| Geneva , 11 December 2002 SUMMARY RECORD OF THE 2nd MEETING Held at the Palais des Nations , Geneva , on Wednesday , 11 December 2002 , at 4.25 p. m. President : Mr. FAESSLER ( Switzerland ) GENERAL EXCHANGE OF VIEWS ( PLENARY ) ( continued ) The meeting was called to order at 4.25 p. m. GENERAL EXCHANGE OF VIEWS ( PLENARY ) ( agenda item 8 ) ( continued ) Mr. DOĞAN ( Turkey ) , reiterating his country 's commitment to the elimination of all anti-personnel mines , said that Turkey welcomed any measures adopted to that end , whether at the bilateral or multilateral level . In January 2002 , it had decided to extend indefinitely its moratorium on the export and transfer of anti-personnel landmines , thereby demonstrating its genuine wish to become party to the Ottawa Convention . In addition to concluding bilateral agreements with its neighbouring countries to demine frontier areas , it had also contributed $50,000 to the demining activities conducted in Bosnia and Herzegovina with the assistance of Turkish troops and had provided financial support for demining projects conducted on the northern frontier of Albania , following the Kosovo conflict . By August 2002 , Turkey had already cleared more than 10,000 mines . In addition , it had set up demining and coordination centres and had trained demining teams . Turkey had suffered a great deal from terrorism and from the extensive use by terrorists of anti-personnel and anti-vehicle mines . Regrettably , terrorists did not consider themselves bound by existing legal instruments and attached scant importance to the increasing support enjoyed by such instruments . The international community should fight terrorism in a concerted manner and should use every possible means to bring terrorists and their accomplices to justice . Mr. SEETHARAM ( India ) said that he was obliged to refute the allegations made against his country by the organization Human Rights Watch . India strictly respected Amended Protocol II . Furthermore , the casualty figures cited by Human Rights Watch were unfounded and had clearly not been verified with the authorities , an omission which reflected badly on the organization . CONSIDERATION OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGIES TO PROTECT CIVILIANS AGAINST THE INDISCRIMINATE EFFECTS OF MINES ( agenda item 11 ) The PRESIDENT said that no delegation wished to take the floor on the agenda item . OTHER MATTERS ( agenda item 12 ) The PRESIDENT said that no delegation wished to take the floor on the agenda item . CONSIDERATION AND ADOPTION OF THE FINAL DOCUMENTS ( agenda item 13 ) ( CCW/AP . II/CONF.4/CRP.1 , English only ) The PRESIDENT drew attention to the draft report of the Fourth Annual Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II , issued under symbol CCW/AP . II/CONF.4/CRP.1 , in English only , and invited the Conference to take it up paragraph by paragraph before adopting it in its entirety . Paragraphs 1-6 Paragraphs 1-6 were adopted . Paragraph 7 The PRESIDENT said that Morocco should be added to the list of States which had notified the depository of their consent to be bound by Amended Protocol II and had participated in the work of the Conference , bringing the number of such States to 46. Paragraph 7 , as completed , was adopted . Paragraph 8 Paragraph 8 was adopted . Paragraph 9 The PRESIDENT said that the secretariat had informed him that the Islamic Republic of Iran should be removed from the list of States not parties to Amended Protocol II which had participated as observers . Mr. HORUMBA ( Observer from Romania ) said that his country should be added to that list . Paragraph 9 , as amended and completed , was adopted . Paragraph 10 Paragraph 10 was adopted . Paragraph 11 Ms. WALKER ( International Campaign to Ban Landmines ) requested that the names of all the member organizations of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines which had attended the public meetings of the Conference should be listed in the paragraph . Paragraph 11 , as completed , was adopted . Paragraph 12 Increasing the number of vice-presidents of the Annual Conference Mr. WENSLEY ( South Africa ) suggested that the number of vice-presidents of the Annual Conference should be increased to three , to ensure the representation of each group of countries and China in the General Committee of the Conference , which would therefore also be more balanced . That would also entail amending rules 3 and 7 of the rules of procedure . The PRESIDENT said he took it that the Conference wished to increase the number of vice-presidents to three . It was so decided . Mr. WENSLEY ( South Africa ) suggested that the following text should therefore be added to paragraph 12 of the draft report under consideration : “ The Conference decided to amend rules 3 and 7 of the rules of procedure in order to increase the number of vice-presidents from two to three to secure a balanced representation of geographical groups in the General Committee of the Conference . Amended rule 3 will read as follows : ` The Conference shall elect from among the States parties participating in the Conference a president and three vice-presidents . These officers shall be elected so as to ensure the representative character of the General Committee provided for in rule 7. ' Amended rule 7 will