Twenty years ago the
Bahamas took its seat as the 138th Member in this Assembly
of the United Nations, and we proudly assumed the solemn
obligations and responsibilities conferred by the Charter.
This session marks our twentieth anniversary, which we
celebrate with our friends of the now reunited Germany with
whom we were admitted.
As we reflect on the global events of those two
decades, we see a world significantly transformed. Where
there was a single Soviet Union and a single Yugoslav
Republic, we now have the Commonwealth of Independent
States and the Baltic States. In addition, the admission of
many new States to this great Organization has resulted in
an almost complete universality of membership. It is
therefore with much joy that we warmly welcome all new
Members and extend to each the fraternal hand of friendship
and partnership in the continued struggle for human dignity
and development.
The Bahamas has also witnessed significant national
development since its membership. Today we are one of the
most stable and democratic societies. We are proud of this
achievement, and we encourage all those who would to
6 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
follow our example of freedom, justice and peace, buttressed
by sound principles of human and national development.
We have yet another reason for celebration. Your
unanimous election to the presidency of this forty-eighth
session of the General Assembly, Sir, is an historic occasion
not only for you personally and for your great country but
also for every Caribbean Government and person.
Bahamians, together with all Caribbean peoples, therefore
pay high tribute to you and to your country. We are fully
conscious of your impeccable and enviable credentials as a
diplomat, and we are satisfied that those same skills will
serve to guide us through this session, despite its challenges,
to successful and lasting results.
Permit me also to pay high tribute to your predecessor,
Mr. Stoyan Ganev of Bulgaria, for his outstanding
contributions to the forty-seventh session of the General
Assembly. His presidency witnessed significant
achievements and today we are the beneficiaries of his
visionary leadership.
While we who are privileged to represent our
Governments have the luxury of pronouncing international
policies, the Secretary-General enjoys no such luxury. His
is the responsibility of going beyond the rhetoric to the
substance of the many resolutions and decisions which we
adopt in this Assembly each year. His task is therefore
dauntingly complex. Nevertheless, he has borne his
enormous responsibilities with great dignity and high
distinction.
In this connection, we cannot help but recall the biblical
injunction: "Out of Egypt have I called my Son". (The
Holy Bible, Matthew 2:15) Like his predecessor, he has
performed beyond our expectations, and is deserving of our
praise for his proficiency in assisting this Organization in
shaping contemporary history so dramatically.
At this juncture I wish to take this opportunity to
extend the deepest sympathy of the Government and the
people of the Bahamas to the people and the Government of
India, who suffered such tragic loss of life and property
during the recent devastating earthquake, and to reaffirm our
solidarity with them during this time of national disaster.
It would be very easy for me on behalf of my
Government and country to rehearse the developments of the
past year and offer the members of the Assembly some
observations. However, we believe that a focus on the
future is more timely.
As we near the fiftieth anniversary of the Organization,
it is the view of the Bahamas that that significant turning-
point should be seized as an opportunity to assess where we
are and what is required to move further ahead in the
fulfilment of the principles of the Charter, so that the
forthcoming anniversary will indeed be cause for celebration.
In reflecting on what is required to move ahead, we
invite all Member States to focus with us on how each one
of us, given our varied capacities, can assist the Organization
in moving closer to the full achievement of the principles
enshrined in the Charter.
There is no question that the United Nations, in its
often unappreciated role in the promotion of such objectives
as international cooperation and respect for human rights,
has been vindicated in this approach by successes far beyond
expectations.
In the political sphere, such successes include the
fostering of a shift to democracy in Eastern Europe; the
dramatic reduction, through voluntary destruction, of nuclear
weapons; the Mission of the Organization of American
States (OAS) and United Nations in Haiti; the 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 since 1991; the establishment of the Transitional
Executive Council in South Africa; the very recent signing
of the historic peace accord between Israel and the Palestine
Liberation Organization (PLO), as well as the Declaration of
Principles between Israel and Jordan; and the repelling of
aggression and the restoration of sovereignty in Kuwait. In
this context, the Security Council resolution that determines
the Kuwaiti boundary must be respected.
In addressing the hurdles which must be overcome
before lasting solutions are achieved, we believe that more
emphasis should also be placed on the expanded economic,
social and military role of the United Nations. That role is
demonstrated by the peace-keeping forces dispatched
globally and by the recent successful Conferences on
Environment and Development and Human Rights, as well
as by the forthcoming conferences on women, population
and development, the Summit for Social Development and,
most importantly for the Bahamas, the forthcoming
Conference on Sustainable Development of Small Island
Developing States, scheduled to be held at Barbados in 1994.
The Bahamas places particular emphasis on the role of
the United Nations in the economic and social fields and
fully expects that the revitalized United Nations will provide
an enhanced capacity for the Organization to perform that
Forty-eighth session - 11 October l993 7
important role. It is in this context, therefore, that we
support the efforts of the Secretary-General to restructure the
Organization in the economic and social fields.
As members are aware, success invariably brings
greater responsibilities and challenges. Indeed, these greater
responsibilities, challenges, and even attendant impediments,
have regrettably already begun to sour the excitement of the
many achievements attained. But we must not let this
reverse side of success debilitate us. We must remain
focused so that narrower vested interests do not hinder the
achievement of goals set in the wider interest. We must
permit no circumstance to impede the earliest cessation of
the atrocities of war for a return to peaceful settlement of
disputes. We must be sensitive to and respond practically,
in the spirit of the Charter, to national needs, pressures and
civil unrest. The call for regional action in the settlement of
disputes and peace-keeping will also need to be further
emphasized as we seek to maintain the integrity of the
Organization.
