Mr. President,
 On behalf of the Vietnamese Delegation, I wish to congratulate you on your
election as the President of this sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly. I am
confident that your experience will help bring this session to great success.
Viet Nam fully endorses the theme “Reaffirming the central role of the
United Nations in global governance” that you proposed for this debate.
 I would also like to take this opportunity to express my deep appreciation to
Mr. Ali Abdussalam Treki for his significant contributions to the sixty-fourth
session.
 Mr. President,
 Our session coincides with the sixty-fifth anniversary of the United Nations,
the world’s largest multilateral organization established with a noble mandate of
coordinating actions of all nations towards peace, prosperity and justice. Over the
past 65 years, the international community and the United Nations have recorded
extraordinary achievements in a wide range of areas.
 Along with conceptual changes on sustainable development coupled with
equitable distribution and enjoyment of fruits produced by growth, the lives of the
majority of humankind have been improved and better cared for in many aspects.
The process of globalization and the scientific-technological revolution have
rendered national interests increasingly interdependent and intertwined. Linkages
and exchanges among nations have expanded and deepened, thus further enriching
the material, cultural and spiritual values of mankind.
 Guided by the primary purposes enshrined in its Charter, which are to maintain
international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, promote
cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or
humanitarian character, and guarantee human rights, the United Nations has through
its membership carried out its lofty mandates in a concrete manner. In this regard,
we treasure the outstanding contributions of the United Nations to the prevention of
a new world war, settlement of conflicts and civil wars in many countries, roll back
of arms races and promotion of disarmament, particularly nuclear disarmament,
subsequently contributing to the consolidation of international peace and security as
well as creation of such a peaceful and secure environment as it is now for
humankind to develop.
 Besides, we cannot help mentioning the considerable role played by the
United Nations in accelerating the process of decolonization in the 1960s and 1970s,
which helped liberate over 80 nations from the shackle of colonialism, win national
independence and become members of the United Nations. We can never obscure
our memories of the four consecutive decades of development initiated by the
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United Nations since the 1960s to assist nations, especially the newly independent,
in emerging autonomous and mastering their own processes of socio-economic
development, improvement of health care and education, and protection of the
environment. The United Nations has also made highly essential contributions to the
design of an international legal system, with the Charter of the United Nations itself
being the most important piece of legislation.
 While a new world war has been avoided, the world of today is still fraught
with untold paradoxes and challenges, and the sword of Damocles is still hanging
over mankind. We all have witnessed many a war, local conflict, international
terrorism, arms race, and proliferation of nuclear weapons. Confrontation,
unilateralism, violation of national independence and sovereignty, and inequality in
international relations, though somewhat abated, have persisted, and new dangers
have surfaced. Over 1 billion people are still living in destitute poverty, and
hundreds of millions of others put under the scourge of climate change, food
insecurity, natural disasters, pandemics and terrorism.
 Mr. President,
 This situation requires our greater efforts and solidarity to achieve a world of
genuine peace, a better life, and a brighter future for all.
 The 65-year journey of the United Nations and mankind as a whole with all
their successes and constraints has taught us a valuable lesson that the key to
success lies in each nation’s own efforts, enhanced international cooperation and
promoted multilateralism on the basis of respect for fundamental principles of
international law and the Charter of the United Nations.
 In this spirit, Viet Nam holds that this session of the General Assembly under
the theme “Reaffirming the central role of the United Nations in global governance”
should focus on the following issues:
 First, it is imperative to maintain a peaceful and secure environment to
facilitate nations’ development. In this connection, the United Nations should
continue promoting efforts for disarmament and non-proliferation of nuclear
weapons given the new opportunities and prospects, while ensuring the rights of
nations to use nuclear technologies and energy for peaceful purposes. As regards
differences concerning nuclear proliferation risks, Viet Nam supports efforts aimed
at solutions through dialogue and peaceful negotiation.
 At the same time, the United Nations should continue promoting measures for
adequate settlement of civil wars and local conflicts ongoing in many regions of the
world, especially those in Africa as the continent suffering the most in the
development process, as has been visibly evident at the newly concluded high-level
meeting on the Millennium Development Goals.
 Against such a backdrop, Viet Nam supports efforts for a fair, comprehensive
and long-term solution to peace in the Middle East. Supporting the reconstruction
and national reconciliation efforts in Afghanistan and Iraq, we hope that the people
of Iraq and Afghanistan will soon enjoy security, independence and sovereignty for
development. With regard to Kosovo, Viet Nam calls on the parties concerned to
enhance dialogue in order to achieve a comprehensive solution based on Security
Council resolution 1244 (1999).
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 Second, the international community and the United Nations should continue
efforts to build equal international relations, and further improve the international
system of law and institutions. Developing countries should be enabled to take part
in the globalization and international integration process in a proactive and effective
manner. Developed countries, on their part, should fully deliver on their
commitments to development assistance, technology transfer and market access. It
is important that the United Nations undertake measures to prevent unilateral use of
economic means against developing countries. In that context, Viet Nam once again
calls upon the United Nations to press ahead with the implementation of the General
Assembly resolutions requesting the United States to immediately end its policy of
embargo against the Republic of Cuba.
 Third, the United Nations, in order to adapt to a changing world, needs to
promote reforms as a priority in its agenda. The reforms should be implemented in a
prompt, comprehensive, balanced and transparent manner with a view to enhancing
the role of the General Assembly, enabling the Economic and Social Council to help
the United Nations maximize its role in the development sphere, and enlarging the
Security Council membership and improving its working methods. Viet Nam hopes
that the negotiations on the United Nations reforms, particularly the reform of the
Security Council and its membership enlargement, will soon produce fruitful results.
 Viet Nam also looks forward to more coherent, consistent and effective
development activities of the United Nations so as to better respond to the demands,
priorities and specific conditions of recipient countries. The operation of the Human
Rights Council and other United Nations human rights mechanisms should continue
to be improved to avoid double standards and politicization.
 Mr. President,
 As actors with an increasingly important role in international affairs and
having contributed to the work of the United Nations in many areas, regional
organizations have proven effective in helping address many regional and global
issues. I wish, in this connection, to mention in particular the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) with its incessant growth and development as a
dynamic and integrated cooperative organization of 10 countries in South-East Asia,
which is striving for the goal of an ASEAN Community by 2015 that rests on three
pillars, i.e., the political-security community, the economy community, and the
sociocultural community.
 In its cooperation with external partners, ASEAN has been effectively
asserting its posture in an environment of peace, security and cooperation for
development in the region and the world. The Association has served as the major
driving force for cooperation and integration in East Asia, especially in the
economic and trade fields. Moreover, ASEAN has been actively promoting the
development and sharing of norms and codes of conduct among nations, including
particularly the Treaty on Amity and Cooperation, the Treaty on a Southeast Asia
Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone, the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South
China Sea, and the ASEAN Convention on Counter-Terrorism.
 As the Chair of ASEAN in 2010 under the theme “Toward an ASEAN
community: from vision to action”, Viet Nam has been making every effort to
contribute to the success of the Association. Motivated by the policy of supporting
and harnessing cooperation with the United Nations, we have been working closely
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with relevant partners to ensure success for the upcoming ASEAN-United Nations
summit due to be held in October 2010 in Hanoi, thus uplifting the ASEAN-United
Nations cooperation to a new calibre.
 Mr. President,
 Alongside the birth of the United Nations, a new Viet Nam, the Democratic
Republic of Viet Nam, now the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, was founded. This
country has since then surmounted uncountable harsh trials throughout its struggle
for national independence and freedom. Having mingled with the mainstream of
history of mankind and the United Nations, the Vietnamese people’s struggle for
independence, freedom and development has made remarkable contributions to the
common success of mankind in an effort for a world of peace, justice and
development.
 For the past thirty years as a United Nations Member, Viet Nam has joined
hands with other Member States in working towards the adoption of many
resolutions, decisions and concrete measures aimed at curbing the arms race,
promoting comprehensive and full disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of
mass destruction, resolving international conflicts and disputes by peaceful
dialogue, developing social, cultural and economic cooperation, and ensuring human
rights.
 It is those commitments and determination that have led the multifaceted
cooperation between Viet Nam and the United Nations to increased improvement
and incessant development. In the past, the United Nations rendered valuable and
practical assistance to Viet Nam in finance and expertise for the country’s post-war
reconstruction, helping Viet Nam particularly overcome the difficulties arisen
during the period of blockade and embargo.
 Today, the United Nations system and its organizations have been active in
providing policy advice and technical assistance to help Viet Nam address
development challenges as the country steps up industrialization and modernization
for the goal of a strong country, a rich nation and an equitable, democratic and
advanced society.
 Viet Nam has been actively implementing the “Delivering As One” initiative
in Viet Nam with a view to enhancing its national ownership capacity in
development cooperation and contributing to the reform of the United Nations in
general and the United Nations development agencies in particular. Viet Nam has
always paid attention to promoting the tripartite cooperation between Viet Nam, a
United Nations agency and an African country in such areas as agriculture,
irrigation and infrastructure, and this has yielded initial encouraging outcomes. We
have recently organized the second Viet Nam-Africa International Forum in Hanoi,
which drew keen interests and large participation from most African countries and
international organizations.
 In the years ahead, building upon the past success of its foreign policy of
openness, diversification and multilateralization of external relations, Viet Nam will
step up its international integration and make further contribution to the work of the
United Nations for the sake of peace, stability, equal relations among countries and
an environment conducive to the development of all nations.

