GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOLDS SPECIAL COMMEMORATIVE MEETING TO MARK UNITED NATIONS YEAR OF TOLERANCE

20 November 1995

Press Release
GA/9004

GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOLDS SPECIAL COMMEMORATIVE MEETING TO MARK UNITED NATIONS YEAR OF TOLERANCE

19951120 Execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa, Eight Others by Nigerian Government, Need to Punish Perpetrators of Genocide Cited in Various Statements

The execution of environmentalist and minority rights activist Ken Saro- Wiwa and eight others by the Nigerian Government called into question that Government's commitment to human rights, the General Assembly was told this morning during a special commemorative meeting held to mark the United Nations Year for Tolerance.

The Representative of Spain, speaking on behalf of the European Union, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, said that the executions constituted a clear failure by Nigeria to honour its commitment to human rights. The European Union had already taken measures with regard to the situation in Nigeria and was considering additional ones. The very sad developments in Nigeria illustrated that there was still a long way to go in the quest for tolerance.

The representative of the United States called on all Member States to join her country in taking unilateral steps against the Nigerian regime. Those executions violated numerous provisions of the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights to which Nigeria was a party and called into question the Abacha regime's commitment to restore Nigeria to democracy and the rule of law. "Ultimately, these acts underscore the regime's refusal to abide by the most basic international human rights."

With reference to the question of criminal responsibility, the representative of Slovenia said the international community could not afford not to punish the perpetrators of the genocide against the Muslim people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The principle of the criminal responsibility of individuals -- irrespective of their rank or status -- must be upheld in the interest of peace.

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A world-wide conference aimed at reducing hatred should be held, with the most important participants being the representatives of various religions, the representative of Austria proposed. He stated that his country would like to offer Vienna as the site of such a conference.

Reading a statement on behalf of the Secretary-General, the Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Lansana Kouyate, said the international community must always say no to intolerance. With the uncertainties of tomorrow engendering fear of others, it was now more important than ever to give men and women of all countries true hope in the future.

The representatives of Turkey, Georgia, Peru, India, Slovenia, Andorra, Israel, Myanmar, Yemen and Romania also made statements.

Also this morning, acting Assembly President Nitya Pibulsonggram (Thailand) read a statement on behalf of the President.

Mr. Kouyate also read a statement on behalf of the Secretary-General to mark the Sixth Africa Industrialisation Day. A statement was also read by the acting Assembly President on behalf of the President.

The General Assembly will meet again at 3 p.m. today to conclude the special commemorative meeting on the United Nations Year for Tolerance. It will also take up the matter of cooperation between the United Nations and the League of Arab States and with the Islamic Conference.

Assembly Work Programme

The General Assembly met this morning to hold a Special Commemorative Meeting to mark the United Nations Year for Tolerance. The Assembly proclaimed 1995 as the United Nations Year for Tolerance by its resolution 48/126 of 20 December 1993. It recommended that specialized agencies, regional commissions and other organizations of the United Nations system consider in their respective forums the contributions they could make to the success of the year and also invited the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to assume the role of lead organization for the year.

The Assembly further called on Member States to cooperate with UNESCO in the preparation of the national and international programmes for the year and to participate actively in the implementation of the activities to be organised within the framework of the year.

By its resolution 49/213 of 23 December 1994, the Assembly requested UNESCO to prepare a declaration of principles and a programme of action as a follow-up to the year.

Sixth Africa Industrialisation Day

Before taking up the United Nations International Year for Tolerance, the Assembly heard statements on the Sixth Africa Industrialisation Day.

Statement by General Assembly President

NITYA PIBULSONGGRAM (Thailand), Acting General Assembly President, reading a statement on behalf of the President of the Assembly, said no challenge was more critical to the international community today than the development of Africa. To many, Africa represented a plethora of problems, including poverty, political instability, civil strife, poor economic performance, rapidly growing population, environmental degradation, hunger and malnutrition, and disease and illiteracy. But to many more, Africa was a land of promise and opportunity. The challenge for Africa was to harness its vast resources in the attainment of sustainable social and economic development. Industrialization held the key to that challenge.

