UN Human Rights Treaties

UNITED NATIONS

General
Assembly
FORTY-SIXTH SESSION Official Records

THIRD COMMITTEE
22nd meeting
held on
Friday, 25 October .1991
at 10 a.m.
New York

SUMMARY RECORD OF THE 22nd MEETING
Chairman: Mr. AL-SHAALI (United Arab Emirates)
later: Mr. SLABY (Czechoslovakia)
(Vice-Chairman)
CONTENTS
AGENDA ITEM 94: SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (continued)
(a) QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE WORLD SOCIAL SITUATION AND TO YOUTH, AGEING, DISABLED PERSONS AND THE FAMILY
ORGANIZATION OF WORK

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Distr. GENERAL A/C.3/46/SR.22 12 November 1991 ENGLISH ORIGINAL: FRENCH

91-56798 5125S (E)

A/C.3/46/SR.22 English Page 2)
The meeting was called to order at 10.05 a.m.
AGENDA ITEM 94: SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (continued) (A/46/3.*** 46/56-E/1931/6 and Corr.l, A/46/137-E/1991/40, A/46/281-E/1991/112, A/46/315, A/46/360, A/45/361, A/46/362, A/46/366, A/46/414 and A/46/501/Rev.l)
(a) QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE WORLD SOCIAL SITUATION AND TO YOUTH, AGEIMG. DISABLED PERSONS AND THE FAMILY
1. Mr. NANDOE (Surinama) said that various speakers bad already stressed the relationship between economic and social progress. In that respect., he drew attention to the sombre picture painted in the report of the Secretary-General on the world social situation (A/46/56-E/1991/6). In Asia and Africa, economic growth and per capita income had declined. Furthermore, unfavourable living conditions and the negative effects of structural adjustment programmer had led to a deterioration in the social situation of many developing countries.
2. Suriname therefore fully endorsed the priority being given to human development and to basic needs such as health, education, employment and food security. It would be unrealistic, however, to expect that sustainable development could be achieved without serious constraints. As long as there was a net transfer of wealth to the industrialized countries, there would be neither economic progress nor true human development in the developing countries. Suriname therefore hoped that the volume of concessional transfers of resources to developing countries could be taken into consideration and that additional resources could be released.
3. The United Nations system had participated in formulating the guiding principles for social development policies and programmes including the Forward-looking Strategies for the advancement of women. However, the situation had not always changed for the better. The Secretary-General observed in his report on the work of the Organization (A/46/1) that the war against hunger, disease, illiteracy and unemployment could not be left for the market to fight. His delegation therefore welcomed the adoption by the Economic and Social Council of decision 1991/230 in which the Council requosted the Secretary-General to carry out consultations with all States Members of the Organisation on the possibility of convening a world summit for social development.
4. The increasing numbers of youth in the world population, migratory movements between countries and the creation of new jobs to accommodate young people were challenges which would affect the social situation in general. Guidelines should be considered for future planning and appropriate follow-up of emerging youth-related issues such as drug abuse, AIDS and the integration of young women into socisty, Furthermore, refugee flows and natural and man-made disasters could lead to crises and social unrest. Timely measures must be taken to prevent social and political disturbances that could disrupt economic and Social PROGRESS.

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(Mr. Nandoe, Suriname)
5. The prospects for the future wore not encouraging. The documents before the Committee indicated that the central role of Governments was being weakened and that the system of subsidies was being called into question. The World Bank had concluded in its 1991 World Development Report that a careful balancing was required between the roles of the Government and of the private sector. In that regard, Suriname welcomed the offer made by the representative of the Netherlands, on behalf of the European Community, to share experiences with developing countries in the field of restructuring national budgets and formulating and implementing realistic social policies. It should not be forgotten, however, that the industrialised countries were also being confronted with constraints in implementing their social policies.
6. Suriname was closely following the activities related to the organisation of the International Year of the Family in 1994. It would establish an intergovernmental committee to coordinate and promote all family issues in the context of the Year with a view to protecting the family as the basic unit of society.
7. Mr. GRIBAA (Tunisia) called on all parties involved in conflicts and on the United Nations to make every effort to re-establish peace, the prerequisite for improving the social situation in the world. On that point, the Secretary-General had submitted an interim report (A/46/56-E/1991/6) which was valuable, but did not always deal in sufficient depth with the deterioration of the economic and social situation in the developing countries.
8. Economic growth was unquestionably an essential indicator of progress, but it could not in itself constitute the goal of development. Development must also mean greater life expectancy, a better health situation,' political freedom, security and access to knowledge.
9. Although the countries of the third world had some control over such parameters as population growth, life expectancy, vaccination rates and commodities, which were directly related to their economic and social development policies, they had no control over other parameters such as debt, deterioration of the environment, world-wide inflation, exchange rates or energy costs, which could wreck their development strategies. The developed countries and the entire international community must pool their efforts to reduce the impact of those unfavourable factors on the development policies of the countries of the South. Tunisia fully appreciated the efforts already made by the developed countries, the United Nations and non-governmental organizations.
10. Tunisia looked upon man as the end and means of progress, and economic growth as an objective which was inseparable from wealth from a more equitable distribution of wealth. It had therefore made its structural adjustment. programme part of a global plan for economic, social and cultural development and was establishing a coherent legislative framework in line with those objectives as well as mechanisms, institutions and programmes for protecting

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(Mr. Gribaa. Tunisia)
the most vulnerable sectors of the population in particular. The changes that , had occurred on the Tunisian political scene at the end of 1987 had given new and powerful Impetus to that endeavour, focused on protecting the family, controlling population growth, improving the economic and social situation, combatting illiteracy, strengthening the access of women to employment and developing basic health serviced, and those activities had already yielded good results.
11. The role of the State had been redefined, with egalitarianism yielding place to the promotion of equel opportunities. For example, the State was pursuing a course of social solidarity, involving assistance to certain categories of disadvantaged persons (the elderly, the severely handicapped, underprivileged children) and of encouragement, aimed at integrating the poorest people in the production sector and involving then in development,
12. With respect to disabled persons, his Government's efforts were directed primarily to reviewing the situation, drafting legislation to protect such persons, diversifying sources of financing and rationalising the management of available resources, ensuring the medical follow-up of pregnant women, finding better ways of absorbing disabled persons into society, assuming responsibility for severely disabled persons, integrating mildly disabled persons into normal institutions and promoting employment.
13. In its youth policy, Tunisia was striving primarily to prepare young people for life and to provide their integration in the development process. There were many laws that protected youth and children, and the results achieved by activities in that area were for the most part good. School attendance of children between the ages of 6 and 16 had reached a satisfactory level and was expected to reach 97 per cent by the year 2001.
14. Mr. PLORES BERMUDEZ (Honduras), speaking also on behalf of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua, said that Central America had just undergone one of the most severe political crises in its recent history. The return to democracy in the region and the end of the cold war had enabled the countries of Central America to overcome fundamental differences and, where profound internal divisions subsisted, to work towards national reconciliation. It had also become possible to take measures at the regional level to improve national efforts in the economic, social and cultural spheres. For obvious reasons, security and disarmament continued to be the focus of attention, but the current economic and social situation in the region and the new spirit of cooperation shown by the countries of Central America had given new impetus to social development. It was therefore understandable that they wished to speak with a single voice in the general debate on that subject.
15. The Third Committee had been considering the question of social
devalopment since 1966. and the activities conducted by the United Nations in
that area were gratifying, but the multilateral technical assistance and cooperation programmes that the Organisation had set up elsewhere had not

