Before beginning my
statement, may I on behalf of the Government and the
people of Malta express our profound solidarity with the
Government and the people of India and with the families of
the victims of the massive earthquake which has claimed the
lives of thousands and left tens of thousands injured and
homeless.
Mr. President, I wish to congratulate you on your
unanimous election to the presidency of the forty-eighth
session of the General Assembly. You bring to this
important post a wealth of professional experience and
personal qualities which will undoubtedly make their mark
in the coming weeks and months.
In recent years the office of the presidency of the
General Assembly has reasserted its rightful role and
relevance in the light of the momentous events that are
occurring in our time. We have always considered the
presidency of the Assembly as relevant to the structure and
performance of our Organization. The role of the President,
in our view, should be not only to preside over the
Assembly, but also to represent it and to speak on its behalf
on the basis of its decisions and resolutions.
The United Nations system, with the General Assembly
at its very centre, is increasingly becoming the effective
focal point of international life, as its founders intended.
The responsibilities entrusted to the presidency of the
Assembly in this context are therefore both challenging and
unique.
You are, Mr. President, taking over your new
responsibilities from a predecessor who accomplished his
task with resourcefulness and success. I wish to take this
12 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
opportunity to express our appreciation to outgoing President
Ganev for his contribution to the revitalization process of the
General Assembly. Earlier this year President Ganev visited
Malta on the occasion of the conference we sponsored
jointly with the United Nations on the subject of Foreign
Ministries in transition.
Within this context, may I welcome those States that
joined our Organization during the forty-seventh session,
adding a further dimension to the global representation and
responsibilities of the General Assembly. When the United
Nations was founded 51 States were signatories to the
Charter. Today membership of the United Nations has
reached 184.
Circumstances have changed, roles have changed and
personalities have changed. However, the fundamentals of
this Organization remain unaltered. Though situations may
at times tempt us to re-invent the wheel, the requirements of
the United Nations are evolutionary in concept, answering to
the dynamism of world events, calling for our response to
altered situations. This makes it impellent to move towards
a second-generation United Nations which is strong in its
resourcefulness and sensitive to the need for its own
revitalization.
A review of some of this year’s international events
reflects the acceptance of the United Nations as a guarantor
of peace, able not only to withstand problems as they arise,
but also to absorb its own failures and mistakes.
Events in former Yugoslavia reflect not only the
legacies of a past still present, but also the difficult nature of
bringing the parties to an agreement at the negotiating table
when so much blood has been shed, so much suffering
inflicted and crimes against man’s most cherished values
committed.
Operation "Restore Hope" in Somalia did not fully
realize this hope. Indeed, a series of events and mishaps has
contributed to the loss of life of valiant soldiers of the
United Nations peace-keeping forces as well as the lives of
many members of the civilian population. A message of
incomprehension has taken over the city of Mogadishu.
Developments in Cambodia, on the other hand, are a
positive manifestation of the growing effectiveness of the
United Nations in its peace-keeping role - an area to which
the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, has
dedicated so much energy and commitment to ensure the
well-being of so many millions living under the threat of
conflict.
The signing of the declaration of principles by the
Israelis and the Palestinians is a rainbow for the Middle
East. It could well lead to a covenant of peace, breaking a
circle of hatred and the legacy of death which has lasted for
decades.
"I believe that these two peoples, victims of the
adversities of history, require the solidarity and
involvement of all who can help in moulding events
towards peace in the region." (A/45/1000, para. 95)
This was one of the conclusions that I drew in reporting
back to the Assembly, as its President, following my visit to
the occupied territories in those bleak days of the first weeks
of January 1991. I commented that
"The Arab-lsraeli conflict has a dimension which
goes far beyond the territory of Palestine. It involves
not only the States in the region, the security concept
of the Mediterranean, the relations with Europe and the
super-Powers, but it also has an effect on the credibility
of the United Nations and the political will behind its
resolutions." (ibid, para. 89)
At the time we tried to explain to both the Israelis and
the Palestinians that living in peace with one’s neighbour
brings that international environment, with secure and
guaranteed frontiers, that all States in the region, including
Israel, need so much to safeguard their future. In conclusion
I stated that the purpose of the visit - the first ever by a
President of the Assembly -
"was intended to pave the way for those who,
conscious of their political responsibilities, can help in
contributing towards a lasting peace, which will give to
the peoples in the region man’s most coveted gift;
peace in freedom." (ibid, para. 98)
One must give credit, in this context, to the receptive
understanding of the then Secretary of State James Baker,
with whom I had discussed my visit shortly after my return.
With consummate diplomacy, he activated the Madrid
process, leading to a dialogue approach long absent between
the parties.
The leaders of Israel and of the Palestinians have
shown moral courage which will, when pursued, send a
message of hope not only to the peoples of the region but to
many others who have endured long conflicts and seek the
road to peace.
Forty-eighth session - 1 October l993 13
Developments in South Africa have also been
encouraging. Important progress has been made in
dismantling the condemned policy of apartheid and in
bringing together the various communities. Malta is pleased
to see that this progress has reached the stage at which
South Africa can fully return to the fold of the international
community as a respected member, mindful of its obligations
both at home and abroad. We agree that the lifting of
economic sanctions at this stage can and should encourage
and assist the people of South Africa in completing their
journey on the difficult road to genuine freedom, dignity and
justice.
The approaching fiftieth anniversary of the United
Nations provides an ideal opportunity for the international
community to take an in-depth look at the means at its
disposal in carrying out its endeavours for peace, security
and prosperity. This anniversary must be seen as an act of
regeneration. It will highlight the universal richness and
diversity of an institution which now encompasses practically
the whole of mankind; it will rightly bring to the fore its
qualities of resilience and perseverance, which have been
tested and demonstrated time and again over the half
century; it will rightly recall the successes achieved over the
years, in spite of often daunting difficulties; and it will salute
the many individuals who have faithfully served, and
continue to serve, a few with great visibility and
prominence, most others quietly and silently, out of the
limelight.
The process of regeneration must apply both to
institutions and to objectives. Central to the institutional
aspect is the role of the General Assembly. As past
President, I remain personally deeply involved and
committed to the revitalization of this Assembly. Even
today, the international community has yet to fully exploit
the uniqueness and relevance of the General Assembly. This
is the only global forum where all States are full and
permanent Members; where all States, regardless of size,
power or wealth, have an equal and sovereign say; where all
issues, political, economic, social, cultural or humanitarian,
can be considered in their entirety and their inter-relatedness;
and where the process of decision-making is at the same
time a process of consensus-building.
The Assembly is not, and cannot be seen as, in a
contest or competition with any other organ of the United
Nations system. Its role is unique and pre-eminent, and its
deliberations can only facilitate, enrich and, as appropriate,
consolidate the decisions of other organs.
Some progress has already been achieved in improving
the efficient functioning of the General Assembly. The
recent adoption of resolution 47/233 is the most recent and
welcome development. We must of course constantly
remind ourselves that there has to be a clear purpose behind
moves towards efficiency. In the case of the General
Assembly, the purpose lies essentially in enhancing the
effectiveness and relevance of its deliberative and consensusbuilding role, thus adding to its capacity to follow up and
implement its decisions.
Mr. Fajardo Maldonado (Guatemala), Vice-President,
took the Chair.
The size, composition and methods of operation of the
Security Council have in recent years become subjects of
intensive debate and sometimes speculation. The Council is
a unique tool in the search for peace and security. It is a
blend of the idealistic and the pragmatic; it is at one and the
same time a deliberative and a functional organ. The lifting
of the cold war’s constraints has had a most visible and
creative impact, releasing and galvanizing the Council’s
peacemaking and peace-keeping roles. Efforts to enlarge the
Council and expand its functions must come within the
framework envisaged for the Council under the Charter.
However, Malta shares with all other United Nations
Members the legitimate expectation of transparency and
objectivity as the hallmark of the Council’s work.
The Council must remain conscious of the impact its
decisions, especially the imposition of sanctions, could have
on third parties. It is important to link the application of
sanctions to a compensatory system for those countries
which, through no fault of their own, have to bear the
burden and pay the price of sanctions. When deciding to
deploy United Nations forces, the Council must also be
conscious of its responsibility for the safety and well-being
both of the forces it deploys and of the inhabitants of the
areas concerned. In all its actions, the Council must be
inspired by the fundamental peacemaking dimension of its
mandate and by the Charter’s emphasis on the peaceful
settlement of disputes.
One of the important objectives of any enlargement of
the Council’s membership must be to ensure balance and
equity in its composition in terms of the present level of
United Nations membership. Account must be taken of
regional and geographical considerations; of the need to
create reasonable opportunities for all United Nations
Members to take their turn in serving on it; and of
considerations relating to the size and status of individual
United Nations Members.
