January 31, 2002 06:52 PM ET
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Twenty countries, including Afghanistan, were barred Thursday from voting in the U.N. General Assembly this year because they have fallen too far behind in their dues.
The new Afghan interim government, installed just last month after more than 20 years of internecine war, is virtually broke and counting on international aid to keep it afloat while it tries to rebuild.
It owes the United Nations $4,600 in regular budget and peacekeeping assessments.
The General Assembly is the United Nations' main deliberative body, composed of representatives of all 189 U.N. member-nations. Each member normally has one vote.
Most of the countries too far in arrears to vote are in Africa, including Cape Verde, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Libya, Mauritania, Niger, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles and Somalia.
Others include Iraq in the Middle East, the Caribbean nations of Dominica and Haiti, Central Asian countries Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, and Vanuatu in the South Pacific.
Iraq, which owes $12.4 million, has not paid because of the stringent U.N. sanctions imposed on it in 1990 over its invasion of neighboring Kuwait.
Another four countries -- Burundi and Comoros in Africa and Georgia and Moldova in Eastern Europe -- were allowed to keep voting despite big unpaid dues bills, on grounds their failure to pay was due to conditions beyond their control.
===== Kevin Dean Buffalo, NY ICQ: 8616001 http://www.yaysoft.com
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