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 Mr. President,
 With the firm belief in and strong commitment to the work that requires the
joint dedication of hearts and minds of the United Nations and its Members, I
sincerely wish this session of the General Assembly every success, thus meeting the
common cherished aspiration of the peoples for a world of peace and prosperity.
 Thank you very much for your kind attention.


Allow me first of all to convey to the Assembly the
warm and fraternal greetings of His Excellency
Mr. Pierre Nkurunziza, who has just been re-elected for
a second term of five years. He had planned to take
part in these meetings himself, but the Unity
International Foundation insisted on awarding him the
Rising Star of Africa prize for his role in building and
promoting peace, and that led him to delegate attending
the High-level Plenary Meeting on the Millennium
Development Goals and the general debate of the
Assembly’s sixty-fifth session to me.
 We wish to congratulate the President of the
Assembly at its sixty-fifth session and to reiterate the
thanks of the Burundi delegation to his predecessor for
his remarkable work. We also pay due tribute to our
Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon,
for his involvement in the follow-up to Assembly
resolutions and for the important guidance that he
continues to give our Organization. His visit to
Burundi on 9 June 2010 is a clear sign of his
commitment to peacebuilding and to strengthening the
democracy regained in our country at great cost.
 Burundi is participating in the sixty-fifth session
following the top-to-bottom renewal of national
institutions. For the first time in Burundi’s history, the
democratically elected institutions have completed
their term of office. That powerfully demonstrates the
political maturity and resolve of the people of Burundi
to break with the turbulent past in order to invest in the
peace, stability and reconciliation that are prerequisites
to sustainable development.
 We take this opportunity to reiterate the thanks of
the Government and people of Burundi for the role of
the international community, the United Nations, the
European Union, the African Union, the European
Parliament, the East African Community, the ACP-EU
Joint Parliamentary Assembly, the Common Market for
Eastern and Southern Africa, the Economic
Community of Central African States, friendly
countries and various organizations in participating in
the funding and observation of the aforementioned
elections, which were peaceful, transparent and fair
and in accordance with international standards.
 For its part, the party that won the elections is
aware of the absolute need to promote national
reconciliation and political tolerance as much as it can.
From the day after the first round of the election and
then in his inaugural speech, the President of the
Republic himself expressed his resolve and that of the
winning party to govern Burundi for and with all the
people of Burundi. Furthermore, Burundi’s
Constitution also provides for political inclusion
mechanisms in managing the State’s affairs.
 During the new Parliament, the Government of
Burundi is committed to following its peacebuilding
programme and strengthening security for all, in
particular by completing disarmament of the civilian
population and the socio-economic reinsertion of
demobilized individuals and returnees. Furthermore,
the Government of Burundi will particularly emphasize
regional cooperation and integration, as well as
enhancing security in its geographical area, together
with neighbouring countries.
 Promoting good governance in its various
dimensions is also one of the main concerns of
Burundi’s Government. With regard to political
governance, it will continue to promote the rights of
political parties, including by strengthening the spirit
of dialogue between political partners.
 With respect to economic governance, there will
be efforts to improve business conditions to encourage
both national and foreign investment. The Government
of Burundi reaffirms its determination and zero-
tolerance commitment to combat financial corruption
and fraud.
 In the area of the judiciary, every possible effort
will be made to combat impunity with respect to any
type of crime, and transitional justice will be promoted
during this Parliament.
 Concerning socio-economic development, the
Government of Burundi will focus every effort possible
on combating poverty, in particular through
development of priority production sectors, namely,
agriculture and livestock, energy, social infrastructure,
tourism, environmental renewal and new information
and communication technologies. We will give special
attention to developing public-private partnerships with
a view to sustained economic growth.
 In the social domain, the Government of Burundi
will concentrate on the education and health sectors to
combat ignorance and disease. To meet crucial needs in
those areas, many schools and clinics will be built

10-55109 10

throughout the country. Furthermore, the services in
these two sectors will also be improved.
 Relaunching and promoting the Burundian
economy depends also on consolidating regional
groups and developing projects and programmes that
integrate common interests. In that framework, the
Government of Burundi will play a larger role in the
promotion of regional organizations of which it is a
member, such as the Economic Community of the
Great Lake Countries, the International Conference on
the Great Lakes Region, whose Executive Secretariat
we host, the East African Community, the Common
Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, and others.
That ambitious programme requires consistent support
for its implementation. Thus Burundi clearly requires
various forms of support.
 To that end, we take the opportunity of this forum
to make a strong appeal to the international
community, to the United Nations system and to the
countries represented here and to charitable
organizations to continue their tireless support to the
Government of Burundi with the ultimate aim of
allowing it to lay the foundations for long-term
development and for solidifying the achievements
made in terms of peace, democracy, stability and
reconciliation.
 In the context of international relations and
relations between States, Burundi is convinced that the
issue of global governance in general and economic
governance in particular remains a major concern of
most of our countries. Thus promotion of equity must
become the leitmotif and the warhorse of the
organizations of which our respective States are full
members.
 Burundi desires additional efforts to allow
developing countries sufficient representation in the
international financial institutions such as the World
Bank, the International Monetary Fund and others. We
believe that is the way to promote a fairer and more
geographically balanced world.
 Burundi is committed to the African Union’s
position on Security Council reform, in particular that
the African continent should have two permanent seats
with all of the privileges held by the five permanent
members.
 Today the entire world is confronting a number of
challenges and natural disasters, some of which are
linked to climate change. Developing countries in
general and African countries in particular are the most
harshly affected, because of a lack of resources to deal
with such challenges.
 It is high time that countries agree to take more
audacious measures in order to provide the financing
necessary to combat the negative effects of climate
change, by stimulating and promoting in particular
technology transfer and without forgetting capacity-
building in the poorest and thus the most vulnerable
countries. By effectively combating the effects of
climate change, our countries will inevitably resolve in
part the problem of food insecurity, which is also a
significant threat to sustainable development.
 In that light, we call upon the wealthy countries
to act in favour of developing countries, particularly
post-conflict countries such as Burundi, through
multiple, ongoing and significant support to key social
and economic sectors. It is urgent that all development
partners respect the promises they have made to
developing countries in general and those countries in
Africa in particular by increasing official development
assistance.
 Burundi — whose stability has benefited from the
excellent attention and considerable support of United
Nations entities, the international community and
friendly countries — remains very concerned by the
issue of the maintenance of international peace and
security. It reaffirms its commitment to cooperate with
the United Nations in consolidating the achievements
made with regard to peace and stability and in handling
the finances necessary for its socio-economic
development.
 Furthermore, in terms of international solidarity,
all countries must combine efforts to make this world a
harbour of peace. For that reason, Burundi is taking an
active part in the United Nations Operation in Côte
d’Ivoire to bring peace to that country, the United
Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and
Chad, the African Union-United Nations Hybrid
Operation in Darfur and the African Union Mission in
Somalia (AMISOM).
 With respect to Somalia, Burundi is committed on
the ground despite the many problems its troops are
encountering. We reiterate our request to the United
Nations with regard to improving the living and
working conditions of the AMISOM forces. We take
this opportunity to recall the promises made in that

