SECRETARY-GENERAL DESCRIBES EIGHT-POINT AGENDA FOR UN FUTURE IN ADDRESS TO ADVANCED STUDY INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF SAO PAULO
Press Release
SG/SM/5901
SECRETARY-GENERAL DESCRIBES EIGHT-POINT AGENDA FOR UN FUTURE IN ADDRESS TO ADVANCED STUDY INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF SAO PAULO
19960228 Following is the text of Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's address at the University of Sao Paulo Institute for Advanced Study on 28 February:I am always grateful for the invitation to speak before an academic audience. First, because I miss the university life. Second, because I am convinced that ideas produced in the universities of the world will affect the political future of the international system, and the role played by the United Nations in this system.
Today, therefore, I do not speak to you only as an academic colleague, but also as Secretary-General of the United Nations -- the world Organization that will be affected, sooner or later, by debate in the common room and in the classroom. And I know that University of Sao Paulo will be a strong contributor to shaping the world of the future.
The University of Sao Paulo reminds me of my own university, the University of Cairo. Each has served as a bridge between the world of academia and the world of politics. In Egypt, the national struggle for independence was born within the walls of the university, and university professors have been instrumental in the democratization of political life. In Brazil, too, the University of Sao Paulo proved to be a strong defender of democracy through difficult times in the past. At this university, the light of freedom and justice was kept alive, by faculty and students alike. We, in Cairo, followed closely your debate on dependency and development, on democratization, and on the rayonnement of the University of Sao Paulo in the developing world.
I do not, therefore, stand before you as a university lecturer, but as one who, like many of you, has devoted his life to building bridges between ideas and action, between research and political commitment. I, therefore, approach my topic from two perspectives: from the academic side, to analyse the world-historical forces at work today; and from the political side, to offer some thoughts on the role of the Secretary-General in this new context.
The international environment is subject to two great forces, interacting in a dialectic: globalization and fragmentation. Both have positive, as well as negative, consequences for the work of the United
Nations. In addition to the dialectic of globalization and fragmentation, the United Nations is subject to its own internal dialectic. Member States have been increasing the mandates of the United Nations. But they have not provided the growth in resources, human and financial, to implement the increased responsibilities.
The Secretary-General, as Chief Administrative Officer of the United Nations, can be crucial in dealing with these two dialectics. On the one hand, the work of the United Nations must be steered so as to respond to the globalization-fragmentation dialectic. On the other, the United Nations must be made more efficient, and do more with less. This requires that the Secretary-General have the skills of a politician, a diplomat, an administrator and, judging by the recent negative growth budget, a magician and a super-beggar. Thus, the Secretary-General's position can be critical, not only for the construction of a new international environment, but also for the very survival of the United Nations as an organization.
Although globalization and fragmentation have been taking place for many years, they are now beginning to shape the world environment as a whole. Globalization acts as a strong force to limit the powers of the State. These globalizing trends are well known, and have been extensively studied in this Institute. Financial flows know no borders, and, through the possibility of transfers in real time, the monetary policy of the State is seriously affected. Ready access to information and the increased use of the electronic media mean that it is no longer possible to isolate one part of humanity. Information, even in the poorest societies, is easily available. Images of the world are broadcast into every home, and serve as a strong impetus for policy makers.
Consider, for example, the essential role of information in bringing home to the world the terrible humanitarian suffering in Somalia. Although the United Nations had long warned of the humanitarian crisis there, action was only taken after images of suffering in Somalia were broadcast on every screen.
In contrast, the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is not widely broadcast. The cameras are not there, and the United Nations finds it difficult to mobilize humanitarian assistance for Kabul, where close to a million persons are experiencing terrible conditions.
But no nation can claim to live in isolation. No frontier can be sealed. Threats to the global environment, excessive carbon emissions, can threaten the long-term future of development patterns. The spread of epidemics does not recognize national borders. No country, no civilization and no way of life is immune from infection. These are global responsibilities, and can only be addressed through global agreement and action.
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The international system of States also feels the pressures of fragmentation. The return of ethnic, cultural and religious resentment, and the inward turning of many peoples are evidence of this fragmentation in the political sphere. In terms of global peace and security, fragmentation can be seen in the internal conflicts that have spread across the world since the end of the cold war, stretching to the limit the will of the international community to keep the peace. But there is also a healthy side to fragmentation. As State control is relaxed, a variety of non-State actors come to the fore. From concerned citizens groups to non-governmental organizations, to academic communities and business associations, to regional organizations, the needs and the opinions of civil society are being articulated as never before. I recall, in this respect, the significant role played by the academic communities, and local Church groups in the democratization of Brazilian political life.
At the international level, non-State actors have been increasingly important in shaping the development and human rights agenda, not only at the United Nations, but also at the many global conferences and summit meetings under the auspices of the United Nations. The role of non-governmental organizations in the adoption of Agenda 21 and at the Earth Summit held at Rio de Janeiro in 1992 is a case in point.
