ASSEMBLY HEARS RANGE OF SPEAKERS AS GENERAL DEBATE CONTINUES

Press Release
GA/9773

ASSEMBLY HEARS RANGE OF SPEAKERS AS GENERAL DEBATE CONTINUES

Palestine, Panama, Indonesia among Issues Surveyed; Contradiction between National Sovereignty, Humanitarian Intervention Stressed

"Let this year be the year of bringing an end to the historic injustice that has befallen our people, and let it be a new beginning for life in the Middle East for all its States and all its peoples and all future generations", the Permanent Observer of Palestine, Nasser Al-Kidwa, told the General Assembly this morning as it continued its formal debate.

He said the Palestine Central Council had decided to delay the establishment of the Palestinian State, and had at the same time mandated the Executive Committee, the Presidency of the Palestinian National Council and the Legislative Council to take the necessary steps in that regard, including completion of the constitutional declaration and the submission of application for membership of the State of Palestine in the United Nations.

The Palestinian side had accepted that West Jerusalem be under Israeli sovereignty and the capital of Israel, he said. It had demanded the end of the occupation of East Jerusalem so that it could be under Palestinian sovereignty and serve as the capital of Palestine. It had accepted that the city be open, with guarantees for freedom of conscience, worship and access to all holy places under Palestinian sovereignty. In return for that flexibility, Israel had challenged Palestinian sovereignty over Al-Haram Al-Sharif and sought to maintain some form of sovereignty over it, something “which will not be accepted by any Palestinian, Arab or Muslim leader, not now, not in the future”.

Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, Permanent Representative of Qatar, said Arabs considered peace in the Middle East a valid strategic option, yet a comprehensive peace was still beyond reach owing to Israeli intransigence, inflexibility and disregard of the basic rights of the Arab nation. His Government was also concerned at covert intrigues aimed at dismembering Indonesia in the name of human rights and under other transparently deceptive pretexts.

Alwi Shihab, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, said the plight of refugees must continue to hold a prominent position on the global agenda, and the integrity of humanitarian missions must be ensured. The murder of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) staff in West Timor had shocked and saddened the world, nowhere more than Indonesia. That humanitarian workers should

General Assembly Plenary - 1a - Press Release GA/9773 22nd Meeting (AM) 19 September 2000

become victims in the performance of their work was unacceptable. The tragedy should not, however, result in a withdrawal of humanitarian assistance.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Panama, José Miguel Alemán Healy, said his country nowadays enjoyed full sovereignty over all its national territory. It had the ability and capacity to administer the Panama Canal in a secure, efficient and transparent manner, and was also able to cope with the growing demand for traffic through the inter-oceanic waterway. The Canal and its surrounding land were now a key element for the Panamanian economy. Striving to contribute to worldwide peacemaking, Panama would convert former military bases in the recovered territory into centres promoting peace.

The President of the Assembly, Harri Holkeri (Finland), announced that next week, Wednesday 27 September, the Assembly’s General Committee will hold its third meeting in Conference Room 4 to take up a request by Equatorial Guinea for an additional item contained in document A/55/233.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova, Nicolae Tabacaru, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea, Lee Joung-binn, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Malians Abroad of Mali, Modibo Sidibé, and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nigeria, Alhaji Sule Lamido, also took the floor.

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

General Assembly Plenary - 3 - Press Release GA/9773 22nd Meeting (AM) 19 September 2000

Assembly Work Programme

The fifty-fifth regular session of the General Assembly met this morning to continue its general debate.

It was expected to hear from representatives of the Republic of Moldova, the Republic of Korea, Panama, Indonesia, Mali, Qatar and Nigeria. The Permanent Observer of Palestine was also expected to make a statement.