14 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
An aspect that requires redefining in its application is
that of regional responsibility for peace-keeping under
Chapter VIII of the Charter. At the Conference on Security
and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) Helsinki Follow-Up
Meeting, Malta’s proposal that the CSCE declare itself the
regional arrangement in the sense of Chapter VIII of the
Charter was endorsed by the Helsinki Summit II. We think
that through similar arrangements at the regional levels,
peace-keeping operations may be more efficiently and
economically dealt with by countries which, because of their
regional obligations, can assume further responsibilities.
This trend has already been manifesting itself in recent
years, and one can only hope that it will be further applied
and consolidated.
We believe that the concept of collective security
depends on the evaluation of a number of factors. This must
necessarily be coupled with an ever-increasing acceptance by
nations that investment in collective security should in part
be substituted for expenditure on national security. Within
these parameters, it is essential that nations make forces
available for peace-keeping purposes and ensure that they
are adequately trained. Articles 43 and 45 of the Charter,
which have never yet been applied, must be examined to see
to what extent they respond to today’s needs.
The concept of human rights has to continue to prevail
in our discussions. Malta supports the proposal of having a
United Nations high commissioner for human rights.
We consider the recent establishment of the
International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons
Responsible for Serious Violations of International
Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former
Yugoslavia to be a pledge that heinous crimes against
humanity will not remain unpunished. However, we believe
that the establishment of an international criminal court with
jurisdiction to try crimes against humanity, war crimes,
international terrorism and global traffic in narcotics will
provide an institutional concept for dealing with the
international dimension of such offences.
In examining the institutional structure of the United
Nations, we are repeatedly struck by the continuing absence
of a capacity within the system to deal globally and
comprehensively with the multiple issues of development.
Over the last five decades the Bretton Woods
institutions have played a major role in the areas of money
and finance. However, a more significant relationship must
be built between the United Nations and these institutions.
The central capacity originally envisaged for the
Economic and Social Council to bring together the
underlying issues common to all the various facets of the
development debate has remained equally elusive. This
applies particularly with regard to entrenched disequilibrium,
to the availability and allocation of financial resources, to
technical assistance and to the far-reaching and often very
sensitive aspects of sustainable development.
Within the context of the concept of a secondgeneration United Nations we have made a proposal to
activate further and give an added role to the Trusteeship
Council. The Council has served the Organization in dealing
with Territories in its trust, most of which are today valid
Members of the United Nations. Its present diminished
relevance is in fact a reflection of its own success. Yet the
concept of trusteeship lies at the very core of the United
Nations.
We believe that the Trusteeship Council should hold in
trust for humanity areas affecting common concerns and
common heritage. It could have a monitoring function on the
protection of the environment, extraterritorial zones, climate
and - of paramount importance - the rights of future
generations. These we hold in trust for humanity, and the
Trusteeship Council can be the depositary.
Malta has always seen its active involvement and
participation at the regional level in Europe as an
indispensable dimension of its role as a member of the
international community. We have consistently defined our
objective of becoming a member of the European
Community as a logical and natural culmination of our
European vocation. This definition is rooted in Malta’s
political, social and economic realities, as they have been
shaped by our historical and cultural heritage.
Malta has also consistently played an active role in the
other European institutions which, together with the
European Community, have contributed to the formation of
a modern European consciousness. We see our role in the
Council of Europe and in the CSCE as an expression and
reinforcement of our deepest commitment to the dignity and
freedom of the individual in society. We attach equal
importance to the value of democratic principles and
parliamentary practices, respect for sovereignty and mutual
understanding between nations, respect for legality at both
national and international levels and the need for improved
international cooperation relating to both security and
development.
Forty-eighth session - 1 October l993 15
It is only natural that Malta attaches relevance to the
Mediterranean region, a region suffering the turmoil of
problems in its midst. The importance of having its
environment safeguarded, the relevance of its sea routes and
its strategic role in linking three continents are all factors
with consequences which go far beyond the boundaries of
the region. Aware of this, Malta has shown continued
interest and involvement in promoting Mediterranean
cooperation. We have supported the idea of a conference on
security and cooperation in the Mediterranean, and we have
proposed the establishment of a council for the
Mediterranean to be a forum for political, economic and
social dialogue for the region.
It was stimulating to hear President Clinton speak from
this podium of dreaming
"new dreams in this age when miracles seem possible".
(A/48/PV.4)
We all have our dreams for the future. Countries, large and
small, rich and poor, dream of a future based on the
betterment of peoples, international solidarity, mutual
understanding and peace - peace in freedom. We who have
the responsibility of guiding nations have to dream beyond
the confines of our States and start genuinely believing in
the brotherhood of man. We have to think that frontiers are
not barriers, but signposts leading to a break-up of longstanding prejudices and great divides.
In this age when miracles are possible, when man has
conquered space, let us dream of yet other miracles: that the
1.1 billion people living in extreme poverty will have their
daily bread; that the slaughter of the innocents, the tens of
thousands of children dying every day because of
malnutrition and lack of adequate medicine, will stop; that
the millions of refugees who wander from camp to camp,
uprooted from their milieu, will return to their homes; that
the billions and billions of dollars spent on weapons of
destruction will be dedicated to hospital research to
safeguard life; and that learning will be extended to all and
that the dignity of work will be denied to none.
These dreams of miracles can come true. They are not
just dreams. The political will of the international
community and the dedication of many people to this cause
can turn dreams into reality.
This is our agenda for peace. We can turn it into an
agenda for peoples.


Throughout the half century of
its history the United Nations has never rallied a greater
number of Member States and has never played a more
prominent role in global and regional international relations,
than it does today, and it has never borne the brunt of such
problems as it bears today. This, the forty-eighth session of
the United Nations General Assembly, is being held in an
atmosphere of great hope and of even greater commitments
facing the Organization which, in this post-cold-war time,
following the historical collapse of communism and
multinational State communities in Europe, is becoming the
cardinal guardian of global peace and security.
The fall of Soviet and other European Communist and
totalitarian systems has reinforced hope and provided the
prerequisites for the comprehensive democratization of the
world while simultaneously raising the question of what kind
of multilateralism is required and possible in the
contemporary world. Of no lesser importance is the question
of the new role of the United Nations at a time when many
new States are coming into being and when the
strengthening of global peace is becoming the fundamental
ideology of mankind. The United Nations must shoulder the
responsibility for a more equitable global order to take hold
in every corner of the world. But, in order to achieve this
goal, one must thoroughly review multilateral mechanisms
as well as the activity of international organizations under
conditions of the emergence of many new States, the end of
bipolarity and the strengthening of the polycentric foundation
of the world.
The process of disintegration of the Soviet communist
system, which began with the fall of the Berlin Wall, led
towards a fundamental shift in relations, not only within
Europe, but also on a global scale. It has redirected and
drafted new American-Russian and American-European
relations. The competitive wars of the great Powers bent on
gaining influence and predominance in the Third World have
almost died away, but the focus of regional crises has now
moved to Eastern and South-Eastern Europe and to the area
of the former Soviet Union, because of the profound
political, national, social and economic changes sweeping
those areas. International factors, primarily West European
and North American countries, were taken unawares by the
depth and speed of these historical changes. Their initial
disorientation turned, subsequently, into a renewal of
dormant traditional competition for spheres of influence in
changing circumstances. On the international scene, the
ultimate result has been disunity and the inefficiency of the
most responsible international factors in dealing with volatile
regional crises, but such developments have also jeopardized
the European integration processes already under way. The
fundamental values and goals of European regional
organizations now face a serious test and a radical review of
their mission. The new system of European collective
security is yet to take hold, and the same holds true for the
system of general, global security. This is a matter of the
greatest importance because the security of small countries
has become the key to the stability of each region and of the
overall international system.
The world has been slow to accept, and slower to
understand, the changes involving the national and State
emancipation of old and new European and Asian nations,
and it has recognized their international identity with
reluctance. The world has found it hard to grasp the at-first
untenable contradiction implied in the fact that we have
entered a period, in the development of human society and
international relations, of the broadest national
individualization based on a most comprehensive
civilizational integration. Even worse, the world has not
been ready to face the difficulties and the temporarily
destabilizing consequences of such changes, which will
ultimately lead to the full democratization of international
relations.
The view that the collapse of communist systems and
of Soviet domination over nations in the Soviet Union and
Eastern Europe had resolved the problem of regional and
international stability was wrong. There was a similar lack
of understanding of the fact that the process of internal and
international democratization cannot stop at the mere
democratization of political systems, and that it also
inevitably leads to the disintegration of multinational State
formations. This was the logical sequence of political
democratization and national emancipation.
