Allow me at the outset to congratulate you, Mr. President,
on your election, which attests to the high regard in which
the international community holds you and your country,
and which France, as an old and true friend of Uruguay,
welcomes. We hope that the work of the fifty-third session
of the General Assembly will, under your presidency, lead
to the strengthening of the Organization.
It was 53 years ago in San Francisco that we, “the
peoples of the United Nations”, decided to join our efforts
“to save succeeding generations from the scourge of
war...to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in
the dignity and worth of the human person...to
establish conditions under which justice...can be
maintained, and to promote social progress”.
That immense ambition was justified by the recent
horrors, which at all costs were to be prevented from
happening again — a necessary utopia, perhaps, or a
superhuman task. But as the great French writer Albert
Camus put it:
”Superhuman tasks are the ones man takes a long time
to accomplish, that’s all.”
A long time has elapsed, and we are still working on
that, still toiling. We have no reason to be ashamed of what
we have done as the United Nations throughout these 53
years, of what the Security Council and successive General
Assemblies have done, as well as seven Secretaries-
General — in particular the current one over the last two
years, whose work has been so outstanding.
Over the decades, the Security Council, except when
paralysed by abuse of the veto, has almost always managed
to shoulder its primary responsibility for international
security. When it failed to do so, no other institution was
able to in its stead. Since its first peacekeeping operation 50
years ago, the Security Council has launched 49 operations
of this kind.
The institutional framework established by the
Charter has, in the most varied situations, ranging from
cold war confrontation to the cooperation of recent years,
proved its irreplaceable usefulness. This again was borne
out in the spring of this year during the Iraqi crisis, when
the Secretary-General was deservedly commended; in
Africa, during the creation of the United Nations Mission
in the Central African Republic, which was the first
entirely new peacekeeping operation in four years; and
even in the Balkans, where the difficult mission entrusted
to the United Nations in Eastern Slavonia achieved its
objective.
And yet, as the Secretary-General himself
emphasized recently,
“Unpredictability and surprise have become almost
commonplace” (A/53/1, para. 1),
and the illusions of the end of the cold war have not
stood the test of reality. Our world, let us acknowledge
this fact, is not moving towards greater harmony.
Sometimes our interventions are not appropriate; some
States take advantage of circumstances and deliberately
carry out archaic policies of force that contravene the
principles of the Charter. On other occasions, the
abdication or implosion of States has released among
various groups ancestral forms of hatred that are still very
much alive, thus facilitating organized crime. All these
are destabilizing factors which, while very different, all
help to disorganize and imperil international relations.
Several major crises have proved this recently. The
Asian financial crisis reminded us that strong growth,
when badly regulated, is vulnerable in a globalized world
that is all too often dependent on the ultra-sensitive
reactions of the trading floors and the increasingly rapid
spread of contagious effects. Each day $1,600 billion is
exchanged on the financial markets — huge sums of
money that are greater than the means of intervention of
all the financial institutions of the world. In 1970 those
amounts were equal to the world’s gross national product.
Today, they are 15 times greater.
The nuclear tests in South Asia were a dramatic
reminder that a very serious regional territorial dispute
combined with a feeling, justified or not, of insecurity
could open the way to nuclear and ballistic proliferation.
In East Africa, a typical armed conflict was born of
a border dispute. In the Great Lakes region, six or seven
States are in the grip of regional conflict on the territory
15

of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Destabilization
is threatening Central Asia, starting with Afghanistan. I
cannot list them all, but currently more than 30 conflicts,
civil wars or State break-ups are under way that involve
more than 40 countries in their aftermath of suffering.
Twenty-two million civilians — displaced persons and
returnees — have been affected by these conflicts and
require assistance from the Office of the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees, which is currently active
in 118 countries. Nor can I fail to mention child soldiers;
slavery, which still goes on in a scarcely veiled form;
disappeared persons; and so many other tragedies.
But I do not wish my statement to be a long litany of
woe that is only too familiar to the United Nations, which
is the first to learn of these situations. Is it not at this very
moment trying to maintain peace on four continents with
approximately 15,000 personnel engaged in about 17
operations? To cite just one example, no fewer than 20
agencies are trying to rebuild Bosnia.
Nor do I intend to neglect the progress achieved in
1998, which I mentioned at the beginning of my statement.
I wish simply to explain that the United Nations and the
multilateral system do not today have the necessary means
to meet all these challenges. But we cannot and must not
give up. How can we restore the necessary vigour to our
action?
Allow me to make some suggestions in this area. First,
we can preserve the powers that the Charter has given our
institutions. The first priority is to reserve for the Security
Council a monopoly on legitimate enforcement action in the
case of “threats to the peace, breaches of the peace, and
acts of aggression”.
Nothing can justify the use of force by a State, a
group of States or an organization, however powerful, if
prior authorization was not received from the Security
Council — except in cases of self-defence.
My country shares the impatience of those who
deplore the fact that it should take so long to find a solution
to various cruel conflicts — for example, in Kosovo, where
the humanitarian situation is so critical. Since November
1997 France has warned of the risks of explosion; it has put
forward many proposals in liaison with Germany and its
other partners in the Contact Group to prepare the ground
for a realistic political solution. It has just begun action for
the return of refugees. It has never ruled out the possible
use of force. On this latter point, I hear voices urging us to
forgo the authorization of the Security Council. But after
this case there would be another exception, and then
another. Little by little, any country would declare itself
entitled to intervene wherever its interests, security or
ambitions so required, and we would have to begin all
over again. We must remain firm on this principle.
Second, we must make sure that the authority of the
Security Council is respected and its resolutions are
complied with. This goes for all its resolutions. But today
the question arises particularly in connection with Iraq.
The lifting of the oil embargo has, by the Council’s
resolutions, been made subject to the controlled
dismantling of its weapons of mass destruction. Iraq must
therefore meet these conditions — completely meet them,
but only them. Once that objective is achieved, our aim
must be to reintegrate Iraq into the international
community, starting with the region.
The only way to achieve that end is by Iraq’s
complete compliance with the relevant resolutions — all
the resolutions, nothing but the resolutions — which
means Iraq’s unreserved cooperation with the United
Nations and the bodies empowered to monitor Iraq’s
disarmament.
The third need is to increase the representativeness
of the Security Council in order to increase its legitimacy.
This is why my country has come out in favour of
enlarging the Security Council, with, on the one hand,
new permanent members — two seats for the North, to
which Germany and Japan have every claim, and three
for the South; on the other hand, there should be new
non-permanent members for the North and South. This
enlargement must at the same time preserve the Council’s
effectiveness and not prevent it from carrying out its
responsibilities under the Charter. I hope this fifty-third
session of the Assembly will see progress on this reform.
Fourth, we must increase the capacity of our
Organization to prevent or settle regional crises. There is
much to be done. Now that the international community
has just commemorated on a melancholy note the fifth
anniversary of the Oslo accords, what remains of the
peace process in the Middle East and the hopes born in
Madrid? There is no longer a light shining in the night,
and the fires of hatred are gaining ground. France
continues to support the persevering efforts of the United
States Secretary of State, but we do not wish to be left
without any prospects at all should those efforts
unfortunately not succeed. That is why President Chirac
and President Mubarak have proposed in that event
convening a conference of countries resolved to save the
16

