My country is a long-standing Member of the United Nations, and it is indeed an honour and a pleasure for me, as the newly elected President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, to address the General Assembly at its annual general debate. On behalf of the Government and people of Sri Lanka, I wish to heartily congratulate His Excellency Mr. Mogens Lykketoft on his election as President of the General Assembly at its seventieth session. Let me also convey my gratitude to the former President, His Excellency Mr. Sam Kutesa, who contributed immensely to the achievements of the previous session.
The United Nations now has a distinguished track record of 70 years. We at the United Nations have consistently engaged in the responsible and challenging task of working to ensure global peace, security and development during these past 70 years. However, I realize that similar challenges still lie ahead of us. When leaving office at the height of the Korean crisis in 1953, Mr. Trygve Lie, the first Secretary-General, described the position of Secretary-General as “the most impossible job in the world”. It is no secret that all Secretaries-General, during their terms of office, have contributed substantively to promoting the universality of the United Nations and to making it an Organization that can serve humankind well in to the future. The incumbent Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon, has also made a remarkable contribution to the Organization. I would ask Secretary-General Ban
6/54 15-29562

30/09/2015 A/70/PV.19
Ki-moon to accept my respectful gratitude and that of my people for the service he has rendered.
Sri Lanka has been a Member of the United Nations for 60 years. As a Member State, we have played a very active and responsible role in the Organization. Sri Lanka is a nation that respects the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and international conventions and treaties. A main objective of the United Nations is to recognize, safeguard and promote human rights. Sri Lanka remains committed to fulfilling that responsibility. In that respect, we intend to implement a new programme and plan of action in Sri Lanka to advance human rights.
Sri Lanka has played a multifaceted role in the United Nations. Our contribution to United Nations peacekeeping missions, which began in the 1960s, continues. Sri Lanka looks forward to further enhancing our committed contribution to United Nations peacekeeping in the future.
A new era of democracy dawned in Sri Lanka on 8 January, ushering in justice, freedom and equality. Our social and human development approach is founded on pluralism, reconciliation and sustainable development. The development vision of my Government for the next five years is based on the same principles. The theme of this session — “The United Nations at 70: the road ahead for peace, security and human rights” — is therefore very much in consonance with the vision of my Government. Moreover, my Government is committed to developing a proactive and practical programme in Sri Lanka to further ensure peace, security and human rights.
In the past eight months, in two consecutive elections, the people of Sri Lanka elected a new president and a new Government. In its first six months in power, my Government has introduced essential amendments to the Constitution in order to strengthen democracy in Sri Lanka. Those amendments have reinforced the foundations of good governance through institutional reforms that strengthen pluralism and democracy. With my personal involvement and facilitation, some of the executive powers vested in the presidency were transferred to the Parliament and other independent institutions.
Following the general elections in August, I was able to unite the two major political parties in Sri Lanka so as to create an alliance for governance by consensus in the country, changing the confrontational political
culture that had prevailed there for six decades. Our new vision for the country involves achieving the twin objectives of sustainable development and reconciliation. A fundamental requirement in that context is dealing with the past honestly and building a modern Sri Lankan nation. In dealing with the past, we will follow a process of truth-seeking, justice, reparation and non-recurrence.
It is imperative that Sri Lanka adopt a new social, economic and political approach, so that it can rise to the challenges of the twenty-first century. In that regard, reconciliation has received priority attention in my country. The new Government of consensus has, under my leadership, already taken several steps to introduce and operationalize the constitutional and institutional reforms required to accelerate the achievement of those goals. Sri Lanka is a country that has suffered from conflict. While conflict brings destruction to a society, it is possible for many lessons to be learned during and after a conflict.
All forms of war and terrorism are a disgrace to humankind. The Preamble of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights refers to the disregard and contempt for human rights, which results in barbarous acts and ultimately rebellion. Whatever its root causes are, the challenge of this era is to find ways and means to defeat brutality against humankind. Problems can arise from resorting to terrorism as a means of solving grievances, as well as from actions taken to eliminate terrorism. Sri Lanka has succeeded in eliminating the terrorism that continues to disturb other developing countries from Asia to Africa and Latin America.
We defeated one of the world’s most ruthless terror enterprises. In addition, our post-conflict experiences have also been meaningful. We believe that all those experiences can be shared fruitfully with other developing countries affected by terrorism. Sri Lanka remains prepared to engage in a more active dialogue with such countries and will continue to speak and advocate against terrorism.
It is in that context that I wish to address the theme of this session. We all know that the United Nations was established with the objective of preventing the recurrence of the human tragedies that took place in the first half of the twentieth century and which had a negative impact on humankind. At the heart of this year’s theme is “peace, security and human rights”. That theme motivates us to review whether, during
15-29562 7/54

A/70/PV.19 30/09/2015
the past seven decades, we have lived up to the initial expectations of the United Nations. I believe that, if global development is to succeed, it is important to have a dialogue within the South as much as between the North and the South. My country, which lies in the South, can contribute immensely to nurturing such South-South dialogue.
Sri Lanka is in the forefront of the oldest representative democracies in the South Asian region. We have been fortunate in being able to preserve the democratic ethos in our country despite the prolonged conflict. Despite several factors militating against maintaining a high economic growth rate, we have succeeded in sustaining the State social-welfare policies carried over from independence. We have never compromised on those policies, which include universal free education, free health care and the eradication of poverty. Following a path of social democracy, Sri Lanka has succeeded in achieving high scores in the Human Development Index, even during the years of conflict. That success is testimony to our commitment to achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
Development should help to empower women and young people and ensure security for children. Frustration among the young usually leads to conflict. Yet young people are the driving force for sustainable development, and we should therefore work to transform them into a highly skilled workforce that can succeed in the knowledge-based world of the twenty-first century. That should be a major component of the post-2015 development agenda adopted in the form of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1).
Similarly, we should launch a national programme to empower women and thereby enhance their contribution to development. Special programmes to protect children and safeguard their rights are also an essential factor in developing an effective and humane society. My understanding of sustainable development is that we should aim not for a development model that is isolated and confined to particular sectors or groups, but one that is inclusive and capable of lifting development standards and levels globally. To that end, I would like to stress the need for a fresh, universal approach.
As we learn from the Buddhist ethos that is ingrained in Sri Lankan culture, there are three kinds of human conflict. The first is the conflict between humans and nature, in which we constantly engage in
order to enjoy material comforts in life. In that context human beings today attempt to exploit natural resources extensively in the name of development. The second is the conflict among humans. Such conflicts occur among individuals, communities and nations, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that they occur when human rights are not protected by the rule of law. The third type of conflict is that within the human being. The first two kinds occur when we lose the battle within us as human beings, and the third type is therefore the root cause of all conflicts.
Extremism, overconsumption, the arbitrary exploitation of the environment, violations of human rights and vicious disparities in income are all results of our inability to overcome our cravings. Among other problems, they cause insecurity, conflict, violations of rights and exploitation. The edifice of sustainable development should, therefore, be built on a foundation of self-discipline and equity. If we could practise that at the personal, community, national and global levels, it would be a giant leap forward for humankind. I propose that we, as national leaders, take such a self- disciplined, equity-based approach into consideration when drawing up relevant action plans for the future.
In conclusion, I would like to express my firm commitment and dedication to elevating my beloved motherland of Sri Lanka and its people to the level of one of the greatest and noblest nations of the world, and contributing to the liberation of all humankind.