There can no longer be any doubt today about the fact
that the ever-increasing functional integration of the world
was the very prerequisite of national independence and
internal sociopolitical and international democratization.
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 7
This has only seemingly been a contradictory process.
Specifically, because of their endangered position, small
nations and their States are anxious to preserve their own
State, cultural and economic identity, and this sustains not
only the variety but also the very development of the world.
It should be remembered that positive nationalism, that is,
the national-democratic movement of oppressed nations in
Eastern Europe and of oppressed stateless nations in other
parts of the world, deserves the greatest credit for the
collapse of the communist systems.
Having achieved their national sovereignty and the
independence of their State, small nations, in their own
interest, became supporters of "civilizational" integration and
democratization. This is the reason why one of the most
important goals of the international community today should
be the successful resolution of problems affecting complete
regional and international integration of States having
emerged after the disintegration of communist systems in
former multinational States such as the Soviet Union,
Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia.
The new world order which is being created so
laboriously, but also of necessity, can no longer be based
only on the ascendancy of the anti-fascist coalition or of the
nuclear Power club. Half a century after the historic victory
over fascism, new economic and political realities have come
into being, and the countries against which the anti-fascist
alliance was directed cannot bear the liability of the past
indefinitely. Germany, Japan, Italy and the countries within
their international political spheres during the Second World
War are today democratic countries with huge developmental
power, which is also obviously beneficial to the world.
Similarly, the fundamental political and other eventful
changes taking place in Russia are transforming that country,
currently in the throes of dramatic upheaval, from a former
Stalinist threat to international peace and order into, we
hope, a constructive component of global order built on new
foundations of equality and partnership of nations and States
for the sake of mutual benefit and the stability of peace.
The balance of military blocs, weapons and ideologies
established during the cold war was only seemingly a stable
system, because it was actually founded on repression or
dependency, first of all at the expense of small States or
stateless nations. Today, to quote Secretary-General Boutros
Boutros-Ghali, "Multilateralism is the democracy of
international society." (The New York Times,
20 August 1993, p. A29, "Don’t Make the U.N.’s Hard Job
Harder")
Multilateralism, certainly! But of what kind? We must
tend towards a multilateralism that will help us - after a gory
history of strife, first between dynasties, then between States
and, finally, between imperialist or ideological-military blocs
- to avoid war between incompatible civilizations. A brutal
entanglement of these civilizational contrasts is taking place
precisely in the area of the former Yugoslavia, threatening
to polarize greater areas along the lines of separation and
conflict between civilizational-religious blocs. We should
tend, instead, to internal, regional and global relations in
which these civilizational spheres will blend productively
and reinforce their identity through peaceful competition,
instead of wasting their precious potential on mutual
confrontation and annihilation.
A new multilateralism capable of coping with the
epoch-making changes of our time also calls for a thorough
reform of the United Nations. This implies, primarily, the
strengthening of international law, but also the development
of mechanisms which will help the United Nations and its
agencies to function more effectively and to be depoliticized,
less costly and more receptive to ideas, influences and
supervision.
In particular, the role and responsibility of the Security
Council in dealing with questions concerning international
peace and stability should be given greater emphasis. Over
past years there has been considerable progress in the
operation of the Security Council, and the use of the veto
has almost become obsolete. Nevertheless, certain Security
Council decisions are still excessively influenced by the
national interests of its members, the permanent ones in
particular. Accordingly, we need a climate of cooperation
in the Security Council that will prevent its being used as an
extended instrument of the foreign policy of individual
Security Council members.
Croatia supports extension of the permanent
membership of the Security Council, which will reflect the
economic and political realities of the present-day world and
assure a balanced regional representation in the Council.
Croatia also endorses the limitation of the right and practice
of veto. The major crises of our time, such as the one in the
area of the former Yugoslavia, should be used as precious
lessons for more effective and concerted action by the
Security Council.
We also believe that a high degree of responsibility and
authority in decisions concerning the major directions of
global economic and social development should also be
vested in the Economic and Social Council, so that its
8 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
decisions, in specific areas of decision-making, would have
executive force similar to that of Security Council decisions.
Although it would be difficult to envisage the General
Assembly assuming the role of a global parliament to the
detriment of the sovereignty of Member States, a clearer
delimitation of authority among the General Assembly, the
Security Council and the Economic and Social Council
would nevertheless be required. A more articulated link
with United Nations agencies, which ought to improve their
efficiency and prevent the political blocking of certain
processes, is also necessary. However, the enhanced role of
the Security Council, which we are advocating, should not
affect the authority of the General Assembly, which is a
forum for the manifestation of the views of the vast majority
of small countries Members of the United Nations. As a
form of present-day democracy, multilateralism should
provide the foundation for the stability of the new and, in
every respect, democratic world order. However, while
striving to turn our global Organization into a most
consonant orchestra which will provide for the full
expression of the voices of all differences and contrasts,
natural-permanent and secondary-provisional ones alike, we
must never lose sight of uncontroverted historical
experience - namely, that the role and, hence, the
responsibility, of the small and the greatest components and
lines of force in international life are not and cannot be
identical throughout all events, times and circumstances.
Because of this we should continue to build global
organization on the efficient activity of the Security Council
and, within it, on the role and responsibility of its permanent
members.
The central point with reference to the efficient role of
the Security Council, and of the entire United Nations, is the
need to develop a new foundation for peace mediation.
Established in cold-war times, the mechanism was adjusted
to the need to prevent the outbreak and spread of conflict
between the blocs, or between their dependants in the third
world, with long-term freezing of conflict as the goal.
Today peace mediation requires a much more active and
flexible approach, first of all because of the need and
possibility of preventive action, but also because of a
selective use of force in the implementation of peace
agreements and Security Council decisions. The example of
my country, the Republic of Croatia, and that of the
neighbouring Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
pinpointed most exactly the two fundamental weaknesses of
the existing peace-keeping-force model and mandate. First,
the classic mandate, the freezing of the conflict by sustaining
a cease-fire, does not resolve the conflict but, rather, creates
further complications. Second, as has become manifest,
certain countries whose forces are engaged in the
implementation of the multilateral peace mandate are trying,
through the members of their peace-keeping units and
negotiation mediators, to pursue their national policies and
not the policy of the Security Council.
The reform of the overall peace-operation mechanism
requires, first and foremost, a more efficient use of
coordinated instruments of diplomatic, economic, political
and military pressure and consistency in the implementation
of the peace-keeping-force mandate. Such an approach,
which also implies the selective use of force, not only could
have prevented the escalation of the conflict in the former
Yugoslavia but also reduced peace-keeping-forces’ casualties
to fewer than have actually been the case with the present
static mandate, which does not offer adequate protection
even to the peace-keeping force itself.
In recent years extensive positive, but also negative,
experience has been acquired in the conduct of
peace-keeping operations in Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Somalia and Cambodia. It has been found that
peace-keeping forces should be more qualified and better
trained and equipped for special missions in each peace-
keeping operation. The United Nations should also have
greater authority in the sensitive conduct of peace-keeping
operations. This suggests the need for the establishment of
already well-trained and prepared national military
contingents to be available, with all their facilities, to the
global community. Under the current system, in the best of
cases several months are required for unit selection and the
provision of necessary facilities for the deployment of
peace-keeping forces in specific areas, which results in
delayed action and substantially affects the conditions of
peace-keeping-mandate implementation. It has also become
evident that regional organizations, regional military
alliances and systems in particular, can in the majority of
cases be the main and most efficient mechanism to
implement peace-keeping operations. Peace-keeping
operations are being used at an ever-increasing rate to
prevent disastrous humanitarian situations or to alleviate their
consequences, but they will still have a role to play in
political mediation and organization of the basic State
institutions, as well as in supervising political and economic
reconstruction in the initial period. Such United Nations
operations of an increasingly more comprehensive scope call
for the cooperation of the entire international community in
the implementation of regularly highly complex missions.
The international community must act through the Security
Council whenever there is obvious aggression against a
Member State, as well as in cases where international
security is seriously threatened. Selective interventionism
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 9
mainly has an adverse effect on the reputation and credibility
of the United Nations.
Economic sanctions are becoming, at an ever-increasing
rate, an instrument of international pressure in the absence
of political will to use stronger means to implement Security
Council resolutions or to protect basic interests of Member
States and promote international law standards. In our view,
sanctions can have an effect only if combined with other
instruments of international pressure and isolation.
However, what is also required is a more efficient system of
compensating those countries which subsequently have to
bear, with no guilt on their part, the burden of sanctions
against specific regimes. A more effective system is also
needed to supervise the implementation of sanctions through
the enforcement of "sanctions imposed for violations of
sanctions". In the opposite case, the sanctions, to be sure,
will have a long-term effect, but before the ultimate
objective is achieved the highest price will be paid by the
innocent population of the affected country, by people who
cannot deal by themselves with the internationally censured
regime.
