First of all, I would like to express to the President my
sincere and warm congratulations upon his election to the
presidency of the General Assembly at its fifty-first
session. My delegation is convinced that his skills, his
perfect mastery of international issues and his unstinting
efforts will bring the work of our session to a satisfactory
conclusion. In the same context, I would like to assure
him of my delegation’s readiness to cooperate with him
in the discharge of his lofty mission.
It is also a pleasure for me to commend the
remarkable work done by his predecessor, Mr. Diogo
Freitas do Amaral, who stamped the fiftieth session with
the seal of his effectiveness and dedication. I pay tribute
to him on behalf of my delegation.
I would also like to congratulate Secretary-General
Boutros Boutros-Ghali for the noteworthy way in which
he has devoted his energies to the achievement of the
objectives of our Organization and to enhancing day by
day its credibility. He has all the respect of the Togolese
delegation.
The economic, political and social context of this
session hardly seems to differ from that of previous years:
the ongoing conflicts continue to take many victims.
Moreover, terrorism continues to have a great impact on
the world, and the burden of debt, with all its
implications, holds in check the development of many
countries, particularly those of Africa. All these
phenomena cast a shadow over the international landscape
and prompt concerns regarding the genuine advent of
peace, security and prosperity, to which all of humanity
legitimately aspires.
It is in this context that Togo has endeavoured to
consolidate the basis of a state of law and to confront the
imperatives of sustainable human development to ensure
the social well-being of its people.
Togo has begun the process of democratizing
national political life, and the process has had a normal
and encouraging development, particularly in the last
three years. The calm, orderly and transparent holding of
partial legislative elections on 4 and 18 August 1996
illustrates the resolve of the Togolese people, with the
impetus of the Head of State, Mr. Gnassingbe Eyadema,
16

to move forward along the road to democracy, peace and
political stability, which guarantee social and economic
development.
Having learned the lessons of a difficult democratic
transition, which ripped the social fabric and cast into doubt
the achievements of its development process, the population
of Togo is more aware than ever before of the need to
preserve and strengthen its unity. By doing so it will be
able to effectively meet present and future challenges,
ensure its prosperity and make its modest contribution to
the building of a better world. The President of the
Republic and the Government of Togo intend to continue
to work tirelessly in this direction, in concert with other
members of the international community. They are satisfied
to note today that the people of Togo, through the hardships
that they have endured, have acquired a clear awareness of
self-responsibility. Thus, having supported the efforts of
their leaders for several months, they more and more firmly
reject political formulas and organization approaches
designed in other climes that have proved unsuitable in the
context of their history and culture. In the view of many
observers, the Togolese people, through the countless
manifestations of its political will, is cultivating the
authentic African democracy that we all desire.
Last year the United Nations commemorated the
fiftieth anniversary of its founding. On that occasion, the
General Assembly observed in its Declaration:
“The determination, enshrined in the Charter of the
United Nations, to save succeeding generations from
the scourge of war' is as vital today as it was fifty
years ago.” (resolution 50/6, first para.)
The many ethnic or religious armed conflicts that still scar
the international landscape confirm this view of the General
Assembly and demonstrate the magnitude of the task still
facing the Organization.
Africa remains one of the world’s regions of tension,
and our continent has been sorely tested by cruel conflicts
persisting in a number of States. The Government of Togo
deplores the fact that conflicts such as those in Liberia,
Sierra Leone, Somalia, Burundi and Angola have not yet
been definitively resolved. The huge numbers of victims,
refugees, displaced persons and the massive destruction
caused by these conflicts should be enough to convince the
parties concerned of the need to put an end to their
disputes, which could tire the patience and perseverance of
the international community in its efforts.
Concerned over the deteriorating situation in these
countries, the Togolese Government urges the various
actors to seek a peaceful solution to their disputes,
through dialogue and cooperation, so that their peoples
can at last find the peace and stability necessary for their
development.
With respect more specifically to Liberia, my
delegation welcomes the bold measures taken by the
Committee of Nine of the Economic Community of West
African States (ECOWAS) at its meeting in Abuja last
August, aimed at successfully concluding the peace
process begun many years ago. These measures,
accompanied by sanctions, attest to the determination of
the ECOWAS countries to do their utmost to find a
definitive and lasting solution to this fratricidal and
seemingly endless conflict.
At this new stage of the process, it is important for
our Liberian brothers to recognize the tremendous efforts
made by the ECOWAS States, the Organization of
African Unity (OAU) and the United Nations, and to
show good will in order to facilitate the effective
implementation of the Abuja Agreement of 19 August
1995, which provides the means to end this conflict and
to return to peace and to constitutional normalcy.
With respect to the dispute over the Bakassi
peninsula, my country would like to pay tribute to the
Secretary-General’s efforts towards a peaceful settlement.
These efforts, which recently took the form of the
dispatch of a good-offices mission to Cameroon, Nigeria,
Bakassi and Togo, may help strengthen the interim
measures aimed at reducing tensions, while waiting for a
judgement to be handed down by the International Court
of Justice.
Togo is determined to work towards resolving all
conflicts by peaceful means and to safeguard peace and
security on the African continent. Thus my country and
its President are prepared to contribute to the restoration
of peace on the peninsula and to the normalization of
relations between the two countries. In the same spirit, the
Government of Togo hopes that the good will shown by
the two parties during the visit of the Secretary-General’s
good-offices mission will continue to prevail, so that the
desired goal may be achieved as soon as possible.
The persistence of these conflicts, which deeply
undermine our continent’s development efforts, compels
me to recall the proposal made at the thirtieth session of
the OAU conference of Heads of State and Government
17

by President Gnassingbe Eyadema of Togo aimed at
establishing an inter-African force charged with keeping the
peace wherever it is threatened or breached.
We welcome the various initiatives undertaken to that
end to make this idea a reality, so that Africa, with the
support of the international community, might better
manage conflict situations, which divert the efforts of the
African peoples from the priorities of economic and social
development.
Along the same lines, given the numerous conflicts the
OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and
Resolution will have to face and in light of the illicit
trafficking in small arms and light weapons, it is important
to strengthen the activities of the United Nations Regional
Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa, headquartered
in Togo. To that end, it would be appropriate if the Centre,
established pursuant to resolution 40/151 G of 16 December
1985 by the General Assembly at the request of OAU
Heads of State and Government, could benefit from
adequate and appropriate resources so that it could fully
discharge its duties. In that context, I should like to
reaffirm that the Government of Togo, which attaches great
importance to this Centre, will do its utmost to honour its
commitments as the host country.
The 1991 Madrid Peace Conference on the Middle
East and the Washington agreements of 13 September 1993,
inter alia, have sparked hopes regarding a negotiated
settlement of the question of Palestine and the conflict in
the Middle East as a whole. The evacuation of certain
occupied territories of Palestine, the establishment of the
Palestinian Authority, the repeal of anti-Israel provisions
from the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) charter,
and the peace treaty between Israel and Jordan, are positive
occurrences that bear witness to the progress achieved in
the context of the Middle East peace process. Togo
welcomes this progress.
However, the difficulties that have confronted this
process in the last few days, jeopardizing its normal
development, are a source of grave concern for my
delegation. The delegation of Togo is particularly concerned
at the tragic events that took place last week in Jerusalem,
which claimed many Palestinian and Israeli victims.
Togo, which endorses Security Council resolution
1073 (1996), adopted on 28 September 1996, calls for
greater energy in the continuation of the process until it
achieves concrete results. It urges the evacuation of all
occupied Arab territories, the existence of Israel within
secure and internationally recognized borders, and the
establishment of an independent Palestinian state. At any
rate, it is important to achieve a just and comprehensive
peace benefiting all countries of the region, in accordance
with the relevant resolutions of the Security Council.
With respect to the war in the former Yugoslavia, I
should like on behalf of the Togolese Government to
heartily congratulate the architects of the Dayton
Agreement, signed in Paris on 14 December 1995, and to
express our appreciation at the acceptable development of
the situation in the light of the implementation of that
Agreement. We would like to encourage the main actors
in that conflict to continue to seek a negotiated settlement
aimed at a definitive return to peace and stability in that
part of Europe.
Aside from hotbeds of tension, we must note that
terrorism, which we condemn, is, because of its
pernicious objectives and criminal acts, one of the gravest
threats today to international peace and security. We
welcome the holding of the Summit for Peacemakers in
Sharm el-Sheikh and the recent meeting of the Ministers
for Foreign Affairs of the Group of 7 major industrialized
countries and of the Russian Federation in Paris. The
Government of Togo welcomes the various measures
advocated at these two meetings in order to energetically
thwart the activities of transnational criminal
organizations and their agents.
With respect to the safeguarding of peace through
disarmament, Togo reiterates its firm commitment to
general and complete disarmament, and supports
unreservedly the efforts of the international community to
achieve that objective. In this connection, my delegation
considers that the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban
Treaty (CTBT), opened for signature by States on 24
September 1996, and which I have just signed on behalf
of the Government of Togo, will undoubtedly contribute,
if it is accepted and applied by all, to a reduction of the
nuclear threat. This would allow the international
community to make headway towards the definitive
elimination of nuclear weapons, which is one of the most
ardent wishes of humanity.
As the Declaration on the Occasion of the Fiftieth
Anniversary of the United Nations states:
“A dynamic, vigorous, free and equitable
international economic environment is essential
to the well-being of humankind and to
18

