U.N. General Assembly OKs First Phase of Reform Plan

The first phase of Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s broad reform plan for the United Nations was approved Wednesday by the General Assembly.

The 185-member assembly endorsed Annan’s managerial reorganization of the world body, a plan that is intended to save about $100 million a year. Approval was by a consensus resolution of the General Assembly, meaning there was no formal vote. It followed five weeks of sometimes intense debate on the reforms, mainly behind closed doors.

Annan hailed the action as “an important moment in the history of the United Nations.” But he is still awaiting action on a second set of reforms proposing structural changes in the organization.

The moves endorsed Wednesday are mainly administrative and include installation of a Cabinet-style administration surrounding Annan; creation of a new department of disarmament; consolidation of the U.N.’s human rights operations under the direction of Mary Robinson, the former Irish president recently appointed U.N. high commissioner for human rights; and expansion of the role of private environmental, social, legal, labor and business advocacy groups in U.N. activities.

Although Annan argued that these changes are within his jurisdiction, representatives of some developing nations disagreed, claiming he is intruding on the power of member states. A group of developing countries led by Pakistani Ambassador Ahmad Kamal led the opposition, but their efforts were eventually sidetracked. One top official said much of the opposition centered on Annan’s plans to raise the profile of human rights enforcement by the U.N.

U.N. officials hope to tackle a number of other reforms before the end of the year. These include proposals by Annan for the installation of a deputy secretary-general to act as his second-in-command, creation of a new fund to foster economic development in poor countries, and appointment of an international panel of foreign ministers to consider even more sweeping reforms of the U.N. system to be implemented around 2000.

Also on the horizon is a potentially divisive debate on competing proposals to expand the Security Council, the U.N. body responsible for issues of war and peace, by granting permanent membership to Germany, Japan and a number of developing nations.

The United States also is pressing for a realignment of the U.N. dues system that would reduce the share of American funding of the organization from 25% to 20%. That change, which the Clinton administration has made a condition of repayment of $812 million in back dues--part of the total U.S. dues in arrears--has generated widespread and vehement opposition even among close American allies.