The democratization of international relations and a new
multilateralism also imply a greater commitment of the
international community to the safeguarding and respect of
human rights, the punishment of the violators of
humanitarian and war law and the protection of the
ecological balance of the planet. Although we uphold the
view that the defence of cardinal rights and international law
standards cannot take precedence over the sovereignty of
United Nations Member States, regimes and individuals that
violate such rights and standards may not be allowed to hide
behind the principle of "non-interference with internal
matters of countries". Balance should be sought in
reconciling the two approaches, and the ways in which, and
conditions under which, international mechanisms can be set
in motion ought to be codified in the safeguarding of
universal human rights and interests in order to preserve
peace and the international order.
Because of its own experience - the orchestrated military
revolt of part of the Serbian population organized from
Belgrade, resulting in the occupation of one quarter of
Croatia’s territory - the Republic of Croatia supports
cooperation with the international community in the
identification and incorporation of the highest standards of
protection of the Serbian minority into Croatian legislation.
We accept international supervision of their implementation
in the interest of inter-ethnic reconciliation,
confidence-building and the future stability of the country
and the greater area.
Of course, the responsibility which the United Nations
should assume at an ever-increasing rate in crisis areas,
relief operations, protection of the environment and
assurance of balanced development, as well as in other
issues of general interest, requires vast financial resources.
It is not surprising, therefore, that the regular budget and the
financing of peace-keeping operations have assumed such
key importance among the matters to be discussed at this,
the forty-eighth, session of the General Assembly. Part of
these outlays can be reduced by a more economical use of
existing resources and by improving the efficiency of the
United Nations system itself. We should prevent United
Nations actions from becoming an end in themselves, and
avenues should also be explored towards greater
programming coordination with other organizations and
initiatives within the international system. Greater care
ought to be exercised in preventing all instances of abuse
and corruption within the United Nations system, because
they not only increase the cost but also undermine the
reputation of the global Organization.
The global community is saddled with many adversities
and crises, but the international order is nevertheless
becoming more and more settled. We are encouraged by the
fact that, after half a century of Israeli-Arab conflict, the
way has finally been paved towards more stable peace in the
Middle East. This example can also be instructive with
regard to the solution of the crisis in the former Yugoslavia.
It demonstrates the practical use and advantage of carefully
worded agreements which are possible especially when their
resolution actively involves the leading world power as well.
Such cases call on both sides for statesmanship and courage
in making concessions for the sake of peace and require
realism in the assessment of national interests with regard to
objective international circumstances and the particular
historical moment. The statesmen involved, and the
responsible officers of the global Organization, are expected
to be reasonable and principled, determined but also
moderate, in a way allowing for no narrow-minded
radicalism, but tending rather to seek the most favourable
solution for the protection of peace and the international
order.
We are also encouraged to see that conditions are being
established for the withdrawal of the peace-keeping forces
from Cambodia early next year. This gives us hope that a
similar process will also be completed in the Republic of
Croatia in the immediate future, and in Bosnia and
Herzegovina in the nearest possible future.
We welcome the evident progress attained in the
transfer of power to the black majority in the South African
10 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
Republic. We hope that the sporadic cases of racial and
political violence in that country are only aftershocks
following the major political shifts towards racial tolerance
and democratization of political life in that country. We are
convinced that the international community will also find the
means to succeed in the already initiated and then halted
process of political stabilization in Angola and Mozambique.
We also believe that resoluteness of the United Nations is
also required in the area of the former Yugoslavia, just as it
has been in Somalia, in terms of selective use of force,
protection of the peace force and assurance of relief. But in
Somalia as well, the international community must also
assume broader responsibilities in the restoration of the basic
functions of the State and in the establishment of law and
order in that country. It is obvious that differences in the
approach to the solution of problems which frustrate the
efficiency of the peace-keeping forces stem not from
operative but from political reasons.
The Republic of Croatia welcomes the efforts of the
Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe, the
European Community and the United Nations to mediate
peace in the conflicts between or within the former Soviet
republics, and we express our readiness to take part in these
peace efforts. Fortified by its own experience, Croatia will
be ready, especially after the end of the war in the Republic,
to contribute even more to the new mission of peace-keeping
operations throughout the world.
As a country of outstanding natural attractions, but also
of a very vulnerable environmental system, the Republic of
Croatia will consistently implement the commitments of the
Action Plan - Agenda 21 - the conclusions of the Conference
on the Environment and Development and the Rio
declarations.
Croatia believes that support of the programme of
sustainable development is the proper way towards the
gradual bridging of the growing developmental gap between
the North and the South, which is a permanent source of
political and social instability and ecological imbalance in
specific areas and in the world as a whole.
The crisis in the area of the former Yugoslavia is the
most difficult crisis in the world today, and it cannot be
resolved without a more determined role on the part of the
international community. Past mediation efforts have been
shown to be insufficient because they were limited by a
mandate lacking firmness, but also rendered more difficult
by the diverse political interests of individual external forces.
It has not been sufficient to try to freeze the conflict, send
in humanitarian aid and engage in empty threats, thus
allowing the crisis to deteriorate to the point where
"everybody would get tired of waging war" and then agree
to a political settlement. The initial aggression of the
Yugoslav communist army, Serbia and Montenegro, for the
conquest of Croat and Muslim territories was not countered
by determined steps, and the consequences of such a policy
have been disastrous. They have included first and foremost
the terrible destruction and "ethnic cleansing" in areas
conquered by the Serbs, and then the extension of the
conflict to the Muslim and Croat sides as well, the struggle
for the remaining territory, the incessant growth of the death
toll, and the ever swelling tide of refugees, which has now
exceeded the figure of one million agonized men, women
and children.
In the Republic of Croatia the United Nations
Protection Force (UNPROFOR) mandate achieved certain
initial results in putting a stop to fighting and providing for
the withdrawal of the Yugoslav army. However, the
mandate has been misused by the Serbian extremist
insurgents and their promoters, the Belgrade expansionists,
to freeze territorial gains, continue "ethnic cleansing," and
consolidate occupation which has assumed forms of
terrorism even at the expense of the local Serbian
population. The international community has allowed the
Serbian side to completely ignore all Security Council
resolutions and other agreements, in spite of the fact that the
modalities of resolving the conflict have been clearly and
well defined: complete cease-fire and the disarmament of
Serbian paramilitary units; the return of all refugees and
displaced persons to their homes; the normalization of traffic
and supply; the guarantee of extensive ethnic rights to the
Serbian minority within the scope of the territorial integrity
and sovereignty of the Republic of Croatia; the gradual
reinstatement of Croatian authorities and of law and order in
the occupied areas; confidence-building measures; scheduling
of elections for local self-government authorities; and
general amnesty for all persons not found guilty of war
crimes.
Owing to the lack of determination on the part of the
international community in the implementation of the
UNPROFOR mandate, the Republic of Croatia has found
itself, through no fault of its own, in a position where
pressure is being brought to bear on it, including even
threats of sanctions, because it is trying to deal with its vital
communications problems, or prevent Croatian towns from
being shelled from areas under the protection of the
peace-keeping forces. Thus, Croatia is being taken to task
for reinstating civilian traffic across the Maslenica Strait, on
which a million people in southern Croatia and parts of
Bosnia and Herzegovina depend. Croatia is first urged to
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 11
negotiate and normalize relations with Belgrade, and then
accused of doing so. Meanwhile, nothing efficient is being
done to disarm Serbian paramilitary units and to prevent
Serbian extremism and terrorism in the United Nations
protected areas.
One of the basic concepts of our policy has been the
guarantee of the most comprehensive rights for all
minorities - including of course the Serbian minority as a
whole, and particularly in the areas of Croatia in which the
Serbs constituted a majority before the war - in the interest
of the future permanent stability of the Croatian State and of
its role within the international order. However, at the same
time the Serbian insurgents must provide for the return of
hundreds of thousands of displaced Croats and other
non-Serbian citizens to their homes in the areas under the
protection of the peace-keeping forces. Belgrade must
finally recognize the Republic of Croatia and its borders, as
the whole world has already done. Croatia cannot tolerate
a situation in which the Serbian minority abuses its rights in
order to break up the Croatian State or to create the legal
framework for the secession of territories under local
self-government and their annexation to the "federation of
Serbian lands". This would mean the realization of the
Greater Serbia idea, which was precisely the underlying
motive of the present war against Croatia and Bosnia and
Herzegovina. The sanctions against Serbia and Montenegro
must remain in force until peace is achieved in Croatia, too,
and not only in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as is also provided
for by the respective Security Council resolutions. Croatia
resolutely urges the consistent and effective implementation
of all Security Council resolutions - no more, but no less
either.
