Forty-ninth session
Agenda item 42
RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
The General Assembly,
Recalling the relevant resolutions of the Security Council
and its own resolutions, particularly resolutions 47/118 of 18
December 1992 and 48/161 of 20 December 1993, in which it recognized
that there remained in Central America major obstacles to the
full exercise of peace, freedom, democracy and development and
the need for a global frame of reference that would enable the
international community to channel support to the efforts of the
Central American Governments, as well as the desirability of increasing
support by providing resources for the consolidation of the objectives
set, in order to prevent the region's material limitations from
diminishing or reversing the progress made,
Recognizing the importance and validity of the commitments
assumed by the Central American Presidents at the Esquipulas II
summit meeting on 7 August 1987 and at their subsequent summit
meetings, especially the fourteenth summit meeting, held at Guatemala
City from 27 to 29 October 1993, the fifteenth summit meeting,
held at GuÝcimo, Costa Rica, from 18 to 20 August 1994,
the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable Development,
held at Managua on 12 and 13 October 1994, and the International
Conference on Peace and Development in Central America, held at
Tegucigalpa on 24 and 25 October 1994, at which a framework of
priorities for the formulation and implementation of an integrated
strategy for sustainable development covering political, moral,
economic, social and ecological matters was established,
Aware of the importance of supporting the efforts of the
Central American peoples and Governments for the consolidation
of a firm and lasting peace in Central America, and bearing in
mind that the Central American Integration System constitutes
the institutional framework for subregional integration through
which integrated development can be promoted in an effective,
orderly and coherent manner,
Convinced of the hopes that inspire the peoples of Central
America to achieve peace, reconciliation, development and social
justice, as well as the commitment to settle their differences
by means of dialogue, negotiation and respect for the legitimate
interests of all States, in accordance with their own decision
and their own historical experience, while fully respecting the
principles of self-determination and non-intervention,
Recognizing the importance of the peace-keeping operations
that have been carried out in Central America pursuant to the
decisions of the Security Council and with the support of the
Secretary-General,
Recognizing also the need to preserve and enhance the results
obtained by means of new and innovative initiatives that take
into account the new circumstances prevailing in the region, which
necessitate a new course based on an integrated strategy for sustainable
development in the region,
Reaffirming that there can be no peace in Central America
without sustainable development or democracy, which are essential
for transforming the region and realizing the hope of the Central
American peoples and Governments that Central America may become
a region of peace, freedom, democracy and sustainable development,
Emphasizing the important role of international cooperation
in supporting the integrated proposal for sustainable development
agreed on at the most recent meetings of Central American Presidents,
in particular the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable
Development and the International Conference on Peace and Development
in Central America,
Stressing the importance of honouring the commitments to
accelerate the establishment of a new model of regional security
in Central America, as established in the Tegucigalpa Protocol
of 13 December 1991 1/ and the Agenda and Programme of Specific
Action for Sustainable Development adopted at the fifteenth meeting
of Central American Presidents, at GuÝcimo,
Noting with satisfaction the progress made in the peace
negotiations between the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad
Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca, with the assistance of the
Secretary-General and the support of the Group of Friends of the
Guatemalan peace process (Colombia, Mexico, Norway, Spain, United
States of America and Venezuela), and the contribution by the
Assembly of Civil Society and other Guatemalans, within the constitutional
framework and the peace agreements,
Recalling its resolution 48/267 of 19 September 1994, in
which it decided to establish the United Nations Mission for the
Verification of Human Rights and of Compliance with the Commitments
of the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights in Guatemala, in
accordance with the recommendations of the Secretary-General,
Stressing the great importance it attaches to the conclusion
of the negotiations, the speedy termination of the internal armed
conflict and the full compliance by both parties with the undertakings
agreed to, all of which will help the people of Guatemala to overcome
successfully the social and economic problems facing the country,
Taking into account the commitment expressed by both parties,
the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional
Guatemalteca, to achieve the full exercise of human rights and
to seek peace through dialogue and negotiation,
Noting with satisfaction the holding of free and democratic
elections in El Salvador, the progress made towards fulfilment