international peace, security and stability.”
(resolution 50/6, para. 2)
This unanimous recognition of the positive effects that
a sound international economic climate can have on world
stability is absolutely accurate. The growing indifference of
a large part of the international community to the search for
appropriate solutions to the current economic crisis is
becoming increasingly disturbing. Indeed, while in the
industrialized countries the overall socio-economic situation
is experiencing positive developments and while the
disparities in their economic performances are decreasing,
we note with regret that the developing countries,
particularly in those of Africa, still languish under the debt
burden and have great difficulty in extricating themselves
from the situation they have been in for several years.
As has been repeatedly pointed out, the solution to the
economic problems of the developing countries requires
radical and innovative solutions, inter alia, the cancellation
or appreciable reduction of their debts and the
implementation of bold measures aimed at promoting their
progress.
My delegation welcomes the efforts made so far by
creditors to resolve the debt problem. It appreciates the
resolve expressed by the seven major industrialized
countries at the G-7 Lyons Summit to take additional action
to reduce the debt burden of the poorest countries vis-à-vis
multilateral institutions and bilateral creditors that are not
members of the Paris Club. It welcomes in particular the
recent decision of the Ministers for Finance of the seven
major industrialized countries, at their meeting in
Washington, to alleviate the debt burden of the poorest
countries, up to a limit of 80 per cent.
Aside from the question of debt, my delegation is also
concerned with other problems of development. Aware that
they are primarily responsible for promoting their own
development through sound and consistent economic and
social policies, the developing countries involved in
structural adjustment programmes have made enormous
sacrifices, which, unfortunately, have not yet achieved the
desired results. Thus most of these countries face serious
social problems, including endemic disease, hunger,
unemployment, a high number of unemployed graduates,
strident claims by its citizens and poverty.
To confront and resolve these various ills in a lasting
manner, the international community must show greater
solidarity and mobilize, together with these countries, to
render them the necessary assistance. Moreover, in order
for it to take off economically, Africa must stop being
viewed as just a reservoir of raw materials.
At this time of globalization of the economy and the
liberalization of markets, it is imperative that African
States become competitive in international trade. To this
end, they must meet the challenges of industrial
development through sustained technical and financial
cooperation with the industrialized countries. Moreover,
it is important that Africa not become dependent on the
exploitation of raw materials, whose prices are constantly
deteriorating. The pace of its industrialization must be
encouraged to accelerate through international cooperation
based on partnership and the support of developed
countries, development-related bodies and the relevant
multilateral financial institutions.
In that connection, the Government of Togo, which
created and continues to strengthen conditions that favour
foreign investment in its free zone, inter alia, would like
to express its gratitude to both its public and private
partners and to the industrial development institutions
that, through their investments and various forms of
assistance, have supported its initiatives in this domain.
The World Food Summit will be held in Rome next
November. The Government of Togo hopes that the work
of the Summit will meet with success and that the
recommendations that will be adopted there will help to
improve the food and agricultural situation so that the
needs of peoples in this sphere can be met.
Togo welcomes the United Nations System-wide
Special Initiative on Africa, launched on 15 March 1996
by the Secretary-General. We see in this initiative a
confirmation of the commitment of the Secretary-General
and the United Nations system to give concrete reality to
the objectives of the San Francisco Charter in order,
inter alia, to support development in Africa.
At a time when the economic and social situation of
Africa is constantly deteriorating, it is important to duly
appreciate this Special Initiative promoting a partnership
between political and economic institutions and African
Governments. One of the Initiative’s good points is that
it deals substantively with problems and focuses primarily
on action towards peace, political stability and
development on the continent. However, in order for it to
achieve its objectives, the international community must
become effectively involved in its implementation by
making a decisive contribution to the mobilization of the
necessary financial resources, so that it does not become
19

simply just another initiative for Africa. My Government
will devote the necessary attention to it in order to turn the
situation to best account.
In today’s world, where nations are confronted with
the paradox of fragmentation and globalization, the United
Nations, more than ever before, has a key role to play.
Thus, in connection with the severe lack of resources that
has brought the United Nations to the brink of bankruptcy,
my Government is among those which believes that no
reform of the Organization can succeed if the Organization
has to fight for its own survival. It is therefore urgent that
drastic measures be taken to ensure a stable financial base
for the Organization and to put a definitive end to this
payments crisis, which has paralysed it. The principal States
in arrears should show the political will to help resolve the
crisis.
In the view of my delegation, improved effectiveness
of the United Nations is a must; but it is also important to
promote its democratization. We believe, therefore, that the
Working Group on the Question of Equitable
Representation on and Increase in the Membership of the
Security Council is proceeding in the right direction. Given
the present configuration of the United Nations, and as
noted by the Working Group, it is necessary to contemplate
an equitable and responsible increase in the number of
permanent and non-permanent members of the Council and
to strengthen its links with the main organs of the United
Nations and with the Member States, so as to enhance
transparency.
For many decades, thanks to the sustained efforts of
the United Nations, multilateralism has clearly been the
most appropriate framework for resolving problems relating
to international peace and security and to development.
The balance sheet drawn up last year, on the fiftieth
anniversary of the Organization, was encouraging despite
certain shortcomings. Nevertheless, much remains to be
done. Greater efforts are required on the part of Member
States, as well as greater resources, so that a reformed and
revitalized United Nations, better adapted to current
realities, can respond effectively to the expectations of
humanity as a whole.
In the discharge of the lofty mission assigned to the
Organization, Togo, for its part, will associate itself without
reservation to any initiative aimed at safeguarding
international peace and security and promoting justice,
human rights and progress for the benefit of all nations.


May I begin by extending to
Mr. Razali the warmest congratulations of the delegation of
the Union of Myanmar on his most deserving election as
President of the fifty-first session of the General Assembly.
His election to that important office is no doubt a reflection
of the high esteem in which his country, Malaysia, is held
by the international community for its active role in world
affairs, and of his wealth of personal experience and
diplomatic skills. We are confident that under his
leadership our deliberations will be fruitful. On a personal
note, I should like to say how deeply honoured I was to
have accompanied the Head of State Senior General Than
Shwe on his state visit to Malaysia last month. The visit
was a success. We were much impressed by the warm
reception accorded us and by the outstanding
achievements of the leadership in bringing peace and
prosperity to the people of Malaysia.
I wish also to express our appreciation to
Mr. Razali’s predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Diogo
Freitas do Amaral, for his invaluable contribution to the
work of the fiftieth session of the General Assembly.
The United Nations today is at a crossroads. On the
one hand, there is hope for a new era in international
relations as post- cold-war trends compel nations towards
ever-growing interdependence and the globalization of the
world economy. On the other hand, issues that have been
dormant for decades have emerged, drawing the world
into a pattern of conflict, ethnic strife and violence. In
this time of global transformation the United Nations has
an important role to play. It must actively work to guide
the world through the transitional period to a new,
peaceful, secure and stable era based on respect for the
Charter.
In this United Nations Decade of International Law
it would be most appropriate to rededicate ourselves to
achieving a world in which principles of sovereignty,
territorial integrity, independence, sovereign equality and
non-interference in the internal affairs of States are
respected. Myanmar truly believes that we can overcome
the political, economic and social challenges we face and
avoid confrontation and chaos only if we seize the
opportunity to extend and strengthen the Organization and
promote a multilateral system based on the primacy of
international law and freedom of choice and equality of
all States.
Disarmament, sustainable development, enhancement
of the environment and suppression of narcotic drugs are
priority issues that affect the security and well-being of
peoples throughout the world. Concern continues to
mount over the lack of adequate progress in these areas.
The proliferation of arms, particularly of weapons of mass
destruction, remains the greatest potential threat to
mankind’s survival. All States, large and small, nuclear
and non-nuclear, have a vital interest in ensuring the
success of negotiations on disarmament. The primary
responsibility for removing the threat of a nuclear
16