Croatia has shown extreme patience within the scope of
endeavours for a peaceful settlement of the conflict with the
Serbian minority, orchestrated during the time the former
socialist Yugoslavia was disintegrating and the democratic
State of Croatia was being established. However, Croatia
cannot tolerate indefinitely the occupation of its territories,
the pressure of the hundreds of thousands of displaced
persons from Croatian areas, and a situation in which the
State is split. Croatia can no longer be forced to accept the
fourth extension of the UNPROFOR mandate if the mission
of the peace-keeping forces is not specified in more resolute
terms, and if the Serbs are not given an ultimatum to
implement the Vance Plan and all relevant Security Council
resolutions. The means used to bring about Serbian
withdrawal from Igman and Bjelasnica - military strikes -
must also be applied in Croatia.
The Republic of Croatia is not pleased with the latest
report of the United Nations Secretary-General, which
suggests the extension of the UNPROFOR mandate in
Croatia by six months, with no essential changes in respect
of the present mandate. If the UNPROFOR mandate is not
amended within the next 48 hours to ensure energetic
implementation of the relevant resolutions and other
documents of the Security Council, the Republic of Croatia
will be forced to renounce the United Nations peace-keeping
operation on its territory and to request units to abandon
Croatia not later than 30 November 1993. Maintenance of
the status quo, which is nothing but the occupation of part
of Croatian territory, and the inefficiency of UNPROFOR
are detrimental to the sovereignty of the Republic of Croatia
and to the normalization of its economic and overall life.
Croatia is prepared to resolve the key problem of its
existence by all necessary means and at any cost - by
negotiated agreement and settlement if possible, but, if
necessary, by resort to legitimate means of restoring law and
order, with full observance of laws governing war and
humanitarian affairs, in areas currently suffering the anarchy
of Serbian terrorist and paramilitary troops.
With its involvement in the area of the former
Yugoslavia, UNPROFOR has borne a great burden and has
suffered considerable casualties, operating in extremely
difficult circumstances. Croatia is grateful to all
UNPROFOR members who have performed their duty
bravely and honourably, risking their personal safety and
their lives, and helping thousands of suffering people.
Croatia does not oppose UNPROFOR, but it can no longer
tolerate the consequences of the Force’s inefficiency and its
persistent circumventing of relevant Security Council
resolutions. The implementation of these provisions will
affect not only the existence of the Republic of Croatia but
also the basic credibility of the United Nations.
By renouncing the UNPROFOR mandate, Croatia does
not close its doors to any humanitarian action or to the
possibility of a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
operation in the former Yugoslavia. On the contrary,
Croatia welcomes the readiness of NATO to assume the role
of principal guarantor of peace and stability in this part of
Europe, and will actively support its units in the
implementation of the peace settlement. We also look
forward to seeing NATO involved in the implementation of
the Vance plan. At the same time, Croatia’s door is being
opened wide to all relief and human rights organizations,
European Community monitors and UNPROFOR civilian
logistic personnel engaged in the provision of relief to the
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
12 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
International factors - I refer to the European
Community and the United Nations - have brought the
negotiations on resolutions of the crisis in Bosnia and
Herzegovina to the settlement currently proposed. It should
be remembered that the Republic of Croatia and the Croats
in Bosnia and Herzegovina were the first to support all
serious peace plans put forward by the international
community. However, the indecision and inconsistency of
the international community have allowed both the Serbian
and the Muslim representatives to reject or to flout these
plans. Even the proclamation of independence of the
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina would have been
impossible without the agreement of the Croats, expressed
through the 1992 referendum. Without the resistance put up
by the Croats, no part of Bosnia and Herzegovina would
have been defended, in the beginning, from Serbian
aggression. We were the first to recognize the Republic of
Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the first to send an ambassador
to Sarajevo. The Republic of Croatia has contributed more
to the defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to the care of
Bosnian refugees, than have all other countries combined,
and that situation continues despite the aggression waged by
the Muslim army against Croatian populated areas in central
Bosnia and against territory envisaged for the Croatian
Republic within the Union of Republics of Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
In view of past developments, there are no longer any
completely equitable and clear-cut solutions to the complex
Bosnian crisis. If peace is to be achieved, all the parties
must accept political and territorial compromise. The Croats
in Bosnia have made major concessions for the sake of
peace. They have lost the most, especially in Posavina and
Central Bosnia, where the majority of the Croatian
population used to live. They have agreed to accept
18 per cent of territory although the previous Vance-Owen
plan envisaged a share of about 27 per cent. Indeed, for
strategic, political and psychological reasons, the Croatian
side cannot agree to any further concessions.
It should be remembered that in 1948 the Croats
accounted for 23.9 per cent of the Bosnian population. That
proportion declined as a result of the pressure of the
hegemonistic policies of the Serbs and then of the Muslims.
In the search for a solution, the same principles must be
applied throughout. One might ask, for instance, why
Mostar, along with Sarajevo, is being singled out for
European Community supervision. Why not Banja Luka and
Zenica or Vare, where the Croatian population is struggling
for survival?
What about the fact that, as a result of Serbian and then
Muslim aggression, two thirds of Catholic parishes in Bosnia
and Herzegovina have been occupied or completely cleansed
of the Croats who lived there for centuries? The
international community must face facts and problems in
their entirety. It must identify ways of halting Serbian
aggression, but also means of protecting the Croatian people
from the attempts of extremists to set up a Bosnian Islamic
state, mostly at the expense of the Croats.
Nevertheless, I am pleased to report, here and now, that
hostilities between the Croat and Serbian sides in Bosnia and
Herzegovina have stopped and, in particular, that, on my
initiative and with the good offices of Turkey, political
agreement has been reached between the Croats and the
Muslims concerning the cessation of hostilities and the
provision of the prerequisites for permanent peace and
cooperation.
We believe that the purpose of peace would be served
by NATO’s energetic assumption of the chief role in
implementing the peace plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina
and in solving the problem of the United Nations protected
areas in Croatia, with the United Nations assuming
responsibility for implementation of the peace settlement.
For geopolitical, historical and economic reasons, as
well as for the sake of transport links, the Republic of
Croatia is interested in the closest future cooperation with
the Union of Republics of Bosnia and Herzegovina. By the
same token, the Republic of Croatia supports the
normalization of relations with all States that emerged
following the disintegration of Communist Yugoslavia, on
the basis of mutual recognition. This is not only in the
interests of the peoples of these States; it is also a
prerequisite for the establishment of peace and for the
creation of a stable international order in this part of the
world.


This is the first occasion on which I have had the honour to
appear before this lofty international body to speak on behalf
of my country, Paraguay. I do so with the profound
satisfaction of representing a genuinely democratic
Government that has emerged from free elections, and as the
first civilian citizen who has held the presidency of the
Republic in 39 years.
I wish to congratulate you, President Insanally. Your
election, based on your solid professional knowledge and
your long political career, is a tribute to you personally and
to your country, Guyana, which you so worthily represent.
I am pleased to recall in this context that Paraguay, since it
entered the United Nations as a founding Member in 1945,
has always championed the right to the self-determination of
peoples and the independence of political communities
which, like Guyana, came to self-government in fulfilment
of the obligations imposed by the Charter of the United
Nations.
I welcome very warmly the new Members that have
just been admitted: the Czech Republic, the Republic of
Slovakia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,
Eritrea, the Principality of Monaco, and Andorra. This
welcome is not simply a matter of protocol; it involves the
recognition of their respective Governments that I am
expressing on behalf of the Paraguayan Government.
A little more than a month ago I inaugurated my
Government with the firm resolve to strengthen our foreign
relations with all the members of the international
community, within the natural limitations set by domestic
financial circumstances and contingencies. I would now
venture to offer some thoughts for the consideration of the
General Assembly.
The new world order broke suddenly upon the world.
The bipolar structure of power has now ceased to exist, and
the change has taken place peacefully. Paraguay has
changed in the same way and with the same rhythm. Today
the Paraguayan people is the champion of its own destiny
and the will of the people prevails. We live in a condition
of respect for human rights, a market economy and State
reform. We have successfully and peacefully carried out
extraordinary reforms in the political, economic and social
fields without external assistance, relying solely on our
citizens’ faith and aspiration to live in peace, with justice
and freedom.

The Government of Paraguay respects freedom and
promotes justice; it is striving to widen the opportunities for
human development and well-being.
Economic activity, and in particular the market
economy, cannot exist in an institutional vacuum. On the
contrary, a security system must be established that ensures
the fiscal integrity of all persons, individual initiative and the
inviolability of private property, through a stable monetary
system and efficient public services.