I congratulate the President of the General Assembly at its seventieth session, Mr. Mogens Lykketoft, on his election to that honourable office. I wish to assure you, Mr. President, of Poland’s full support for your actions.
Peace and law: those are the two key words that enable us to understand and appreciate the importance of the United Nations over past 70 years in the world’s history. Peace and law, two words without which it is impossible to imagine the coexistence of nations, different ethnic groups and the followers of the various religions. Peace and law: they are beautiful and important concepts, but extremely fragile ones that we need to take care of and to cultivate unceasingly.
We Poles know full well that peace is not to be taken for granted. Less than one month ago, it was incumbent on me, as President of the Republic of Poland, to deliver a speech at the commemoration of the seventy-sixth anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War. At dawn on 1 September 1939, the invasion of Nazi Germany against my home country was unleashed. Seventeen days later, on 17 September 1939, we received a blow from the other side, when the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics attacked Poland, and Poland vanished from the map. However, the Poles are a proud nation, and they did not give up, because what they love, above all, is freedom. That is why they fought, to the end, on the side of the free world.
The Second World War, the greatest and bloodiest in the history of humankind, caused the whole of Europe, East and South-East Asia, North Africa, the Middle East and all the oceans to plunge into the dark reign of crime, barbarity and suffering. International law fell, as one of the first victims of the war back then. The next victim was human rights, starting from the fundamental right to live and ending with the rights of soldiers in combat, the rights of civilians crushed under bombing raids and the rights of refugees. The scale of terror, destruction and lawlessness committed during those days put the international community to a serious test. The need appeared to step up efforts to protect peace and safeguard it for the future.
The year 1945 marked more than the end of the Second World War; it was also the birth year of the United Nations, the most fundamental mechanism for cooperation within the international community, advocating for global peace and security. In 1945, international criminal courts were established in Nuremberg and Tokyo. Lastly, the 1940s also marked the adoption of two particularly crucial documents: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, the concept of which was largely formulated by Raphael Lemkin, a great Pole of Jewish descent, an eminent lawyer and university lecturer and a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. Lemkin was fluent in nine languages, but he was most fluent in the language of law. He noted the absence of an important word. It was Lemkin who invented and applied the term
of genocide in legal language for the first time. The Polish lawyer had direct experience of genocide: almost all of his family perished — murdered in the German camps of annihilation.
The emphasis on the respect for international law, as well as the unconditional punishment of those responsible for war crimes, was meant to be one of the ways and means to prevent bloody conflicts in the future. As Pope John Paul II observed, “Peace and international law are closely linked to each other; law favours peace”. Unfortunately, international treaties are still being violated, solemn pledges are being neglected, and human rights are commonly being trampled. We should constantly recall that fact. We can never be reminded too often that international law is a fundamental value and a fundamental tool for building peace in the world and that no declarations made by the leaders of States, no promises, no entreaties, can replace treaties, conventions and resolutions. No negotiations behind closed doors may ever lead to the violation and trampling of international law and resolutions. All States should be afforded the equal enjoyment of the rights vested in them, and any actions undermining those rules should be firmly rejected by the international community.
Poland, so gravely affected by the Second World War and by over 40 years of oppression from the communist regime, is particularly sensitive to the use of force in the relations between States, the use of armed aggression and the violation of human rights. Poland feels an obligation to remind everyone that such methods are not only immoral and incompatible with the broadly understood concept of humanism, but above all, they violate international law. That is why I would like to forcefully reiterate that, when a State perpetrates an act of aggression, basing its foreign policy on faits accomplis through the use of tanks, missiles and bombs, the international community has an obligation to reject the facts created through such means.
In that regard, it is crucially important to continue to work on streamlining the effectiveness of the Security Council, the body responsible for protecting international peace. It must be constantly recalled that the privilege of permanent membership is connected with the duty to take active measures to implement the fundamental goals of the United Nations as set forth in Article 1 of the Charter. In recent years, the right to the veto has led, on many occasions, to a total stalemate
in the Council’s work, precisely on the most important security issues. That is why Poland supports the French proposal to adopt a code of conduct for refraining from the use of the veto when members are confronted by the gravest crimes under international law, including the crime of genocide.
Let us look at the world today, which is so assailed by trouble. With millions of people suffering from war, destitution, famine and religious persecutions, can we afford to circumvent the principles enshrined in the Charter? Should we be turning a blind eye to breaches of existing commitments or to actions taken from a position of power or based on faits accomplis? Should we wave aside manipulations of the law and propaganda activities that seek to justify base and illegal actions? The answer is no, and that must be the answer of every decent and honest human being and politician.
The former President of the Republic of Poland, Professor Lech Kaczyński, addressing the Assembly in this Hall back in 2009, pointed out that the violation of the territorial integrity of States always gives rise to conflicts on a global scale (see A/64/PV.4). In my capacity as President of Poland, I would also like to express, on behalf of my country, my opposition to a world built on a division into zones of influence, and my rejection of acts of aggression perpetrated by those who, driven by their interests and ambitions, ignore the provisions of international law, thereby thwarting the collective work of the United Nations over the past 70 years. In our part of Europe, we know all too well the costs to be incurred as the result of such policies, especially in the absence of a decisive reaction and the solidarity of other States in the early stages of an aggression.
Contempt for international law may turn out, in fact, to be one of the seeds of war. And once war has broken out, there is generally no rule of law in the territories overwhelmed by warfare. We see that in the Middle East, where State institutions have been either excessively strained or replaced by private armies, terrorist militias and self-proclaimed courts. That constitutes yet another challenge to both the world and the United Nations. With increasing frequency, conflicts arise in which it is almost impossible to define the opposing sides and in which combat is carried out not by States, but rather by indeterminate armed groups in which it is difficult to distinguish a soldier from a civilian. How are we to adjust existing regulations to deal with such new circumstances, which, in the eyes of many politicians and specialists in international law, have still not been fully researched and understood?
Unfortunately, one thing has remained unchanged for centuries: in various parts of the world, in numerous conflict situations, the freedom of conscience and religion are systematically restrained. Members of religious minorities, nowadays especially Christians, are exposed to persecution. In the Middle East, the incidence of acts of violence targeting members of Christian churches is growing at an alarming pace. Nor should we forget the plight of the Yazidi community, which has been murdered and evicted from its native soil. Poland appeals to the international community to take decisive steps to protect the rights of religious minorities.
Military conflicts in the Middle East are taking a toll of thousands of innocent lives and violating the social and economic stability of the region. The militants of the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant continue to pillage museums, defile Christian and Shia shrines, and blow up the remains of ancient metropolises. At the end of August, we were informed about the destruction of temple Baal Shamin in Palmyra, a monument with 2,000 years of tradition. UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova has stated that the devastation of that temple constitutes nothing less than a war crime. In the face of those beastly acts, the international community should take more decisive steps in order to stem the practice of destroying and looting the world heritage of humanity.
Never since the start of the United Nations has the international community had to address a humanitarian crisis on a scale such as the one it faces today. Poland is working to reinforce the global system of humanitarian aid by fostering cooperation among international institutions, Governments, law enforcement and nongovernmental organizations. At the same time, there needs to be greater emphasis on the relationship between humanitarian aid and aid for development. Here, I would like to mention with great satisfaction the contribution of Polish humanitarian organizations, which actively support those in need. They have built schools and welfare centres, drilled wells, provided clothing and blankets, assisted the victims of conflicts and responded in the wake of natural disasters. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincerest gratitude to all good-hearted people and to the people of conscience who are providing assistance to others, often at the risk of their own lives.
Respect for human rights is a key premise for the maintenance of peace and justice in the lives of States and nations.
For Poland, the defence of the freedom of conscience, worship and speech is of particular importance. And the freedom of speech entails the duty to tell the truth. Nothing is more poisonous to the relations among peoples and States than manipulating the truth or spreading lies and degrading stereotypes. That is why the truth, including the truth about history, is such a crucial component of relations among States and nations.
Here, I would like to highlight the fate of those for whom standing up for truth and for freedom of speech has often been punished with imprisonment or even death at the hands of their oppressors — the courageous and uncompromising dissidents, journalists and bloggers who expose the crimes of totalitarian regimes, the atrocities perpetrated by terrorists in various corners of the world and the brutality of law enforcement authorities. We must not forget their dedication. The international community should offer them appropriate protection, including legal protection.
And there is another social group that cannot be left out when we speak about human rights, or about the effects of war and mass migration. I am thinking here of women: the mothers, wives and daughters of Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Ukraine. They require our particular attention, because they suffer doubly: first, when they lose their sense of security, with war raging around them, and then when they lose their husbands, fathers, brothers or sons, sometimes without even being able to bury them. The tears of bereft women, victims of war, pose the greatest charge against humanity in the twenty-first century.
The defence of democracy, sustainable economic growth, the elimination of social inequalities, broader access to education and the long-term mitigation of the impacts of climate change — all those measures contribute to the preservation of world peace. In that context, I wish to assure the Assembly of my country’s readiness to participate in the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (resolution 70/1). Poland has, among other things, actively participated in the current international effort to achieve a new climate agreement. We see the need to reach a permanent understanding in that field, one that will be joined by all States and will engage the efforts of all States in proportion to their actual capabilities. In other ways,
Poland has had an impressive track record with regard to environmental protection. Suffice it to say that our economic transformation has contributed to the lowering of carbon dioxide emissions in Poland by 30 per cent since 1990.
We also stand ready to increase our direct contribution to peacekeeping and the preservation of security. In that spirit, we have submitted our candidacy to be a non-permanent member of the Security Council. Poland, still mindful of the tragedy of the Second World War and the communist era, pledges to actively cooperate in building an international order based on the rule of law. Law contributes to the effective functioning of the societies of which our States are composed. But it also serves to help establish effective and peaceful arrangements among States themselves. Let us therefore create a world founded on the strength of the rule of law and not on the law of force.


