| For information only - not an official document. | |||
| UNIS/GA/1706 | |||
| 13 October 2000 | |||
| General Assembly Elects 18 Members to Economic And Social Council; Three-year Terms Begin 1 January 2001 |
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NEW YORK, 12 October (UN Headquarters) -- In three rounds of secret balloting this morning, the General Assembly elected 18 members to fill the corresponding vacancies in the Economic and Social Council. Andorra, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, Georgia, Iran, Italy, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of Korea, Romania, South Africa, Uganda and the United States obtained the required two-thirds majority of members present and voting and will begin their three-year terms on 1 January 2001. All but two members were elected in the first round of balloting. Iran and Nepal were elected during the third round from among Iran, Nepal, and the United Arab Emirates to fill two vacancies in the regional group of Asian States. After the second round of balloting to fill the Asian vacancies, during which no country received the required number of votes, the representative of the Philippines announced that his country had withdrawn from consideration. The Economic and Social Council makes or initiates studies and reports with respect to international economic, social, cultural, education, health and related matters. It makes recommendations on such matters to the Assembly, to Members of the United Nations, and to the specialized agencies concerned. The pattern for the geographical distribution of seats on the Council is: The elections were for seats being vacated by members of the following regional groups on 31 December: Algeria, Comoros, Lesotho, Mauritius and Sierra Leone from the African States; India, Oman, Pakistan and Viet Nam from the Asian States; Belarus and Poland from the Eastern European States; Brazil, Colombia and Saint Lucia from the Latin American and Caribbean States; and Belgium, Italy, New Zealand and the United States from the Western European and other States. The 36 Member States who remain on the Council are: Angola, Austria, Bahrain, Benin, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Fiji, France, Germany, Greece, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Norway, Portugal, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Venezuela and the United Kingdom. The African States had five endorsed candidates for five seats: Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda. Iran, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea and United Arab Emirates were candidates for the four seats of the Asian States. Endorsed candidates for the two seats of the Eastern European States were Georgia and Romania. From the Latin American and Caribbean States, Argentina, Brazil, Peru and Trinidad and Tobago were competing for three seats. The four endorsed candidates for the four seats from the Western European and other States were Andorra, Italy, Netherlands and the United States. The Assembly will meet again at 10 a.m., Monday 16 October, to elect members of the Committee for Programme and Coordination and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law. It will also consider the Notification by the Secretary-General under Article 12, paragraph 2, of the Charter of the United Nations, and Bethlehem 2000. Elections The President of the Assembly, HARRI HOLKERI (Finland), announced that those candidates -- for five vacant seats from among the African States; four from among the Asian States; two from among the Eastern European States; three from among the Latin American and Caribbean States; and four from among the Western European and other States -- their number not exceeding the number of seats to be filled, who received the greatest number of votes and by a two-thirds majority of members present and voting, would be declared elected. In the case of a tie vote for a remaining seat, there would be a restricted ballot limited to those candidates that had obtained an equal number of votes. The General Assembly decided to agree to that procedure. The results of the first round of voting were as follows: African States (5 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 166 Number of votes obtained: Egypt: 157 Uganda: 141 Asian States (4 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 166 Number of votes obtained: Iran: 103 Eastern European States (2 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 166 Number of votes obtained: Georgia: 148 Latin American and Caribbean States (3 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 166 Number of votes obtained: Argentina: 113 Brazil: 122 Western European and other States (4 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 166 Number of votes obtained: Andorra: 156 Having obtained the required two-thirds majority, Andorra, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, Georgia, Italy, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Republic of Korea, Romania, South Africa, Uganda and the United States were elected for a three-year term beginning on 1 January 2001. As there remained two seats to be filled from among the Asian States, the second round of secret balloting was restricted to the four States from among that regional grouping that were not elected, but obtained the largest number of votes in the previous ballot, namely Iran, Nepal, Philippines and the United Arab Emirates. The results of the second round of voting were as follows: Asian States (2 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 171 Number of votes obtained: Iran: 99 FELIPE H. MABILANGAN (Philippines) announced that his country withdrew from the competition and thanked those who had supported the Philippines in this election. Since no State had obtained the required two-thirds majority after the second round of balloting, the Assembly proceeded to a third round of secret balloting to elect two members from among Iran, Nepal and the United Arab Emirates. The results from the third round of balloting were as follows: Asian States (2 vacancies) Number of ballot papers: 168 Number of votes obtained: Iran: 129 Having obtained the required two-thirds majority, Iran and Nepal were elected for a three-year term beginning on 1 January 2001. |
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