of the outstanding commitments assumed under the Peace Agreement,
the political will consistently expressed by the signatories thereto
and the support of the various Salvadorian political forces for
accelerating the resolution of crucial outstanding issues, which
is essential to promote reconciliation and maintain and consolidate
peace in El Salvador,
Also taking into account the efforts made by the Government
of Nicaragua to promote broad national agreement as the best way
of consolidating peace, national reconciliation, democracy and
sustainable development with social justice,
Welcoming with satisfaction the adoption of resolution
49/16 of 17 November 1994, entitled "International assistance
for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Nicaragua: aftermath
of the war and natural disasters", in which the exceptional
circumstances prevailing in the case of Nicaragua are recognized,
Recognizing that the consolidation of peace in Nicaragua
is a key factor in the Central American peace process, as well
as the need for the international community and the United Nations
system to continue providing Nicaragua with the support it needs
to continue promoting its economic and social rehabilitation and
reconstruction in order to strengthen democracy and overcome the
aftermath of war and recent natural disasters,
Also recognizing the valuable and effective contribution
of the United Nations and of various governmental and non-governmental
mechanisms to the process of democratization, pacification and
development in Central America, and the importance for the gradual
transformation of Central America into a region of peace, freedom,
democracy and development of both the political dialogue and the
economic cooperation set in motion by the ministerial conference
between the European Union and the Central American countries
and the joint initiative of the industrialized countries (Group
of Twenty-four) and the group of cooperating countries (Group
of Three) 2/ through the Partnership for Democracy and Development
in Central America,
Bearing in mind that the process established by the International
Conference on Central American Refugees was completed in May 1994,
that the United Nations Development Programme has assumed the
role of lead agency which was formerly performed by the Office
of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and that
the mandate of the Special Plan of Economic Cooperation for Central
America, 3/ through which both the United Nations system and the
international community, and especially the cooperating countries,
have supported activities supplementing the Central American peace
process, has come to an end,
Considering the Declaration of Commitments in favour of
the populations affected both by uprootedness and by conflicts
and extreme poverty in the framework of the consolidation of peace
in Central America, adopted at Mexico City on 29 June 1994 at
the final international meeting of the Follow-up Committee of
the International Conference on Central American Refugees, in
which the Governments of the convening States emphasized the need
to give continuity to the treatment of uprooted populations by
changing the emphasis from emergency programmes to sustainable
human development strategies in areas or populations given priority
by the countries concerned for the consolidation of peace and
the eradication of extreme poverty,
Aware that the Central American countries have concluded
the Alliance for the Sustainable Development of Central America,
4/ an initiative that inaugurates a promising phase involving
the reordering of regional priorities, the effective implementation
of which calls for maximum effort on the part of the Governments
and the various sectors of the Central American countries, as
well as the support of the international community, in order to
overcome the underlying structural causes of the crisis in the
region,
Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General of 7
October 1994 on the situation in Central America, 5/
Welcoming with deep satisfaction the Tegucigalpa Commitments
on Peace and Development 6/ adopted at the International Conference
on Peace and Development in Central America,
1. Commends the efforts of the Central American peoples
and Governments to consolidate peace by implementing the agreements
adopted at recent meetings of the Central American Presidents,
especially their fifteenth meeting, held at GuÝcimo, Costa
Rica, the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable
Development, held at Managua, and the International Conference
on Peace and Development in Central America, held at Tegucigalpa,
and requests the Secretary-General to continue to give the fullest
possible support to the initiatives and activities of the Central
American Governments;
2. Supports the decision of the Central American Presidents
to declare Central America a region of peace, freedom, democracy
and development, as set out in the Tegucigalpa Protocol, 1/ and
encourages the initiatives of the Central American countries,
in the framework of the integrated strategy for sustainable development
and based on the latest Central American meetings, to consolidate
Governments which base their development on democracy, peace,
cooperation and full respect for human rights;
3. Emphasizes the decision of the Central American Presidents
included in the Declaration of GuÝcimo 7/ and adopted at
the Managua Environment Summit, in which the national and regional
strategy known as the Alliance for Sustainable Development --