read as follows : ` The General Committee shall be composed of the President , who shall preside , three vice-presidents and the chairs of any other subsidiary organs . ' ” Paragraph 12 , as completed , was adopted . Paragraphs 13 and 14 Paragraphs 13 and 14 were adopted . New paragraph 15 The PRESIDENT said that a new paragraph 15 should be added , to read as follows : “ At the same meeting , the Conference heard a message from the Secretary-General of the United Nations , which was read out by Mr. Enrique Román-Moray , Deputy Secretary-General of the Conference on Disarmament and Director of the Geneva Branch of the Department for Disarmament Affairs . ” New paragraph 15 was adopted . New paragraph 16 ( old paragraph 15 ) New paragraph 16 was adopted . New paragraph 17 ( old paragraph 16 ) The PRESIDENT said that the secretariat had informed him that Croatia and the United States of America should be added to the list of States which had submitted their annual reports . Mr. WENSLEY ( South Africa ) said that his country should also be added to the list . New paragraph 17 , as completed , was adopted . New paragraph 18 ( old paragraph 17 ) Mr. DAHINDEN ( Switzerland ) said that the following text should be added to new paragraph 18 : “ Switzerland suggested that a cover page should be added to the national annual reports , to simplify the transmission of information . This suggestion should be taken up in a decision to be adopted at the next Annual Conference ( see annex I ) . ” The thinking behind the suggestion was that , where the information was unchanged from one year to the next , there would be no need to submit a full new report : instead a mention on the cover page would suffice . New paragraph 18 , as completed , was adopted . New paragraph 19 ( old paragraph 18 ) Draft appeal issued by States parties to Amended Protocol II on the occasion of their Fourth Annual Conference ( CCW/AP . II/CONF.4/CRP.2 ) The PRESIDENT invited the Conference to consider and adopt the draft appeal by the States parties on the occasion of their Fourth Annual Conference , contained in document CCW/AP . II/CONF.4/CRP.2 and referred to in new paragraph 19 , before proceeding to the adoption of the paragraph . Recalling that the draft had been inspired by the appeal submitted by the States parties at their Third Annual Conference , held immediately prior to the Second Review Conference , he said that , in the informal consultations which he had held before the current meeting , one delegation had suggested that the text should be updated by deleting the paragraph which read : “ [ We ] welcome the opportunity provided by the Second Review Conference of the States parties to the Convention on Conventional Weapons to examine the operation and status of Amended Protocol II . ” The draft appeal issued under symbol CCW/AP . II/CONF.4/CRP.2 , as amended , was adopted . New paragraph 19 was adopted . New paragraph 20 ( old paragraph 19 ) New paragraph 20 was adopted with a minor editorial change to the English text . New paragraph 21 ( old paragraph 20 ) Designation of the president and vice-presidents of the Fifth Annual Conference Mr. HOLZENBERGER ( Germany ) said that several delegations , including his own , had put forward the idea of designating the president and the vice-presidents of the Fifth Annual Conference at the end of the Fourth Conference , so that the incoming president and vice-presidents could themselves take charge of the preparations for the Conference and would then be able to conduct their work on the basis of those preparations . That approach seemed more rational than requesting the outgoing president and vice-presidents to carry out the preparatory work and more conducive to the smooth running of the Conference . Mr. PETÖCZ ( Slovakia ) , speaking on behalf of the group of Eastern European States , said that his group supported the idea . Mr. DOROSIN ( United States of America ) wondered whether it would be valid to designate the president and the vice-presidents of the Fifth Annual Conference at the current Conference . The PRESIDENT explained that the designation at the current stage of the president and vice-presidents of the Fifth Annual Conference would have to be confirmed by their election at that Conference . He took it that the Conference wished to designate the president and the vice-presidents of the Fifth Annual Conference at the current stage . It was so decided . The PRESIDENT invited groups of States to put forward candidates for the posts of president and vice-presidents of the Fifth Annual Conference . Mr. PETÖCZ ( Slovakia ) , speaking on behalf of the group of Eastern European States , said that the group proposed Ambassador Tzantchev of Bulgaria as President of the Fifth Annual Conference . Mr. WENSLEY ( South Africa ) , speaking on behalf of the group of non-aligned and other countries , said that the group proposed the representative of South Africa as Vice-President of the Fifth Conference . It was not possible , at the current stage , to give the name of the South African representative who would perform those functions since the tour of duty of the ambassador currently serving in Geneva would end during the coming few months . Mr. FU Zhigang ( China ) said that China proposed that one of its representatives