The Situation in Central America: Procedures for the Establishment of a Firm and Lasting Peace and Progress in Fashioning a Region of Peace, Freedom, Democracy and Development, G.A. res. 50/132, 50 U.N. GAOR Supp. (No. 49) at 67, U.N. Doc. A/50/49 (Vol. I) (1995).
The General Assembly, Recalling the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and its own resolutions, particularly resolutions 48/161 of 20 December 1993 and 49/137 of 19 December 1994, in which it recognized the importance of international support for Central America, within an appropriate global frame of reference, in order to preserve and extend the progress made in the process of consolidating peace, democracy and sustainable development and thereby to overcome the obstacles that are preventing Central America from becoming a region of peace, freedom, democracy and sustainable development, Recognizing the importance and validity of the commitments made by the Central American Presidents since the Esquipulas II summit meeting of 7 August 1987 and their subsequent summit meetings, especially the fifteenth meeting, held at Gu cimo, Costa Rica, from 18 to 20 August 1994, the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable Development, held at Managua on 12 and 13 October 1994, the International Conference on Peace and Development in Central America, held at Tegucigalpa on 24 and 25 October 1994, and the sixteenth meeting of Central American Presidents, held in El Salvador in March 1995, Reaffirming that there can be no peace in Central America without sustainable development or democracy, which are essential for ensuring the processes of change in the region and for implementing the integrated proposal for sustainable development agreed on at the most recent meetings of Central American Presidents, in particular the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable Development and the International Conference on Peace and Development in Central America, Convinced of the hopes that inspire the peoples of Central America to achieve peace, reconciliation, development and social justice, and the commitment to settle their differences by means of dialogue, negotiation and respect for the legitimate interests of all States, in accordance with their own decision and their own historical experience, while fully respecting the principles of self-determination and non-intervention, Recognizing the validity of the Declaration of Commitments in favour of the populations affected both by uprootedness and by conflicts and extreme poverty, adopted at Mexico City on 29 June 1994, and the role of lead agency which the United Nations Development Programme has assumed in the place of the mandate formerly discharged by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Drawing attention to the establishment of the Alliance for the Sustainable Development of Central America, which constitutes the new integrated development strategy at the national and regional levels and defines the political, moral, economic, social and environmental priorities, and to the signing, at the El Salvador summit meeting in March 1995, of the Treaty on Central American Social Integration, one of whose main objectives is investment in human capital, and bearing in mind that the Central American Integration System is the institutional framework which makes possible the effective, ordered and coherent promotion of integrated development, Emphasizing the importance of cooperation and international solidarity in supporting the efforts being made by the peoples and Governments of Central America for the consolidation of a firm and lasting peace, and the need to strengthen the new programme of cooperation and economic, technical and financial assistance for Central America in the light of the new situation in the region, Noting the efforts made by the Central American Security Commission and the importance of the ongoing negotiation of the Central American security treaty in accelerating the establishment of a new model of regional security, as provided for in the Tegucigalpa Protocol, and the agenda and programme of specific action for sustainable development adopted at the fifteenth Central American summit meeting, held at Guacimo, Welcoming the role played by the peace-keeping operations of the United Nations which carried out fully their mandate in Central America pursuant to the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, and recognizing the importance of the observer and monitoring missions planned or under way in the region in accordance with the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly, Stressing the importance of the determination of the Government of Guatemala and of the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca to achieve the full exercise of human rights and to reach, as promptly as possible, an agreement to establish a firm and lasting peace, in accordance with the Framework Agreement for the Resumption of the Negotiating Process between the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca of 10 January 1994 and the hopes of the Guatemalan people, and the importance of full compliance by both parties with the other agreed commitments, Recalling its resolutions 48/267 of 19 September 1994, 49/236 A of 31 March 1995 and 49/236 B of 14 September 1995, by which it decided to establish the United Nations Mission for the Verification of Human Rights and of Compliance with the Commitments of the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights in Guatemala and extended the mandate of the Mission, Emphasizing the role of international cooperation in national efforts towards peace, in particular in contributing to the trust fund for the Guatemala peace process set up by the Secretary-General on 1 March 1995, Stressing also the importance of the current electoral process in strengthening the democratic institutions of Guatemala, Noting with satisfaction the signing of the Agreement on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples on 31 March 1995, at Mexico City, in the framework of the Guatemala peace process, Noting with appreciation the efforts being made by the people and Government of El Salvador to consolidate the progress made in the transition towards a society