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SEP
21 |
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 The
General Assembly's New Year Begins |
© UN Photo by Mark Garten
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The fifty-ninth session of the
General Assembly opened September 14th with a moment of
silence.
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The General Assembly's 59th session began on September 14,
2004. The new president of the United Nations General
Assembly, Foreign Minister Jean
Ping of Gabon,
held a
news conference to discuss the General Assembly's opportunities
to help solve the world's crises during its 59th session.
The General Assembly, where every Member State of the UN is
represented, is the UN's largest forum for discussion, debate,
and action on the world's major issues.
"We are facing many complex international challenges, and
no organization is better equipped than the United Nations
to address and resolve them," asserted Mr. Ping. He also emphasized
that the role of the U.N. had to be recognized and strengthened,
for today's challenges include not only wars and international
terrorism, but also disease, poverty, environmental problems
and development. Mr. Ping went on to stress that these global
problems could only be resolved if the major organs of the
UN -- the General Assembly, the Security
Council and the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)--
worked in harmony.
"We are facing many complex international
challenges, and no organization is better equipped than
the United Nations to address and resolve them"
--Foreign Minister Jean Ping |
The GA president is responsible for making sure the session,
with its many speakers and topics, runs smoothly. Unlike the
Secretary-General, who often travels during the year and presides
over the Security Council, the GA president stays at UN Headquarters
in New York to oversee the GA's daily schedule. The General
Debate, when leaders from around the world address the GA to
outline what they think are the important issues for Member
States to work on, begins Tuesday, 21 September.
Among the GA's main priorities during the 59th session, Mr.
Ping highlighted the need to reform the Security Council and
to restore the authority of the General Assembly. The Security
Council was last reformed in 1963, when the number of its members
increased from 11 to 15, but, he said, changes in the world
since then must now be reflected in the Council's composition.
In 1945 there were 50 Member States; today there are 191. |
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© UN Photo by Ky Chung
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Left to right: Secretary-General
Kofi Annan, Jean Ping (Gabon), President of the 59th session
of the General Assmbly, and Jian Chen, Under-Secretary-General
for General Assembly and Conference Management.
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On the agenda
The GA's General
Committee put together a list of topics to be discussed
during the session. The committee recommended 158 agenda items
for the Assembly's 59th session, including a focus on events
happening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cyprus, Afghanistan,
Mayotte, and Palestine.
The GA will also discuss, among other issues, the UNISPACE III
space treaty, conflict diamonds, emergency humanitarian assistance
to various countries, development roadblocks, oceans and the
law of the sea, reports from the International Criminal Court,
nuclear disarmament, economic goals and policies, globalization,
education, poverty, aging, and human rights, especially those
of women, indigenous peoples, and children. More topics may
be added.
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RELATED LINKS
Jean
Ping bio | News
Conference | Gabon
| GA background
| General
Committee | Security
Council | ECOSOC
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List of speakers and links to statements and webcasts |
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Read the latest news about UN activities at its Headquarters in
New York and around the world. |
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