should also be designated Vice-President of the Fifth Annual Conference . Mr. HOLZENBERGER ( Germany ) , speaking on behalf of the group of Western countries , said that the group also proposed the Swiss Ambassador , Mr. Faessler as Vice-President of the Fifth Annual Conference . The PRESIDENT said that , if he heard no objection , he would take it that the Conference wished to designate the Bulgarian Ambassador , Mr. Tzantchev , as President of the Fifth Annual Conference and the representatives of South Africa and China , as well as the Ambassador of Switzerland , Mr. Faessler , as Vice-Presidents of the Conference . It was so decided . The PRESIDENT suggested that new paragraph 21 should be amended and completed in the light of the decision which the Conference had just adopted . It would therefore read as follows : “ The Conference decided that the incoming president and vice-presidents would be designated at the end of the current Conference , so as to ensure the continuity of the preparatory work of the presidency . Accordingly , the Conference decided to designate the Bulgarian Ambassador , Mr. Tzantchev , as President of the Annual Conference of States Parties to be held in 2003 and the representatives of South Africa and China , and the Ambassador of Switzerland , Mr. Faessler , as Vice-Presidents . ” New paragraph 21 , as modified and completed , was adopted . New paragraph 22 ( old paragraph 21 ) The PRESIDENT drew attention to the estimated costs which would be contained in document CCW/AP . II/CONF.4/3 and which were referred to in new paragraph 22. He pointed out that , in effect , there had been two sets of estimates , depending on whether the Conference lasted one or two days. He explained that the dates given in the estimates were very tentative and recalled that the dates and duration of the Fifth Annual Conference would be decided , as indicated in the paragraph under consideration , at the Meeting of States Parties to the Convention to be held on 12 and 13 December 2002. New paragraph 22 was adopted with a minor editorial change to the English text . New paragraph 23 ( old paragraph 22 ) Mr. FU Zhigang ( China ) questioned the wording of the paragraph , which stated that the President was requested to present the report of the Fourth Annual Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II to the Meeting of States Parties to the Convention , to be held on 12 and 13 December 2002 , and wondered whether the States parties to Amended Protocol II were not themselves empowered to adopt the report of their own Fourth Annual Conference and why the report needed to be endorsed by the Meeting of States Parties . It had been his understanding that the Meeting of States Parties would have the sole purpose of considering the procedural report of the Group of Governmental Experts and deciding on follow-up to its work , as agreed by the Second Review Conference of the Convention . Mr. WENSLEY ( South Africa ) pointed out that , in 2001 , the States parties to Amended Protocol II had concluded that they should submit the report of their Third Annual Conference to the forthcoming Second Conference of States Parties , which would be responsible for reviewing the status and the operation of the Convention and its annexed protocols as a whole , including Amended Protocol II . He agreed with the representative of China that the mandate of the Meeting of States Parties on 12 and 13 December was quite different , since it had been tasked with considering the report of the Group of Governmental Experts and deciding on follow-up to its work . While he had no objection in principle to the President of the Fourth Annual Conference reporting to that Meeting , he did not believe that there was any real necessity for such a report . Mr. DA SILVA ( Brazil ) shared that view : the Meeting of States Parties on 12 and 13 December had been called with a view to considering the procedural report of the Group of Governmental Experts and it would be as well to confine it to that task . The PRESIDENT said he took it that all delegations agreed on that point . Accordingly , the second part of new paragraph 23 should be deleted and the paragraph should read as follows : “ At its final meeting , on 11 December 2002 , the Fourth Annual Conference adopted its report . ” New paragraph 23 , as amended , was adopted . The draft report of the Fourth Annual Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II was adopted in its entirety . The PRESIDENT said that the Conference had concluded the consideration of its agenda . The PRESIDENT thanked all delegations and the staff of the secretariat and of Conference Services for their assistance and declared the Fourth Annual Conference of the States Parties to Amended Protocol II closed . The meeting rose at 5.30 p. m. This record is subject to correction . Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages . They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated in a copy of the record . They should be sent within one week of the date of this document to the Official Records Editing Section , room E.4108 , Palais des Nations , Geneva . Any corrections to the records of the meetings of this Conference will be consolidated in a single corrigendum , to be issued shortly after the end of the Conference . |