Having few attendees is not uncommon in general assemblies
Claim: Attendees of the 77th United Nations General Assembly last September 21 (Tuesday, September 20, New York time) walked out on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s speech.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: The claim has been circulating on Facebook and Twitter. A particular post containing the said claim had over 24,000 reactions, 2,200 comments, and 11,000 shares.
The bottom line: There are no reports that the delegates left the hall during Marcos’ speech.
Empty seats: Empty seats during the UN General Assembly are not uncommon. They are not exclusive to Marcos’ speech.
Marcos was the second speaker in the afternoon session of the UN General Assembly on September 21. The president of Honduras, Iris Xiomara Castro Sarmiento, was the speaker before him. The number of delegates during both speeches were similar. There was no significant decrease in attendees from Sarmiento’s time to Marcos’.
Reported walkout: In the past, there have been reported walkouts to show disapproval during UN assemblies. The most recent was during Russia’s foreign minister’s speech at the United Nations Human Rights Council in March 2022. Around 100 delegates reportedly walked out to show their disapproval for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. – Pola Regalario/Rappler.com
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