11 10-55109

regard by the Secretary-General when he visited
Burundi on 9 June. We also call on other countries to
deploy additional troops so that AMISOM can become
a truly continental mission able to fulfil its mandate.
 In closing, Burundi welcomes the determination
and commitment of the United Nations to make our
world one of peace, democracy, tolerance and
development, where individual and collective rights
and freedoms are clearly protected. Therefore, we
encourage everyone to go forward towards that noble
mission. Our wish is that the next session of the
General Assembly may take place in a context where
most of the conflicts currently threatening some
countries and the world as a whole will have been
resolved.


I
come to this rostrum on behalf of France to express my
sincere and fervent faith in the United Nations.
France’s ambition is to be a major actor in building a
system of global governance that is more just, more
cohesive, more social, and a global order that is
organized and regulated around a stronger, more
representative and more effective United Nations — a
United Nations capable of meeting the great challenges
of our century.
 I look out upon the Assembly. I know many of
those present here today. For 25 years now — even
more — I have been going up and down the corridors
of the United Nations because I like the United
Nations, because I believe in the United Nations, and
because I know it to be indispensable.
 I would like to speak to the Assembly candidly. I
am going to talk about men and women, suffering and
hope. I am going to talk about responsibility, because
we have responsibilities as citizens, diplomats and
political leaders to meet these sufferings, hopes and
expectations.
 Of course, all of us would have an infinite
number of reasons to present a litany of generous
intentions, only to go home, our conscience clear, for
what we had said a little while before to the Assembly
and then go back to our day-to-day problems at home.
Of course, after the terrible economic crisis from which
we have barely emerged, we have to live with reduced
budgets and tense socio-economic situations. The times
are difficult and our fellow citizens are worried. The
temptation to retreat exists. Of course, to correct the
large imbalances and injustices that undermine our
society and to fight for the planet’s security and
development, we can always count on others. But
which others? There are no “others”. We are all here,
the nations of the world, represented in the General
Assembly, and we only have to decide together to act.
 Not acting today would be to resign ourselves to
disorder, injustice and chaos. That choice will never be
France’s because it is not in keeping with our history,
or our values, or our interests. Faced with disorder in
the world, the greatest risk today would be to lapse into
routine. Please do not tell me that we cannot move
forward, that the situation is at an impasse. No, in the
past, we have been able together, collectively, to be
revolutionary on fundamental subjects, even at the
expense of the national sovereignties which we all
represent here.
 Recall our boldness here in 1988, General
Assembly resolution 43/131, and then two years later,
resolution 45/100, on humanitarian assistance to
victims of natural disasters and similar emergency
situations. These resolutions allowed us for the first
time to guarantee free access of humanitarian workers
to the affected regions. Then there was Security
Council 688 (1991) (5 April 1991) on the situation in
Kurdistan, where, for the first time, the door was
opened to a military operation to protect civilian
populations against an oppressor State.
 These were two historic moments which laid the
first markers of the right to intervene. This became the
responsibility to protect, which this Assembly adopted
by consensus at the 2005 World Summit (see resolution
60/1). Who could have imagined that such an upending
of international law would be possible? The fight was
long and difficult; it is not over — far from it. To speak
candidly to the Assembly, the results are not
completely what I had expected. But we must note that,
together, we were able to overcome some obstacles
which were supposed to be insurmountable. Let
nothing stop us from taking up subjects which we
decide on together.
 Our first shared responsibility is development —
to make sure that all men and women, including the
most impoverished, have decent living conditions. The
widening gap of inequalities is not only morally
unacceptable, it is politically dangerous. Of course, it
is costly to act, but the cost of inaction is even greater.
 The conclusions of the High-level Meeting on the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that we just
held place our responsibilities squarely before us. This

37 10-55122

is an urgent matter. We can no longer ask suffering
populations to continue to wait.
 The President of the French Republic, Nicolas
Sarkozy, reminded the Assembly of this fact, that France
is the second largest global donor of official
development assistance — €9 billion per annum —
targeted to education, health, food security, sanitation
and infrastructure. France’s commitment to development
will not slacken, but figures do not make a policy. Our
assistance must be judged according to its results. We
need to go further and move faster for children dying of
malaria — one every 30 seconds — for entire families
stricken by AIDS, and for all those who are hungry or
cannot go to school.
 I ask the Assembly: what planet do we wish to
leave as a legacy to our children? Will we be able to
make an ambitious decision to combat climate change
and preserve our environment? This is a subject that
concerns us all and requires a global partnership, one
where we aspire to find an agreement on both reducing
emissions and measures to be taken in order to adapt.
And we must, first and foremost, ensure that the
commitments undertaken will be implemented and that
follow-up mechanisms and effective institutions will be
put in place.
 For all of this, we must find a great deal of
money — several tens of billions of dollars per year —
for us and our planet. Let us provide the means to
realize our ambitions. The solutions are here, within
reach; they have proved to be effective and await only
our political will and our courage. They are called
innovative financing. The tax on airline tickets was a
step forward, a long time in coming. Today we should
go farther by adopting an international tax on financial
transactions which would permanently change matters
for development. It is an idea that I have been
defending for more than 20 years. It is a priority for
France now. The President alluded to it here a few days
ago.
 Bear in mind that a minute tax of 0.005 per cent,
that is five cents on a transaction of €1,000, could raise
€30 billion to €40 billion per year, almost one quarter
of official development assistance. Who could deny
that this is a stable and predictable way of raising a
massive amount for development? Even with half of
that amount, it would be possible to send every child to
school in the low-income countries. Everyone agrees
today that it is technically and economically feasible to
establish such a mechanism.
 And, make no mistake; we are not talking about
diminishing official development assistance or dodging
our responsibilities. No, on the contrary, this amount
would come as an addition. And so we must not waste
time, we are together, this is what we established this
institution for, this institution, unparalleled in history,
called the United Nations.
 It is now a universally recognized principle that
development cannot occur without peace and security,
which are the basic raison d’être of the United Nations.
Here, the challenges remain considerable. Afghanistan,
Somalia, the Sudan, the Middle East — so many
conflicts continue to feed chaos throughout the world.
 How many missed opportunities, how many
dashed hopes, how many misunderstandings have for
more than 60 years — I repeat, 60 years — marked this
process, peaceful in name only, in the Middle East?
The Arab-Israeli conflict concerns us all. I say Arab-
Israeli because, besides the Palestinian track, France
considers it just as important to work on the Lebanese
and Syrian tracks. Today we have before us a historic
opportunity. We cannot let it slip.
 The process almost stopped yesterday evening. I
am not sure that it will continue in an orderly way and
with unanimous support. I hope it will. We have
limited time remaining. Palestine, the new State
Member of the United Nations which many of us have
been calling for, will be, I hope, the best guarantee of
security for Israel.
 All States in the region have a critical role to
play. All of that is important, but what is necessary is
that the Israelis and Palestinians make a strategic
decision to put an end to this conflict in their own
interests. I would therefore call on the sense of
responsibility of President Abbas and Prime Minister
Netanyahu; together they must make the painful
compromises on the road to peace.
 I have said that I have faith in the United Nations.
I served the United Nations, as perhaps you know, in
Kosovo and in a number of other places. I know,
respect and deeply love the men and women who give
life to the United Nations. From this rostrum, I wish to
pay tribute with emotion, affection and respect, to all
those who, in serving the United Nations, take risks
every day for our shared ideal of peace and