Statements

NICOLAE TABACARU, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Moldova, said that although international organizations undertook systematic efforts at resolving conflicts, those efforts sometimes fell short of reaching the proposed goals. Democratic transformations and economic development in some south-eastern European countries were jeopardized by unsolved internal conflicts. In the last eight years, his country had made sustained efforts to settle the conflict in its eastern region. The mechanism of settlement had been established, yet separatist tendencies still persisted. The situation was more difficult because the region was over-militarized. An early, complete and unconditional withdrawal of foreign troops, munitions and armaments, as stipulated at the Istanbul Summit of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), would undoubtedly facilitate the peaceful settlement of the conflict.

Although some of the “frozen conflicts” in his region did not appear to be getting worse, there was a growing sense of frustration that a solution was not yet in reach, he said. It had become obvious that the United Nations mechanisms and strategies for dealing with threats to stability were inadequate. They needed to be strengthened, not only to resolve conflict but, more importantly, to prevent it. The implementation of the Brahimi report would significantly consolidate the capacity of the United Nations in peacekeeping and peace-building. Disarmament and non-proliferation were essential elements of the security architecture. The Republic of Moldova also attached importance to the issue of small arms and light weapons.

The United Nations should involve governmental, economic and financial institutions, as well as the private sector and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in promoting partnerships for development, he said. As a framework of the international community, the Organization should play a key role in supporting and coordinating national efforts. Furthermore, by promoting, disseminating and implementing the instruments of the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), the adjustment of transitional economies to international and European standards could be ensured. Thus the projects implemented by the ECE would directly contribute to the integration of those economies within the wider world economy.

Reform of the Security Council lay at the heart of the general reform of the United Nations, he continued. It should be guided by the principles of equitable geographic representation, democracy, effectiveness, efficiency and transparency. His country also welcomed the process of revitalization and enhancement of the General Assembly’s efficiency, as well as the idea of restoring the central role of the Assembly as a debating and main representative body of the United Nations. He considered it necessary to continue the consolidation efforts and the coordinating function of the Economic and Social Council regarding United Nations funds and programmes. United Nations reform could only continue successfully if financial problems were solved. Despite the difficulties it faced, his country had made all efforts to reduce its arrears to United Nations budgets.

LEE JOUNG-BINN, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea, said that the ideas discussed two weeks ago at the Millennium Summit, which now comprised the core of the Millennium Declaration, reaffirmed the role of the United Nations as the embodiment of humankind’s aspirations for greater peace and prosperity. The task of strengthening that role called for a more efficient United Nations. It also required a forward-looking worldview, with vision and action to secure peace in troubled corners of the world, both to ensure that globalization benefited all and to enhance the sense of community in the world through the spread of universal values and ideas.

It was only right that the new millennium should begin as many of the continuing conflicts of the past were coming to an end, he continued. The Korean peninsula itself exemplified that phenomenon, as the first South-North Korean Summit had been held in June. As a result, inter-Korean relations had taken a turn for the better. The whole world stood to benefit from the liquidation of the final legacy of the cold war that the Summit had set in motion – steering inter-Korean relations away from tension and enmity, and towards reconciliation, peaceful coexistence and eventual unification. As dramatic and hopeful as the June Summit and subsequent Korean developments had been, those were only “first steps”. In that regard, the abiding interest and support of the international community was sought to further efforts to finally “settle a lasting peace on the Korean peninsula”.

However, the United Nations had yet to resolve the “old” problem of violent conflicts, which appeared to be worsening in both scope and nature. As countless lives were lost in armed conflicts and regional violence, it was clear that Member States must generate stronger political will to prevent the recurrence of tragedies such as those that occurred in Rwanda, Kosovo and Sierra Leone. It was particularly deplorable that United Nations personnel in those and other arenas were now coming under attack. He urged all parties concerned to guarantee the safety and security of United Nations personnel.

He went on to say that along with the demanding work of assisting in development and poverty alleviation programmes around the world, the United Nations must now add the task of “building a bridge” that allowed developing countries to cross the digital divide and to ensure that those countries could take advantage of the information revolution. There were also many other issues that faced the United Nations in the coming millennium, particularly disarmament and sustainable development. Ongoing reform was required to enable the Organization to face those and other challenges with greater efficiency and effectiveness.

