Wiping Away Remnants of Colonialism
Fourth Committee (Special Political and Decolonization)
By Vikram Sura with V. Maria Morgan

Ambassador Hasmy Agam, Permanent Representative of Malaysia and Chairman, Fourth Committee. (Chronicle Photo)

The Special Political and Decolonization Committee is officially known as the Fourth Committee. Yet, in the order of elections to its chair, it comes second.

“Political issues years ago were dealt with by the First Committee”, Ambassador Hasmy Agam, Fourth Committee Chairman, told the UN Chronicle. “Then later on they rationalized the various committees, hived the political issues off the First Committee, lumped it with the Decolonization Committee, which is the Fourth Committee. Sometimes it is fourth and sometimes it is second in the hierarchy.”

He said: “We deal with lots of issues and some are highly contentious, like decolonization for instance, because there are still remnants of colonialism left in the world.” He listed Western Sahara and the Middle East as the issues discussed within the context of decolonisation and practices affecting Palestinian human rights in the occupied territories; and Cyprus and Afghanistan in the context of peacekeeping and peacebuilding."

Children play atop the ruins of a demolished house in the West Bank camp of Jalazone. (UNRWA Photo/George Nehmeh) 55 Years of the Fourth Committee Then and Now ... in 1947 Trusteeship Agreement for Nauru - The Assembly approves the Trusteeship Agreement for Nauru, submitted by the Governments of Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The resolution is in accordance with a draft text conceived in the UN Charter, which states: “The General Assembly resolves that Members of the United Nations responsible for the administration of such territories be requested to submit Trusteeship Agreements for all... territories as are not ready for immediate self-government”. Future status of South West Africa (Namibia) - The Assembly notes the decision of the Government of the Union of South Africa not to incorporate South West Africa, maintains that the Territory should be placed under the Trusteeship System, and urges the Government to propose a trusteeship agreement for the Territory of South West Africa for Assembly consideration. Creation of a Special Committee on Information, transmitted under Article 73e of the UN Charter - The Assembly invites the Fourth Committee to constitute a special committee to examine the information transmitted under Article 73 e of the Charter on the economic, social and educational conditions in the Non-Self-Governing Territories, and to submit reports to the Assembly, with recommendations relating to the functional fields generally but not with respect to individual territories. ... in 2001 Question of Palestine - The Assembly extends the mandate of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and notes with concern that insufficiencies in the Agency’s finances have a negative impact on living conditions of Palestinian refugees. It appeals to States, specialized agencies and non-governmental organizations to augment grants and scholarships to Palestinian refugees, in addition to their contributions to the UNRWA regular budget. It calls upon Israel to cease obstructing the movement of UNRWA personnel, vehicles and supplies. Israeli practices - The Assembly reaffirms that Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory and the Syrian Golan Heights are illegal and an obstacle to peace and development. It demands cessation of all Israeli settlement activities, condemns all acts of violence against Palestinian civilians and calls upon Israel to accelerate the release of all Palestinians arbitrarily detained or imprisoned. Small island non-self-governing Territories - The Assembly reaffirms the inalienable right of the peoples of the Territories of American Samoa, Anguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Guam, Montserrat, Pitcairn, Saint Helena, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands to self-determination and independence. It calls upon the Administering Powers to facilitate political education programmes to foster awareness of the right to self-determination. Source: UN Yearbook 1947-1948

The Committee submitted to the General Assembly 25 draft resolutions, 11 of which were adopted without a vote. About half of the resolutions concerned decolonization issues. Much of the debate within the Committee focused on Western Sahara.

“I remember 12 to 13 years ago when Malaysia was in the [Security] Council. We are again a member in 1999-2000, nearly ten years later. But the issue of Western Sahara has not changed. It’s the same thing!” said Ambassador Agam.

He said that James Baker III, Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General on Western Sahara, has been “trying to work out an acceptable approach linked up with the Security Council that was discussed in the Fourth Committee”. However, he said, it was important for the Committee to follow closely the developments in the Council. In 2001, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara until 28 February 2002 and supported all efforts for further dialogue to find a political solution to the conflict. “Within the Committee, a compromise text was reached on Western Sahara with the cooperation of the Ambassadors of Morocco and Algeria,” Ambassador Agam said. The Assembly adopted the resolution without a vote.

Western Sahara, formerly known as Spanish Sahara, is one of the remaining 17 Non-Self-Governing Territories and the last one in Africa. These Territories have three options: free association with other independent States; full integration with political rights; or independence.

The contending parties on the question of Western Sahara are Morocco and the POLISARIO Front. In 1991, a UN Settlement Plan was put forward that called for a referendum to choose either integration with or independence from Morocco. The referendum has been stalled due in part to appeals and disagreements over the voter identification and registration process.

Twelve texts relating to the Middle East, which Ambassador Agam noted was another contentious issue, were also dealt with in the Fourth Committee. “In light of what is happening currently with the Intifada and developments on the ground, passions are high on the part of Arab countries and Islamic countries,” he said. As Chairman, Ambassador Agam tried to tone down the “temperature” in the Committee. “To the extent that was possible, I was able to conduct the discussion reasonably well”, he said.

The General Assembly voted on all but one issue related to the Middle East, the “Working Group on the Financing of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East”, adopting this without a vote. On “offers by Member States of grants and scholarships for higher education, including training for Palestinian refugees”, no negative vote was recorded in the Assembly.

The Committee also discussed the texts on the effects of atomic radiation and on international cooperation on the peaceful uses of outer space, both of which were passed without a vote in the Committee and in the Assembly.

The Committee Rapporteur, Graham Maitland of South Africa, in introducing the Committee’s report to the Assembly, said that the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) in the course of the last 46 years had made a valuable contribution in understanding the risks and effects of ionizing radiation, and further said that UNSCEAR should continue its consultations with scientists from Member States in preparing its future reports.

On the peaceful uses of outer space, the Assembly, on the Committee’s recommendation, among other things: endorsed the work of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and its Scientific and Technical Subcommittee; would follow up on implementing the recommendations by the Third UN Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNISPACE III); and added Cuba, Peru, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Slovakia to membership of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space.

Dutch soldiers spend time talking to residents while on a break from peacekeeping duties in Teocek, eastern Bosnia. (UN Photo)

The Fourth Committee also discussed peacekeeping and public information. Two drafts on public information were passed without a vote both in the Committee and the Assembly. On information in the service of humanity, the General Assembly urged all countries and the United Nations system to ensure development of communication infrastructure in developing countries and support professional practices in journalism. In the second text, on UN public information policies and activities, the Assembly decided to expand the Organization’s international radio broadcasting capacity in all six official languages, building on the success of a pilot project.

“Some smaller countries mentioned that as much as the Internet is important, radio is also important, because in some countries they listen to the radio much more than having access to the Internet”, said Ambassador Agam. On peacekeeping, he said that the Committee focused “on a follow-up to the Brahimi Report and how it could be operationalized by the DPKO [Department of Peacekeeping Operations]”.