Science Blog -- STATEMENTS TO GENERAL ASSEMBLY PLENARY

Background

The General Assembly met today to continue its consideration of reform of the work of the United Nations, focusing on the Assembly’s revitalization and the restructuring of the Organization’s work in the economic, social and related fields. For background, see Press Release GA/10182 issued on 27 October.

Statements

NGO DUC THANG (Viet Nam) said the Organization should do more to meet the confidence and expectations of nations. That required a stronger and more democratized United Nations and Security Council, with better representation by developing countries and those having made positive contributions to common objectives. The current reform within the Organization should also focus on enhancing the Assembly’s authority and role as the chief deliberative, policy-making body of the United Nations. The central role of the Assembly had been gradually eroding, and its legitimacy questioned, due to the preference of some to work through the Council. In addition, the enhancement of the Assembly could not be complete without rationalizing its agenda and improving its working methods. The Assembly President was encouraged to work with the Chairmen of the Main Committees to consider the assignment of more items to the Committees to preserve the plenary as a forum for high-level policy statements and agenda items of political importance or urgency.

He supported the practice of reserving two weeks for the general debate, and the combination of items that concerned more than one committee in a joint debate. The Assembly’s agenda should be periodically reviewed to consider deleting any item where no resolution or decision had been adopted for a certain period of time. Moreover, a strategic framework should be developed to set direction for the Organization’s programmes and budgetary planning to ensure a connection between programmes and resource allocation. Lastly, the biennial programme plan should be a policy instrument to translate the Organization’s legislative mandates into programmes, and the budget outline should be more detailed with information on resource changes.

JEAN-MARC DE LA SABLIÈRE (France) associated his delegation with the statement made by Italy, on behalf of the European Union, and said that, in the interest of avoiding repetitive discussion, he would not reiterate the arguments therein. He would simply add emphasis to a few points, including that there must be better balance between the Organization’s different bodies. The Assembly must regain its position as the central pillar of the United Nations system.

He also expressed appreciation for the resolute and encouraging efforts of the Assembly President for the revitalization of the world body, and underscored that the need for change had been sensed by all this year. Reform and revitalization would be vital, especially as world attention had been refocused on the Assembly.

VIJAY K. NAMBIAR (India) maintained that in reform and revitalization, remarkable results were not achieved overnight. Where Member States were called on to deal with sensitive political questions and issues, they needed to build on areas of agreement step by step, block by block. A useful beginning, therefore, could be made by a quick review of the revitalization exercise undertaken so far and the state of implementation or non-implementation of the resolutions already adopted. He supported the reform process because he believed that it enhanced the Organization’s effectiveness, to make it more responsive to the priorities of Member States, particularly for the developing countries that constituted the vast majority of its membership.

He pointed out that the “litmus test” of any reform exercise would be whether it increased the Organization’s ability to assist the developing countries in achieving the Millennium Development Goals and other targets which had been agreed on at the major United Nations conferences and summits. The United Nations would be strengthened if and when it contributed effectively to the efforts of the developing countries in the implementation of those outcomes. The other major test of the reform exercise would be greater effectiveness in the ability of the United Nations to deal with issues such as international terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and transnational organized crime. He noted that the strengthening of the Office of the President could be done with the provision of a small number of additional posts. He also called for a review of the rules of procedure and to adapt them to modern times. Furthermore, he underlined that reducing the volume of work and managing time and resources efficiently was not only a task for the Secretariat but also for Member States. A degree of self-discipline had to be exercised by Member States before rushing forth with new initiatives and resolutions every year.

KIM SAM-HOON (Republic of Korea) expressed frustration with the slow progress made during 10 years of debate on the issue of General Assembly reform, and proffered several elements to explain the growing marginalization of the world body. Those included the shift in the center of the Organization’s gravity to the Security Council after the end of the cold war, the increase in the Organization’s membership, which had led to greater divergence of interests and views, divisiveness and lack of unity in the Assembly, and the adoption of too many non-legally binding resolutions, too few of which were remembered, cared about or heeded. Each of those factors had combined to weaken the authority and relevance of the Assembly.