In this connection, we particularly underscore the need
for the fullest support of the implementation of the
Governors Island Accord on the restoration of democracy in
Haiti, not only on the basis of unrelenting moral pressure
but, equally, through material and technical assistance
towards fostering the economic revitalization and enduring
health of that country’s democratic institutions.
While the unpleasant spectacle of politics through
conflict has reasserted itself at the centre of the world stage,
regrettably, politics has two companions, which often
influence it, though rarely gaining the same degree and
magnitude of attention given to politics. These two
companions are economic and social tensions. We must
ever be vigilant of these two, often unruly companions.
Again, we must find our focus in the purposes and principles
of the Charter.
Against that background, there are several questions I
feel must be put as part of the deliberations we will
undertake during this session.
First, is the peace dividend releasing adequate resources
and civilian expertise to impact developmental needs?
Secondly, should life after self-determination for the
newer members of the international community provoke
stagnant growth in those less-recently sovereign?
Thirdly, is there sufficient retraining and assistance to
ensure that the trade liberalization facilitated by megablocs
promotes fair, democratic and transparent institutional
strengthening and the widest empowerment?
And, lastly, how do we ensure that environmental
awareness, as a catalyst for a better quality of life globally,
does not become yet another trade conditionality?
These questions are being posed because, if they are
neglected or inadequately addressed, the new world order
will be but a shifting of power centres and a spawning of
new seeds of international economic, social and political
instability.
In many countries, including the Bahamas, social
tensions are reordering national priorities. We must return
to basics in dealing with problems of a pandemic nature,
such as poverty, illicit drugs, crime, violence, international
terrorism, human rights violations and disease, especially the
urgent necessity for dealing with the devastations caused by
acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).
Throughout this global village our Member States are
facing the disintegration of the traditional family values,
coupled with rampant unemployment. We must
re-emphasize those spiritual values which respect life, the
dignity and worth of the human person and his or her
importance to national life and development. In order that
our peoples will avoid hopelessness and survive the adverse
effects of economic decline, we must share more directly the
burden of action for solutions with those community
institutions and social partners which are the teachers and
the examples of positive spiritual and moral values.
Fundamentally, the Bahamas remains morally persuaded
of, and financially committed to, the goals and worth of the
United Nations. To underscore this commitment, The
Bahamas has recently deposited instruments of accession to
international agreements in some of the priority areas on the
United Nations agenda, including the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights, The International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention on the
Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women
and the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, and
we shall shortly sign the chemical weapons Convention. In
reality, the approaches and solutions found in these
Conventions have long been traditional Bahamian policy and
practice.
Despite a 100 per cent increase in the regular budget
assessment for the Bahamas over the past five years, we
remain unwavering in our acceptance of the necessary
sharing of the financial burden in order that this
Organization may achieve its objectives. On the other hand,
8 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
the Bahamas wishes to have consideration given to the level
of its assessment, and in that process we shall be submitting
evidence that our reputed comparatively high per capita
income not only masks the true indigenous per capita
income situation, but also belies the increasing demands
arising from the development needs of our widely scattered
archipelago. We submit that, given these circumstances,
there ought to be some mitigation available to the Bahamas,
given these circumstances.
The Bahamas is very cognizant that we remain one of
the few cases of comparative political tranquillity and
unassailed natural beauty. Our commitment to the
maintenance of national unity and the preservation of the
environment is unwavering. We therefore believe that the
Bahamas is ideally suited as a propitious setting for difficult
negotiations, and we offer the Organization our facilities,
which, we are convinced, will enhance the conduct of such
affairs. We further pledge our commitment to contribute, to
the extent possible, to making operational the
Secretary-General’s "Agenda for Peace" and Papua New
Guinea’s proposed agenda for development. We see these
agenda items as practical approaches to dealing with
problem-solving for conflict resolution, peace-keeping and
post-conflict peace-building, and poverty alleviation.
As we approach the fiftieth year of our Organization’s
existence, to ensure even better years ahead our watchwords
should be "perspective" and "purpose": perspective in not
losing sight of the goals of our founding fathers, who
emphasized the primacy of people in the preamble to our
Charter; and purpose in recognizing and accepting that the
means for, and the road to, the end of international disorder
and insecurity must begin with the individual. Our initially
separate personal attitudes, motives and actions ultimately
determine whether there will be an international climate for
peace or one for disorder. The success of our Organization
is therefore dependent, at one and the same time, on our
international, collective and personal actions.
In our Caribbean corner of this global village, the
Bahamas continues its efforts in the struggle to bring about
peace and democracy in neighbouring Haiti. The success of
this process will permit our own social and economic
landscape to be relieved of the extra burden of caring for the
thousands of illegal immigrants from that country who defy
the sometimes harsh elements of nature in search of a safe
haven in our relative paradise.We trust that the world - and
especially the Member States of this Organization - has
taken due note of the enormous weight imposed upon our
small country by this undertaking. The Bahamas has well
demonstrated its concern and care for its neighbours of the
Republic of Haiti. I call to mind the famous statement by
one of the young residents of Father Flanagan’s Boys’ Town
United States of America . When asked about the concern
and care he demonstrated for his brother he replied, "He
ain’t heavy, Father; he’s my brother". The fact is, our
brother is heavy, but we bear him gladly, in Christian
charity, and in full and great expectation of imminent peace
in Haiti.
Our Bahamas remains proudly and immovably in
league with this great Organization.


