SUPPORT FOR UNITED NATIONS AS VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO UNILATERALISM EXPRESSED BY SPEAKERS, AS GENERAL ASSEMBLY BEGINS GENERAL DEBATE
Press Release
GA/9095
SUPPORT FOR UNITED NATIONS AS VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO UNILATERALISM EXPRESSED BY SPEAKERS, AS GENERAL ASSEMBLY BEGINS GENERAL DEBATE
19960923 As the political debate shifted irrevocably from strategy and ideology to economics and integration, reform would ensure that the United Nations would become a viable and logical alternative to unilateralism or power politics, the Foreign Minister for Brazil told the General Assembly this morning, as it began its general debate.Luiz Felipe Lampreia said the United Nations, with reform in such areas as the Security Council within reach, must evolve in order to successfully play a major role in preventing the divisions of the cold war from finding new expression through a widening gap in economic well-being.
Also commenting on the issue of unilateralism versus collective action, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iran, Ali-Akbar Velayati, stressed that concurrent with the expansion of participatory democracy in many countries, a complex movement had emerged towards autocracy at the international level. That new totalitarian trend manifested itself in a complete reliance on unilateral measures with the use of international forums for promotion of national self-interest. To counter such a trend, the General Assembly must assume its rightful place as the primary decision-making body on important political and economic issues.
When the United Nations was accused of inaction in such conflicts as the one in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the President of the Government of the Principality of Andorra, Marc Forne Molne, told the Assembly that the States which decided the actions of the United Nations, not the Organization itself, should be held responsible for those conflicts not being prevented or not ending. It was necessary to ask why the policies of the members of the Security Council were so divergent and difficult to coordinate. The public must be better informed about what really happened behind the flags that adorned the Headquarters building.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Irakli Menagarishvili, said that, with countries and entire regions subjected to "aggressive separatism", the world community had no right to take the position of an outside observer. "If we do not create in the near future the firm, comprehensive system to prevent aggressive separatism and create a network of regional security, we
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will continue to face the dangerous process of emerging wide-scale inter-State regions dominated by separatist regimes, threatening with chaos not only regional but international security", he added.
Calling for a new "Marshall Plan" before the end of the century to help Africa through its social and economic crisis, the Minister for External Relations of Angola, Venancio de Moura, suggested a debt roll-over as a feasible solution to the problem of the least developed nations, but noted that total forgiveness of the debts and a massive effort in international cooperation for development through partnerships were the only really viable answer to the foreign debt problem.
Joining Brazil in emphasizing Latin American regional cooperation, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Argentina, Guido Di Tella, expressed his firm conviction that a new era "free of tensions" should begin in the South Atlantic. Argentina's natural interest in that region had also been reflected in the country's participation in the Zone of Peace and Cooperation in the South Atlantic.
The Foreign Minister for the Marshall Islands, Phillip Muller, speaking on behalf of the South Pacific Forum, highlighted the importance of regional cooperation towards sustainable development. Leaders of the South Pacific Forum had called for the development of comprehensive agreements for the sustainable development of the region's fish, as well as for accelerated negotiations on a binding legal instrument which would guide efforts to lower greenhouse gas emissions.
The Assembly will meet again at 3 p.m. to continue its general debate.
Assembly Work Programme
The General Assembly met this morning to begin its general debate. The Assembly was scheduled to hear an address by the Prime Minister of the Principality of Andorra, as well as statements by the Foreign Ministers of Brazil, Marshall Islands, Argentina, Georgia and Angola.
Statements
LUIZ FELIPE LAMPREIA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Brazil, said that for the first time his country, along with Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and Sao Tome and Principe, had come to the Assembly as members of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries. They had come together to consult and work closely to better promote their common interests. The countries of the common market of the southern cone (MERCOSUR) (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) had also come with an enhanced sense of unity. Those countries had given a concrete expression to economic integration and open regionalism. Bolivia would also shortly associate itself with MERCOSUR.