On behalf of the Philippine Government, I express our warmest congratulations to the President on his election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its seventieth session. I assure him of the Philippines’ support of his leadership in charting the course for an energized United Nations about to embark this historic year on an ambitious 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), our plan of action for our people, planet and prosperity over the next 15 years.
Let me also commend the President for choosing a theme that echoes the fundamental elements that led to the creation of the United Nations. This theme is also at the core of Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III’s social contract with the Filipino people.
In 1945 when the United Nations Charter was signed in San Francisco, the 51 founding Members, including the Philippines, envisaged a future of enduring peace, shared prosperity and a new era of collaboration. Seventy years later, we have created a meeting place of the world, an experiment in world governance, and a venue where the universal values of equality, tolerance and human dignity prevail.
The United Nations has become a major forum of nations that guarantees the dignity and worth of every person. It has evolved as the main platform of opportunities to fight ignorance, disease, poverty, injustice and extremism. With all the successes and challenges, praises and pitfalls, the United Nations has not only demonstrated its resilience, but has also affirmed its continuing relevance against the backdrop of complex global issues and emerging regional threats to peace and security. ape
Today, the Philippines renews its steadfast commitment to the cause of peace and sustainable development through key priority areas and national positions ranging from climate change and the rule of law, memberships in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), disarmament and non-proliferation to women, peace and security, migration and human trafficking, peacekeeping and United Nations reform.
15-29822 5/29

A/70/PV.26 02/10/2015
Two years ago in this very forum (see A/68/PV.22), the Philippines outlined the five pillars that form part of the building blocks for the new framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, as follows: first, poverty reduction and social inclusion; secondly, environment sustainability, climate change and disaster risk management; thirdly, accountable, responsive and participatory governance; fourthly, a fair and stable order based on the rule of law; and fifthly, peace and security. During the process of intergovernmental negotiations for the 2030 Agenda, these pillars have guided the Philippines in sharing its experiences in pursuing inclusive growth, on some lessons learned in governance and on the continuing development and security challenges that we face as an emerging economy.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the overall global development architecture need to emphasize strengthening the pillar of resilience. The Philippines knows only too well the urgency of building a climate-resilient economy, being one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world and having experienced, almost two years ago, the devastating impact of super-typhoon Haiyan, the strongest typhoon to have made landfall in recorded history.
Given the new normal of mega disasters, the Philippines will continue to play an active role in tackling the issues of climate change, resiliency and disaster risk reduction and management. The Philippines is the current President of the Climate Vulnerable Forum and will promote a meaningful outcome at the twenty- first session of the Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris. The international community must adopt a new, legally binding climate agreement that is universal and equitable, that ensures a bright and low-carbon future for the next generation, and that addresses the needs of vulnerable States and sectors, particularly the poor, women, migrants and indigenous peoples.
On disaster risk reduction and management, the Philippines will be guided by the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, which recognizes that the State has the primary role in disaster risk reduction and management. That responsibility, however, should be shared with local Government, the private sector and other stakeholders. We will support initiatives in the United Nations that will allow us to work on the four priorities of understanding disaster risk, strengthening risk governance to manage disaster
risk, investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience, and building back better.
On maritime disputes in the South China Sea, the Philippines has long placed its faith in the rules and institutions that the international community has created to regulate relations among States. International law serves as the great equalizer among States, allowing small countries to stand on an equal footing with wealthier, more powerful States. International law is the tie that binds the community of nations together. Without it, the global order could fall into anarchy. That is why the Philippines, under the administration of President Benigno S. Aquino III, has been a strong advocate of the primacy of the rule of law. With the growing support of the international community in peacefully resolving disputes in the South China Sea, including through arbitration, the Philippines believes that the final outcome of this arbitration process would pave the way for a settlement of the maritime disputes.
On our dispute with China, a long-time partner and neighbour, we also hope that we will finally see actions that are consistent with Beijing’s declarations so that genuine efforts to lower tensions in the South China Sea can succeed and the peaceful settlement of disputes can be obtained.
This year, the Philippines plays host to APEC 2015 under the theme: “Building inclusive economies, building a better world”. As APEC Chair for the second time since 1996, the Philippines seeks to mainstream and pursue the following priorities: investing in human capital development; fostering small and medium enterprises’ participation in regional and global markets; building sustainable and resilient communities; and enhancing the regional economic integration agenda. APEC, both as a process and a platform, continues to positively contribute to the region’s economic environment by promoting legal certainty for trade and investment. APEC also complements global efforts to address challenges to sustainable economic growth through the APEC Strategy for Strengthening Quality Growth, which promotes synergy between APEC’s work and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
With respect to ASEAN, the 10 member States will be integrating their economies by the end of this year, realizing the vision of one ASEAN community. We need to ensure that ASEAN and its member States, partners and secretariat remain fully engaged in the
6/29 15-29822