Yet, much could be done to revitalize and strengthen its role, he reiterated. In that regard, the Assembly should focus on issues to which the United Nations could make a real difference. The Assembly’s agenda should be organized around a number of thematic issues; certain agenda items should be considered only on a biennial or triennial basis and obsolete items should be deleted altogether; and redundant issues should be consolidated. Furthermore, meetings should be scheduled throughout the year to make best use of the resources available to missions and the Secretariat. The authority and role of the Office of the Assembly President should be enhanced, including through using the General Committee as a bureau for the Presidency.

The outdated role of the Assembly’s organs should be restructured and streamlined to deal with salient global issues, he added. The sound administration of the Organization’s resources, transparency, accountability and programme performance should be ensured. Moreover, while holistic approaches to reform had been in fashion for some time, there was merit to employing an incremental approach in the context of a holistic perspective. Overall, the collective interest of the global community must be put above parochial interests; real change within the United Nations would not be achieved without some degree of sacrifice from the general membership. Reform should also be a continuous and action-oriented process.

IFTEKHAR AHMED CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) said the Organization’s reform efforts should be a continuing process. It involved enhancing the efficacy of the Secretariat and responding to complex global challenges in the areas of peace, security and development. At the heart of reform must lie the desire to achieve all goals set out in the Millennium Declaration, and the implementation of all action plans emanating from the conferences of the 1990s. Revitalizing the inter-governmental processes and institutions should not be viewed as mutually exclusive. He was heartened that the Secretary-General had accorded high priority to the Millennium Development Goals and the medium term plan in proposing the programme budget for 2004-2005. In addition, he was pleased that the budget would be presented in a results-based format.

Economic and social development was the area to which his delegation attached the highest importance. He supported the Organization’s enhanced field presence in developing countries, and noted the importance of strengthening the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s office, the simplification of development programmes, and improved accountability and joint programming. Human rights, was also an area of high priority for his nation. In fact, he believed that development could only take place against a social matrix where the value of human rights was enjoyed to a premium. He endorsed the Secretary-General’s approach towards closer collaboration with civil society and the private sector, and continued to advocate capacity-building for implementation of the Millennium Goals. Many of the recommendations emanating from the interactions between the Second Committee and civil society this year merited consideration in the work of the Eminent Persons Panel.

As for the revitalization of the Assembly, improving working methods and restoring the authority of that body must progress simultaneously. Beginning with the small and achievable could be a practical strategy, and evaluation of progress made would bring greater success.

LESLIE B. GATAN (Philippines) said he wished to submit three proposals aimed at reforming the Assembly. First, he proposed that regional group statements take precedence over national statements in their inscription for the general debate. Delegations aligning themselves to the views presented by their respective regions or groups should refrain from delivering statements for the purpose of reiterating views already contained in their group statements. Secondly, he proposed that related agenda items, as well as resolutions which had arisen from them, be clustered. Clustering generated a holistic consideration of inter-related issues and avoided duplication, which in turn conserved resources.

Thirdly, he called for more time to be given to interactive discussion of issues considered under general debate or of thematic issues. Furthermore, he recommended that, to avoid an unwieldy exchange of views by all 191 Member States, the interactive discussion should be carried out mainly by the spokesmen of groups, spiced with the participation of representatives of selected sectors of civil society.

He pointed out that revitalization or reform might be elusive if the perennial problems, which confronted the United Nations, were not identified. The foremost problem was the general awareness that United Nations resolutions, with the exception of those adopted by the Security Council, were not binding to Member States. Another problem was the awareness that a great number of United Nations bodies were no longer representative of the general membership, a situation that could erode the interests of many Member States. Thirdly, there was the lack of strong coordination among the three important organs of the United Nations, namely; the Assembly, the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council.