holocaust, however, rests with the nuclear-weapon States.
It is essential that the nuclear-weapon States show the
political will to accommodate the concerns of non-nuclear-
weapon States to achieve a mutually acceptable basis for
universal disarmament.
Myanmar continues to regard a comprehensive test-ban
treaty as an essential step towards nuclear disarmament.
The adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban
Treaty (CTBT) by the General Assembly on 10 September
1996 is a welcome development. It will contribute
significantly to the process of nuclear disarmament and to
our efforts to achieve the goal of general and complete
disarmament.
Myanmar has always supported the establishment of
nuclear-free zones. In our own region we have, together
with our neighbours, signed and ratified the South East
Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone Treaty. Peace and security
in the world need to be built upon economic development.
Without development there can be no lasting peace. It must
be realized, however, that economic progress in developing
countries depends as much on a fair and equitable
international economic environment as it does on domestic
reforms to effectively confront the challenge of poverty and
economic malaise. In this regard, we share the Secretary-
General’s view that development should be recognized as
the foremost and most far-reaching task of our time. At the
same time, we are deeply concerned that the process of
globalization of the world economy has yielded many more
losers than winners. The situation was most eloquently
described by the Chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement,
President Samper Pizano of Colombia, in his address to the
Meeting of the Ministerial Committee on Methodology held
earlier this year in Cartagena:
“The cake of progress continues to be handed out in
large slices for a few, and in crumbs for the rest.”
Indeed it is distressing to note the dangerous tendency
of certain States to link trade and commerce with other
issues. We find unacceptable the threat or use of economic
sanctions and the extraterritorial application of domestic law
to influence policies in developing countries. The use of
economic sanctions as a tool of policy is indefensible. It is
a flagrant breach of the United Nations Charter.
Narcotic drugs are a growing menace to the
international community. Aware of the problem, Myanmar
is carrying out narcotics suppression as a national cause.
From the outset the Myanmar Government realized that the
drug problem can be tackled only through a multisectoral
approach and has laid down national strategies to combat
the menace. The nationwide drug-abuse control
programme covers many activities: crop substitution and
livestock distribution for farmers in the border areas
where opium is grown; treatment and rehabilitation of
drug addicts; preventive education; and law enforcement.
The areas where poppies are grown are underdeveloped
regions where the national races depend on the cultivation
of opium as their principal means of livelihood. Hence,
the Government has set up an entire ministry devoted to
the development of border areas. The development of
these areas will no doubt ensure the success of the
eradication campaign.
In parallel with the national effort, the Government
has sought closer cooperation with the United Nations
International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) and
neighbouring countries, and is actively participating in the
international campaign against the production and
trafficking of illicit drugs. Our efforts are meeting with
success, as one armed group after another has returned to
the fold to join hands with the Government in
development endeavours. An encouraging event this year
was the unconditional surrender of the Mong Tai Army of
nearly 20,000 men, led by U Khun Sa. We are confident
that this unprecedented achievement will result in a
drastic reduction of the opium supply.
I should like to firmly reiterate Myanmar’s
commitment to the total eradication of poppy plantations
in our country. The sheer magnitude of the problem
requires new ways and means to address the problem.
There must be additional efforts to curb demand, just as
we work to deter production and trafficking. We would
welcome increased support for our national programmes
or for development projects administered by UNDCP.
Environment issues are among the most widely
discussed topics of our times. Environment and
development top the international agenda as human
impact on the environment has increased dramatically and
mankind faces challenges unprecedented in scope and
severity. The tremendous growth in population, coupled
with industrial development in every region of the world,
has taxed the carrying capacity of the Earth. The struggle
even to support the present population at today’s
standards of living will cause environmental degradation
on an unprecedented scale. However, in the last few years
seeds of hope have been sown, as there is growing
awareness in the world that the causes and consequences
of environmental degradation transcend boundaries and
that our future world must be one of partnership.
17

Myanmar is aware that different elements of
ecological systems are linked. It is only through an
integrated approach at the national, regional and global
levels that we can achieve sustainable development. For this
reason we have been endeavouring to contribute to the
protection and promotion of the environment at every level.
In developing countries like Myanmar, forests,
farmlands, fisheries and freshwater constitute the foundation
of development. In Myanmar we are fortunate that these
resources are abundant and are not under stress. This is
largely the result of the traditional culture that pervades
daily life. Planting trees, creating gardens and parks,
building bridges, digging wells, and providing rest houses
and monasteries are considered meritorious deeds. The
people of Myanmar love and respect nature and seek to live
in harmony with the environment. The history of Myanmar
is replete with accounts of environmental conservation
carried out by Myanmar monarchs. The ancient kings had
the vision to protect teak forests by royal decree and to
ensure systematic management of forest resources.
In the three years following the World Conference on
Human Rights, increasing emphasis has been placed on the
promotion and protection of human rights. While we can
welcome the spirit in which the question of human rights is
considered, we are seriously concerned by the growing
tendency of certain Western countries to politicize the
question of human rights and to use it as a tool to interfere
in the domestic affairs of States. We firmly believe that the
international community should take a more holistic
approach to the question of human rights and not be
preoccupied with individual rights and freedoms.
Any government, institution or individual seeking to
promote human rights should bear in mind the significance
of national and regional peculiarities as well as historical,
cultural and religious backgrounds and the stage of
economic development. In Myanmar and other developing
countries, poverty remains an effective obstacle to the full
enjoyment of those rights. For this reason we are
redoubling our efforts to ensure our peoples’ right to
development so that they can be delivered from the clutches
of poverty.
The allegations that wholesale repressive measures are
being carried out in Myanmar have never been borne out.
On the contrary, the peace and stability that now reign in
the country have allowed it to achieve significant progress.
Continued economic reform will positively affect the living
standards of all citizens. At present there is potential in
Myanmar for unprecedented peace and development and for
it to join the ranks of the fast-growing economies in its
region. The international community can do no better than
to help Myanmar by playing a constructive role.
In recent years a few countries, such as Myanmar,
have been singled out by certain countries for punitive
action. Central to any assessment of the proper course of
policy towards any country is an understanding of the
conditions that prevail there. In the case of Myanmar, first
and foremost, it should be noted that it is undergoing
important reforms. Regrettably, no credit has been given
to the Myanmar Government for bringing about political
stability and economic progress in a short period of eight
years.
The Government has initiated economic reforms
aimed at transforming the centrally planned economy into
a market-oriented one. Private investment and domestic
entrepreneurial activity have been encouraged, and the
economy has been opened to direct foreign investment.
Private-sector participation in both domestic and foreign
trade has been promoted. The economic reforms are
bearing fruit and have led to sustained growth. In the past
four years the economy recorded an average growth rate
of 8.2 per cent, resulting in increased employment
opportunities and significantly rising living standards in
the country, primarily in urban areas, where private
enterprises are flourishing, and in fertile rural areas,
where farmers have better incentive to grow and market
their produce.
Foreign investments in Myanmar today totals $4.3
billion and is expected to grow in the coming years. That
the pace of economic activity has quickened is reflected
not only within the country but abroad, where a growing
number of Myanmar representatives are taking part in
international and regional forums, including sports,
business and intellectual meetings.
We in Myanmar are aware that the best hope for a
brighter future lies in our national races joining together
to ensure the stability of the State, community peace and
tranquillity. To this end a national convention is being
held to adopt guidelines for a new State constitution, in
accordance with which a peaceful, modern and developed
nation will be built.
It should be appreciated that Myanmar is a union
composed of 135 national races from which 16 armed
groups have evolved, some dating back to 1948, the year
of our independence. It should also be noted that, despite
the magnitude of the task, the Myanmar Government has
18

succeeded in bringing back to the fold 15 out of the 16
armed groups and has established a separate Ministry for
Progress of Border Areas and National Races and
Development Affairs. Insurgency, which hindered
development for decades, is now virtually over, and all the
energy of the defence forces and the people is being
devoted to nation-building. One fact that is often
overlooked is the pervasive influence of traditional culture
in Myanmar, as a result of which leniency has been shown
to offenders. Although a number of death sentences were
handed down by civil and military courts following the
1988 unrest in the country, none has been carried out.
One factor that demonstrates our confidence in the
positive changes taking place in Myanmar is our readiness
to open our doors to tourists. This year has been designated
“Visit Myanmar Year”, and we are expecting hundreds of
thousands of visitors despite the negative campaign
launched by critics. Those who call for a travel boycott to
Myanmar should remember that tourism benefits a wide
range of people, the visitors as well as the hosts. Big hotels
and travel agencies, as well as the family-run stalls that sell
everything from hand-crafted jewellery to lacquer-ware and
wood carvings, stand to make a living. Why not encourage
tourists to come to Myanmar and see for themselves the
vast transformations taking place?
Today, as we stand on the threshold of a new
millennium, we have before us both opportunities and
challenges. At this time of important change and
transformation, the United Nations and its Member States
must strive to ensure that all nations can live in peace and
harmony. To this end, we will need a man of exceptional
skills and wisdom at the helm of the Organization in the
years ahead. We should continue to seek the best man for
the job, bearing in mind the personal skills and integrity
that the important post demands. The choice of the
Secretary-General of the Organization assumes an even
greater importance at this time, when we see increasing
resort to the threat or use of force in a manner inconsistent
with the purposes and principles of the Organization.
In conclusion, I should like to renew Myanmar’s
pledge to work with all nations to strengthen the
Organization and to achieve universal peace.