He said that the observance of the Africa Industrialisation Day symbolized the international community's solidarity with the countries of Africa and reaffirmed the principle of their partnership in the industrial development of the continent. Over the past decade, Africans had demonstrated a strong determination to overcome their developmental problems. A significant number of countries had initiated far-reaching policy reforms. Continued progress in meeting the daunting demands of development of Africa depended a great deal, however, on the support of the international community.

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Statement by Representative of Secretary-General

LANSANA KOUYATE, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, read out a statement on behalf of the Secretary-General and, referring to the international community and the many problems confronting Africa today, said: "We need to act in concert, in a spirit of true partnership, if we are to move ahead in addressing these problems".

He said Africans were primarily responsible for their own development, but the international community bore a clear responsibility to support and sustain their efforts at helping themselves. The United Nations system must strengthen regional institutions and promote intensified regional cooperation. It must help African countries diversify their economies, particularly in the aftermath of the Uruguay Round trade agreements and must deal with the problem of African debt. In addition, African countries must be helped to establish effective social institutions. And it was essential for the United Nations system to support the efforts of African countries to improve public education and vocational training. The United Nations system, he added, had been at the forefront of international efforts to develop the human resources of Africa.

United Nations Year for Tolerance, Statement by President

The Assembly turned to the commemoration of the United Nations Year for Tolerance.

Mr. PIBULSONGGRAM (Thailand), Acting General Assembly President, read out a statement on behalf of the General Assembly President, and said the Year of Tolerance had the particularity that it addressed an issue that was very difficult to measure by any yardstick. "We, who speak on behalf of our peoples and nations in this and other forums of the international community, have the duty at least to address issues that are in our power, notably by creating the climate favourable to tolerance through the construction of democratic institutions, and the curbing of acts of intolerance, violence, discrimination and exclusion."

He said it was imperative to keep constantly in mind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which affirmed that everyone had the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, the freedom of opinion and expression and which, most significantly, stipulated that education "shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups".

Beyond any given time-frame, he said, the international community should transcend differences to renew its determined commitment to the promotion of the concept of tolerance as a prerequisite for a peaceful and non-violent world.

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Mr. KOUYATE, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, speaking on behalf of the Secretary-General, said the uncertainties of tomorrow were engendering fear of others. It was now more important than ever to give men and women of all countries true hope in the future.

The United Nations was not now marking the end of its struggle to promote tolerance, but quite the contrary, he continued. The international community must always say no to intolerance. It must continue to show the men and women of today that an open world provided an opportunity to transcend differences.

HUSEYIN E. CELEM (Turkey) said the Year of Tolerance should be the beginning of an educational process for tolerance and peace. Tolerance could be the quintessence of a new interaction and a new integration based on enlightened altruism: One for all, all for one. He hoped that the emerging culture of peace would make another Year of Tolerance unnecessary. He quoted Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi from the thirteenth century: "What need is there for doors and walls in a house in which hearts are open to other hearts, where minds are open to other minds?"

JUAN A. YANEZ-BARNUEVO (Spain), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania and Slovakia also aligned themselves with his statement. "We regret that our meeting today to commemorate the United Nations Year of Tolerance follows the very sad developments in Nigeria that illustrate that we still have a long way to go in our quest for tolerance throughout the world. . . . We condemn the execution on 10 November of Ken Saro-Wiwa and his eight co-defendants. This constituted a clear failure by Nigeria to honour its commitment to human rights." The European Union had already taken measures with regard to the situation in Nigeria and was considering additional ones.

