Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

World + 1 more

Third Committee Approves Text on Human Right to Safe Drinking Water and Sanitation, 10 Other Draft Resolutions

Attachments

General Assembly
GA/SHC/4092
Sixty-eighth General Assembly
Third Committee
49th Meeting (AM)

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) approved 11 draft resolutions today, including a text on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation.

By the terms of that text, approved without a vote, as orally amended, the General Assembly would call on States to ensure the progressive realization of the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation for all in a non-discriminatory manner, while eliminating inequalities in access.

Several delegates, however, expressed disappointment that the text had been weakened in order to achieve a strong consensus. They said the definition of the content of the human right to water and sanitation, as agreed by the Human Rights Council, had been deleted, an action Switzerland’s representative called “a regrettable setback”.

Also approved — by a recorded vote of 126 in favour to 54 against, with no abstentions — was a text on “Human rights and unilateral coercive measures”, by which the Committee recommended that the General Assembly urge all States to cease the adoption or implementation of unilateral measures not in accordance with international law, international humanitarian law, the United Nations Charter and the norms and principles governing peaceful relations among States.

The representative of the United States, explaining her negative vote, described unilateral measures as legitimate means for achieving national security and economic objectives.

By a recorded vote of 126 in favour to 54 against, with 1 abstention ( Chile), the Committee approved a text titled “Promotion of equitable geographical distribution in the membership of the human rights treaty bodies”. By its terms, the Assembly would recommend the introduction of flexible procedures for allocating seats on each treaty body to each of the five regional groups established by the Assembly in equivalent proportion to the number of States parties to the relevant instrument within that group.

The representative of Lithuania, explaining her negative vote, said the Human Rights Council selected treaty-body experts in their personal capacity or on merit, not on the basis of nationality.

Turning to another action, the Committee approved — by a recorded 126 votes in favor to 3 against (Canada, Palau, United States) with 50 abstentions — a draft titled “Combating glorification of Nazism: inadmissibility of certain practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance”.

While expressing their opposition to manifestation of the acts described in the draft resolution’s title, several delegates expressed concern that the text would restrict the freedoms of expression, assembly and association.

The Committee approved two other drafts — titled “The right of the Palestinian people to self-determination” and “Human rights and cultural diversity”, respectively — by recorded votes.

Acting without a vote, it also approved drafts relating to: the promotion of social integration through social inclusion; child, early, and forced marriage; national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights; follow-up to the International Year of Human Rights Learning; and protection of internally displaced persons and assistance to them.

The Committee also heard the representative of Norway introduce a draft resolution titled “Protecting women human rights defenders”.

In other matters, the representatives of Uruguay and Costa Rica delivered statements on a draft resolution approved earlier this week, on the human rights situation in Iran.

Also speaking today were representatives of Norway, Israel, Argentina, Cuba (on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement), Viet Nam, Equatorial Guinea, Belarus, Russian Federation, Sierra Leone, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, El Salvador, Iran, Mauritania, Pakistan, Sudan, India, Uzbekistan, Colombia, Canada and Chile. An observer for the State of Palestine also spoke.