JOSE MIGUEL ALEMAN HEALY, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Panama, said his country shared the Secretary-General’s concerns for the right of the child and gender equality. The next meeting of heads of States of the Ibero-American community, taking place in Panama, would be dedicated to the problems of children and youth in the region. In the preparation for that meeting, Panama had received support from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), among others.

With respect to gender equality, in recent years the country had made significant progress in the political participation of women, he said. Since September last year, a woman had guided the destiny of the nation. As of January, Panama’s Supreme Court was presided over by a woman. His country had made significant progress in promoting access for women to education and health care. As for economic equality, he hoped that significant progress could be made, in particular with regard to international cooperation.

Panama nowadays enjoyed full sovereignty over all its national territory, he said. It had the ability and capacity to administer the Panama Canal in a secure, efficient and transparent manner, and was also able to cope with the growing demand for traffic through the inter-oceanic waterway. The Canal and its surrounding land were now a key element for the Panamanian economy. There were plans to expand the Canal’s water basin. Studies for a third set of locks were under way, increasing the Canal’s efficiency by 25 per cent. In the lands recovered, military installations were being converted to civilian use. Striving to contribute to worldwide peacemaking, Panama would convert former military bases into centres promoting peace, such as a planned regional Centre for Human Rights.

There was a need for careful monitoring of the flight of billions of dollars from developing countries to financial institutions of the developed world, he said. Money laundering, laundering of diamonds and other unlawful activities could only be controlled by trustworthy international agencies, administered not only by countries of the North, but also by representatives of the South. He called on the General Assembly to resolve the unsettled dispute between the United States and Panama regarding military use of Panamanian territory. He also asked the Security Council to be seized of that matter.

ALWI SHIHAB, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Indonesia, said that a major issue confronting the international community was the lack of progress on the elimination of nuclear weapons. He was concerned to see a new rationalization for their continued use, coupled with repeat assertions of their legitimacy and necessity. That lack of progress increased the prospects of a new nuclear arms race which would threaten existing arms control agreements and the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Ridding the world of the dangers posed by nuclear weapons was the greatest challenge of our time.

In the Middle East, he continued, attention must remain focused on the core of the conflict, namely, the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people to secure their inalienable rights to self-determination and sovereign statehood in their own homeland, with Jerusalem as its capital. Palestinian leaders must be commended on their statesmanlike approach. They had demonstrated their commitment to peace through their decision to share the city of Jerusalem, hence it now behove Israel to make a similar compromise. His delegation hoped for a resumption of the Israeli-Syrian peace talks based on the Madrid peace formula and trusted that the spirit of humanitarian compromise would prevail in easing the impact of sanctions on the people of Iraq.

One of the core issues of development greatly impacted by globalization was that of financing for development. While enormous financial flows characterized the global financial system, the basic problem was that developing countries were not able to benefit from such flows and must depend on official development assistance. Another important issue was that of the indebtedness of the developing countries, which often undermined their development efforts. More than ever, there must be a crusade for sustainable development. Almost a decade after the Rio Summit, little had been achieved, and the world must seriously prepare for the ten-year review of its implementation. He recognized that, for many people, social development remained an elusive goal. Only through gender equality and women’s empowerment could true prosperity be achieved. Ethnic and racial discrimination, religious intolerance and xenophobia also threatened to undermine all progress.

His country was committed to ensuring that humanitarian assistance was available wherever and whenever needed throughout the world, he said. The plight of refugees must continue to hold a prominent position on the global agenda, and much remained to be done to ensure the integrity of humanitarian missions. The murder of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) staff in West Timor had shocked and saddened the world, nowhere more than Indonesia. That humanitarian workers should become victims in the performance of their work was unacceptable. Necessary measures must be taken to ensure that such a heinous crime was never repeated. The tragedy should not, however, result in a withdrawal of humanitarian assistance.

