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No plenary meetings are scheduled for today, but it is a very busy day for several of the main committees.

The First Committee continued this morning taking action on draft resolutions before it and covering items 63 through 80 of its agenda. The meeting is already adjourned, and action was taken on all five drafts before the Committee this morning. The following drafts were adopted without a vote: Establishment of nuclear-free zone in Central Asia, Assistance to States for curbing the illicit traffic in small arms and collecting them, and Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons; while a recorded vote was taken on the draft on Small arms and on Conclusion of effective international arrangements to assure non-nuclear weapon States against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons. In the Second Committee this morning, five draft resolutions were introduced, namely on Trade and Development, under the item Macroeconomic policy questions; Implementation of the Outcome of the Habitat II Conference, under the item Sustainable development and international economic cooperation; Implementation of the outcome of the Rio conference on environment and development and of the special session of the General Assembly on this issue held last year; and Convention on Biological Diversity -- under the item Environment and sustainable development; and Implementation of the first UN Decade for the Eradication of Poverty. It then proceeded with informal consultations on several draft resolutions. The Third Committee will begin with the introduction of the draft resolution in the right of peoples to self-determination, and then resumed its general discussion of human rights questions. It is also scheduled to hear today introductory statements by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Human Rights in Cambodia; Special Representative of the Commission of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran; as well as a statement on behalf of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the Situation of Human Rights in Afghanistan. The Fifth Committee is holding elections this morning for appointments to a number of bodies. It elected Costa Rica as member of ACABQ without a vote as the only nominated candidate of the Latin American and Caribbean Group of States. It proceeded with an election for the three vacancies from the Asian Group (four candidates -- China, India, Japan, Pakistan) and WEOG ( two vacancies, four candidates -- Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, United States). On the first ballot, candidates from Japan, Pakistan and India were elected. WEOG -- UK on the first ballot; second ballot to be held for the second vacancy between the candidates from Germany and Italy. (It was announced at the end of the briefing that the candidate from Italy was elected on the second ballot. Regarding the appointment of the members of the Committee on Contributions, Cameroon and Ghana from Africa and the Netherlands and Australia from WEOG were elected without a vote. Following an agreement within the Latin American and Caribbean Group, nominees from Argentina, Chile and Uruguay will share the two seats for that Group for a three-year term, so that each nominee will serve a two-year term instead. Regarding the appointment of one member of the Board of Auditors, three nominations from the Asian Group were received, from India, Pakistan and the Philippines. The Chairman of the Commission of Audit of the Philippines was elected. The Fifth Committee endorsed without a vote the appointment of three members of the Investments Committee, from Germany, Ghana and Switzerland, as the numbers of nominees equalled the number of vacancies. For the UN Administrative Tribunal, there were three nominees (Ireland, Uganda, Unites States) for two vacancies. The candidates from Ireland and the United States were elected. The International Civil Service Commission had five vacancies and five nominees and elected without a vote the candidates from Argentina, Germany, Poland, Mauritania and Tunisia to those positions. It also elected without a vote Mr. Hadj Ben-Amor from Tunisia as the Chairman and Mr. Carlos Vegega of Argentina as the Vice-Chairman of the International Civil Service Commission. This afternoon, the Committee will discuss the UN common system and UN pension system. The Sixth Committee is holding informal consultations the whole day on draft resolutions on the International Law Commission; on the Implementation of the Provisions of the Charter relating to the assistance to third States affected by the application of sanctions; and on the UN Decade of International Law.