I join my colleague,
Minister Dick Spring of Ireland, who spoke on behalf of
the European Union, in congratulating you, Sir, on your
election to the presidency of the General Assembly. As a
representative with a long and distinguished career in
United Nations affairs, you are especially qualified to guide
our work in the coming year.
As the present century draws to a close, we need to
ask ourselves what shape the United Nations is in. Is it
ready to face the world that lies ahead? Is it ready to meet
the needs of generations that are still to be born? The
realities confronting us today may still be the realities of
tomorrow, and they are formidable. We are witnessing
increasing poverty, a growing rift between rich and poor,
migration, population pressure, dwindling food stocks,
hazards to public health and the environment, drugs,
terrorism, internal conflicts and wholesale violations of
human rights: a daunting litany.
In the face of these realities, to argue in favour of
reform of this Organization would be stating the obvious.
Of course we need reform. Clearly, the United Nations,
over the years, has turned into an institutional jungle
where outsiders do not venture, an organization which for
that reason alone has lost much of its credibility and
which is badly in need of revitalization. We have to
reform. There is no alternative.
We need reforms to get back what we have lost; that
is, not power, but authority. Power is wielded on many
different levels, and by some States more than by others.
There is not very much the United Nations can do to
influence Member States to make use of their power, and
the power of the United Nations itself is rather limited.
But what the United Nations was given a lot of 51 years
ago, was authority: moral authority as well as legal
authority, the kind of authority that comes with speaking
on behalf of the world community, with voicing the
public conscience and transcending vested interests.
Indeed, if this Organization is to approach the future from
a position of strength and of confidence, and if we expect
the nations of the world to rally behind the flag of the
United Nations, its authority needs to be intact. In fact, it
needs to be growing.
Well, is it growing? Here a sobering note is due. At
this critical juncture in its history, the United Nations is
seeing its authority, the one commodity it can never have
too much of, compromised and weakened; this is also the
one commodity it cannot afford to have too little of. I
would wish to highlight some of the manifestations of
how the authority of the United Nations is on the wane
and offer some prospects for shoring it up again.
First, multilateralism, as such, is under pressure.
Many States no longer regard multilateral cooperation as
a separate goal of their foreign policy, but instead as one
of many policy instruments which they can choose to
apply or not to apply in accordance with their national
interests. Alterative sources of international leadership
have sprung up, and ad hoc coalitions are formed as the
need arises. The United Nations is regarded more and
more as a vehicle for safeguarding a nation’s particular
interests, even in the short term, rather than as the
preferred avenue for solving pressing world-wide
problems. This shopping-mall attitude towards the United
Nations is in stark contrast with the lofty principles the
founding fathers signed their names to.
16

Gradual loss of authority is also caused by
disappointment and frustration. The United Nations was
once established as an ideal form of international
cooperation. Particularly after the end of the cold war,
expectations rose as never before. For decades, the world
had been dominated and the United Nations paralysed by
two power blocs at loggerheads. The United Nations could
now finally begin to play the role originally laid out for it.
Unfortunately, this did not happen. Success stories
such as the United Nations involvement in Namibia, in El
Salvador and Mozambique were overshadowed by
disappointment over the outcome of Missions Impossible
such as Somalia, Rwanda and Bosnia. That the Member
States themselves had decided to send the United Nations
on those missions could not stem the erosion of authority
that came with them.
Frustration has mounted over effectiveness and
efficiency, two qualities that have eluded the United
Nations for a long time. It would be facile to blame the
lack of them on the Secretariat alone. The grinding manner
in which the intergovernmental machinery of this
Organization works is a major factor as well.
Criticism abounds. The track record of the United
Nations is in many ways impressive, to be sure, and even
more so when we look at the broad spectrum of the entire
United Nations system. Its achievements in the fields of
international law, human rights, development, the
population crisis, health care, the position of women, labour
conditions and disarmament are just random examples. In
reality, the list is long. Yet somehow United Nations-
bashing has become the craze these days and even a tool of
campaign rhetoric, or else it serves to distract attention
from internal problems. Nevertheless, the United Nations
moral authority is sapped by the real and the imagined and
by criticism justified or unjustified.
Then there is the financial situation. From the early
days, payment or non-payment of contributions has been
indicative of the United Nations approval rating. The level
of arrears we are now facing is, however, without
precedent. Sadly, it is in large part a reflection of declining
confidence and belief in the Organization’s potential. The
present financial turmoil is not primarily the cause of the
United Nations predicament, but rather a consequence of it,
a symptom. Of course, empty coffers will lead to less
output eventually. Less output would undermine authority
even further. Less authority in turn leads to fewer
payments, which again would exacerbate the financial
crisis. And so we may see the United Nations caught in a
downward spiral. The current payment habits of some
Member States amount to a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Worse, they betray the very principles on which the
United Nations was founded. The absence of full, prompt
and unconditional payments will further erode the United
Nations authority, the same authority those very States
helped to bestow on the Organization 50 years ago.
If there is one policy area in which the United
Nations has lost much of its authority and stands to loose
even more, it is peace and security. Take Burundi. Today,
the humanitarian and political situation there is alarming.
We are witnessing a creeping genocide. Terror prevails.
In the past few months alone, thousands of innocent men,
women and children have lost their lives. An explosion of
genocide is still a real threat. We cannot allow the
occurrence of another disaster such as that which took
place in Rwanda in 1994. In that year, we claimed that
we could hardly have seen it coming. In the case of
Burundi, there will be no such excuse. The writing is
clearly on the wall. If we fail once again and a second
genocide does take place, the United Nations will suffer
its most dramatic loss of authority ever.
What can we do to enhance the effectiveness of the
United Nations and hence to help it regain the authority
it needs in order to fulfil its mandate? How can we
reverse the downward spiral?
If the United Nations is to be effective, the various
instruments at the disposal of the international community
have to be used in an integrated manner. This holds true
particularly in the area of peace and security. In this area,
political, military, socio-economic, electoral and
humanitarian assistance, as well as reconstruction and
development, will have to be applied in harmony. Hence,
an integrated approach is the only way effectively to
prevent and combat conflicts. The United Nations needs
to be on the ground when it matters and where it matters.
This is the lesson that can be drawn from recent crises in
Africa — such as in Rwanda and Somalia — where the
international response to tragic violence became
ineffective through lack of coherence.
Preventive diplomacy, on the one hand, and post-
conflict peace-building, on the other, require increased
attention. More than ever, the United Nations should
focus on the prevention of conflicts and, when conflicts
do occur nevertheless, on defusing them at an early stage.
When I addressed this Assembly two years ago, I
drew attention to the United Nations capability, or rather
17