He reaffirmed the European Union's commitment to the objectives of the Year of Tolerance, and said its member States continued to work towards making their societies more tolerant. He quoted the preamble to the UNESCO constitution, "Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that defence of peace must be constructed," and said UNESCO had been an effective coordinator for the year. The European Commission Against Racism and Intolerance had been working to strengthen guarantees against all forms of discrimination and to evaluate the effectiveness of the range of measures taken by States to combat racism, xenophobia, anti-semitism and intolerance. He also welcomed the involvement of youth, via the launching, in December 1994, of the European Youth Campaign Against Racism, Xenophobia, Anti-Semitism and Intolerance.

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SIMON WIESENTHAL (Austria) said that in another four years, the present century which had rightly been termed "a century of crimes" would come to an end. Recently, the world had been shocked by the assassination of Israel's Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. That was an example of what could happen as a result of lack of tolerance. Earlier in the century, communism and national socialism under Hitler had cost millions of lives. Underlying both Stalinism and national socialism were hate and technology.

In order to prevent a repetition of atrocities of this century, the younger generation must be warned against prejudices, he said. The Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles had built a museum called the "Museum of Tolerance". It informed people about human rights violations against Jews in the holocaust, the genocide of Armenians and the people of Cambodia. To instil tolerance a world-wide conference aimed at reducing hatred ought to be held, with the most important participants being representatives from various religions. Austria would like to offer Vienna as the site of such a conference.

PETER CHKHEIDZE (Georgia) said that after repeated onslaughts, Georgia had again and again revived from the ashes, without losing its inherent tolerance to other nations and religions. However, well prepared aggressive separatism had caught it unawares. Communist slogans of the separatists, aimed against the will of independence, had provoked bloodshed, creating a soil for ethnic confrontation. The history of the so-called Abkazian conflict in Georgia was well known to the international community.

Georgia was aware of the importance of the United Nations Year of Tolerance, he said. It believed that the idea of a comprehensive establishment of the priority of tolerance could have considerable support should a date be set for the day of tolerance and forgiveness.

FERNANDO GUILLEN (Peru) said the principle of tolerance understood not as mere indifference or condescension but as openness, solidarity, civilized coexistence, pluralism, freedom of conscience and religion, was to be found in the basic instruments of international law which governed inter-State relations. Education played a decisive role in building tolerance and therefore a comprehensive approach to education was required. Rejection of intolerance and violence should be taught. Only in that manner could a culture of peace, founded on respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, be built at the global level.

DANILO TURK (Slovenia) said Voltaire had proved beyond a doubt that tolerance was the essence of peace and prosperity. The United Nations had done valuable work in developing the norms of a good society and a peaceful world, yet much was left to be done at the level of implementation. In particular, the international community could not afford not to punish the perpetrators of the genocide of the Muslim people of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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Any acceptance of an "even distribution of guilt", such as had been advocated by some, would undermine the international community's credibility. Rather, the principle of the criminal responsibility of individuals -- irrespective of their rank or status -- must be upheld in the interest of peace.

JULI MINOVES-TRIQUELL (Andorra) quoted philosopher Susan Mendus: "We should tolerate -- and more than tolerate -- if we expect to create a society in which people can identify their good with the good of others, and come to feel that they speak through their society and that it speaks for them." Tolerance was perhaps not sufficient because it implied that people did not approve of what they were tolerating. For happiness, people also needed to respect and admire one another.

GAD YAACOBI (Israel) said the return of the Jewish people to their homeland was based on the idea of creating a moral and just society where equality and mutual respect would prevail. In its declaration of independence, the State of Israel promised to "uphold the full social and political equality of all its citizens, without distinction of race, creed or sex". Israel had fought for many years in order to achieve a lasting and equitable peace with its neighbours based on co-existence and mutual respect. Sadly, the progress achieved by Israel and its neighbours during the last several years had been ignored by some in the region.

The murder of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was an act of fanatics, of fundamentalists and of radicals, he went on. The murderer stood outside the scope of Judaism, universal morality and democratic tolerance. Mr. Rabin would be missed by Israel and the entire Jewish people and by the peoples throughout the Middle East and the world. The Year of Tolerance had come to an end, but the need for tolerance had not. The international community must remain committed not only to the notion of tolerance but to its attainment on a day-to-day basis.