characterized by democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights, and commending the reaffirmation by the Government of El Salvador of its political will to honour fully its commitments under the Peace Agreement, for the benefit of all Salvadorans, Welcoming resolution 50/7 of 31 October 1995, in which it approved the proposal of the Secretary-General to extend the mandate of the Mission of the United Nations in El Salvador for a period of six months, with a gradual reduction of its strength and costs, in a manner consistent with the effective performance of its duties, in order to exercise his good offices and to monitor the application of pending questions related to the peace agreements, Welcoming also the adoption of resolution 49/16 of 17 November 1994, in which it recognized the exceptional circumstances that still prevail in Nicaragua, Recognizing that the efforts of the Government of Nicaragua to consolidate peace and democracy, repair its economy and rebuild the nation merit the urgent support of the international community and the United Nations system in order to preserve the gains made and overcome the effects of the war and natural disasters which persist in Nicaragua, and that the request of the Nicaraguan Government for United Nations observers during the elections to be held in 1996 also merits support, Recognizing also the valuable and effective contribution made by the United Nations and by various governmental and non-governmental mechanisms to the gradual transformation of Central America into a region of peace, freedom, democracy and development, and the importance of the political dialogue and economic cooperation which are taking place in the ministerial conference between the European Union and the Central American countries, and the joint initiative by the industrialized countries of the Group of Twenty-four and the countries of the Group of Three as cooperating countries, under the auspices of the Association for Democracy and Development in Central America, Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General of 3 October 1995 on the situation in Central America, 1. Commends the efforts of the peoples and Governments of the Central American countries to consolidate peace and promote sustainable development by implementing the agreements adopted at the summit meetings, especially the commitments adopted at the recent presidential meetings, and requests the Secretary-General to continue to give the fullest possible support to the initiatives and activities of the Governments of the Central American countries; 2. Supports the decision of the Presidents of the Central American countries to declare Central America a region of peace, freedom, democracy and development, and encourages the initiatives of the Central American countries, in the framework of the integrated strategy for sustainable development and based on the latest Central American meetings, to consolidate Governments that base their development on democracy, peace, cooperation and respect for human rights; 3. Draws attention to the decision of the Presidents of the Central American countries embodied in the Declaration of Guacimo, in which the national and regional strategy known as the Alliance for the Sustainable Development of Central America became an integrated initiative reflected in a programme of immediate action in the political, moral, economic, social and environmental fields, through which the Central American countries hope to become, with the support of the international community, an example of sustainable development for other regions; 4. Welcomes the efforts of the Central American countries to promote economic growth oriented towards human development, as well as the progress achieved in strengthening democracy and consolidating peace in the region; 5. Emphasizes the work accomplished by the Central American Integration System, the registry of the Tegucigalpa Protocol with the United Nations Secretariat and the granting of observer status by the General Assembly, expresses its full support for the progress achieved by the Central American countries in stimulating and broadening the process of Central American integration, and calls on Member States and international organizations to provide effective cooperation to Central America so that subregional integration is strengthened and becomes an effective mechanism for achieving sustainable development; 6. Supports the concern of the Central American countries to create a new model of regional security based on a reasonable balance of forces and the pre-eminence of civil authority, urges the Central American Security Commission to pursue negotiations for the preparation of the treaty on democratic security in Central America, which constitutes one of the basic aims of the Central American Integration System, and requests the Secretary-General to provide it with the requisite support in a timely manner; 7. Encourages the Security Commission to pursue negotiations for the preparation of the treaty on democratic security in Central America with a view to speeding up the establishment of the new model of regional security; 8. Stresses the importance of intensifying the serious and resolute negotiations between the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca, and urges that negotiations on the remaining agenda items should be concluded without delay with a view to reaching at the earliest possible date a firm and lasting peace agreement, thus completing the peace process in Central America; 9. Takes note with satisfaction of the Agreement on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples as an important step in the peace process in Guatemala and a milestone in the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People; 10. Calls upon the parties to comply fully with their commitments under the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights in Guatemala and their human rights commitments under the Agreement on Identity and Rights of Indigenous Peoples and to implement the corresponding recommendations of the United Nations Mission for the Verification of Human Rights and of Compliance with the Commitments of the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights in