Permanent sovereignty over natural resources in the OPT and Golan – GA Second Cttee debate, introduction of draft res’n – Summary record (excerpts)

Second Committee

Summary record of the 19th meeting

Held at Headquarters, New York, on Tuesday, 28 October 2008, at 10 a.m. 

 Chairperson:   Mr. Metelitsa (Vice-Chairperson) ………………………………………  (Belarus)

Contents

Agenda item 38: Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources ( continued)

/…

  In the absence of Ms. Ogwu (Nigeria), Mr. Metelitsa (Belarus), Vice-Chairperson, took the Chair.

The meeting was called to order at 10.10 a.m.

Agenda item 38: Permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources (continued) (A/C.2/63/L.5)

Draft resolution on the permanent sovereignty of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and of the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan over their natural resources

1.  Mr. Tag-Eldin (Egypt) introduced draft resolution A/C.2/63/L.5, noting that the text was similar to the previous year’s resolution, with some technical updates in the first preambular paragraph and paragraph 8, and minor changes in the thirteenth and fourteenth preambular paragraphs. He looked forward to the adoption of the resolution by consensus and hoped that it would contribute to alleviating the hardships of the Palestinian people under occupation.

/…

63.  Mr. Ali (Syrian Arab Republic) …

/…

65.   The continued Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory and the occupied Syrian Golan, the siege of Gaza and the strangulation of the Palestinian economy deprived the Palestinian people of its right to sustainable development. The extensive damage to the environment in occupied Palestine increased the suffering of the Palestinian people: lack of access to fuel in Gaza meant that sewage could not be treated and had to be discharged into the sea. After storms, raw sewage contaminated drinking water, causing a huge increase in disease. The occupying Power in the occupied Palestinian territory and the occupied Syrian Golan was systematically destroying the agriculture that represented the main source of the population’s income, denied Palestinian farmers access to water and their own land, and continued to appropriate land for settlements and military bases. Furthermore, Israel was burying nuclear waste in the occupied Syrian Golan with total disregard for its grave environmental impact. The international community should bring pressure to bear on Israel to end its occupation of Arab territory. No form of development could be realized by the Palestinian people while living under occupation.

/…

The meeting rose at 1 p.m.

This record is subject to correction. Corrections should be sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned within one week of the date of publication to the Chief of the Official Records Editing Section, room DC2-750, 2 United Nations Plaza, and incorporated in a copy of the record. Corrections will be issued after the end of the session, in a separate corrigendum for each Committee.