ECOSOC ELECTIONS TO 21 UN BODIES

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 USUN NEW YORK 000544

SIPDIS

NAIROBI: PASS TO USMISSION TO UNON

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECOSOC UN AORC INCB
SUBJECT: ECOSOC ELECTIONS TO 21 UN BODIES

REF: (A) STATE 050257 (B) USUN 418


1. SUMMARY: ECOSOC elected membership to 21 of its
subsidiary bodies on May 18. The United States was elected
to the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.
Balloting was necessary for only the International Narcotics
Control Board; elected were experts from India, France,
Thailand, Russia, Colombia, and South Africa. END SUMMARY.


2. The UN's Economic and Social Council held elections to
fill vacancies in 21 of its subsidiary bodies in a resumed
organizational session on May 18. Candidates were elected on
the basis of equitable geographical distribution and were
mostly endorsed by the five geographical groups representing
Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the
Caribbean, and Western European and Others.


3. International Narcotics Control Board: Two votes by secret
ballot took place in the election of six members of the INCB
for five-year terms beginning on 2 March 2010.

a) The first was for one member from among candidates
nominated by the World Health Organization (WHO). Rajat Ray
(India) was elected by 30 votes, defeating Olaitan Alice
Soyannwo (Nigeria) and Alfredo Pemjean Gallardo (Chile).

b) The Council's second vote by secret ballot was for the
remaining 5 members of the INCB from among candidates
nominated by Governments. Elected were Marc Moinard
(France),Viroj Sumyai (Thailand),Tatyana Borisovna
Dmitrieva (Russian Federation),Camilo Uribe Granja
(Colombia),and Lochan Naidoo (South Africa).


4. All other elections, appointments and nominations were
settled by acclamation (see
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2009/ecosoc 6390.doc.htm).
Of particular interest to the USG are the following results:

a) The Statistical Commission (term 2010-2013): Botswana,
Cameroon, Morocco, Russian Federation, Colombia, Australia,
Italy and Norway.

b) The Commission on Population and Development (term
2010-2014): Angola, Ghana, Malawi, Senegal, China, India,
Malaysia, Philippines, Hungary, Russian Federation,
Guatemala, St. Lucia, Luxembourg and the UK. Indonesia was
elected to fill a vacancy through the 2013 session. (Note:
there remain 2 vacancies.)

c) The Commission on the Status of Women (term 2010-2014):
Central African Republic, Comoros, Gambia, Libya, Swaziland,
Bangladesh, Malaysia, Mongolia, Philippines, Republic of
Korea, Argentina, El Salvador and Uruguay.

d) The Commission on Narcotic Drugs (term 2010-2013): Cote
d'Ivoire, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, India, Lao People's
Democratic Republic, Burma, Saudi Arabia, Belarus, Romania,
Russia, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Australia, Belgium,
Canada, France and the UK.

e) The Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
(term 2010-2012): Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Nigeria, India,
Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Philippines, Belarus, Ukraine,
Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, Canada, Turkey, UK and the US.

f) The Commission on Sustainable Development (term
2010-2013): Algeria, Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Togo, Kazakhstan,
Malaysia, Mongolia, Thailand, Belarus, Latvia, Bahamas,
Panama, Peru, Denmark, France, Netherlands and Norway.
Luxembourg and the UK were elected to fill two vacancies
through the 2012 session.

g) The Committee for Programme and Coordination (term
2010-2012): Comoros, Namibia, Russian Federation and Israel.
Separately, Israel was endorsed to fill a vacancy through

2009. There remain 3 vacancies.

h) The Executive Board of UNICEF (term 2010-2012): Cape
Verde, Congo, Malawi, Somalia, Tunisia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan,
Qatar, Belarus, El Salvador, Denmark, France, Ireland and
Luxembourg. Japan and the Netherlands resigned their seats
effective January 2010, in favor of New Zealand and the UK
through 2010. Similarly, Iceland will complete Finland's
term through 2011.

i) Executive Committee of the Program of the UN High
Commissioner for Refugees: Djibouti and Moldova were elected

USUN NEW Y 00000544 002 OF 002


so as to increase that body's membership from 76 to 78 as
requested by the General Assembly.

j) The Executive Board of the United Nations Development
Programme/United Nations Population Fund (term 2010-2012):
Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Rwanda, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Qatar, Slovenia,
Antigua and Barbuda, France, Japan, Netherlands and Spain.
Canada and Switzerland will fill in for New Zealand and
Turkey through 2010. Germany and Norway will fill in for
Belgium and Sweden through 2011.

k) The Executive Board of World Food Programme (term
2010-2012): Burkina Faso, Russia, India and Iran. Election
of 2 members from List D was postponed.

l) The Executive Board of the International Research and
Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (term
2010-2012): Honduras and St.Vincent and the Grenadines. 8
seats remain vacant.

m) The Committee for the UN Population Award (term
2010-2012): Tanzania, Guatemala and Jamaica.

n) The Programme Coordination Board of UNAIDS (term
2010-2012): Botswana, Japan, Poland, El Salvador,
Netherlands, Sweden and the UK. Sweden will fill in for
Switzerland through December 2009. Finland will fill in for
Denmark through January 2011. There are 3 vacancies for the
term beginning 2010.

o) The Commission for Social Development (vacancies from
previous elections): Brazil and Venezuela (term through the
close of its 2013 session). Sweden will fill in for Denmark
through the end of the Commission's 2013 session; there is
still one vacancy.

p) The Commission on Science and Technology for Development
(term through 2012): Portugal; there is one more vacancy.

q) The Governing Council of the United Nations Human
Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) (vacancies from previous
elections through 2012): Cote d'Ivoire and Cuba. There are 2
vacancies through 2011 and 4 vacancies through 2012.


5. Comment: Vacancies remain at a high level on the 10-member
Executive Board of the International Research and Training
Institute for the Advancement of Women, perhaps another
argument for reforming the UN's "gender architecture" (ref B).
RICE