the lack of it, to respond adequately and in a timely manner
to acute situations of conflict. Some progress has been
made since then — progress in the form of modest
intermediate steps that would in the longer run lead to a
United Nations better equipped to maintain peace and
security. Today, there is a growing number of countries that
take part in the United Nations standby-arrangements
system and in the efforts of a group of nations to establish
a United Nations high-readiness brigade under this system.
The transparency of the Security Council’s decision-making
concerning peace-operations has improved. A rapidly
deployable headquarters will soon be added to the United
Nations peace-keeping capacity.
The future of conflict prevention is linked to the
United Nations power to combat yet another threat to its
authority: impunity. Does the world community actually
have sufficient means to bring to justice those guilty of war
crimes or crimes against humanity? As the cases of Burundi
and Liberia sadly illustrate, the prospect of impunity
provides an open invitation to commit crimes without fear
of retribution and stands in the way of future reconciliation
and reconstruction. The Tribunals on the former Yugoslavia
and on Rwanda represent the single most important
endeavour of the international community since Nuremberg
to adjudicate war crimes and crimes against humanity. We
cannot let it fail. Yet the Yugoslavia Tribunal will face a
serious problem so long as it cannot gain custody of more
of the many people it has indicted. Soon, the present
circumstances will erode its authority and, indeed, that of
the United Nations as a whole.
My country feels that the establishment of ad hoc
Tribunals once again underlines the need for the speedy
creation of a permanent international criminal court. Once
this Court has been established, it will become even more
imperative that those accused of such crimes actually be
brought to trial. The United Nations should enhance its
capacity to ensure the apprehension, extradition and trial of
those so accused.
If there is one area of the United Nations where moral
and legal authority play crucial roles, it is that of human
rights. Here, the record of the Organization is impressive,
but still more can and should be done and new challenges
lie in store.
Increased attention for human rights will increase the
moral authority of the United Nations. In this regard, its
authority should rest firmly on the Universal Declaration,
adopted by this Organization in 1948
“as a common standard of achievement for all
peoples and all nations” (resolution 217 A (III),
eighth preambular para.) —
in other words, a universal framework. Forty-five years
later, in Vienna, the universality of human rights was
once again expounded by the United Nations membership
as we know it today.
Yet, universality of human rights is under pressure.
Ever since Vienna, the discussion of what is called
cultural particularities seems to have chipped away at it.
Some Governments claim that their nation’s human-rights
performance cannot be held up to the same standards as
other nations’ due to differences in their historical,
cultural and religious backgrounds.
Let us make no mistake. There are differences in the
way people look at human rights in the various regions of
the world and the ongoing dialogue in the United Nations
would be ill-served if we chose to deny that there were
any differences at all. True, religious and ethical values,
cultural backgrounds and philosophical convictions should
be borne in mind at all times and, by themselves, are
even protected by the Universal Declaration. But their
link to human rights as such and to the concept of
universality is a very particular one. The international
community has expressed it nowhere more accurately than
in the Platform for Action adopted in Beijing one year
ago. As we agreed in Beijing, rather than detracting from
the ambit of universality, cultural differences should
contribute to the full enjoyment of human rights. The
States Members of this Organization agreed in Vienna
that, regardless of their political, economic and cultural
systems, it is their duty to promote and protect all human
rights and fundamental freedoms.
Increased emphasis calls for more financial
resources. A larger part of the United Nations budget
should be devoted to human rights. This, in turn, will
enhance the moral authority of the Organization in the
eyes of the multitudes who are still deprived of their
human rights today. Letting the programme wither away
will produce the opposite effect.
The General Assembly, being the only plenary organ
of the United Nations, is the most conspicuous.
Credibility and authority are very much tied to the
Assembly’s performance. Sadly, this body sees many of
18

its resolutions ignored. We should vigorously seek to infuse
new vitality into the Assembly’s proceedings and in the
relevance of its achievements.
Two weeks ago, the Assembly effectively lived up to
its responsibility by adopting the Comprehensive Nuclear-
Test-Ban Treaty by an overwhelming majority. The
adoption of the Treaty by this world body lends authority
to the new norm outlawing nuclear testing. My country
feels privileged that it was called upon to preside over the
negotiations. Adoption of the Treaty contributes to the
ultimate elimination of all nuclear weapons, a goal to which
my country remains fully committed. We aim for a
propitious entry into force. But even in the absence of entry
into force, the authority of the United Nations will make it
more difficult for any State to act against the Treaty.
Increased attention should be given to those activities
of the United Nations which are not of a strictly political
nature or concerned with security, namely, the socio-
economic aspects and the strengthening of those parts of
the United Nations system dealing with such matters as
poverty, population, food security, urbanization, equality of
women and the environment. These areas are crucial for the
future of the world and for the quality of life on this planet.
These are also areas where the Organization is especially
qualified to identify and debate the problems and where it
has set up an impressive array of operational activities. A
series of world conferences in recent years has helped to
upgrade the authority of the United Nations system. They
have set an agenda for the United Nations and the Member
States to follow during the coming decades. The World
Food Summit in November should do the same. The
Summit faces the awesome problem of a world that may
have to feed 10 billion people by the time the United
Nations is 100 years old.
There is, of course, a risk that expectations have been
raised too high once more and that disappointment will lead
once more to loss of authority. The United Nations and its
Member States have to make sure this does not happen.
The United Nations will play a major role in the fields of
advocacy, coordination and monitoring. Although the
United Nations itself contributes to implementation through
its field operations, the Member States bear the primary
responsibility for full implementation at the national level.
Together, they can succeed in ensuring that the world
community reaches the goals it has set for itself.
The authority of the United Nations is at stake. It will
not disappear in a clap of thunder. It will die with a
whimper. It stands to fade away gradually, without at any
time making alarm bells ring, and with it, the
Organization may well slide into the margins of the world
scene. The United Nations needs a new sense of direction
and purpose to become, once again, a beacon for mankind
as intended by the authors of the Charter. That requires a
sustained effort of all Members of this Organization.
There is little time left. Let us use it well.


I should like to extend
warm congratulations to Mr. Razali on his election as
President of the General Assembly. As a close neighbour
of Malaysia, Australia will confidently rely on his
experience and sound judgement as he presides over this
important session of the Assembly.
I feel greatly honoured to be leading for the first
time the Australian delegation to a session of the General
Assembly.
A year ago, when the Assembly adopted the
Declaration on the Occasion of the Fiftieth Anniversary
of the United Nations, it made an important promise: to
give to the twenty-first century a United Nations that
would serve effectively the peoples in whose name it was
established. We must keep that promise, but to do so we
8

will need a clear view of contemporary circumstances and
of those which we can see unfolding into the twenty-first
century.
The landscape that was revealed at the end of the cold
war, just a little over five years ago, has many new
features, some of which are still not clear. What is clear,
however, is that we face new challenges and that we have
new opportunities that few of us would have imagined five
years ago.
The most compelling of these opportunities is to take
future steps in nuclear-arms control and disarmament. The
possibility of taking such steps is surely a principal
outcome of the end of the cold war. This was firmly
underlined last Tuesday when, in a single day, 67 countries
signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. That
number, only a week later, is now nearly 100. But beyond
this achievement lies another major opportunity, which is
to turn our national and international attention to enhancing
human security in all its aspects.
Our dynamic times have presented us with new
problems. Such problems include the major non-military
threats to security: the clandestine arms trade, the narcotics
trade, HIV/AIDS, the need to stabilize the rate of growth of
the world’s population and major threats to the
environment.
The elemental characteristics of such non-military
threats to security are that they cannot be defeated by
weapons. They cross state boundaries and they can affect
whole populations. These characteristics lead to one central
conclusion, that is, action on these problems must be the
subject of international cooperation.
Multilateral cooperation can, does and must take many
forms. But the role of the United Nations is unique because
of its universality and because of the rules we find in the
Charter of the United Nations.
It is for these reasons — the nature of the
opportunities we have before us, the problems we face and
the unique role and capability of the United Nations — that
we must keep last year’s promise of a United Nations fit
for the challenges of the twenty-first century.
Australia’s particular commitment to the United
Nations is founded on the belief, articulated as far back as
the 1950s by the then Foreign Minister, Richard Casey, that
the United Nations represents the practical effort of the
Governments and peoples of the world to attain the high
goals to which they are pledged through the United
Nations Charter: international peace and security and the
economic and social advancement of all peoples.
Australia has contributed readily to achieving those
goals. Whether by paying its financial contributions in full
and on time, by providing personnel to peacekeeping
operations or through its contributions to development
programmes, Australia has been determined to see the
United Nations succeed. I commit Australia today to
continuing such involvement in the work of the United
Nations.
At present, a window of opportunity in arms control
and disarmament is open to us. If we do not take it soon,
it will close. Large and sophisticated nuclear and
conventional arsenals continue to exist. In a number of
regions, suspicions remain close to the surface. The risks
of the spread of weapons of mass destruction have, in
certain respects, increased.
In Australia’s view, two tasks are fundamental: first,
building and strengthening international institutions and
instruments; and secondly, developing new thinking in
arms control and disarmament so as to push the
international agenda forward in constructive and realistic
ways.
To achieve progress with institutions and
instruments, Members of the United Nations need to work
together on at least six priorities. These priorities for
international cooperation are to make the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and its enhanced
review process operate more effectively; to strengthen the
International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards; to
achieve an early start for the Organization for the
Prohibition of Chemical Weapons; to reach early
agreement on effective verification machinery for the
Biological Weapons Convention; to pursue the goal of a
global ban on anti-personnel landmines in conjunction
with a global approach to the problem of demining; and
to achieve a ban on the production of fissile materials for
nuclear weapons.
As we pursue these priorities in the multilateral
system, we should keep firmly in mind that progress in
regional security, particularly in regions of weapons-
proliferation concern, will make a crucial contribution.
The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty is of
course the immediate priority. Its adoption by the General
Assembly and its opening for signature on 24 September
9