02/10/2015 A/70/PV.26
United Nations system. Indeed, the partnership between ASEAN and the United Nations has been beneficial to regional peace and stability. As we reaffirmed when ASEAN met with the Secretary-General last Wednesday here in New York, we are confident of the United Nations continued support for ASEAN centrality and its pillars.
Disarmament and non-proliferation have become more compelling issues for the Philippines, given that 10 per cent of our population live and work overseas, many in hot spots in the Middle East and Africa. The Philippines remains firm on its position in favour of the total and complete elimination of nuclear weapons and all other weapons of mass destruction. We will continue to voice our concerns over the humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons. We reiterate the need for the balanced and immediate implementation of the 64-point action plan adopted at the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, which was chaired by the Philippines, particularly for the establishment of a Middle East zone free of weapons of mass destruction. We also look forward to the signing and ratification of the Protocol to the South-East Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone by the five nuclear-weapon States.
On conventional weapons, the Philippines will help sustain the positive momentum created by the Arms Trade Treaty’s progress and continue to engage in discussions on small arms and light weapons and improvised explosive devices, particularly as used by armed non-State actors.
The Philippines will continue on its path towards successfully implementing the women and peace and security agenda by highlighting at this session the important contributions of women in peace negotiations and peacebuilding, and their roles in shaping the narratives of peace. We will maintain our active role in calling for the continued implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Beijing Platform for Action and the Sustainable Development Goals on women, particularly Goal 5 on achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls. Taken together, these instruments are powerful mechanisms for realizing national and international commitments to advancing women’s roles as enablers of sustainable development.
In the negotiations on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Philippines emphasized and will continue to highlight the positive contributions of migrants to sustainable development in countries of origin, transit and destination. We deeply appreciate the United Nations recognition of the Philippines as a model of migration governance because of its comprehensiveness in terms of managed deployment, solid protection, diaspora engagement and reintegration. Both the United Nations and the Philippines believe that migration governance is really about giving migrants a human face. The basic perspective of the Philippine migration management policy focuses on two important considerations: first, migration must be a shared international responsibility; and secondly, migrants’ human rights must be fully respected in all circumstances.
The Philippines will also continue to play an active role on the issue of human trafficking, either as a main or co-sponsor of resolutions that recognize the heightened vulnerability to trafficking of women and girls in humanitarian crisis situations and other emergency environments. The Philippines will work with other Governments to intensify efforts for the speedy disposition of trafficking cases and strengthening of anti-trafficking mechanisms.
Since 1963, the Philippines has been a consistent troop contributor to United Nations peacekeeping operations. We are committed to and have answered the call of the United Nations for the deployment of female peacekeepers. I am pleased to announce that there are now 15 Filipino women out of the 161 Filipino peacekeepers in the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti. Guided by the policy recommendations of the Philippine National Council for United Nations Peace Operations, we will continue to engage with the Department of Peacekeeping Operations in the deployment of Filipino peacekeepers and support the recommendations of the United Nations High-level Independent Panel on Peace Operations to improve the safety and security of our peacekeepers.
At this seventieth session of the General Assembly, the argument for United Nations reform is now more urgent than ever. The Philippines will continue to push for meaningful discussions on enhancing the role and authority of the General Assembly, as well as on proposals to rationalize the agenda of the Assembly and its main committees. The Philippines will support calls for continuing the conversations on the much-needed
15-29822 7/29

A/70/PV.26 02/10/2015
and long-overdue reforms to make the Security Council more democratic, more inclusive, more transparent and more accountable. These reforms include urging the Council to provide the General Assembly a plural number of candidates, especially women, for appointment to the post of Secretary-General, with due regard to regional rotation and gender equality. Together with other developing countries, the Philippines shares the position that a sufficient budget is important for the Organization to deliver on its mandates and missions more effectively and with greater accountability.
In conclusion, at the fourth session of the General Assembly on 20 September 1949, the late great Philippine statesman, General Carlos P. Romulo, who was just then elected President of the General Assembly, said that the goal of the United Nations
“defined by its Charter, was to make it possible for men to live better lives in larger freedom under a reign of peace founded on justice and universal respect for law” (220th plenary meeting, para. 19).
Those words now bear greater resonance. Today, I have the honour and privilege of leading the Philippine delegation, and on behalf of President Benigno S. Aquino III and the Filipino people, please allow me to convey these solid commitments of the Philippines.
First, as we prepare the way for our future generations the Philippines will continue to advocate for three key priorities and these would be: eradicating poverty; preventing conflict; and promoting the rule of law. Secondly, as we reaffirm our faith in the wisdom of the United Nations founding Members, we renew our commitment to ending the scourge of war, uphold justice and human rights and maintain international peace and security. Thirdly, as we all pursue the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, let the United Nations continue to serve as the institutional platform, the historical foundation and the moral edifice upon which we manifest humanity’s collective dreams, ideals and aspirations.


During the past 70 years we, the States Members of the United Nations, have been driven by the noble ideals and aspirations that the visionary founders of the United Nations laid down in its Charter in 1945. At the same time, we have been regularly confronted with the grim realities of international affairs. Over its history, the United Nations, both as an intergovernmental Organization and as an actor on the world stage, has been tested by numerous conflicts, humanitarian crises and immense
34/55 15-29658

01/10/2015 A/70/PV.22
political and economic changes in the world, as well as by a lack of financial stability.
Throughout all those years, the United Nations has played a crucial role in preventing global conflicts and has carried out vital work around the world in its service to humankind. From the outset, the United Nations has made major contributions to furthering the development and codification of international law as a way of regulating international relations. We should take a step back to see how far we have come and how far we need to go in meeting the challenges that exist across the three pillars of the Organization’s work: peace and security, development and human rights. New and acute challenges to the multilateral system and new threats to peace and security that transcend national borders have, unfortunately, emerged. Each and everyone is concerned by the threats of pandemics, climate change, migration, cybersecurity, and the multifaceted and violent nature of terrorism, including organized crime. There are no exceptions.
The United Nations is the right place where all those threats should be addressed and eventually solved. I am deeply convinced that the United Nations remains strategically positioned to provide leadership and effective multilateral responses. A strong and effective United Nations means a better world, a more caring and accepting world, where nations and peoples of different religions, cultures and history can live together in peace — a world where right is might, not might makes right. I believe that strengthening the United Nations is the best investment for achieving the universal desire for peace, development, equality and justice in the world.
We should collectively seek practical means that will enable the current system to live up to its original purposes. That will enable the United Nations to meet the weighty demands that are being and will be made upon it today, tomorrow and in many years to come. The Member States are the owners of the United Nations. Every country — big or small, from North or South, landlocked or insular — has an important individual responsibility and role to play as a driver of the necessary change. My Government has always had strong confidence in the United Nations and remains ready to fully shoulder its responsibility and commitments in that regard.
The scale of global development challenges is unprecedented. A couple of days ago, in this very place we adopted the historic document defining the
Sustainable Development Goals, “Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development” (resolution 70/1). We may call it a programme for a better planet, but it is not about the numbers, but about changing our mindsets. It is setting up the new philosophy of existence in a sustainable future. Its cornerstone is full inclusivity and zero disparity.
The global security environment has never been as dynamic and uncertain as today. The number of major civil wars has almost tripled. The number of conflict casualties has skyrocketed. The most worrisome fact is the increased number of civilian casualties, including women and children. The United Nations works to maintain international peace and security in a world where security threats are becoming more complex and asymmetric, and conflicts more intractable and less conducive to traditional political settlements. The current pattern of violence also has serious implications for the implementation of mandates to protect civilians in the field. The United Nations has increasingly come under attack in areas where it has been present. Naturally, in such conditions, the level and the main priorities for United Nations involvement are being re-evaluated in a process of strategic reflection.
A secondary effect is the dramatic increase in the number of refugees. The World Bank estimates that roughly one fifth of the world’s population is affected by some form of violence or insecurity. The total number of people forcibly displaced by war, conflict and persecution rose to roughly 60 million by the end of 2014. On a daily basis, we are confronted with gruesome images in the news or directly in our streets, squares and transportation hubs. Forced displacement has, sadly, become a deliberate and widespread tactic, meaning that displacement is not only a short- term humanitarian problem, but also a long-term development and State-building issue.
The current migration crisis is one of the most complex challenges, one that we have to face up front and address together. It affects all of us — the countries of origin, transit and destination. It therefore requires joint responses. Both immediate and long- term measures are absolutely necessary to address those challenges, which include illegal migration, the smuggling of and trafficking in human beings, and gross human rights violations.
We must offer our assistance to those in need and prevent further tragedies involving refugees. For that to happen, we need systematic and comprehensive action
15-29658 35/55