peace. This concern for the future has been very well
received. In liaison with Mr. Amre Moussa, we are working
to further our proposal. We must not abandon the goal of
meeting the aspirations of the peoples of this region for a
just and lasting peace which respects the resolutions and
agreements that have been reached.
Another region in crisis calls for our attention. As I
mentioned earlier on the territory of the Democratic
Republic of the Congo six or seven African States of the
Great Lakes region are engaged in confrontation in a tangle
of problems involving border issues, guerrilla activities,
ethnic strife, refugees, the quest for arable land and so
forth. It is illusory to hope for a separate settlement in each
of these States. A regional crisis such as this calls for a
regional solution. That is why my country has raised again
the idea of a conference for peace in the Great Lakes
region, which we suggested as early as 1995. The
conference would be placed under the aegis of the United
Nations or the Organization of African Unity, with the
active participation of the States of the region. Several
African diplomatic initiatives have the same goal. We
support those efforts.
Africa is currently the theatre of other crises. Let us
pay tribute to the tireless efforts of the Secretary-General’s
representatives. Here I salute in particular the memory of
Matre Blondin Beye, who died while on a peace mission.
Fifth, there is a need to reinforce the multilateral
disarmament and non-proliferation system. Following the
nuclear tests in South Asia, whose risks everyone
recognizes, we must strengthen the anti-proliferation regime
and pursue the disarmament process in all areas — nuclear,
conventional, chemical and biological.
Our primary objective here should be the entry into
force as speedily as possible of the Comprehensive
Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. France, together with the United
Kingdom, was the first nuclear-weapon State to ratify the
Treaty and is the only one to have completed the
dismantlement of its testing centre. I call on all States that
have not yet done so to accede to this Treaty — including
India and Pakistan, which have announced their intention
not to carry out any more nuclear tests.
Another objective here would be a treaty banning the
production of fissile material for military purposes. I
proposed at the meeting of the five permanent members of
the Security Council held in Geneva on 4 June last that we
should launch such a negotiation. A universal, non-
discriminatory and verifiable cut-off treaty would give
new impetus to disarmament.
We should also pursue relentlessly the prohibition of
chemical and biological weapons. Let us see to it that the
Convention banning chemical weapons becomes universal
and that the Convention banning biological weapons is
made truly effective through a verification mechanism.
Combating the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction also means preventing the spread of vehicles
capable of delivering such weapons, while preserving
useful civilian applications.
In order to make progress in conventional
disarmament, let us ensure that the Ottawa Convention
providing for a comprehensive ban on anti-personnel
mines comes into force as soon as possible.
Sixth, we should continue to combat
underdevelopment, whose link with crises needs no
further demonstration. France remains heavily committed;
it is the second largest provider of official development
assistance. In order to modernize its aid and make it more
effective, France has decided to reform its cooperation
arrangements and increase coordination with other donors
— in the first place with the European Union. More than
60 per cent of aid to Africa comes from the European
Union. Europe is also the largest source of aid to Latin
America and the second largest to Asia.
France would like development resources to be more
predictable. The Secretary-General has made proposals
that we welcome in a constructive spirit, in particular the
idea of a development account. We encourage the United
Nations to continue its discussions in this area.
Seventh, we need to work with the non-
governmental organizations. They are capable of sounding
the alarm, making proposals and cooperating in very
practical terms to help build States governed by the rule
of law. Parallel to these actions, we expect much from the
activities of Mrs. Robinson, United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights, both in the Commission
on Human Rights and in the various United Nations
agencies, which must also — all of them — integrate the
human rights dimension into their activities.
After more than 10 years of negotiations, 1998 will
see the adoption of the declaration on the defenders of
human rights. This is a crucial text because these are the
rights that dictatorships try to stifle and threaten.
17

However, even if we reinforce the Security Council,
strengthen the hand of the Secretary-General and better
handle future crises and other aspects of existing ones, this
will still not be enough. We must regain the initiative, and
for that we must extend our efforts to bring worldwide
regulation to other fields. This brings me to my final points.
The eighth requirement is to extend the rule of law in
all its aspects. The Statute of a permanent International
Criminal Court was adopted in Rome after intensive
negotiations. It is a major step forward in the fight against
the impunity of the foremost criminals. France was one of
the first to sign it. The Statute achieves an essential
synthesis of the various legal traditions in the world and
strikes a balance between the Court’s competences and the
powers of the Security Council that is in keeping with the
spirit and calling of the United Nations. We hope that those
countries that still have reservations will be able to join us.
In another field of law, the International Labour
Organization has taken a historic step towards universal
compliance with basic labour standards through the
declaration adopted at its eighty-sixth conference, which is
a commitment on the part of the 174 member States of the
Organization.
On 11 November 1997 the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization adopted
the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and
Human Rights. This is the first normative framework to
guide the international community in an area of scientific
research where advances are already shaking our traditional
concepts of life and social organization. France is
submitting a draft resolution calling on the General
Assembly to endorse this Universal Declaration.
Ninth, we must contain and reduce the scourge of
organized crime, beginning with drugs. The volume of
illegal drug trafficking now approaches $500 billion — 8
per cent to 10 per cent of world trade. According to the
International Monetary Fund, money-laundering operations
represent from 2 per cent to 5 per cent of global gross
domestic product.
At the special session in New York in June we
decided to put more emphasis on reducing the demand for
drugs, in addition to what we have done about supply. Let
us do so.
Tenth, we must combat terrorism in all its forms,
whoever the perpetrators and whatever their motivation.
The recent International Convention for the
Suppression of Terrorist Bombings is an important step
forward, but that is not enough. We must also acquire the
means to hunt down those who finance and instigate these
attacks. France is proposing the negotiation of a universal
convention against the financing of terrorism.
We need to define concrete mechanisms for legal
measures and mutual judicial assistance against those who
finance terrorism. Effective sanctions, such as the seizure
or the freezing of the assets of organizations or
individuals that have participated in terrorist acts must be
provided for. Innovative measures, such as making it
impossible to invoke banking secrecy in judicial bodies
investigating a terrorist attack, should be introduced. If we
have the will to do this, we can launch this negotiation at
the end of the present session of the General Assembly.
President Clinton spoke here on Monday of this
common struggle as a shared obligation. This is correct.
In addition, we need to attack the multiple causes that
breed terrorism.
The eleventh point I would like to make concerns
the remedy for not only the current financial crises, but
also the malfunctioning of the international financial
system as such. That is the issue here, as is shown by the
increasing calls for a “new Bretton Woods”. Financial
globalization is running wild now. New means urgently
need to be found. It is the responsibility of each State to
make its contribution. We need also to define new rules
adapted to today’s financial realities. My country is today
presenting to its European partners some proposals to
counter international financial instability.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) must
naturally remain the pivot here. But the IMF must be
more legitimate and more effective, working on the basis
of clear, realistic, political and strategic guidelines,
cooperating with other competent bodies, organizing
dialogue between industrialized countries and emerging
countries, ensuring the transparency of the financial
system and reflecting the economic, social and political
realities of partner countries — an IMF that can detect
early warning signs to prevent crises from happening.
Within this transformation, to which the Director-
General of the IMF is making an important contribution,
and also in order better to stabilize the international
economic and monetary situation and to support world
growth, Europe will play an increasingly important role
18

since it is finalizing the introduction of its single currency,
the euro, and we are anticipating the benefits.
From this period we are living through, which is so
full of contrasts, consisting of unprecedented progress and
of crises threatening to wipe out our efforts, in particular
those made under the aegis of the United Nations,
additional progress must be forthcoming in building a more
just and more peaceful world, because this is what we all
want.
Today’s world needs rules. The United Nations must
remain the unifying framework, and the Charter must
remain the reference point. Preserving what has proved its
worth, adapting when necessary, inventing new forms of
regulation — these are three main areas for our work.


Mr. President,I wish to
congratulate you on your well-deserved election to preside
over this session of the General Assembly. It is taking place
at a time of profound change and disturbing economic and
political developments in various parts of the world. Your
responsibilities are correspondingly imposing. I am
confident that your accomplishments will be similarly
significant.
Pakistan also wishes to convey its sincere appreciation
to your predecessor, Mr. Udovenko, for the skilful and
productive manner in which he guided the Assembly?s work
over the past year.
As we seek to build the structures for peace and
prosperity on the eve of a new millennium, the United
Nations has become even more indispensable. In an
increasingly interdependent world, the United Nations is the
only organization where nations can come together and
evolve decisions democratically on critical social and
political issues which affect all peoples. Pakistan has
profound faith in the purposes and the promise of the
United Nations.
I wish to pay a warm tribute to our Secretary-General,
Mr. Kofi Annan, who has moved to revive the United
Nations with bold reforms. These reforms must reinforce
the democratic ethos of the United Nations, especially in
the Security Council, where the endeavour of some is to
create new centres of privilege rather than eliminate old
inequalities. The reform we pursue must be inspired by the
noble vision of the United Nations Charter: social justice,
universal prosperity and global peace and security. To do
anything else is to do less than history demands of us.
We are living in times of change and promise. The
days of global confrontation are gone and doctrines of
containment have lost relevance. The information and
technological revolutions have brought about a phenomenal
interaction among the peoples of the world. The global
village is a reality. Today, the prosperity of one region
supplements and supports that of another. The creed of our
times must be partnership for peace and development. It
will be an irony if the new vision and possibilities are lost
because of narrow prejudices and interests.
The world is also pervaded with a deep sense of
foreboding. We are being propelled into a future which
appears anarchic and insecure. In recent months, the
triumphal hopes for the spread of free markets,
democratic freedoms and world peace have suffered
sobering setbacks. The crisis spreading from the erstwhile
economic dynamo of East Asia has shaken confidence in
the prescriptions of trade and financial liberalization. With
falling incomes and failing hopes, strife has spread among
and within nations in virtually every part of the world.
This will negate the emerging prospects for ending
hunger, disease and ignorance universally.
New conflicts have appeared, while many old
problems persist. The people of Kashmir and Palestine
continue to suffer. Bosnia has seen a brutal war, and now
Kosovo dreads the same fate. Internecine wars have
scarred Africa. Afghanistan has yet to recover from the
ravages of conflict. Peace has remained elusive in the
Middle East. Tensions have been heightened in South
Asia. There is increasing resort to the unilateral use of
force and arbitrary actions against weaker nations. The
multiple conflicts and suffering around the world have
placed extraordinary demands on the United Nations.
We are pained by the continuing tragedy of
Palestine. The promise of peace has turned to despair and
desperation. Peace cannot be achieved without the
realization of the right of self-determination and statehood
of the Palestinian people.
Seventeen years of war have completely destroyed
Afghanistan — its economy, society and polity. Pakistan
has, more than any other country, borne the consequences
of Afghanistan?s turmoil and suffering. We have a vital
interest in the restoration of peace and stability in
Afghanistan.
Pakistan is deeply concerned at the current tensions
between Iran and Afghanistan. We will continue to do all
we can to promote peaceful and friendly relations
between these two fraternal neighbours. Those responsible
for the outrageous killing of the personnel seized from the
Iranian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif must be apprehended
and punished. We call for the release of all remaining
Iranian personnel and other prisoners held by the parties
to the Afghan conflict. We support a United Nations and
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) fact-finding
mission to Afghanistan.
We urge reconciliation within Afghanistan through
realistic compromise and mutual accommodation. We call
for international engagement and dialogue with
12