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development. I think of all the friends we have lost —
and the friends we may still lose — year after year,
and, of course, of those who take their place.
 The fight is noble. Respect for the values and
universal principles of human rights constitutes the
indispensable foundation on which United Nations
action must be built. The ambition to build a world
order founded on universal respect for human dignity
has been and will always be at the heart of French
diplomacy.
 Have we collectively progressed in our service of
these values? Not enough. How long will we continue
to accept — now that we live in a so-called
information society, a world where people can know
what is happening in other places — that, in terms of
human rights, there are so many blind spots, so many
forgotten tragedies and so much suffering that remain
hidden? As I asked at the beginning, what has become
of the responsibility to protect?
 Today the success of the United Nations must
first of all be assessed in terms of its contribution to
the protection of civilians. That is the first area in
which our requirements should be upheld. Every day
massacres and rapes are committed throughout the
world, in Somalia, in Darfur and in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, including in regions where
peacekeeping operations are deployed.
 We can no longer simply count the victims when
mass crimes are committed. Our courage must not be
less than that of those who die from risks that we no
longer know how to take.
 France believes that the International Criminal
Court is one of the most important advances made in
the history of a humankind conscious of the dangers to
which it is exposed by its own demons. France
understands the criticism of those that believe that the
Court is too slow or that it goes too far. Let us be clear,
France will always support the idea of international
criminal justice that is impartial and universal, for it is
the only way of fulfilling the imperative dictated by
our history, namely, combating impunity. To all who
are shocked by the boldness of some of the Court’s
prosecutions, I say that, on the contrary, it would be
appalling if the victims were deprived of their right to
justice.
 Human rights, the protection of civilians,
international justice — these are not hollow concepts
or empty principles for us. For France, they are first
and foremost principles of action, and the only valid
criterion for judgement is the impact of our actions on
the actual situation.
 In Guinea, after the killings in the Conakry
stadium, on 28 September 2009, we came together to
denounce the human rights violations and to assist the
victims of the atrocities committed. The Secretary-
General dispatched an International Commission of
Inquiry to the field one month after the fact, and I
would like to once again thank him sincerely for that.
The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court
instituted proceedings. That pressure enabled Guinean
civil society in the field to make the difference. Today
the junta has been replaced by a transitional executive.
Nothing has been won. There will be a second round of
elections in two weeks. But I wanted to recall this
success of the United Nations since at the beginning I
said that the responsibility to protect was threatened. I
think we can all agree that there is a movement
forming in civil society throughout the world and that
we can still take action.


I congratulate you,
Mr. President, on your election as President of the
General Assembly at its sixty-fifth session, and I thank
your predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Ali Treki, for his
excellent stewardship of the Assembly at its sixty-
fourth session. I seize this opportunity to convey to you
the warm greetings of the Honourable
Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam, Prime Minister of
Mauritius.
 We are meeting this year against the backdrop of
the triple blow of food, fuel and financial crises, which
have significantly slowed the social and economic
progress of many, particularly developing, countries.
Although we are now witnessing signs of gradual
recovery, we are nonetheless aware of the fact that the
world is still mired in the consequences of the
recession.
 These crises have exposed the deficiencies of the
international financial and governance structure and
made us realize that the pre crisis status quo has to be
challenged, if we are to ensure a better future for our
people. While we acknowledge the pre eminent role
that the Group of 20 is playing in addressing the
financial and economic crisis, the widening and
acceleration of global integration and
interconnectedness dictate the necessity of
democratizing the international economic and financial
decision-making processes in order to ensure that the
future development of our global economy is balanced
and equitable.
 It was therefore reassuring to hear the Managing
Director of the International Monetary Fund,
Mr. Dominique Strauss-Kahn, stating last Monday,
 “To regain momentum, we need a sense of shared
responsibility among the various actors — the
developing countries themselves, the advanced

29 10-55264

economies and, in part, the international financial
institutions.” (A/65/PV.3)
 The statistics are eloquent regarding the negative
impact of the multitude of crises on the progress
achieved on the Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs). As global economic output has declined, the
ranks of the poor have swelled with the newly poor.
 A week ago, from this very rostrum, an
impressive number of world leaders reaffirmed their
commitments to the Millennium Development Goals.
In our drive to enable the less fortunate to lead a
dignified life, it is imperative that we have closer
cooperation and collaboration between Government,
civil society and the private sector, supplemented by
innovative thinking, cutting-edge knowledge and path-
breaking initiatives.
 Success in achieving the Millennium
Development Goals is inextricably linked to the
broader agenda of climate change. The effects of
climate change and global warming threaten the very
implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.
While climate change is affecting all countries, it is
abundantly clear that the small islands and low-lying
and coastal States are the most affected by its
consequences.
 We therefore urge that the small island
developing States be given simplified access to
financing from the $30 billion of fast-start funding
pledged in the Copenhagen Accord and similar access
to the longer-term funds proposed for the Copenhagen
Green Climate Fund. That adaptation funding should
be in the form of grants and not loans.
 We hope that the forthcoming Conference of the
Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change, to be held in Cancún later this
year, will build on the 2009 Copenhagen Accord to
ultimately arrive at a legally binding agreement on
limits to greenhouse gas emissions based on the
principle of common but differentiated capabilities and
responsibilities and the establishment of mitigation and
adaptation funds. Let us therefore join our efforts and
not miss the opportunity, because a world that is
climate-smart is within reach, if we act now, act
together and act differently.
 In its effort to contribute towards the global
momentum to attain a low-carbon future, Mauritius is
implementing the Maurice Ile Durable project, which
aims at protecting the environment and minimizing
dependence on fossil fuels through increased
utilization of renewable energy and a more efficient
use of energy in general.
 The High-level Review Meeting on the
implementation of the Mauritius Strategy for the
Further Implementation of the Programme of Action
for the Sustainable Development of Small Island
Developing States re emphasized the fact that, owing
to their inherent specificity, small island developing
States should be recognized as a distinct category of
countries and should be granted special treatment,
particularly in accessing official development
assistance and concessionary funding. The present
gross domestic product criterion applied in graduating
least developed countries to middle-income status is
most unfair to small island developing States, since it
does not take into account the unique vulnerabilities of
those States.
 The time has come for a shift in how we think of
development. We need to articulate strongly a new
development paradigm, one where developing
countries are part and parcel of the solution to create a
more vibrant world economy in this truly multipolar
world.
 We therefore look forward to the successful
conclusion of the Doha Development Round at the
earliest possible date. It is also crucial to close the gaps
in the provision of Aid for Trade so as to support the
building of supply capacity, which lies at the core of
development.
 At the subregional level, Mauritius, in its
capacity as the new chair of the Indian Ocean
Commission, will continue to lay greater emphasis on
the creation of an economic and commercial space, the
implementation of a regional strategy on fisheries and
aquaculture, the promotion of tourism in our region in
traditional and emerging markets, and the development
of a comprehensive regional anti-piracy programme.
 A fundamental precondition for socio economic
development can be found in a process of social
inclusiveness, with human rights at its core. As a
member of the United Nations Human Rights Council,
Mauritius is firmly committed to the safeguarding and
protection of human rights, at both the national and the
international levels. In this regard, we unreservedly
condemn the serious human rights violations
committed by warring factions in conflict zones, where

