IN CLOSING STATEMENT, FIFTY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT HIGHLIGHTS BOTH PROGRESS AND WORK REMAINING TO BE DONE BY INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

Press Release
GA/SM/91

IN CLOSING STATEMENT, FIFTY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT HIGHLIGHTS BOTH PROGRESS AND WORK REMAINING TO BE DONE BY INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

Following is the text of the closing statement by the President of the fifty-third session of the General Assembly, Didier Opertti (Uruguay), at the last meeting of the session:

I look on the General Assembly session which we are concluding today - the last one of the century -- as a preparatory exercise for tackling the problems that await us in the new century, a century which offers a glimpse of prospects both promising and disturbing, one marked by the existence of deep-seated contradictions which are the major challenges humankind must meet.

In our view, these contradictions are apparent in three main areas. Firstly, the world is continuing to move towards the full realization of individual freedoms, and the democratization of national societies and international society. Although much remains to be done, it is surely true that never until now have the ideals of democracy and freedom been so widely realized.

Yet the sweeping progress that has been made in this area has not done away with the manifestations of violence that are used in an attempt to impose the ideas and aims of extreme forms of nationalism, religious fundamentalism or alleged ethnic supremacy. The fact that in the last 10 years only a half dozen of the more than 100 conflicts that have disturbed international peace and security have been territorial conflicts, is a clear indication of the kind of problem we will face in the future.

During the 12 months since this Assembly began its fifty-third session, violence has dominated and affected the lives of people in many parts of the world, often taking away those lives, and so creating a legacy of fear and bitterness in people's hearts. These events have categorically disproved the predictions of the end of history.

In Europe, in Africa and in Asia old and new conflicts continue to require the international community's attention and call with increasing urgency for the adoption of attitudes and gestures of solidarity rooted in tolerance. Naturally, the world does not present a uniform picture. There are regions in which peace, concerted action and the peaceful settlement of disputes are the rule. A prime example of this is our region, Latin America and the Caribbean, in which a number of conflicts between States were ended by peaceful means. Africa has been particularly affected by a range of factors, some having their origin in nature and others caused by human activity. The General Assembly has been paying special attention to this situation, as evidenced by the adoption by consensus of a resolution on the causes of conflict and the promotion of durable peace and sustainable development in Africa, in which are set out the guiding principles for assistance to that continent. The General Assembly must persist in its efforts to help our African brothers overcome the crisis and the underdevelopment in which they have been placed by a history marked by colonialism.

The prevailing political conditions in the Middle East during the session, which closes today, were not the most conducive to progress in the peace process. The General Assembly took up individual aspects of this complex problem in the hope that the situation would evolve more positively. This seems to be the case at present, which leads me to believe that during the next session this Assembly may be able to take meaningful decisions that will help to consolidate a lasting and just peace in the region.

It was doubtless the conflict in Kosovo, however, which, owing to its magnitude and consequences, was the most important international political event of the year. Allow me to make a personal observation here. I view it as an unfortunate coincidence that, during the year that it fell to me to preside over the General Assembly, the credibility and effectiveness of this body, the most genuinely democratic and representative in the international community, were put to their severest test ever.

The conflict in Kosovo highlighted a number of issues which must be mentioned. In the first place, it showed that the Security Council, whose task is the preservation of peace, was prevented from doing so by its inability to reach the necessary decisions. The threat of the veto played a role, demonstrating that a mechanism that was ostensibly designed, inter alia, to prevent the use of force, ultimately became a factor which took the decision regarding its use away from the Council and the Organization itself.

Secondly, it must be noted that the General Assembly, which, under the Charter, particularly Articles 10 and 11, has responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, did not find itself in a position to exercise this responsibility, not for want of a legal framework but because the prevailing political will was not to make use of those powers. In the past, this responsibility was assumed by the Assembly when the Security Council was prevented from acting in situations that threatened or disturbed the peace. On those occasions, the international community formally declared that the inability of the Security Council to fulfil its functions did not deprive the General Assembly of its rights or remove any of its responsibilities under the Charter.

