She urged that all governments broaden the participation of women at all levels of public life. The Commission concluded its debate by approving a lengthy "Statement on the world social situation in the first half of the Second United Nations Development Decade," and recommending that ECOSOC (1) endorse the Statement and (2) reaffirm the Commission's mandate to examine the fundamental problems of social development with a view to playing a role in the review and appraisal process. The Statement pointed out that, in some respects, the situation of less developed countries håd worsened. It called for the establishment of new goals and policies in order to integrate the different elements of development--social, economic, cultural, and humanitarian. Such a revised development strategy would seek to assure participation of all elements of the population in the development process. It called upon all countries in a position to do so to provide aid for povertystricken countries and concluded with an exhortation to all to implement the unified approach to development. The Statement also included, however, a number of references to such issues as disarmament, colonialism, imperialism, and national sovereignty that the United States considered inappropriate to the question of social development. In addition, it cited the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States (whose adoption by the 29th General Assembly the United States had opposed) as a guideline for national and international action. By a vote of 15 to 7 (U.S.), with 2 abstentions, the Commission retained the reference to the Charter, and the resolution as a whole was adopted by a vote of 22 to 1 (U.S.), with no abstentions. On May 6, the 58th ECOSOC adopted a resolution (1) reaffirming that the Commission should concentrate its activities on the examination of the fundamental problems of social development, and (2) endorsing the views set forth in the Statement. The United States opposed the second paragraph, and abstained on the resolution as a whole which was adopted by a vote of 32 to 0, with 1 abstention. Although the Secretary General's report on the world social situation was on the agenda of the 30th General Assembly, the Third Committee had insufficient time to consider it. On the Committee's recommendation, the Assembly on December 15 without a vote deferred consideration of the report until the 31st session. Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons The issue of rehabilitating disabled persons evoked much interest in the Commission and the speakers agreed that the United Nations could play a useful role within the constraints imposed by limited funds. They also agreed that assistance for the disabled should be expanded, especially at the regional level, with special emphasis on preventive measures, increased technical assistance, and the inclusion of services for the disabled in national planning and in training of personnel. Colombia introduced for adoption by ECOSOC a resolution, sponsored by 11 states including the United States, that (1) drew the attention of governments to the increasing magnitude of the problem of disabled persons throughout the world; (2) requested governments (a) to take legislative measures on behalf of the disabled, (b) to identify and evaluate existing services, including those provided by nongovernmental organizations, (c) to incorporate in their development plans measures for aiding the disabled, and (d) to try to assure for all categories of disabled persons care, education, training, vocational guidance, and suitable work as well as social security benefits; (3) requested the Secretary General to undertake studies of special problems in this field; and (4) requested the Secretariat, the UNDP, and other UN organizations and nongovernmental organizations to assist governments, especially those of the lesser developed countries, in setting up rehabilitation programs. The resolution was approved by the Commission without vote and subsequently adopted by ECOSOC on May 6, also without vote. The Third Committee of the 30th General Assembly also considered the subject, and a draft declaration on the rights of disabled persons, sponsored by 48 countries, including the United States, was introduced by Belgium on November 3. After some revision, the Declaration was approved by the Committee without a vote on November 11 and adopted by the Assembly in plenary session, also without a vote, on December 9. The Declaration enumerated various rights of the disabled, including the same civil and political rights as other human beings; measures to enable them to become as selfreliant as possible; the right to medical, psychological, and functional training; economic and social security; and protection against exploitation. It also called for national and international action to ensure that the Declaration would be used as a common basis and frame of reference for the protection of the rights of the disabled. Migrant Workers In considering this topic the Commission had before it a report by the Secretary General on the welfare of migrant workers and their families and a report by the ILO on its action on behalf of foreign migrant workers and their families. In the debate, some delegations focused on the heavy burden that large numbers of migrant workers impose on the social services of the receiving country, while other delegations thought that the migrants and lower-income groups in the receiving country shared some of the same difficulties and that social measures for both should be integrated. Italy sponsored a resolution that, in its final form, was approved by the Commission without vote. In one of its preambular paragraphs it expressed awareness of the problems migratory groups can cause, and in its operative paragraphs it (1) emphasized the necessity for action to improve the lot of migrant workers; (2) called for their equal treatment; and (3) asked the Secretary General, in cooperation with the ILO, UNESCO, and WHO to prepare a document incorporating the principles concerning migratory workers and their families already embodied in international instruments and to submit it to the Commission at its 26th session (1979) so that the Commission could assess the main principles applicable and make the necessary recommendations. ECOSOC subsequently adopted the resolution without vote on May 6. A related resolution was adopted by the 30th General Assembly during its consideration of human rights matters. On November 13, Mexico introduced in the Third Committee a draft resolution, sponsored by six states, that (1) called on various UN organs to continue to devote their attention to measures to ensure the human rights and dignity of all migrant workers; (2) requested UN bodies concerned to utilize the term "non-documented or irregular migrant workers" to define those workers who illegally enter another country; and (3) appealed to member states to respect the human rights of all migrant workers and to allow diplomatic and consular agents to fulfill their functions with respect to all migrant workers. The Third Committee approved the resolution on November 14 by a vote of 111 (U.S.) to 0, with 3 abstentions, and the Assembly adopted it on December 9 by a vote of 130 (U.S.) to 0, with 2 abstentions. Unified Approach to Development Analysis and Planning Although it did not approve any resolutions, the Commission had a useful discussion of the importance of integrating social and economic planning for development and of the value of social indicators for measuring progress. For its consideration, it had before it a report on such a unified approach that had been prepared by the UN Research Institute for Social Development. 21/ In commenting on his report, the Institute's Director, Donald McGranahan, noted that the great diversity among countries precluded universal solutions but said that diagnosis could determine which developmental instruments and measures were suitable under given circumstances. Points of view in the debate varied from enthusiastic support to doubts about the value of a unified approach. The U.S. Representative described the unified approach as a methodology to assist countries in defining and achieving their development goals. Similarly, social indicators were not an end in themselves but were tools for measuring progress. She described the agenda items on the world social situation, on popular participation, on the unified approach, and on social indicators as interrelated components of a single theme-social progress, and how to achieve it. Although there was no generally accepted definition of a social indicator, the debate produced a useful working definition: "a social statistic representing a more complete and precise answer to socially relevant questions than could be obtained by mere description." Socially relevant questions included degrees of health, levels of education, housing conditions, levels of wealth and poverty, distribution of wealth, and identification of areas of greatest social deprivation. The Commission agreed that work on social indicators should proceed simultaneously with the development of basic social data. At the 30th General Assembly, the German Democratic Republic introduced in the Second Committee a draft resolution, sponsored by 14 states, that, inter alia, (1) took note of the UNRISD report on a unified approach to development analysis and planning; (2) regarded a unified approach as a means for the attainment of balanced social, economic, and human development; (3) endorsed the application of a unified approach by the regional economic commissions and other concerned UN bodies; and (4) requested the Secretary General to continue to study the question, to prepare a report on practical application by governments, and to submit this report to the Commission for Social Development in 1977. The Second Committee approved the resolution without vote on November 21 and the Assembly adopted it without vote on November 28. 21/ UNRISD undertakes research into the interrelationship of economic and social development and methods of social planning. Financed by voluntary contributions, UNRISD started operations in 1964. Popular Participation and its Practical While there was general agreement that popular ECOSOC adopted the resolution at its 58th session on May 6, without a vote. 77-838 - 76 - 13 |