Decision Taken on Commemorating Anniversary of Human Rights Declaration
It was urgent for the world to come together to sustainably safeguard the health of its oceans, which covered two thirds of the Earth’s surface, connected 90 per cent of the population, provided 350 million jobs, and had 1 billion people in developing countries dependent on the fish those waters yielded, delegates in the General Assembly heard today prior to adopting two related draft resolutions.
The Assembly also unanimously adopted a draft decision on commemorating the sixty-fifth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights before beginning its day-long debate on the world’s major water bodies.
A 48-page draft resolution on Oceans and the Law of the Sea, adopted by a recorded vote of 115 in favour to 1 against (Turkey), with 2 abstentions (Colombia, Venezuela), addressed pressing issues, including transnational organized crime, maritime safety and marine biodiversity. By the text, the Assembly called for capacity-building initiatives to take into account the needs of developing countries and upon States to harmonize their national legislation with the provisions of the Convention on Oceans and the Law of the Sea.
Adopting a draft text on sustainable fisheries without a vote, the Assembly urged States, individually and through relevant regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements, to establish mandatory vessel monitoring, control and surveillance systems. The 32-page text containing 180 operative paragraphs recognized, for the first time, the need to tackle the causes of ocean acidification and to implement strategies to minimize its impact.
See full Press Release: http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2013/ga11466.doc.htm
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