General Assembly Session 60 meeting 69

The President

Members will recall that the General Assembly held a debate on agenda item 47, jointly with agenda item 66 and its sub-items (a) and (b), at the thirty-first to thirty-third plenary meetings on 13 and 14 October.

I call on the representative of Rwanda to introduce draft resolution A/60/L.44.

Mr. Kamanzi (Rwanda)

On behalf of the African Group and all the sponsors, I have the honour to introduce, under agenda item 47, draft resolution A/60/L.44, entitled "2001-2010: Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa".

I should like to announce that, since the publication of the draft resolution, the following countries have become sponsors: Angola, Brazil, Djibouti, Egypt, Fiji, Finland, Gabon, Ghana, Lesotho, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Solomon Islands, the Syrian Arab Republic and Turkey.

Africa bears an overwhelming proportion of the malaria burden. The Secretary-General reports that "[u]p to 144 million people in Africa currently live in areas at risk of epidemic malaria" (A/60/208, para. 35). Epidemic malaria is the cause of up to 12 million malaria episodes and between 155,000 and 310,000 deaths per year among people of all ages in Africa alone. Malaria is, however, a disease that is preventable, treatable and curable. It is thus, in the effort to combat malaria as well as to implement the Millennium Development Goals, that the African Group has submitted the draft resolution entitled "2001-2010: Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries, Particularly in Africa".

The draft resolution is an update of a similar resolution adopted last year on this issue. The draft resolution has been updated to take into account the new developments and measures to combat malaria.

My delegation wishes to thank the delegation of Tanzania for facilitating the negotiation of the text, and also all Member States that participated in the discussion on the draft resolution. Their contributions have enriched the draft resolution, the implementation of which will facilitate the eradication of that deadly disease. My delegation, in introducing the draft resolution, hopes that, as in previous years, it will be adopted by consensus.

Delegations may wish to be advised that the following revisions have been made to the draft resolution.

In operative paragraph 8, the word "and" should appear in the third line between the words "Malaria" and "through country-led initiatives", and a comma should be inserted after the words "adequate international support". The revised paragraph would read as follows:

"Calls upon the international community, inter alia, through helping to meet the financial needs of the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and through country-led initiatives with adequate international support, to create conditions for insecticide-treated mosquito nets, insecticides for indoor residual spraying for malaria control and effective antimalarial combination treatments to be fully accessible, including free distribution of such nets where appropriate;".

The President

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/60/L.44, as orally revised.

May I take it that the General Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/60/L.44, as orally revised?

The President

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of agenda item 47?

The President

Members will recall that the General Assembly held a debate on agenda item 66 and its sub-items (a) and (b), jointly with agenda item 47, at the thirty-first to the thirty-third plenary meetings on 13 and 14 October.

The President

I give the floor to the representative of Jamaica to introduce draft resolutions A/60/L.16/Rev.1 and A/60/L.45.

Mrs. Mills (Jamaica)

I have the honour, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, to introduce two draft resolutions under agenda item 66, "New Partnership for Africa's Development: progress in implementation and international support".

I should like to indicate that, since the formal submission of both texts, additional sponsors have signed on to both draft resolutions.

With respect to draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1, additional sponsors to those listed in the document are Angola, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Djibouti, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Rwanda, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

With respect to draft resolution A/60/L.45 on the implementation of the recommendations contained in the report of the Secretary-General on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa, additional sponsors to those listed in the document are Angola, Canada and Rwanda.

Both draft resolutions are of particular importance to the Group of 77 and China. They both reflect the full importance that the Group attaches to extending support to the African continent. That is in keeping with the special attention that has been given to the special needs of Africa throughout the course of this year. We continue in both draft resolutions to underscore the progress made in the continent, but reiterate more importantly the need for the continued support of the United Nations system and the wider international community in general.

I should like to indicate some revisions to draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1.

In operative paragraph 15, we would delete the words "and of the assessment of the level and extent of aid delivery vis-à-vis pledges". The paragraph would thereby end with the words "on Africa".

With respect to operative paragraph 19, the word "continuing" should be substituted for the word "continuous".

With those revisions, I commit to the General Assembly both draft resolutions for adoption by all member States.