10-55264 30

vulnerable members of the society, particularly women
and children, are being targeted. At the national level, a
truth and reconciliation commission has started the
challenging task of compiling a report on slavery and
indentured labour in Mauritius during the colonial
period.
 Mauritius continues to be preoccupied with the
fate of pro democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose
heroic and unbreakable determination and
steadfastness to free her people from years of
subjugation compel all of us who are strong advocates
of democratic values to stand and speak up. Depriving
Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi of the right to stand as a
candidate in the forthcoming general elections
scheduled in November this year is considered by my
delegation as the deprivation of the basic rights of the
people of Myanmar to freely choose the leaders to
whom they wish to entrust the destiny of their country.
 Democracy and the rule of law are essential
elements for the development, stability, security and
prosperity of any country. The world has made
significant strides in this respect. Nonetheless, it is
regrettable that conflicts in certain parts of the world
continue to undermine progress. The imperatives of a
globalizing world require the international community
to remain seized of these issues and not to shirk its
responsibilities.
 In the Indian Ocean region, Mauritius is
particularly concerned with the current political
impasse prevailing in our neighbouring sisterly
country — Madagascar. We are actively engaged in the
Southern African Development Community (SADC),
the African Union (AU) and the Indian Ocean
Commission, working to assist Madagascar to find a
peaceful solution to the political crisis.
 In this regard, we wish to state that we are
supportive of the initiative led by the Coordination
National des Organisations de la Société Civile to
organize an inter Malagasy dialogue in order to find a
solution designed by all Malagasies to the crisis in
Madagascar. And we sincerely hope that the dialogue
will be credible, transparent and include all sections of
Malagasy society in the search for durable peace in the
interest of both the country and the region. Mauritius
has offered its assistance in setting up an SADC liaison
office in Madagascar in order to provide support in
moving the Malagasy-Malagasy dialogue.
 Two decades of civil unrest have inflicted untold
miseries and difficulties on the Somali people and
rendered governance of the country almost impossible.
We commend the Intergovernmental Authority on
Development for its efforts to promote peace and
security in Somalia through the Transitional Federal
Government. We believe that the people of Somalia
deserve greater commitment from the international
community towards restoring law and order inside the
country and also towards putting an end to the piracy
problem off the coast of Somalia.
 In order to promote a more proactive engagement
of the countries of the region in the fight against
piracy, Mauritius will host the Second Regional
Ministerial Conference on Piracy on 6 and 7 October,
in collaboration with the European Union, the Indian
Ocean Commission and the Common Market for
Eastern and Southern Africa. Mauritius is also
envisaging the possibility of trying piracy suspects
caught in the Indian Ocean in its courts, if the
logistical, infrastructural and financial support of the
international community is adequate.
 The current process for talks between Israelis and
Palestinians has given renewed hope for lasting peace
through the creation of an independent sovereign
Palestinian State existing side by side with the State of
Israel within secured and recognized borders.
Mauritius has always supported the legitimate and
inalienable right of the Palestinian people to live in
peace and security in an independent Palestinian State.
We therefore commend President Barack Obama for
his initiatives and leadership in enabling the direct
talks between President Abbas and Prime Minister
Netanyahu.
 Global governance in the maintenance of
international peace and security will remain incomplete
until we achieve a comprehensive reform of the United
Nations Security Council — a reformed Security
Council that meets and responds to the geopolitical
realities of the twenty-first century. In this respect,
Mauritius fully supports the Common African Position,
as enshrined in the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte
Declaration. We reiterate our support for India, the
largest democracy, obtaining a permanent seat in a
reformed Security Council. We also support the
rightful aspiration of Latin America and the Caribbean
for a permanent seat in the Council.

31 10-55264

 We have in no uncertain terms drawn the
attention of this body every year to the fact that
Mauritius has sovereignty over the Chagos
Archipelago, including Diego Garcia. The Chagos
Archipelago was illegally excised by the United
Kingdom from the territory of Mauritius prior to our
independence. This dismemberment was done in
blatant violation of General Assembly resolutions 1514
(XV) of 14 December 1960 and 2066 (XX) of
16 December 1965. We have raised the issue of the
sovereignty of Mauritius over the Archipelago with
successive British Governments and initially pursued
the matter as a friendly dispute. In view of the lack of
progress, we suggested that the issue be addressed in
bilateral talks. Although the process of bilateral talks
was initiated in January 2009, the issue of our
sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago has yet to be
addressed.
 We are deeply concerned that the British
Government decided on 1 April 2010 to unilaterally
declare a marine protected area around the Chagos
Archipelago — our territory — allegedly to protect the
marine environment. The unilateral establishment of
this marine protected area infringes the sovereignty of
Mauritius over the Archipelago and constitutes a
serious impediment to the eventual resettlement there
of its former inhabitants and other Mauritians, as any
economic activity in the protected zone would be
precluded. The Government of Mauritius has decided
not to recognize the existence of the so called marine
protected area.
 The illegal excision of the Chagos Archipelago
from the territory of Mauritius has indeed a tragic
human dimension. All the inhabitants of the
Archipelago were at that time forced by the British
authorities to abruptly leave their homes there, in total
disregard for their human rights. Most of them were
moved to the main island of Mauritius. The
Government of Mauritius is sensitive to and fully
supportive of the plight of the displaced inhabitants of
the Chagos Archipelago and to their desire to resettle
in their birthplace there.
 Mauritius greatly appreciates the unflinching and
unanimous support it has consistently received from
the African Union and the Non-Aligned Movement for
the assertion of its sovereignty over the Chagos
Archipelago. The last AU Summit held in Kampala last
July and the last Non-Aligned Movement Summit held
in July 2008 in Sharm el-Sheikh both reaffirmed that
the Archipelago, including Diego Garcia, forms an
integral part of the territory of the Republic of
Mauritius. They also called upon the United Kingdom
to expeditiously put an end to its unlawful occupation
of the Chagos Archipelago with a view to enabling
Mauritius to effectively exercise its sovereignty over it.
 We urge the United Kingdom once again to take
the necessary steps for the unconditional return of the
Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia, to
Mauritius without further delay. In our annual
statement, we also reaffirmed the sovereignty of
Mauritius over Tromelin Island. The Governments of
Mauritius and France reached an agreement earlier this
year on the co management of the island and its
maritime zones without prejudice to the sovereignty of
Mauritius over Tromelin. This is considered to be a
first and positive step towards the resolution of the
sovereignty issue. The Republic of Mauritius is a crucible of
civilizations and cultures. We are proud to be a haven
of peace, where people of various backgrounds and
traditions live together in harmony. The people of
Mauritius are inspired by the philosophy of
multiculturalism and consider their diversity to be a
rich human resource. Based on the vision expressed in
our motto, “Unity, equality and modernity”, we have
committed to place humanity at the centre of all
development in our pluralistic society — a society
based on diversity, respect for cultural individuality,
non-discrimination and sharing common values.
 The United Nations is the pre-eminent forum for
intercultural dialogue. My country will fully play its
part in the combined global effort for all human beings
to enjoy the consideration and respect that are their
birthright.
 Finally, I should like to reaffirm Mauritius’
unwavering faith in the United Nations in the
maintenance of international peace, security and
development.


