Mostafa K. Tolba (Egypt) to serve as Executive Director of UNEP in 1976, completing the term of Maurice Strong, who resigned to return to a senior position in the Canadian Government. Preparations for Habitat There were intensive UN and U.S. preparations during 1975 for Habitat, the UN Conference on Human Settlements, scheduled for Vancouver, Canada, May 31June 11, 1976. The Conference is a major UN event, following the tradition and pattern of earlier UN conferences on the environment, population, food, and women. However, unlike those conferences, it was widely agreed that Habitat should concentrate on national action. Possible international activities should be designed chiefly to strengthen the national potential to improve human settlements, a term briefly defined as the manmade environment. Ever since the decision in 1972 to hold the Conference, Habitat was expected to be built around an exchange of ideas and experiences on solutions to human settlement problems. In that connection, a largescale audiovisual program was planned, a unique element in so large a UN event. Preparations for U.S. participation in Habitat were assigned to a special office established in the Department of State and headed by Stanley D. Schiff as Coordinator of U.S. Participation in the UN Habitat Conference. A Habitat Interagency Working Group, representing 14 Government agencies, worked with the Coordinator's office. The Department of Housing and Urban Development was especially active in Conference preparations. In addition, an Advisory Committee for U.S. Participation was formed which included representatives from 35 public interest organizations. UN intergovernmental preparations were carried out in a series of meetings which succeeded in moving the process from an early exchange on broad issues to statements on specific agenda items and final approval of an agenda and conference organization. In 1973 the 28th General Assembly had established a 56-nation Habitat Preparatory Committee; the United States was a member. At the Committee's first full session, in New York, January 15-24, 1975, Habitat's Secretary General, Enrique Peñalosa of Colombia, reported on the work of the conference secretariat and the Committee considered, among other subjects, a timetable of events leading up to Vancouver. Most importantly, members discussed a substantive framework for Habitat and left with the secretariat the job of drafting an agenda. The United States also participated, as a member or observer, in four meetings convened by the regional economic commissions to assist in the Habitat preparatory process. ESCAP and ECWA met jointly in Tehran, June 14-19; ECA met in Cairo, June 21-26; ECE met in Geneva, June 30-July 1; and ECLA met in Caracas, June 30July 4. The participants exchanged views on the scope of the Habitat Conference and on possible post-conference activities and made a large number of recommendations. Noteworthy was the nearly unanimous view that future UN programs related to human settlements should be carried out whenever possible at the regional level. A serious political issue intruded into the generally professional discussions, however, when the ESCAP-ECWA meeting adopted by majority vote a resolution proposed by Iraq calling for the exclusion of Israel from the Habitat Conference because it was responsible for the involuntary migration of 2 million Palestinian Arabs and the destruction of their houses and villages. The United States strongly opposed the resolution because it is committed to the position of principle that no member of the United Nations should be excluded from a conference which is otherwise open to all members. Nevertheless, the resolution was adopted by a rollcall vote of 16 to 5 (U.S.), with 5 abstentions. At the subsequent Cairo meeting the ECA states recommended that Israel, Rhodesia, and South Africa be excluded from the Conference because of their actions "in defiance of UN resolutions" and directly contrary to the spirit of Habitat. Both the European and Latin American states, however, adopted statements declaring that all countries should participate actively in the Conference, and the question of exclusion was not pursued further during the year. The Preparatory Committee resumed its first session in New York, August 25-29, to consider the draft rules of procedure, the Conference's structure, and the agenda. No agreement was reached on the rules of procedure, but the Committee approved drafts covering both of the other subjects. The approved draft agenda was the culmination of a long process seeking to define the Conference's scope and focus. At its core were items related to three basic documents that will be considered in Vancouver: (1) a declaration of principles; (2) proposals for international action; and (3) recommendations for national action. The latter will cover six broad subjects--settlement policies and strategies; settlement planning; shelter, infrastructure, and services; land; public participation; and institutions and management. Following the resumed session, ad hoc intergovernmental working groups established by the Preparatory Committee met in Geneva, September 22-26, to consider further the declaration of principles and international cooperation. The latter included proposed future international programs and UN institutional arrangements related to human settlements. The groups, in which the United States participated, requested the Habitat secretariat to prepare revised drafts for further consideration at the Preparatory Committee meeting scheduled for January 1976. The Second Committee of the 30th General Assembly discussed preparations for Habitat during its consideration of the report of the UNEP Governing Council. Canada introduced a draft resolution, sponsored by 20 states, that approved the Habitat agenda and Conference structure as recommended by the Preparatory Committee and requested the UN Secretary General to invite all states and certain organizations, including specified national liberation groups, to participate in the Conference. Egypt introduced an amendment, sponsored by 25 states, that requested the Secretary General to ensure that the necessary arrangements were made for the effective participation in the Conference of the liberation groups, "including the requisite financial provisions for travel expenses, per diem allowances, and audiovisual presentations." This amendment was adopted by a vote of 79 to 2 (U.S.), with 17 abstentions, after which the resolution as amended was approved without a vote. Ambassador Myerson explained that the United States had voted against the amendment because it believed that representatives of national liberation movements should be invited only for such time as was necessary for their participation on items directly relevant to them. Further, the United States questioned the appropriateness of using funds from the UN budget to pay the participation costs for the national liberation movements. The General Assembly adopted the resolution in plenary session without a vote on December 9. Committee for Housing, Building, and Planning The 27-member Committee on Housing, Building, and Planning--a standing committee of ECOSOC--held its ninth biennial session in Geneva, October 13-24, 1975. Nineteen of the member states attended. 