Before concluding, I should like to extend compliments on behalf of the Group of 77 and China to the facilitator, Mr. Abdellah Benmellouk of Morocco, and to all delegations that participated in the negotiations, thereby enabling the texts to be brought to the Assembly for adoption by consensus.

The President

The General Assembly will now proceed to consider draft resolutions A/60/L.16/Rev.1, as orally revised, and A/60/L.45.

In connection with draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1, as orally revised, I call on the representative of the Secretariat.

Ms. Kelley (Representative of the Secretariat)

In connection with draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1, as orally revised, I wish to inform the General Assembly that, under the terms of the third preambular paragraph of the draft resolution, as orally revised, the General Assembly would recall further "the 2005 World Summit Outcome, including the recognition of the need to meet the special needs of Africa".

In operative paragraph 33 of the draft resolution, the General Assembly would request the Secretary-General

"to continue to take measures to strengthen the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa in order to enable it to effectively fulfil its mandate, including monitoring and reporting on progress related to meeting the special needs of Africa".

Resources to strengthen the Office of the Special Adviser on Africa are included in the proposed programme budget for the biennium 2006-2007, as contained in document A/60/6 (Sect. 2) and in the revised estimates, as contained in document A/60/537, of the proposed programme budget for the biennium 2006-2007, relating to the outcome document of the High-level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly of September 2005, submitted by the President of the General Assembly.

Therefore, should the General Assembly adopt draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1, as orally revised, no additional appropriations would be required.

The President

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolutions A/60/L.16/Rev.1, as orally revised, and A/60/L.45.

The Assembly will first take a decision on draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1, entitled "New Partnership for Africa's Development: progress in implementation and international support", as orally revised.

Ukraine has become a sponsor of the draft resolution.

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/60/L.16/Rev.1, as orally revised?

The President

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/60/L.45, entitled "Implementation of the recommendations contained in the report of the Secretary-General on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa".

Ukraine has become a sponsor of the draft resolution.

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/60/L.45?

The President

Before I call on delegations wishing to speak in explanation of position on the draft resolutions just adopted, may I remind them that explanations of vote are limited to 10 minutes and should be made by delegations from their seats.

I call on the representative of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in explanation of position.

Mrs. Núñez de Odremán (Venezuela)

The delegation of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has not opposed the consensus, given our support for and solidarity with the peoples of Africa.

However, given our well-known position concerning the outcome document of the 2005 summit, we wish to express reservations concerning the third preambular paragraph of resolution 60/222 and the fifth preambular paragraph of resolution 60/223.

The President

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of sub-items (a) and (b) of agenda item 66 and of agenda item 66 as a whole?

The President

The time has come for me to make a few concluding remarks before we close this part of the work of the sixtieth session of the General Assembly. As I said, I hope that today will be the last day of our work, but since I am not certain of the time of the day when we shall be able to meet again in the plenary to decide the budget, I want to take advantage of the broad presence of representatives in this Hall this morning to say a few words. I trust that they have all received my letter of yesterday reviewing our progress to date on the 2005 world summit follow-up; I will not repeat the details of that letter. It has also been circulated in the Hall today.

As members know, the Fifth Committee has not yet finalized the work on the 2006-2007 budget. I am encouraged by the diligent and constructive efforts that are being made to find solutions, and I am hopeful that during the course of the day we can reach a conclusion on that urgent and absolutely vital issue for the United Nations. We need clearly defined financial conditions guiding our work in the next two years.

I am the first to acknowledge that this has been an unusually intense period of work for the General Assembly. Let us recall that, exactly 100 days ago, our leaders gathered here for the world summit and adopted an ambitious reform agenda for the United Nations. That set the pace and direction of much of our work over the past few months. Since the summit, we have engaged wholeheartedly in the implementation of the reforms, alongside our regular programme of work. I am deeply grateful to all representatives for the energy they have invested in our work and for their willingness seriously to work through the open, transparent and inclusive mechanisms we have put in place for our consultations and negotiations.

We have already recorded some important achievements. We have reached agreement on the Peacebuilding Commission. We have expanded and transformed the existing central humanitarian funding mechanism into the new Central Emergency Response Fund. We have adopted the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel, and later today we will, I hope, be able take action on the draft resolution on HIV/AIDS, paving the way for an important high-level meeting next year.