To correct those problems, he suggested that an effective system be installed to monitor the implementation of resolutions. Also, a review of the working group of the membership of important United Nations bodies, starting with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), should be undertaken to rationalize the membership in relation to the number of countries represented or to group representation. In addition, he suggested that there be inter-sessional bilateral consultative meetings between the Presidents of the Assembly and ECOSOC to coordinate their respective work and assess the outcome of coordination.

JUMA AMER (Libya) said that, in evaluating progress to date on the revitalization of the Assembly, the move to elect the Assembly’s officials several months in advance of the fall session was welcome. Yet, that was only a procedural change. The Assembly must be enabled to fulfil its role under the Charter of the United Nations. For example, in conjunction with its role in international peace and security, it should meet during crises to study the situation and submit its findings to the Security Council.

The Assembly’s decisions should also be published at that national level, he said, which would solve the dilemma of the production of resolutions that were, effectively, “dead letters”. Furthermore, there should be a mechanism to review the implementation of Assembly resolutions. Other issues of concern included the fall-off in participation that occurred after the general debate. The high-level representation witnessed during the first two weeks of the session was indicative of the importance attributed to the general debate. Yet, after that time, there were at best, a few delegates present during most interventions. Instead of listening to prepared statements, there should be more interactive debate.

Balancing the Assembly’s agenda was important, he continued. Thus, while some items did not need to be discussed annually, a review of the number and content of Assembly decisions showed there should also be a regrouping of issues. And, while the extension of the session over the course of the year was an idea worth considering, there were several questions that should be carefully considered before that proposal was adopted. Among them, one must ask if plenary meetings of the Main Committees would take place several times a year. If so, how would Member States be informed of the meetings, particularly when experts from capitals needed to be brought in? Another question was, whether there would be simultaneous meetings of the Main Committees.

GENNADY GATILOV (Russian Federation) said he supported the concept of strengthening the United Nations system and enhancing cooperation between its key bodies. All efforts at reform should, therefore, focus on formulating an international response to new challenges and threats, and on the combined efforts of Member States to strengthen international security, in all its dimensions. He also believed that the 2004-2005 budget should bring the Organization’s activities in line with its proposed priorities and objectives. The new budget document should be a significant factor in the course of action for the reform process.

Turning next to human rights, he said that as the Organization’s revitalization gets under way, the main goal would be to strengthen national systems protecting civil liberties, and to promote closer interaction between governments and United Nations bodies regarding the core human rights treaties and conventions. On public information, he continued to support efforts to restructure the Department of Public Information and hoped that the new operational model launched in 2002 would contribute to efficient and consistent implementation of earlier established strategic goals for reforming the Organization’s information branch. He also supported efforts to improve and modernize the United Nations Libraries.

As for strengthening the United Nations presence in developing countries, he noted that while ECOSOC’s various subsidiary bodies and commissions, generally and appropriately, discussed the agreed approached of Member States on that issue, support should be given to measures which helped to simplify and harmonize programme instruments aimed at reducing transaction costs in programme countries. On strengthening the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, he supported the creation of the Office for Financing for Development and the Office for ECOSOC Support and Coordination. Efforts to strengthen the Department, including dividing its work into clusters –- one focusing on data analysis and the other focusing on policy support -– should also aim to bolster the United Nations Forum on Forests.

OLUSEGUN APATA (Nigeria) said that given the Millennium Declaration’s emphasis on wide-scale sustainable development through poverty eradication, the United Nations must redirect its energies to address the problems of hunger, malnutrition and the spread of epidemics and disease. He urged the international community to show the same commitment to promoting social and economic development, as it had to ensuring international peace and security. The Organization should explore creative avenues of resolving the crippling debt problem, he continued, “since we cannot afford a United Nations whose greatest percentage of members is incapacitated by the crisis of staggering debt”.