were major milestones for the international community. The
Treaty is a product of our times. It flows from a long and
commonly held global concern. Its death was something the
international community simply could not allow.
Australia was therefore prepared to take the lead in
bringing the Treaty to the General Assembly. The
overwhelming support for the resolution demonstrated the
strength of international feeling against nuclear testing. This
Treaty was wanted and needed, but it has also helped
change the international climate. We can now reasonably
hope and expect that nuclear testing will not be part of the
future to be faced by succeeding generations. In a world
with a mixed history on controlling the development and
spread of destructive weaponry, that is something of which
we can all be proud.
The Treaty must become universal. We urge all those
countries that have not yet done so to sign and ratify the
Treaty as soon as possible so that it can be fully
implemented as quickly as possible. There is no merit in
the argument that says that, because there is more to be
done in nuclear-arms control and disarmament, we should
in some way scorn or reject a Treaty that bans all nuclear
explosions forever. This ban has intrinsic value. We must
now keep up the positive momentum generated by the
adoption of the Treaty.
This brings me to the second task: developing new
ideas. Because building institutions and strengthening
international instruments will not be enough, the
international community must also develop imaginative new
ways of guiding the world into the next century.
The Australian Government established the Canberra
Commission on the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons to
address the questions of whether a nuclear-weapon-free
world is feasible and, if so, the measures which could be
taken to attain that objective. I am delighted to confirm that
the Commission has more than met Australia’s
expectations. Its report will make a major contribution to
international thinking and discussion on nuclear
disarmament. The Australian Government will take it
forward by circulating it today in this Hall, will present it
to the Secretary-General tomorrow and introduce it to the
Conference on Disarmament in January.
The Canberra Commission report recommends a
political commitment by the nuclear-weapon States to the
elimination of nuclear weapons. That is the first and central
requirement. The report then sets out six immediate steps:
taking nuclear forces off alert; removal of warheads from
delivery vehicles; ending the deployment of non-strategic
nuclear weapons; ending nuclear testing; initiating
negotiations further to reduce United States and Russian
nuclear arsenals; and an agreement among the nuclear-
weapon States on reciprocal no-first-use undertakings and
of a non-use undertaking by them in relation to the
non-nuclear-weapon States.
The Commission also recommends three reinforcing
steps: action to prevent further horizontal proliferation;
developing verification arrangements for a nuclear-
weapon-free world; and the cessation of the production of
fissile material for nuclear-explosive purposes. The
Commission placed particular emphasis on the importance
of effective verification in the achievement and
maintenance of a nuclear-weapons-free world.
Having at last, after 33 years, met the challenge of
the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, the
international community must now push on with further
practical and realistic measures on nuclear-arms control
and disarmament.
As already indicated, one such measure is the
negotiation of a convention under which it would be
agreed that there will be no further manufacturing of
weapons-grade fissile material. This convention should be
sought now.
Any discussion of arms control and disarmament in
today’s world that failed to address the question of
landmines would be sadly incomplete. These hideous and
diabolically inexpensive weapons must be banned.
Australia will support efforts that will be made at this
session of the Assembly to take the next step towards the
negotiation of an international convention to that effect.
But in the meantime, there are in excess of 100
million of these maiming weapons distributed in the soil
of too many countries. Demining must proceed at a far
faster rate than has been the case in the past. There have
been technological barriers to increasing that rate and
Australia has therefore proposed that a technology
working group be established among interested and
capable countries with the purpose of designing the
equipment required for demining on a far larger and
quicker scale.
If there is any doubt about the need for this action,
I would place on record here that, if the current rate of
demining in Cambodia were to be maintained, that
country, which has struggled so hard to repair itself,
10

would not be free of these mines for a further 130 years.
This must be unacceptable to all. That is why the
Australian Government recently committed $12 million to
practical demining initiatives in the war-ravaged fields
within our own region.
Security Council reform is another vitally important
item on the peace-and-security agenda. The three key issues
to be tackled are expansion, transparency and the
effectiveness of sanctions regimes.
There is now a general acceptance that the Security
Council must be expanded and modernized if it is to
manage international peace and security more effectively.
Although Australia wants to avoid making the Council too
unwieldy, there can be little doubt that its membership
needs to reflect better current geopolitical and economic
circumstances. Expanding the membership is an important
element in achieving this and Australia believes that an
expansion up to a total Council membership of 25 States
would be reasonable.
This brings me to the more contentious point of
permanent as against non-permanent membership. Australia
has made clear that it supports the claims of Japan and
Germany to permanent membership. This is the very least
the United Nations can do to acknowledge their major-
Power status and the financial contribution they are making
to the Organization.
Australia also advocates permanent seats on the
Council for underrepresented regions. As to how that is to
be achieved, we remain flexible. Whether those seats are
filled by a single member or rotate among leading Member
States agreed on by regional groupings needs to be
discussed further, primarily by those regions concerned. We
also see scope for an increase in the number of
non-permanent members of the Council, again in the
interests of ensuring greater balance in representation.
I turn now to the need for greater transparency in
Security Council processes. Consultative mechanisms have
improved in recent times, notably between the Secretariat
and troop-contributing countries, but more needs to be
done. Australia is committed to trying to improve the way
in which the Security Council interacts with non-members
so that the Council’s activities become more responsive to
the United Nations as a whole.
More needs to be done, too, to build the Council’s
relationship with regional organizations. Good progress has
been recorded to date, but United Nations and regional
organizations should meet regularly in order to develop
further the appropriate division of responsibilities.
The Council also has an important role to play in
preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction and enhancing the effectiveness of the
non-proliferation regime.
Australia wants to see improvements in the
effectiveness of United Nations sanctions because we
recognize that the Security Council’s use of collective
sanctions continues to be an important and, at times,
contentious enforcement measure. The effectiveness of
sanctions regimes could be improved in three ways:
clearer drafting of Security Council resolutions; providing
specific objectives and realistic time-frames; and through
relevant sanctions committees providing clear
interpretative guidance on implementation. These are
changes that are essential for the Security Council’s
dynamism. We need to press ahead with them to ensure
that the Council reflects modern-day circumstances and
realities.
Our contemporary circumstances have opened up
new needs and prospects for peacekeeping and preventive
diplomacy. Initial post-cold-war hopes about the
capabilities of the Security Council have been tempered.
It has become clear that many conflicts are intractable.
Experience has taught us that it is difficult to reach
agreement on suitable approaches and to find enough
resources, particularly in the area of peacekeeping.
The Security Council must be realistic in the
implementation of its Charter responsibilities. It must
resist pressure to embark on missions before it has
completed adequate preparations, developed a focused
sense of the mission’s goals and agreed on a clearly
articulated mandate.
At this very moment, the United Nations is
confronted with major challenges in such diverse
situations as those in Cyprus, Burundi and Liberia.
Australia has been contributing personnel to the United
Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, for example, for
over 20 years and has been saddened by the recent
incidents of violence there. The time has come to resolve
that situation, which requires the assistance of all parties.
One very important area of reform for United
Nations peacekeeping is to establish an enhanced rapid-
reaction capability. There have been many proposals on
this issue, but the Australian Government believes that the
11

Canadian study, Towards a Rapid Reaction Capability for
the United Nations, contains some commendable
recommendations, including the development of a
deployable, operational-level headquarters to strengthen
planning for operations.
Australia welcomes recent moves by the Department
of Peacekeeping Operations to begin implementing
measures aimed at improving United Nations rapid-reaction
capability, but in taking these measures forward, the United
Nations should consult adequately with all Member States.
Australia is also keen to see the United Nations
develop the preventive-diplomacy agenda and it welcomes
the greater resources the Secretariat now devotes to such
activity. The Security Council, the General Assembly and
the good offices of the Secretary-General, as well as
regional arrangements and agencies, have important roles to
play in preventive diplomacy. Australia supports greater use
of Chapter VI of the Charter on the pacific settlement of
disputes. Article 33 is particularly important. The Security
Council can use it to undertake a leadership role by calling
on disputing parties to seek a solution using negotiation,
mediation and other peaceful means.
As I indicated at the beginning of this statement, one
of the chief results of the end of the cold war must surely
be an increase in our ability to turn away from military
concerns and to give a greater degree of attention to threats
to the security of individuals, as distinct from those threats
to the security of States that have dominated our thinking
in the past, important and basic though they have been and
remain.
In today’s world and in the world we see unfolding
into the twenty-first century, the security of far too many
people is threatened in ways no less immediate than the
threat of the gun. I have in mind narcotics, HIV/AIDS and
major threats to the environment. These threats cannot be
dealt with effectively by States acting alone. Sometimes
they require new international law, but more specifically
they require political will to defeat them and to foster
cooperation among nations to ensure maximum
effectiveness of action.
The United Nations is the ideal environment in which
to develop such cooperation. It is here that the world is
represented. We have here a tradition of debate, of
discussion, of identification of problems and of consensus.
We have the ability to make law when it is necessary.
Above all, we have pledged ourselves to defending and
providing a decent standard of living to the peoples we
represent.
There is also a regional role and, in that context,
Australia was pleased to have promoted the concept of a
regional HIV/AIDS ministers’ meeting at the Post-
Ministerial Conference of this year’s session of the
Association of South-East Asian Nations.
As we move towards the twenty-first century, it will
be crucial to the execution of that responsibility to ensure
that we have a healthy United Nations that is devoted to
international cooperation aimed at defeating the major
non-military threats to the security of the human family.
These threats are tragically evident to us today. They will
only become larger if we do not agree, now, to begin
cooperative action to defeat them. History will surely
judge our generation harshly if, having identified the
problems of human security, we fail for lack of will to
address their solutions.
Another great requirement of our times is the
economic needs of people and the promotion of
development. Much has been done through the United
Nations and its agencies to advance the development
cause. They have been pivotal to the emergence of a
multilateral approach in which institutions with special
competencies such as the specialized agencies, the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank,
together with policy deliberative bodies such as the
General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council,
have complementary roles to play.
Development is about more than just economic
growth, however. There is also the need for internal
stability, sound environmental management, a vigorous
civil society and a lively democracy. The United Nations
is uniquely placed to build consensus on how to advance
these various elements of the development agenda.
In this context, Australia welcomes the constructive
outcomes achieved at the ninth session of the United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD) held in Midrand, South Africa, earlier this
year. The decisions taken there should help developing
countries benefit from the opportunities of economic
globalization.
We also underline the importance of encouraging
investment and technology transfers and providing trade
opportunities to stimulate economic development. Such
1