 I
am delighted to be addressing the General Assembly as the
people of Guinea commemorate a historic date: 28
September 1958, the day on which Guinea, by a unanimous
vote, chose national independence and sovereignty, thus
accelerating the process of liberation of the African peoples.
It will be easy, then, to understand the pride and
pleasure I take on this anniversary in conveying a message
of peace and friendship from the people of Guinea and from
their President, General Lansana Conté.
I join previous speakers in congratulating Ambassador
Insanally on his dazzling election as President of the General
Assembly at its forty-eighth session. I wish also to assure
him of my delegation’s complete support as he carries out
his responsible tasks. His personal qualities, his wealth of
experience and the valuable assistance of his fellow-officers -
whom I also congratulate - bode well for the success of our
work.
I wish also to convey to the President of the Assembly
at its forty-seventh session, His Excellency Mr. Stoyan
Ganev of Bulgaria, my great appreciation for the skill and
dedication with which he guided the work of that session.
Finally, my delegation highly appreciates the
praiseworthy efforts made by the Secretary-General, His
Excellency Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, who has worked
tirelessly to build and maintain peace in the face of all the
obstacles in his way.
The independence of the sister republic of Eritrea and
its admission to membership of the Organization were a
source of great relief for its people and of genuine
satisfaction for the international community. I welcome
Eritrea and wish it great success in its difficult task of
national reconstruction.
I welcome the admission of Eritrea, and that of the
Czech Republic, Slovakia and the Principalities of Monaco
and Andorra; this confirms the increasingly universal
character of our Organization.
The end of the cold war radically changed world
geopolitics through a rapid series of often unforeseeable
events. While it is possible to believe that the threat of a
global conflagration has been lifted, we note with dismay the
proliferation and exacerbation of armed conflicts that are
causing immense loss of life, great destruction of
infrastructure and property, and severe suffering among
civilians suffering the agony of exile, famine and sickness.
What a paradox! On the one hand, the international
community is making intense efforts to prevent or contain
armed conflicts, and on the other hand international action
is not being provided with the resources it needs to eliminate
the causes and the manifestations of those conflicts. That is
a salient feature of today’s international relations.
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 33
In short, more resources are needed to restore world
peace.
None the less, it is reassuring that recent history has
favoured the renaissance of the United Nations; thanks to
changed attitudes and perceptions, the Organization has truly
become the guarantor of peace at a difficult moment in
international relations.
The positive trends that we have seen here and there in
finding solutions to political problems ought to have
promoted an improvement in the economic and social
situation in many countries. However, in most developing
countries, that situation has instead deteriorated seriously.
The increase in the number of international forums debating
development programmes has unfortunately not made it
possible to reverse the trend towards the imbalances that I
have mentioned.
Today, world savings are under severe pressure. What
is happening is that the supply of capital for development is
inadequate relative to the ever-increasing demand from the
African countries, especially if we take into account the new
needs of the Eastern countries, which are in the throes of
transition. The world economic crisis is still going on; it is
aggravating the disparities and the already precarious
conditions for development being experience by the third
world countries.
For Africa, this crisis has been heightened by drought
and desertification, by the stagnation - for which, read
reduction - in official development assistance, by the
deterioration in terms of trade and its corollary, the marked
drop in export earnings, by the counter-productive effects of
structural adjustment programmes and by the external debt
burden.
Allow me to place a particular emphasis on this last
issue. Members will recall that the seriousness of the
indebtedness problem led the African Heads of State or
Government to propose holding a special summit on African
debt. This problem is today still as widespread and as acute
as it was before, despite the relief measures undertaken by
some creditors. The international community must be
persuaded of the fact that so long as the question of
indebtedness is not studied in a global, concerted manner,
the socio-economic development programmes of the third
world will be put in jeopardy as a result.
The lack of resources for development has as its
corollary the mass exodus from the countries of the South to
the countries of the North; indeed, the only viable solution
to this migratory phenomenon lies in economic recovery in
the countries of the South.
Environmental problems - the relationship between man
and his environment - have in recent years quite rightly been
a major concern of the international community. Do I need
to stress the fact that man, through his nature-destroying
activities, has heightened the progressive degradation of our
world to the point where the alarm bells we hear today are
sounding?
In the past, man was essentially a passive spectator of
the natural wear and tear on the ecological system. Today
he has become the main player in the destruction of the
natural environment through the combined effects of the
inappropriate design and implementation of a number of
programmes, through the improper use of science and
technology and as a result of runaway population growth.
In contrast, real development must also embrace
protection of the environment and the ecological balance.
This is precisely why my delegation is emphasizing the need
for follow-up to the decisions in the Rio Declaration and
Agenda 21. Environmental protection is a common
responsibility; all nations must contribute to it.
Environmental damage, whether man-made or from natural
causes, spares no region on Earth.
My country, which used to enjoy good rainfall and was
called the watershed of Western Africa, is concerned to see
its rainfall and the rate of flow of its natural watercourses
diminish. This is why my Government is interested - in
more than one sense - in the negotiations that are taking
place within the high-level Commission on Sustainable
Development on drafting an international convention to
combat desertification and drought in the countries that are
being seriously affected.
The persistence of a number of political crises,
including those in southern Africa, Somalia, Liberia, Bosnia
and Herzegovina and elsewhere, is a threat to the peace and
security of mankind.
Fortunately, there is positive progress in South Africa,
where a clear awareness appears to have taken hold
concerning the vital need to build a democratic and multi-
racial society. The establishment of a Transitional Executive
Council, as well as the demonstrations for peace by civilian
society and a certain degree of political awareness, are cause
for optimism, despite some reluctance.