Afghanistan to promote the objectives of humanitarianism,
human rights and peace. We ask for respect for the
country?s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and
observance of the principles of non-interference and non-
use of force.
This year the nuclear cloud has cast its dark shadow
over South Asia. When India conducted its first explosion
in 1974, the reaction of the major Powers was to impose
restraints against Pakistan. We felt compelled to acquire a
matching capability. Yet, even after we had done so,
Pakistan continued to promote a nuclear-weapons-free zone,
conventional arms restraint and a zero-missile zone in
South Asia. India rejected all these initiatives.
India?s nuclear tests in May should not have come as
a surprise to the world. We had warned the world several
weeks before the tests. Even after India conducted its tests,
the response of the major Powers was weak and ambiguous.
Once again, greater energy was devoted to restraining
Pakistan than in responding to India.
Immediately after its nuclear tests, India?s leaders
adopted a belligerent posture towards Pakistan. They told
us that the geostrategic balance had changed and that
Pakistan should abandon its principled support for Kashmiri
self-determination. Pakistan faced the threat of force. We
felt compelled to convince India that any military
aggression against Pakistan would have the most disastrous
consequences.
The world must appreciate that Pakistan did not
initiate these tests. India tested to alter the strategic balance
and threatened our security and sovereignty. We waited for
17 days for the world to respond. We knew that no country
could provide us security assurances against a nuclear India.
Thus circumstances forced us to test and establish nuclear
deterrence in self-defence. We have violated no
international norm. Regrettably, some friendly countries
have imposed sanctions and other restrictions against
Pakistan. These are unjust. I ask the international
community to determine who is in the wrong and why
Pakistan should be subjected to punitive measures.
Pakistan?s nuclear tests were conducted not to
challenge the existing non-proliferation regime, nor to fulfil
any great power ambition; they were designed to prevent
the threat or use of force against Pakistan. Our tests, in
response to those of India, thus served the cause of peace
and stability in our region.
We are not insensitive to the concerns aroused by the
South Asian nuclear tests. Despite the transformed strategic
situation, we remain opposed to an arms race, nuclear or
conventional. We have announced a unilateral moratorium
on testing. We are prepared to strengthen peace and
stability in the region by mutually agreed measures to
avoid a war, to create a regime for nuclear restraint and
conventional balance and to promote solutions to the
underlying causes of conflict, in particular the Kashmir
dispute.
We will discuss these issues with India when our
dialogue commences. We are also engaged in a dialogue
with several friendly countries to advance these
objectives. Pakistan has never contributed to nuclear
proliferation. We will continue to adhere strictly to our
policy of not exporting sensitive technologies and
equipment.
Pakistan consistently supported the conclusion of a
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) for over
30 years. We voted for the Treaty when it was adopted
by the General Assembly in 1996. We have declared a
moratorium on further testing; so has India. There is no
reason why the two countries cannot adhere to the CTBT.
In a nuclearized South Asia, the CTBT would have
relevance if Pakistan and India were both parties to the
Treaty. The Non-Aligned Summit has called for universal
adherence to the CTBT, especially by the nuclear-weapon
States. This demand is consistent with the Treaty?s
requirement that all nuclear-capable States, including
India, must adhere to the CTBT before it can come into
force. Pakistan will oppose any attempt to change this
fundamental requirement at the conference of States
parties to the Treaty, scheduled to be held in September
1999. Such a change can be made only by consensus.
Pakistan is therefore prepared to adhere to the CTBT
before that conference takes place. However, Pakistan?s
adherence to the Treaty will take place only in conditions
free from coercion or pressure.
In this regard, we expect that the arbitrary
restrictions imposed on Pakistan by multilateral
institutions will be speedily removed. We also expect
discriminatory sanctions against Pakistan to be lifted. And
we count on the full support of the world community for
a just resolution of the Kashmir dispute.
On the nuclear issue, Pakistan will insist on the
principle of equal treatment with India, whether in terms
of status or any kind of incentives. It must also be well
understood that if India should resume nuclear testing,
Pakistan will review its position and, if we have adhered
to the CTBT, invoke the supreme interests clause as
provided for under article IX of the Treaty.
13

Nuclear deterrence between Pakistan and India will
remain fragile and dangerous as long as there is a growing
imbalance in conventional forces. This needs to be
redressed. Above all, durable peace between Pakistan and
India and restraint in their military postures will be, as
always, critically dependent on the resolution of the
Kashmir dispute, which has been the root cause of all
conflicts and tensions between Pakistan and India.
We welcome the recognition in the Secretary-
General?s annual report that the
“rising tension between India and Pakistan over
Kashmir and other issues is ... a major cause of
concern” (A/53/1, para. 18).
For almost 50 years, the people of Kashmir have continued
to await the exercise of the right of self-determination, as
stipulated in the Security Council?s resolutions. India is
obliged to allow the plebiscite prescribed in those United
Nations resolutions. India has, however, failed to honour its
commitments and resorted instead to a policy based on
force to deny the legitimate rights of the Kashmiri people.
Ten years ago, Kashmir?s freedom struggle entered a
new phase when Indian forces fired on peaceful Kashmiri
demonstrators, killing over 100. Kashmir is now occupied
by a force of 650,000 Indian troops. Over 60,000 Kashmiris
have been killed and thousands maimed and arrested.
Custodial killings, disappearances, arbitrary arrests and
summary executions continue to be daily occurrences. The
nightmare of the Kashmiri people continues. This year,
moreover, scores of innocent Kashmiris in Azad Kashmir
have been killed and hundreds injured by intensified Indian
artillery and mortar fire. Even as I speak, tensions are high
on the line of control.
My Government is committed to resolving our
problem with India through dialogue. This is all the more
important in a nuclear environment in which neither side
has the luxury to contemplate the use of force. In June
1997, we agreed with India on an eight-item agenda and a
mechanism for the dialogue. Unfortunately, the dialogue
was interrupted due to differences over modalities. I am,
however, happy to say that in a meeting which concluded
a short while ago, Prime Minister Vajpayee and I reached
an agreement to resume the dialogue with the
commencement of talks at the Foreign Secretary level,
which will address at the outset the primary issues of peace
and security and Jammu and Kashmir.
The United Nations, the major Powers and the
international community have a responsibility to support
and facilitate a solution to the Kashmir issue. We request
the Secretary-General to take appropriate initiatives to
implement Security Council resolutions on Kashmir and
to ease tensions and build confidence. In particular, we
urge that the United Nations Military Observer Group in
India and Pakistan be strengthened and its mandate
enhanced. The Security Council should regularly monitor
the volatile situation along the line of control in Jammu
and Kashmir.
Until last year, globalization of the world economy
promised the spread of prosperity. Today, 30 per cent of
the world economy is in recession; by next year, this
figure is projected to double. Across East Asia, currencies
have drastically depreciated, economies have contracted,
incomes have plummeted and unemployment has risen,
despite sound economic fundamentals.
As the East Asian crisis spreads, questions are being
posed about the economic wisdom of rapid financial and
trade liberalization and the social implications of
globalization. Yet, in the age of the information and
communications revolution, globalization cannot be
reversed; it can only be effectively governed.
The world community must adopt a coherent
approach to the current crisis. In the short term, it is
essential to spur economic growth in all parts of the
world. The international financial institutions must relax
their unrealistic conditionalities to prevent any further
contraction of the economies of the developing countries.
Mechanisms need to be devised to direct greater
development finance to the underdeveloped countries
which have the largest latent demand. Meanwhile,
markets, especially those of the industrial countries, must
be kept open. New protectionism in the guise of concern
for environmental or labour standards must be resisted.
In order to address these issues effectively, we have
to proceed from three basic premises. First, decisions on
ways to manage globalization must be made collectively
by all nations. Secondly, specific policies must flow from
the overriding objective of ensuring growth with equity:
equity is not only a moral imperative, it is now a
prerequisite for sustained global growth. Thirdly, the
North and South must act together: prosperity for both is
interlinked.
This suggests the need for concerted action by the
international community, which should include, first, the
14