He went on to say that the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations had not seen a renewed commitment to the Organization. A stalemate persisted. The United Nations had embarked upon a phase in its history without the means and the effectiveness to act as the highest political forum of mankind. Various confrontations still caused suffering, instability and misery at a time when the Organization faced the worst financial and motivational crisis in its history. There was a widespread feeling of dissatisfaction with an organization which still embodied the loftiest ideals ever conceived by the human spirit -- an organization which former United States President John F. Kennedy had, back in 1961 called "our last, best hope".
To those who would see the United Nations as a source of leadership in international relations, he cautioned that the world was now organized around much more concrete and pragmatic variables such as international trade, investment flows and transfer of technology. The emphasis on political and ideological coalitions had given way to an emphasis on economic coalitions. The focal point of the political debate was shifting irrevocably from strategy and ideology to economics and integration. The Organization must evolve in order to successfully play a major role in preventing that the divisions of the cold war did not find new expression in a widening gap in well-being.
Brazil was convinced that United Nations reform remained within reach. It must rid itself of its image as a morose and lethargic body incapable of rising to the challenge of the times. Reform was a means to ensure that the United Nations becomes a viable and logical alternative to unilateralism or power politics. It was time to restore the Organization's role as a unique forum for political and diplomatic action and debate.
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However, he continued, to stifle the United Nations little by little by depriving it of the means to perform its functions was no way to secure greater administrative efficiency. Instead, it was necessary to demonstrate perseverance and political will to advance the discussion on issues which reflected a true commitment to the United Nations -- issues such as reform of the Security Council. There was a virtual consensus that the Council should be enlarged to allow for greater participation by countries with the capacity to act on a global scale and the willingness to bear the responsibilities it would entail. A course must now be set for that process.
PHILLIP MULLER, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Marshall Islands, speaking on behalf of the South Pacific Forum, said the theme of the recent meeting of the Forum -- "Pacific Solidarity for the Common Good" -- highlighted the importance of regional cooperation towards sustainable development. It was through unity that seemingly insurmountable obstacles could be resolved. Climate change was a global problem that required a global solution. The recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change suggested a discernible human influence on the global climate. The members of the South Pacific Forum called on the international community to accelerate negotiations on a binding legal instrument which would guide efforts to lower greenhouse gas emissions. The survival of small island developing States and other developing States adversely affected by climate change depended upon the international community taking action.
Noting that the General Assembly would review progress on issues relating to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, including fisheries conservation and management and efforts to reduce illegal fishing practices, he stressed the importance of an international legal regime for oceans and its resource, which included the provision of adequate financial resources for the International Seabed Authority. Due to the importance of the Pacific fish stocks, the Forum leaders had requested the development of comprehensive agreements for the sustainable management of the region's fish. The Marshall Islands had offered to host consultations on the conservation and management of fisheries resources of the central western Pacific next year.
Turning to issues of political significance for his region, he said the Forum commended progress by France and parties in New Caledonia in the implementation of the Matignon Agreement. Also, the Forum had reaffirmed its strong and unanimous support for the candidatures of Australia and Japan for the Security Council. The decision of the French Government to permanently end nuclear testing in the South Pacific had marked the end of all nuclear testing in that region, and China's recent announcement of a moratorium on nuclear testing meant that all five nuclear-weapon States were observing a testing moratorium. The Forum urged all States concerned, particularly nuclear-weapon States, to continue negotiations on the reduction of nuclear stockpiles. Also, Forum leaders called upon States parties to the southern hemisphere nuclear-weapon-free zone treaties to reaffirm their support for
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those zones during the current Assembly session. In regard to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, he said countries severely affected by nuclear-weapon testing should play a role in the Executive Committee which would oversee that Treaty's implementation.
He reiterated the call for the reduction of the so-called floor rate in the United Nations scale of assessment. He supported the recommendations of the Assembly's working group on the financial situation of the United Nations that in the future scale of assessment, all Member States whose share of adjusted national income was less than the current floor of 0.01 per cent should be assessed at their actual share of adjusted income, but no less than 0.001 per cent. Noting the need for the expansion of the Security Council, he voiced support for the past proposal made by Italy on the matter.
