CHAIRMAN: Distinguished delegates, now we have to start the adoption of the Report of Commission III. The Draft Report will consist of two parts. Part 1, which is before you now, and Part 2 which will be available tomorrow morning.
The documents today are C 79/III/REP/I with a supplementary document C 79/III/REP/I, Sup. 1. This last one contains a paragraph which had been dropped by accident,
PARAGRAPHS 1 TO 2, INCLUDING DRAFT RESOLUTION
LES PARAGRAPHES 1 A 2, Y COMPRIS LE PROJET DE RESOLUTION
LOS PARRAFOS 1 A 2, INCLUIDO EL PROYECTO DE RESOLUCION
J.IÑURRIETA (Cuba): Es breve. Quizá sea más bien un problema de redacción, por lo menos en español. En el párrafo 1 se dice: "… la Conferencia examinó algunas medidas". Nosotros creemos que en vez de decir "algunas enmiendas" debe decir "las enmiendas", porque todo el texto de más abajo se refiere concretamente a las enmiendas. Si dejamos "algunas", puede entenderse que unas se examinaron y otras no. Quizá esto no sea problema en otros textos, pero sí en español. Parece que debe decir, en vez de "algunas", "las" enmiendas.
CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Cuba. The Secretariat has taken note of your remark. Any other remarks? If not, paragraphs 1 and 2 are approved.
Paragraph 1, as amended, approved
Le paragraphe 1, ainsi amendé est approuvé
El párrafo 1, asi enmendado, es aprobado
Paragraph 2, including draft resolution, approved
Le paragraphe 2, y compris le projet de résolution, est approuvé
El párrafo 2, incluido el proyecto de resolucion, es aprobado
Paragraphs 3-6, including draft resolution, approved
Les paragraphes 3-6, y compris le projet de résolution, sont approuvés
Los párrafos 3-6, incluido el proyecto de resolucion, son aprobados
Paragraphs 7 to 10 approved
Les paragraphes 7 à 10 sont approuvés
Los párrafos 7 a 10 son aprobados
PARAGRAPH 11 INCLUDING DRAFT RESOLUTION
PARAGRAPHE 11 Y COMPRIS LE PROJET DE RESOLUTION
PARRAFO II INCLUIDO EL PROYECTO DE RESOLUCION
LE CONSEILLER JURIDIQUE: Je voudrais uniquement attirer l'attention des délégués francophones sur le fait que dans certains passages du projet de résolution, quand il y a une énumération des trois Articles de l'Acte constitutif sur la base desquels un organe statutaire peut être établi, on a mis "et" au lieu de "ou". Les textes anglais et espagnol sont corrects; je ne peux pas me prononcer sur les textes arabe et chinois, mais il y a trois endroits où une harmonisation sera encore nécessaire. Sans vouloir prendre le temps de la Commission, je tiens uniquement à attirer votre attention sui ce point dont le Secrétariat se chargera.
Paragraph 11. including draft resolution, approved
Le paragraphe 11. y compris le projet de résolution, est approuvé
El párrafo 11. incluido el proyecto de resolución, es aprobado
Paragraphs 12 to 14 approved
Les paragraphes 12 & 14 sont approuvés
Los párrafos 12 a 14 son aprobados
Paragraph 15. including draft resolutiont approved
Le paragraphe 15. y compris le projet de résolution, est approuvé
El párrafo 15. incluido el proyecto de resolución, es aprobado
Paragraph 16 approved
Le paragraphe 16 est approuvé
El párrafo 16 es aprobado
Paragraph 17 approved
Le paragraphe 17 est approuvé
El párrafo 17 es aprobado
Paragraphs 18 and 19, including draft resolution, approved
Les paragraphes 18 et 19, y compris le pyojet de résolution, sont approuvés
Los párrafos; 18 y 19, incluido el proyecjo de son aprobados
PARAGRAPHS 20 - 24 INCLUDING DRAFT RESOLUTION
PARAGRAPHES 20 - 24 Y COMPRIS LE PROJET DE RESOLUTION
PÁRRAfOS 20-24 INCLUIDO EL PROYECTO DE RESOLUCTION
D. ULNES (Chairman, Drafting Committee): I would like to point out that on paragraph 23 there is a small editorial change suggested. In the second line starting with "which they considered to be the most appropriate one" we would omit "which they", and insert after the comma "considered by the member to be the most appropriate one". The paragraph will then read: "23. Another member, in supporting the resolution, recalled that Resolution 42/55 of the Eighth FAO Conference, considered by the member to be the most appropriate one, had provided that….." and so on, Perhaps I should use this oppor-tunity, as a matter of convenience, to mention paragraph 23 bis which is contained in C 79/iII/REP/1 Sup. 1. As you will recall, the Chairman mentioned that this had by accident been omitted in the printing of the report.