He went on to say that the United Nations could also step up its efforts to create partnerships and other initiatives for joint action in the area of economic and social development. Wider civic participation could help strengthen the Organization, and he welcomed partnerships with regional and subregional groups, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), universities, and private individuals. He also welcomed the creation of the Office of the Under-Secretary-General and Special Advisor on Africa last May, and noted that focal point’s significant contribution to the promotion of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).

On efforts to revamp the Assembly itself, he said that while progress had certainly been made in that regard, during the last three years, it was now necessary to focus on how to strengthen the Assembly President’s Office and reform the organ’s agenda. He stressed that although, the Office of the Assembly President should be held in the highest priority, the reality for the past decade or so, had been that a lack of resources forced past Presidents to deploy resources from their respective capitals to meet their responsibilities. Noting the serious difficulties smaller countries, particularly the least developed, would have, if forced to provide meagre funds in that regard, he said it was imperative to move rapidly during the current session to adopt measures that would strengthen the Office, including, perhaps, creating a number of additional staff and support positions.

AUGUSTINE MAHIGA (United Republic of Tanzania) said the debate on reform had been going on for nearly a decade, and had gathered momentum in the last five years, which in turn, had generated a wealth of ideas that could be implemented. In the meantime, new developments and trends had emerged in the international community, as challenges to the Organization requiring urgent responses from it. He also observed that the pace of the emerging global developments and challenges was overtaking the required pace of reforms of the Organization and capacity of the institution to adequately cope with the changes. However, reforms were long overdue and needed to be put in place “sooner than later” to enable existing institutions to remain relevant and focused on the challenges.

A key shortcoming in the revitalization of the Assembly was the delay or non-implementation of its resolutions on revitalization, which had already been adopted, as well as other resolutions, which had been adopted by the Assembly. There was an urgent need to holistically link policy-making, decision-making and implementation, as stipulated in the Charter regarding the mandate of the Assembly. Equally important, was the follow-up to conferences and meetings arising from Assembly resolutions. Revitalization of the Assembly should go simultaneously with reforms in the other organs of the Organization to coordinate and synchronize the overall process of reform in a transparent manner. Of particular significance, in enhancing the authority of the Assembly was the need to make better use of its decision-making power in budgetary matters. Reform had to be a continuous process and it might be necessary to establish a timetable for initiating reform and revitalization measures, which were feasible and could proceed after receiving the endorsement of Member States.

WANG GUANGYA (China) said a revitalized Assembly would help States pursue multilateralism, thus having a far-reaching impact on rebuilding the Organization’s authority and credibility. He endorsed President Hunte’s proposal to focus discussions on two broad areas: enhancing the Assembly’s role and authority, and improving its working methods. To that end, it was necessary to solicit the views of Member States, especially developing countries, and to begin to discuss issues that were easier to reach consensus on. The relationship between the Assembly and other principal organs was not one of competition and exclusion, but of cooperation and enhanced interactions

Making the general debate more effective required the Assembly to choose a focus for each session, on the basis of advanced consultations among States. He also was in favour, of reviewing resolutions and decisions to carry out adjustments or make changes according to the outcome of implementation. Strengthening the function of the Office of the Assembly President was necessary, in terms of human and financial resources, and he called for a contact mechanism among previous, incumbent and succeeding presidents to ensure continuity and consistency. It was a positive suggestion that the Department of Public Information be authorized to prepare for each session of the Assembly, an annual plan of action, approved and implemented at an early date to avoid redundancies. Improving the Assembly’s working methods called for speedy action, a streamlined agenda and the consideration of items in a more balanced manner.

In addition, he continued, it was important to check the overflow of documents. States should not try to request reports from the Secretary-General on every issue, and the Secretariat should improve the quality of reports, by including a focused analysis and feasible recommendations.