34 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
This remarkable improvement in the political climate,
which has been achieved, inter alia, as a result of the spirit
of compromise shown by the various political players, makes
it possible, in my delegation’s opinion, for the economic
sanctions against South Africa to be lifted, as president
Nelson Mandela of the African National Congress himself
has requested.
That being the case, there is reason for great
satisfaction in the activities of the Organization of African
Unity (OAU) which, through its observer missions and its
Ad Hoc Committee on Southern Africa, has contributed
greatly, in collaboration with the United Nations, to the
peaceful change that has taken place in South Africa.
In Angola, after lighting a glimmer of hope, the process
of national reconciliation seems to be blocked by the
increased fighting resulting from UNITA’s intransigence.
But only observance by the parties of the Bicesse Accords
and of the election results will allow the Angolan people to
regain peace and security. The Security Council’s decision
on 15 September 1993 recommending the application of
sanctions against UNITA must be strengthened and
implemented strictly, because only constant firmness with
UNITA and its leader will make it possible to put an end to
this painful civil war that is sowing death and destruction.
With regard to the Western Sahara, the parties
concerned must cooperate with the Secretary-General and
with all willing parties in order to implement the peace plan,
which is vital for there to be a happy ending to this crisis.
For almost four years now, Liberia has been the theatre
for one of the bloodiest civil wars on our continent. The
refusal by some of the parties to the conflict to compromise
has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people
and considerable material destruction, not to mention the
massive outpouring of refugees and displaced persons, in
particular into neighbouring countries, including my own,
which is at present harbouring some 600,000.
However, it is a source of comfort to note that the
negotiations held in July 1993 in Geneva, under the joint
auspices of the Economic Community of West African
States (ECOWAS) and the United Nations, with the support
of OAU, have made it possible to involve the various parties
to the conflict in constructive dialogue, the only way of
finding a lasting solution to this dreadful crisis.
The signing by the parties concerned of the Geneva
Accord under the auspices of ECOWAS on 25 July 1993 at
Cotonou means, I hope, that conditions have now been
created for a definitive return of peace and stability to this
country and to the subregion. But let there be no mistake:
to achieve lasting peace, the expansion of the ECOWAS
Monitoring Group to include African troops from outside
ECOWAS, strengthened by the presence of international
observers, is one of the guarantees to bring about the process
of assembling troops, disarming the belligerents and holding
democratic elections in order to achieve a return to normal
constitutional life.
The Somali conflict is becoming ever more tragic. The
international community must undertake joint, effective
action. In order to achieve a rapid political solution, it is
essential to halt the sudden escalations that are complicating
the situation in Somalia. The United Nations must resume
its peaceful calling in the face of the many acts of violence
that are trying both the Blue Helmets and the Somali
population.
The Security Council must decide on a new strategy if
the last obstacles in the way of pacification are to be
overcome and if the mission entrusted to the United Nations
Operation in Somalia is to succeed. My Government calls
on all parties to the conflict in Somalia to make their
contribution to the success of the political process now under
way towards the restoration of peace and security in fraternal
Somalia.
In the Middle East, after a period of hatred, turbulence
and hesitation, the parties to the conflict are moving
progressively towards lasting peace.
The signing on 13 September in Washington of the
agreement on autonomy for Jericho and Gaza, marking the
mutual recognition of the Palestine Liberation
Organization (PLO) and Israel, resulted from the courage
and political realism of the two parties. Guinea, as a
member of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People, welcomes this happy turn
of events.
For my country peaceful coexistence between the State
of Israel and the Palestinian State, under the leadership of
the PLO, must be a constant. After Jericho and Gaza, the
liberation of all the other territories would then promote the
consolidation of relations between the two communities.
The march towards global peace in this very sensitive
region is to be encouraged and supported by assistance from
the international community, with a view to the socio-
economic development of the Palestinian State.
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 35
In the Gulf, in order to prevent a new confrontation the
international community must ensure that Kuwait and Iraq
respect the conclusions of the Boundary Demarcation
Commission, which by Security Council resolution 833
(1993) laid down definitively secure and inviolable borders
between these two countries.
The relaxation of tension in Cambodia resulting from
the success of the elections is putting an end to the long
years of martyrdom endured by the Cambodian people.
There is reason to be happy over the positive results of the
efforts by the international community in this area. Respect
for the Paris Agreements will be the guarantee of lasting
peace and will facilitate the work of national reconstruction
in that country.
With regard to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the scale of
organized killings for irrational reasons, such as "ethnic
cleansing" and religion, and the prolongation of the conflict
highlight the divisions in this nation - which until recently
was strong and united - caused by the end of the cold war.
After many efforts, the three communities involved in
the conflict have still not achieved a stable peace.
Unfortunately, the law of the jungle continues to prevail in
the face of the impotence of some and the indifference of
others. There will be true security and lasting peace in
Bosnia and Herzegovina only after serious negotiations
guaranteed by the international community in general and by
the States of the subregion in particular.
With regard to the Korean peninsula, the international
community must support the peaceful reunification of the
two States there.
Africa, like other parts of the world, is at an important
moment in its history, a time of the democratization of its
society and its institutions. The success of this process of
qualitative change requires, none the less, taking into account
the historic, social and cultural realities of States in order to
generate harmonious and lasting development.