A/70/PV.22 01/10/2015
and close cooperation on the part of countries, both of origin and of destination, that will bring a long-term sustainable solution. We must address the root causes of migration, namely, conflicts, intolerance, violence, poverty and a lack of the conditions needed for a decent life, just to mention a few.
As acknowledged many times before, the irreplaceable nature of the Organization is most marked in peacekeeping. The past two decades have significantly tested the concept and conduct of United Nations peacekeeping operations. Slovakia has been an active contributor and stands ready to continue its cooperation with the United Nations in that field.
I was particularly pleased to see that both review panels — the High-level Independent Panel on United Nations Peace Operations and that of the Advisory Group of Experts on the 2015 Review of the Peacebuilding Architecture — have put strong emphasis on enhanced conflict prevention, diplomatic engagement and mediation support in the work of the United Nations system. Speaking from my personal experience as a mediator in South-Eastern Europe, I cannot but support the importance and high relevance of preventive diplomacy across the conflict spectrum and as a part of broader, nationally owned strategies to promote sustainable peace and development. The culture of conflict prevention and the conflict-resolution approaches that are now taking root in the United Nations system must be further developed, alongside more effective peacekeeping and peacebuilding.
It has been 15 years since the adoption of the landmark Security Council resolution 1325 (2000), on women and peace and security. Yet the impacts of conflicts on women and children are still inordinate, and their engagement in peace processes is still insufficient. Gender equality is a natural precondition for sustainable development, stability and peace. As former Secretary-General Kofi Annan said,
“When women thrive, all of society benefits, and succeeding generations are given a better start in life.”
The presence of women negotiators in high-profile United Nations peace and mediation processes, the role of women deployed by the United Nations to major conflict zones and high-stake inter-State negotiations, as well as in peacekeeping and peacebuilding in general, is irreplaceable and should continue to grow.
International terrorism in its most violent forms is an increasingly alarming threat to global peace and security, and those forms have become more diverse and fragmented in recent years. Slovakia strongly condemns all terrorist acts as criminal and unjustifiable. No terrorist act should be left without an adequate response from the international community. No perpetrator should be left unpunished and no movement affiliated with any form of terrorism should be tolerated.
The United Nations has done much to set standards in the fight against international terrorism and to encourage and help Member States to meet them. The tenth anniversary of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in 2016 will provide us with an opportunity to make our efforts in this struggle more efficient. It should be carried out in a multilateral and coordinated manner, with full respect for human rights and the rule of law. We should also redouble our efforts to conclude a comprehensive convention on international terrorism. Last but not least, Member States must strengthen their prevention efforts by working directly with affected communities to counter the violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism. If we want to tackle this threat, we need to confront extremism in all its forms, violent and non-violent. Hate has never been the way to achieve a better future for anyone.
We are now fewer than 60 days away from the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to be held in Paris, where the international community will discuss a new international climate change agreement. The impact of climate change is visible and undeniable throughout the world. Extreme droughts, melting of polar ice, substantive changes in long-term climate patterns and the rise in sea levels are the most glaring examples. As a result, Slovakia is committed to adopting at the United Nations climate conference this December a global binding climate agreement that will accelerate the shift towards societies and economies that are low-carbon and climate-resilient worldwide.
36/55 15-29658

01/10/2015 A/70/PV.22
There are various internal and external forces that could drive any organization to change. Terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, poverty, disease, disparities causing socioeconomic tensions resulting in migration — all these challenges pose vital threats to humankind, and the only difference is how quickly the catastrophe strikes. The logical questions therefore relate to how ready we are to effectively react to challenges of the twenty-first century and whether we can draw useful lessons from the response to Ebola as an international health security threat.
Continuous management reform, optimal use of modern technologies, and gradual improvement of methods and structures for work that takes into account changes in the world are crucial if an organization wants to stay relevant. This is especially true for the United Nations. The seventieth anniversary of the Organization is viewed by many as a timely moment for achieving tangible progress. We need to address all existential challenges with the same attention. Act as one. Struggle as one. Deliver as one. One planet, one humankind, one destiny.
Let our work here at the United Nations be as real, practical and focused as possible so that we can deliver good results in the spirit of cooperation and compromise. The key desired result should be a strengthened and more effective, streamlined and responsive United Nations — a truly global organization that is better able to address interconnected and multidimensional threats and challenges to international peace, security and development.
I would like to conclude by quoting Norman Cousins, an American political journalist and professor, who received the United Nations Peace Medal in 1971:
“If the United Nations is to survive, those who represent it must bolster it; those who advocate it must submit to it; and those who believe in it must fight for it.”
The current General Assembly session will be a new test of our commitment and ability to join forces in the pursuit of common goals. I am confident that under the leadership of President Lykketoft, we will be able to achieve the desired outcome.


On behalf of the Government and the people of Papua New Guinea, I congratulate the President of the General Assembly at its seventieth session on his election. We also pay tribute to his predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Sam Kutesa, Foreign Minister of Uganda, for his able leadership as President of the General Assembly at its sixty-ninth session and for steering the course for the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda. Furthermore, we extend our gratitude to the Secretary- General for his unfailing commitment and visionary leadership of the United Nations, thereby ensuring that the spirit of the Charter remains an enduring pillar for our collective well-being as we retool it to meet the emerging challenges and opportunities of the twenty- first century and beyond.
We commend the theme of the general debate, “The United Nations at 70: a new commitment to action”, and pledge our support to the presidency in ensuring the effective implementation of the transformative 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1) that was adopted unanimously a few days ago. As Papua New Guinea celebrates its fortieth year of nationhood, we also join the United Nations family this
year in marking the founding of the United Nations 70 years ago. My Government is committed to working in close partnership with all stakeholders to implement the post-2015 development agenda, which in turn must be nationally owned and driven.
We can succeed only when countries truly own and lead their national development plans and strategies, while integrating the 2030 Agenda. Consistent with its 2014 national strategy for responsible sustainable development, Papua New Guinea recognizes that a healthy, well-educated population is the underlying driver for development.
The principle of responsible, sustainable development means that we do not conduct ourselves in a manner that will compromise future generations. The high-level political forum must support national, regional and global efforts with respect to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and avoid issues such as those that undermined the work of the Commission on Sustainable Development. The Government of Papua New Guinea has adopted enabling national policies, strategies and plans to provide an environment conducive to achieving the Millennium Development Goals and the SDGs. Those policies cover the areas of population, water and sanitation, hygiene, free basic health services and tuition-free education. The free-education policy has led to the enrolment in schools of an additional 2 million children in the past two years.
Papua New Guinea has laid a strong foundation for development in the past decade. This has resulted in unprecedented economic growth, which reached double digits in 2012. However, the current depression in international commodity prices and stock markets has negatively impacted the country’s economic performance. We are taking steps to ensure that the recent adverse conditions do not jeopardize the positive gains made in the past 10 years. Papua New Guinea is part of the global economy and, as such, seeks a stable, equitable international economic and financial architecture to support our efforts in advancing human development. The challenge for Papua New Guinea is to translate enhanced economic growth and other transformations into improved practical human development outcomes, in order to achieve our National Vision 2050. That should then result in the achievement of the SDGs.
As we gather here today, there are many conflicts worldwide, with millions of people displaced and forced
22/26 15-29876