The priority of the Paraguayan Government is to
guarantee this security, this stability and these services, so
that those who wish to work and produce can enjoy the
fruits of their labour and feel motivated to do their work
honestly and efficiently.
The Paraguayan people is now aware that it has
triumphed over its many vicissitudes. We have heard many
promises about the advent of the new man. We have
witnessed many tragedies and dashed hopes.
Today, we believe that the only path towards the great
triumphs of collective well-being is that of democracy and
freedom. The men and women of Paraguay wish to live in
their own way, respecting the law and prospering in
harmony and concord.
I would consider my activities of strengthening and
consolidating democracy incomplete if in future my
compatriots could not continue freely to form political
parties and to elect governments without coercion, if they
could not live in peace with their families and enjoy the
honest fruits of their work, if they could not live fruitful
lives and at the end of their days reflect proudly on their
successes and achievements.
But as we view the Paraguayan future, we must reflect
on a situation fraught with dramatic realities. We have
overcome a domestic political situation which for three
decades had been met with indifference, marginalization and,
ultimately, condemnation by the international community.
We endured that situation because of the labour the
ingenuity and the great sacrifice of the Paraguayan people.
Today we must consolidate our victory and institutionalize
democracy as the only possible choice.
We have run into two main obstacles to the attainment
of that objective: an increasing rate of population growth
and a lack of resources to finance our development with the
rapidity required by the rapid increase in our population and
the pressing need to raise the standard of living and the
well-being of all Paraguayans.
We believe that we must be able to count on the
cooperation of the industrialized countries in order to ensure
the continued primacy of the values we share with the
community of nations.
To accelerate our development we call for an extension
of the magnificent collaboration of the United Nations
system and its many institutions, such as the United Nations
Development Programme, which now has a new, dynamic
Administrator and in which the developing countries place
great hopes; the effective traditional programme of the
United Nations Children’s Fund, which champions the rights
of children and adolescents; and the United Nations Fund for
Population Activities, which plays a very important role in
regard to the crucial question of population.
We call also on the specialized agencies of the United
Nations system - each of which has in its field greatly
assisted in our countries’ development plans - to redouble
their efforts, increase their effectiveness by means of greater
creativity, and lower their expenditures by exercising greater
control.
This cooperation should go hand in hand with domestic
efforts to attract assistance on favourable terms and greater
flows of private foreign investment.
The financial institutions, especially the World Bank
and the Inter-American Development Bank, should speed up
their assistance by reducing their bureaucracies and should
provide the fullest possible support to developing countries’
projects and programmes. We recognize the great assistance
they have provided in the past, and we urge them to exceed
even their past achievements in order to ensure a better
future for all our countries. If the developing countries do
not receive such cooperation, the consequence will be, on the
one hand, a prosperous and democratic world with freedom
and an abundance of goods for all and, on the other, a world
corroded by ignorance, poverty and the enslavement of the
poor. It will be difficult for democracy to survive if poverty
persists.
Establishing economic progress with equity in Paraguay
means strengthening democracy. My greatest desire as Head
of State is to establish the democratic system once and for
all in my country.
In order to achieve that aim, my Government will act
very responsibly, ensuring that its administration does not
Forty-eighth session - 29 September l993 3
engage in irregularities, and it will be very strict in enforcing
the law. We wish to have the greatest possible transparency
in the whole of the governmental process, in both domestic
and international affairs.
We believe that the stability of democratic countries
lies, among other things, in the integrity of their civil
servants, in the independence of the judiciary, in individual
and collective security, and in the State’s efficiency in
promoting development. That is why my Government will
pursue and punish anyone who engages in corruption. In
that way we intend to eradicate corruption.
We have undertaken to fulfil these purposes in the
certainty that the international community will be prepared
to support us in so doing.
Nationalistic passions have flared up in many parts of
the world, challenging borders and jeopardizing international
coexistence. Age-old conflicts still seethe, as can be seen
from the terrible bloodshed, and havoc in former Yugoslavia.
The United Nations has set up more peace-keeping missions
in the last three years than it did in its first 45 years of
existence.
At the same time as we are witnessing these events
with distress and sorrow, we are rejoicing in the signing of
the statement of principles between the Government of Israel
and the Palestine Liberation Organization. This valuable
contribution to world peace is due to the courage and the
clear-sightedness of the leaders on both sides, who have
been able to overcome the burden of ancestral prejudice to
enter into a new harmonious relationship. We also applaud
the participation of countries as mediators in these
negotiations. They all deserve the world’s admiration.
My Government believes that, in compliance with the
San Francisco Charter, the Organization will accept as
Members all those States that fulfil the requirements set out
in the Charter.
We congratulate the United Nations on the tremendous
work that is being done in its peace missions. This
demonstrates not just that the Organization is alert to the
need to find a solution where any event may cause a breach
of the peace but also that, in doing so, it tries to realize the
hope of peace for suffering peoples, meeting their basic
needs and alleviating their difficulties.
The peace to which we aspire cannot come from sterile
immobility or from armed respite. It cannot be imposed. It
must be dynamic, sincere and generous and must be based
on the principles of solidarity between nations.
Let me refer to a contribution from my country,
reflected in our universal feeling of friendship. A few years
ago, in a small town called Pinasco, a doctor who was a
distinguished member of the community proposed that 30
July be designated as a day dedicated to friendship. This
idea spread throughout the Latin American continent and to
other regions of the world. For this reason I am pleased to
suggest that the United Nations adopt that date as the world
day of friendship.
Events are giving rise to a higher and higher level of
world and regional interdependence. With the Treaty on the
Integration of the Common Market in the Southern Cone,
known as MERCOSUR, we in the southern cone -
Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay - are seeking an
improvement in our economies.
The purpose of MERCOSUR is to harmonize
economies, to reach better and broader understandings with
other economic groups through the provision of mutual
facilities. We hope that the negotiations that have begun
with the European Economic Community, the future North
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the AsiaPacific countries will bear fruit.
Paraguay gives its fullest support to the creation of this
Common Market of the South. We hope fervently that there
will be frank and full cooperation in all the negotiations
between the four countries involved. All our actions should
be really consistent with our aims. It is our sincere desire
that we may reach an understanding that is just and fair and
of benefit to everyone.
While dealing with economic affairs, I should like also
to express our desire and hope that full agreement will be
reached in the Uruguay Round negotiations. We hope that
the markets will open up increasingly. We wish to see trade
flowing more freely, without any tariff or other barriers and
without subsidies, which undermine the competitiveness of
our MERCOSUR products.
We fully support the principle of free trade. One
cannot hamper trade by protectionism while professing belief
in the principle of free trade.
I have just visited Bolivia, a sister country with which
we have signed joint agreements and I made an offer to its
Government that Paraguay would serve as a link for its entry
into MERCOSUR. I also requested that they themselves, in
their turn, shall serve as a link between MERCOSUR and
the Andean Pact. Through the system of MERCOSUR and
through the Andean Pact, we have established a fresh and,
4 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
we hope, promising arrangement. Today - 29 September -
we commemorate the battle of Boquerón, a symbol of the
valour of both peoples which we hope will be a landmark
for the future in our search for cooperation, understanding
and peace.
This new era represents a challenge in relations
between nations. In the process of the globalization of
economies, countries must avoid selfishness. They must
share their prosperity and technological advances in order to
ensure effective progress for all mankind. The European
Community, the NAFTA countries and the Asia-Pacific
countries should be a dynamic force in economic relations,
and should not set new limitations on world trade.
International coexistence requires that we seek to
establish mutually supportive understandings and agreements
that will strengthen the collective economy and, thus, every
country’s individual economy.
North America provides a very promising example of
this. Mexico, Canada and the United States are proposing
a zone of free trade between countries that have different
cultures, histories, languages and lifestyles. In spite of these
differences they have taken a praiseworthy decision to make
their economies complementary.
NAFTA represents an undertaking to ensure shared
prosperity through collective arrangements. As we enter a
new century, these three countries realize that economic
prosperity depends, as never before, on the opening of new
markets across the world and increasing the volume of world
trade. We hope that when this arrangement is established it
will be of great benefit to the whole of Latin America and
the Caribbean.
Economic development should not run counter to the
preservation and protection of the environment. Both
concepts are valid for everyone, irrespective of differences
in countries’ levels of economic development.
Environmental degradation will continue if we keep on
applying such ambiguous criteria as "environmental
conditionality". The great meeting on the environment held
at Rio in 1992, after very lengthy deliberations, points us in
the direction of "sustainable development" - development
that can be made compatible with protection of the
environment.
We need to fulfil the agreement that was reached at
Rio. We must not go back on the commitments undertaken
there. Neither should there be double standards - different
standards for industrialized and for developing countries.
The latter need the cooperation that was promised at that
memorable international meeting.