YERZHAN KH. KAZYKHANOV (Kazakhstan) said that, while supporting the Secretary-General’s initiative to establish a high-level panel to review the functioning of the United Nations system, he felt that work on revitalization and reform should continue without waiting for the panel’s recommendations. Among areas for change, an implementation review process should be used to reaffirm the goals and objectives agreed on at the major international conferences and summits, and to identify obstacles and constraints, as well as action, to overcome them. In that context, a major event to review progress made in implementing the goals and objectives of the Millennium Declaration should be held in 2005. He also proposed the establishment of a permanent council of regional organizations to reinvigorate coordination between the United Nations and regional organizations.

In the context of “tuning up” the Organization, he said the General Assembly’s working methods must be improved to ensure that it became more efficient, focused and relevant. Among the steps to take in that regard were the strengthening of the Office of the President, further streamlining of the agenda and focusing debates in the plenary and Main Committees on a limited number of key issues of common interest to make them more interactive. There must also be practical improvement with regard to resolutions; they must be shorter, more focused and meaningful, and their implementation must be effectively monitored. It was also important to make ECOSOC more effective, including through strengthening its cooperation with the Bretton Woods institutions.

Finally, he commended the Secretary-General’s focus on resource allocation and said the proposal to cut the medium-term plan to two years would enable review bodies to take a more strategic approach to the work of the Organization and its resources.

KISHORE MAHBUBANI (Singapore) said it was clear from the debate that there was a new energy to “revive a subject that had been drifting around the United Nations for years”; reform of the Organization and the Assembly in particular. In order for true revitalization to take hold, the principle of accountability must be imbedded in the work of the Organization’s main bodies. If that were done, then half the problem would be solved. Still, there was the need to address accusations that the Assembly itself was “lifeless and floundering”. But, was a stifled Assembly really the problem, he asked, wondering if the body’s current straits were not due to larger problems throughout the United Nations system.

Was it the Assembly that was lost or the overall United Nations that was lost, he said. It was time to look at root causes and solutions, he said, adding that if one contrasted the dynamism of the world outside the United Nations with the “[lethargy] of the room we were in”, one would have to conclude that the Organization had failed to keep up with modern realities. Here, he stressed the importance of the work of the Secretary-General’s proposed panel of eminent persons and hoped its members would not be chosen merely for their notoriety, but for how much of a contribution they could make to real United Nations reform.

Turning to discuss root causes, he said that larger issues than procedure were at stake. He recalled that some speakers had earlier said that the Security Council was “sucking the oxygen” from the Assembly. That was partially true because of current geopolitical realities. The reason the Assembly Hall was full and lively during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s was because the cold war was on, and the world was focused on politics. The Assembly could hope for a real solution if Member States had a clear understanding of the causes as to why the body was in such dire straits. Looking at geopolitics should be part of the solution. The Assembly had to engage the major powers of the day and make them see that the body needed to be strengthened. Some good news there was that, due to globalization, “everybody was sailing on the same boat”, he said, so there was a new awareness that only by cooperating with each other could States solve the critical problems of the day.

Further, he said the time had come for the Assembly to move away from its plodding, mechanical and automatic processes. The Assembly must address real issues, not just automatically re-examine subjects that came up year after year. “We must stop delivering speeches and start talking to each other”, he declared. It was also time to “sensitively and delicately” address core issues about the Office of the Assembly President. Member States must ensure that that important post was enhanced, and not seen as a final stop or reward, bestowed on diplomats just prior to their retirement from the United Nations system.

Finally, he urged delegations to realize that the Assembly Hall “even when it’s quiet and empty”, controlled one of the world’s most valuable and precious resources -- legitimacy. Even the legitimacy enjoyed by the Security Council was an offshoot of the Assembly’s 191 members ratifying the United Nations Charter. The Assembly’s legitimacy was a valuable commodity that could and should be harnessed for the betterment of the wider United Nations and the world.

ROMAN KIRN (Slovenia) shared the view that there was a momentum for change taking place, and it was necessary to seize on that opportunity. A great majority of speakers had raised the issue of United Nations reform during the general debate, and expressed the need for political will. He viewed that as an emerging consensus, and called on delegations to build on it in further deliberations. A number of good ideas and proposals relating to revitalization and reform had been identified. It was now time to put them into practice.

