General Assembly agrees to upgrade status of the Holy See at the UN

Vatican City, Jul 1, 2004 / 22:00 pm

Yesterday, at the United Nations headquarters in New York, the General Assembly adopted a Resolution, submitted as a presidential text, to upgrade the status of the Holy See at the U.N., signifying a more participatory role in the U.N.’s work.

The Holy See's role as a permanent observer now includes all the same rights and privileges as other observers and it will be easier for it to participate in U.N. sessions without a vote. 

The Holy See no longer has to ask permission to participate in debates, it has a right of reply, the right to circulate documents and to raise points of order.

Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer to the United Nations, addressed the General Assembly and thanked the president for “the adoption by consensus of this Resolution on the participation of the Holy See in the work of the United Nations, under agenda item 59, entitled “Strengthening of the United Nations system.”

He noted that “the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See is happily celebrating the fortieth anniversary of its presence at this Organization this year.”

“The adoption of this Resolution is an important step forward and reflects the lofty values and collective interests shared by the Holy See and the United Nations. We are committed to the same objectives that necessitate the protection of the fundamental human rights, the preservation of the dignity and worth of the human person and the promotion of the common good,” said the archbishop.

“To achieve these goals, we need an ordered international community built upon the strong edifice of law - a law not of whim and caprice but of principles stemming from the very universality of human nature - that can guide human reason for the future,” he continued.

“With an edifice built on such principles guiding our efforts, we can be assured of attaining our mutual quest for a lasting and universal justice and peace.”

Archbishop Migliore concluded by thanking the “many Permanent Representatives who expressed to me their personal and their Governments' support for the Resolution just adopted” and “all Member States for their invaluable support in the adoption of this Resolution.”