strengthening of the capacity of multilateral institutions to
address the issues of trade, finance and development in an
integrated and coherent manner, thereby ensuring the
effective governance of globalization. In this context, a
global monetary conference to address the old and new
problems of the international finance system is now a
necessity and should be convened urgently by the United
Nations. Secondly, this action should include correcting the
inequities in the international trade regime, especially by
more rapid liberalization in areas of primary interest to
developing countries. And finally, it should include
resolution of the long-standing issues of debt, development
finance and access to technology.
What is required today is a realization that there is
unity in the struggle of the South and the North for
economic and social development. A new concept of a
global community appears to be essential: a community
where all human beings are acknowledged as being entitled
to a life of dignity and to the right to development.
The concept of the ummah, or community, in Islamic
thought offers a model for the realization of such a global
community. This concept gives primacy to solidarity among
human beings and to equitable benefits to all members of
the community. Islam is the religion of peace and tolerance;
it is inherently moderate and progressive. Here, I would
like to warmly welcome President Clinton's vision
affirming America?s deep respect for Islam and rejecting
the pernicious thesis of a clash of civilizations. We must
work together to create greater understanding and harmony
among all religions and peoples of the world.
The present drift towards an uncertain and dangerous
world must be arrested. Inequality, conflicts and abuse of
human rights are not the inevitable consequences of
impersonal forces of history. They are the outcome of our
own actions. It is in our power to fashion a more equitable
and more peaceful world. We can do so if we rededicate
ourselves to the ideals of the United Nations Charter. Only
then can we ensure that the next century will dawn on a
prosperous and peaceful world.


His illustrious election to the presidency of the
General Assembly at its fifty-third session gives me the
pleasant opportunity to express to Mr. Opertti, on behalf of
the people and Government of the Niger, our warmest
congratulations. His unanimous election is assuredly a
legitimate confirmation both of his personal merits and of
the firm commitment of his country, Uruguay, to the
triumph of our Organization?s noble ideals.
These congratulations I extend to the other members
of the Bureau who help the President in his task, in the
achievement of whose success I can guarantee the full
cooperation of the delegation of Niger.
I would also like to express my sincere compliments
to the President?s predecessor, Mr. Hennadiy Udovenko,
for his invaluable work as President.
To Mr. Kofi Annan, the Secretary-General of our
Organization, I am happy to repeat here the full support
of the Government of Niger for his remarkable activities
in the service of world peace and the courageous reform
work he is doing in order to allow the United Nations to
better respond to the challenges of the coming new
millennium. I cannot fail to pay tribute to his outstanding
success in finding, through determination and courage, a
diplomatic way out of the Iraq crisis at the beginning of
this year, thus greatly contributing to the safeguarding of
peace and security in the region and thus to enhancing the
credibility and the prestige of our Organization, as well as
to the strengthening of his personal commitment and his
authority.
For more than a half century the United Nations has
carried out one of its main missions by saving us from a
third world conflict, which certainly would have been
fatal to humankind. The end of the cold war brought hope
of the emergence of a new international order based on
total respect for the principles laid down in the United
Nations Charter and international law, even if that hope
needs further strengthening, in particular because of the
persistence of violent and murderous conflicts, the
increase of tensions of all kinds and the accumulation of
increasingly destructive weapons by a growing number of
nations.
Africa remains the region of the globe most affected
by conflicts — repeated, disturbing conflicts, genuine
sources of instability, of intolerable suffering and of
apocalyptic movements of populations and
impoverishment. That is why the Government of Niger
welcomed the Security Council initiative to invite the
Secretary-General to submit a report to it on the causes of
conflict in Africa and their possible remedies. I would
like once again to congratulate the Secretary-General on
the important report (S/1998/318) he submitted, a report
remarkable for its frankness and its realistic
recommendations for assuring durable peace and
sustainable development in Africa. It is our earnest hope
that this report will contribute to awakening the human
conscience and bringing the international community to a
point where it will further help the efforts of the African
countries in their unremitting search for peace and
prosperity.
6

Within the framework of the efforts made in Africa to
redress the situation, the people and Government of Niger
welcome the success this year in defusing numerous
conflicts, particularly those in the Central African Republic
and Sierra Leone. By personally participating in the
festivities which marked the return to power of Mr. Ahmad
Tejan Kabbah, the democratically elected President of
Sierra Leone, I was able to show my Government and
people?s deep commitment to democratic processes and the
establishment of the rule of law in Africa.
This is a good opportunity to pay tribute to the
decisive, beneficial role played by the Economic
Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Monitoring
Group (ECOMOG) in the restoration of constitutional
legality and the return of calm to Sierra Leone, thereby
implementing the political will and determination of the
ECOWAS heads of State. The exemplary intervention of
ECOWAS to resolve conflicts in the West Africa subregion
testifies to the opportuneness of giving more responsibility
to subregional and regional organizations in the prevention
and management of conflicts. Their unparalleled local
knowledge could, when necessary, be given the logistic
support and expertise of the United Nations to deal with
local conflicts, in keeping with the prescriptions of the
Agenda for Peace of the Secretary-General and with the
provisions of the Charter.
Despite major progress achieved in this respect, the
hostilities which are troubling several subregions show that
the goal of peace is far from being achieved on the
continent.
Somalia remains deep in torment, despite laudable
efforts by neighbouring countries and the international
community to promote national reconciliation and the
restoration of a normal political and social life.
Confrontations and strife are continuing in the Great
Lakes region, where instability and insecurity, as well as
the poverty which accompanies massive movements of
populations, daily trouble our consciences.
Faced with the unremitting recurrence of differences
and disputes which degenerate here and there into armed
conflicts, we urge the countries concerned to show restraint
and to accede, with the help of the international community,
to offers of mediation to resolve their differences, in
keeping with the provisions of the Charter of the United
Nations and the Organization of African Unity (OAU), to
which they have freely subscribed.
Certain claims relating to identity, as well as the
exacerbation of social, cultural or political characteristics,
often generate violent upheavals, which may rapidly take
the form of terrorism, at times blind and bloody. Faced
with these phenomena, the international community must
unite in efforts to pursue and deepen its thinking and the
collective action initiated a few years ago at the Sharm el-
Sheikh summit in Egypt, in order to deal appropriately
with these problems.
In this regard, Niger would like, through me, from
this lofty rostrum, to reaffirm once again its firm
condemnation of terrorism and any use of violence in
relations between nations, peoples and States. Just as we
explicitly and firmly condemned the cowardly attacks
carried out last August against American diplomatic
representatives in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, and in
Nairobi, Kenya, so do we disapprove of the unilateral
resort to military force against sovereign States.
In this regard, the Government of Niger deplores the
attack against the Al Shifa pharmaceutical factory in
Khartoum, an attack which took the lives of many
innocent people and undermined the provision of
pharmaceutical products in several countries of the region.
Therefore, it seems necessary to us to consider quickly
sending to Khartoum an international mission of inquiry,
as requested by the Sudanese authorities. We in Niger
believe the request to be sincere, having had the privilege
of visiting on 6 May the sites and the pharmaceutical
factory in question.
The Middle East peace process has been at a
stalemate for more than a year now despite the invaluable
efforts of its sponsors to revive it. Therefore it is
necessary to deploy every effort to bring the Government
of Prime Minister Netanyahu to a point where it will
respect the commitments Israel has solemnly made.
The Government and people of Niger would like to
reiterate their unswerving support for the cause of the
Palestinian people and to reaffirm once again their
conviction that no peace in the Middle East can be just
and lasting until the Palestinian people regain their
inalienable rights, including their right to establish an
independent state on their national territory.
Of course, peace in the region also means the
withdrawal by Israel from the Syrian Golan and from
southern Lebanon. That is why my Government welcomes
the recent General Assembly resolution giving more
prerogatives to the Palestinian representation within the
7