Those are achievements of which we should all be very proud. If they are quickly and effectively implemented -- the word "implemented" is important in our Organization -- and effectively supported, they stand to make an important, practical difference to people around the world who rely on the United Nations in their hope for a brighter future. Those achievements are also an early indication to the world that this body, the General Assembly of the United Nations, can and will take difficult but important decisions on the challenges that confront us and the world.

Our achievements so far must also give impetus to our ongoing work on other important reform issues -- the Human Rights Council, development follow-up and reform of the Economic and Social Council, Secretariat and management reform, Security Council reform and the work on counter-terrorism. They should also give us strength as we begin in January to consider further aspects of the summit follow-up, such as system-wide coherence, the environment work and General Assembly revitalization.

I believe, as I stated earlier, that the most valuable and tangible contribution that we can make to revitalizing the General Assembly will be the timely and effective implementation of the world summit outcome. After this fall's work and experiences, I am more convinced than ever about the importance of strengthening the role and relevance of the General Assembly. We represent all the nations and all the peoples of the world. Together, we must reaffirm the central position of the General Assembly as the chief deliberative, policy-making and representative organ of the United Nations.

Today, I would first like to express my thanks to all the members of the Secretariat, not least Under-Secretary-General Jian Chen and all the dedicated and hard-working staff in the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management. They have provided us with invaluable support during this first part of the sixtieth session. Nor must we forget all the people who work behind the scenes -- the interpreters, the printers and everyone who makes our work flow so well.

Secondly, I would like to thank our co-chairs, Committee chairs and all the others among us who have played leading roles in our work to date. Some have just brought their work to a conclusion, others are just beginning, but they are united by their skilled approach and strong commitment to their work and their determination to see the United Nations deliver what our leaders asked us to do.

I would also like to thank all our Permanent Representatives, representatives and staff for the noble spirit in which they have worked and for the support they have given me and my Office during these first 100 days. It is deeply appreciated. A particular thanks goes to the excellent group of vice-presidents, who have so skilfully and faithfully helped me lead the General Assembly.

When I was writing these remarks together with my colleagues, we tried to look for other things that had happened in 100 days. In fact, we found that, in the nineteenth century, there was a Chinese emperor who launched 100 days of reform, during which he initiated many bold and ambitious reform processes. The only trouble -- one which made me hesitant to bring up that example -- was that, after 100 days, his aunt, the empress dowager, decided that she had had quite enough and put him in prison for the rest of his life.

In closing, I would like to wish everyone and their families a joyful and peaceful holiday season and a prosperous new year. I trust that we will all -- including our members of the Fifth Committee -- have an opportunity to rest and recharge our batteries over the coming days. I look forward to welcoming everyone back in January to continue our work with renewed energy, determination and belief in this Organization.

The Assembly will take up the remaining items as listed in today's Journal, including the reports of the Fifth Committee, as soon as the Fifth Committee has finished its work.

The President

I welcome members back this evening; we at the United Nations have some strange ways of celebrating holidays. And to extend our pleasure, before we reach the budget issue, at the outcome of which we are rejoicing, we need to go through the other agenda items that we left unfinished this morning.

The President

The report of the Fifth Committee on the programme budget implications of draft resolution A/60/L.43 is issued as document A/60/625, and the text of the programme budget implications is contained, for the time being, in document A/C.5/60/L.22, section J.

In view of the lateness of the hour, I will not read out my prepared statement on this important draft resolution. Copies are being distributed to delegations.

Let me say only that the new year, 2006, will mark five years since the landmark Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS, adopted at the twenty-sixth special session of the General Assembly. The world has made progress on the fight against HIV/AIDS, but much remains to be done. In the next hour, more than 300 people will die as a result of AIDS. In the same span of time, more than 500 men, women and children will become newly infected, more than half of them under the age of 24.

Our initial response to HIV/AIDS was slow, but we must make 2006 the year when the international community finally steps up to the plate. We need to focus on education, gender and health. I was glad that the General Assembly's recent summit outcome document (resolution 60/1) included provisions on health systems capacity and that the Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on enhancing capacity-building in global public health (resolution 60/35).