23/ The session was dominated by a preoccupation with the upcoming Habitat Conference and possible actions emanating from it, but the Committee also reviewed such subjects as the situation in the field of human settlements at the mid-point of the Second UN Development Decade, the 23/ Members present were Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Egypt, Finland, France, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Iran, Nigeria, Spain, Thailand, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, and Venezuela. Absent were Cameroon, Gabon, Iraq, Morocco, Panama, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, and U.S.S.R. research and development efforts of the Center for Housing, Building, and Planning (a part of the UN Secretariat), and coordination and cooperation in the field of human settlements. The 1974 decision of the General Assembly to establish the UN Habitat and Human Settlements Foundation created overlapping mandates and areas of operation between the Foundation and the already existing Center, and the earlier decision by ECOSOC to postpone until after Habitat any further rationalization of the responsibilities of the Foundation and the Center constrained the members of the Committee from taking the kind of action that normally would be considered appropriate. As a result, the Committee approved, without a vote, only one resolution that it recommended for adoption by ECOSOC. The resolution (1) affirmed the existing and distinctive role in the UN system of the Center for Housing, Building, and Planning; (2) expressed the desire that resources be increased for UN work for the improvement of human settlements; and (3) decided to give careful attention to the existing mandate and role of the Committee and the Center in seeking solutions to the problems of human settlements. EFFECTS OF ATOMIC RADIATION The UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) 24/ was established by the General Assembly in 1955 to provide continuous review and evaluation of the effects of ionizing radiation on man and his environment. Radiation in this context covers both natural and manmade (i.e., from atmospheric and surface nuclear weapons tests, nuclear power plants, and peaceful nuclear explosions) environmental radiation, and medical and occupational exposures. Dr. Richard H. Chamberlain, Chairman of the Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, represented the United States at UNSCEAR's 24th session, held in New York, September 15-19, 1975. During that session the Committee discussed, on the basis of reviews prepared in the Secretariat, recent information on genetic and somatic effects of radiation, including experimental results and risk assessments in man; population exposures from natural radiation sources, from environmental contamination due to nuclear explosions, and from power production by nuclear fission; occupational exposure to radiation; and medical irradiation. The Committee made detailed decisions regarding the treatment of these subjects in the comprehensive report that it had decided in 1974 it would submit to the 24/ The 20 members in 1975 were Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Egypt, France, Federal Republic of Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Poland, Sudan, Sweden, U.S.S.R., United Kingdom, and United States. General Assembly in 1977, and it gave the Secretariat instructions for the preparation of working drafts. After a brief discussion on October 31 and November 3, the Special Political Committee of the 30th General Assembly approved without vote a draft resolution that (1) noted with appreciation UNSCEAR's report; (2) requested UNSCEAR to continue its work, including its important coordination activities, to increase knowledge of the levels and effects of atomic radiation from all sources; (3) expressed appreciation for the assistance rendered UNSCEAR by the IAEA, specialized agencies, and nongovernmental organizations concerned; (4) noted UNSCEAR's intention to hold its next session in September 1976 at Vienna; and (5) requested the Secretary General to continue providing the assistance necessary for the conduct of UNSCEAR's work and the dissemination of its findings to the public. The General Assembly adopted the resolution without objection on November 28, 1975. COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES The fourth session of the UN Committee on Natural Resources 25/ (a body which normally meets every 2 years and is subsidiary to ECOSOC) was held in Tokyo, March 24April 4, 1975; Senjin Tsuruoka of Japan was elected chairman. It was the first session in which the United States participated as a full member of the Committee. The U.S. delegation was headed by Ambassador Clarence Clyde Ferguson, Jr. In general, the Committee's fourth session took place in an atmosphere of harmony and cooperation. There was diminished preoccupation with political issues, and some progress was made toward undertaking serious program evaluation, coordination, and planning. The Committee adopted by consensus a resolution appealing to all countries, particularly the developed countries, to contribute generously to the UN Revolving Fund for Natural Resources Exploration and requesting the Administrator of the UNDP to intensify his efforts to increase the financial resources of the Fund. (In July, ECOSOC adopted a similar resolution, requesting 25/ The 53 members in 1975 were Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Egypt, France, Gabon, German Democratic Republic, Federal Republic of Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Libya, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Rwanda, Sudan, Sweden, Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Uganda, Ukrainian S.S.R., U.S.S.R., United Kingdom, United States, Upper Volta, Uruguay, Venezuela, Yugoslavia, and Zaire. There was one vacancy. |