The informal note on the revitalization of the Assembly was an excellent starting point for a plan of work. And, as it was being well received, it was important to move forward in the direction of decision-making. He believed that everybody’s views and contributions were valuable, and that work should be organized into two, simultaneous tracks: one to deal with proposals and solutions, related to improving the work of the Assembly on the short run; and the second to deal with proposals and solutions of a more structured nature, which could take more time. That work was to complement the work of the panel of eminent personalities being established by the Secretary-General.

VLADIMIR DROBNJAK (Croatia) called for the enlargement of the Security Council and the revitalization of the General Assembly. An essential step towards that goal was to replace the current debate-oriented approach with one that produced tangible results. He outlined the main areas that needed to be considered in the ongoing efforts to enhance the authority of the Assembly, and improve its working methods, noting that it was the only principal United Nations organ that gave each Member State an equal opportunity to participate in the decision-making process.

He called for regionally and subregionally balanced representation in the composition of the working groups and panels assigned to produce comprehensive reform proposals. The collective interest of the Organization should prevail over attempts to safeguard national interests at any cost and at the expense of the efficiency and better performance of the Assembly. Reforms should benefit all Member States, especially those that were not privileged with Security Council membership. No single national interest, regardless of the Member State’s size, should be allowed to derail the reforms, he cautioned.

Further, he advocated for a significant strengthening of the political authority of the Assembly, particularly in relation to the implementation of its resolutions. Adoption of resolutions that members were not ready, or able, to implement, would lead to the “utmost irrelevance” of the Assembly. He believed the plan to revitalize the Assembly, was as much a technical exercise, as it was a political one, and required the expertise, flexibility, pragmatism and understanding of all Member States to fulfil it.

MANOP MEKPRAYOONTHONG (Thailand) said that as the sole universal multilateral institution, the United Nations must evolve with the changing times and geopolitical landscape, to remain effective and relevant. The strengthening of the Organization must encompass the restructuring, reform and revitalization of its main bodies, and particularly, the rationalization of the work of the Assembly. Thus, Thailand supported the framework of action put forward by the Assembly President, including as it related to the clustering of issues related to the authority and role of the Assembly, the strengthening of the Office of the President, the streamlining of the Assembly’s work and lightening of the workload of the Secretariat and Member States, the extension of the session over the full year, and the proposal to have a thematic discussion of issues of pressing priority during the general debate.

The successful revitalization of the Assembly’s work, he recalled, hinged on a number of factors, including the political will of Member States to empower it to play the role envisaged in the Charter. In order for proposals of change to receive broad support and consensus, discussions should be conducted openly and with transparency, in an atmosphere of trust and constructive criticism. Moreover, once decisions were taken, it was equally important to ensure their full implementation. The Assembly must find ways of guaranteeing the implementation of its resolutions in both the national and international contexts.

Finally, he noted, reform was not an indefinite process; that daunting challenge must be achieved within a timeframe. Specifically, it should be carried out, so as to enable the Organization to attain the Millennium Development Goals by 2015, as intended. The prevailing sense of urgency must be sustained.

GONÇALO DE SANTA CLARA GOMES (Portugal) said the revitalization of the Assembly was of immense political importance and was fundamental for the development of strategies to achieve the goals set out in the Charter of the United Nations. The Assembly was the cornerstone of the Organization, the main source of legitimacy. Continued neglect of that body would damage the whole United Nations. One way to redress that situation was to make the Assembly’s debates more interactive, including by removing from the General Assembly Hall, when large audiences were not expected. The Hall regularly looked half empty and was too big to encourage true dialogue.

Another aspect of reform concerned the need to improve ECOSOC’s interaction with the Security Council, he added, especially on post-conflict issues. In pre- and post-conflict situations, the international community must address three aspects: reinforcing the internal security system; building up national institutions and making the State stronger and more capable; and creating a viable economy. However, the Security Council had not paid sufficient attention to all those needs, and it lacked the competence and interest to join economic assistance to State-building and security needs. And, while ECOSOC had a greater sensibility to certain of those aspects, it alone was not equipped to be fully efficient in conflict prevention.