a comprehensive Central American initiative in the political,
moral, economic, social and environmental fields -- was concretized,
translating that strategy into a programme of immediate action
through which the Central American countries hope to become, with
the support of the international community, an example of sustainable
development for other regions;
4. Welcomes the efforts of the Central American countries
to promote economic growth within a context of human development,
as well as the progress achieved in strengthening democracy and
consolidating peace in the region, as amply demonstrated by the
successful holding of fair and transparent electoral processes
in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras and Panama;
5. Also emphasizes the functioning of the Central American
Integration System since 1 February 1993 and the registry of the
Tegucigalpa Protocol with the United Nations Secretariat, expresses
its full support for the efforts made by Central Americans, under
the political leadership of their Presidents, to stimulate and
broaden the integration process in the context of the Central
American Integration System, and calls on Member States and international
organizations to provide effective cooperation to Central America
so that it can steadily promote and strengthen subregional integration
in order to make it an effective mechanism for achieving sustainable
development;
6. Reaffirms the importance of creating a new model of
regional security based on a reasonable balance of forces, the
pre-eminence of civil authority, the elimination of extreme poverty,
the promotion of sustainable development, the protection of the
environment and the eradication of violence, corruption, terrorism
and trafficking in drugs and arms, a commitment made at the fifteenth
meeting of Central American Presidents;
7. Calls upon the international community and the United
Nations system to expand their technical and financial support
for the professionalization of the police forces of the Central
American countries in order to safeguard democratic institutions;
8. Notes with satisfaction the signing of the Framework
Agreement for the Resumption of the Negotiating Process between
the Government of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional
Guatemalteca, 8/ the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights and
the Agreement on a Timetable for the Negotiation of a Firm and
Lasting Peace in Guatemala, 9/ the Agreement on Resettlement of
the Population Groups Uprooted by the Armed Conflict and the Agreement
on the Establishment of the Commission to Clarify Past Human Rights
Violations and Acts of Violence that have Caused the Guatemalan
Population to Suffer; 10/
9. Recognizes the importance of the decision of the Government
of Guatemala and the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca
to negotiate seriously and resolutely with a view to reaching
peace agreements with no further delay;
10. Calls upon those concerned to advance speedily in the
Guatemalan peace process in order to achieve, as close as possible
to the 31 December deadline, agreement on a firm and lasting peace
in keeping with the commitments made in the Framework Agreement;
11. Reiterates its appreciation to the Secretary-General
and the Group of Friends for their efforts in support of the Guatemalan
peace process, as well as its appreciation for the contribution
of the Assembly of Civil Society and other Guatemalans, within
the constitutional framework and the peace agreements, for their
efforts in support of that process;
12. Notes with satisfaction the establishment of the United
Nations Mission for the Verification of Human Rights and of Compliance
with the Commitments of the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights
in Guatemala, and, in the context of human rights, urges those
concerned fully to comply with their commitments under the agreements
already signed, including the agreement relating to the Mission;
13. Also notes with satisfaction the efforts of the Secretary-General,
the agencies of the United Nations system and the international
community as a whole to coordinate their support for the peace
process and, in particular, for the implementation of the agreements,
and encourages them to continue their assistance in favour of
peace, national reconciliation, democracy and development in Guatemala;
14. Requests the Secretary-General to continue his support
for the Guatemalan peace process, through his representative,
and his assistance in implementing the agreements;
15. Calls upon the Government of El Salvador and all the
political forces involved in the peace process to make all possible
efforts to fulfil their vital outstanding commitments in accordance
with the "Timetable for the implementation of the most important
outstanding agreements" 11/ and fully to implement all aspects
of the agreements, and requests the Secretary-General, in consultation
with the Government of El Salvador, the Member States and the
specialized agencies, to devise procedures for providing El Salvador,
in the context of the Peace Agreement, with the necessary cooperation
and assistance in the period after the United Nations Observer
Mission in El Salvador, in order to safeguard peace and the strengthening
and consolidation of national reconciliation, democracy and sustainable
development;
16. Requests all States and invites the international development
and financing institutions to react quickly and generously to
the joint appeal of the Government of El Salvador and the Frente