The draft resolution I am introducing today, entitled "Preparations for and organization of the 2006 follow-up meeting on the outcome of the twenty-sixth special session: implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS", paves the way for the comprehensive review of progress in implementing the 2001 Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS and for the high-level meeting to be held in May and June 2006. Further, it responds to the commitment undertaken by our leaders at the 2005 world summit to fully implement all the commitments established by the Declaration.

Let me just extend my sincere thanks to Ambassador Christopher Hackett of Barbados and Ambassador Laxanachantorn Laohaphan of Thailand for their skilled and committed co-chairing of the informal consultations which produced this draft resolution. And, of course, I want to pay tribute to all delegates for reaching agreement in the consultations. We all know that there was difficulty finding common ground on some sensitive issues. That spirit of compromise is much appreciated.

In closing, I should note that high-level attendance will be critical to the success of the proposed meeting next year. If draft resolution A/60/L.43 is adopted today, I would strongly encourage high-level representation at the meeting from as many Member States as possible.

Before giving the floor to the representative of Cuba, who wishes to speak in explanation of position on draft resolution A/60/L.43, I remind delegations that explanations of vote or position are limited to 10 minutes and should be made by delegations from their seats.

Mr. Cumberbach Miguén (Cuba)

When the 2005 World Summit Outcome (resolution 60/1) was adopted, our delegation clearly indicated its dissatisfaction with the section on various questions related to the international development agenda. We made clear our reservations with respect to the text of the outcome document, whose adoption was marred by a lack of transparency and by manipulation on the part of certain very powerful delegations. No substantive progress was made in terms of the commitments undertaken in United Nations summits and conferences. Nor were we able to reaffirm the outcomes of those summits and conferences.

While the outcome document affirms that the agreed commitments of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS of the twenty-sixth special session, held in 2001, will be fully implemented, it then immediately undermines those agreed commitments: the goal of universal access to treatment for all those who need it is reduced to the mere aim of coming as close as possible to that goal by 2010. But we all know that to halt the pandemic, urgent and effective action must be taken now.

It is clear that the guardians of the neo-liberal marketplace are more concerned about the profits of the major pharmaceutical corporations than about the lives of millions of human beings who suffer the consequences of HIV/AIDS. The families of the some 300 people who will die -- as you, Sir, said -- in the next hour should be aware of that.

With the adoption of draft resolution A/60/L.43, on preparations for the meeting to be held next year, the General Assembly is about to repeat the error it made in September 2005. Our delegation will therefore not join the consensus on the draft resolution, and it disassociates itself from the draft resolution's language on universal access to treatment for all those that need it, contained in paragraph 12, which repeats the step backwards taken by paragraph 57 (d) of the September 2005 summit outcome document. Furthermore, that language prepares the way for diluting other development goals in public health and other areas that are not of interest to big business.

Our country will continue to oppose the obstacles put in the path of the sustainable development of developing countries.

The President

In view of the lateness of the hour, may I ask delegates to make their explanations of vote or position as brief as possible.

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/60/L.43, entitled "Preparations for and organization of the 2006 follow-up meeting on the outcome of the twenty-sixth special session: implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS".

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/60/L.43?

The President

I call now on delegations wishing to speak in explanation of position on the draft resolution just adopted.

Mr. Yáñez Pilgrim (Venezuela)

Our delegation did not oppose the consensus on A/60/L.43, but it believes it necessary to make the following statement.

One of the many reasons for which the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela did not accept the 2005 World Summit Outcome (resolution 60/1) was because of the considerable step backwards in the area of the fight against HIV/AIDS that it would legitimize. The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela sees the new language accepted by some heads of State or Government -- by which the commitment is solely to come as close as possible to the goal of universal access to treatment by 2010 for all those who need it rather than a firm commitment to ensure access for all to antiretroviral treatment -- as a step backward and a failure to implement the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals.

We urge the entire international community to keep the Millennium Declaration commitments alive and not limit the goals set in 2000 by means of this new, not very encouraging language. We also hope that this step backwards in the fight against the scourge of HIV/AIDS does not set a precedent that allows the most powerful countries of the international system to reduce the other Millennium Development Goals to their bare minimum.

For those reasons, we express our reservations with respect to the third preambular paragraph and operative paragraph 12 of the draft resolution.

