EFFORTS TO REFORM AND STRENGTHEN UNITED NATIONS REMAIN FOCUS OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY'S OPENING DEBATE

27 September 1996

Press Release
GA/9103

EFFORTS TO REFORM AND STRENGTHEN UNITED NATIONS REMAIN FOCUS OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY'S OPENING DEBATE

19960927 Statements from Iceland, Finland, Malaysia, Republic of Korea, Malta, Portugal, Niger; Concern Also Expressed at Latest Middle East Violence

Speakers this morning called upon the United Nations to continue efforts to revamp and strengthen its mechanisms for ensuring international peace, human rights protection and development, as the General Assembly continued its opening debate.

There were also calls for renewed talks to ensure that the latest violence in the Middle East did not obstruct the ongoing peace process.

The Foreign Minister of Iceland, Halldor Asgrimsson, urged continued reform of the Security Council, and the Economic and Social Council, asserting that without any alternative to the United Nations, the Organization must evolve to better reflect political and economic realities.

The Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, told the Assembly that the United Nations remained distant and removed from the aspirations of its people. The major countries continued a systematic abuse of power: applying selective sanctions, keeping a vice-like grip on all spheres of international activities and maintaining elitism. He urged the international community to work collectively for substantial change which challenged why a powerful minority was allowed to bankrupt and coerce the majority in order to meet their narrow political ends.

The Foreign Minister of Finland, Tarja Halonen, said there could be no peace without human rights protection; there could be no sustainable development without social rights; and poverty and environmental degradation would not cease under authoritarian rule, she said. The General Assembly must insist that mechanisms for protection of human rights be funded and ensure the implementation of international agreements to promote women's rights, economic and social development, and global stability.

Statements were also made this morning by the Foreign Ministers of the Republic of Korea, Portugal, Niger and the representative of Malta.

The Assembly will meet again today at 3 p.m. to continue its general debate.

Assembly Work Programme

The General Assembly met this morning to continue its general debate. It was to hear statements by the Prime Minister of Malaysia; the Foreign Ministers of Iceland, Finland, Republic of Korea, Portugal and Niger; and the representative of Malta.

Statements

HALLDOR ASGRIMSSON, Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade of Iceland, said there was no alternative to the United Nations, making evolution of the Organization inevitable. But the Security Council must come to reflect political and economic realities. There should be a geographically balanced expansion of Council seats, both of permanent and non-permanent members, which would include Germany and Japan. Small and medium-sized States must be ensured the possibility of representation on the Council. Continued reform and strengthening of the Economic and Social Council were also needed.

Welcoming the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), he urged Member States to sign the Treaty. Unconditional and universal adherence to that Treaty, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the Convention on Chemical Weapons was critical to ensure the elimination of weapons of mass destruction. To address the threat caused by land-mines, he called for a comprehensive ban on the use, production and export of anti-personnel land-mines.

Beyond the activities of the Security Council, he continued, the wider United Nations should be employed actively to prevent armed conflict and to assist in the reconstruction of societies emerging from war. The international community should take action against terrorism which re-elected the universal alliance against those activities. The international community must enhance respect for human rights instruments in areas of conflicts.

Noting that Iceland owed its survival and prosperity to the harvest of living marine resources, he said his country had developed experience and technology which could benefit others; it was prepared to facilitate international cooperation in that field. He spoke of international agreements which had established a legal framework governing the protection and sustainable utilization of the ocean, and said Iceland had participated in the adoption of a global action programme to protect the oceans from land-based pollution. The Assembly should support institutional arrangements to support implementation of the programme.

TARJA HALONEN, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland, said there could be no sustainable peace where widespread violations of human rights occurred, breeding instability and unrest. There could be no sustainable development in societies where economic and social rights were flouted; authoritarian rule was no answer to poverty and environmental degradation.

She said the United Nations General Assembly could and should act in at least three areas. Mechanisms to ensure respect for human rights must not be impaired through lack of funds; a permanent international criminal court must

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be established, as was demonstrated by the situations in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia; there must be sustained and integrated follow-up of the United Nations conferences, so as to fully implement the agreed programmes of action.

That was especially important in the case of the Vienna and Beijing conferences, she continues. Full and equal enjoyment of human rights by women everywhere must be a primary goal. Finland, she noted, had been the first country to give full political rights to women in 1906.

Finland had participated in United Nations peace-keeping for 40 years and was ready to continue. Experience had shown that United Nations peace-keepers were not suited for peace enforcement; that task should be entrusted by the Security Council to regional organizations or other outside ad hoc coalitions.

She said Finland was proud to sign the CTBT, which would strengthen the security of all, and had been a goal of the international community for decades. But, it was also necessary to focus on conventional weapons, particularly land-mines, other small arms and light weapons. Finland expected concrete recommendations from the United Nations expert panel on that issue.

United Nations development activities should concentrate on the poorest countries and most vulnerable groups of society, the Foreign Minister continued. A more integrated United Nations, also at the country level, would enhance efficiency and closer coordination between development activities and humanitarian and peace-keeping activities.

Finland fully endorsed yesterday's European Union statement on the current situation in the West Bank and Gaza, and urged the parties to refrain from acts of violence and to re-engage the peace process.

