Observer status of national liberation movements – Replies from Governments – SecGen report

OBSERVER STATUS OF NATIONAL LIBERATION MOVEMENTS

RECOGNIZED BY THE ORGANIZATION OF AFRICAN UNITY

AND/OR BY THE LEAGUE OF ARAB STATES

Report of the Secretary-General

CONTENTS

*A/43/150.

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I. INTRODUCTION

1. On 3 December 1986, the General Assembly adopted resolution 41/71 entitled “Observer statue of national liberation movements recognised by the Organization of African Unity and/or by the League of Arab States”. The operative part of the resolution read as follows:

“The General Assembly,

"…

“1. Urges all States that have not done so, in particular those which are hosts to international organizations or to conferences convened by, or held under the auspices of, international organizations of a universal character, to consider as soon as possible the question of ratifying, or acceding to, the Vienna Convention on the Representation of States in Their Relations with International Organisations of a Universal Character;

“2. Calls once more upon the States concerned to accord to the delegations of the national liberation movements recognised by the Organization of African Unity and/or by the League of Arab States, and accorded observer status by international organizations, the facilities, privileges and immunities necessary for the performance of their functions in accordance with the provisions of the Vienna Convention on the Representation of States in Their Relations with International Organizations of a Universal Character;

"3. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its forty-third session on the implementation of the present resolution.”

2. By a note dated 9 April 1987, the Secretary-General invited Governments to provide him with any information and comments they might wish to contribute to the preparation of the report of the Secretary-General requested in paragraph 3 of the above resolution.

3. The present report reproduces the replies that had been received as at 15 August 1988. Further replies that might still be forthcoming will be reproduced as addenda to the present report.

II.  REPLIES FROM GOVERNMENTS

CZECHOSLOVAKIA

[Original: English]

[29 July 1987]

The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic is a party to the Vienna Convention on the Representation of States in Their Relations with International Organizations of a Universal Character. No international organization of a universal character, to which the Convention would be applicable, has its seat in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. If an international conference convened by such organization took place in the Czechoslovakia, a request to grant privileges and immunities to delegations of the national liberation movements recognized by the Organization of African Unity and by the League of Arab States would be complied with. On a bilateral treaty basis, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic grants diplomatic privileges to the Palestine Liberation Organization.

YUGOSLAVIA

[Original: English]

[8 March 1988]

1. Yugoslavia ratified the Vienna Convention on the Representation of States in Their Relations with International Organizations of a Universal Character on 20 September 1977.

2. In the spirit of the principle of its independent and non-aligned foreign policy and in accordance with the relevant resolutions and decisions of the United Nations, for the purpose of successful execution of the function of political representation of the Palestinian, Namibian and Saharan peoples, Yugoslavia has granted facilities, privileges and immunities to the representatives of the liberation movements of PLO, SWAPO and Polisario in Yugoslavia, whereby their status has been virtually upgraded to the status of diplomatic and consular representatives in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

3. It is pointed out on this occasion that the decision taken by the United Nations to grant observer status to the liberation movements recognized by the Organization of African Unity and/or the League of Arab States is perceived by Yugoslavia as a confirmation of the conviction of the majority of the Member States of the world Organization that it is necessary to ensure these movements, as legitimate representatives of their peoples, full participation in the work of international organizations so that they could make their own contribution to the solution of key international problems. Yugoslavia is deeply convinced that, to this effect, it is indispensable that all United Nations Member States, and particularly host countries of international organizations, should consider the question of the ratification of, or accession to, the Vienna Convention on the Representation of States in Their Relations with International Organizations of a Universal Character and grant the privileges and immunities requisite for the functioning of political representatives of national liberation movements in accordance with the provisions of that Convention, the resolution adopted at the Conference which drafted the Convention and with other resolutions and decisions of the General Assembly.

 

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