The Republic of Guinea has taken important steps along
this road. Its achievements include ratification of the
majority of the African and international Conventions on
human rights and humanitarian law; the adoption of the basic
law in our country which calls for a presidential regime,
separation of powers, the primacy of law, political pluralism
and decentralization; the establishment of a Supreme Court
to ensure, among other matters, that there are no
irregularities in balloting; the entry into operation of the
National Communication Council, whose job it is to ensure
the freedom of the press and free and equal access by all
political parties to State communications media; and the
determination of the Government to organize just and open
elections. The presidential balloting will take place on
5 December next, to be followed by elections to the
legislature.
In our view, these efforts at democratization in Guinea,
as in most other African countries, should have increased
support from development partners to guarantee their
success.
The convening of a series of international conferences
in 1994 and 1995, particularly those regarding population,
women and social development, confirm the interest of the
international community in improving the economic and
social situation of the most vulnerable sectors of our
populations. The same is true of their participation in
development.
The year 1993 has seen the international community
take a more active interest in the emergence of an era of
peace and universal respect for human rights.
Two conferences testify to that. Last June in Vienna,
and more recently in Geneva, we gathered together to think,
to evaluate what has been done, to consider prospects for the
future, in order to eliminate the causes of suffering, and to
reaffirm our faith in the dignity of the human being.
None the less, the absence of international machinery
for the prevention and punishment of serious violations of
human rights makes any protection measures ineffective.
My Government therefore considers that the creation of a
permanent international court with penal powers would be an
important step in the protection and promotion of human
rights.
Such a jurisdiction, by making inevitable the
punishment of the perpetrators of such violations, would
make existing international law more effective.
However, we must eliminate from international affairs
any tendency to be selective with regard to human rights, in
the form of discrimination over which cases should be
denounced or over the sanctions that should be applied.
Moreover, the existing link between human rights and
other aspects of social development requires the elaboration
of national programmes capable of promoting: protection of
the family, which is considered to be the basic unit of
36 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
society; the integration of women into development and their
participation in the management of public affairs; the
protection of vulnerable categories of people - children, the
aged and the handicapped - by establishing conditions
favourable to the development of their personalities; and
efforts to combat the production, consumption and illicit
trafficking in drugs and psychotropic substances through
international cooperation, harmonization of national
legislation and ratification of existing international
Conventions.
Along with these measures, effective strategies must be
evolved to combat the pandemic of AIDS, which, because of
its ravages, is a great scourge and a threat to mankind’s
survival.
The progress achieved in disarmament must be pursued
in the hope that the resources thus released will contribute
to the recovery of the world economy.
In his report on the work of the United Nations and in
various communications the Secretary-General has described
the Organization’s financial situation as being a matter of
great concern. The situation is paradoxical. At a time when
the United Nations is entrusted with new tasks to be carried
out in the service of peace and development the vital
resources needed for those tasks are diminishing. We pay
tribute to the Secretary-General and to encourage him in
applying austerity measures and in restructuring to increase
the effectiveness of the United Nations system.
My delegation strongly urges Member States to honour
their financial obligations by paying regularly and on time
their assessed contributions in order to ensure the
functioning of the United Nations and allow it to play its
role effectively.
I hope that the message I have just delivered is one of
persistence and hope. This message, based on the realities
of the changes in the post-cold-war world and the divisions
those changes have caused in some parts of the world, urges
the Organization to implement new and dynamic strategies
with a view to establishing a new world order based on
equality, justice, peace, cooperation and respect for
democratic values.
This persistence demands sustained efforts to
democratize international relations. The mode of operation
and structure of some bodies in the United Nations system
must be revised; the decision-making bodies must be
streamlined and have an equitable representation of States
and regions.
This persistence is the basis of our hope, a hope of
mastering our collective future on the threshold of the
twenty-first century, a hope that all people will move
together towards peace, the development of nations and the
promotion of human rights. Our collective survival depends
on our solidarity and the effectiveness of our actions to
transform that hope into a reality in international relations.


 I should like at the
outset to extend to you, Mr. President, my sincere
congratulations on your well-deserved election. I should like
to wish you and the other members of the General
Committee success in the discharge of your important duties.
I had a chance to congratulate the President of the Assembly
at its last session when I saw him in Amman, and I should
now like to reiterate my gratitude for his competent
presidency.
The cold war may be over, but its death-knell
reverberates around the globe. The comforting ideological
certainties of super-Power confrontation are long gone.
What have we to replace them? The new world order, with
its promise of peace through collective security, has come
upon a baptism of fire. And still it would appear that no
common frame of reference, no new consensus, no global
ethic, has emerged.
As we enter the new millennium, we see the human
spirit under siege as never before. Across the world, the
voices of millions cry out in desperation for relief, for
guidance. If we, the peoples of the United Nations, are to
be true to our humanity, we must reappraise this situation
that is of our own making. We must learn its lessons, no
matter how hard, and we must apply them. It is our task
today, and in the days to come, to fashion principles and
practices for a truly new world order. In all fields of human
endeavour, we need a new ethic for a new era.
The balance of world power politics has given way.
Ethnic nationalism has re-emerged, a phenomenon in which
the unifying bond of common citizenship is replaced by
racial or religious exclusivity. As a consequence, we face a
series of apparently endless wars of attrition, fought to
secure the domination of one ethnic nationalism over
another. This trend must be reversed if our world is to be
made safe from the spreading contagion of conflict.
Many over the years have thought it impossible, but the
Middle East is bucking this alarming trend. The signing on
13 September of the Palestinian-Israeli declaration of
principles represents a significant step towards the
achievement of a negotiated settlement in our troubled
region.
On the Jordanian-Israeli track, a common agenda,
which has been carefully worked out over the last year and
a half, has now been adopted. We trust that this will signify
the commencement of serious and substantive negotiations
on the various elements of that agenda, with the aim of
achieving just and mutually satisfactory solutions.