Assembly. It is our wish that this significant progress lead
to the recognition of Palestine as a fully fledged member of
the community of States.
Turning to the question of Jammu and Kashmir, Niger,
which supports the just struggle of the people of Kashmir
to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination,
deeply wishes that the international community continue to
give full attention to this issue.
The arms race and the escalation that we have seen in
that area recently strengthens our conviction that we should
urgently convene a new and fourth special session of the
General Assembly on disarmament. Additional progress
appears indispensable in the area of the control of weapons
of mass destruction and the establishment of more effective
standards concerning conventional weapons.
The success achieved in banning anti-personnel mines
should encourage us to go farther in order to bring about a
better regulation of small arms and small-calibre weapons.
In this case my country welcomes the measures taken to
strengthen the Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament
in Lomé.
For several decades our Organization has been seeking
to adopt a coherent approach to effectively meet the major
challenges of poverty and development, in particular by
working to establish a strengthened world partnership to
finance development. It is time, therefore, to reverse the
trend of reduced official development assistance and to join
our efforts together to increase the scope of that assistance
by revising its modalities. In this respect my country
expects a great deal from the second Tokyo International
Conference on African Development, set for October 1998.
We expect that Conference to explore new strategies for
mobilizing official development assistance and to reaffirm
the international community?s commitment to make the
development of Africa one of its priorities.
It is indispensable, moreover, resolutely to implement
bold policies to relieve and even to forgive the external
debt of the poorer countries as part of a general agreement
to resolve this problem, whose solution is overdue. That
external debt represents an insuperable hindrance to any
effort to bring about economic growth and human
development in a large number of developing countries, and
in particular in the most deprived among them.
The marginalization of the African continent is
continuing, which, in this era of globalization, calls for the
establishment of an international mechanism that is capable
of ensuring a more extensive integration of the developing
countries into the world economy.
As is well known, my country, Niger, is facing
various factors that limit its efforts at development:
increasingly harsh climatic conditions; food shortages;
strong demographic pressure; being landlocked; a drop in
the price of its main export product, uranium; too heavy
an external debt; and low investment. All of these things
have contributed to making us for some time now a
country at the bottom of the ladder in terms of the human
development index.
But we have never given up, and my Government
has drafted a national programme framework to combat
poverty, proposing as a participatory measure a package
of strategies in the medium term intended to control this
scourge and to stimulate economic growth. This
programme, moreover, is an essential component of our
Economic Recovery Programme, which was adopted by
our National Assembly in July 1997 and which last
March in Geneva was the subject of a particularly
successful round table.
I take this opportunity, since these organizations are
part of the United Nations system, to say here how deeply
we thank not only the Bretton Woods institutions — the
World Bank and the International Monetary Fund — but
also the United Nations Development Programme, the
United Nations Children?s Fund and the United Nations
Population Fund. These agencies, which often have been
among the first to perceive the key role that the right
political and social environment plays in creative reform
at the national level, have given us the benefit of their
expertise and their advice and thus contributed to the
success of that round table. We are certain that the
promises of contributions they made at that meeting will
very rapidly materialize.
At this stage I wish to reaffirm solemnly here in the
Assembly and before the entire international community
that the democratic process is making headway in Niger
and will remain irreversible under my guidance. The
vitality of our democracy is reflected in, inter alia, a
multi-party system, with an unhindered opposition, that is
tirelessly attempting to establish a culture of dialogue and
peace on a permanent basis. But our democracy is also
reflected in the existence of a totally free private press, a
civil society that plays a front-ranking role and an
independent judicial system that is determined to protect
the rights and freedoms that the Constitution guarantees
to citizens.
8

As part of strengthening the democratic process and
consolidating peace, particular attention is being given to
strengthen intermediate bodies, which are important partners
of civil society — the non-governmental organizations,
associations and labour unions — so as to allow them
effectively to contribute to the process of creating a more
dynamic and conscious political life. My Government is
resolutely committed to consolidating these democratic
achievements, as evidenced by the holding on 22 November
of this year of local elections that will establish a policy of
decentralization which we have chosen to promote the
participation of the people in development and also to bring
about good governance in Niger.
Similarly, on the eve of the fiftieth anniversary of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, I wish to reaffirm
solemnly that my Government will work tirelessly to do
everything in its power to bring about respect for, and to
respect, human rights, based on its conviction that this
respect is a precondition for the progress of human society.
In conclusion, I should like to express the full
confidence that we have in the United Nations. In our view,
this irreplaceable institution remains the only forum that can
ensure the advent of a new world order based on justice,
fairness, liberty and peace.


Our presence here
today is, for my delegation and my country, cause for
some celebration. This is the thirtieth anniversary of our
first participation in the General Assembly. Upon the
attainment of our independence in 1968, the father of the
nation, the then Prime Minister Sir Seewoosagur
Ramgoolam, addressed the United Nations.
I join the speakers before me in congratulating
Mr. Opertti on his assumption of the office of President
of the General Assembly at its fifty-third session.
I would also like to thank his predecessor,
Mr. Udovenko, for the manner in which he conducted the
work of the previous session.
I wish to commend our Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi
Annan, for his wise leadership and vision, which have
been a source of renewed confidence in the future of this
Organization. We welcome his efforts to lead a reformed
and more effective United Nations into the twenty-first
century to better carry out our mission of peace,
development and human rights. We wish to assure him of
our total support in the continuation of the reform
process.
We are alive to the intense debate on the reform of
the Security Council. We reiterate our position that the
Security Council should be enlarged and made more
democratic and representative. In this respect, we reaffirm
our commitment to the stand taken by the Non-Aligned
Movement at the recent Summit in Durban.
In recent years the world has been profoundly
transformed by the powerful forces of globalization and
liberalization.
All countries are now inextricably linked as
distances between them become increasingly immaterial
through great leaps in information technology and
communications.
The tremors triggered by the crises of the South-East
Asian economies and, more recently, the turmoil in the
world financial markets have shown in a dramatic way
the dangers of the contagion effect. Even those countries
which are trying to be efficient and competitive face the
possibility of external shocks because of the volatility of
capital markets.
7

I believe that the world community should devise
creative and effective mechanisms to prevent emerging
economies which have put in hard work from losing the
fruits of liberalization.
We must not go back to the inward-looking strategies
of the 1960s. We must continue to open our economies, but
with greater caution.
This is a great challenge for a large majority of
nations, particularly the least developed ones. We know
only too well that a number of developing countries are
among the most vulnerable and are not yet ready to
integrate into the global economy.
When I last addressed this Assembly, I dwelled at
some length on the generally grim situation in Africa,
which remains one of the most intractable challenges to the
world community. It is a continent rich in natural resources
and yet afflicted by widespread poverty.
Peace and development in Africa have been, for more
than a decade, the subject of endless debates and
resolutions at the United Nations. But we know that
sustainable development in Africa is conditional upon the
achievement of a strife-free continent. It is sad indeed that
year after year the number of potential flashpoints seems to
grow more numerous. The situation in many regions of
Africa remains a cause for great concern.
The peoples of the continent can ill afford the
pointless strife and violence visited upon them at a time
when the priorities should be economic and social
development.
We in Africa naturally have to bear the primary
responsibility for assuring lasting peace for our peoples.
This is precisely what the leaders of the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) are striving to achieve.
In his statement to this Assembly, on Monday,
President Nelson Mandela, current Chairman of SADC,
mentioned the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic
of the Congo. This difficult problem figured prominently on
the agenda of the summit which Mauritius hosted a few
days ago, after it was addressed earlier by the Victoria Falls
meeting and the Pretoria special SADC summit.
I wish to renew here our appeal to all parties involved
in this conflict to solve their differences peacefully through
political dialogue and diplomacy. In the Indian Ocean
region to our immediate southwest, Mauritius is
participating fully in the efforts of the Organization of
African Unity (OAU) and of the countries of that region
to seek a peaceful resolution to the crisis facing the
Comoros on account of separatist activities by a group on
the island of Anjouan. Mauritius fully supports the unity
and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of the
Comoros.
Fortunately, however, all is not gloom when we
survey Africa. We note with satisfaction the continuous
positive economic growth that most sub-Saharan countries
have enjoyed lately.
I had the privilege to participate in a round table
together with the Deputy President of South Africa earlier
this year, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, on the
new competitive Africa. The consensus was that Africa
stands at the threshold of a new era — an era of
opportunity and dynamism. We are at the dawn of an
African renaissance.
Governments in Africa are becoming increasingly
democratic and responsive, putting more emphasis on
economic development, greater openness, market-oriented
policies and greater economic reform.
Regional cooperation is another positive feature of
the new Africa, working through groupings such as
SADC, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern
Africa (COMESA) and the Economic Community of
West African States (ECOWAS) to facilitate cross-border
trade leading to the ultimate establishment of an African
Economic Community.
But for Africa to realize its full potential, several
serious constraints will have to be overcome.
The international economic environment should be
made less hostile to Africa. Africa’s shares of world trade
and foreign direct investment still remain at a paltry level.
The debt burden has become in itself a crippling
factor and needs urgently to be alleviated.
We also cannot sufficiently emphasize the
importance of official development assistance in this
regard. We therefore deeply deplore the decline in the
levels of official development assistance among the major
donor countries. Today, they stand at a historical low. We
are now, more than ever, far off the target of 0.7 per cent
of gross national product recommended by this Assembly.
This trend must be reversed.
8

