion will be revisited during our discussions scheduled for the sixty-first session of the General Assembly.

Mr. Yoo (Republic of Korea)

First of all, my delegation wishes to express our deep appreciation to the French delegation, the coordinator of the draft resolution submitted under agenda item 156, entitled "Multilingualism", for its far-reaching endeavour to reach consensus on the text through a number of consultations. We would also like to thank the other delegations that participated in the negotiations in a constructive and cooperative manner.

As the resolution reflects the concerns raised by like-minded countries, including mine, the Republic of Korea joined the consensus. At the same time, I wish to express my delegation's full support for the points raised by the delegations of the United States of America and Japan.

My delegation believes that, in order to achieve genuine multilingualism, the resolution must also give full consideration to languages other than official United Nations languages. Other languages are used every day by a vast number of people around the world. Along with like-minded countries, we sincerely hope that the next draft resolution on this matter will take on board these aspects and thus become more balanced.

The President

We have heard the last speaker in explanation of position.

May I take it that the General Assembly wishes to conclude its consideration of agenda item 156?