These developments are a triumph not only for the
politics of consensus, but also for the international morality
which the United Nations advocates and the legality it
upholds. Over the years the Assembly has passed resolution
after resolution calling for a just, comprehensive and lasting
settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Palestine
question that lies at its core. Finally, the main actors are
playing the leading part in shaping their own destinies.
My country has always sought to bring this prolonged
and bitter conflict to an end, and in our search for solutions
we have constantly aimed to reconcile peace and justice.
Jordan has advocated a negotiated settlement based on
Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973)
longer than any other party. Under the new arrangements,
all parties to the conflict are committed to the
implementation of those resolutions, affirming a cardinal
principle of international law: the inadmissibility of the
acquisition of territory by force.
There is an equally important principle to bear in mind,
however. Peace cannot be piecemeal. It must be
comprehensive if it is to be viable. As foreseen in the
Madrid framework for the peace talks, some issues cannot
be addressed by any two parties to the exclusion of others.
The questions of regional security, water and above all the
refugees cannot be resolved without direct reference to the
neighbouring States. The status of Jerusalem has to be
determined in a similar way. The legitimate rights which the
three great monotheistic faiths share in the Holy City must
be guaranteed and claims of political and administrative
sovereignty accommodated to the satisfaction of all.
In view of Jordan’s long association with the
Palestinian question, the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO)-Israeli agreement will have major implications for our
legitimate interests. At a time when new entities are being
formed, an orderly transfer of power and authority is vital.
Only this can safeguard the rights of existing States and
those of individuals. There are questions to address about
State property, archives, debts, treaties, nationality, salaries,
pensions - the list is long, but not exhaustive. Jordan will
seek modalities for their resolution with the relevant parties
through our agenda.
The refugee question is of paramount importance. It
should not, and must not, be forgotten that the individuals
affected have under international law a right of return and
compensation, and their host countries are likewise entitled
to compensation. Jordan has shouldered an enormous human
load as a result of the conflict. Three waves of involuntary
migrants - the refugees of 1948, the evacuees of 1967 and
the returnees of 1991 - have sought shelter and succor in
Jordan. Our treatment of these and other displaced persons
has been exemplary. We have provided them with education
and health services, with jobs and welfare. Citizens of
Jordan, whether of Palestinian or Jordanian origin, enjoy
civil and human rights equally and participate as equals in
our democratization process. Jordan seeks an equitable,
sustainable international approach to the treatment of our
demographic burden, for it would be unconscionable to
penalize host countries for their humanitarian policies.
Another crucial issue is water. Our agenda strikes a
delicate balance between the need for optimal utilization of
scarce resources, on the one hand, and the equally
imperative need to define the rights and duties of riparian
States, on the other. We also look forward to definitive
delineation of our borders with Israel, thereby giving
concrete expression to the right of every nation to live in
secure and internationally recognized boundaries.
When the euphoria has subsided, these serious and
complex questions will remain. The PLO-Israel accord,
historic as it is, represents a first step towards Palestinian
final status, which in turn will allow the Palestinians to take
part in comprehensive regional security and cooperation
arrangements. For the Middle East cannot be reduced to a
single issue. It more closely resembles a tapestry woven of
numerous intertwining threads.
One of these wider regional issues - the suffering of the
Iraqi people - demands urgently to be addressed. A
succession of independent reports has brought to light the
special impact of continued sanctions upon the most
vulnerable segments of Iraqi society - in particular, the
children. The sanctions regime that daily takes its toll on
the people of Iraq also has adverse consequences for
neighbouring States, including Jordan and Turkey. Issues
such as this must be resolved if the Middle East is to seize
its chance for lasting peace. A cooperative security system
will help to protect the security of the States and peoples of
the region. We can only avert the kind of destabilizing
conflict that followed the end of the cold war in Eurasia by
Forty-eighth session - 5 October l993 3
making arrangements to ensure our common future,
underpinned by the full support of the international
community.
Despite these outstanding questions, I have no doubt
that the extraordinary achievements of the autumn of 1993
will be seen in years to come as the start of a fresh course
in the settlement of regional conflicts. The politics of
dialogue and reconciliation have been our regional and
domestic priorities, for they are essential to the democratic
process. We seek to extend the principles of consensus and
collective security to the Middle East to create a new
regional order, an order which recognizes the right of each
individual to lead a life free from fear, want and despair, an
order which will provide justice to all peoples and security
to all States, an order in which the United Nations and its
agencies can play a positive role not only in humanitarian
intervention or the protection of human rights, but in active
peace-keeping and peacemaking.
Jordan applauds Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali for
his valiant efforts to overhaul the United Nations structure
and personnel, injecting a fresh sense of purpose
commensurate with the new challenges. It is in the interests
of all Members of this body to see international law
respected and upheld. We must all assist the Secretary-
General in determining the criteria for United Nations
intervention, whether in Lebanon, Iraq, Somalia, Bosnia,
Angola, Cambodia or anywhere else. The terms of reference
embodied in Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter must
be clearly defined, with checks and balances approved to
avoid the erosion of the independence and territorial
sovereignty of Member States. There is also an urgent need
for well-trained international peace-keeping forces, which
could be established under a reconstituted Military Staff
Committee. The modus operandi for all United Nations
action, irrespective of the issue at hand, must be the
supremacy of the rule of law and the uniformity of its
application. Double standards should not and must not be
permitted, lest abuse of the law become the accepted norm.