development is the only enduring foundation for
independence and economic and social well-being.
It is in Africa that these development challenges are
most stark. Rich in promise yet wearied by emergencies,
Africa stands today at a decisive juncture in its history.
African leaders seized the moment with the
Organization of African Unity’s 1995 Cairo Agenda for
Action, in which they called for immediate action to
implement the development strategies for which an
international consensus now exists. The United Nations
responded this year with the launch of a 10-year,
$25 billion United Nations System-wide Special Initiative
for Africa.
The Australian Government welcomes the Special
Initiative as a concrete demonstration of the international
community’s concern with Africa. The international
community cannot allow disease, poverty, war and
underdevelopment to become entrenched in the 53
nations — almost one-third of United Nations Member
States — that make up the African continent.
The world must continue to seek ways to break the
poverty cycle in Africa so that its potential for economic
development is realized. Sustainable economic development
is essential to overcome poverty, disease and conflict.
The United Nations system needs to give greater focus
and impetus to the development effort in Africa.
I now turn to the issue of human rights. Human rights
are important in international relations for two main
reasons: first, political instability and major conflict can
result where human rights are breached or are under threat;
and secondly, the freedom and dignity of individuals is, in
itself, of fundamental value to the world community.
The Australian Government aims for practical
outcomes that will improve the lives of individual men,
women and children. We recognize the importance of
dialogue and cooperation, based on mutual respect. In
addition to public and private diplomacy, Australia’s
approach to the improvement of human rights also
encompasses development cooperation.
Australia strongly supports the development of strong
and independent national human rights institutions. For
example, Australia provided financial support for a
workshop of Asia-Pacific national human rights institutions,
which agreed to establish an informal forum to work for the
strengthening and further development of such institutions
in the region. Australia has also provided financial
support to the United Nations for the creation of a
position of special adviser to the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights on national human
rights institutions.
Finally, it is important to address the issue of reform
of the United Nations. Much work still needs to be done
to bring about greater efficiency and effectiveness in the
United Nations and its specialized agencies.
While Australia applauds the dedication and hard
work of the General Assembly Working Groups that were
set up in 1995, Member States must not lose sight of the
fact that to achieve real change, the Groups have to come
up with realistic and achievable recommendations. Those
recommendations must in turn lead to practical and
measurable outcomes.
It is important that the work of the groups be
focused and that their momentum be restored so that early
and positive outcomes can be achieved. We must all
commit ourselves to this end and to bringing about
structured change within the United Nations.
It is also crucial that the financial situation of the
United Nations be repaired. Australia believes that all
Members should pay their contributions in full and on
time. We therefore welcome recent moves by some
countries to pay their arrears.
It is time to establish a revised scale of assessed
contributions that more fairly reflects what Governments
can pay. The current minimum payment is too high for
many small-economy countries, and Australia would like
to see it reduced or even removed.
These are the reforms that Australia believes are
necessary to equip the United Nations for its role in the
twenty-first century.
It is in this overall context that Australia is deeply
committed to contributing to the United Nations goal of
maintaining international peace and security in an active
way. Serving a term as a non-permanent member of the
Security Council during 1997-1998 would enable
Australia to make a substantive contribution to that goal
and to work for a more effective, modernized and
transparent Council. That is why we have asked for the
support of Member States at the elections to be held a
few weeks from now.
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Let me conclude by summing up what I have said
today. The United Nations is unique and needed, but it
must pursue, and work on the basis of, a relevant Agenda.
This is the central point. The United Nations must be put
to work on the agenda of the twenty-first century.
Much work needs to be done to tackle the key
challenges that face the United Nations. Only a sustained,
cooperative effort among all Member States will bring
success. Australia will make that effort.


It is an honour for me, on behalf of
Paraguay, its people and its Government, to wish the
President of the General Assembly, Ambassador Razali
Ismail, every success in his endeavours. We wish also to
emphasize the excellent work accomplished by President
Diogo Freitas do Amaral, who tirelessly led the proceedings
of the past session.
For Paraguay, the United Nations is a form that has
guaranteed the free debate of ideas and the participation of
all without discrimination or exclusion. For a long time, the
United Nations has been the mandatory beacon of our
nations when their essential rights were threatened. For
Paraguayans, the fundamental rights of men and women,
one of the pillars of the United Nations, are today vital —
and not just rhetoric — in the search for world peace,
freedom and security, which only democratic civilian
Governments can guarantee.
The new historical reality we face — knowing
immediately what happens elsewhere in the world and
within or countries — means that we all must share a
greater responsibility and solidarity. The globalization of
today’s world is such that a problem besetting one nation
is not an isolated matter, but rather one that must be
considered by all.
This is why we will have to rethink the age-old
question of what path all men and women should take.
While we belong to diverse ideologies and cultures, we
must nevertheless secure equality, rights and freedoms.
Our contributions and suggestions for strengthening
the Organization and adapting it to the new realities of
today’s world therefore are made in the spirit of
cooperation. This is why we request that the reforms to
be adopted in the framework of the United Nations be
aimed at reducing its fragmentation in order to make it a
more functionally integrated structure. Such reform will
make possible more fluid communication and much more
efficient coordination. This is why we insist on reform to
eliminate unnecessary costs through the consolidation of
the programmes aimed at the harmonious development of
our peoples, and to rationalize and optimize existing
resources in order to avoid the duplication of human or
economic efforts.
The Government of Paraguay, aware of its
international commitments, has made enormous efforts to
fulfil its financial obligations to the United Nations. In
this regard, we send out an appeal for payments of
assessed contributions to be made within established
deadlines in order to ensure the operation of the
Organization. The principle of equity so requires this.
We must also state that Paraguay’s position on the
reform of the United Nations is clear with respect to the
General Assembly. We consider this body not only a
model of democratic decision-making, but also — given
its high degree of universality and free exchange of
ideas — the most important organ of the system. We
support the expansion of the Security Council, which
requires a larger number of permanent and non-permanent
members on the basis of equitable geographic distribution.
In this connection, we support the view that Latin
America should be represented among the permanent
members, in addition to countries such as Germany and
Japan. Paraguay maintains that the exercise of the veto
should evolve towards innovative mechanisms that would
be used more objectively.
Programmes that make sustainable economic
development possible constitute another aspect the system
must take into account. Our country is promoting a social
13