Let me begin by warmly
congratulating President Joseph Deiss on his election
and extending the best wishes of the Irish Government
for a successful term in office.
 We gather this year against a backdrop of grave
challenges confronting the global community.
Foremost among them is the continuing crisis of global
hunger and poverty. We recognize the obligation upon
us to fulfil the commitments made to the world’s most
vulnerable people when the Assembly adopted the
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000. Our
Governments have to contend with the most severe
global recession in many decades, but we must limit
the impact of the crisis on those in greatest need. We
must also maintain our commitment to halving the
proportion of people living in extreme poverty and
hunger by 2015.
 Firmer action is also called for in responding to
the threat posed by climate change. If the global
community fails to act now on that issue, we will face
a steadily escalating threat to our planet and to human
survival. In recent months, we have also seen the
devastating consequences that natural catastrophes,
such as those that have afflicted Pakistan and Haiti, can
unleash on vulnerable populations.
 As with so many of the challenges and threats to
our common security, it is to this great Organization
that we instinctively turn in searching for effective
collective responses. The universality of its
membership gives the United Nations a unique
legitimacy and authority. It brings the nations of the
world together under a common roof. It provides an
invaluable framework for common reflection and
decision-making. With the necessary political will, the
Member States can use the authority and reach of the
United Nations to fashion a more peaceful, equitable
and secure world.
 One area requiring our close attention is reform
of the United Nations itself. To improve the
effectiveness of the Organization, we need to ensure
that its structures are fit for their purpose and adjusted
to twenty-first-century realities. Ireland has actively
championed the reform agenda at the United Nations in
recent years, and we will continue to do so.
 In that regard, I warmly welcome the
establishment of UN Women. Ireland is committed to
supporting that important new body within the United
Nations system, as it promotes greater gender equality
and works to enhance the rights and well-being of
women worldwide. Also, the benefits to be had from
the “delivering as one” programme — greater coherence
in United Nations development activities and improved
delivery of services at the country level — are clear and
tangible. The valuable work done in those areas
demonstrates that reform can be achieved when it is
clearly shown to be in our collective interest.

10-55128 36

 We need to do more, however. There is a pressing
need for a Security Council that is more properly
reflective of twenty-first-century realities and that can
function better and with increased transparency. The
constructive deliberations on that issue within the
informal plenary of the General Assembly should be
intensified, with a view to identifying whether there is
a model for reform that can command broad consensus.
 The system for apportioning the expenses of the
Organization should better reflect the principle of
capacity to pay. Ireland and its European Union
partners have highlighted that issue in recent years, and
we will continue to follow it closely. I look forward to
positive results from the review of the existing scale
methodology that the General Assembly has been
mandated to carry out.
 Perhaps the greatest challenge we face as a global
community is to take effective action to eliminate
poverty and hunger. We set ourselves clear targets in
adopting the Millennium Development Goals 10 years
ago. Here in New York we have reviewed progress
over the past week. We have welcomed the remarkable
progress that has been generated through our collective
action in areas such as education, child health and the
treatment of HIV and AIDS. But the reality remains
that the actual numbers of people living in poverty and
hunger in our world continue to increase.
 In recent times, economic crisis and uncertainty
have devastated the lives of communities already
facing extreme poverty at the same time that they
impose pressure on development budgets worldwide. It
is therefore imperative that developed and developing
countries, in partnership, now examine rigorously
which actions have worked in the fight to end poverty
and which can be pursued more effectively. We also
need to focus more clearly on key sectors.
 Since the publication of our Hunger Task Force
report two years ago, Ireland has been arguing that a
more concerted, comprehensive approach is required to
end the continuing crisis of world hunger. The number
of chronically hungry people has risen to almost one
billion. One in four children in the developing world is
undernourished. Failure to address that crisis is
undermining progress across the full range of
development goals. And yet the means are available, at
an affordable cost, to end that scandal. We need to
mobilize the political will to do so.
 Last week, with the United States Secretary of
State, I hosted a meeting of international leaders to
build a partnership focusing on nutrition in the first one
thousand days of life, from pregnancy to two years of
age. We recognized and will give our full support to
the Scaling Up Nutrition Initiative of the Secretary
General. Our determination to maintain international
attention to that issue is driven by the conviction that it
is possible in the five years remaining to deliver
measurable progress on our commitment to halve the
proportion of people suffering from extreme poverty
and hunger by 2015.
 One of the core tasks of this Organization is to
contribute to the maintenance of international peace
and security. War and conflict are not merely
profoundly destabilizing for the regions in which they
occur; they also threaten the collective security of
mankind. Mobilizing effective international responses
to armed conflict, as and when it occurs, and providing
peacekeeping and peacebuilding support in that context
are high on the United Nations agenda. In that vitally
important area, the United Nations record of
accomplishment speaks for itself, as explicitly
acknowledged through the awarding of the Nobel
Peace Prize in 2001.
 There is one conflict that, more than most,
requires the sustained engagement of the international
community at the present time. The direct talks under
way between Israeli and Palestinian leaders present a
historic opportunity to make progress towards a just
and lasting peace in the Middle East. I have no doubt
that progress towards a comprehensive settlement
based on the two-State solution would contribute more
to improving global security than any other single
peacebuilding effort.
 I want to salute the leadership and commitment
demonstrated by President Obama, Secretary of State
Clinton and Special Envoy Mitchell in persuading
Israel and the Palestinian Authority to resume direct
negotiations. While there have been many critical
junctures in the Middle East peace process in the past,
there can be no doubting the significance of the
initiative which is under way at present. It represents
what is possibly the final opportunity to achieve a just
settlement based on two States living side by side in
peace and security.
 President Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu
are also to be commended for their personal

