STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE GROUP OF 77 AND CHINA BY MINISTER MARCELO SUAREZ SALVIA, PERMANENT MISSION OF ARGENTINA TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AT THE GENERAL SEGMENT OF THE 2011 SUBSTANTIVE SESSION OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL ON THE INTRODUCTION OF THE DRAFT RESOLUTION ON ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL REPERCUSSIONS OF THE ISRAELI OCCUPATION ON THE LIVING CONDITIONS OF THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE IN THE OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORY, INCLUDING EAST JERUSALEM, AND THE ARAB POPULATION IN THE OCCUPIED SYRIAN GOLAN (Geneva, Switzerland, 27 July 2011)

Mr. President,

1. I have the honour to introduce, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, the draft resolution on "Economic and social repercussions of the Israeli occupation on the living conditions of the Palestinian people in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the Arab population in the occupied Syrian Golan", agenda item 11.

Mr. President,

2. Guided by the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and affirming the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force, the G77 and China expresses concern over the persistence of the difficult economic and social situation of the Palestinian people, including Jerusalem, and stresses the need to preserve the territorial integrity of all of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, to guarantee the freedom of movement of persons and goods, and to respect the fundamental human rights of the Palestinian people.

3. The draft resolution also stresses the need to preserve and develop Palestinian national institutions and infrastructure for the provision of vital public services to the Palestinian civilian population and to contribute to the promotion and protection of human rights, including economic and social rights.

Mr. President,

4. Commending the important work being done by the United Nations, the specialized agencies and the donor community in support of the economic and social development of the Palestinian people in line with their national development and State-building plan, we re-emphasize the need for international assistance to support Palestinian development efforts in the economic and social fields, and called on the international donor community to deliver the financial assistance pledges to the Palestinian Authority.

5. In that regard, we would like to urgently called for the full and speedy implementation of the agreements reached and for international support to reactivate and complete the peace process from the point where it was stopped at, emphasizing the necessity to respect all agreements, pledges and commitments reached during previous stage of the peace talks.

I thank you Mr. President.