Lastly, let us recall that the Charter of the United Nations is built on the principle of legitimacy, which gives substance and a raison d'être to the international legal order. Consequently, the main lesson to be learnt from the case of Kosovo is that we must diligently continue to seek formulas that offer full guarantees of respect for this principle.

It would be premature to draw any final conclusions regarding the Kosovo crisis now, but what does seem to be clear is that the crisis will affect the functioning and the credibility of the United Nations. Perhaps the only positive element of this conflict is that it has made it obvious that any further postponement of reform in the United Nations is both inadmissible and unwarranted. It is my hope that resolution 53/30, which was adopted this session on the overwhelming need to modify the Charter will facilitate this reform process.

The results achieved during this session in the area of disarmament and arms control can be considered exciting, given the context in which the negotiations took place. Among the many resolutions adopted, I would draw attention to the one calling for the convening of an international conference on the illicit arms trade in all its aspects, including small arms and light weapons. The entry into force in March of this year of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-personnel Mines and on Their Destruction is a comforting indication of the widespread aversion to this kind of cruelly random weapon.

Peacekeeping operations were a subject of special attention to the General Assembly. Financing was approved for several operations, including the complex operation for the interim administration of Kosovo. In addition, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of its establishment, the international community paid a tribute to this indispensable instrument of peace and to the men and women who have been a part of it.

In the year of the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the General Assembly had a very full programme of related activities. Of the many resolutions adopted, Assembly resolution 53/144, entitled "Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms", is particularly noteworthy. I should like to stress the importance of adopting, after 13 years of negotiations, this Declaration which is a new milestone in the process of consolidating and improving the international system for the protection of human rights.

Above all, through the adoption last December of its resolution 53/105, entitled "Establishment of an international criminal court", the General Assembly joined in the search for more effective means to ensure international protection of human rights, by holding accountable those who violate such rights. In that resolution, the Assembly acknowledged the historic significance of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and made arrangements for the establishment and coming into operation of the Court. This was the best way of observing the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which is the cornerstone of what has been one of the international community's most inspired and important political institutions of the twentieth century.

The second major contradiction relates to technological progress, the revolution in communications and transport, and the extraordinary expansion of scientific knowledge, which has enabled humankind to reach unprecedented levels of material development. However, the benefits from such progress are not distributed equitably among the various segments of humanity. Thus, a disturbing disequilibrium is created by the fact that the technological explosion is taking place in the developed countries, where the minority of the world's population lives, while the areas in which the population explosion is occurring are sorely lacking in technology. This results in the dangerous coexistence, in an increasingly smaller and more interdependent world, of prosperous and technologically advanced societies with populations living in poverty and insecurity.

The process of globalization does not mitigate this contradiction. On the contrary, it is a generally accepted conclusion that the dramatic acceleration of the globalization process that has been taking place these past few years, resulting from the opening of markets and the liberalization and modernization of trade, does not prevent the intensification of the social differences and economic contradictions that occur within both the international community and individual societies. If we do not take prompt measures to correct the negative effects of globalization, the threat of social disintegration will increase while prospects for stability and lasting peace will become more remote.

The uncertainties resulting from this process of globalization led to the holding, at the beginning of this session, of a high-level dialogue on the economic and social impact of globalization and interdependence and their political consequences. On that occasion, the keen interest of governments, international organizations and civil society in this issue was very clear, as was the need to continue to intensify efforts to examine a phenomenon which, by affecting the lives of every inhabitant of the planet, now and in generations to come, requires the adoption of rules that both define it and provide appropriate guidelines.

In the dynamic context of increasing globalization and interdependence, the United Nations must play a fundamental role in promoting cooperation and setting guidelines for development. And this is the commitment that the General Assembly undertook when it adopted its important resolution 53/169, entitled "Role of the United Nations in promoting development in the context of globalization and interdependence". The question has remained open for study and review by governments. It is to be hoped that concrete measures will be taken as soon as possible with a view to ensuring the equitable distribution of the benefits of globalization and, in particular, preventing the marginalization of developing countries and reducing their vulnerability.

