The UN General Assembly has adopted a resolution on the status of internally displaced persons and refugees from Abkhazia and the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia, with 107 countries supporting the text.
The resolution was introduced by Georgia and co-sponsored by 68 countries from different regions of the world during the UN General Assembly’s 80th session on June 4.
Eight countries voted against the resolution, including Russia, Belarus, Burundi, Cuba, North Korea, Equatorial Guinea, Nicaragua and Sudan.
Fifty-five countries abstained, among them China and Iran, as well as Israel, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Serbia and Switzerland.
Georgia has been submitting the resolution annually since May 2008. The initiative is described as humanitarian in nature and calls for the right of displaced persons, regardless of ethnicity, to return to their homes in dignity and safety.
It also emphasizes the protection of property rights and calls on the UN Secretary-General to prepare an annual report on the implementation of the resolution.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry said the resolution has evolved into a global initiative, with co-sponsorship increasing by four countries this year to 68. It said co-sponsorship allows states to participate more actively in international efforts addressing what it described as the humanitarian consequences of Russia’s aggression and occupation.
During the debate, statements in support of the resolution were delivered by the President of the UN General Assembly, the European Union, Lithuania speaking on behalf of the Baltic and Nordic countries, the United Kingdom, Australia on behalf of Canada and New Zealand, Ukraine and Japan.
The Foreign Ministry of Georgia thanked all countries that supported and co-sponsored the resolution, saying their support reaffirmed the right of displaced persons and refugees to return to their homes and expressed solidarity with those affected by displacement.