A wider issue concerning this Organization is that of
Security Council reform. Jordan adds its voice to the host
of countries that have called for a reassessment of the
structure of the Security Council. Clearly, conditions in the
world have changed dramatically since the formation of the
Council, and we believe that these should be reflected in its
composition. Jordan also lends its support to the Secretary-
General’s proposals for post-conflict peace-building outlined
in his "An Agenda for Peace".
For in every part of the world peace will remain
illusory unless it touches the daily lives of ordinary people.
Peace will not take root except in an environment conducive
to regional cooperation and mutual security and committed
to the welfare of individual human beings. The development
of economic infrastructure and provisions for investment in
public services are as crucial as the questions of territorial
sovereignty, national identity and security. It is for this
reason that Jordan welcomes the recently convened
conference to support Middle East peace as both timely and
pragmatic. The peace dividend in my region, as elsewhere,
must put an end to the politics of deprivation, fear and
despair, the breeding ground for political extremism and
rejection.
The disparities and distortions created by half a century
of conflict in the Middle East have given rise to such
phenomena. That is undeniable. However, there is
considerable alarm in the Muslim world at suggestions that
Islam may replace communism as a global threat. These
suggestions are informed by a skewed perception of Islam as
a monolithic creed of violence, intolerance and oppression.
Islam is not the new enemy. Extremism does exist
within the Muslim world, much as it exists in the Christian
world, the Jewish world, the Hindu world and the secular
world. But to employ reductive stereotypes which demonize
one fifth of the world’s population must ultimately be self-
defeating. It can only result in the breed of senseless
violence that has brought untold suffering and loss of life to
Bosnia. Rather than seeking an enemy at the gates, let us
each in our own communities look inwards and address the
disparities and the despair that are the true causes of
extremism and conflict. Let us join together to do battle
with the real enemy.
That enemy is a new world of "each for himself". That
is what we must combat, with all the resources at our
disposal. For the politics and economics of exclusivity are
the bane of both pragmatism and idealism.
Is the triple pillar of democracy, human rights and the
free market the ceiling of our ambition? Democracy and
free market economics are exceptionally successful systems
with noble objectives. But they are not ends in themselves.
The end for which we all strive is greater peace and greater
justice for individual human beings across the world. How
is this to be achieved?
One of our strongest defences against a new world of
"each for himself" would be a new global business ethic,
applying not only among the developed nations, but also
4 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
between those nations and the developing countries. Such
an ethic might prescribe a relationship of partnership which
would in turn encourage greater self-reliance. Such an ethic
would be wholly reconcilable with human rights, with
pluralism, with care for the environment and with basic
religious values. I would like to suggest that the key to a
new ethic in all of these areas is our mutual interdependence.
Whatever the context, injustice is perceived and conflict
results when the gap between "self" and "other" seems larger
than the common ground. This fundamental split between
"me" and "you", between "us" and "them", is at the root of
all oppositions, all polarities, all conflicts. Recognition of
our mutual interdependence requires us to acknowledge the
uniqueness of each individual and each culture - even into
the broader environment - and to learn to live with the
differences as with the commonalities. It requires that we
strive for unity, but never seek to eradicate or compromise
diversity. It requires a new thinking based on tolerance and
compassion - a humane approach and respect for the voices
of others. It requires, in short, that we be true to the ideals
that fired the founders of this Organization when they wrote
the words: "We the peoples of the United Nations".
Herein lies the nexus between peacemaking, human
rights, pluralism, cultural heritage and business ethics. Here
lies the key to a new world of "all for each other", not "each
for himself".
The Middle East is showing the way. Its conflict, once
held to be the most intractable on Earth, is now on the path
to reconciliation and healing. As we enter a new
millennium, a new era, let the world take heart from our
example. Let us emerge together from the past and together
let us build our brave new world.


I congratulate Ambassador Insanally on his
election. I have no doubt that he will conduct our work in
a wise and balanced manner, in the same way as his
predecessor, the then Minister for Foreign Affairs of
Bulgaria, Mr. Ganev.
Once again, we welcome the new Member States, the
Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, The Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia, Monaco, Eritrea and Andorra.
We also reiterate our gratitude to and support for the
Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros-Ghali, who with clear
objectives and diplomatic efficiency has undertaken the new
tasks of the United Nations in an international climate that
is problematic but promising.
Serious conflicts, such as that in the former Yugoslavia
and the sensitive situation in Somalia, still remain, and are
the object of the work and efforts of the United Nations.
There are long-standing regional confrontations and frictions
resulting from certain national, cultural or religious
identities; ignored for long periods, they are now demanding
their rights, and not always in a peaceful manner.
Moreover, there are still sharp economic imbalances
between nations and regions, as well as the serious risk that
the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and
Trade (GATT) negotiations will fail because some
Governments insist on maintaining anachronistic protectionist
policies that adversely affect the trade opportunities of
countries such as Argentina.
Above and beyond these problems, this is also a time
of hope and optimism; we are heartened by the expansion of
democracy, the globalization of the concept of human rights,
and the economic openness and reform in regions where
state control once prevailed and where today the basis for
freedom and the continual quest for peace is growing.
Perhaps there is no better symbol of this hope and
optimism than the historic agreement between Israel and the
Palestine Liberation Organization.
The Arab-Israeli conflict has until now been one of the
more disturbing issues in contemporary history and one of
the greatest obstacles to peace and stability. The
consequences of this prolonged and painful confrontation
have been felt everywhere; hence all humankind rejoices at
the agreements that have been reached.