Mauritius took the initiative recently of highlighting
the specificities of small island economies in the context of
the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the negotiations
of a successor agreement to the Lomé IV Convention. As
a result, recent ministerial declarations adopted by both the
WTO and the OAU now contain explicit references to small
economies and their high vulnerability. This reality is now
gaining recognition within the Bretton Woods institution.
For the reasons I have just mentioned, small
economies require time and space to adjust to the new
world trade order. We therefore reiterate the need for the
maintenance of non-reciprocal trade regimes until such a
time as we are adequately prepared.
The Lomé Convention is a model of North-South
cooperation. The proposed United States African Growth
and Opportunity Act could become another. Together with
the other members of the Southern African Development
Community (SADC) and the Common Market for Eastern
and Southern Africa (COMESA), we would like to reaffirm
our total support for its passage.
Mauritius has always accorded the highest priority to
regionalization to break out of its insularity and enlarge its
economic base. Mauritius was a major player in launching,
15 years ago, the Indian Ocean Commission and, more
recently, the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional
Cooperation.
The Assembly will appreciate that an island State like
Mauritius would be interested in the protection of the
marine environment. We recommend for the particular
attention of the General Assembly the report of the
Independent World Commission on the Oceans, according
to which the very survival of the human race over the long
term is jeopardized by the abuses to which the world’s
oceans are subjected.
We have to address as a matter of priority the three
most immediate dangers identified by the Commission: the
overexploitation of marine biological resources, the
dumping of toxic waste and the harmful effects of global
warming. While much has been achieved since the Rio
Earth Summit, we deplore the fact that the initial
momentum and urgency appear to have been lost in sterile
and fractious debate. I urge that we address these questions,
on which our very survival depends, with renewed
earnestness and a greater sense of shared responsibility.
(spoke in French)
In December we will celebrate the fiftieth
anniversary of the adoption and proclamation by this
Assembly of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
For us, that will also provide an opportunity to recall
another milestone in the history of human rights: the
adoption by the French Constituent Assembly of the
declaration of the rights of man and of the citizen more
than two centuries ago.
At this historic moment, we wish to recall the
preamble of the Charter of our Organization, which
proclaims our
“faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity
and worth of the human person, in the equal rights
of men and women and of nations large and small”.
We also reaffirm our profound belief in the equality
of all rights — social, economic and cultural, as well as
civil and political. Today, Governments can no longer
flout the rights of their citizens without being subjected to
the censure of the international community. Yet millions
of inhabitants of many parts of the world remain deprived
of their fundamental rights by oppressors and tyrants who
govern by force. We have observed with horror the
atrocious crimes against the dignity and worth of the
human being committed during recent conflicts. My
Government therefore welcomes the recent adoption in
Rome of the Statute of the International Criminal Court.
(spoke in English)
My Government believes that respect for human
rights is but one facet of the indispensable foundation of
the harmonious development of a country. Democracy
and transparent and accountable government, as well as
effective participation by civil society, are the other
essential ingredients for successful development.
Considering the complex sociocultural and ethnic mix of
our population, we have taken great care to ensure that all
our citizens, regardless of their origins or gender, have
equal access to education, adequate health care, proper
housing and employment opportunities. We will soon
introduce in our own National Assembly a protection of
human rights bill, which will provide for the
establishment of a National Human Rights Commission.
At the continental African level, participants at the
Third Conference of African Women Parliamentarians,
which Mauritius was privileged to host, adopted the Port
Louis Declaration, calling for increased political
commitment at all levels for the promotion of gender
9

equality and the empowerment of women. We in Mauritius
are taking legislative measures to translate our commitment
into practical reality.
We have now become even more aware of the need to
seek global solutions to our common problems. Climate
change, illicit drug-trafficking and terrorism are problems
which require a coordinated international approach. No
nation can live under a dome, with its climate isolated from
the rest of the world. No country can on its own fight
international drug traffickers or terrorism. We therefore
condemn unequivocally all forms of terrorism and call for
enhanced international cooperation to combat and prevent
its occurrence.
While social, economic and trade matters are
increasingly — and with good reason — occupying centre
stage in international forums, crucial problems of security
and disarmament continue to retain their capacity to derail
our efforts for development.
Earlier this year we were reminded of the dangers for
humanity of the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the
attendant risks of a new arms race. No country can feel
genuinely secure as long as the threat of nuclear weapons
exists from any quarter. In this respect, we welcome the
stand taken by both India and Pakistan in exercising self-
restraint. We reiterate our position that any international
instrument for the elimination of nuclear arsenals should be
non-discriminatory in nature. Security for all will be
achieved only when that threat is completely eliminated.
Global nuclear disarmament and the total elimination of all
weapons of mass destruction must remain our ultimate goal.
Finally, as on past occasions, we would like to bring
up once more before this Assembly our lasting claim on the
sovereignty of two territories which were taken from our
patrimony: the island of Tromelin and the Chagos
archipelago. We reiterate our call to the former colonial
Powers to enter into constructive bilateral dialogue with my
Government for the early restoration of those territories to
the sovereignty of Mauritius.
Regarding the Chagos archipelago, this Assembly
should also be reminded that some 1,500 inhabitants — the
so-called “Illois” — were coerced to leave their homeland
to clear the way for a military base. Most of the families,
who had lived for generations on these islands, were moved
to the main island of Mauritius, victims of the then
prevailing cold war. Today, after more than 30 years, they
still experience tremendous difficulties adapting to their
present conditions. Many yearn to be resettled on these
islands. As we are about to commemorate the fiftieth
anniversary of this century’s seminal document on human
rights, we consider that we owe it to these Illois to fully
re-establish their rights, including the right of return.


Let me at the very outset
extend to Mr. Opertti our warm congratulations upon his
election as President of the General Assembly at its fifty-
third session. We are particularly pleased to see presiding
the Foreign Minister of Uruguay, a country with which
Ireland has always enjoyed the friendliest of relations. His
rich experience in politics, education, diplomacy and the
law will serve the Assembly well as he directs its work for
the coming year.
Also on behalf of the Irish people, I wish to pay a
particular tribute to the Secretary-General for the thoughtful
and determined leadership which he has brought from the
African continent to the discharge of his most challenging
office.
Commitment to the work of this Organization is a
central part of Ireland?s foreign policy and of her place in
the world. Irish people strongly support that commitment.
We feel close bonds with the United Nations. With many
like-minded countries, we have striven to uphold and
develop the universal role of the Organization for the
promotion of peace, development, international cooperation
and human rights. These purposes are linked in the Charter
and they are linked in reality.
All around us, side by side with rapid technological
and material development, we see in every region of the
world uncertainty, insecurity and conflict.
Our attention has been gripped this year by the severe
economic and financial difficulties which are besetting
developed and emerging markets as well as economies in
transition. The full effects of these difficulties have yet to
play themselves out. We are all affected.
More than 1 billion people struggle to survive on less
than a dollar a day. Environmental degradation and natural
disasters wreak unnecessary havoc on entire nations.
Meanwhile, obscenely disproportionate levels of resources
are diverted to fuel the arms trade and supply the
unjustifiably large arsenals in parts of the world that can
least afford it. Human rights remain to be fully respected in
all regions.
I think that these realities are among the root causes
of the conflicts confronting us today. If the new millennium
is to open with real prospects of alleviating such conflict
situations, it is the root causes which we must together
tackle; prevention is always better, and certainly less costly,
than cure.
As my Swedish colleague has said, the Austrian
Presidency has spoken and addressed the Assembly on
behalf of the 15 Member States of the European Union,
expressing our position on many issues. Nevertheless, I
will focus my remarks on a number of issues which are
of particular importance to the country which I represent.
We should all acknowledge that there can be no real
peace or security without development. Development is
about dignity and offering impoverished people around
the world the chance of a better life now and better
prospects for their children. This is not too much to ask.
Its achievement, however, requires a new partnership of
international engagement and commitment. All of us must
share a determination to break down the walls of
exclusion and marginalization that divide our world.
A new partnership must address not only aid flows
but also the crippling problem of debt. It must assist
developing countries to participate on a fair basis in the
world economy. Development cooperation is not only
about reducing unacceptable levels of poverty. All
countries, developed and developing alike, must together
address shared priorities that affect all our countries and
all our peoples. An integrated approach is called for, as
previous speakers have mentioned.
In this context, I welcome in particular the seminal
report of the Secretary-General — I have already
welcomed it in a committee today — on the causes of
conflict and sustainable development in Africa. We will
work actively with other Member States to ensure that
this report receives the strongly positive response it
deserves.
I will allude for a moment to Ireland?s development
cooperation programme, if I may. As for Ireland?s
contribution, it is with some pride that I can say that we
have one of the fastest growing development cooperation
programmes in the world today. The Irish Government is
committed to reaching the United Nations target for
official development assistance — that is, 0.7 per cent of
gross national product — and I think it?s fair to say that
we are fully determined to make further progress towards
this goal in the coming years.
Last week, my Government agreed on a package of
debt alleviation measures for developing countries, in the
multilateral and bilateral fields, amounting to some $46
million, which is a considerable sum of money for a
country the size of Ireland, and I think it was a measure
36