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(Mr. Flores Bg***udez. Honduras)
prevented the living conditions in most developing countries from deteriorating. The housing shortage and problems with education, the food supply, health care and employment together with drug abuse, prostitution and corruption were sowing the seeds of social strife. The Governments of Central America had their hands tied by the external debt, economic adjustment, the loss of foreign markets, the flight of foreign capital towards the developed countries and a lack of technology.
16. The Governments of Costa Rica and El Salvador had embarked upon social policies aimed essentially at promoting and financing infrastructure projects, creating employment and improving education, health care and the food situation. The Government of Guatemala had resolutely launched a policy of national reconciliation and dialogue with the armed opposition. To that end, it had created the National Foundation for Peace and had decided to issue bonds earmarked exclusively for improving services for the poorest segments of the population. The wife of the President had initiated a plan of action focusing primarily on children, who made up 45 per cent of the population of Guatemala, and on young unmarried mothers. The projects undertaken within the framework of the plan of action required the financial and technical assistance of the United Nations and other interested organisations. The Government of Nicaragua had adopted an economic programme in 1991 that had substantially reduced inflation, the principal agent of poverty and social problems. Nicaragua had pursued its policy of national consensus through a far-reaching process of economic and social dialogue. In addition to various initiatives to protect children, youth, women and the family and to promote education, it had recently embarked upon a health care plan for the period 1991-1996. In November 1990, a social fund had been established to meet the most pressing needs of the people living in extreme poverty, which was the result of 10 years of war and economic adjustment efforts A national programme to promote social development and wage war on poverty was under discussion. The Government of Honduras had set up a number of funds and bodies, in particular to offset the effects of economic structural adjustment measures. In view of the success of the Honduras Social Investment Fund, UNDP had asked the Fund's Executive Director to visit Haiti for the purpose of appraising Haiti's social programmes. Other countries of the region had also expressed an interest in the Honduras experience.
17. Those efforts ware part of the regional peace process set in motion in 1987 with the Esquipulas II Agreement. Parallel to the political process, a social process had begun that had generated the 1969 El Salvador agreements, the 1989 summit of San Isidro de Coronado (Costa Rica) and the 1990 declaration of Antigua (Guatemala), and had eventually produced the Central American Economic Action Plan (PAECA), which was serving as a framework for the regional consultation and coordination mechanisms now in operation. In July 1991, the Presidents of Central America, meeting in El Salvador, had reaffirmed their interest in the social sector; they would meet again in
Honduras on 12 and 13 December 1991to give priority consideratien to social
questions and the war against poverty. They would work out a regional

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English
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(Mr. Floras Bermvdez. Honduras
programme designed to integrate the most vulnerable population groped in the structures of production and would fix precise targets for financial, human and technical resources. Based on national and regional priorities, the regional programme would give expression to the various initiatives already undertaken in the social sector.
18. The countries of Control America expressed their appreciation to Child. which was working to prepare the world summit for social development planned for the middle of the decade, an initiative that they supported. They would like to see the Economic and Social Council expedite its preparatory work for the event and intended to contribute to the summit at Santiago on the basis of the results of the regional summit to be held in December in Honduras.
19. The international community should consider the terms of a new North-South dialogue so that international cooperation for social development would also help to create stability, peace and a strengthening of democracy. The countries of Central America regarded international cooperation as a way of achieving, as prescribed in Article 55 of the Charter of the United Nations, higher standards of living, full employment and conditions of economic and social progress and development.
20. Mr. BURCUOGLU (Turkey) referred to the social crisis affecting the entire international community and said that if no action was taken immediately, it would be increasingly difficult and costly to overcome.
21. Having experienced rapid social change and urbanization, Turkey sought to resolve its social problems by improving the quality of life of the population, ensuring equal advancement opportunities for all and promoting both individual initiatives and community solidarity. It was focusing in particular on protecting vulnerable groups (youth, the aged and disabled persons) so that they all could play a productive role in society. In other-words, Turkey wanted economic growth with a human and social dimension.
22. In Turkey, young people of 15 to 24 accounted for More than 20 per cent of the population of 57 million. There were institutional arrangements and vocational training and integration programmes and. work preparation programmes aimed at giving youth a sense of human values and the up-to-date knowledge they needed in order to take an active part in the daily life of their country. Protecting young people against such scourges as drug abuse, delinquency and AIDS remained a priority aim.
23. The family, the natural and basic unit of society, traditionally played a very important role in Turkey. It was the driving force of social solidarity
and a strong bulwark against worsening social problems. The Government was ' trying to help the family adjust to the changing society. It had studied with great interest the report of the Sacretary-General on preparations for the International Yers of the Family (A/46/362) in which Turkey was participating actively. As indicates a. paragraph 40 of the report, the Turkish Family Research Institute was acting as the national coordinating committee for the