MARC FORNE MOLNE, President of the Government of the Principality of Andorra, said that his country trusted the future. With a large percentage of young people in its population, Andorra's demographic pyramid was very different from its western European neighbours. "When human beings are young, everything seems possible." The political evils, economic imperatives, the belief that ends justify the means, all those things had a difficult time planting roots in the young. Youth had idealism and it was that aspect of youth that must be fed now.
It was difficult, he said, for many young people to look for the good of humanity when in their country the most basic necessities for the body and spirit were missing. When the education of the young was only the official doctrine of a despotic regime, when unemployment mutilated their hopes, when poverty, hunger, sexual exploitation and other serious problems confronted them, governments must assume responsibilities and give priority to the policies that affected youth. Governments must coordinate economic plans with formative policies so that students could learn professions that they would have a chance of exercising.
He said small communities, when they work jointly with non-governmental organizations, were careful with the management of resources and knew well the necessities of the young. That joint effort was most appropriate in a time which acknowledged that big government programmes sometimes gave birth to more expenditures than advantages. Governments would find to their advantage to acknowledge the value of fostering micro-credits for young people with entrepreneurial initiative. He gave the example of Bangladesh where that kind of credit had allowed many women to be financially independent. Another good example was the educational measures for young entrepreneurs which some Latin American States had taken to encourage the creation of new small companies. At the United Nations, States must give a direct support to youth and to related programmes.
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Turning to the many conflicts that still arose around the world in places such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, he said the States which decided the actions of the United Nations, not the Organization itself, were responsible for those conflicts not being prevented or not ending. When the Organization was accused of lack of action in Bosnia, for example, it was necessary to ask why the policies of the members of the Security Council were so divergent and difficult to coordinate. The public must be better informed about what really happened behind the flags that adorned the building.
He said the successes of the United Nations must be made known as well as the shortcomings. Efforts must be highlighted in such areas as international law and the promotion of human rights -- the small non-strident steps which humanity achieved day-by-day in the United Nations. Confidence must be fostered and not cynicism towards international organizations. The framing of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, which his country would sign tomorrow, was an achievement of which the Organization could be proud.
For all States, he said, it was a duty as well as an inspiration to the young to prevent isolationism and to look outside to show solidarity with States in distress. States must recognize their unavoidable responsibility in the progress of human rights within their own borders. It was vital that governments favour a complete and free teaching of tolerance and human rights to rear a new generation much more sensitive to the universality and relevance of those rights. All States using other forms of government must be encouraged to adopt democratic processes. The rule of law should be a priority of leaders. "There are no peoples unprepared for democracy, only leaders with little aptitude to foster it", he concluded.
GUIDO DI TELLA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Argentina, said that during the last six years in which he had addressed the Assembly, some progress had been made in the international scenario. That included improved mechanisms for international peace and security, advancement in the universal consolidation of democracy, the creation of institutions to avoid that serious crimes go unpunished and the work towards non-proliferation of nuclear arms and conventional weapons.
The adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, he continued, would undoubtedly contribute to a greater progress, as would the entry into force of the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. Citing the articulation of the notion of sustainable development and the opening of new paths to free trade, he said Argentina had been a strong promoter of changes in those areas, and had adapted itself domestically and internationally to better fulfil the objectives and principles of the United Nations Charter. "Argentina has consolidated democracy and has assumed a very active role in the defence of the rights and fundamental liberties of the human being", he added.
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At the last summit meeting of MERCOSUR, wich was held in Argentina, he continued, its member States had signed agreements stipulating their commitment to the full implementation of democratic institutions as well as of mechanisms for consultation and political concertations. Agreements had also been signed with Chile and Bolivia, "which will increasingly project our economies into a more globalized system", he noted.