of the bona fides of our intention in this whole area of
development cooperation.
For Ireland, support for development cooperation
means, by definition, support for the United Nations in this
vital area. The United Nations has only the resources which
the Member States give it. These must reflect our political
commitment to confront challenges. I think that is why
declining contributions to core resources for United Nations
funds, programmes and agencies are a matter of deep and
grave concern.
For its part, Ireland has increased significantly the
level of its commitment. I am pleased to say that our
Development Assistance Programme now supports 32
funds, programmes and agencies of the United Nations
system, compared to 13 just five years ago. I pledge before
this Assembly the continuation of Ireland?s support in that
regard.
Again, the question of disarmament and nuclear
disarmament was raised by my Swedish colleague, the
previous speaker. The end of the cold war provided the
international community with a unique opportunity to
accomplish the final elimination of nuclear weapons and to
usher in a nuclear-free world. Yet, while the past 10 years
have witnessed important steps to reduce nuclear arsenals,
there has been no clear commitment on the part of nuclear-
weapon States to proceed rapidly to nuclear disarmament,
as required by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
Ireland?s advocacy of nuclear disarmament has been
consistent and unrelenting. We have been the strongest
protagonists of the achievement of the goals of the nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty, which Ireland proposed in 1958
and was the author of at that time. We must begin to take
certain fundamental steps now to achieve the NPT?s non-
discriminatory and universal application. We cannot enter
the third millennium with the prospect that nuclear weapons
will be considered legitimate for the indefinite future.
That is why Ireland has, this year, joined with seven
like-minded States — Brazil, Egypt, Mexico, New Zealand,
Slovenia, South Africa and Sweden — to launch the
declaration “Towards a Nuclear-Weapons-Free World: The
Need for A New Agenda”. The steps called for in the New
Agenda are premised on a clear and unambiguous
commitment to be undertaken by the five nuclear-weapon
States to engage in nuclear disarmament negotiations within
an entirely new context. They are also premised on a
similar commitment by the three nuclear-weapon-capable
States — India, Pakistan and, of course, Israel — not
parties to the NPT.
This session of the General Assembly provides a
unique opportunity to give substance to proposals such as
those contained in the Joint Ministerial Declaration of 9
June. My colleagues and I have therefore prepared a draft
resolution which sets out an agenda for the definitive
elimination of nuclear weapons for all time and which we
ask the Assembly to consider and adopt in the First
Committee.
On the question of landmines, coincidentally and
fortuitously, last week I presided over a landmine
conference in Dublin while the International Campaign to
Ban Landmines was meeting in my own capital city to
develop a civil-society-based landmine monitor. We
received the welcome news that the fortieth ratification of
the landmines Convention had just taken place. We now
have a total ban in place and can set our minds to
eradicating these obscene instruments and their
consequences.
The inexcusable delay in addressing the question of
landmines was a glaring failure of the international
community to look squarely at an issue of human security
which was fundamental to development. Another example
is the persistence of expenditure on arms in certain
countries, which is out of all proportion to social
spending. This state of affairs must cease and the arms
trade that feeds it must be curtailed. I would personally
like to see it stopped and put out of existence.
On the question of human rights, a further and very
pervasive root cause of instability and conflict is
inadequate respect of the very rights of which I am
speaking. There are too many specific instances of human
rights abuse in every region of the world. There are
hopeful signs — for example, in Nigeria and East
Timor — but elsewhere the situation remains bleak.
In this, the fiftieth anniversary year of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, we must reaffirm our
collective commitment to promoting respect for these
rights and freedoms by progressive measures, national and
international, to secure their universal recognition and
observance. The Universal Declaration, in my view, is as
relevant today as it was five decades ago when it was
drafted by the representatives of developed and
developing countries with important input from members
of civil society. It is a universal benchmark.
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We all have questions to answer. The first might be:
How have we lived up to the standards set out in the
Universal Declaration? What steps have we taken to build
on the Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted five
years ago by consensus at the Vienna Conference, which
specifically reaffirmed the right to development? These are
some questions that we might well ask ourselves during the
current session of the Assembly.
On the question of capital punishment, another
important human rights issue is the abuse of the death
penalty. Ireland will continue to work for the universal
abolition of capital punishment. We welcome the fact that
the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, again at
its recent fifty-fourth session, addressed this issue directly.
We also welcome the adoption in July of the Statute
for the International Criminal Court at the international
conference hosted so effectively by Italy. This is truly a
landmark development. Nobody is and nobody should be
above the law. We fervently hope that the Statute will enter
into force on the earliest possible date and that it will
secure universal adherence.
Finally, let me join with those many others who have
given support and encouragement to the Secretary-General
and the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The
promotion of international cooperation in this key area must
remain one of this great Organization?s first priorities.
On the question of conflict prevention, I now turn to
the maintenance of international peace and security, which,
of course, is the prime responsibility and prime aim of the
United Nations. The painful experiences of this decade —
notably in the former Yugoslavia, Africa and the Middle
East — have prompted much soul-searching and, of course,
analysis.
In Kosovo, we are witnessing a humanitarian
catastrophe which could replicate the horrors of Bosnia.
The international community must take urgent and effective
action within the framework of the United Nations to
ensure that our worst fears are not realized.
Another humanitarian disaster faces us in Sudan.
Recently, I saw for myself the terrible suffering of its
people. I visited the epicentre of the famine in Ajip in
southern Sudan, having spent three hours getting there from
a town called Lokichokio in northern Kenya, which was a
staging post for aid for that part of the terribly blighted
country of southern Sudan. It is not acceptable that we
allow this tragedy to continue. One of the essential
conclusions, here again, is the need to address the origins
of conflict and not just the symptoms. Foresight and
adaptability are necessary.
In this context, I welcome in particular the emphasis
which the Secretary-General has placed on the need to
tackle the root causes of conflict in all their complex
diversity. We support his strengthening of United Nations
early-warning mechanisms and his prioritizing of
preventive diplomacy. The many strengths and capabilities
of the United Nations and the regional organizations in
the area of conflict prevention must be harnessed and
focused to achieve greater use of resources.
The General Assembly, for its part, is placing ever
greater emphasis on conflict prevention. It has
commended not least the efforts of the Organization of
African Unity (OAU) and acknowledged the contribution
of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe (OSCE), a regional organization which Ireland
fully supports.
On the question of peacekeeping, in this, the fiftieth
anniversary year of United Nations peacekeeping, I want
to pay tribute to the peacekeepers who currently serve the
Organization. They do so often in very difficult and
dangerous circumstances. Too many have made the
ultimate sacrifice. Since 1958, Ireland has been at the
forefront of United Nations peacekeeping. In this period,
some 40,000 Irish peacekeepers have served with the
Organization across the world. Seventy-five of my fellow
Irishmen have given their lives.
Among Member States, Ireland is currently one of
the leading troop contributors. My President, Mrs. Mary
McAleese, in one of her earliest official engagements,
visited our peacekeepers in Lebanon. Again, this
underlines Ireland?s active commitment to bringing peace
to that part of the world. The world continues to need
United Nations peacekeeping, but its operations must be
based on sound mandates and have solid political and
financial support.
Colleagues have mentioned the question of United
Nations reform. Mobilizing the political will to tackle the
interrelated causes of insecurity and conflict, I believe, is
only the first step. The United Nations as an institution
must be strengthened and given the necessary resources
to carry through its work. Timely funding by Member
States is a prerequisite.
38

