102nd Plenary Meeting of General Assembly: 51st Session

General Assembly approves appointment of Mary Robinson, president of Ireland, as High Commissioner for Human Rights; also approves agenda item on United Nations reform, acts on financing of peace-keeping, conference on Desertification, at 102nd meeting.

• Video Length: 00:20:51
• Production Date: 17 June 1997
• Asset Language: English; Original
• Personal Subject: ISMAIL RAZALI; IHOR V. HUMENNYI; MELVIN SAENZ BIOLLEY; MARY ROBINSON; MICHAEL ODEVALL
• Corporate Name: FIFTH COMMITTEE - ADMINISTRATIVE AND BUDGETARY QUESTIONS; OFFICE OF THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS - OHCHR
• Subject Topical: UNITED NATIONS REFORM; PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS; FINANCING; DESERTIFICATION; APPOINTMENT OF OFFICIALS
• MAMS Id: 2346920
• Parent Id: 846368

Description

The General Assembly this morning approved the appointment of the President of Ireland, Mary Robinson, as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, for a four-year term of office at the rank of Under- Secretary-General. The Assembly also agreed, at the request of the Secretary-General, to add an item to its agenda on "United Nations reform: measures and proposals", and to consider it directly in plenary. It also adopted two resolutions on administrative and budgetary aspects of the financing of peace-keeping operations. In one, it adopted a self- insurance system for the United Nations and established standardized rates for death or disability compensations for United Nations peace-keepers. Those rates would pay one-time lump sums of $50,000 for service-incurred deaths occurring after 30 June. Awards for permanent disabilities would be fractions of the $50,000 principal, depending on the degree of injury. The second resolution, on the support account for peace-keeping operations, maintains, for the period from 1 July 1997 to 30 June 1998, the funding mechanism for the support account provisionally approved by the Assembly at its fifty-first session. The Assembly also approved some $33 million net for the account for the same period, subject to other provisions of the text. Also this morning, the Assembly adopted a resolution that allows the interim secretariat on desertification, under the authority of the Secretary- General, to use the relevant Special Voluntary Fund to help developing and least developed countries affected by desertification and drought to participate in the first Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Decertification. The interim secretariat may also use the Trust Fund to support the participation of non-governmental organizations. The representative of Costa Rica spoke regarding appointment of the Human Rights Commissioner. The representative of Ireland expressed appreciation to the Assembly for its appointment of Mrs. Robinson to that post. The Assembly will meet again at a date to be announced in the Journal. 

Related Sites and Documents

A/51/PV.102