During the General Debate, he recalled, his Prime Minister had proposed the creation of a new institutional mechanism, a commission mandated to monitor conflict prevention and promote conditions for peace and development. That commission could, in conjunction with both Councils, identify and deal with the most pressing needs. It could also draw up integrated strategies to ally the objectives of security, institutional reinforcement and economic and social development for countries at risk. That commission would also need to be closely linked with the Bretton Woods institutions and other United Nations agencies. In terms of the Organization’s budget, he concluded, existing resources should be sufficient to cover the functioning of that Commission.

REZLAN ISHAR JENIE (Indonesia) said reform of the United Nations was justified by the fact that it was the world’s premier instrument of multilateral diplomacy. The strengthening of the United Nations would, in turn, strengthen the practice of multilateralism. He shared the view that the reallocation of agenda items that spanned a number of Main Committees was best handled in the plenary. Also, the Main Committees should continue to develop ways of improving their own methods of work, and to share such information with other Committees that might be interested. He also welcomed the advances that had been made in the technical areas of reform, which concerned such issues as overlapping, enhancing coordination and strengthening efficiency. At the same time, he called for greater commitment towards progress in the strategic areas, which impinged on the capability of the United Nations system to uphold the objectives and principles stipulated in the Charter.

He said the issue of Security Council reform was also important and should be undertaken without further delay. The Security Council, in its current form, reflected the world of 50 years ago. He expressed a similar view with respect to ECOSOC, which should continue to strengthen its role as the mechanism for system-wide coordination. He called for a cross-sectoral approach to be used by ECOSOC to review the implementation of the outcomes of major United Nations conferences and summits and their follow-up processes. At the end of the day, reform must be seen in terms of how well it had helped the cause of development in developing countries, because the exercise was not for the sake of reform but to achieve the objectives of development.

ABDUL-DAYEM MUBAREZ (Yemen) said there was wide awareness of the need to profit from the upsurge in support for United Nations reform. Members States would be shirking their responsibility if they did not take advantage of the current momentum. Thus, it was encouraging to see participants in the debate reiterating their commitment to reform. Furthermore, it was very important for that reform to be an exhaustive and well-integrated process to strengthen the work done by all United Nations bodies.

Of particular importance, was the reform of the Assembly, he reaffirmed. In the course of recent years, that body had suffered from a great deal of imbalance, as one could see in the contrast between the importance of the issues dealt with and its clear failure to deal effectively with them. And, while many resolutions on reform had been adopted, those that had been implemented were largely concerned with the rationalization of the agenda rather than more fundamental issues. The implementation of all its resolutions would make it possible for the Assembly to resume its role, as laid down in the Charter.

Among the issues that reform should confront, he added, was the overburdening of the Assembly’s agenda, which was laden with items of interest to only a few countries. The General Committee should be strengthened to enable it to properly implement resolutions on the revitalization of the Assembly. Finally, he noted that little had been done to take advantage of available skills and to ensure geographical balance in terms of personnel.

PAULETTE BETHEL (Bahamas) said her delegation supported the need for enhancing the capacity of the Assembly and the relationship between it and the principal organs of the Organization. It was necessary to expand the time allotted for the work of the Assembly and allow for work within the Main Committees to be distributed over a longer period rather than the current three months from September to December. She also supported the further clustering of related items to decrease the time allotted to individual items in the plenary and the Main Committees. However, those emerging clusters should not diminish the importance of development issues, as they pertained to the economic and social well-being of developing nations.

The role of the Department of Public Information should be enhanced to assist it in promoting the work of the United Nations, not only within the Organization, but also to the people of the world. In an age of information technology, it was important to assist developing countries to access information and communications technology, which would enable them to become active participants in relevant discussions. Lastly, the time had come for a review of matters on the Assembly’s Agenda to determine their relevance within the context of the existing geopolitical global economy. That could result in biennial consideration of some items while, others in their present form could be removed entirely.