Mr. Wolff (United States)

The United States joined consensus on the resolution just adopted on preparations for and organization of the 2006 follow-up meeting on the outcome of the twenty-sixth special session: implementation of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS. While we regret the appearance of an unexpected, last-minute report on programme budget implications, it is our expectation that all costs for the comprehensive review not already covered by the biennium budget will be absorbed.

The President

The General Assembly has thus concluded this stage of its consideration of agenda item 45.

The President

Members will recall that the Assembly held the debate on agenda item 73 and its sub-items (a), (c) and (d) at its 51st and 52nd plenary meetings, on 14 November 2005, and adopted seven resolutions under this item at its 52nd and 63rd plenary meetings.

In connection with this sub-item, the General Assembly now has before it a draft resolution issued as document A/60/L.34 and an amendment thereto contained in document A/60/L.35. The report of the Fifth Committee on the programme budget implications of draft resolution A/60/L.34 and its amendment is issued as document A/60/621, and the text of the programme budget implications is contained, for the time being, in document A/C.5/60/L.22, section F.

Before proceeding further, I would like to inform members that the sponsor of the amendment contained in document A/60/L.35 has withdrawn the amendment.

I give the floor to the representative of the United States, who wishes to speak in explanation of position.

Mr. Wolff (United States)

The United States is pleased to join the consensus on the draft resolution on assistance to survivors of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, particularly orphans, widows and victims of sexual violence, with the following explanation.

With respect to operative paragraph 5, to which we had proposed an amendment, issued as document A/60/L.35, we wish to emphasize our commitment to carrying out the mandate of the draft resolution. We also wish to reaffirm our commitment to stopping genocide wherever it may occur and to supporting outreach programmes for all citizens and countries that have suffered that monstrous crime. That is why we are joining the consensus on this draft resolution.

We have devoted substantial monetary and human resources to a wide range of programmes in Rwanda, in areas ranging from democracy and governance to health, HIV/AIDS, rural economic growth and food security. Some of those programmes are dedicated to advancing justice and reconciliation at the local and national levels. Of particular relevance to the draft resolution is the fact that we provide funding for the Genocide Survivors Fund, which awards scholarships to survivors. In addition, we provide 25 per cent of the funding for the Criminal Tribunal to try and sentence the perpetrators of the 1994 genocide. These are significant contributions that testify to the strength of our commitment to fighting genocide and to bringing the perpetrators to justice.

Our position on operative paragraph 5 reflects our conviction that the enhanced authority, efficiency and effectiveness of the United Nations depends in part on budget reform.

The President

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/60/L.34, entitled "Assistance to survivors of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, particularly orphans, widows and victims of sexual violence".

We have a number of additional sponsors: Burundi, Croatia, Italy, Monaco, Norway, Slovenia, South Africa, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Tunisia.

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/60/L.34?

The President

I now give the floor to the representative of Nigeria in explanation of vote after the vote.

Mr. Idoko (Nigeria)

I will not take much time, given that we are already late into the night -- and into our holidays.

I am grateful to members for the adoption of this resolution without a vote. We also wish to recall that a similar resolution was adopted without a vote last year. Tonight's adoption once more demonstrates the understanding and the support that members have shown not only for the resolution but for the situation of the survivors of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

I also wish to thank those delegations which participated in the negotiations on the draft resolution for the level of understanding and flexibility that they demonstrated in the course of the consultations. Our appreciation also goes to the countries that sponsored the draft resolution.

I wish members a wonderful holiday break.

The President

The General Assembly has thus concluded this stage of its consideration of sub-item (a) of agenda item 73.

The President

The General Assembly will now take up the remaining reports of the three Committees as follows: the report of the First Committee on agenda item 97; the reports of the Second Committee on sub-item (c) of agenda item 54 and sub-item (a) of agenda item 55; and the reports of the Third Committee on agenda items 64, 67 and sub-items (b) and (c) of agenda item 71. Thereafter, the General Assembly will also take up the reports of the Fifth Committee on agenda items 121, 122, 127 to 129, 132, 134, 135, 123, 124 and 122.

If there is no proposal under rule 66 of the rules of procedure, I shall take it that the General Assembly decides not to discuss the reports of the four Committees before the Assembly today.