Guatemala; 11. Requests the Secretary-General, the organizations of the United Nations system and the international community to continue their support for the peace process and hence for efforts to promote national reconciliation, democracy and development in Guatemala; 12. Reiterates its appreciation of the peace efforts of the Secretary- General, the Group of Friends (Colombia, Mexico, Norway, Spain, the United States of America and Venezuela) and the relevant United Nations bodies, as well as its appreciation of the contribution of the Assembly of Civil Society and other Guatemalans within the constitutional framework and the peace agreements; 13. Welcomes the Contadora Declaration signed on 22 August 1995 by the political forces of Guatemala, in which they committed themselves to assuring that the Government that will take office on 14 January 1996 will respect the agreements already reached in the peace process and will make every effort to bring that process to an early and successful conclusion; 14. Calls upon the Government of El Salvador and all the political forces involved in the peace process to make all possible efforts to complete the implementation of all remaining aspects of the Peace Agreement; 15. Notes with satisfaction the establishment by the Secretary-General of the Trust Fund for the Mission of the United Nations in El Salvador and the extension of the Mission's mandate for a six-month period as from 31 October 1995 in order to continue to observe and monitor the implementation of the remaining commitments until they have been fully met, and emphasizes the importance of continued cooperation between the Mission of the United Nations in El Salvador and other organizations of the United Nations system in the consolidation of the Peace Agreement; 16. Reiterates its recognition of the effective and timely participation of the Secretary-General and his representatives and encourages them to continue to take all necessary steps to ensure the successful implementation of all the commitments made by the parties to the El Salvador Peace Agreement, including the joint effort undertaken by the Government of El Salvador and the Frente Farabundo Mart! para la Liberaci"n Nacional to obtain resources to facilitate the full implementation of the Peace Agreement; 17. Recognizes the achievements made by the people and Government of Nicaragua in their efforts to consolidate peace, democracy and reconciliation among Nicaraguans, as well as the importance of reaching a national understanding in order to define a national development strategy through political dialogue and economic and social consultation among all sectors of the country, thereby strengthening grass-roots support for the country's reconstruction, and emphasizes how important it is for the Secretary-General to comply with Nicaragua's request for observers to be present during the electoral process in 1996; 18. Supports the treatment accorded to Nicaragua in the light of its continuing exceptional circumstances, so that the international community and financial institutions can incorporate that treatment into programmes to support the country's economic recovery and social reconstruction; 19. Expresses its appreciation of the work of the support group for Nicaragua (Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden), which, under the coordination of the Secretary-General, is playing an active role in supporting the country's efforts towards economic recovery and social development, particularly with regard to solving the external debt problem and securing investments and new resources that will allow the country's economic and social reconstruction programmes to continue, and requests the Secretary-General to continue to support those efforts; 20. Emphasizes the importance that the political dialogue and economic cooperation taking place within the ministerial conference between the European Union and its member States and the Central American countries, with the participation of the Group of Three as cooperating countries, have for the efforts of the Central American countries to achieve peace, consolidate democracy and ensure sustainable development; 21. Also emphasizes the commitments on sustainable development adopted at the fifteenth meeting of Central American Presidents, held at Gu cimo, Costa Rica, the sixteenth meeting of Central American Presidents, held in El Salvador in March 1995, the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable Development, held at Managua, and the International Conference on Peace and Development in Central America, held at Tegucigalpa, and urges the international community to give them every support; 22. Reiterates the importance of the support of the United Nations system through its operational activities, in particular the United Nations Development Programme, aimed at facilitating the development of programmes and projects which are indispensable for strengthening peace and the development process in the region, bearing particularly in mind the new strategy for subregional development established by the Alliance for the Sustainable Development of Central America, and urges the international community to lend its support to the achievement of the goals of the new strategy for development in Central America; 23. Recognizes the importance of accessions to the Treaty on Central American Social Integration and the fulfilment of the commitments made at Mexico City in June 1994 to benefit populations affected by uprooting, conflicts and extreme poverty; 24. Reiterates its full appreciation and gratitude to the Secretary- General for his efforts to promote the pacification process and the consolidation of peace in Central America, and to the groups of friendly countries which have made a direct contribution to attaining those ends, and requests that those efforts be continued; 25. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-first session on the implementation of the present resolution; 26. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty-first session the item entitled "The situation in Central America: procedures for the establishment of a firm and lasting peace and progress in fashioning a region of peace, freedom, democracy and development". |