Resolution 54/41
(December 1, 1999)
The General Assembly,
Having considered the report of the Committee on the Exercise
of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, 1/
Taking note in particular of the information contained in
chapter VI of that report,
Recalling its resolution 53/41 of 2 December 1998,
Convinced that the worldwide dissemination of accurate and
comprehensive information and the role of non-governmental
organizations and institutions remain of vital importance in
heightening awareness of and support for the inalienable rights of
the Palestinian people,
Aware of the Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government Arrangements signed by the Government of the State of
Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization in Washington, D.C.,
on 13 September 1993, 2/ and of the subsequent implementation
agreements, in particular the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement
on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip signed in Washington, D.C., on 28
September 1995, 3/ and the Sharm el-Sheikh Memorandum of 4
September 1999, and their positive implications,
1. Notes with appreciation the action taken by the Department
of Public Information of the Secretariat in compliance with
resolution 53/41;
2. Considers that the special information programme on the
question of Palestine of the Department is very useful in raising the
awareness of the international community concerning the question of
Palestine and the situation in the Middle East in general, including
the achievements of the peace process, and that the programme is
contributing effectively to an atmosphere conducive to dialogue and
supportive of the peace process;
3. Requests the Department, in full cooperation and
coordination with the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People, to continue, with the necessary
flexibility as may be required by developments affecting the question
of Palestine, its special information programme for the biennium
2000-2001, in particular:
(a) To disseminate information on all the activities of
the United Nations system relating to the question of Palestine,
including reports on the work carried out by the relevant United
Nations organizations;
(b) To continue to issue and update publications on the
various aspects of the question of Palestine in all fields, including
materials concerning the recent developments in that regard, in
particular the prospects for peace;
(c) To expand its collection of audiovisual material on the
question of Palestine and to continue the production of such
material, including the updating of the exhibit in the Secretariat;
(d) To organize and promote fact-finding news missions for
journalists to the area, including the territories under the
jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority and the occupied
territories;
(e) To organize international, regional and national seminars
or encounters for journalists, aiming in particular at sensitizing
public opinion to the question of Palestine;
(f) To continue to provide assistance to the Palestinian
people in the field of media development, in particular to strengthen
the training programme for Palestinian broadcasters and journalists
initiated in 1995;
4. Requests the Department of Public Information to promote
the Bethlehem 2000 Project, within existing resources and until the
Bethlehem 2000 commemoration comes to a close, including the
preparation and dissemination of publications, audiovisual material
and the establishment of a "Bethlehem 2000" site on the
United Nations Internet home page.
68th plenary meeting
1 December 1999
1/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-fourth
Session, Supplement No. 35 (A/54/35).
2/ A/48/486-S/26560, annex; see Official Records of the
Security Council, Forty-eighth Year, Supplement for October, November
and December 1993, document S/26560.
3/ A/51/889-S/1997/357, annex; see Official Records of the
Security Council, Fifty-second Year, Supplement for April, May and
June 1997, document S/1997/357.
Sources: The United Nations |