With regard to social problems on a world scale, drug
trafficking threatens the economic and political stability of
some countries. In this area too the United Nations should
take the lead in order to combat the scourge of drugs, with
all its disastrous consequences for young people and the
money laundering and terrorism that are its ramifications.
Paraguay is totally committed to the battle against drug
trafficking, the money laundering resulting from it and all
the other crimes that are associated with drugs. This
struggle requires total international cooperation if drug
trafficking is to be eliminated. It has to be recognized that
responsibility for this undertaking must be shared by
producers, consumers and also intermediaries.
The United Nations is preparing for a conference in
1995, which will be a special landmark in the whole of
international coexistence. I refer to the World Summit for
Social Development that will be held in Copenhagen. The
Government of Paraguay applauds this initiative and offers
its fullest cooperation at the preparation stage and in the
studies. We are also willing to take an active part in the
event itself.
Initiatives of this kind and the 1994 Cairo Conference
on Population and Development deserve our fullest support.
Although, as I have said, the issues to which I referred
earlier are of great significance to my country, I wish to
make the point that the raising of educational standards in
my country is my obsession. For this reason, we are trying
to improve human resources so that we may make use of the
new technology which we sorely lack.
Education is not simply a commitment on the part of
the State; it is a challenge shared by all the productive
sectors of the country. Technology may provide fresh
economic opportunities resulting in new sources of labour.
That is why Paraguay believes that the Bolívar
Programme is a good precedent for what can be done
between countries determined to face the future by sharing
technologies, innovations and industrial competitiveness.
We also hope that the industrialized countries, or those
that have achieved a high technological level, will show the
necessary will to promote the presence of their companies in
our countries, so that their capital and new technology can
accelerate progress in our developing countries.
Forty-eighth session - 29 September l993 5
We shall always stress the need for a more balanced
treatment of the social and economic issues on the
international agenda. Attention must not be given to socalled new global issues at the expense of the problems of
development, the struggle against poverty, the defeat of
ignorance, and the promotion of international cooperation.
After 48 years, men and institutions are able to concede
their mistakes and can strengthen their convictions in order
better to achieve their purposes. The United Nations has
demonstrated such abilities by renewing and adapting itself
to the demands of our changing world. Paraguay is in
favour of this and supports the necessary reforms to adapt
the Charter to the challenges of a new age. In this way will
the United Nations be able to live up to the high ideals and
hopes with which it was created.
To that purpose, it is vital that it redistribute functions
and responsibilities among its bodies, increase coordination
and streamline its processes. The United Nations should be
the forum for the genuine expression of the aspirations of all
Member States and the primary instrument for genuine and
peaceful understanding among all peoples of the world.
We must confront and settle the financial crisis which
weighs so heavily on our Organization. It is not logical to
assign it tasks without providing adequate means to carry
them out. Let us avoid being moved by political motives to
transform that inadequacy into administrative negligence and
financial paralysis. Let us do the opposite - let our
Organization be the great forum of the international scene.
Let it be renewed, better, more effective and more equitable.
With timely intervention, the United Nations has
brought lengthy conflicts to an end and achieved their
settlement. This praiseworthy work must be recognized and
if, in some cases, the success has not been great, that has
been due to struggles between different power centres. But
today we are all equally ready to work to achieve more
effective disarmament and to establish new international
standards for the use of nuclear energy to benefit mankind
and not to destroy it. We have made considerable progress
but there remains a long way to go before we have full and
complete security in this area. Paraguay will support a
disarmament policy as a commitment to the international
community.
We continue to believe and have always maintained that
the United Nations should assume leadership, with the
support of all Member States, in carrying out the necessary
changes to establish the rule of peace and the human
development to which we all aspire.
My country wishes to underscore the outstanding work
of the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and to
express its appreciation for his activities aimed at making the
United Nations and its entire system more efficient.
Paraguay has faith in these positive solutions. We
pledge to uphold the legal principles of international
coexistence and appeal to the loftiest sentiments and the
highest sense of responsibility of all leaders of the world.
My country believes that this can be achieved and urges that
it be made a reality.
No more fratricidal wars. Let us all unite in the war
against underdevelopment, against unemployment, and
against ignorance, which is the worst of all slaveries.
Reiterating our commitment to full support for the
United Nations, we also reaffirm our resolute cooperation
with the international community and express our deepest
desire for peace, prosperity and development for all the
peoples of the world.
I should like to conclude with a message in my native
language, Guaraní:
"Ja johayjhú, ñaño pytyvó, icatú haguaicha ñasé
ténondé oñondivepá. Aguiyéveté."
This means: "Let us love one another, brothers. Let us help
each other to move forward together".


For me this is a very special occasion, for it is the
first time I address, on behalf of my father, the Sovereign
Prince of Monaco, and on behalf of my country, this
prestigious world Assembly of the States Members of the
United Nations.
I wish to tell members of the tremendous joy of all
Monégasques and inhabitants of the Principality of Monaco
when my country joined this great world Organization. I
should like to take the opportunity once again to thank the
members of the Security Council and of the General
Assembly for their favourable consideration of Monaco’s
application for membership of the Organization.
I wish the Assembly every success in its work. A
number of its agenda items are of particularly vital historic
and political significance. The decisions we take will
undoubtedly have far-reaching and long-term consequences
for the future of the world community.
I wish also, to congratulate you, Sir, very sincerely and
warmly on your election to the presidency of the General
Assembly. My congratulations also go to the members of
the General Committee. I have no doubt that your skill and
lengthy experience will enable our work to proceed under
the best possible conditions.
Like all countries that put their trust in international law
and cooperation, the Principality of Monaco, in its relations
with other countries, has always relied on respect for
international norms and documents.
Its Princes have always been fully aware of the fact that
the maintenance of peace necessarily entails respect for the
sovereignty of States and the development of friendly
relations among peoples.
Prince Albert I of Monaco, when he created the Peace
Institute at the end of the last century, was even then
inspired by that philosophy, which led to the founding, in
1919, of the League of Nations and, in 1945, of the United
Nations. On 5 February 1934 Prince Albert’s successor -
Prince Louis II, who was profoundly touched by the
hardship and suffering caused by the First World War - set
up the Medical-Legal Commission of Monaco, whose sober
reflection and work which continue today, gave inspiration
to the drawing up of the 1949 Geneva Conventions of the
International Red Cross.
My country’s commitment to peace is therefore a
tradition of more than 100 years - a tradition observed by its
Princes, whose dynasty will shortly celebrate its 700th
anniversary. It is also a political aspiration that has only
grown in strength with the passage of time. It will always
be adhered to with both conviction and determination in the
General Assembly of the United Nations.
In this spirit, I should like to refer in particular to a
resolution of the International Olympic Committee, of which
I am a member, which unanimously recommends observance
of a long-standing tradition of the Olympic movement - the
principle of the Olympic truce.
The Government of Monaco supports this initiative,
which was signed and endorsed by the National Committees
of 184 countries and was officially addressed to our
Secretary-General on 9 February this year. An international
year of sport and the Olympic spirit would undoubtedly
afford an opportunity to launch this project.
Perhaps it is by constantly repeating certain initiatives
of this nature - albeit modest ones - that we shall be able
gradually to create the just and lasting peace to which we all
so deeply aspire.
Did we not, a few days ago, receive from the southern
shores of the Mediterranean news giving us immense hope
of peace? Though it may be tenuous, we are at one with
those who inspired it and with those who are today
endeavouring to make it a success. It is our earnest wish
that they will succeed.
Peace is not just the silence of guns. Indeed, there can
be no doubt that the establishment of genuine peace can flow
only from greater respect for justice, human rights and
fundamental freedoms. For this very reason, the work and
the conclusions of the Vienna Conference on human rights
warrants our very close scrutiny.
Finally, echoing a wish expressed by my father,
Prince Rainier III, when he addressed the Earth Summit in
Rio de Janeiro, I should like to emphasize that the
Government of Monaco has set for itself the priority of
protecting our environment, both natural and cultural, so that
it may provide a healthy, enriching and balanced life for all.
The Principality has undertaken major efforts to combat, in
particular, all types of pollution that attack and contaminate
the Mediterranean.
My country is more than ever resolved to encourage all
initiatives in this area, including the establishment, on its
own soil, of institutions dealing with coordination and the
10 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
adoption of a General Assembly resolution that would
proclaim 1998 the international year of the seas and oceans.
I should like, in conclusion, to reiterate that the
Principality of Monaco - in full respect for the rule of law
in domestic affairs and for treaties and law in the
international order; having neither armed forces nor military
arsenals; and bearing no enmity to anyone at all - is fully
prepared to assist the Organization in all its actions,
undertaken sometimes with great difficulty, aimed at
maintaining and rebuilding peace.