37 10-55128

commitment to this process. I encourage both sides to
stay the course and not to be deterred by those who
seek to derail the process. In particular, I urge all
parties to refrain from any actions which could
endanger the negotiation process. It is vital that every
effort be made to keep the process intact. Our own
experience in the Northern Ireland peace process has
shown that political progress can only be achieved
through dialogue. Maximum restraint for the duration
of these talks, which are intended to be — and should
be — completed in 12 months, would be a small price
for lasting peace. In this regard, I echo the statement
made earlier today by the High Representative of the
European Union (EU), Catherine Ashton, regretting the
Israeli decision not to extend the moratorium on
settlements. There could be no greater single
confidence-building measure and practical
demonstration of commitment to peace than a decision
to desist from all settlement construction in the West
Bank and East Jerusalem.
 We must not forget Gaza at this critical time. I
witnessed for myself the appalling humanitarian plight
of the people of Gaza when I visited the region last
February. Eighty per cent of them live below the
poverty line. The deprivation and hardship that they are
suffering because of the blockade are painfully
obvious. Yet the people of Gaza show a remarkable
dignity and resilience in the face of living conditions
which are quite simply unacceptable.
 I welcome the steps taken so far to improve the
delivery of humanitarian and consumer goods to Gaza.
However, the reality remains that much more needs to
be done in terms of rebuilding Gaza and allowing
normal commercial activity to resume. In particular,
exports must be allowed to resume from Gaza; the vital
work of recovery and reconstruction, which has been
effectively on hold for almost two years, must be
facilitated; and key infrastructural projects identified
by the United Nations must be allowed to proceed.
 I would also urge greater support for the
invaluable work performed by the United Nations
Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the
Near East (UNRWA), and its brave and dedicated staff,
on behalf of the Palestinian people. I and others who
have visited Gaza in recent months, such as Secretary-
General Ban and European Union High Representative
Ashton, can testify to the importance of what UNRWA
is doing to support the welfare of Gaza’s inhabitants
and to provide them with some basis for confidence in
a better future.
 The lack of progress in resolving the differences
between the international community and Iran over that
country’s nuclear programme is a source of great
concern. I urge the Iranian authorities to engage
constructively on this issue and to comply with the
clear requirements set out in numerous Security
Council and International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) resolutions, most recently in Security Council
resolution 1929 (2010). There is a sincere wish on the
part of all of us to negotiate seriously and
constructively with Iran on these and other important
international issues. I look forward to such a dialogue
resuming in the near future.
 Any discussion with Iran would also need to
include the human rights situation there, about which
there continue to be the gravest concerns. Iran must do
considerably more than it has done up to now to
respect and fulfil the international obligations it has
undertaken in the field of human rights. Recent cases
of human rights abuses are profoundly disturbing, and
Iran must be held fully accountable for them.
 The global security which we all wish to achieve
depends crucially on the eradication of the means of
conflict. Efforts to achieve nuclear disarmament and to
prevent the further proliferation of nuclear weapons
have been key objectives for the United Nations since
its inception. They have also been a major foreign
policy priority for successive Irish Governments.
Ireland was the first country to sign and ratify the
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). The
successful outcome to last May’s NPT Review
Conference has reinvigorated the Treaty and is an
important milestone on the road towards the eventual
elimination of all nuclear weapons. A key priority for
Ireland is implementation of the action plan on nuclear
disarmament agreed there.
 I am pleased that Ireland made an important
contribution at the Review Conference. In particular,
we were able to facilitate progress in relation to
implementation of the 1995 resolution on a zone free
of weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East. I
hope that the strong spirit of compromise evident at the
Review Conference will be maintained and built upon
in the preparations for the 2012 conference on the
Middle East resolution.

10-55128 38

 Ireland is also satisfied with the progress made
over the past couple of years on the issue of cluster
munitions. The Convention on Cluster Munitions,
which was negotiated in Dublin in May 2008, has
entered into force as of 1 August this year. This
landmark development brings closer the prospect of the
elimination of all cluster munitions and of the
unacceptable harm to civilians they cause. We must
now move ahead with implementation of the
Convention and promotion of the widest possible
adherence to its provisions.
 Ireland is actively supporting preparations for the
first meeting of States Parties of the Convention in
Vientiane in November. We will continue to show
leadership on this issue and to do all we can to ensure
the worldwide elimination of these atrocious weapons.
 This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the
first deployment of Irish troops under the United
Nations flag. In 1960, just five years after we joined
this Organization, Ireland decided to participate in a
peacekeeping mission to what was then the newly
independent Congo. This began a long and
distinguished tradition of service in United Nations
peacekeeping operations in a wide variety of conflict
situations around the globe. We will continue to
contribute personnel to such missions and to play our
part in the maintenance of international peace and
security. I welcome the constructive discussions which
have taken place within the Special Committee on
Peacekeeping Operations on ways of improving the
future conduct and management of United Nations
peacekeeping missions, following on from Secretary-
General Ban’s recent paper on the New Horizon
Initiative.
 This year, Ireland was honoured when our
Permanent Representative, Ambassador Anne
Anderson, took on the role of co-facilitator, along with
South African and Mexican colleagues, of a major
review of the United Nations peacebuilding
architecture. We were very pleased to be able to make
our contribution to this important and wide-ranging
reflection on the work of the Peacebuilding
Commission, five years after its establishment. The
three co-facilitators have submitted a report which
aims to revitalize the Commission and give it renewed
focus and impact. I look forward to positive
consideration by Member States of this report and the
recommendations it makes.
 Ireland has also been active in relation to another
set of issues which have a significant bearing on
conflict resolution and peacebuilding. This year marks
the tenth anniversary of the adoption of Security
Council resolution 1325 (2000), which, for the first
time, explicitly acknowledged the key role of women
in conflict resolution and peacebuilding. We have been
working hard to raise international awareness of this
resolution and to encourage greater implementation of
its provisions by Member States.
 As part of our focus on resolution 1325 (2000),
we have been pleased to work with Liberia and Timor-
Leste in conducting important lessons-learned
exercises. A report will be presented to the Secretary-
General shortly on the key findings made in this
process. We are also working to finalize our national
action plan on women, peace and security in the very
near future.
 Ireland strongly supports the vital role played by
the United Nations in upholding and defending human
rights around the world. Next year’s review of the
Human Rights Council provides an opportunity to
assess the Council’s performance to date and to
consider how it might be improved and strengthened.
As a candidate for election in 2012, we look forward to
making our own contribution to the work of enhancing
the Council’s performance.
 Ireland is also deeply supportive of the work of
the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the
International Tribunals in promoting justice and
combating impunity. I welcome the successful outcome
to the recent Kampala Review Conference of the Rome
Statute of the International Criminal Court, including
in relation to defining the crime of aggression, and I
urge the fullest cooperation on the part of all Member
States with both the ICC and the International
Tribunals.
 The appalling human tragedy of Darfur continues
to challenge the international community. I applaud the
courageous efforts of the United Nations personnel and
all of the others on the ground in Darfur who are
working to provide vital humanitarian services.
 We hope that all sides in Sudan will continue to
engage in the fullest cooperation in support of the
United Nations/African Union mediation efforts in
Darfur and also in the preparations for the historic
referendum in southern Sudan early next year. Full
implementation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace

39 10-55128

Agreement still remains fundamental to securing peace
and stability in Sudan as a whole and in the region.
 The continuing unjust detention of Aung San Suu
Kyi in Burma epitomizes the fate of prisoners of
conscience everywhere who seek to uphold the values
of democracy and free speech. I call for her immediate
and unconditional release. I also call for the release of
all other political prisoners in Burma and for the
launching of a genuine, inclusive national dialogue.
And I very much endorse Secretary-General Ban’s call
on Burma’s leaders to create the conditions in which
free and fair elections can take place.
 In a world where we continue to face enormous
peacebuilding challenges, the Northern Ireland peace
process is an example of what can be achieved with
patience, imagination and strong international support.
This year saw a hugely significant step forward in
Northern Ireland with the devolution of policing and
justice powers to a locally elected Minister accountable
to the Northern Ireland Assembly. That is a major step
towards fulfilling the vision of the Good Friday
Agreement, which was signed 12 years ago.
 That Agreement provides a genuine possibility
for political inclusion for all who reject violence. It is
the framework within which the Irish Government,
working in partnership and full cooperation with the
British Government and the Northern Ireland
Executive, is helping to build economic prosperity,
assist communities to move beyond conflict and sow
the seeds for a shared future for all.
 The European Union and its 27 member States
are firmly committed to effective multilateralism with
a strong United Nations at its core. We look forward to
further consultations with the Member States of this
Organization on proposed changes to the status of the
European Union in the General Assembly. These
modest adjustments will help the Union to make a
more effective contribution to the work of the
Assembly and of the United Nations. A European
Union speaking with a clear and coherent voice on the
great global challenges that this Organization must
address will, I believe, strengthen the impact and
effectiveness of the United Nations as a whole. That is
something to which Ireland and its EU partners attach
the utmost importance.
 We live in times of profound and unsettling
change and daunting global challenges. As we struggle
to deal with these challenges and to chart ways forward
in an insecure world, the United Nations is an
increasingly valuable resource. It remains the
international organization with the greatest potential
for international consensus-building and for the
framing of collective strategies and solutions. At its
heart are the fundamental principles embodied in the
United Nations Charter, principles which have
underpinned the conduct of international relations over
the past 65 years and whose strength and validity is
more apparent today than ever before.
 Ireland is steadfastly committed to this
Organization and the principles and values on which it
rests. I very much welcome the General Assembly
President’s emphasis on the need for a strong, inclusive
and open United Nations, and we look forward to
taking part in the consultations which he has indicated
he will be convening. We look to the United Nations as
the indispensable forum for developing effective
multilateralism and for leading international
endeavours towards the creation of a more peaceful,
prosperous and secure world.


