Summit 9: UN General Assembly agrees outcome document to adopt post-2015 agenda (Part II) – oral revision and reservations

Following our Summit 7 posting, we wish to add the following information on the adopted of the resolution to transmit the outcome document of the UN Summit for the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda, Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (the 2030 Agenda), to the 70th session of the UN General Assembly for action during the Summit.

Before adoption, the President of the General Assembly, Sam Kutesa, orally revised the document, in particular footnote 1 on page 11. This footnote relates to the proposal of the Open Working Group on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and indicates (in the draft version) that the OWG proposal is contained in General Assembly Resolution A/68/970, Report of the Open Working Group of the General Assembly on Sustainable Development Goals. It also refers to A/68/970 Add 1, which contains reservations to the OWG proposal. Kutesa said that Footnote 1 would also refer to Addendum 2. This addendum gives two further explanations of position and reservations on the report, made by Japan and from the United States.

In contrast to the negative reservations related to sexual and reproductive health and rights in targets 3.7 and 5.6 in Addendum 1, the US, among its explanations of vote, says:

“We welcome also the recognition of women’s sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights. We believe we could have gone farther and broken new ground. We instead relied on agreed language, but we hope that that at least may enable delegations to show flexibility, and we strongly support retention of target 5.6 as is."

The US also welcomes the prominent treatment in the 2030 Agenda of a stand-alone goal on gender equality and empowerment; a clear and ambitious target to cut maternal mortality to 70 per 100,000 by 2030; and the need to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

As reported by IIED, Statements welcoming the adoption were made by South Africa for the Group of 77 and China (G-77/China), Maldives for the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), Jamaica for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Paraguay for the Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), Tonga for the Pacific Small Island Developing States (P-SIDS), the European Union; China, Colombia, Hungary, India, Israel, Japan, Kazakhstan, Norway, Panama, Peru and the Republic of Korea. Brazil, Egypt and India specifically welcomed the creation of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM).

Among the reservations made, Qatar, for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates), reserved on the use of the term “early marriage,” stressing that Member States have the sovereign right to implement the agenda in accordance with national circumstances. On inheritance, the national legislation of the GCC Member States respects human rights very often and that those rights need to be in line with the national legislation.

Qatar for the GCC, Senegal for the African Group, Chad, Ecuador, Egypt and Iran expressed reservations regarding target 5.6 on sexual and reproductive health and rights and target 3.7 on access to sexual and reproductive health care services. The GCC, the African Group, Chad, Egypt and Iran further stressed that “family” refers solely to “man, woman and children,” with the GCC, the African Group and Iran noting that they understand references to “gender” only as meaning “sex.”

Iran said there should be a single follow-up mechanism, at the national level, and any reporting template, mechanisms and indicators should be agreed and adopted through intergovernmental negotiations so that they do not contradict national laws and cultural values. The African Group, Chad and Sudan offered Explanations of Positions on the reference to “other status” in paragraph 19 (human rights), saying that in their understanding it does not include LGBT people.

Mexico underscored the need to respect the rights of migrants regardless of their migratory status.

For other reservations, not related to sexual and reproductive health and rights, see: http://sd.iisd.org/news/unga-transmits-post-2015-agenda-for-summit-action/

For webcast of meeting see: http://webtv.un.org/watch/general-assembly-101st-plenary-meeting/4457638170001