Ireland believes that the reform process should not be
viewed as a cost-cutting exercise. The wretched expression
“downsizing” comes to mind. It is about making the
Organization more effective in the discharge of its Charter
functions, especially in the economic, social and
humanitarian fields. I welcome the progress achieved to
date. Ireland will continue with other like-minded States to
build partnerships among the membership so that real
progress can be achieved.
We have views in relation to the area of Security
Council reform. A reinvigorated United Nations must
include a reformed Security Council that reflects the
realities and the needs of today?s world. We believe that the
Council must work more transparently and that its
membership should be enlarged to ensure a more equitable
representation. To this end, we have joined with a group of
like-minded States in putting forward a number of specific
proposals. We will continue to work for an agreed outcome
on this issue of crucial importance to the future of this
Organization of ours.
On the question of Ireland?s candidature, Ireland
believes that all Member States — small, like ourselves, as
well as large — should have an opportunity to serve on the
Security Council, the body on which the Members of the
Organization have conferred primary responsibility for the
maintenance of international peace and security. The
Assembly will be aware that Ireland has presented its
candidature for non-permanent membership of the Security
Council for the two-year term 2001-2002. Throughout its
membership of the United Nations, Ireland has worked to
play a bridge-building role among Member States. As a
member of the Security Council, Ireland?s approach would
similarly reflect the interests of the totality of the broad
spectrum of the membership.
I can give the Assembly some good news about
Northern Ireland. My predecessors have by custom
informed this Assembly of our efforts to help promote
peace in Northern Ireland. It is my deep privilege,
therefore, to convey an account of a breakthrough of great
importance: the Agreement reached by the British and Irish
Governments and eight Northern Ireland parties in Belfast
on Good Friday, 10 April 1998.
The Good Friday Agreement marks a historic new
beginning in relations within Northern Ireland, between the
North and the South of the island and between Ireland and
Britain. It has brought us all a new sense of hope. We have
begun the long walk out of the dark night of division and
conflict into the bright sunlight of partnership and harmony.
As somebody who has spent almost 40 years in political
life seeking to encourage such a journey, I am immensely
gratified by this development.
The Agreement is a complex document, a careful set
of checks and balances, a parity of pain and gain. Striking
that balance of pain and gain on both sides was, in large
part, the task of the main political parties in Northern
Ireland. Their decisions called for political courage and
most serious and genuine leadership, which they gave in
abundance. But they could not have been taken without
trust and vision, too — trust, where before there was only
suspicion, and vision, where before there had only been
self-interest. The leadership of these peacemakers in
Northern Ireland deserves the warmest commendation of
this Assembly.
With the participants drawn from the full spectrum
of the political landscape, what we were addressing in the
negotiations was a complex range of problems and
perspectives, each with its deep roots in history. If these
competing issues were to be addressed satisfactorily, we
knew the final Agreement would itself have to be
complex, broad-based and balanced.
Achieving agreement in these circumstances was a
major challenge for all of us involved in the long,
tortuous and difficult negotiations. As one of those
privileged to have had such a role, I can verify that there
were times during the long days and nights in Castle
Buildings, Belfast, when success seemed like some distant
dream. But the determination of all sides not to be
deflected was stronger than any obstacle. On the dawn of
Good Friday, the dream of agreement finally became a
reality.
Critically, the Agreement was emphatically endorsed
by the people of Ireland, North and South, in referendums
held on the same day, the first time that has happened on
the island of Ireland since 1918. One of the profound
consequences of this democratic endorsement is that never
again may the name of the people be invoked as a basis
for the shedding of blood in my country and on my
island. From now on, it is manifest that the only
legitimate force is the force of reason and persuasion.
The Good Friday Agreement is a blueprint for our
future. Indeed, it may be a blueprint for other regions?
futures. But a blueprint can be successful only if it is
translated from word to deed. That vital process of
implementation is the next great challenge and one that
we are all now actively addressing. Some elements of the
39

Agreement are already in place. The new Northern Ireland
Assembly has been elected and the 108 members have
taken their seats. Dramatically symbolizing the new era of
partnership, David Trimble and my good friend Seamus
Mallon, each representing the two major traditions, have
been appointed First Minister and Deputy First Minister,
respectively. The Assembly has made an encouraging and
constructive start. Work is also proceeding on many of the
other elements of the Agreement.
But institution-building alone, important as it is, will
not be enough. The appalling atrocities of last summer,
which saw the horrific burning to death of three young
boys, the Quinn brothers, and the merciless massacre and
slaughter of 29 people in Omagh underline the reality that
the Agreement on its own does not guarantee peace. More
than anything else, what is also required is what Seamus
Mallon calls a new politics. At the heart of that new
politics must be a determination to work in a new way for
the wider good. All of us have constituencies to represent,
but we must find new ways to balance that requirement
with the needs of the wider society. That, I would suggest,
is what partnership means. That, I would suggest, is what
partnership is all about. It also shows how trust and
reconciliation are built.
If the new politics is to work on the island of Ireland,
we must seek to develop, on the basis of mutual respect,
new ways of listening to each other; new ways of talking
to each other; new ways of understanding each other; and,
critically, new ways of working together.
We are bringing this century to a close. The existence
of this great Organization of States devoted to peace
reflects the turbulence of the decade. Great progress has
been made, but a great price has also been paid. Each of us
in our own way has had to grapple with the instinct to war
and division. The experience of Ireland echoes the
experiences of so many other States. We realized our desire
for independence in the wake of the Great War. Our birth
as a State was darkened by the horrors of civil war. We in
the South of the island overcame our divisions, channelled
our differences into peaceful politics and have significantly
prospered. In the North, divisions and fears were not
challenged. They festered and brought us almost three
decades of violence.
The peace process allowed us to challenge and resolve
the fears and divisions generating the conflict. The
Agreement is a watershed, a harbinger of the new era that
coincides with the millennium. It is a great, historic
rapprochement between nationalism and unionism. All the
participants in the negotiations together have achieved a
great thing. But it is vital that we say to one another, as
I am now again saying to the unionist community, that we
recognize that a new era has dawned, in which all the old
shibboleths and the old rhetoric must be replaced by a
new dialogue, by a new partnership.
It is precisely in this spirit of the new politics that
we must approach the inevitable difficulties that will arise
from time to time, including at present those relating to
the establishment of the “shadow” executive in Northern
Ireland and to decommissioning. It is in the interests of
all of us who support the Agreement that we resolve the
difficulties to the satisfaction of all concerned. If one side
“wins”, everybody loses. That was the approach that
secured the Good Friday Agreement. If one side “wins”,
everybody loses.
I should like to take the opportunity to pay tribute to
the role of the international community in bringing about
the Good Friday Agreement, in particular that of the
independent chairman, former Senator George Mitchell of
the United States of America, former Prime Minister
Harri Holkeri of Finland and General John de Chastelain
of Canada. Their contribution was immense, and General
de Chastelain?s contribution continues to be. The support
and solidarity, through the process of our partners in this
Assembly, and, in particular, of our partners in the
European Union — the President of the Commission and
the Presidencies of the European Union — have been
unparalleled in their contribution, as were the warm and
encouraging words of the Secretary-General of this
Organization. We deeply appreciate it.
I want in particular to record our very special
gratitude to the President of the United States, Mr. Bill
Clinton, for his personal commitment to the cause of
peace in Ireland and for the exceptional solidarity with
the peace process he has displayed at all times throughout
his presidency. He took the opportunity, when he
addressed this Assembly last Monday, to mention
Northern Ireland and Ireland on three or four or five
occasions. I think that was an indication of the type of
commitment he has and will continue to have in the
Northern Ireland peace process.
Finally, I would like to underline the central and
crucial roles played by my own Taoiseach, Irish Prime
Minister Bertie Ahern, and by British Prime Minister
Tony Blair in the closing days of the negotiations. Their
particular role was historic and, in my respectful view,
heroic.
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I want to say that, in the spirit of the Charter of this
Organization, we are ready to reciprocate the solidarity of
the international community by way of sharing the lessons
of our experience with others, should that be considered
helpful. It would be a source of immense additional
satisfaction to Ireland, as a committed Member of the
United Nations, if the Good Friday Agreement were to be
helpful to conflict resolution elsewhere.
Finally, and important though international solidarity
may be, the reality is that for us in Ireland, as elsewhere,
the primary responsibility rests with ourselves. May I recall
here the words of a well-known author which have inspired
very many:
“Mankind must remember that peace is not God?s gift
to his creatures; peace is our gift to each other.”
With the Good Friday Agreement, we in Ireland have
enjoyed the gift of peace. We do so in the spirit of the
Charter of the United Nations. The challenge now is to
ensure that it is passed to our children and to our children?s
children. I know that the members of this Assembly will be
with us as we address and take up that particular challenge.