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(Mr. Burcuoglu, Turkey)
Year. In addition, various local committees were being formed. The first Family Week had been celebrated in May 1991. National agencies and non-governmental organisations would be taking part in the various activities planned. The International Tear of the Family would be marked by a broad public awareness campaign, monthly meetings, a family council with the participation of experts from other countries and a films week.
24. The problem of ageing was beginning to affect Turkish society, which had always been respectful of the elderly. Institutions and the media were becoming increasingly aware of the problem and were raising public awareness.
25. Health services, rehabilitation centres and preferential rates in various sectors were provided to the elderly. Turkey welcomed the preliminary, global targets proposed for 1992-2001 on the basis of the International Plan of action on Ageing and set forth in the report of the Secretary-General (A/46/361). It noted with satisfaction, too, the holding of the first International Day for the Elderly On 1 October.
26. Turkish society had long been aware of the problems of disabled persons.. As indicated in paragraphs 51 and 64 of the report of the Secretary-General on implementation of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons and the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons (A/46/366), in its Sixth Five-Yeax Plan (1990-1994) Turkey planned to develop medical services, rehabilitation centres and institutions catering to disabled persons. Its intention was to integrate them into the daily life of society and to reduce their dependence on social services. Although it was not easy to ensure equal opportunity, Turkish legislation encouraged and even obliged enterprises to hire disabled persons. The Ministry of Labour and Social Security had a special unit for the employment of the disabled. Tax abatements were available to them. The national council of disabled persons, which played a coordinating role, was consulted when appropriate. Turkey had participated with 47 other countries in the first meeting of the special working group of government experts set up by the Commission for Social Development at its thirty-second session and mandated to develop standard rules for equal opportunity for disabled persons (Vienna, 2-6 September 1991). The new standard rules would provide Governments with an instrument for facilitating the implementation of the World Programme of Action and other international agreements. Turkey was proud of its participation in the process.
27. Referring to the Report of the Secretary-General on the Implementation of the Guiding Principles for Developmental Social Welfare Policies and Programmes in the Near Future (A/46/414), he recalled that Turkey was among the 32 countries that had supplied information for the report.
28. His delegation welcomed the results of the thirty-second session of the Commission for Social Development, and was pleased with the spirit of cooperation and consensus that had prevailed during the session and with the streamlining of its methods of work.

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(Mr. Burcuoplu. Turkey'
29. Quoting a passage from the Report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization (A/46/1) reaffirming the United Nations concern to ensure individual welfare, he expressed his delegation's full agreement with the idea of convening a world summit on social development.
30. Miss AL-HAMAMI (Yemen) called attention to the importance of the report of the Secretary-General (A/46/360) and of the recommendations contained therein, given the importance of young people to society and the scope of the youth-oriented measures being taken at the national, regional and international levels in the context of the new world climate. The draft World Youth Programme of Action towards the Year 2000 and Beyond offered useful proposals, for instance in the areas of health, malnutrition and disease control, which were also relevant to other social categories, particularly in developing countries.
31. Yemen, being aware of young people's potential for development, afforded them broad participation in the political, economic, social and cultural life of the country; they, is return, contributed effectively to general development.
32. Yemen considered that the true measure of a State's wealth was its ability to make the most of its human resources, for human beings must be considered both beneficiaries and one of the agents of development. Therefore, despite its limited resources, Yemen was adopting the necessary programmes and measures to allow families to participate in the economic and social development of its newly united society. Thus, Yemen was participating in the preparations for the International Year of the Family, to be held in 1994.
33. As the social customs of Yemen were defined by the basic principles of shariah, including goodness, generosity and tolerance, the family felt a real responsibility for the elderly. In addition, as a token of its loyalty towards those who had spared no effort to help society and its young people, the State attached particular importance to the elderly and granted them, for instance, a monthly allowance. It naturally supported all international efforts in favour of the elderly, as much for humanitarian reasons as in the interests of development.
34. Yemen was equally concerned with the disabled, who posed a similar humanitarian problem to all societies, particularly in developing countries, where they accounted for a substantial proportion of the population and
represented a potential that must not be neglected. Accordingly, it was striving to integrate them into society.
35. The interest States took in the young, the elderly and the disabled should not be restricted by national boundaries. Yemen believed that
mission reports described the manifold sufferings endured by such population groups in certain regions. That was particularly true of the vulnerable

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(Miss Al-Sammi Yemen)
groups in Iraqi society and it was to be hoped that they would receive the requisite humanitarian and food aid.
36. Yemen deplored the predicament inflicted on such dispossessed groups in Palestine, the occupied Palestinian territories and South Africa by the inhuman policies of the Israeli and South African authorities.
37. She called on all delegations once again to work together to achieve the Committee's aims and ensure the welfare of the individual.
38. Ms. LISSIDINI (Uruguay) said that she was alarmed by the Secretary-General's interim report on the world social situation (A/46/56-E/1991/6), which noted the aggravation of poverty in Africa and Latin America. Uruguay's support for the convening of a world summit on social development was thus understandable.
39. As the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons drew to a close, it was obvious .that public opinion was more aware of the problems of disabled persons and that legal instruments had been drawn up to guarantee the disabled equal opportunities. But there was still a long way to go in achieving all the objectives set at the outset of the Decade. Uruguay, for its part. had established a system for the protection of disabled persons, who were thus„ assured of medical, educational, psychological, social, economic and vocational services. She legislation passed was intended to implement the florid Programme of Action adopted in 1982 and to enable every disabled person to participate fully in community life. A national commission had also been established comprising government bodies and representatives of disabled persons* associations. In addition, various seminars had been organised at the national level, and it was in Uruguay that a publication of the Latin American Regional Council of Disabled Peoples' International, circulated free of charge to interested individuals and organisations, was issued. Disabled Persons* Day would be observed in December and money would be collected on that occasion for disabled persons' organisations.
40. the increasing proportion of elderly people in the world population made it essential to integrate them into the development process. To do that, old people must be able to lead useful and independent lives. In Uruguay, there was an inter-ministerial commission to formulate and implement policies to help the elderly that were consistent with the International Plan of Action on Ageing. In addition, a draft code for the protection of the elderly was under consideration, and attention would be drawn to the particular problems of that population group on the occasion of International Day for the Elderly.
41. At the other extreme of the age pyramid, young people were experiencing different but no less serious problems. Uruguay supported the proposals for the preparation of a draft world youth programme of action towards the year 2000 and beyond (A/46/360). That programme should cover such topics as immigration, drug abuse, alcoholism, Alps and access to education and other employment opportunities.