MODIBO SIDIBE, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Mali, said that the maintenance of international peace and security must remain a priority for the United Nations. Confronted with many internal conflicts, costing the lives of millions of civilians, it was crucial to improve the system of prevention and reinforce the capacity of the United Nations to operate with efficiency and success. Intervention by the United Nations must be decided according to uniform criteria, irrespective of the geographical region of the conflict, he said. The multi-disciplinary nature of peacekeeping missions required clear and precise mandates. Recent events in Sierra Leone highlighted the importance of regional cooperation in situations of conflict. Peacekeeping missions could not be a permanent solution to conflicts, nor could they provide the solution to the underlying causes of conflicts.

Another concern to his Government was the threat of small arms. Regional cooperation was required to support moratoriums, respect sanctions on the trafficking of arms, and strengthen prevention of the illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons. The trafficking of arms was intimately linked to the use of child soldiers. The international community had a responsibility towards those children robbed of their childhood. Bringing about the end of conflicts required more attention of the root causes of conflicts, particularly their economic and social dimension.

The problem of external debt of developing countries must continue to be the focus of the international community, as those debts were a major obstacle to development. Total debt cancellation was necessary for a new development strategy that would also consist of direct investment, provisions for an unhampered access to markets, and the transfer of technologies. No development strategy could ignore the importance of democracy. Democracy, good governance, respect for human rights and the rule of law were preconditions for the stability and development of a region. The international community must provide clearer and more rigorous support to the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in the condemnation of political coups and unconstitutional political changes.

His Government welcomed developments in the Lockerbie case, and called for the immediate and definitive lifting of sanctions against Libya. It also urged the international community to pay close attention to sanctions, due to their humanitarian cost. Smarter and more targeted sanctions were required, he said. The United Nations needed to adapt to the challenges and threats of the day. The challenges the world faced in the political, social and economic fields required creativity and realism in order to provide innovative and constructive action.

NASSIR ABDULAZIZ AL-NASSER, Permanent Representative of Qatar, speaking on behalf of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Qatar, said that his region had for two decades been plagued by disasters and crises: no sooner had one calmed down than another erupted like an active volcano. His Government sincerely hoped that through concerted bilateral and regional efforts, a solution would be found to the problems of prisoners and missing persons, whether Kuwaiti or Iraqi. He said that the sanctions imposed on Libya must now be lifted, as there were no more legal justifications for continuing them. It was hoped that the dispute between Iran and the Emirates over the occupied Persian Gulf islands would be solved in a manner acceptable to both parties through bilateral or regional dialogue.

The Arabs considered peace in the Middle East a valid strategic option, he said, yet a comprehensive peace was still beyond reach owing to Israeli intransigence, inflexibility and disregard of the basic rights of the Arab nation. He called on the United States of America, whose efforts in the peace process were appreciated, to exert pressure on Israel to respond to the challenges of peace. His Government was also concerned at the covert intrigues aimed at dismembering Muslim Indonesia in the name of human rights and under other transparently deceptive pretexts. His Government supported the sovereignty of Indonesia over all its territories.

He also expressed concern that the pretext of humanitarian intervention was being exploited by major powers to justify interference in the internal affairs of States and the violation of their national sovereignty. The promotion of democracy, of an international code of conduct and of good governance was open to many interpretations. But if pursued in present fashion, they would lead to a world run according to a single style of democracy, and a single culture would prevail. That threatened to eliminate the pluralism which was an enriching factor in the work of the United Nations. True democracy was a system freely chosen by people for its regime.

ALHAJI SULE LAMIDO, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nigeria, also speaking on behalf of the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, said that over the years, the mandate of the United Nations to preserve international security had broadened from the strict definitions of conflict prevention to include fundamental issues of socio-economic security. For example, in developing countries, the work of the Organization was comparatively better represented by the activities of its agencies -- such as UNICEF, UNESCO and the World Health Organization (WHO) -- than by Security Council resolutions. It was from the work of those agencies that the poorest sections of developing nations in regions such as Africa benefited most. Indeed, those agencies had come to embody the idea that the United Nations could harmonize human progress for the benefit of all.

