Excerpt

Source: UN General Assembly

Date: 5 Nov 2003

Governments appeal for greater international cooperation to address challenges posed by returnees, as Third Committee concludes discussion of refugees

GA/SHC/3759

Fifty-eighth General Assembly
Third Committee
33rd Meeting (AM)

Governments today appealed for greater international cooperation to cope with the enormous challenges posed by returning refugees to countries already overburdened by limited resources or recovering from the devastating consequences of war, as the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) concluded its review of issues relating to refugees, returnees and internally displaced persons.

...

The voluntary repatriation to Timor-Leste of nearly 90 per cent of 230,000 refugees represented an enormous challenge to the transition process of the newly independent country, said its representative. Timor-Leste was aware of the necessity of adopting national legislation on asylum and creating institutions to ensure adequate support for asylum seekers, and looked forward to continued technical assistance from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and United Nations Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) in this regard.

...

Background

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, Cultural) will continue its consideration of the report of the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees, questions relating to refugees, returnees and displaced persons and humanitarian questions.

For further background information, please see Press Release GA/SHC/3757 of 3 November.

...

JONNY SINAGA (Indonesia) said international support for ongoing efforts in East Nusa Tenggara (West Timor) province was still required to complete the final stages of operations there. The transition from relief to development was frequently a rocky one, and he stressed that while the crisis stage may be over, the assistance of the UNHCR and the international community was still needed for the integration of refugees into society and for the transition to development. He urged the Secretary-General to enable United Nations bodies and agencies to distribute critically needed assistance to the needy people in East Nusa Tenggara province.

He said the resolution of the refugee problem in East Nusa Tenggara province was an example of the effective cooperation between a host country and the UNHCR and other international agencies. His Government acknowledged that this could not have been achieved without outside assistance. Indonesia reaffirmed its support for the UNHCR in exercising its mandate and hoped an effective long-term solution could be found to address its financial problems.

...

JOS?LUIS GUTERRES (Timor-Leste) said his country was grateful for the efforts of the UNHCR and the Indonesian Government in accomplishing the voluntary repatriation of nearly 90 per cent of 230,000 refugees. That return, however, also represented an enormous challenge for the transition process of his newly independent country. Unaccompanied children were also a matter of great concern for his Government, which was committed to continuing its cooperation with the UNHCR and Indonesia to facilitate the reunification of those children with their families.

Timor-Leste was aware of the necessity of adopting national legislation on asylum and creating institutions to ensure adequate support for asylum seekers in accordance with international standards. It looked forward to continued technical assistance from the UNHCR and the United Nations Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) in this regard.

...
 

Back to November menu
October
World Leaders Contact List
Human Rights Violations in East Timor
Main Postings Menu