There is not much that individuals, or even individual States, can do in the face of such powerful historical forces. But we are not powerless in the determination of our future. Through the articulation of common values, the adoption of common policies, and the development of a common approach to peace, we can resolve the dialectic of globalization and fragmentation to the benefit of humanity.
The instrument for our collective action is the United Nations. The United Nations was designed to be both the world Organization, and the organization of its Member States and their peoples. As if in training for precisely this moment, the United Nations has, in its first 50 years, gained enormous experience that must now be put to good use. But the United Nations is unable to engage fully with these new challenges because it is trapped by the paradox of expanding responsibilities and diminishing resources.
To address all these issues, I see an eight-point agenda for the United Nations and the Secretary-General. First, the United Nations has the responsibility to bring to international attention the fact that the immensely powerful and potentially positive process of globalization can bring with it some major problems. As Secretary-General, I have placed great importance on international conferences as a way of raising the world's awareness of these problems. Through a cycle of global conferences, the world, States and non- State actors have been coming together to set a global agenda. The next in line will be Habitat II this year in Istanbul. There, the question of viable human settlements for the twenty-first century will be addressed.
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Second, the United Nations can play an important part in helping to settle conflicts arising from fragmentation. Preventive diplomacy, conducted early in a dispute, can ease tensions and resolve problems before they lead to open war. As an impartial figure, with a global mandate, relatively free of political pressures, and without the desire to publicize his role, the Secretary-General can achieve a great deal behind the scenes to help parties settle their differences before their confrontation becomes public and, therefore, difficult to end. Resolving an issue early and privately can be the key to preventing bloodshed and war.
Third, the United Nations has the responsibility to take a public stand on what I have called "orphan conflicts". These are the conflicts which do not receive sufficient attention, because of information overload, because of the time required for resolution, because they fall below the level of national interest for most States, or simply because they are geographically too far away from Geneva or New York. These conflicts often seem inevitable, incomprehensible, and impossible to resolve. But the United Nations cannot choose to answer one call for help and choose to ignore another. All Member States are equally entitled to ask and receive help. This is why the United Nations has a moral responsibility to call attention to these orphan conflicts.
Fourth, the United Nations must continue to pressure the international community for disarmament. The world has turned its attention to the problem of weapons of mass destruction, nuclear, chemical and biological. The United Nations, while supporting this disarmament effort, must remind the world of the destructive aspects of trade in small arms, in conventional weapons, in land mines -- which are a major cause of fragmentation. The ready procurement of small arms to different clans in Somalia led to the collapse of that country. Micro-disarmament will be crucial if we are to have a safe and stable future.
Five, because of the many demands on the United Nations, demands far exceeding its capacity to act in all cases, the Secretary-General must make hard choices. The United Nations cannot solve all the world's problems. The Secretary-General must uphold each Member State's right to request and to receive United Nations assistance according to its needs. At the same time, the Secretary-general must draw attention to those needs that should take priority as determined by the competing pressures and influence of Member States. The Secretary-General must take a central role in resolving the conflict between realism and responsibility.
Six, the United Nations must deal with the problem of increasing demands on the United Nations in several ways. The United Nations can decentralize and delegate, so that all parts of the Organization are utilized to their full extent. The United Nations can encourage regional organizations to act in assisting the United Nations. The Secretary-General can encourage ad hoc
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arrangements that will support his efforts through informal groups such as "The Friends of the Secretary-General" in El Salvador. Finally, the United Nations can seek the more active involvement of non-State actors.
Seven, the Secretary-General must ensure that mandates given to the United Nations are clear, realistic and backed by the human and material resources required to complete the assigned task successfully. Although the Secretary-General sometimes must accept, however unwillingly, the role of a scapegoat, it is essential that the credibility of the United Nations be upheld. Member States must not be allowed to use the United Nations to avoid a problem and then blame the United Nations for failing to solve it. The Secretary-General must speak out against such abuse.
Eight, the Secretary-General must address the problem of resources. In relation to the scope and significance of the Organization's activities, the regular budget is remarkably small. The regular budget for 1994 was $1.3 billion, with another $2.5 billion for peace-keeping. Yet, many Member States refuse to pay their contributions fully and on time, leading to a chronic shortage of cash and placing a very severe strain on the Organization.
I have proposed a number of measures to solve the cash-flow problem. With long-term change in mind, I have committed myself to a mission of continuing reform, which is essential if the United Nations is to enjoy the steady financial and political support of Member States.
These are eight ways in which the United Nations and the Secretary- General can make a substantial contribution to resolving these two dialectics: globalization and fragmentation, and increased mandates and decreased resources.
The job of Secretary-General, as has often been said, is the most impossible job in the world. Without the dedication and professionalism of the staff of the United Nations, the Secretary-General could achieve very little. Without the trust and the support of Member States, the Secretary- General could achieve very little. But without the United Nations, the dialectics of today will lead not to synthesis, but to chaos and international disorder.
You in the academic community have a great role to play too. You too are called upon to help shape the world of tomorrow, to help strengthen the United Nations of tomorrow, and to continue to ask the impossible of the Secretary-General today.
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