The President

Statements will therefore be limited to explanations of vote.

The positions of delegations regarding the recommendations of these four Committees have been made clear in the Committees 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 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 recommendations contained in the reports of the First, Second, Third and Fifth Committees, I should like to advise representatives that we are going to proceed to take decisions in the same manner as was done in the Committees, unless notified otherwise in advance. That means that, where separate or recorded votes were taken, we will do the same. I should also hope that we may proceed to adopt without a vote those recommendations that were adopted without a vote in the respective Committee.

The President

The Assembly will now take action on draft resolution XXIV, recommended by the First Committee in paragraph 94 of its report.

The report of the Fifth Committee on the programme budget implications of draft resolution XXIV is issued as document A/60/617, and the text of the programme budget implications is contained, for the time being, in document A/C.5/60/L.22, section B.

Draft resolution XXIV is entitled "Transparency in armaments".

Separate votes have been requested on the words "and the recommendations contained in paragraphs 112 to 114 of the 2003 report of the Secretary-General" in operative paragraph 2, on operative paragraph 3, on operative paragraph 4 (b) and on operative paragraph 6 of draft resolution XXIV. Are there any objections to those requests?

As there are no objections, I shall first put to the vote the words "and the recommendations contained in paragraph 112 to 114 of the 2003 report of the Secretary-General" in operative paragraph 2 of draft resolution XXIV, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

I shall next put to the vote operative paragraph 3 of draft resolution XXIV, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

I shall now put to the vote operative paragraph 4 (b) of draft resolution XXIV, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

I shall now put to the vote operative paragraph 6 of draft resolution XXIV, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

I now put to the vote draft resolution as a whole. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of agenda item 97?

The President

The General Assembly has thus concluded its consideration of all the reports of the First Committee.

The President

The Assembly will now take action on draft resolution II recommended by the Second Committee in paragraph 15 of its report.

The report of the Fifth Committee on the programme budget implications of draft resolution II is issued as document A/60/623, and the text of the programme budget implications is contained, for the time being, in document A/C.5/60/L.22, section H.

We shall now take a decision on draft resolution II. The Second Committee adopted draft resolution II. May I take it that the Assembly wishes to do the same?

Draft resolution II was adopted (resolution 60/227).

The President

May I take it that it is the wish of the General Assembly to conclude its consideration of sub-item (c) of agenda item 54?

The President

The Assembly has before it a draft resolution recommended by the Second Committee in paragraph 13 of its report.

The report of the Fifth Committee on the programme budget implications of the draft resolution is issued as document A/60/624, and the text of the programme budget implications is contained, for the time being, in document A/C.5/60/L.22, section I.

A separate vote has been requested on operative 6 of the draft resolution. Is there any objection to that request?

As there is no objection, I shall now put to the vote operative paragraph 6 of the draft resolution, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

The Assembly will now take a decision on the draft resolution as a whole. The Second Committee adopted the draft resolution. May I take it that the Assembly wishes to do likewise?

The President

The General Assembly has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of sub-item (a) of agenda item 55.

The General Assembly has thus concluded its consideration of all the reports of the Second Committee.

The President

The Assembly will take action on draft resolutions IV and VI recommended by the Third Committee in paragraph 48 of its report.

The reports of the Fifth Committee on the programme budget implications of draft resolutions IV and VI are issued as documents A/60/619 and A/60/616 respectively. The text of the programme budget implications for the two draft resolutions is contained, for the time being, in document A/C.5/60/L.22, section A and section D, respectively.

I wish to inform members that, as was agreed in the Fifth Committee, the words "should there be a shortage of voluntary contributions" in section D of document A/C.5/60/L.22 have been deleted, and the sentence ends with the word "2006".

Draft resolution IV is entitled "Future operation of the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women". A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

Draft resolution VI is entitled "Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women".

Separate votes have been requested on operative paragraph 14 and on operative paragraph 15 of draft resolution VI. Is there any objection to those requests?

As there are no objections to those requests, I shall first put to the vote operative paragraph 14 of draft resolution VI, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.

The President

I shall next put to the vote operative paragraph 15 of draft resolution VI, on which a separate vote has been requested. A recorded vote has been requested.