I stand before this
Assembly as an envoy of His Excellency Mr. Rupiah
Bwezani Banda, President of the Republic of Zambia.
 Zambia wishes to align itself with the statement
delivered by His Excellency Ngwazi Professor Bingu
Wa Mutharika, President of the Republic of Malawi
and current Chairperson of the African Union.
 This session is taking place amid global
challenges such as climate change, loss of biodiversity,
environmental degradation, international terrorism,
piracy, HIV/AIDS, extreme poverty and hunger, among
others. It is an occasion for all Member States to
collectively engage in dialogue aimed at finding
solutions to the challenges that our countries are
facing, in order to contribute to the socio-economic
development and well-being of our people.
 The Assembly’s theme this year is appropriate, as
it provides an opportunity to reaffirm the central role
of the United Nations in global governance. The role of
the United Nations is felt in areas such as
peacekeeping, security, human rights, the promotion of
gender equality and the fight for social justice and
equality. However, emerging global challenges, such as
the recent financial and economic crisis, also call for a
greater role for the United Nations in global economic
governance. In that regard, our Government would like
to see a strengthening and enhancing of capacity in the
United Nations to enable it to deal with some of those
challenges.
 Allow me to express Zambia’s gratitude to the
Secretary-General for organizing the important high-
level meetings that preceded the general debate.
 The summit to review the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) provided an opportunity
for the international community to take stock of
existing gaps and the challenges faced in the
attainment of the MDGs. At that meeting I elaborated
on the progress Zambia has made and the challenges
we continue to face in our efforts to attain the MDGs.
In spite of the strides made in improving the
macroeconomic environment and putting in place
development frameworks, the incidence of poverty in
my country remains high, partly because our efforts
alone are not enough. I therefore wish to reiterate calls
to the international cooperating partners to honour all
of their commitments to ensure that the 2015 targets
are realized.
 Let me also add that the measures that the
Zambian Government has adopted to address the issue
of hunger and poverty include devising agricultural
sector policies that enable smallholder farming

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households to improve their productivity. In that
connection, this year Zambia has recorded a bumper
harvest of maize, which is our main food crop. That
will ensure food security and increased incomes for
smallholder farmers, who constitute the majority of the
farming community.
 We are mindful, however, of the fact that climate
change, as evidenced by persistent periods of droughts
and floods in our countries, poses one of the most
serious threats to the agricultural sector and thus to
overall food production. While as a Government we are
doing everything possible, such as investing in
agricultural research and irrigation methods, the debate
on climate change should not lose sight of the need to
assist developing countries, including Zambia, in
building capacities to adapt in order to mitigate
negative impacts on the agricultural sector. Without
those, poverty and hunger will persist in my country.
 Zambia shares the concerns of the Secretary-
General regarding current global resource loss and
ecosystem degradation. It is important that mankind
reverse the ongoing trends of natural resource loss and
ecosystem degradation as a commitment to protect
biodiversity. That will be achieved only if all
stakeholders step up their efforts and meet the MDGs
and other internationally agreed development goals.
 My delegation welcomes the positive
developments that have occurred in the past year in the
area of arms control and disarmament. The Security
Council’s convening of a summit to address
disarmament issues, the Secretary-General’s launch of
a five-point nuclear disarmament proposal, the entry
into force of treaties establishing nuclear-weapon-free
zones in Central Asia and Africa, and the convening of
a summit in Washington to discuss nuclear
disarmament and non-proliferation, among others, must
indeed be commended. We hope those efforts and the
momentum generated will be sustained and will lead to
the resolution of all outstanding issues in the area of
disarmament.
 Zambia, however, continues to face difficulties in
controlling the inflow of small arms and light weapons.
The illicit trade in small arms threatens security and
retards social and economic development in our
country. Zambia therefore calls for the establishment of
a strong and legally binding international instrument on
the arms trade. We strongly support the convening of
the United Nations conference in 2012 to establish
legally binding common international standards for the
import, export and transfer of conventional arms, with
specific measures against defaulters.
 On the reform of the United Nations, in particular
the Security Council, Zambia reaffirms its support for the
African position, as espoused in the Ezulwini Consensus
and the Sirte Declaration, that Africa should be granted,
among others, not less than two permanent seats, with all
of the prerogatives and privileges including the right of
veto, and two additional non-permanent seats. Africa is
the only continent without permanent seats, and yet it has
the second largest membership of the United Nations.
Granting Africa permanent seats will redress that
historical injustice.
 The Government of Zambia recognizes the
important role that women play in attaining
development. Furthermore, we recognize that the
empowerment of women and their inclusion in the
decision-making process have enhanced their role in
development. That is why Zambia has integrated
women of all sectors of society in decision-making
positions, and we are committed to doing even more.
 Our Government welcomes the establishment of
UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender
Equality and the Empowerment of Women, and the
appointment of Ms. Michelle Bachelet, the former
President of Chile, to head it. It is our hope that the
new Entity will have a strong and effective presence at
country level and will help Member States implement
standards and will provide them with the much-needed
financial and technical support required to achieve
women’s empowerment, equality and equity.
 As the Assembly is aware, Zambia has been
hosting refugees prior to and since its independence in
1964 and is party to all refugee conventions. My
country was among the first on the African continent to
host a refugee camp. Zambia is committed to hosting
refugees, and our experience has demonstrated that
voluntary repatriation is a desirable and durable
solution. However, as an under-resourced and least
developed country, hosting refugees is a major
challenge for us. We therefore call upon the
international community to provide financial assistance
to enable us to discharge that responsibility through the
provision of minimum standards of care.
 In addition to the question of refugees, the issue
of internally displaced persons, which has continued to
increase worldwide, especially in Africa, equally calls

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for our attention. The adoption by the African Union
last year of the Convention for the Protection and
Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa is
an important landmark that requires the support of the
international community at large.
 The sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe continue to
cause great suffering to the people of that country and
to the southern Africa region as a whole. Similarly, the
embargo that the United States has imposed on Cuba,
which the United Nations has condemned through
numerous General Assembly resolutions, has caused
untold hardship to the people of Cuba. Zambia calls on
this body to ensure that the sanctions on Zimbabwe and
the United States embargo on Cuba are lifted.
 In an effort to consolidate democratic
governance, Zambia is in the process of enacting a new

constitution. The National Constitutional Conference
that was established to oversee the process concluded
its work and submitted a draft constitution, which
awaits tabling before Parliament. As the Assembly may
be aware, Zambia will hold presidential and general
elections in 2011. As in the past, international election
observers, including those from the United Nations,
will be invited.
 As we reaffirm the role of the United Nations in
global governance, let us not be complacent in the face
of great suffering and hardship in our world. Let that
be the force that drives us to action, where all nations
will work together in meeting the goals and aspirations
of our peoples.