DR. MAHATHIR MOHAMAD, Prime Minister of Malaysia, said he liked to think that the choice of a Malaysian to be President of the fifty-first session of the General Assembly had to do with the country's effort and involvement with the United Nations and globally. Within three years of its independence, Malaysia was involved with United Nations peace-keeping in the Congo. Today in Bosnia and Herzegovina it was perhaps the only developing country in the peace-keeping forces, paying in full the cost of its involvement. It would continue to participate in international activities, combining altruism with enlightened self-interest.

He said the United Nations remained distant and removed from the aspirations of its peoples. He hoped the tragedy of Bosnia and Herzegovina would, with international help, "be on the mend". Turning to the Middle East, he said Palestine's hopes and aspirations had been undermined by the new Israeli Government, backed by some Western powers and "backtracking on painfully negotiated agreements". A rash decision by Israel not only imperilled the peace process further, with lives being lost, but could inflame and outrage Muslim nations and Muslim society if the sanctity of the Al Aqsa Mosque were defiled.

In Africa, he went on, Somalia, Rwanda and Liberia remained "on the

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razor's edge of survival" and Burundi awaited United Nations regional initiatives to avoid a catastrophe. Afghanistan, a victim of the cold war, abandoned by the major powers, needed help to reconstruct and overcome the destruction of war. What, he asked, would be the fate of tiny Chechnya and its valiant people, facing the full onslaught of mighty Russia?

He spoke of advantages enjoyed by major countries, aided by their control of the Security Council, their monopoly of nuclear power and their economic high ground, while some developing countries were marginalized. The international community should work collectively for substantial change. The major nations continued a systematic abuse of power -- applying selective sanctions, keeping a vice-like grip on all spheres of international activities, maintaining elitism. The Security Council remained an instrument of the foreign policies of the permanent members.

Dr. Mohamad said the United Nations was on the verge of bankruptcy because its major donor country, the wealthiest nation in the world, refused to meet its assessed and legally due contributions, and insisted on maintaining its hegemony on global management. The United Nations was not a business house, and over-concentration on internal management could deflect its attention from its major global responsibilities. Malaysia was critical of the management and leadership of the Organization, but how could it undertake peace-keeping operations without the authority or the means to keep the peace?

He said the majority of poor developing countries were saddled with unsustainable levels of debt, and spent more on servicing debt than on financing basic programmes for health care, education and humanitarian relief. The reductions in the commitments for concessional assistance by almost all the industrial countries marked a turning point in the international development cooperation. Bluntly put, the rich had reneged on solemn commitments and pledges. The concept of globalism had become intimately linked with international trade, and the World Trade Organization (WTO) was answerable only to the world's wealthiest economic powers. The poor countries could not reserve their markets for themselves even when they were shut out of the markets of the rich. In addition, even as the poor countries were being asked to submit to rules of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and the WTO, one country was blatantly undermining the WTO by enacting extra- territorial laws which must be submitted to by all nations and their companies "on pains of excommunication".

There would be gainers and losers in the world of the WTO, he continued, and Malaysia was one of the few developing countries that had benefited, through the thrift, productivity and ingenuity of its people. While "globalization" had become the buzzword of our times, he asserted, the behaviour of the rich countries suggested that it simply meant the breaking down of the borders of countries, so that those with the capital and the goods would be free to dominate the markets, and increasing numbers in both the North and South would live in abject poverty.

The Malaysian Prime Minister said the Western media, "manipulated and censored by those in control", distorted reports so as to put anything

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happening in the South in the worst possible light, ignoring anything positive. Without doubt, the information age would bring cheap and easy access to knowledge and education, but "smut and violence gratuitously distributed by criminals in the North" was no less polluting than carbon dioxide emissions, nor less dangerous than drug trafficking. The international community must act before the whole world sank deeper into moral decay.

GONG RO-MYUNG, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea, said the United Nations was in serious financial trouble due to arrears and outstanding payments by Member States. Efforts at reform in the Organization would serve no purpose if Member States failed either to meet their financial obligations or to make the compromises necessary to produce a durable package of reforms. He stressed that the Security Council needed to be modernized and expanded to be more equitably balanced and transparent.

He said the United Nations should be prepared to respond to four priority needs. It should restrain the proliferation of dangerous weaponry; bolster its capabilities for effective peace-keeping and peace building; assist economic and social development while protecting the environment; and improve mechanisms for insuring respect for international law and human rights.

He urged all countries to accede to the (CTBT) at the earliest. Stressing that the Korean Peninsula still faced the threat of nuclear proliferation and North Korea had yet to achieve nuclear transparency. He urged North Korea to comply with NPT obligations and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, and to implement the Agreed Framework with the United States. He also called on the Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea to live up to its obligation under the North-South Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

He expressed his country's support for the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 and the Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention of 1987, adding that his country would extend its moratorium on anti-personnel land mines for another year. He also supported the establishment of a rapidly deployable

headquarters team within the Department of Peace-keeping Operations as proposed by the "Friends of Rapid Deployment".