01/10/2015 A/70/PV.24
to leave their homes under risky conditions, in search of safety and security. Threats to peace and security hinder the achievement of the 2030 Agenda. Those security concerns, including transnational crime and international terrorism, if not adequately contained, will have proliferating cross-border effects on global peace, stability and economic prosperity, including for us in the Pacific Islands region. Papua New Guinea echoes the calls on all conflicting parties to amicably discuss and resolve their differences under the mandate of the Charter of the United Nations, with a view to maintaining global peace and security.
Papua New Guinea is proud to contribute to the United Nations and regional peacekeepers in South Sudan and Darfur. We hope to increase our deployment numbers as our economy grows.
The global refugee crisis has reached Papua New Guinea. We have received refugees and asylum seekers since independence. We are currently working closely with the Government of Australia by providing an asylum-seeker processing facility and contributing to finding lasting solutions to the global challenge. We strongly believe that it is high time for the global community to seriously address the root causes of the refugee situation and the forced displacement of people and families.
The illicit trade in small arms and light weapons remains a serious threat to national and global peace, security and development. In that light, Papua New Guinea has prioritized policy initiatives and programmes to curb the importation and trading of firearms.
Papua New Guinea reaffirms its commitment to upholding and protecting fundamental human rights. Our national population policy 2015-2024 recognizes that human rights are closely intertwined with sustainable development.
Papua New Guinea welcomes the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. This global mechanism is essential, given the increasing frequency and severity of climate-induced natural disasters, particularly in our Pacific islands region. Recognizing the need for better preparation for timely responses to disasters and crisis situations, the Pacific subregional grouping — the Melanesian Spearhead Group — is in the process of establishing a humanitarian and emergency technical response coordination centre. We welcome technical
and capacity-building assistance from the international community to support our efforts, as provided for under international agreements, including the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway.
The world has changed since the formation of the United Nations 70 years ago. The current United Nations system requires urgent reform, and we support the efforts of the Secretary-General in that regard. On Security Council reform, we welcome the General Assembly’s recent adoption of decision 69/560, on equitable distribution and representation in the Council’s membership. Additionally, Papua New Guinea supports the initiative to review the use of the veto power in the Security Council, particularly during times of grave humanitarian crisis and mass atrocities.
In the regional context, we are fully supportive of the 2014 Pacific Islands Forum reforms, whereby a new regional development road map — the Framework for Pacific Regionalism — was adopted to promote greater regional cooperation, integration and connectivity. Through this Framework, Papua New Guinea committed $100 million for 2014-2018 to its regional outreach programme, to support Pacific SIDS in critical areas of development such as good governance, education, health, capacity-building, climate change, relief assistance and natural disaster reconstruction efforts.
Our assistance to Pacific SIDS exemplifies and promotes the spirit of South-South cooperation, and we encourage others to join us in similar partnerships. In that respect, Papua New Guinea has made modest financial contributions to Fiji, the Marshall Islands, Niue, Kiribati, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu, as well as to various regional entities including the Pacific Islands Forum, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme and the Melanesian Spearhead Group, to add value to regional partnerships.
The Pacific region continues to attach critical importance to ensuring the sustainable development, management and conservation of the Pacific Ocean for our peoples’ livelihoods, food security and economic development. In this regard, we welcome SDG 14, on conservation and sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources. We call upon development partners to assist us in addressing various challenges related to the oceans, including illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing in our territorial waters.
15-29876 23/26

A/70/PV.24 01/10/2015
Climate change poses imminent dangers with wide-ranging implications, including threats not only to human security, survival and development, but also to the entire global ecosystem. Our Climate Change Management Act is possibly the first legislation of its kind in the Pacific islands. It provides for funding arrangements to assist in the adaptation to climate change.
Along with other Pacific island States, Papua New Guinea looks forward to the twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Paris and hopes that a new comprehensive and legally binding climate agreement will be adopted to set the schedules for the reduction of carbon emissions from both the developed and developing world. The most imminent threat resulting from sea level rise due to climate change is the forced displacement of populations and complete inundation and loss of sovereign territories, particularly in Pacific small island developing States. We therefore call on the Security Council to deal decisively with the implications of climate change and security issues.
The recent Pacific Island Forum summit in Port Moresby adopted the Pacific Island Forum Leaders Declaration on Climate Change Action. Leaders were deeply concerned about the serious effects and impacts of climate change, particularly on national and regional development and security issues. Among other things, the Pacific island leaders declared that an increase of 1.5°C would severely exacerbate the particular challenges facing the most vulnerable smaller island States of the Pacific and urged that all efforts be made to keep us within the global temperature goal, as noted by the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC at its twentieth session, in its decision 1/CP.20.
The 2015 Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Declaration on Climate Change Action also expresses an expectation that there will be access to financial resources for climate change actions and resilience in vulnerable developing countries; recognition of the special circumstances and vulnerability of SIDS, particularly those in the Pacific, and the least developed countries (LDCs); support for inclusion in the Paris outcome document of loss and damage as a critical and stand-alone element, building on the ongoing work of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage; and finally, recognition of impacts of climate change on women and youth, the
elderly, the disabled, indigenous peoples and other vulnerable and marginalized groups, acknowledging their contributions to effective implementation of the Paris outcome document.
Let us not leave anyone — particularly those of us in SIDS and LDCs — behind, drowning. We must strive to come together in accordance with the rule of law for a better, more secure and prosperous world.


I join those who have spoken before me in congratulating you, Mr. President, on your well- deserved election to preside over the General Assembly at its seventieth session. Your election is a fitting tribute to your distinguished political career, having served as Foreign Minister and Finance Minister of your country, and recently as Speaker of the Danish Parliament. It is also a reflection of the high regard that the Assembly has for your great country, Denmark. I would like to assure you of my country’s full support and cooperation in discharging your duties and responsibilities.
I also wish to pay tribute to your predecessor, Mr. Sam Kutesa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uganda, for the outstanding manner in which he steered the affairs of the Assembly at its sixty- ninth session. Indeed, that great son of the African soil has done us proud.
I also wish to express a well-deserved word of appreciation for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and his staff for their dedicated service and efforts in promoting the ideals and principles of the United Nations. I also commend you, Mr. President, and the President of the General Assembly at its sixty- ninth session, as well as the Secretary-General, for the excellent work culminating in the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda (resolution 70/1) and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with their 169 targets. We sincerely hope that reliable mechanisms will ensure the availability of the means of implementation and follow-up. It was the failure to have
15-29437 3/26

A/70/PV.17 29/09/2015
such mechanisms that was responsible for the shortfalls in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.
My delegation welcomes the theme of this session, “The United Nations at 70: the road ahead for peace, security and human rights”. The United Nations at 70 not only has withstood the test of time, but has evolved and become a strong Organization. I am glad we all agree that much has been achieved in the past seven decades. Equally, we agree that not everything that the founding fathers envisaged the United Nations could do has been done satisfactorily. The United Nations has succeeded in preventing another world war, but the challenges of preserving world peace and security remain. Inter- and intra-State conflicts and wars are many and on the increase. Terrorism has become a serious global threat. There are still too many people who live in conditions of abject poverty, squalor and deprivation in a world of unprecedented wealth.
Unlike 70 years ago, today there is better understanding, cooperation and partnership among countries and organizations in preserving peace and security. It is easier today for the world to come together to promote peace than it was before. As a matter of fact, most of the conflicts we are witnessing today are being handled, first and foremost, by regional and subregional organizations. The United Nations therefore must seek to forge strategic partnerships with such organizations. By taking advantage of the knowledge they have of the history and nature of the crises, key players and cultures of the people involved, it would be more successful in managing and resolving conflicts. Where and when appropriate, the United Nations should invest in strengthening the capacity of those organizations and their member States in anticipating, detecting, preventing, managing and resolving conflicts. I am of the view that such capacity is urgently needed in Africa.
We highly commend the President of the General Assembly at its sixty-ninth session and the Chair of the intergovernmental negotiations on reform of the Security Council for their efforts. It is the wish of the majority of Member States to see an acceleration of the negotiation process during the current session. For the Security Council to remain what it was 70 years ago is incomprehensible and, to say the least, unacceptable. It is high time that the demands of the majority of the Member States be heard and heeded. We must be mindful of the fact that the credibility of the United Nations depends upon a more agile, representative
and responsive Security Council. Let us all muster the courage and political will to accomplish that long-overdue task for the sake of the Organization. In the meantime, we must continue to support the revitalization of the work of the General Assembly.
Peacekeeping operations remain one of the most dependable instruments for promoting world peace and security. I believe that they will remain so for many years to come. I am told that there are approximately 125,000 men and women deployed in 16 peacekeeping missions across the world. Tanzania is proud to have contributed 1,322 of those gallant people, who often serve under challenging conditions. Sometimes they are compelled to serve in places where there is little or no peace to keep. Tanzania stands ready to contribute more, whenever and wherever requested to do so.
We cannot talk about the security challenges of today without mentioning terrorism — a security challenge about which the United Nations and the entire international community must remain vigilant in the coming decade. While reiterating our strongest condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, we believe that there is an urgent need to bolster efforts at all levels for fighting that scourge. Collectively, we must aspire to improve our preparedness, collaboration and response to the threat we face.
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa in the past year is a stark reminder of how dangerous epidemics can be and how vulnerable we are as nations and peoples. More than 11,000 people lost their lives, including citizens of the United States and Spain, and approximately 28,000 were infected. The economies of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone were devastated. Economic activities and services almost ground to a halt, thereby causing enormous losses to the economies of the three countries. The World Bank estimates that they lost about $2.2 billion in gross domestic product as a result. Approximately 7,000 children lost their parents, and half a million people became food-insecure. More than 5 million children lost valuable schooling and skills- development time. Mammoth recovery efforts are required to get those economies and societies back to where they were before the outbreak. Unfortunately, many countries in Africa also suffered, irrespective of how distant those countries were from the three primarily affected countries. The tourism industry is a case in point: it is suffering throughout Africa.
4/26 15-29437