I should like first to take this opportunity to extend to the
delegation of India the sincerest condolences of the
delegation of Gabon on the earthquake that has just hit the
region of Sholapur.
The present session of the General Assembly is
convened at a crucial juncture in the history of international
relations. A number of significant events have occurred on
the world stage in the past few years.
In that context the election of Ambassador
Samuel Insanally as President of the General Assembly is
particularly significant. It is a tribute not only to his
qualities as an enlightened diplomatic, well versed in
international questions, but to the tireless work of Guyana,
his country, on behalf of peace. On behalf of the delegation
of Gabon, I extend to him our warmest congratulations on
his election to preside over this session.
Our congratulations also go to the outgoing President,
Mr. Stoyan Ganev of Bulgaria, who discharged his duties so
honourably and ably.
To our Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali,
I repeat our firm support for his many efforts on behalf of
world peace and security.
Lastly, we should like to welcome the new countries
that have just joined the great family of the United Nations
and to assure them of our friendship and readiness to work
with them to achieve the noble purposes for the attainment
of which the Organization was founded.
The end of the cold war has made it possible to
establish new kinds of relations between States and to open
the way to a new era of hope, peace and solidarity,
promoting conflict prevention, better ways of dealing with
acute problems and the settlement of many of the conflicts
threatening international peace and security.
It is from that perspective that we should view the
recent initiatives which the Organization and the
international community have undertaken.
Gabon welcomes with great interest the most recent
political developments in South Africa. We welcome the
creation of a Transitional Executive Council, which will
allow South Africans for the first time to take part in
building a new, democratic, non-racial and united South
Africa. In that spirit, we urge all other parties to accede to
the agreement creating the Council and hope they will work
towards its full implementation. Gabon believes that the
changes taking place in South Africa will have a definite
impact on the democratization process in Africa and on the
continent’s development. We therefore hope that the appeal
made here on 24 September 1993 by President Nelson
Mandela for the lifting of economic sanctions and the
establishment of diplomatic relations with South Africa will
be heard and acted upon.
In Somalia too many innocent victims continue to pay
the heavy daily price of violence. While praising the efforts
of the United Nations to bring peace and national
reconciliation to the country, we believe that the time has
perhaps come for the international community to give
priority to the path of dialogue and negotiation.
The situation in Liberia remains a source of concern,
despite the hopes raised by the signing of the Cotonou
Agreement on 25 July 1993. We call on the parties
concerned to begin strict implementation of that Agreement.
We make a similar appeal to the parties to the conflicts in
Mozambique, Rwanda and Angola.
Turning specifically to Angola, I note that the optimism
prevailing after the Bicesse Peace Accords soon gave way to
disappointment born of the resumption of hostilities. In that
brother country, so close to my own, the perpetuation of the
situation leads me to praise the tireless efforts of the United
Nations and all other initiatives aimed at restoring peace and
security. As in the past, Gabon will spare no efforts to help
achieve a lasting settlement of that conflict.
In the Middle East the mutual recognition of Israel and
the PLO, as well as the recent signing of the interim
40 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
arrangements for the autonomy of Gaza and Jericho, were
welcomed with relief and deep satisfaction by my country.
We dare hope that this historic agreement will promote
reconciliation between the Israeli and Palestinian peoples and
the establishment of a climate of peace and cooperation in
the region.
In that regard, my country supports all United Nations
initiatives, particularly Security Council resolution
833 (1993), aimed at ensuring respect for the inviolability of
the international boundary between Iraq and Kuwait, in
accordance with the terms of the 1963 arrangements.
In South-East Asia we welcome the decisive role
played by the United Nations in the restoration of peace in
Cambodia. The holding of free and fair elections in
May 1993, the creation of the Constituent Assembly, and the
return to the throne of His Royal Highness
Prince Norodom Sihanouk all illustrate the United Nations
commitment and the confirmed solidarity of the international
community.
The tragedy unfolding in Bosnia and Herzegovina and
the serious threat of the conflict’s spreading to the entire
subregion are a source of concern for my country. We make
an urgent appeal to the parties concerned to return to the
negotiating table and lay down their arms.
The Conferences recently held in Vienna and Geneva
on human rights and the protection of the victims of war,
respectively, were opportunities for our Organization to
reaffirm its commitment to defending human rights. Gabon,
which has always given these questions their due
consideration, encourages all United Nations efforts to
protect human rights. It would thus be appropriate to
strengthen existing structures with additional human and
financial resources so as to promote the efficiency sought by
our Organization in this area.
Never has our Organization been called on to such a
degree by the international community as in the past few
years. If it is to meet all the expectations, it must adapt its
main organs to the demands of the times. We welcome the
ongoing reform and revitalization process and hope that it
will include consideration of equitable representation in the
Security Council and an increase in the number of its
members.
One area which our Organization must explore further
is that of preventive diplomacy, as set forth by the Secretary-
General in his "An Agenda for Peace". Reflecting that
trend, the Organization of African Unity has just created
machinery to prevent, manage and settle conflicts. If it is to
be effective, this new machinery must be integrated into the
framework of global disarmament.
The progress made by last 13 January, when the
chemical-weapons Convention was signed, shows the
international community’s determination to ban weapons of
mass destruction, particularly chemical weapons, and its
readiness to work for general and complete disarmament.
For its part, my country is working towards that end, just as
it is promoting confidence-building measures in central
Africa. It was in keeping with this involvement that we
hosted the third meeting of the Permanent Consultative
Committee on security questions in our subregion. This
meeting was notable for bringing together, for the first time,
all States members of the Economic Community of Central
African States (ECCAS).
In the course of its work the Committee stressed the
advantages for all States of the subregion of ratifying
international legal instruments on disarmament matters. It
recommended that its Bureau play a more committed
political role in seeking solutions to crises and conflicts
likely to disturb the peace of a member State. It encouraged
States in the subregion to pursue and strengthen the
democratization process already under way, while respecting
and promoting human rights.
Regarding the creation of a permanent inter-State crisis
management headquarters, with a view to establishing a
subregional peace-keeping force, the Committee
recommended transitional measures, including the
involvement of ECCAS in the field of security; a study of
features and types of crises and conflicts; and the creation of
a non-permanent committee of subregional staff offices. It
further recommended that the United Nations be asked for
assistance to carry out a study on a balanced and gradual
reduction of the armed forces, equipment and military
budgets of member States. Finally, the Committee adopted
a draft non-aggression pact between the ECCAS member
States and decided to submit it to Heads of State or
Government of the subregion for signature. As
representative of the host country at these important
meetings, and on behalf of the States of the subregion, it is
my honour and privilege to invite the General Assembly in
due course to endorse the draft resolution, which will be
submitted to it for consideration.
What is truly at stake for Africa is essentially the
economy. It will determine to a great extent the preservation
of unity, peace and security on our continent. In that regard,
the marginalization of Africa in the world economy - as a
Forty-eighth session - 30 September l993 41
result of the decline of its commodity prices, the reversal of
financial resource flows from our countries to the
international financial institutions, and the debt burden - has
only grown during the past five years.
Already experiencing such a restrictive economic
environment, how can we in my country welcome the idea
of an energy tax and not deplore the threat of a boycott of
our forest products by ecological groups in the industrialized
countries? As to the forest, the Gabon authorities have
always favoured the long-term management of our forests,
through a logical policy of reforestation conforming with the
recommendations of the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development.
My country stresses the need to maintain every aspect
of the Rio spirit aimed at managing world problems in a
global manner, and to promote the emergence of a new
partnership in international economic and financial relations.
Gabon considers this new approach to be a possible avenue
for the development of our countries.
In this connection, we would like to congratulate the
Japanese authorities on their initiative in organizing the
International Conference on African Development, scheduled
to be held in Tokyo in October. We hope that Conference
will serve as the basis for a real and lasting partnership.
In this context, the proposal made by the President of
the General Assembly at its forty-eighth session in his
opening address that we create an agenda for development
should enjoy the full support of our Organization.
In conclusion, turning to our country’s development
problems, I feel that I must draw the attention of the
Assembly to the decisive role to be played by women. Our
Organization has adopted resolutions and declarations on this
subject. The political commitment has been made, but it
must be associated with consistent follow-up measures to
implement these provisions. This is a struggle that we must
all of us become involved in.
Anxious to take into account the role of women in the
political, economic, social and cultural fields, the Gabonese
Government, through the Ministry responsible for the status
of women, is working towards making this commitment a
reality.
The sessions of the General Assembly are for Member
States an excellent opportunity to seek together ways and
means of attaining the noble objectives of the Charter. Is
not one of its most important goals
"To achieve international cooperation in solving
international problems of an economic, social, cultural,
or humanitarian character"?