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(MB. Lissidini. Uruguay)
42. With the help of the United nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Uruguay was conducting a survey in the hope of subsequently adopting the Measures and policies required to meet the needs of young people and facilitate their integration into society. The youth situation called for specific measures; it would be recalled, for example, that current social and economic conditions were leading many young Uruguayans to emigrate.
43. The Uruguayan Government had been forced to implement an economic and budgetary adjustment plan that would undoubtedly aggravate the health, employment and housing situation of certain social groups. Such difficulties should be transient, and Uruguay had established an emergency social fund for the mamagement of resources allocated to social programmes and projects in order to alleviate them.
44. Mr. JAEGER (Austria) noted that the social problems of mankind were continuing to increase. Some 1.1 billion people, a full fifth of the world's population, were living in deplorable conditions of poverty. Although while the material problems of the industrialised countries were less pressing, these countries were suffering from terrible social problems. Such difficult and complex social questions required effective and world-wide multidisciplinary action, and the United Nations had an important part to play in that regard, particularly through the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs at the United Nations Office at Vienna, which was the focal point for all activities of the United Nations system in the social field.
45. His delegation therefore regretted that some United Nations units dealing with social questions still remained outside the Centre and hoped that the General Assembly would endorse the Secretary-General's proposal to transfer the social functions still being performed elsewhere to the United Nations Office at Vienna, which could then be strengthened as recommended by General Assembly resolution 45/248.
46. Austria traditionally attached great importance to social development at both the national and international levels; it therefore followed with great interest the activities of the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs, which, with very limited staff and resources, had initiated or elaborated internationally recognised conventions and documents that affected literally everyone. That was true in particular of the 198S United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the United Nations Principles for Older Persons adopted by the Commission for Social Development in February 1991, and the standard rules on the equalisation of opportunities for disabled persons currently being formulated.

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(Mr. Jaeger. Austria)
47. The Centre Cor Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs was actively involved in establishing an effective United Nations crime prevention and criminal justice programme by reorganising the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch. The Centre was also responsible for United Nations activities to mark the International Tear of the Family in 1994. However, if the Centre was to fulfil its tasks, it must be provided with the necessary resources.
48. In 1991, the Centre had focused particular attention on the disabled. At the thirty-second session of the Commission for Social Development, his delegation had introduced a draft resolution on the establishment of an ad hoc open-ended working group to elaborate standard rules on the equalization of opportunities for disabled persons. The resolution had been adopted and the working group had net from 2 to 6 September 1991 to start its work. The Austrian Government had contributed extrabudgetary resources for the working group in addition to its regular contribution to the Voluntary Fund for the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons.
49. Concerning young people, his Government had continued in 1991 to finance the HOPE '87 employment programme, which consisted of hundreds of original projects for employment. In 1991, 10 new projects had led to the creation of some 250 jobs for young people in seven countries. Since the establishment of the programmed in 1989, 28 projects amounting to approximately $US 600,000 had been financed in 16 countries (Colombia, Bangladesh, Nepal, the Philippines, Ireland, Kenya, Brazil, Indonesia. India, Uruguay, Bulgaria, Hungary, Ghana, Chile, Czechoslovakia and Austria). In that way some 500 jobs had been created directly and many more indirectly.
50. On 1 March 1991 the United Nations and the Federal Government of Austria had signed a memorandum of understanding under which the Organization, through the United Nations Office at Vienna and the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs, and Austria, through HOPE '87, agreed to work together to promote the participation of youth in income-generating activities through youth employment projects and appropriate occasional training and educational programmes. His delegation was aware of the limited nature of Austria's effort to alleviate a serious global problem, accordingly, any financial or other contribution from Member "States or non-governmental organizations would be welcome.
51. In accordance with General Assembly resolution 45/106, the first International Day for the Elderly had been observed on 1 October 1991, a*. the United Nations Office at Vienna. On that occasion the Director-General of that Office had stressed that the ageing of the population was a revolution that would affect every individual and institution in the world and would have on impact at least as powerful as that of any of the great economic and social changes of the past.

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(Mr. Jaeger, Austria'
52. Austria was one of the countries with the highest share of elderly people. More than 20 per cent of its population was ever 60 years of age, and that percentage was expected to rise to almost 34 per cent by the year 2030. By 2025 there would be 1.2 billion elderly persons is the world, 70 per east of them living in developing countries. Greater efforts were tharefore required to meet the challenges posed by that situation. It would be necessary, for example, to develop old-age pension systems or adapt existing ones by means of structural reforms is order to guarantee adequate lining standards for the elderly. Kith that in mind, the Commission for Social Development at its thirty-second session had elaborated United Rations Principles for Older Persons in the Context of the International Plan of Action on Ageing.
53. The family had an important role to play for the elderly, establishing a social link not only between young and older people but also with disabled persons. The International Tear of the Family (1994) offered a unique opportunity to consider family issues at different levels, to take account of various concepts of the family in different socio-political and cultural systems and to identify the specific rights of the individual with respect to and within the family. Austria had been one of the first countries to contribute to the voluntary fund for the preparation for and observance of the International Tear of the Family. That. contribution would be used to establish a database on the family at the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs. The Austrian Workers' Compensation Board had financed the publication of 7,500 copies of a United Rations pamphlet entitled "1994 -International Tear of the Family - Building the Smallest Democracy at the Heart of Society", with a view to promoting the principles and objectives of the Tear.
54. Since social conditions world-wide were ine**tricably linked with the development of other aspects of human existence such as the environment, economics, health, employment and, to a certain extent, international security, their improvement called for a collective effort at the international level, and there was no better forms for that purpose than the United Rations. His Government therefore supported the proposal to conve. « a world summit for social development.
55. Ms. DIJKSMA (Netherlands), addressing the topic of policies and programmes involving youth, said that the young people who would have to endure the long-term consequences of irresponsible environmental policies were concerned about the deterioration of the environment, the effects of which (the greenhouse effect, depletion of the oxone layer and increasing erosion) were more and mot* difficult to ignore, and were prepared to make an active contribution to the search for lasting solutions.