29/09/2015 A/70/PV.17
The biggest lesson from the handling of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is that the world needs to be better prepared to prevent and respond to epidemics in future. That was not the case for the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. In that regard, we should all commend the Secretary-General for his wise decision to establish the High-level Panel on the Global Response to Health Crises to make recommendations on how the world can better respond to public-health emergencies of global concern in the future. I was given the honour of chairing the Panel. It is premature for me to report anything substantive now to the General Assembly. We will complete our work in December, and I am sure our report will be brought before the Assembly for information and action. We look forward to the Assembly’s support.
Tanzania welcomes the historic and momentous decision taken by the United States of America and the Republic of Cuba to restore diplomatic relations and reopen embassies in Washington, D.C., and Havana. We join the people of Cuba and the people of the United States in celebrating that landmark achievement. We commend President Barack Obama and President Raúl Castro Ruz for their bold and courageous leadership. The two leaders and countries have proved to all of us the power of dialogue in finding solutions even when the differences are deep-rooted and the conflicts long- standing. We extend best wishes to our United States and Cuban friends as they open a new chapter in their bilateral relations. We hope that the United States will lift the remaining economic sanctions and appeal to it to do so. The sanctions have condemned the people of Cuba to untold socioeconomic hardships, poverty and misery for the past 50 years.
In the same vein, it is our wish that Israel and Palestine would resume dialogue so that their long- standing conflict can be resolved peacefully. It is high time that the pain and suffering endured by the people of Palestine over many decades be brought to an end. It is about time that the people of Israel lived peacefully and harmoniously with their neighbours. It is regrettable that, as we celebrate 70 years since the founding of the United Nations, the conflict remains unresolved. Tanzania subscribes to and supports the two-State solution, with the State of Israel and a sovereign, contiguous and viable State of Palestine living side by side in peace, security, harmony, mutual recognition, trust and cooperation. We believe it is possible and achievable. All that is required of us is to redouble our efforts.
Another outstanding issue for the Organization is that of Western Sahara, a matter that must not be left unresolved. The lack of action on the part of the United Nations to implement its decisions in the matter is both regrettable and incomprehensible. The people of Saharawi have waited far too long for an opportunity to determine their fate and future. Let this Organization muster the political will and pluck up the courage to do what it decided long ago to do. At 70, the United Nations is old enough and has accumulated enough wisdom and experience to put this matter to rest. Please, let us do it.
On 20 September 2006 I stood at this rostrum (see A/61/PV.13) for the first time and addressed the General Assembly as the newly elected fourth President of my dear country, the United Republic of Tanzania. Today I stand here to bid farewell, as I prepare to leave office upon the completion of my two-term mandate, in accordance with the Tanzanian Constitution. I thank all my colleagues in the Assembly for the invaluable support and cooperation they have extended to me, my Administration and my country over the past 10 years of our work together. Kindly be assured that I will always value each and every contribution. I feel proud to have had the opportunity to work with all Member States to promote the ideals of the United Nations and to contribute to the pursuit of world peace, security, stability and development.
As I take my leave, I would like to assure the Assembly that Tanzania will remain a faithful Member and an unwavering supporter of the United Nations. I am confident that Members will find in my successor a likeable and dependable friend and ally. Please accord him or her — I should add that we have a female candidate for the presidency of Tanzania — the necessary support and cooperation in fulfilling his or her duties and responsibilities.
The road ahead for peace, security and development remains challenging but worth the journey. It requires our renewed resolve and the reaffirmation of our commitment to the ideals, values and principles set down by the founding fathers of the United Nations seven decades ago in San Francisco. All nations, individually and collectively, should endeavour to promote them, as we have been doing for the past 70 years. It can be done. The international community must play its part.


Allow me at the outset to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency of the General Assembly at its seventieth session and to assure you of Belize’s steadfast support and cooperation. I deem it both fortuitous and fitting that I am accorded the privilege of addressing the Assembly on the occasion of the International Day of Non-Violence.
The theme of this session, “The United Nations at 70: the road ahead to peace, security and human rights”, provokes the question of whether the United Nations, as presently constituted, is up to the task of providing the world community with the protection that it will so genuinely need in the coming years and expects to obtain. While the events that gave rise to the founding of the United Nations seventy years ago are in many respects similar to some of the events we see today, it can legitimately be argued that the world of 1945 was neither confronted with, nor could it contemplate a phenomenon as potentially intractable and catastrophic as climate change. Does it therefore follow that the United Nations is not imbued with the resilience to deal satisfactorily or adequately with that most ominous and dreaded phenomenon?
Thanks to the information age and the attendant communication revolution, the ubiquitous media, both mass and social, incessantly publish disquieting global events widely and instantaneously. The events accentuated by the media are, for the most part, those that speak to the multifarious threats, misfortunes and disasters being experienced on a daily basis by humankind. Those threats have their roots in human-
made causes. The accelerated phenomenon of climate change — giving rise to the inexorable melting of the glaciers, the rising and warming of the oceans and seas, the spawning of super typhoons, hurricanes, tornadoes and floods, droughts, desertification, and the indiscriminate igniting of conflagrations of gigantic proportions - is increasingly attributed to anthropogenic interference with the climate system.
The senseless violence and excesses of terrorists, religious extremists, rogue soldiers, police and security personnel, human and drug traffickers, and regimes that brutally, mercilessly and wantonly slaughter their own citizens and citizens of other countries who in their view pose a clear and present danger to them or to their vital interests — all these constitute human-made threats to the world’s population.
Of all those threats, however, the one that poses the greatest existential threat to our entire planet and all living things thereon is climate change. Eminent scientists opine and predict that the damage that will be done to the world’s marine life and ecosystems caused by, for example, melting glaciers and rising sea temperatures alone are incalculable and irremediable. They predict that there will be a similar impact on the world’s flora and fauna and terrestrial ecosystems from large-scale and indiscriminate deforestation and desertification. One obvious consequence, among others, of such occurrences could be a severe curtailment in the world’s vital food supply and the advent of the spectre of massive starvation worldwide. Such occurrences would unquestionably have a negative impact on all of humanity, for we all inhabit the same planet and share the same core needs, adequate food supply being only one of them.
Even as the United Nations endeavours to deal with the dire consequences of climate change, it still must dutifully serve the aspirations of our peoples to enhance their economic and social development. Although globally we can claim some success in poverty eradication, the current unprecedented, desperate and perilous flight of hundreds of thousands of people from the perennially impoverished South to more affluent regions is irrefutable evidence of the most urgent need to do more for the poor and the powerless.
It is axiomatic that in times of deep personal crisis, such as when someone is diagnosed with a terminal illness, one does not stop to count the cost of finding a cure. On the contrary, strenuous efforts are immediately initiated in search of one, even if that
15-29816 33/45

