Use of Arabic in the subsidiary organs of the General Assembly, in the Security Council and in the Economic and Social Council : amendments to rules 51, 52, 54 and 56 of the rules of procedure of the Assembly.

  • Author: UN General Assembly (35th sess. : 1980-1981)
  • Document source:
    UN General Assembly
  • Date:
    17 December 1980
UN General Assembly (35th sess. : 1980-1981), Use of Arabic in the subsidiary organs of the General Assembly, in the Security Council and in the Economic and Social Council : amendments to rules 51, 52, 54 and 56 of the rules of procedure of the Assembly., A/RES/35/219, UN General Assembly, 17 December 1980, https://www.refworld.org/legal/resolution/unga/1980/en/9532 [accessed 15 January 2025]
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35. RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED ON THE REPORTS OF THE FIFTH COMMITTEE
219. Use of Arabic in the subsidiary organs of the General Assembly, in the Security Council and in the Economic and Social Council: amendments to rules 51, 52, 54 and 56 of the rules of procedure of the Assembly

A

The General Assembly, Referring to its resolution 3190 (XXVIII) of 18 December 1973, by which it decided to include Arabic among the official and working languages of the General Assembly and its Main Committees, Referring also to its resolution 34/226 of 20 December 1979, by which the Arabic language establishment was put on a par with the establishments for all the other official and working languages, Taking into consideration the fact that the Arabic language services are prevented from issuing documents with the necessary speed and in the necessary quantity because Arabic, unlike the other official and working languages of the United Nations, is used only in the General Assembly and its Main Committees, Affirming that, in the interest of the full effectiveness of the work of the United Nations, Arabic should be accorded the same status as the other official and working languages,

1. Decides to include Arabic among the official and working languages of the subsidiary organs of the General Assembly, no later than 1 January 1982;

2. Requests the Security Council to include Arabic among its official and working languages and the Economic and Social Council to include Arabic among its official languages, no later than 1 January 1983,

3. Requests the Secretary-General to take the necessary measures to that end and to report to the General Assembly at its thirty-sixth session on the implementation of the present resolution.

99th plenary meeting
17 December 1980

B

The General Assembly Adopts the following amendments to the rules of procedure of the General Assembly, proposed in a note by the Secretariat of 3 December 1980,[1] on the understanding that the new text will take effect on the date of the implementation of paragraph 1 of resolution A above:

(a) Replace rules 51 and 52 by the following text:

"VIII. LANGUAGES

"Official and working languages

"Rule 51

"Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish shall be both the official and the working languages of the General Assembly, its committees and its subcommittees.

"Interpretation

"Rule 52

"Speeches made in any of the six languages of the General Assembly shall be interpreted into the other five languages."

(b) Replace rule 54 by the following text:

"Languages of verbatim and summary records

"Rule 54

"Verbatim or summary records shall be drawn up as soon as possible in the languages of the General Assembly."

(c) Replace rule 56 by the following text:

"Languages of resolutions and other documents

"Rule 56

"All resolutions and other documents shall be published in the languages of the General Assembly."

99th plenary meeting
17 December 1980
[1] A/C.5/35/L.30.
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