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(Mr. Dijksma. Netherlands)
56. In response to the Brundtland report entitled "Our Common Future", which contained recommendations on policies for sustainable development that many countries were unfortunately being slow to apply, her Government had launched a national environmental policy plan (NEPP+). Aiming to provide for a better future, the plan required financial sacrifices, for example, by calling for a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of 3-5 per cent between 1S90 and 2000, even though that was still a long way from the 50 per cent reduction in energy consumption recommended in the Brundtland report.
57. She hoped that the United Nations Conference on Environment and' Development to be held in Brazil. in 1992 would lead to the signing of conventions on the climate, biological diversity and, possibly, forests. It was of the greatest importance that the Conference should involve non-governmental organizations active in various fields and also youth organizations.
58. The problem of the environment could not be separated from that of population growth. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) had recently warned the world that continued population growth would endanger the ecological system. Although population growth had stopped accelerating, the population was still increasing in absolute terms by about 90 million people each year, with more than 90 per cent of that increase occurring in the developing countries. Birth control programmes had been set up in the developing countries to halt uncontrolled population growth. That effort would not suffice, however, without the creation of a new socio-economic context by discouraging child labour, providing social security and improving health care and nutrition programmes.
59. The Minister for Development Cooperation of the Netherlands had rightly stated that human development would be essential in the years to come and should emphasize health care and education, with special attention given to the situation of women. It should be pointed out that the rich countries accounted for only 5 per cent of world population growth but placed a much greater strain on the environment than the developing countries, where population growth was much higher. Countries which had so far concentrated their efforts on survival and progress must realise the undesirable impact those developments had on the environment and work together to ensure sustained development.
60. The Youth Forum held at in Vienna in May 1991 by the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs had considered the question of communications between the United Nations system and youth organizations, and it had been recommended that the United Nations should hold such a forum each year to strengthen the participation of youth organizations in the work of United Nations bodies. The youth organisations of the Netherlands hoped that the United Nations would give favourable consideration to that recommendation. The planned launching by one Organization of a world youth programme, of action towards the year 2000 and beyond indicated renewed

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interest in matters of concern to youth. Young people were intvtrested in a wide range of issues (drugs, health, AIDS, education, unemployment and housing). It was important to involve young people in developing countries in such programmes and to formulate separate national and regional programmes. Young people and non-governmental youth organizations should also ha involved in drafting the programme of action as they could make a useful contribution by organizing cooperation and exchanges between young people in developed and developing countries.
61. In the Netherlands, young people were already actively helping to find solutions to some environmental problems and had recently conducted a national campaign to raise awareness among public bodies and business circles of the positive or negative effects on the enviromental of their production and consumption activities. Another initiative by young people is her country had been the establishment of an environmental university that would enable young people in the Netherlands and their peers in other countries to specialize in various environment-related subjects.
62. Young people could become more involved in the questions facing the United Rations if Member States included youth representatives in their delegations.
63. Mr. KALLEHAUGE (Denmark!, speaking also as head of the international committee set up by the Danish Organisation of Disabled Persons and as President of the Nordic Council of Organizations of Disabled Persons, said that the time had come to evaluate the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons and to determine how to make it more operational by developing new strategies that would lead to integration, full participation and equal opportunities for disabled persons.
64. The ad hoc opea-ended working group of Government experts that had started work in the first week of September on the elaboration of standard technical rules on the equalisation of opportunities for disabled persons would have a very complex task to perfrom. The wordic countries, which wished the group success in its week, hoped that it would strive to produce a practical, action-oriented paper on howw to approach the numerous problems facing persons with disabilities in their everyday life (such an problems of access, communications, education, employ*****, human rights, awareness campaigns or the formation and strengthening of organisations of disabled persons).
65. The Nordic countries had soma ******erience in work with the disabled which they thought might be helpful to other: countries. They had founded their policy on three basic principles sectoral responsibility, solidarity and compensation . Since each of the rights *********** by the Universal Declaration of Human Sights was of crucial impoitance for persons with d_sabilitie', ensuring them equal opportunities could be equated with fighting for Cueir
human rights The visihility of the i\i&n~n'LnA minarity in a SOCIALY was an

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(Mr. Kallehauge Denmark)
important measure of its level of development and was indicative of the actual integration, from a disabled person's point of view, of the disabled. The problems of disabled persons were not only a question of social welfare policy but must also involve other areas of public administration and services, because to deny persons with disabilities equality was an infringement of their rights as free and equal members of society* It was not for individuals or charities, therefore, but for governments, national as well as local, to resolve disability issues. In the Nordic countries, disability policy was based on the principle of solidarity, expressed through the payment of taxes, which made it possible for Governments gradually to remove the barriers preventing people with disabilities from being integrated into society. The other principle governing the Nordic countries' disability policy was that disabled persons had the right to compensation, irrespective of their income, property and capital, in the form of technical aids, assistance from municipal authorities in buying a private car or adapting their homes, home help, transport facilities, special tools and machinery. Although generally accepted, the principle of compensation had yet to be implemented everywhere and in every respect in the Nordic countries. Nevertheless, it played an important role as the guiding principle whenever new policies or programmes were to be launched, without compensation, no disabled person could join the workforce, so the Nordic countries considered it an investment in developing the potential of persons with disabilities. A disabled person's handicap depended on his environment and that made handicap a relative concept.
66. Disabled persons should be involved in decision-making and his delegation noted with satisfaction that persons with disabilities had been included in several delegations to the United Nations in recent years, an example which all Member States should be encouraged to follow.
67. On the initiative of the Nordic Council of Organizations of Disabled Persons, the Nordic development agencies had hosted a seminar on disabled people and development cooperation in Finland in March 1991. All the Nordic countries had met the target set for industrialised countries to spend at least 0.7 per cent of their gross national product on cooperation with developing countries. In 1992, Denmark would spend as much as 1 per cent of its GNP on development programmes. The seminar in Finland had adopted a resolution stating that disability aspects should be taken into account in all development cooperation programmes, which should be directed towards achieving equality of opportunity for the disabled, that organisations of people with disabilities should be more involved in planning, implementing and evaluating disability-oriented development programmes, and that disabled persons in developing countries should be encouraged to participate actively in decision-making in development cooperation programmes.
68. Mr. SLABY, (Czechoslovakia) said that his country was following with interest the work of the ad hoc open-ended working group of Government experts to elaborate standard rules on the equalization of opportunities for disabled persons, whose conclusions might be considered at the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly.