There is also a suggested change in this paragraph that in line 2 the word "its" should be omitted and it would read, "based on reservations" and so on.
Then there is a further change in the fourth line after the semi-colon, we should strike out "its" and replace that with the word "these", so it would be "these views". So it would read, from the second line, "Scale of Contributions, based on reservations on the methodology" and so on. Then we go to the fourth sentence after the semi colon, "also these views had been expressed".
M. KAKAMURA(Japan): As regards the first change that the Chairman of the Drafting Committee has just proposed, I would like to propose a further small modification: Instead of "considered by the member to be the most asppropriate one", I would propose "an appropriate one". I think the first version is too strong in this paragraph.
CHAIRMAN: I think that can be accepted.
G. DE BARROS CARVALHO DE MELLO MOURÃO (Brazil): As you are well aware, in the discussions on this item in the Commission, half the time taken by the Commission over adopting the Resolution was occupied by a statement from my delegation. I see that in paragraph 23 bis the point of view espressed by my de-legation is not fully interpreted. I would like to propose a new text which will reflect the position I expressed in my speech on this item. It reads as follows: " One member, in expressing his
opposition to the Draft Resolution, explained the view of his country that the proposed scale of contributions as derived from the United Nations scale of assessments, and as redistributed among the member nations of FAO, did not fully apply the recommendation to respect the capacity to pay of member countries. The new scale means, indeed, that a developing country will have its 1980/81 contribution increased by more than fifty percent of its previous contribution. In this respect, the same member asked the Secretariat to provide, in the future, all member nations with written detailed information on the ways adopted by FAO to redistribute, among its members, the scale of assessments of the United Nations.
I_think this is the most equitable effect of our rather long explanation in the Commission.
CHAIRMAN: I hope most of the delegates can take note of your text.
D. ULNES (Chairman, Drafting Committee): I have tried to make a quick assessment of the text which has just been provided. However, I would have thought that in the Drafting Group we have made an attempt to incorporate the views which were expressed by Brazil in the Commission. We did discuss this in the Drafting Group and I would have thought that we had tried to stay clear of this concern. I would also have thought that on first look the new proposed language would somehow distort the balance between the majority on the one hand, whose views are expressed in paragraph 21 when you see there are only four lines expressing what the majority expressed during the discussions, whereas I would have thought the new language that Brasil has suggested somehow distorts the balance. These are my views based on the discussion we had in the Drafting Group.
E.M. WEST (Director (ADG), Office of Programming Budget and Evaluation): I hope it is clearly understood that I am concerned about the form and not the substance. I understand very well that Member Nations have instructions and they need to see that they are carried out, and also that on a matter like this their instructions often come from finance ministers who have to guard the money. I understand that much better than practically anybody in FAO.
Howevers the right place for this kind of statement is in the verbatim and that is why we have a verbatim. Perhaps it is not fully understood in all countries, especially those used to practise in New York where they do not have a verbatim record, the way we deal traditionally with the views of one Member, especially when they are strong, is to have the remarks recorded in the verbatim record. If necessary footnotes are put in the Report referring to the relevant verbatim records so that the Member concerned can get it on the record and can demonstrate that it is on the record exactly what he said. This applies particularly when it is one Member wanting to express a view. It is very very unusual for an FAO Report to spell out the views of one Member. If however there is something really ciuciai in the matter of principle and one Member feels he must establish something in the Report, the way it is done in FAO is for that Member by name to have a formal reservation entered into the Report in addition to the remarks in the verbatim, and naturally people do not like formal reservations but that is the way we traditio-nally record the strong reservations of one member.
In this case it would seem to be appropriate because the Member concerned is putting on record a point of view which is not in contradiction to the view of the majority. He is supporting the resolution but he wants to put something on record. Also, as I understand it, he is asking FAO to do something which is not in its power to do, which is to explain how the UN Committee on contributions reached these conclusions, and they do not tell us, and they refuse to tell us, and they always refuse to tell us. Therefore for this reason I think that as a matter of form the paragraph proposed in Rap/1 Sup. 1 that the Chairman of the Drafting Committee has presented, is in effect a maximum that is possible or desirable or required to satisfy the view of that one Member.