He said reconciliation in the aftermath of the cold war had not yet reached the Korean Peninsula. Last week, North Korea had sent a military submarine to infiltrate armed agents into the South. The operation had been uncovered and 21 armed agents had been killed and one captured. According to the captured agent, the armed infiltrators had been North Korean military officers. There was a strong possibility that last week's infiltration was part of a larger-scale infiltration operation.

The "brazen act of military provocation by North Korea" constituted not only a serious infringement of territorial waters, he said, but also "a blatant violation" of the Armistice Agreement. He urged North Korea to immediately renounce its "absurd goal" of reunifying Korea by force, and to

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pursue peaceful coexistence with the South. He also called on it to accept the proposal for four-party talks involving both Koreas, China and the United States.

JOSEPH CASSAR, Malta, said Malta's foreign policy depended on regional stability. Malta expected to become a full member of the European Union, the enlargement of which would promote regional cooperation. Interlocking institutions of the European security architecture, such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), had strengthened areas of cooperation on which security depends.

During its fifty years, the United Nations had created a range of tools to promote cooperation, he said. Those tools, though in need of perfecting, must be put to use. Each convention and treaty, agreed to by the international community, was proof of the common commitment to a better world. The international community had developed its strategies and plans of action. Now was the time for dynamic action. Malta looked forward to the establishment of an expanded Security Council that served the world community. The proposal of Italy could allow more countries to serve on the Council, regardless of their size, wealth or military might.

Last year, Malta had tabled a resolution seeking views on the future of the Trusteeship Council, he said. Many diverse opinions had been expressed and Malta looked forward to future discussion. To address the financial crisis of the Organization, continued efforts were needed. While cost-cutting was necessary, it was also vital for Member States to fulfil their obligations by paying their assessed contributions.

On the situation in the Middle East, he said Malta had welcomed the joint meeting between Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel and President Arafat. The recent acts of violence gave rise to great concern. The momentum of achievement should not be dissipated by acts which eroded the confidence built thus far.

JAIME GAMA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal, told the Assembly his country was to belong to the newest of international organizations: the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries, made up of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe, and Portugal. He said it was a political project based on the Portuguese language, which was a historic bond and a common heritage, and would cooperate with similar organizations.

On the financial crisis of the United Nations, he said Portugal proposed three approaches: Member States must fulfil their commitments, in full and on time; scales of assessment should be reviewed in order to reflect the capacity to pay of Member States; and financial rigour and rationalization of existing resources. In 1995, Portugal had voluntarily increased its contributions to peace-keeping operations fivefold. Reform of the Security Council should aim for an adequate and balanced representation of all regions of the world.

Portugal welcomed the adoption of the (CTBT) and would contribute significantly to the system of verification of the Treaty. The Conference on

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Disarmament, at its next session, should begin negotiating a treaty for banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons. It was also to be hoped that concrete measures would be taken this year towards a complete ban in the manufacture and export of anti-personnel mines. He noted that Portugal had ratified the Convention against chemical weapons, the Minister said.

On the question of East Timor, he said Portugal's sole aim was to obtain a just, comprehensive and internationally acceptable solution. It was important to continue the active association of Timorese representatives with the dialogue, under UN auspices, between Portugal and Indonesia.

He said Portugal had proposed a Euro-African summit, open to all African States without exception, to allow political dialogue at the highest level. Portugal appealed to Angola and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) to continue to follow the path of peace, and to the international community to continue to support that process.

He said the transitional process in Macao, based on dialogue and cooperation with China and due to be completed in 1999, was of the greatest concern to his Government, which wished to see the prosperity and stability of the territory preserved.

ANDRE SALIFOU, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Niger, said his Government supported United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and its proposal of Dr. Hamid Algabid, a national of Niger, as an eventual candidate for the post, would apply only if there was a vote of Mr. Boutros-Ghali's re-election.

The Foreign Minister said poverty was the world's greatest menace to political stability and social cohesion. Africa was a continent capable of great economic achievements if the international community gave it a chance and the means. Commitments undertaken to promote African development, under the auspices of the United Nations, must be adhered to by the international community. The external debt question needed to be addressed radically and urgently. The Niger welcomed the Secretary-General's initiative on Africa, as it was an important framework of cooperation for the continent.

He said Africa had known several recent successes: a democratic South Africa, the end of the disastrous war in Mozambique, significant progress in the peace process in Angola. The Niger was keenly interested in the peace and reconciliation efforts of the Rwandan authorities. The situation in Liberia was evolving favourably after the last summit meeting of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and Niger fully supported the recommendations issued from that meeting. Somalia still needed assistance. The Niger would also welcome the needed referendum in Western Sahara.

On the situation in the Middle East, he said the United Nations should use all the means at its disposal to avoid a new war in that part of the world. If Israel had the right to exist, he added, so did all the other

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States of the region, starting with Palestine.

He spoke of recent elections in Niger, and said Africa in general, and Niger in particular, were not "allergic to democracy". What Niger wished was to be able to build its own democratic system at its own pace and within its own political, economic, social and cultural context. Africa did not share the usual dichotomy of Government versus opposition, he said. In Africa, everything was done together with everyone else. Democracy could not be handed down as "ready-to-wear".

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