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(Mr. Slaty, Czechoslovakia)
69. The former social system in Chechoslovakia had been designed to meet the needs of a centrally planned economy, which made the transition to a market economy difficult, especially for disabled persons. The Government had been forced to set a figure of 5 per cent for the proportion of disabled persons to be employed by every enterprise with more than 20 employees. It had also set up a Governmental Committee for the Handicapped as an advisory and coordinating body to improve the living conditions of disabled persons.
70. Another urgent need in the current transitional period was to ensure favourable living conditions for families, which was why Czechoslovakia had supported the proclamation of 1994 as the International Year of the Family. Activities in Czechoslovakia in preparation for the Year were aimed at solving the internal needs of families (by changing the system of family allowances and guaranteeing each family the minimum it needed in order to live).
71. In the forthcoming period, the main task would be to implement the rights of children on the basis of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Czechoslovakia had organized an international conference on partnership between parents ana the State in preventing child abuse, and its social campaign was being developed with the broad cooperation of non-govrnmental organizations, private initiatives and religious organizations.
72. The formulation of a world youth programme of action towards the year 2000 and beyond as a basic component of preparations for the tenth anniversary of the International Youth Year must be based on the experience gained in implementing the guidelines for further planning and suitable follow-up in the field of youth. At the national level, those guidelines had made it possible in many cases to work out and implement complex strategic approaches to the problems of young people.
73. Nevertheless, the guidelines were not being implemented fast enough; in that regard, Czechoslovakia believed that the experience gained from the World Summit for Children could be used to good effect. Above all, it was necessary to focus on the most significant problems affecting young people (unemployment,' access to education, environmental issues, illnesses, including AIDS, and drug abuse). Nor must it be forgotten that the basic goal was the full integration of young people into society. The conclusions and recommendations of the symposium held at Tokyo in July 1990 could a useful in that regard. Czechoslovakia had contributed to developing the international dialogue on the problems of young people by organizing. the meeting of the European Parliament of Youth held at Prague in September 1991, which had been sponsored by the Council of Europe and attended by 250 secondary school pupils ' from 21 European countries.
74. Czechoslovakia wished to contribute to the development of European cooperation in the field of interregional consultations on developmental social welfare policies and programmes. It believed that the current changes in Europe requirad the holding of a European ministerial conference on social welfare policies and programmes. It was also considering the possibility of

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(Mr. Slaby. Czechoslovakia)
organizing a nesting of European Ministers for Social Affairs at Bratislava in the autumn of 1992 and was currently engaged in consultations on the subject.
75. The recent seminar at Stockholm on the reform of United Nations economic
- and social activities had shown that the Organisation had not achieved the
expected results in the economic and social spheres. His delegation believed that that there was a lack of coordination between the Third Committee and the Second Committee and also between both those Committees and the General Assembly and the subsidiary organs of the Economic and Social Council, and especially between the two Committees and the specialized agencies.- There was also still some duplication of activities.. Efforts to correct that situation should therefore be intensified, especially in view of the current favourable international situation and the imminent changes at the United Nations.
76. Mr. ZHANG Jun (China) said that strengthened international cooperation in the field of social development was necessary to stimulate the economic growth and development of all countries, particularly developing countries. He therefore regretted the widening gap between North and South, which was illustrated by the fact that 700 million people in Asia, and between 1.1 and 1.2 billion people world-wide, were still living in poverty.
77. The Secretary-General's interim report on the world social situation (A/46/56-E/1991/6) indicated that while many developing countries were beset by poverty, hunger, rapid population growth* worsening social conditions and huge debts, all corners of the globe were plagued by such problems as drug abuse, crime, violence and environmental degradation, which undermined world peace and stability and threatened mankind's very survival. The international community should view social development in terms of the need to safeguard peace and to promote the progress of humanity. Those objectives necessitated the establishment of a new and equitable international political and economic order that would reduce the disparities between rich and poor and would narrow the gap between North and South. In that connection, the United Nations should not confine itself to settling conflicts and solving political problems in the Security Council, but should also make practical efforts to improve world-wide living conditions, particularly in developing countries. To that end, it should direct more human and financial resources to the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the United Nations Office at Vienna.
78. With respect to the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons, the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons, which would end in 1992, had resulted in undeniable progress in such areas as public awareness of the concerns of disabled persons and legislation to protect their rights and interests. It was well known that China had always attached great importance to the well-being of disabled persons and had cooperated actively with the international community in that field. China was gratified that the Commission for Social Development, at its thirty-second session, had adopted a resolution on establishing and strengthening national coordinating committees

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(Mr, Zhang Jua, China)
on disability or similar bodies, which the Economic and Social Council had adopted as resolution 1991/8 at its first regular session of 1991. China bad established, at all levels from the central Government down to local administrations, federations of disabled persons which, taking into account the current situation in China, had helped to implement the country's five-year work programme for disabled persons.
79. Statistics showed that the world's ageing population was growing at an astronomical rate. Moreover, the rate of population ageing in the developing countries was expected to exceed that of the developed countries in the coming decades, thereby complicating existing problems. It was gratifying to note that since the adoption in 1982 of the International Plan of Action on geing, the international community and individual countries had given greater attention to the problems of elderly persons. On 1 October 1991, the United Nations and its Member States had observed the first International Day for the Elderly. Preparations were under way to mark the tenth anniversary of the World Assembly on Ageing and of the International Plan of Action on Ageing, and a new programme of activities on ageing for 1992 and beyond was being formulated.
80. With 97 million elderly people, a figure which was expected to reach 130 million by the year 2000 and accounted for 11 per cent of its total population, China had entered the ranks of countries with ageing populations. Committees on ageing had been set up at all lovels, and associations of elderly persons had been formed in both urban and rural communities, to help safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the elderly, utilise their potential and address their concerns.
81. The destiny of individual countries and of all mankind would be strongly influenced by current approaches to issues involving youth. Since the designation of 1985 as the International Youth Year, countries had undertaken a variety of activities to promote the participation and development of youth. Preparations for the tenth anniversary of the International Youth Year in 1995 included the elaboration of a draft world youth programme of action towards the year 2000 and beyond. His delegation falt that the programme should be action-oriented and that its objectives should be in line with the current situation. The views of all countries should be sought in its preparation.
82. As a developing country with a population od\f.' ever 1.1 billion, China attached special importance to social development. Over the past 12 years, its policy of reform and openness had stimulated unprecedented progress in the social sector and in national economic development. Economic development plans included social development goals in such areas as job creation, income distribution, education, social welfare and the advancement of women, the elderly, the disabled and other special group.-.. In the summer of 1991, China had successfully mobilized all its resources to assist the elderly, the disabled, women and children who had suffered from the disastrous floods which