U WIN MRA (Myanmar) said that while his delegation was totally supportive of attempts being made to instil the spirit of tolerance in the minds of individuals, it held that tolerance as a factor of peace should be practised to the fullest extent possible in inter-State relations. Attempts to impose a different system of values and norms on another country should be avoided in recognition of the diversity in cultures, beliefs and lifestyles. Myanmar attached great importance to the role of education in the establishment of a culture of tolerance, he added.

JEANNE MOUTOUSSAMY-ASHE (United States) said that commitment to tolerance and human rights lay at the heart of her country. The United States was born on the promise of universal freedom and settled by people from the world over. Political and civil rights, the right of all to practise their own religion, freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of association and assembly, and equality under the law were enshrined in its system of law.

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She spoke about the United States' abhorrence for the recent acts of the Nigerian Government in executing environmental and human rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others. Those executions violated numerous provisions of the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights to which Nigeria was a party. "The failure of the Nigerian Government to convict these individuals after a fair trial embodying due process of law, calls into question the Abacha regime's commitment to restore Nigeria to democracy and the rule of law. Ultimately, these acts underscore the regime's refusal to abide by the most basic international human rights."

In response to the outrages committed by the Nigerian military regime, she continued, the United States Government had recalled its ambassador in Nigeria, banned sale and repair of military goods and services to Nigeria and extended its ban on visas, which currently prohibited the entry into the United States of senior military officials and senior government officials and their families. That ban now included all military officers and civilians who actively formulate, implement or benefit from the policies that impede Nigeria's transition to democracy. Those measures were intended to signal to the Nigerian Government that it would not be permitted to engage in conduct against its citizens that violated international norms of justice and decency, and that the time had come for it to expedite the transition to democratic rule. All Member States should join the United States in taking similar unilateral steps against the Nigerian regime.

S.K. SINGLA (India) said the basic cause of most conflicts in which the United Nations had been forced to intervene had been intolerance. The situation in the former Yugoslavia illustrated this reality most graphically. Conflict prevention and peace could be achieved through support for pluralism, multi-ethnic societies and democratic mechanisms that tolerated diversity.

Tolerance, he went on to say, meant living together in harmony to profit from diversity, not killing each other to consolidate those differences. It was unfortunate that in their often misguided enthusiasm to rush into peace- keeping, the more powerful members of the United Nations had ignored that basic wisdom. Above all, there was a need for tolerance within the Organization. Also, the media could play an active role in promoting tolerance.

AHMED AL-AKWA (Yemen) said Islam called for tolerance and forgiveness, but unfortunately some people falsely called it a religion of intolerance. The existence of fanatics and terrorists did not mean otherwise. The Lord God had said: "Discuss with your adversaries as best you can, and you will see that they become intimate friends".

He said that while Yemen had appreciated the international community's intervention in certain situations where rights were being violated, other interventions had seemed biased by political interests. In other cases, the

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international community's intervention had been inadequate. As examples, there were those occupied territories where Arab rights had been trampled on since 1967, and the rape of thousands of women and girls in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He demanded that those responsible for such crimes be punished and brought before the international tribunal.

DUMITRU MAZILU (Romania) said that the experience gained during the International Year for Tolerance should be used for future activities to heighten public awareness of the threat to peace by lack of tolerance between nations, communities or individuals. The United Nations, UNESCO and other international organizations should continue to focus their efforts on influencing public opinion in favour of tolerance. They should also focus on deterring and combating acts of intolerance like racism, xenophobia, discrimination, segregation and separatism. They should also educate young people, in the spirit of tolerance, to recognize and accept individual differences.

He said that the international community had to do everything in its power to continue to develop the United Nations initiatives for promoting tolerance beyond 1995 so that education for tolerance could become a common concern at both national and international levels.

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