United Nations General Assembly Third Committee

{{Infobox United Nations

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| image_size = 120px

| name = United Nations General Assembly Third Committee

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| abbreviation = SOCHUM, C3

| leader_title = Head

| leader_name = Chairperson
Zéphyrin Maniratanga

| status = Active

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| headquarters = New York, United States

| website = [http://www.un.org/en/ga/third/ www.un.org/en/ga/third]

| parent_organization = United Nations General Assembly

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| footnotes = {{Portal-inline|Politics|size=tiny}}

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The United Nations General Assembly Third Committee (also known as the Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural Committee or SOCHUM or C3) is one of six main committees at the General Assembly of the United Nations. It deals with human rights, humanitarian affairs and social matters.

The Third Committee meets every year in early October and aims to finish its work by the end of November. All 193 member states of the UN can attend. As in previous sessions, an important part of the work of the committee will focus on the examination of human rights questions, including reports of the special procedures of the Human Rights Council which was established in 2006.

Mandate

The work of the committee focuses on human rights, humanitarian affairs and social issues. In addition, it also considers issues relating to:

The advancement of women
The protection of children
the protection of Indigenous populations, and related issues
The treatment of refugees, and related issues such as racism and discrimination
The promotion of fundamental freedoms
The right to self-determination
Youth, family, and aging
The rights of persons with disabilities
Crime prevention and criminal justice
The international drug trade, and related issues

Working methods

The work of the Third Committee begins in early October and is usually finished by the end of November.

Unlike most other bodies of the General Assembly, the work of the Third Committee does not begin with a general debate between its members. Instead, its agenda items are debated individually from the beginning of the session.

The Third Committee hosts interactive dialogues with the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the High Commissioner for Refugees each year.{{cite book |author= |title=The GA Handbook: A Practical Guide to the United Nations General Assembly |url=https://www.eda.admin.ch/dam/mission-new-york/en/documents/UN_GA__Final.pdf |edition=2nd |location=New York |publisher=Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations |date=2017 |isbn=978-0-615-49660-3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181122005435/https://www.eda.admin.ch/dam/mission-new-york/en/documents/UN_GA__Final.pdf |archive-date=22 November 2018 |url-status=live}}

Current state

In its 79th Session, the committee will focus on:{{UN doc|docid=A/C.3/79/1|body=A|session=79|type=Annex|resolution_number=1|title=Allocation of agenda items to the Third Committee|date=13 September 2024|accessdate=2025-03-17}}

A. Promotion of sustained economic growth and sustainable development in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and recent United Nations conferences

Social development
Advancement of women

B. Maintenance of international peace and security

Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, questions relating to refugees, returnees and displaced persons and humanitarian questions

C. Promotion of human rights

Report of the Human Rights Council
Promotion and protection of the rights of children
Rights of indigenous peoples
Elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance
Right of peoples to self-determination
Promotion and protection of human rights

D. Drug control, crime prevention and combating international terrorism in all its forms and manifestations

Crime prevention and criminal justice
Countering the use of information and communications technologies for criminal purposes
International drug control

Bureau

The following make up the bureau of the Third Committee for the 79th Session of the General Assembly:{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/en/ga/third/75/bureau.shtml |title=Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues (Third Committee): Bureau of the 75th Session |author= |date=n.d. |website=General Assembly of the United Nations |publisher=United Nations |access-date=29 September 2020 }}

class="wikitable" ! Name ! Country ! Position
Zéphyrin Maniratanga	{{flag\|Burundi}}	Chairperson
Nur Azura Abd Karim	{{flag\|Malaysia}}	Vice-Chair
Ekaterine Lortkipanidze	{{flag\|Georgia}}	Vice-Chair
Mayra Lisseth Sorto Rosales	{{flag\|El Salvador}}	Vice-Chair
Robin de Vogel	{{flag\|Netherlands}}	Rapporteur

References

External links

[http://www.un.org/en/ga/third/ Third Committee for Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Issues, UN.org]
[https://www.un.org/ga/maincommittees.shtml Six Committees of the United Nations General Assembly, UN.org]

Category:Human rights organizations

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