Peacekeeping Resurgence.

United Nations peacekeeping experienced a resurgence in 1999 with major new operations mounted in Kosovo, East Tumor, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone. "While only two years ago we heard arguments that UN peacekeeping had outlived its usefulness, suck predictions are rarely heard today," said the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping, Bernard Miyet, to the Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization), as it began its discussion on peacekeeping.

"Because of the breadth of the United Nations system, the Organization has unparalleled ability to coordinate action in a wide range of disciplines, including humanitarian, civil affairs, rehabilitation, civilian police and electoral activities", Mr. Miyet said. But he warned Committee delegates that the United Nations would not be able to seize the opportunity and demonstrate its peacekeeping potential without "a strong partnership between the Secretariat and Member States to ensure that mandates are feasible, consistent and fully supported".

As it searches for ways to adjust and redefine the increasingly complex tasks that confronts it, the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) is replenishing its staff, with special emphasis on training and civilian police units. Government-sponsored staff members have been removed and are being replaced by paid employees, at the insistence of countries that viewed the "gratis" system as politically and geographically imbalanced. (The General Assembly approved 60 posts in December.) Mr. Miyet, however, stressed that staffing arrangements had to be flexible in order to respond to peacekeeping demands, and cautioned delegates against micro-managing. "The Secretariat respects the right of the General Assembly to legislate, but depends in turn upon respect for its own responsibility for administration and management, if we are to be effective", he said.

In the debate in the Fourth Committee, one of the hottest issues was Kosovo. The Non-Aligned Movement flatly rejected the "right of humanitarian intervention" and enforcement action that bypassed the Security Council, which it felt the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's action in Kosovo did. Speakers emphasized the need to base such intervention on the UN Charter and to clarify principles for the use of force. The Russian Federation called for a comprehensive review of the legal framework for enforcement actions.

Many speakers also spoke out against what they perceive to be a double standard for international involvement, with Uganda urging the Security Council to have the will to act in Africa as readily as it had done in Kosovo and East Timor. Delegates stressed the need to quickly reimburse troop-contributing countries, which are owed some $750 million. The European Union called for creative thinking to tackle the increasing demand for civilian police. The United States proposed "giving official status to a permanent cadre to facilitate mobilization, discipline and overall quality control" of civilian police for UN peacekeeping missions.

Acting on the recommendations of the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations, the General Assembly urged the Secretary-General to review the structure of DPKO. It said the Security Council should authorize all enforcement action and that there should be a differentiation between peacekeeping operations and humanitarian assistance. To improve efficiency, it called for the full establishment of the Rapidly Deployable Mission Headquarters, a more thorough review of key officials for peacekeeping operations and better procurement procedures for new missions. Improved consultations between troop-contributing countries and the Security Council and strengthened cooperation between regional organizations and the United Nations in line with the UN Charter were also recommended. Governments were requested to pay their peacekeeping dues in full and on time. To improve African capacity for peacekeeping, contributions to the Organization of African Unity's Peace Fund and the UN Trust Fund were urged, as was support f or current peacekeeping operations conducted by African subregional organizations.

Regarding Israeli practices in the occupied territories, the Assembly called on Israel to comply with the Geneva Conventions, stop all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan, and prevent illegal acts of violence by Israeli settlers. The Assembly also called on Israel to stop imposing its laws, jurisdiction and administration on the occupied Syrian Golan and stop imposing Israeli citizenship and identity cards on Syrian citizens there. It also urged Israel to accelerate the release of all remaining Palestinians arbitrarily detained or imprisoned, in line with agreements already reached, and to guarantee the freedom of movement of persons and goods in the occupied territory.

The General Assembly urged Palestine and Israel to deal with the issue of Palestinian refugees' properties and revenues in the final negotiations of the Middle East peace talks. It urged Governments to extend assistance for the socio-economic development of the Palestinian people and the occupied territories, and reaffirmed the right of all persons displaced as a result of hostilities to return to their homes or places of residence in the territories occupied by Israel since June 1967. The Assembly called upon Israel to compensate the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) for damage to its property and facilities. It strongly appealed for grants and scholarships to Palestine refugees and once more called upon Israel to remove all hindrances in the way of establishing the proposed University of Jerusalem "AlQuds" for Palestine refugees.

Decolonization is one of the great achievements of the twentieth century and the United Nations. Still, progress is slow with regard to the last colonial and Non-Self-Governing Territories, where some 2 million people live. The Assembly adopted in all eight resolutions and two decisions on decolonization.

Most speakers in the debate urged the administering Powers to facilitate visiting missions and to promote economic and social development of the Territories. The United States and the United Kingdom argued that the status of "colonial" and "non-self-governing" no longer apply to the 11 territories in the Caribbean and Pacific, namely: American Samoa, Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Guam, Monsterrat, Pitcairn, St. Helena, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. To foster progress, the Assembly called on the administering Powers to cooperate with the Special Committee on Decolonization to develop, a constructive work programme before the end of 2000, when the International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism and its action plan are to conclude.

The Assembly took no action on the question of East Timor. Instead, speakers welcomed the 30 August 1999 referendum, urged justice for those responsible for human rights violations, and appealed for more international assistance to help the people of East Timor rebuild their lives. In other matters, the Assembly approved a decision on the question of Gibraltar and resolutions on Western Sahara, New Caledonia and Tokelau. The question of the Falkland Islands/Malvinas was again deferred.

On questions relating to information, the Assembly emphasized the importance of a multilingual UN public information campaign. It requested the Secretary-General to pursue further multilingual development of United Nations Web sites and to continue to develop proposals for achieving parity between official languages. While underlining the continuing importance of traditional mass media channels, the Assembly encouraged the Secretary-General to take "full advantage" of new information technologies, including the Internet. The Assembly also asked the UN Department of Public Information to start a pilot project for the development of an international radio broadcasting capacity for the Organization. To enhance the communications capabilities of developing countries, the Assembly urged international cooperation to reduce disparities in information flows and increase assistance for the development of communication infrastructures.

Concerning outer space, the Assembly called for a renewed emphasis on space applications to address global challenges and a stepping-up of UN activities to enhance international cooperation in outer space. During debate, many speakers called for action to close the gap between developed and developing country advances in outer space. The Assembly proclaimed an annual World Space Week between 4 and 10 October. The text endorsed the conclusions of the Third UN Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III), held in Vienna from 19 to 30 Ju1y 1999. Among those conclusions, set out in the Vienna Declaration on Space and Human Development, was a call to encourage mechanisms to improve States' access to utilization of the International Space Station. In a related action, the Assembly also urged all States to contribute to the prevention of an arms race in outer space.

On atomic radiation, the Assembly asked the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation to continue its work and endorsed the publication of its next comprehensive report in the year 2000. It invited Member States, United Nations bodies and non-governmental organizations to provide the Scientific Committee with data about doses, effects and risks from various sources of radiation.