Argentina's natural interest in the South Atlantic had also been reflected in its participation in the Zone of Peace and Cooperation in the South Atlantic, he said. "We are very satisfied with our contribution to maintaining political balance and economic possibilities in the South Atlantic, along with other coastal States."
However, he continued, there remained "an important unresolved issue, which was the persistent sovereignty dispute over the Malvinas, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and their surrounding maritime spaces". While Argentina and the United Kingdom had "left behind their mutual disagreements and distrusts to build up a constructive relationship", they had not been able, up to now, to fulfil the General Assembly resolutions and those of the Special Committee on decolonization and to "progress through dialogue towards a definitive solution to the dispute". Argentina is firmly convinced that a new era "free of tensions" should begin in the South Atlantic, he emphasized.
IRAKLI MENAGARISHVILI, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Georgia, said aggressive separatism had become the main obstacle to Georgia's economic and political recovery. With countries and entire regions subjected to separatism, the world community had no right to take the position of an outside observer. Under the banner of "self-determination of suppressed people", separatist movements were created on the ideological basis of terrorism. International law had established a framework within which the principle of self-determination could be implemented. But it was unacceptable when that principle was misused by national minorities, or nations small in number, who had historically constituted a single society with other nations, within the framework of sovereign States. International law did not allow the encroachment of such peoples and ethnic minorities onto the territorial integrity and political unity of democratic States.
As a consequence of aggressive separatism, the number of refugees throughout the world was increasing as was the number of civilians in zones of conflict, he continued. Aggressive separatism used ethnic cleansing as a main tool of vengeance. For example, in Abkhazia 300,000 Georgian citizens had been expelled, thousands were shot dead, burned alive, hanged or tortured to death. Furthermore, the persecution of the Georgian population on the basis of ethnic origin had been raised by the current separatist regime of Abkhazia to the level of state policy, he said.
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The response of the world community to separatism had nearly always been late and inadequate, he said. "Simply speaking", he added, "we suffer from inertia (...) from a delayed reaction." There was a need for a doctrine to contain aggressive separatism, which would include a legal system for identifying it and which would introduce and enforce economic measures such as sanctions. International terrorism and aggressive separatism were interconnected. Consequently, efforts to struggle against them should be combined. "If we do not create in the near future the firm, comprehensive system to prevent aggressive separatism and create a network of regional security, we will continue to face the dangerous process of emerging wide- scale inter-State regions dominated by separatist regimes, threatening with chaos not only regional but international security", he said.
It was possible to settle the conflict regarding Abkhazia through negotiations, he said. Proposals were being worked out by which Abkhazia would be granted autonomy, as a subject of the federation, with broader powers, its own constitution and other attributes of statehood. However, efforts towards negotiation had brought no results, due entirely to the separatists. In addition to efforts to resolve that conflict, Georgia's aim was to transform the Caucasus in a region of multilateral cooperation. The prospect of enacting a transportation corridor across the region was becoming a reality. His Government had called for the application of international law to create peace in the region.
Turning to issues related to the functioning of the United Nations, he recalled that the inclusion of Germany and Japan as members of the Security Council had been proposed by his Government in 1992. Serious consideration should be given to the proposals of Italy and other Member States regarding the Council. Peace-keeping efforts should be decentralized by expanding the role of regional organizations, without placing limitations on the Security Council's role. With peace-keeping gaining importance, Georgia supported the formation of a United Nations stand-by force.
VENANCIO DE MOURA, Minister for External Relations of Angola, called for a new "Marshall Plan" before the end of this century to help Africa through its social and economic crisis. He suggested a debt roll over as a feasible solution to the problem of the least developed nations, but noted that total forgiveness of the debts and a massive effort in international cooperation for development through partnerships were the only really viable answers to the foreign debt problem.
He said that the consequences of the cycles of poor capital and technologies, population growth and social unrest could be avoided if Africa could rely on the understanding and goodwill of its creditors and major international financial institutions that imposed economic management prescriptions without regard for each nation's realities. "We must map out as soon as possible a global developmental strategy that will contribute to the
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solution of the problems now affecting the survival of our economies."
