Sheila Ponnie
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. South Sudan has lost their voting rights at the United Nations General Assembly over SSP 200 million debt.
Thus, Juba will not take a vote at the 78th UN General Assembly from 12 September 2023.
South Sudan is among nine countries that were scrapped of voting rights for violating Article 19 of the Charter of the UN membership rule.
The article states that “a Member State in arrears in the payment of its dues in an amount that equals or exceeds the contributions due for two preceding years can lose its vote in the General Assembly.”
Juba owes the UN SSP 210 million ($300,000) at the current exchange rate.
The other five defaulters who also lost their rights include the Dominica Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Lebanon and Venezuela.
Each of these countries must pay $75,000 (€65,550) to get back their vote.
A total of 11 countries are behind with payment, though three of them – Somalia, Comoros and Sao Tome and Principe, will still have the right to vote until the end of the 77th session.
Venezuela must pay a maximum of $40 million (€35 million) to restore its voting rights while Iran owes over $18 million (€15.8 million).
UN charter states that a member with arrears may still be allowed to vote if the outstanding debt is deemed to be “due to conditions beyond the control of the member.”
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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