CHRISTIAN WENAWESER (Liechtenstein) said that reforming the United Nations system, and the Assembly in particular, was necessary to give the Organization its rightful place and function. Regarding specific proposals, he said a concrete measure for strengthening the Office of the Assembly President should involve the seconding of competent Secretariat personnel to that Office. That would create an institutional memory within the Office and make possible the re-election of a President. Furthermore, giving the General Committee a meaningful role was the responsibility of the President. The Committee should live up to its responsibility regarding the agenda -– not only in respect of including new items, but also on the agenda as a whole.

Specifically, the agenda must be made more relevant, accessible and reflective of challenges faced today, he affirmed. In addition to those that should be deleted from the agenda, there were few items that merited annual consideration. That would alleviate the present burden and leave more time for implementation, thus making the consideration of items more meaningful. It would also have an immediate effect on the issue of documentation.

With respect to the Main Committees, he continued, the Assembly might consider an additional reduction in their number. It could also sequence the Main Committees, as an alternative to, or in combination with, reducing their number. There should also be real interaction between the Office of the President and the Main Committees. Moreover, while the consideration of items on a biennial or triennial basis would reduce the number of resolutions, it should also not be assumed automatically that if an item was up for consideration, there must be a resolution. Decisions to reaffirm earlier resolutions, in instances where the text of a new resolution would be close to identical to those of past years, would have the same effect.

DIRK JAN VAN DEN BERG (Netherlands) said it was necessary to create concrete proposals that produced a more relevant Assembly. The Assembly’s agenda should be grouped around major issues of global impact, making it more coherent, accessible and manageable for States. That way, both, the delegations and the general public, would have a better understanding of what was going on in the Assembly. The eight sections of the Millennium Declaration provided an ideal framework for such an exercise. Yet, the distribution of agenda items between the plenary and the Main Committees seemed to disadvantage the discussion of highly relevant topics in the plenary. Also, items on the agenda often had a “micro”-orientation, whether by subject or by country, and that was especially the case in the plenary.

Since, there was a clear correlation between the number of items on the agenda and the number of resolutions, consideration should be given to the longer-term agenda of the Assembly as a gross list of agenda items. Each Assembly could then draw upon that list to compile its programme of work for that year’s session. A new approach could also be agreed on a review cycle, as part of the adoption of a resolution, which would avoid bringing the resolution to a vote again in the next year. Then, only if new developments or improved insights merited substantial change, could the review lead to the adoption of a substantially changed or new resolution. On the issue of consensus, he said it could be overused and misused as a pseudo-veto right by some. Among the elements for discussion on that issue was that consensus should require at least unanimity between the majorities within the regional groups. Also, States opposing a consensus should be obligated to clarify the national interests at stake.

MARGARET HUGHES FERRARI (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines) called for a rearranging of the schedule so that the Assembly’s work could be evenly spread throughout the year. She pointed out the economic and physical strain that had been placed on small missions such as hers. The vast majority of the work of the United Nations was “crammed” into three months between September and December, and for the rest of the year, while they were active, the agenda was not nearly so demanding. She said the call to rearrange the schedule did not seem to be such a revolutionary suggestion, but whenever it was mentioned it was met with raised eyebrows and disapproving frowns. Member States had “inflicted” the agenda on themselves and they should now pause and consider whether they could do better.

She insisted that States could and should impose self-discipline on themselves when it came to addressing the Assembly. In that respect, she suggested a speaking time of five minutes, but excluded from that suggestion the general debate and other high-level or ministerial meetings. The revitalization of the Assembly was vital if the Organization was to stay at the forefront of serving the people of the world. On the Security Council, she stressed that non-Council members were seldom consulted and, unlike the Assembly, their voice did not count for anything.