Equally important and closely related to this issue is General Assembly resolution 53/172, entitled "The financial crisis and its impact on growth and development, especially in the developing countries", in which the Assembly, inter alia, stresses the need to strengthen and improve modalities for preventing, managing and resolving international financial crises and proposes measures to deal effectively with such crises and to mitigate their negative effects on developing countries' prospects for development.

The third major contradiction results from the fact that, while many societies have achieved a high degree of social integration, with high levels of knowledge, culture and creative activity, these same societies appear to be extremely vulnerable to such dangers as drug trafficking, organized crime, terrorism and environmental degradation. The General Assembly has the capacity to build defences against those scourges and to undertake vigorous educational activities to help develop a culture of health, a culture of legality and a culture of environmental conservation.

The deep concern of governments about the negative impact that current economic trends can have on social development was repeatedly expressed throughout this session. In response to that concern, the General Assembly adopted a number of resolutions on important social issues, among which I should like to mention the resolutions on international cooperation against the world drug problem, on transnational organized crime, on the status of women, on the rights of the child and on refugees.

I should like, moreover, to stress the holding of the twenty-first special session of the General Assembly on the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development. This event demonstrated the democratization and universalization of information and knowledge on the subject, and reaffirmed the international community's determination to continue to deal with population and development as two aspects of a single problem.

Finally, without claiming to make an exhaustive enumeration, I should like to mention the resolutions on decolonization, cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space, questions relating to information and, in particular, the resolution reaffirming a series of principles and guidelines for international negotiations. I consider particularly important the resolution on the dialogue among civilizations and the resolution in which the General Assembly adopted the Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace. Both resolutions are fundamental pillars on which the international community will be able in future to elaborate the ethical and legal system for governing relations between States and peoples.

The Millennium Summit to be held during the fifty-fifth session of the General Assembly, which begins in September 2000, will provide a unique opportunity to consider the role of the United Nations in the next century. In this regard, I note with satisfaction that, during this session, intensive negotiations were held on this subject, as a result of which substantial progress was achieved in determining the format and content of such an important event. I have no doubt that, on the basis of the work that has been carried out, the fifty-fourth session will succeed in completing preparations for the Summit.

To sum up, during its fifty-third session, the General Assembly considered a total of 170 items at 107 plenary meetings and 9 informal meetings. It adopted 309 resolutions - 248 of them by consensus -- and 130 decisions.

The variety and importance of the issues discussed at the fifty- third session and the serious and constructive spirit in which they were considered show that, by virtue of its representativeness, its universality and its ability to listen and look at from every perspective, the United Nations remains the one central forum for continuing the global dialogue on the fundamental problems confronting humankind. This is the role that it will have to go on playing in the conflict-ridden future that awaits us as we enter a new millennium. Whether it does so effectively will depend on two things: firstly, on its being given the financial resources it needs to perform its tasks -- and here it is to be hoped that the Organization's biggest debtors will meet their financial obligations as soon as possible -- and, secondly, on our adopting the necessary reforms to adapt the Organization to the new needs and challenges confronting the world. We must intensify our efforts to restore the primacy of the United Nations in the conduct of international affairs by strengthening and improving it and by adapting its structure and functioning to the requirements of the new problems and challenges. This latter task depends on each of you, on each of us.

In the General Assembly, such an effort began some years ago, and it continued at the fifty-third session. The process of comprehensive reform of the United Nations, which got under way at the fifty-second session, continued under my Presidency. The Assembly continued to work essentially on the basis of the ideas and proposals put forward by the Secretary-General, to whom we must reiterate our thanks and appreciation for his genuine commitment to the cause of reform. The process of implementing initiatives in this area has been slower than originally envisaged. However, at the fifty-third session, significant progress was made in the area of environment and human settlements, with the adoption of a package of important measures and recommendations, which will undoubtedly improve the Organization's functioning and effectiveness in this area.