He accused the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) and its leader, Jonas Savimbi, of sabotaging the Lusaka Protocol designed to bring peace back to Angola. The UNITA had failed to honour its commitments and to carry out various requirements of the Protocol. He noted UNITA's rejection of the Government's offer of the vice-presidency to its leader, thus making the formation of the government of national unity and reconciliation difficult. He urged the international community to continue to exert pressure on the UNITA leader.
He recalled that the war which followed the election in 1992 had displaced over 2 million people who had been directly affected. Over half a million people had become refugees in neighbouring countries. More than 100,000 people had been injured. Over 70 per cent of the social and economic infrastructure and the agro-industrial base was destroyed, compounding the humanitarian situation in the country. "My Government is no longer in a position to face this challenge on its own", he said.
He noted that Angola had ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and supported the effort to ban new nuclear tests. Angola reiterated its appeal for the preservation of the African continent and its contiguous areas as a nuclear-free zone, in accordance with the Pelindaba Treaty. Angola had the largest number of land mines -- over 10 million -- in the world, and they were responsible for innumerable casualties and over 100,000 mutilations. He supported a total ban on the production, use and export of anti-personnel mines in all conflicts.
ALI-AKBAR VELAYATI, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iran, said during the last decade the essence of international development had been the rejection of totalitarianism and dictatorship at the nation-State level. In such a world, the United Nations occupied a paramount position. However, concurrent with the expansion of participatory democracy, a complex movement had emerged towards autocracy or even totalitarianism at the international level. It was a trend founded on hegemony and which flouted justice, freedom, participation, rule of law, tolerance, human rights, pluralism and democracy. Characteristics of the menace included unilateralism, the total lack of commitment to mutual cooperation and the complete reliance on unilateral measures. Also, characteristic of that trend was opportunism, the resort to international forums only as mechanisms for promotion of national self- interest and often in pursuit of a domestic agenda.
A notable manifestation of the new international totalitarianism had surfaced in the cultural sphere, he continued. The misguided propaganda waged to distort the image of Islam along with the unprecedented intolerance exhibited against the tide of Islamic resurgence among Islamic nations and States indicated a futile campaign to suppress that great divine religion of
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justice and tolerance as well as of defiance against oppression, tyranny and domination. Totalitarianism had been evident in the international scene in relation to the passage and signature of legislation allocating money for subversive and terrorist activities against Iran. Laws enacted by the United States Congress and a decision of the United States Supreme Court "approving kidnapping by the United States Government" represented a very dangerous trend. In addition, the United States had arrogantly been attempting to apply its domestic legislation beyond its borders.
A similar tendency of domination had debilitated the Security Council, which had repeatedly fallen prey to the interests of a permanent member, he said. The Council not only failed to prevent the Israeli attacks on women and children at a United Nations compound in Lebanon, but it turned a blind eye to reports substantiating the deliberate nature of the atrocity. Relying on such unconditional support, the Zionist regime continued its expansionist policy of occupation. The Security Council needed fundamental and substantive reform and modification, particularly in its rules and decision-making procedures. The General Assembly enjoyed greater credibility. That supreme body of the Organization should not become the forum for general and inconclusive discussion. The Assembly must assume its rightful place as the primary decision-making body on important political and economic issues.
International cooperation was needed to combat terrorism, he said. There should be serious cooperation to reject all forms of terrorism and refuse to provide sanctuary to terrorists, while bringing an end to all baseless propaganda and allegations. Turning to nuclear issues, he said that recent international negotiations had been affected by major obstacles to consensus. The commonly accepted principle of negotiation to attain consensus on vital international instruments had been vetoed. That undemocratic procedure resulted in the approval by the Assembly and the opening for signature of a defective treaty which did not reflect international consensus. Iran, along with other Non-Aligned States, would join the signatories of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, solely due to its commitment to participation in all efforts to combat weapons of mass destruction.
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