And while such idealism had generally not been misplaced, he echoed the sentiments expressed by his country’s President during the Millennium Summit: although the world had generally become a safer place thanks to the United Nations, the international community must be deeply worried that the Organization’s message of hope had not yet reached the millions for whom it was intended. Indeed, for the majority of the world’s population, grinding poverty had remained a fact of life, looming so large that some Member States had doubts about their fate in the new Millennium. Extreme poverty, along with heavy debt, continued conflicts, serious technical deficiencies and the ravages of the HIV/AIDS pandemic faced by countries in the developing world were indeed grounds for such doubts.

Turning to the phenomenon of globalization, he said that in a global economy all actors should be stakeholders. But what stakes did Africa have in a global economy? How could an economy that produced virtually nothing in industrial terms compete in a global economy? Africa was heavily indebted with some countries committing up to 55 per cent of gross earnings to debt servicing and payment. What could the little that was left do for the domestic economy? As a responsible member of the international community, Nigeria was obliged to ask those questions in order to draw attention to the current situation in Africa. For it was now clear that the dream of a global family could not be achieved if the world’s present power and reward system continued. Only through broad dialogue, utilizing a holistic approach to those issues, could the international community even begin to address the problems facing the developing world.

Debate on the idea of international humanitarian intervention, he said, had highlighted the contradiction between sovereignty and intervention. But while nation-States were rightly sensitive to the word “intervention”, discussions on the issue had thus far focused on a one-dimensional definition of what might constitute grounds for intervention -- in most cases, conflict situations which contributed to a massive loss of life. But what of other situations, such as the silent genocide by the HIV virus, where loss of life was serious but was not the result of armed conflict or war? What about natural disasters, or deaths that resulted from the imposition of sanctions? Those were the issues that should be at the core of proper discussions of humanitarian intervention, intended to alleviate the suffering of those who might be trapped in tragedies other than war situations.

NASSER AL-KIDWA, representative of the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine, said the Palestine Central Council had decided to delay the establishment of the Palestinian State, and had at the same time mandated the Executive Committee, the Presidency of the Palestinian National Council and the Legislative Council to take the necessary steps in that regard. Those would include completion of the constitutional declaration and the submission of application for membership of the State of Palestine in the United Nations. He believed that no one would want to see the perpetuation of the present, unbearable transitional situation.

In the wake of the Camp David Summit, the other side claimed that it had made real concessions with regard to Jerusalem, while the Palestinian side had not done so and had not shown enough sensitivity to sites sacred to the Jewish religion. That was incorrect. The Palestinian side had accepted that West Jerusalem be under Israeli sovereignty and administered as the capital of Israel. It had demanded the end of the occupation of East Jerusalem so that it could be under Palestinian sovereignty and the capital of Palestine. It had accepted that the city be open and had accepted all kinds of guarantees for freedom of conscience, worship and access to all holy places under Palestinian sovereignty.

The Palestinian side fully respected the sacredness of the Jewish holy places. It had shown every flexibility, even with regard to those places on lands in occupied East Jerusalem, to which resolution 242 was applicable. In return for that flexibility, Israel had challenged Palestinian sovereignty over Al-Haram Al-Sharif and sought to maintain some form of sovereignty over it -- something “which will not be accepted by any Palestinian, Arab or Muslim leader, not now, not in the future”. The Palestinian side had indicated its readiness to accept Muslim sovereignty over Al-Haram Al-Sharif through the Al-Quds Committee of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

“We have not lost hope yet. We are still committed to the peace process and the serious and continuous negotiations during the coming weeks”, he said. Yet this morning, to his surprise, the spokesperson for the Israeli Government had announced that negotiations were suspended. He wanted to believe that the Israeli positions were tactical positions, and that the Israeli side would in the end abide by the agreed basis of the peace process. "Let this year be the year of bringing an end to the historic injustice that has befallen our people, and let it be a new beginning for life in the Middle East for all its States and all its peoples and all future generations”, he concluded.

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