Even before I became President of this Assembly, I was convinced of the need to modify the functioning of the principal organs of the United Nations and the relationship between them. Now, after a year in office, I am more convinced than ever. I must confess that, more than once, I was surprised and perplexed to see at first hand how, despite sporadic contacts between their respective representatives, the United Nations organs with the greatest political responsibilities act in isolation, without coordination and without transparency.

Reform of the Security Council is certainly the most controversial aspect of the effort to restructure the United Nations and the one with the most political implications. The ambitious attempt to transform the Council into a more representative, more democratic, more transparent and more effective organ is an extraordinarily complex and delicate task, requiring effort and time, considerable patience and resolute political will on the part of all those involved in it. At this point, we can say that we have invested considerable effort in this task and that we have given and received generous displays of patience. However, I believe that there is as yet no genuine universal political will to reform that would facilitate agreement on the main issues.

Despite this, I am pleased to report that this year, notwithstanding the persistence of profound differences on key aspects of the issue, the Working Group managed to reach agreement on a number of very general basic ideas. Unlike its predecessors, the report adopted by the General Assembly at its last meeting does not simply describe the sequence of meetings and the documents produced, but also reflects, for the first time in seven years, a consensus on certain elements of form and substance which it is felt can be used in future discussions. Moreover, substantial progress was made on the issue of working methods of the Security Council and transparency of its work. I must add that, in addition to making valuable oral statements, many delegations responded to an invitation from me to put their positions in writing in notes which, taken together, will be a valuable input for future meetings of the Group.

After 53 long and occasionally tense meetings of the Working Group, these results may seem very slim. However, given the importance of the issue and the fact that States' vital interests are at stake, we can claim, without complacency, to have made limited but significant progress. After all, it is not by great leaps but by small, cautious steps, such as that taken at the current session that great distances are covered and obstacles are overcome.

Perhaps the most noteworthy development is that substantive participation on the part of delegations, as well as frankness in stating their views was finally achieved in the meetings of the Working Group, although not without difficulties.

Certainly resolution 53/30, requiring the affirmative vote of two thirds of the members of the General Assembly on any question related to the reform of the Security Council, dispelled some apprehensions which were undermining the Group's work, and offers a sound basis for building the spirit of trust which is needed in order for the Group to work constructively.

I need to interject a clarification here: any suggestions or proposals which I, as President, made regarding working methods were motivated strictly by the basic principle of transparency of negotiations. It is to be hoped that the distrust which on some, happily short-lived, occasions bordered on hostility will give way in our discussions to a more flexible attitude, although I do not for a moment underestimate the political sensitivity and importance of the issue of reform of the Charter.

All that remains now is for me to express my profound, sincere appreciation to all those who accompanied me in the complex and sometimes arduous task of presiding over this Assembly. I particularly wish to thank the distinguished Vice-Presidents, especially those who were always ready to take my place on the podium whenever my presence was required in other forums or meetings. I also wish to thank the Chairmen, Vice-Chairmen and Rapporteurs of the Main Committees, the coordinators of the various consultation and negotiation groups and the two Vice-Chairmen who joined me in directing the work of the Open-ended Working Group on the reform of the Security Council.

As usual, the Secretariat performed its functions with the effectiveness to which we have become accustomed, and I therefore wish to express my thanks and appreciation to the Secretary-General and to the staff of the Department of General Assembly Affairs and Conference Services, to the interpreters, translators and conference officers and to the security staff. The assistance I received from all my colleagues was all the more welcome in that, throughout the year, I had to continue to discharge my responsibilities as Minister for Foreign Affairs of my country. Believe me, I devoted the best of my energies and my time to proving myself worthy of the trust which my regional group, the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States, and all of you placed in me a year ago and which was such an honour for me. I hope I have not disappointed you.

In taking my leave of you -- distinguished representatives, colleagues, Secretariat officials -- I should like to wish my distinguished successor every success.

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