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{Mr. Zhano Jun. China)
had hit the country, thereby demonstrating yet again the superiority of China's social system. His Government felt that sound management of national affairs was in itself a contribution to the international community. It was also ready to continue to draw upon the experience of other countries and to cooperate with them to promote social development throughout the world.
83. Mr. Slaby (Czechoslovakia). Vice-chairman. took the Chair.
84. Mr. SHIN (Republic of Korea) said that although the new era in which democratic governments were replacing single-party systems offered new hope for human dignity and political freedom, most of the changes to date had taken place on the political front. The peace dividend, which had been expected to result in a significant reallocation of resources to social development, remained elusive.
85. Three quarters of the world's population received only 15 per cent of its total income, while average income in the North was eighteen times that in the South* . Given those facts, it was difficult to subscribe entirely to the view that economic growth and social development were independent and that social development problems could be solved through the adjustment of income distribution alone, without talcing economic factors into account. Social development efforts were bound to fail in the absence of a certain degree of economic growth. It was difficult to see how social development could be addressed when all available resources must be used to feed and shelter the population. It was therefore necessary to consider realistic measures for the eradication of poverty, or at least of absolute poverty.
86. In the 1960s, his Government had focused its efforts on economic development, taking full advantage of external financial aid. Only after eliminating absolute poverty, in the late 1960s, had it tackled the issue of social development. Clearly, international aid had played,a critical role in breaking the vicious circle of poverty, especially at the initial stages of economic development.
87. The principle of self-help was equally important, however. The need for public sector intervention, especially in countries whose private sector was relatively undeveloped, could not be overemphasised. Since the demand for resources far exceeded their availability in many sectors. Governments must ensure appropriate resource distribution and administration.
88. Although the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons had undeniably brought about a perceptible improvement in the situation of that social group, in particular through the awareness promotion activities of the United Nations, the media and NGOs, the achievements of the Decade had fallen far short of the hopes placed in the World Programme of Action. It was essential, as called for in General Assembly resolution 45/91, to shift the focus of programmes on disability from awareness-raising to action and to support the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs in elaborating a long-term strategy to ensure the continuation of the World Programme of Action.

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(Mr. Shin. Republic of Korea)
89. The long-term strategy should consider various types of domestic legislation that reflected the diversity of legal systems, cultural values and stages of development, and an in-depth study should be carried out on factors that determined the degree of success or failure of such legislation. The Republic of Korea had recently adopted legislation requiring employers to allocate at least 1 per cent of all positions to disabled persons.
90. Da jure protection alone, however, was not enough. In order to create a society for all, disabled person, must not be considered merely as recipients of long-term care, but as active participants in economic and social development. They must receive vocational training, and their employers, whether public or private, must provide them with an appropriately adapted workplace, even if that meant job restructuring and modification of equipment.
91. Concerning young people, whose future depended upon the quality of health care and social infrastructures - as did, therefore, the future of the world -and who had been the victims of armed conflicts, malnutrition, juvenile
del iquency, drug abuse and illiteracy, his delegation had a number of suggestions to make on the implementation of the draft world youth programme of action towards the year 2000 and beyond, which was still in the embryonic stage. In the first place, the programme of action must not serve to blur the cultural differences between young people of different countries. Secondly, an order of priority for considering ****stions concerning youth at the international level must be set. Juvenile delinquency deserved top priority, and must be addressed by focusing on the role of the family and on education that prepared for life in society. Another high priority area was the plight of poor urban and rural young people who had been marginalised by industrialization but whose participation in economic and social development was indispensable.
92. The Secretary-General's report on international cooperation on ageing for 1992 and beyond (46/361) stressed two disturbing factors: the absence of an institutional infrastructure to accommodate the increasing numbers of the elderly and the uncertainty that the family would be able to continue providing care for its elderly members as in the past. The question of the elderly bad many facets and was more than just a problem of housing. From the point of view of development, the world could only benefit from the experience and wisdom of the elderly. Furthermore, the elderly needed, at least as much as financial independence, to have a sense of contributing to the rest of society. In that context, the preliminary globa1 target of a global corps of senior volunteers for development, describad in the report, deserved further consideration.
93. Mr. EKE (Benin) noted that the objectives set 22 years previously by the General Assembly in the Declaration on Social Progress and Development, namely the elimination of poverty, hunger and malnutrition, the equitable distribution of national income, the eradication of illiteracy and the right of everyone to education, employment, health care and housing, were far from

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(Mr. Eke, Benin)
being attained. Since 1971, the number of least developed countries had doubled, and more than 70 per cent of the adult population of those countries and more than 33 per cent of their total population were illiterate. One fifth of the world's population and one third of the population of the developing countries lived in permanent poverty. Drug abuse, the rural exodus, unemployment among young people and racism and other forms of discrimination were, in fact, on the increase.
94. Demographic pressure had been jeopardising economic growth for several years. Under the Declaration, each Government had the responsibility of ensuring the social progress and well-being of its people, a point of view that his Government shared, the President of Benin having only recently underscored that social and economic development was above all the affair of each and every inhabitant of that country.
95. But the international community also had a role to play in promoting social development in the developing countries, particularly in Africa. The far-reaching socio-political changes that had taken place around the world would remain without effect if such economic problems as North-South relations and the African debt were not resolved. With regard to social development, the international community must intervene to ensure that the winds of democracy did not blow in the desert. In that connection, his delegation underscored the pertinence of the Guiding Principles for Developmental Social Welfare Policies and Programmes in the Hear Future (A/46/414) and called upon the United Nations bodies to cooperate with other intergovernmental organizations to help Governments resolve the economic and social problems of concern to the population in general to which the Secretary-General had referred in the report.
96. His delegation was pleased that the General Assembly had proclaimed 1994 the International Year of the Family; it was convinced that observing the Year would make an important contribution to the well-being of mankind. Benin attached great importance to the family as the basic unit of society, and his Government was undertaking special efforts to improve mother and child health as part of the Expanded Vaccination Programme, to combat malnutrition and common childhood illnesses, to provide rural areas with drinking water, to achieve a gradual reduction of illiteracy and to make education universal.
97. Concerning the most vulnerable social groups, each State must ensure equality of opportunities for disabled persons so that they could be fully integrated into active life and promote the involvement of the elderly in the economic and social development process. However, owing to the economic difficulties that they were facing, developing countries were less able to carry out programmes for those social groups.
98. As young people were often at the vanguard of political and social change, their participation in development was an absolute necessity for countries like Benin. The new democracies in particular could only last if

