Commission on Human Settlement – Resolution

REPORT OF THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN SETTLEMENTS

ON THE WORK OF ITS FOURTEENTH SESSION*

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Resolutions

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14/9.  Housing requirements for the Palestinian people**

The Commission on Human Settlements,

Recalling Security Council resolution 465 (1980) of 1 March 1980,

Recalling also the relevant General Assembly resolutions on assistance to the Palestinian people and living conditions of the Palestinian people, in particular, resolutions 40/170 of 17 December 1985 and 42/190 of 11 December 1987,

Recalling its resolution 13/6 of 8 May 1991,

Noting with satisfaction the report of the Executive Director of the United Nations Center for Human Settlements (Habitat) on housing requirements of the Palestinian people, k/

Noting also that bilateral peace talks are now taking place in Washington D.C. between delegations from Palestine and Israel which will include housing issues,

Considering that the issue of housing for the Palestinian people falls within the mandate of the United Nations Center for Human Settlements (Habitat),

In favor: Bangladesh, Brazil, Chile, Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Jordan, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Malaysia, Mexico, Pakistan, Sudan, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, Zimbabwe.

Against: United States of America.

Abstaining: Austria, Botswana, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Kenya Lesotho, Malawi, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Romania, Russian Federation, Sweden, Uganda, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Absent: Antigua and Barbuda, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Barbados, Belarus, Bulgaria, Cameroon, Haiti, Jamaica, Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sri Lanka , Turkey, Venezuela.

1. Requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with the Executive Director of the United Nations Center for Human Settlements (Habitat) and in cooperation with the Palestine Liberation Organization, to take all the appropriate measures for the implementation of a national Palestinian housing strategy in the light of the report of the Executive Director and the recommendations contained therein in accordance with the Global strategy for Shelter to the Year 2000, as soon as possible;

2. Calls upon the Israeli occupation authorities to implement the following in order to enable the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territories to secure their housing requirements:

(a) To put an end to the confiscation of Palestinian lands and the establishment of settlements to house the new immigrants;

(b) To refrain from applying policies that prevent and hamper the issuance of building permits to the Palestinian people;

(c) To refrain from applying policies and practices that prohibit the production and development of local building materials in the occupied territories, and others that limit the import of appropriate building materials;

(d) To end the application of laws that prevent the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territories from establishing their national housing-finance institutions;

(e)  To lift sanctions imposed on funding and financial aid for housing from international, Arab and regional institutions to the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territories;

3. Calls upon the international donor community to increase technical assistance, grant assistance and investment needed for an overall solution to the housing problems of the Palestinian people, thus ameliorating the standard of living of the Palestinian people;

4. Requests the Executive Director of the United Nations Center for Human Settlements (Habitat) to take appropriate measures and conduct consultations with a view to facilitating the training and formation of the required Palestinian technical cadres necessary to secure the national housing requirements for the Palestinian people;

5. Requests the Preparatory Committee of the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) to consider the housing requirements of the Palestinian people in the agenda for the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), due to be held in Turkey in June 1996;

6. Further requests the Executive Director to present a comprehensive report on the progress made in the implementation of the present resolution to the Commission at its fifteenth session.

7th plenary meeting

5 May 1993

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* The present document is a mimeographed version of the report of the Commission on Human Settlements on the work of its fourteenth session. The report will be issued subsequently as Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-eighth Session, Supplement No. 8 (A/48/8.).

** Adopted by 16 votes to 1, with 24 abstentions, as follows:

k/ HS/C/14/2/Add.l.

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