A/70/PV.25 02/10/2015
entails the exhaustion of one’s life savings. Given the clear and present existential threat posed by climate change, it is imperative that that threat be treated with no less urgency and gravity than that with which a diagnosis of a terminal illness is treated. And we must do so in tandem with our ongoing quests to vest our people with hope, opportunities and a chance for the future that they deserve.
To that end, our world community must be prepared to deploy whatever resources that may be required without counting the costs. It would be most unwise for the wealthy nations — whose historic responsibility it is to furnish those necessary resources without this proof — to regard contributions made to meet these challenges as simply an exercise in philanthropy or altruism. Nothing could be further from the truth. Such contributions are vital investments in the survival of planet Earth and of all living things therein.
Some countries are evidently in greater and more immediate danger than others from the effects of climate change at this time. What is happening in the Bahamas as we speak and what happened in Dominica and in still earlier in Vanuatu are constant and incontestable reminders of the particular vulnerability of small island developing States (SIDS) and low-lying coastal States, like my own country, Belize. My Government expresses its deep solidarity with our fellow SIDS and assures the Assembly of our fullest support for them. Today, they are on the front lines; tomorrow it will be us. For no country will escape the devastating impacts of climate change, which does not defer to size, borders or wealth, or lack thereof.
The lessons of history are salutary. The tragic sinking of the mighty Titanic reminds us that whereas those passengers berthed in the lower decks were the first to perish as that giant ship made its perilous descent toward the dark depths of the Atlantic on that fateful day of 10 April 1912, ultimately all passengers on that ill-fated ship who had not been rescued in life rafts perished by drowning, including those berthed on the top-most deck. We cannot afford to forget for one moment that all of us human beings are merely passengers on planet Earth, sailing ceaselessly in the celestial firmament.
Belize is ever mindful that our community of nations, not unlike the proverbial chain that is only as strong as its weakest link, is only as strong as the weakest of its members. Small and weak though they may be, nations like my own form an integral part of
humankind’s food chain and security ecosystem. Any impairment of that food chain or security ecosystem potentially imperils the security of humankind globally.
In its 70-year history, the United Nations has undeniably made notable inroads to combat climate change and promote sustainable development. It has galvanized attention to climate change and adopted a Framework Convention to fashion a global response to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions without jeopardizing global development. The United Nations has marshalled financial, scientific and technological support for countries in need of it and, with the adoption of 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), signaled a global transformation for planet, people and prosperity.
But the jury is still out on the United Nations record of achievements. Notwithstanding a global commitment to tackle climate change, our efforts have been less than ambitious, and achieving a successor global emission reduction regime hangs in the balance, not least because finance and technology are conspicuously wanting. Worse yet, the failure of the world’s Powers to agree to hold the global average temperature increase to well below 1.5°C relative to pre-industrial levels will certainly condemn small island developing States and low-lying coastal States.
Our misses in peace and security are no less grave, with the vulnerable paying the price of political expediency. Through our awesome power of communication the world is stricken with the unanswered cries of men, women and children suffering from indiscriminate acts perpetrated in Syria, Palestine, Israel, Nigeria, Ukraine and beyond.
This condition brings me back to the question posed at the beginning of my statement regarding the capacity of the United Nations to address the most pressing global challenges. Belize entertains no doubt that the power, wealth and knowledge that lie within the collective membership of the United Nations make it capable of achieving stupendous feats. But we must first commit to working together and with all stakeholders — large and small, public and private. Unity is strength. The might of the United Nations rests in its universality and the endurable values enshrined in its Charter. Belize readily shoulders its responsibilities as a member of this community of nations.
We are committed to doing everything in our power that will promote the containment, if not the
34/45 15-29816

02/10/2015 A/70/PV.25
reversal, of climate change. We have joined with our brothers and sisters of the small island and low-lying developing States in a pioneering initiative — the Small Island Developing States Sustainable Energy Initiative, which Belize proudly hosts — to foster our transition to low-carbon and climate-resilient economies. We also commit to pushing for a robust and ambitious regime in Paris that will have all of us working in lockstep to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions and safeguard the planet and the sustainable development of our people.
Likewise, we stand ready to provide every support to United Nation initiatives that will bring the warring factions in Syria, and in Israel and Palestine, to the table to find peaceful solutions to their differences. We are committed to combating terrorism, and we unreservedly condemn the atrocities perpetrated against women and girls in Nigeria by Boko Haram. We express our solidarity with the Nigerian Government on its efforts to dismantle that criminal gang and bring its members to justice.
Belize supports the ongoing initiatives to reform the United Nations to make it more representative and better able to maintain peace and resolve conflicts. We continue to call for the United Nations to engage with Taiwan, whose 23 million people stand ready to contribute, especially through United Nations specialized agencies, to resolving the world’s problems and who have every expectation that their interests should be heard and represented.
We welcome the unanimous support for the Security Council decision to terminate seven resolutions that inflicted sanctions on Iran upon receipt by the Council of a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Belize also welcomes the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba, and we urge the United States to now proceed expeditiously to ending the very damaging embargo against Cuba and to return Guantanamo Bay to the Cuban Government.
We call upon powerful arms-producing nations to refrain from selling arms and weapons to those who use them to oppress others, and to warlords in war-torn countries.
Belize has always taken peace, security and respect for human rights very seriously. Our Constitution is modelled on the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in which the protection of fundamental rights
and freedoms is enshrined. The Belize Government assiduously respects the rule of law.
Belize also endeavours to be a good global citizen. Our laws have evolved to reflect international norms and standards, covering areas from human rights to finance, creating enabling environments that promote and protect the fundamental freedoms of our people, and fostering socially responsible investment in our country. Our National Assembly has recently enacted a new and robust Banking Act and has improved regulations for our Ship Registry to bring them in line with global efforts, including those of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, so as to enhance transparency and strengthen our legislative framework.
Our Government has focused very heavily on improving the lives of ordinary Belizeans. We are investing millions of dollars in improving infrastructure countrywide, including the construction and refurbishment of schools, sporting facilities, hospitals and roads. We are investing heavily in road safety to reduce injuries and deaths associated with traffic accidents. Access to public health services has been expanded throughout the country. We have made it easier for Belizeans to access affordable credit by ensuring an unprecedented reduction in interest rates through the establishment of our very own National Bank of Belize. Unemployment has been significantly reduced, by 10 per cent, while at the same time we have been able to keep the inflation rate among the lowest in our region.
Belize believes fervently in integration and in peaceful coexistence. To that end, we are also doing our part to ensure that peace and security prevail in our part of the world. Together with all Latin American and Caribbean countries, we have jointly designated our region as a zone of peace. Alongside the Caribbean Community, we stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Haiti as they deal with the human rights impasse with their sister nation, the Dominican Republic. We also stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Guyana and Venezuela as they work towards an amicable solution to their territorial dispute.
Earlier this year, we signed a protocol to the Special Agreement between Belize and Guatemala, to submit Guatemala’s territorial insular and maritime claim to our country to the International Court of Justice. We expect that will facilitate and speed up the process to finally and definitively put an end to the unfounded
15-29816 35/45

A/70/PV.25 02/10/2015
claims that have plagued us and our region for far too long.