Farabundo Mart° para la Liberaci¢n Nacional to provide
the additional resources required for the full implementation
of the Peace Agreement;
17. Reiterates its recognition of the effective and timely
participation of the Secretary-General and his representatives
and encourages them to continue to take all necessary steps to
ensure the successful implementation of all the commitments made
by the parties to the El Salvador Peace Agreement, including efforts
to mobilize the necessary resources for the reconstruction and
development of the country, which are essential for the consolidation
of peace and democracy in El Salvador;
18. Recognizes the achievements made by the people and
Government of Nicaragua in their efforts to consolidate peace,
democracy and reconciliation among Nicaraguans, as well as the
political dialogue and process of economic and social consultation
among all sectors of the country, in order to strengthen the bases
for the country's reconstruction;
19. Supports the treatment accorded to Nicaragua in the
light of its continuing exceptional circumstances, so that the
international community and financial institutions can incorporate
that treatment into programmes to support the country's economic
recovery and social reconstruction;
20. Expresses its approval of the establishment of a support
group for Nicaragua, which, under the coordination of the Secretary-General,
is playing an active role in supporting the country's efforts
towards economic recovery and social development, particularly
with regard to solving the external debt problem and securing
investments and new resources that will allow the country's economic
and social reconstruction programmes to continue, and requests
the Secretary-General to continue to support those efforts;
21. Emphasizes the importance that the political dialogue
and economic cooperation under way within the ministerial conference
between the European Union and its member States and the Central
American countries, with the participation of the Group of Three
2/ as cooperating countries, have for the Central American countries'
efforts to achieve peace, consolidate democracy and ensure sustainable
development;
22. Requests the Secretary-General to give the Central
American countries every possible assistance for the consolidation
of peace and the strategy of sustainable development in the region;
23. Recognizes the importance of implemented, updated and
pending programmes, and, in view of the fact that the resources
assigned to the Special Plan of Economic Cooperation for Central
America have been used up, requests the agencies of the United
Nations system, in particular the United Nations Development Programme,
and international institutions to mobilize the necessary resources
to set in motion new national and regional programmes in support
of the content of the Declaration of GuÝcimo, 7/ the Alliance
for the Sustainable Development of Central America 4/ concluded
at the Managua Summit, and the Tegucigalpa Commitments on Peace
and Development 6/ adopted at the International Conference on
Peace and Development in Central America, in order to prevent
the progress made in Central America from being reversed and to
ensure that peace is consolidated in the region by means of integrated,
sustainable development;
24. Reiterates its appreciation to the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees and the United Nations Development Programme
for carrying out their mandate under the International Conference
on Central American Refugees, and requests the international community
to continue supporting the region in the efforts needed to comply
with the Declaration of Commitments adopted at Mexico City on
29 June 1994, as part of the new strategies for sustainable human
development to eradicate extreme poverty and consolidate peace
in the new Central American context;
25. Emphasizes the commitments on sustainable development
adopted at the fifteenth meeting of Central American Presidents,
the Central American Environment Summit for Sustainable Development
and the International Conference on Peace and Development in Central
America, and urges States Members and organs of the United Nations
system to give them every support;
26. Reiterates its full appreciation to and thanks the
Secretary- General for his efforts in favour of the pacification
process in Central America, particularly in those countries where
it is necessary to achieve and consolidate peace, national reconciliation,
democracy and sustainable development, and to the groups of friendly
countries which have made a direct contribution to attaining those
ends;
27. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its
fiftieth session the item entitled "The situation in Central
America: procedures for the establishment of a firm and lasting
peace and progress in fashioning a region of peace, freedom, democracy
and development";
28. Requests the Secretary-General to report to it at its
fiftieth session on the implementation of the present resolution.
92nd plenary meeting
19 December 1994
____________
1/ A/46/829-S/23310, annex III.
2/ The group of cooperating countries, known as the "Group
of Three", consists of Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela.
3/ A/42/949, annex.
4/ A/49/580-S/1994/1217, annex I.
5/ A/49/489 and Corr.1.
6/ A/49/639-S/1994/1247, annex II.
7/ A/49/340-S/1994/994, annex.
8/ A/49/61-S/1994/53, annex.
9/ A/48/928-S/1994/448, annexes I and II.
10/ A/48/954-S/1994/751, annexes I and II.
11/ See S/1994/612.