G. DE BARROS CARVALHO DE MELLO MOURAO (Brazil): I am rather surprised because I thought that there would be no difficulty in expressing the position of my country. The distinguished Chairman of the Drafting Committee talked about balance, and I see here in the PV that half of the whole page is occupied by my statement, and the rest of the page by the resolution, and I think that some
eight lines will be no problem in the balance. My delegation did not ask for an explanation of how the United Nations contributions are fixed. I do not want to enter here into this subject but I am only trying to explain the points again. My delegation only asks for explanations on how
the percentage of members of the United Nations, which are not members of the FAO, is redistributed among FAO Members.
My delegation does not want here to make a reservation, my delegation expressed its opposition in the Commission. I am only wanting our position expressed in the report of the Conference. You see another Member supporting the resolution of some members, and ray delegation who expresses this position is in a very fearful position because we are a developing country and we have had the greatest increase in our percentage of contribution among Member nations, and our contribution was increased 50 percent, and it is a very important item to be quoted here, and I do not really see that there is a problem in quoting it. If you want you can say, "the Brazilian delegation etc. etc."
CHAIRMAN: Thank you Brazil. I think we all understand your position very well and also that it has been expressed roughly in the text yon read to us a while ago. So would it be safisfactory to you if it will be contained in the verbatim report; would that be satisfactory to you?
G. DE BARROS CARVALHO DE MELLO MOURÃO (Brazil): In the session of the Council, in the session of the Programme Committee, in the sessions of the Finance Committee, in the sessions of every meeting of FAO and in the sessions of the Conference nobody reads the PVs to know what happened in the past session. When you wish to see what happened in the past session of FAO you read the Report of the session, and the view of my country must be contained in the Report of the Conference. I see no problem still.
E.M. WEST (Director (ADG), Office of Programme Budget and Evaluation): I am a bit surprised to hear no one reads the verbatim records. I wonder why we produce them in that case. I think that it is a bit of an exaggeration to say that no one reads them, especially if a special footnote is put into the Report to draw attention to it. After all the important people who are going to read this are going to read the verbatim too.
My second point is that the text referring to the other Members avoids saying one Member, two Members, three Members. It refers to reservations and they may feel that every single Member's view has to be spelled out if you are going to count numbers. I would suggest that the edition pre-pared by the Drafting Committee, sup. 1, could be adopted with very little amendment if there could be a little private consultation with the delegation of Brazil to see what change needs to be made in sup. 1 which would satisfy him, and I would suggest you leave that in abeyance for a few moments while people try to do that.
CHAIRMAN: Thank you Mr. West. I think that your suggestion is very sensible.
G. DE BARROS CARVALHO DE MELLO MOURÃO (Brazil): Of course we can Mr. Chairman. I am still rather surprised because I see no contradiction on the part of the Commission itself to put the proposal I make into this report; I do not see the Commission oppose it and then I see no problem with it. Still I see no problem with it because if the Secretariat is willing to put this 23 bis, well I am proposing a wording that will reflect best the things that my delegation said.
CHAIRMAN: It now seems we shall have to come back to Item 24 of the Draft Report tomorrow.
G. DE BARBOS CARVALHO DE MELLO MOURÃO (Brazil): I should only like to make my excuses to other members of the Commission for this problem for union my delegation is by no means responsible.
Paragraphs 20-24, including draft resolution, not concluded
Les paragraphs 20-24, y compris le project de résolution, sont en suspens
Los párrafos 20-24, incluido el proyecto de resolución queda pendiente
Pragraphs 25-27, including draft resolution, approved
Les paragraphes 25-27, y compris le projet de résolution, sont approuvés
Los párrafos 25-27, incluido el proyeoto de resolución son aprobados
Paragraphs 28-31, including draft resolution, approved
Les paragraphes 28-31, y compris le projet de résolution, sont approuvés
Los párrafos 28-31, incluido el proysoto de resolución, son aprobados
Paragraphs 33 to 36 approved
Les paragraphes 33 - 36 sont approuvés
Los párrafos 33 a 36 son aprobados
The meeting rose at 16.15 hours
La séance est levée à 16 h 15
Se levanta la sesiòn a las 16.15 horas