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(Mr. Eke. Benin)
they gave priority attention to protecting young people's human rights, in particular the right to education and employment. Benin also took measures to protect young people from drugs and to combat the problem of street children by creating occupational and social reintegration centres for minors in difficult circumstances.
99. As there could be no social development without economic development, all disadvantaged and marginalized groups must be allowed to make their full contribution, and mora assistance must be given to the developing countries, in particular the least developed countries, which had been compelled to reduce their social programmes because of the debt burden and other economic problems.
100. Mr, FISSENKO (Belarus) said that statements made in the Committee had indicated that man was the means and end of economic development, that economic progress must have a solid social basis and that the social aspects of development were playing a growing role in maintaining the domestic and external security of Member States. It had also been pointed out that, although each country had the primary responsibility for its own development, the international community had to create conditions to facilitate the economic and social development of all its members, particularly that of the developing countries.
101. In considering agenda item 94 (a), the Committee had before it 10 or so reports containing constructive and interesting recommendations and proposals, although the number of reports on that agenda item should be limited in the future.
102. In his interim report on the world social situation (A/46/56), the Secretary-General noted that the decade of the 19 as had been a period of solid improvements in the world social situation in many countries, of unprecedented reversals in some others and of radical changes in the economic and social institutions in still others.
103. In the countries of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, the region to which the Republic of Belarus belonged, the changes had been far-reaching. In addition to reforming political institutions, those countries were engaged in changing economic and social structures, which until now had been under State control, in order to adapt them to a market economy. But even if one acknowledged that the speedy and radical changes in international relations, from which ideological conflicts had virtually been eliminated, the growth of scientific knowledge about the relationship between the economy and the environment and the deeper commitment on the part of Governments to seek solutions to common problems were so many factors which now held forth brighter prospects for international cooperation in the coming decade, it should be recognized that by abandoning a system of State control in order to make a transition to a market economy, the region had committed itself to a wholly unprecedented task and that the expectation that the transformation would be speedy was unlikely to be realized.

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(Mr. Fissanko. Belarus)
104. The transformation was encountering the most complex political,m economic and social problems. Since the beginning of 1991, the situation had even assumed crisis proportions in Belarus, which was confronted with an enormous budget def****it and the collapse of the credit system and consumer goods market. The ill-considered reform of retail prices introduced by the central administration had caused social discontent which was being openly expressed.
105. The Parliament of Belarus had ratified the State programme of the Republic concerning the stabilization of the economy and the social welfare of the population, the objectives of which ware to: carry out a programme for adapting to the market economy, prevent economic collapse, curb inflation and ensure monetary circulation; halt the decline in the population's living standard; and ensure the supply of food products, medicine and other essential goods to the population. In order to achieve those goals, there were plans to speed up the establishment of a market economy, reorganize finances, attract foreign capital, privatize the economy, apply the principle of "living according to one's means", allocate as a matter of priority material and technical resources to the agro-industrial complex., build facilities for eliminating the consequences of the Chernobyl accident and set up a consumer goods industry.
106. With regard to the social welfare of the population, there were plans to increase in 1962 average salaries in the productive sector by 50 to
100 per cent on the basis of the level of 1993, complete the establishment of a system of minimum consumer budgets for different social groups, determine the current value of consumer goods and set •' minimum living standard.
107. His country had adopted a new pension law which increases » minimum level of pension payments on the basis of age and that of pe**isions and benefits for disabled persons. The Republic had established a social welfare system for disabled persons with modest resources: for example, plans had been made to set up for the disabled special-purpose funds and reserves of essential goods, enable them to receive fre medico services and discounts on charges for public services, and open centres for social assistance and specialized care. The establishment of a pension and social-insurance system for non-salaried workers should be completed in 1992.
108. The Republic intended to implement an employment policy aimed at preventing the spread of unemployment. There were plans to establish a national employment agency and a Stats employment fund for distributing unemployment benefits.
109. The Secretary-General had rightly emphasized in his report that the seriousness of environmental problems was of particular concarn to the population because they strongly influenced economic and social development. It should be recalled is that rsgard that Relarus had to solve its social problemo in an economic situation that had been clearly complicated by the tragic Chernobyl accident, which was referred to briefly in paragraph 36 of

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(Mr. Fissanko. Belarua)
the report. The Belarusian delegation believed that the impact of that accident on the population of the Republic and of other countries was such that it should have been the subject of a separata paragraph in the report and that the environment should have been dealt with in a special section of the 1993 Report on the World Social Situation (a draft framework).
110. The United Nations should continue to give priority to programmer for improving in concrate terms the situation of women and that of the most vulnerable groups, namely the disabled, elderly persons and 'young people. Belarus therefore supported the idea of organising a second United Rations Decade of Disabled Persona (1994-2003) and the decision to celebrate in 1994 the International ;Year of the Family, in which it planned to take part. Furthermore, it attached great importance to the strengthening of the family as the basic unit of society, which had been affected by political, economic and social phenomena that had come about in Belarusian society. She number of families there was increasing more rapidly than the total population although the average family size had decre***ssd from 3.7 in 1959 to 3.2 today.
111. His delegation welcomed the contribution by the United Nations agencies that dealt with social questions, particularly in the Economic and Social Council and the Commission for Social Development, and the decisions taken by them on implementing plans and action programmes concerning social development, disabled persons, the elderly and the young people, as well as on enhancing the role of the Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs of the United Notions Office at Vienna. It also supported strengthening the role of the Commission for Social Development, which should, like the Commission on Human Sights, hold annual sessions. The Belarusian delegation wished in particular to support the recommendation by the Commission for Social Development on the convening of regional conferences of ministers for social affairs and the recommendation By the Economic and Social Council on the need to prepare for an international summit meeting on social development problems.
ORGANIZATION OF WORK
112. Mrs. AGUILERA (Mexico) speaking on behalf of Argentina, Brasil, Colombia,
Ecuador, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, expressed concern that the documentation
of agenda item 96, narcotic drugs, was not yet available, which prevented
delegations from evaluating the process of consolidating the United Nations
International Drug Control Programme. It was therefore, necessary to postpone
consideration if that item until a later date; accordingly, she proposed that
on Wednesday, 30 October, the Committee, after listening to the introduction
by the Executive Director of the Programme, should conduct consultations in
order to decide on. the date for considering the question. She requested the
Committee to take a decision at the current meeting to postpone consideration
of that agenda item.

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(Mrs. Aguilera, Mexico)
113. After a procedural discussion in which Miss MEHTA (India), Mr. OURESHI
(Pakistan), Mr. RADZI (Malaysia), Mr. KOTEY (Ghana), Miss DIOP (Senegal),
Mrs, BOUKADOUM (Algeria), Mrs. KODIKARE (Philippines), Mrs. ZIBRY (Egypt),
Mr. STUART (Australia), Mr. KUEHL (United States of America),
Mr. ALFARO-PIHEDA (El Salvador), Miss BOTBRO (Colombia), Mr. PALACIOS (Cuba),
Mr. RUSTICO (Italy) and Mr. AL-KINDI (United Arab Emirates) took part,
the CHAIRMAN suggested that the Committee should postpone taking a decision on
the matter until Monday, 28 October, in order to enable the Bureau to consider
the situation.
The meeting rose at 1.1S p.m.