Assistance to the Palestinian people – GA debate and action – Press release (excerpts)

Fifty-fifth General Assembly

Plenary

85th Meeting (AM)

ASSEMBLY ADOPTS 11 DRAFT RESOLUTIONS WITHOUT VOTE

Nine Texts Cover Economic Assistance to Individual Countries, Regions

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Assembly Work Programme

Strengthening of Coordination of Humanitarian and Disaster Relief Assistance

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Before the Assembly was a resolution (document A/55/L.63) on assistance to the Palestinian people, by whose terms the Assembly would urge Member States, international financial institutions of the United Nations system, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and regional and interregional organizations to extend, as rapidly and as generously as possible, economic and social [assistance] to the Palestinian people, in close cooperation with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and through official Palestinian institutions.

The Assembly would urge Member States to open their markets to exports of Palestinian products on the most favourable terms, consistent with appropriate trading rules, and to implement fully existing trade and cooperation agreements.  It would further call upon the international donor community to expedite the delivery of pledged assistance to the Palestinian people to meet their urgent needs.

By the text of the draft, the Assembly would stress the need to implement the Paris Protocol on Economic Relations of 29 April 1994 and the fifth annex to the Israeli-Palestinian Agreement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip, signed in Washington, D.C. on 28 September 1995, in particular, with regard to the full and prompt clearance of Palestinian indirect tax revenues.  

The Assembly would also suggest the convening in 2001 of a United Nations-sponsored seminar on assistance to the Palestinian people.

By the terms of the resolution, the Assembly would request the Secretary-General to submit a report to it at its fifty-sixth session, through the Economic and Social Council, on the implementation of the present resolution, the report to contain an assessment of the assistance actually received by the Palestinian people; an assessment of the needs still unmet and specific proposals for responding effectively to them.

The draft was sponsored by Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guinea, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Togo, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkey and the United Kingdom.

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Strengthening of Coordination of Humanitarian and Disaster Relief Assistance of United Nations, Including Special Economic Assistance:  Introduction of Resolutions

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YVES DOUTRIAUX (France), speaking on behalf of the European Union and other co-authors of the text, introduced the draft resolution entitled "assistance to the Palestinian people" (document A/55/L.63).  He expressed appreciation to the Secretary-General, the United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Member States, United Nations bodies, intergovernmental, regional and non-governmental organizations for their efforts and continuous assistance to the Palestinian people.  The European Union supported the Assembly's call for an intensification of assistance to meet the urgent needs of the Palestinian people, and exhorted the international donor community to expedite the delivery of pledged assistance.  In addition, the resolution requested Member States to open their markets to exports of Palestinian products on the most favourable terms, he added.

It was essential that assistance should reach its destination without obstacles.  Moreover, the free movement of persons and goods had to be secured.  The Union felt it was also important to implement the bilateral Paris Protocol on Economic Relations, specifically the full clearance of tax revenues of the Palestinian Authority.  Despite the tragic events in the region, he hoped that the resolution would be adopted by consensus, which would represent "a positive gesture".  Moreover, such a gesture would advance the resumption of the dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians.

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