Sixth Committee (Legal) — 71st session

Observer status for the International Conference of Asian Political Parties in the General Assembly (Agenda item 169)

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Documentation

Summary of work

Background (source: A/71/100)

By a letter dated 10 August 2011 (A/66/198), the Permanent Representatives of Cambodia, Japan, Nepal, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Viet Nam to the United Nations requested the inclusion of this item in the agenda of the sixty-sixth session.

At its sixty-sixth and sixty-seventh sessions, the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Sixth Committee, decided to defer a decision on the request for observer status for the International Conference of Asian Political Parties in the Assembly to the following session (decisions 66/530 and 67/526).

At the sixty-eighth session of the General Assembly, the sponsors of the draft resolution decided not to pursue their request for observer status for the International Conference on Asian Political Parties in the Assembly at the session, while reserving the right to present it at a future session.

By a letter dated 11 August 2015 (A/70/194), the Permanent Representatives of Australia, Cambodia, Japan, Nepal, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Sri Lanka to the United Nations requested the inclusion of this item in the provisional agenda of the seventieth session.

At the seventieth session, the General Assembly decided to defer a decision on the request for observer status for the International Conference of Asian Political Parties in the Assembly to its seventy-first session (decision 70/526).

Consideration at the seventy-first session

The Sixth Committee considered the item at its 12th and 31st meetings, on 11 October and 4 November 2016 (see A/C.6/71/SR.12 and A/C.6/71/SR.31).

At the 12th meeting, on 11 October, the representative of the Republic of Korea, on behalf of Australia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, the Netherlands, Philippines, Republic of Korea and Sri Lanka, introduced a draft resolution entitled “Observer status for the International Conference of Asian Political Parties in the General Assembly” (A/C.6/71/L.4). Under this draft resolution, the General Assembly would decide to invite the International Conference of Asian Political Parties to participate in the sessions and the work of the General Assembly in the capacity of observer; and request the Secretary-General to take the necessary action to implement the resolution.

Statements were made by the representatives of Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Lebanon, the Philippines, Turkey, Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of), the Russian Federation, Bangladesh, the Syrian Arab Republic and Iran (Islamic Republic of).

Some delegations supported the grant of observer status for the International Conference of Asian Political Parties in the General Assembly. It was observed that International Conference of Asian Political Parties complied with the requirements stipulated in Assembly decision 49/426. The International Conference of Asian Political Parties could be characterized and was increasingly recognized as a framework for the collaboration of political parties, including opposition parties, across different regions. Some delegations also pointed out that they were signatories to the Memorandum of Understanding that was concluded by eleven governments to provide support to the activities of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties. The International Conference of Asian Political Parties upheld the Charter of the United Nations and fostered the three pillars of the United Nations in its activities, constituting an effective tool in implementing the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

Some other delegations, while noting their appreciation for the work of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties, emphasized that it did not fulfil the criteria set out in General Assembly decision 49/426. It was noted that such criteria had to be strictly observed. Therefore, the International Conference of Asian Political Parties should not be granted observer status in the General Assembly.

Action taken by the Sixth Committee

At the 31st meeting, on 14 November, the Chair of the Committee announced that the sponsors of the draft resolution A/C.6/71/L.4 had decided not to pursue the request for observer status in the General Assembly for the International Conference of Asian Political Parties at the current session, while reserving the right to present it at a future session.

At the same meeting, the Committee concluded its consideration of agenda item 169 without taking action.

Subsequent action taken by the General Assembly

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