STATEMENT BY MR. MASON SMITH, DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE

SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON THE SITUATION WITH REGARD TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DECLARATION ON THE GRANTING OF INDEPENDENCE TO COLONIAL COUNTRIES

INTRODUCTION OF THE DRAFT RESOLUTION A/AC.109/2009/L.3 ON THE QUESTION OF NEW CALEDONIA

NEW YORK, 16 JUNE, 2009

Mr. Chairman,

Distinguished delegates,

I have the honour to introduce this draft resolution, ass contained in document A/AC.1099/2009/L.3 of 11 June 22009, on the Question of New Caledonia, on behalf of Papua New Guinea and my own country Fiji.  

At the outset, I am pleased to inform this Committee; that on the Question off New Caledonia, modest progress has been achieved in the process o f implementing the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries.

Mr. Chairman,

The draft resolution before the Committee contains only factual and procedural updates and in this regard allow me to draw the Committee’s attention to the factual updates contained therein.In OP2, we welcome the unanimous agreement, reached in Paris on 8 December 2008, o n the transfer of powers to New Caledonia in 2009 and the conduct off provincial elections in May 2009.In OP3, we also welcome the adoption on 226 June 200 8 by the Government of New Caledonia of a draft country law (loi du pays) on the identity symbols to be adopted by the country in implementation of the Nouméa Accord and the acceptance, on 211 October 2 008, of the draft law on the anthem, motto and bank note design.  

Mr. Chairman,

We also note in OP6, the concerns expressed by representatives of indigenous people regarding incessant migratory flows and the impact of mining on the environment.  

Furthermore in OP21, we welcomed the participation of New Caledonia at the 39th Summit of the Pacific Islands Forum, held in Niue from 19 to 21 August 2008, following its accession to the Forum as an associate member in October 2006.

Procedurally; in OP26 we request the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples to continue the examination of the question of the Non‐Self‐Governing Territory of New Caledonia and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its sixty‐fifth session.

Mr. Chairman,

In reflecting these factual and procedural updates, we would also like to commend all concerned, including the Bureau and the Administering Power for their cooperation and input into this draft resolution. We believe that cooperation and collaboration are absolutely crucial if the challenges are to be tackled successfully and the opportunities that are presented to us, maximized, in the often difficult process of decolonization.Such close cooperation with France is not new and my delegation, together with the delegation of Papua New Guinea, wish to acknowledge this. Papua New Guinea and Fiji would also like to promote such a cooperative and collaborative approach as the way forward for this Committee.To conclude, my delegation is pleased to commend the draft resolution on the Question of New Caledonia as contained in document A/AC.109/2009/L.3 of 11 June 2009 to the Committee and urge that the Committee adopts it by consensus.  

Mr. Chairman, distinguished delegates,  

I thank you for your attention.