SECRETARY-GENERAL'S STATEMENT ON INAUGURATION OF CLARIFICATION COMMISSION ON GUATEMALA
Press Release
SG/SM/6293
SECRETARY-GENERAL'S STATEMENT ON INAUGURATION OF CLARIFICATION COMMISSION ON GUATEMALA
19970801 Following is the statement of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, delivered yesterday by the Director of the United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA), Jean Arnault, to mark the inauguration of the Historical Clarification Commission (translated from Spanish):I am pleased to convey to the people of Guatemala my best wishes on the occasion of the inauguration of the Historical Clarification Commission. I am certain that this exercise to recover the historical memory, difficult but unquestionably healthy, will help Guatemalans to understand the past, so that its most terrible aspects may be overcome and old wounds can be healed. It requires a great deal of courage to face the truth squarely, but it also shows a measure of firmness and confidence in a future free of ghosts from the past. This is a decision that will, in light of other similar experiences worldwide, strengthen Guatemalan society and free it from the hurdles that could block its enormous potential, once fully integrated in a regional mainstream that seeks the consolidation of peace, democracy and development to which all peoples are fully entitled. I would also like to seize this opportunity to congratulate all those who have made today's ceremony possible: the Government of the Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca (URNG) that negotiated the agreement and, in particular, the members of the Commission, Professors Edgar Alfredo Balsells and Christian Tomuschat, and Mrs. Otilia Lux de Coti. You have agreed to participate in a very challenging enterprise, for the clarification of painful events that took place in moments of confusion and conflict always generates inevitable and understandable opposition. I encourage you to persevere in your work, to continue along the path you have chosen, for you are doing Guatemala a valuable service. For my part, on behalf of the United Nations, I wish to reiterate our offer of support, which the Commission has already enjoyed during the preparatory phase ending today, and will continue to receive throughout its mandate. This support will always be delivered in the upmost respect for the independence of the Commission, which is stipulated in the accord establishing it and which is necessary and inherent to an endeavour of this magnitude. I am pleased to see the interest the Commission has elicited from the international community, which has responded generously to the appeal for funds made by the Commissioners; an appeal that I endorsed and which is already bearing fruit. Finally, I want Guatemalans to be aware that they are not alone in this journey; that the international community and the United Nations representing it are ready to accompany them, support them and encourage them at all times.
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