market economy, free and respectful of private initiative,
but without disregarding the share of responsibility borne
by the Government. We therefore view with satisfaction the
leading role of the United Nations in the field of sustainable
human development. In this connection, we wish to
underscore the binding conventions on the environment, the
commitment made by 118 Heads of State and Government
to put an end to poverty, unemployment and social
marginalization, the important results achieved at Habitat II
and the Midrand Declaration of the ninth session of the
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
We particularly endorse paragraph 17 of that
Declaration, which states that
“The lack of territorial access to the sea,
aggravated by remoteness and isolation from world
markets, imposes serious constraints on the overall
socio-economic development efforts of the land-locked
developing countries.” (TD/377, para. 17)
As such, those countries require sufficient international
cooperation to maintain and improve their transportation
and commercial-exchange infrastructure.
Having signed the aforementioned conventions and
having participated in the aforementioned conference, the
Paraguayan national Government adopted concrete measures
to implement the provisions of the plans of action that
emerged from those meetings. Thus, following the mandate
of the World Summit for Social Development, a secretariat
for social action was established at the ministerial level,
reporting to the presidency of the Republic. Its fundamental
purpose will be to prepare public policy on social projects
and to coordinate the actions of the Government and civil
society in order to improve our people's standard of living.
We have also prepared a strategic plan to improve
education, in conjunction with the educational reform
currently being implemented by the national Government.
We have also devised a map of basic needs — which is
also known as poverty mapping. We have carried out a
household survey covering not only urban, but also rural
areas. We are at the moment preparing a system of social
indicators and social expenditures.
Furthermore, a year after the holding of the Fourth
World Conference on Women, the public and private
sectors at large have been made keenly aware of its
Platform for Action, thus fortifying policies relating to
gender.
I wish to express my Government's deep gratitude to
the United Nations system, and particularly to its
Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, who has
constantly and tirelessly helped us work towards the well-
being of the people of Paraguay.
We are aware that our age is marked by unusual
characteristics. Contemporary history defines us
differently. Concepts have changed. Today we speak more
positively and effectively about integration, cooperation
and complementarity. The time of sterile confrontation is
behind us. This is a time of solidarity and of reciprocal
and diverse cooperation; constructive and creative
interdependence is the key to our daily coexistence.
Today's world needs not only a new economic order,
but also a new international cultural order. Science,
knowledge and technology must be our universal heritage.
An awareness of solidarity is the way for which human
beings to understand themselves and others. We should
see that without this understanding of others we are
insufficient, incomplete and lacking in humanity. Genuine
comprehensive development requires the cooperation of
all the men and women who inhabit this world. Only in
that way will development as a human right, with the
blessing of the Organization and with our strong support,
find its full meaning and its place in history. Either we
remedy our circumstances or we sink in them.
However, the disappearance of the rivalries of a
bipolar world has, unfortunately, not meant the end of
conflict. Throughout this year, we have seen ethnic and
nationalistic confrontations that have given rise to
overwhelming human crises that have cut down innocent
lives, destroyed property and — still more seriously —
brought about the loss of the value of coexistence. In this
state of affairs, Paraguay hopes that the military
confrontations that spill the blood of nations and violate
the right to live will very soon come to an end. We
encourage the consolidation of the peace process in the
former Yugoslavia and the resumption of the peace
process in the Middle East in order to find a just and
lasting solution in that region.
Our country also hopes that efforts will continue
towards the resolution of conflicts in Rwanda and
Burundi in order to bring about peace and stability in the
Great Lakes region. Paraguay views with satisfaction the
achievements made in Angola, and we hope that the
Organization of African Unity will continue to play an
important role in the prevention and settlement of
conflicts in Africa.
14

Paraguay notes with great satisfaction the results
achieved by the United Nations through its peace-keeping
Missions in Haiti, its observers in Nicaragua and
El Salvador and its verification Mission in Guatemala,
which has achieved major success recently. Paraguay is in
favour of continuing increasingly to promote the
mechanisms of preventive diplomacy and, above all, of
peace-keeping. Similarly, the Republic of Paraguay
welcomes the spirit of reconciliation manifested by the
Government of the Republic of China. We hope that a
dialogue will be established to resolve the situation with the
People’s Republic of China.
Now more than ever before, stability and peace are the
challenge. It is imperative to build a multipolar world to
guarantee the equitable development of nations and peoples.
Equity should be the cornerstone of universal harmony. In
this spirit, we trust that our Organization’s actions for
disarmament and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons will
prove effective and will strengthen our battle against all
threats to peace and world security. Faithful to this purpose,
Paraguay co-sponsored the resolution on the Comprehensive
Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, which was adopted by the
General Assembly last 10 September. We encourage all
Member States of this great Organization to sign the Treaty,
as I did a few days ago as Minister for Foreign Affairs of
Paraguay. We urge that the Treaty be promptly ratified so
that it may enter into force.
Almost 50 years ago, on 10 December 1948, the
General Assembly adopted and proclaimed the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. Thus did mankind achieve
one of its most precious goals: a Declaration of rights for
which peoples and nations, individuals and societies, had
always fought. In Paraguay today, we firmly believe that
we have learned the hard lesson of living in peace,
democracy and pluralism. The era of oppression and of a
lack of basic freedoms, economic backwardness and
cultural isolation is past. It is part of a sad history that we
will remember only so as not to repeat it. The democracy
we are building today, with the active participation of our
citizens and the solidarity of the international community,
is part of an irreversible process.
Of course, barely four months ago, a small group,
nostalgic for authoritarianism, tried to turn back the clock.
But thanks to the prompt support of friendly nations and to
the spontaneous and courageous action of young people
who took to the streets to defend the democratic process,
we were able to abort a military adventure that could have
caused irreparable damage to our country. Fortunately, our
country is today moving straight towards a strengthening of
all its freedoms and towards democratic stability in its
political system.
We are greatly pleased that Paraguay was able to
overcome its institutional crisis with the weapons of
democracy. The threat of force against our institutions
was combated with our democratic beliefs. The
Government averted the danger without resorting to any
measures in violation of the Constitution or our laws.
Even at the most difficult times, we maintained freedom
of the press. No citizen was imprisoned and no
emergency laws were decreed. Our victory was based on
our belief in political pluralism and the right of dissent.
Thus, the calm and decisive action of the President of the
Republic of Paraguay, Juan Carlos Wasmosy, restored the
autonomy of civilian rule. We stopped being a democracy
under the protection of military power and became a
civilian democracy, free from interference or pressure
from outside forces.
Having made this historic, political step, the
Government and the people of Paraguay are deeply
grateful to the Member States of this Organization for
their support during that delicate crisis. In particular, we
are grateful to the Security Council for its clear and
unflinching support of Paraguayan democracy. This
support further strengthened our faith in the United
Nations efforts to maintain democratic political
institutions, freedom, peace and international security.
Paraguay's foreign policy is based primarily on
regional economic integration, at the centre of which is
the Southern Cone Common Market (MERCOSUR). We
are convinced that the Latin American integration process
is the key to our country’s integration into the world
economy and to the consolidation of our democracy.
Following this policy, we have undertaken many activities
with a view to expanding the links between our internal
market and international economic processes.
Another important element has been the frontal
attack on international organized crime. The task is not
easy. For years political and economic corruption were
the modus operandi of the dictatorship. None the less, the
Government of Paraguay is committed to fighting the
scourge of drug trafficking and money-laundering. We
encourage the public, national and foreign alike, to report
irregularities worthy of investigation, inspection or review
so as to eliminate the sources of corruption. With its new
attitude of political transparency, the Government has sent
a draft bill to the National Congress which defines and
aims to suppress the crime of money-laundering,
15

including the laundering of profits from the illicit sale of
narcotics, psychotropic substances and dangerous drugs. A
national drug-control plan is also being drawn up.
Fifty years after the establishment of the International
Court of Justice in The Hague, my country — fulfilling the
promise President Wasmosy made last year to the General
Assembly — yesterday deposited with the Secretary-
General of the United Nations the instruments of acceptance
of the jurisdiction of the Court. This decision is one further
commitment on my country’s part to the universal society
in which we believe. As Minister for Foreign Affairs of my
nation, I will always remember having been the vessel of
this historic decision. We also reiterate, as a land-locked
country, the importance of the Convention and the reforms
to the Convention on the Law of the Sea. We express our
faith in the principle of the universal heritage of mankind
through our presence as a member of the council of the
International Seabed Authority.
Here at the beginning of the fifty-first session of the
General Assembly of the United Nations, as Minister for
Foreign Affairs I would like to take the liberty of making
a declaration of faith. Too young to have known the
founding, the first achievements, the main crises, the
changes and the development of the institutions of the
United Nations, I belong to a generation destined to play a
role in the twenty-first century.
When I was born, the human rights covenants had
already been written, the environment was already a
concern for all peoples, and the universal diplomatic
conventions and legal system of treaties were already in
place. Such is our world at the end of the century. Thus, in
supporting reform, Paraguay believes that it is necessary to
mention through me that there is one thing that we will not
be able to change: our purposes and goals, which we must
preserve for future generations.
We will reaffirm time and time again the equality of
nations, large and small, and the importance of creating
conditions for the rule of international law. Here in the
General Assembly, the soul of the United Nations,
representing a young nation which has yet enjoyed 200
years of independence and speaking before age-old peoples
and cultures, I reaffirm mankind’s utopia: a common belief
renewed that we can affirm this forever to be our home.