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 25
These agreements undoubtedly reflect the tenacious and
intelligent diplomacy of the parties, the special contribution
of Governments such as those of the United States, the
Russian Federation and Norway and the support of the
members of the Security Council; but, above all, they attest
to the courage, intelligence and maturity of the peoples and
leaders of Israel and Palestine. Today we wish to pay a
tribute to all of them.
Since its origin, the conflict in the Middle East has
been of particular concern to Argentina, inter alia, because
the Arab and Jewish communities in our country have
always coexisted peacefully. That is why we have always
hoped for peace and respected the need to avoid
confrontation and achieve a just and lasting solution taking
account of the interests of both parties.
The agreements reached can be considered as a
breakthrough in that direction. They open the door to a
global settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and that is why
we rejoice at their attainment and firmly support them. We
call upon all States, particularly those which have interests
or influence in the Middle East, to join resolutely in the
support that the circumstances require.
The Republic of Argentina considers the maintenance
of international peace and security as essential. Hence, my
Government considers that the efficient functioning of the
Security Council must be a priority for the Organization.
Argentina has therefore clearly defined its position on
an eventual restructuring of the Security Council. In our
opinion, that body has recovered the role assigned to it by
the Charter. Any changes in its structure should therefore be
made solely on the basis of consensus, always respecting the
principle of the sovereign equality of States, and taking care
not to endanger its ability to fulfil effectively the
responsibilities assigned to it by the Charter. Hence we
must act with the utmost prudence, and on the basis of the
aforementioned principle, in making changes that would
introduce structural modifications, creating, for example, new
categories of privilege. In any case, it would be counter-
productive to ignore the position of those countries that have
actively demonstrated their firm and continued support for
the Council’s important work.
Mr. Bull (Liberia), Vice-President, took the Chair.
Argentina, for example, resolutely and actively supports
the system of collective security provided for in the Charter
and the decisions of the Security Council. That support has
been repeatedly demonstrated through concrete action in
accordance with Council decisions, and in particular through
our active presence in peace-keeping operations.
At present, Argentina is participating in nine
peace-keeping operations; in the last few months alone, we
have pledged to send three new groups of our armed forces
to Mozambique, Kuwait and Cyprus: a field hospital, a unit
of engineers and an infantry battalion respectively.
Argentina has the firm political determination to support
United Nations peace-keeping operations, within its means.
At the same time, I am obliged to mention some issues that
currently affect the normal development of the operations
and that somehow limit the ability of Member States to
participate to the extent they would desire.
We consider it a priority to do as much as possible in
order to guarantee the safety of the men and women who
participate in peace-keeping operations.
The arrears in the payment by Member States of their
contributions and the subsequent delays in reimbursements
to troop-contributing Governments have created very serious
financial problems for those Governments. For that reason -
and also because of their own domestic budget limitations -
these countries find it ever more difficult to increase their
contributions of troops and equipment. A mechanism should
be established at once to find a solution. In this context, we
welcome the efforts of the office of the Secretary-General,
as well as the initiative with respect to creating stand-by
forces.
The priority goal of peace also imposes on us a firm
commitment to each State in the struggle against the
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. This
commitment is one of the main focuses of Argentine foreign
policy. Hence, we have brought total transparency to the
Argentine nuclear programme. With that aim in view, we
and Brazil have signed an agreement on full-scope
safeguards with the International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA); we have already ratified it. In the same spirit, we
have discontinued the missile project CONDOR II.
In addition, together with Brazil and Chile, we have
promoted amendments to the Treaty of Tlatelolco that would
strengthen that major agreement and make it effective; we
hope that these will soon be approved by the Argentine
Parliament.
At the same time, Argentina has been admitted to the
Missile Technology Control Regime, whose guidelines we
have included in our domestic legislation, and is a member
26 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
of the so-called Australian Group. We are among the
original signatories of the Convention on Chemical
Weapons, and we participated actively in its drafting; we
will soon start the proceedings for its legislative approval.
We firmly support the negotiation, in the framework of
the Conference on Disarmament, of a treaty to ban all
nuclear tests. The moratorium respected in practice by the
nuclear Powers points to the existence of favourable
conditions for the total ban of such tests.
In the field of armaments, we support the United
Nations Register of conventional weapons, to which we have
recently supplied all the relevant information and data. We
are particularly interested in the functioning of the Register
in our own region; last March, in Buenos Aires, we
organized, jointly with the United Nations, a very successful
regional seminar on this very important subject.
Latin America is now going through a promising stage.
The climate of cooperation and harmony prevailing in the
region contributes to political stability and economic
development. The expansion and consolidation of
democracy and economic and social growth have also been
stimulated as a result of the strong impetus given to the
process of regional integration. As regards the Common
Market of the South (MERCOSUR), Argentina expresses the
firm political will and determination to contribute to its
strengthening. In this context we must acknowledge the
positive role of the Rio Group, which has been consolidated
as an increasingly useful and trustworthy mechanism for
dialogue, cooperation and consultation.
The Group’s information and internal communication
systems have been enhanced, which enables it to take unified
positions on common problems. This has increased its
influence in the United Nations and the Organization of
American States (OAS), where it has played a constructive
and effective role, for example in relation to the crisis in
Haiti.
Indeed, Haiti is a case in which we note the opening of
a path towards democracy - albeit with certain difficulties.
Argentina welcomes the agreement reached under the
auspices of the United Nations and the OAS for the
restoration of democracy in that nation, through the
successful mediation of Mr. Dante Caputo, whose
performance is a source of legitimate pride for my country.
Provided that the Haiti agreements are respected in their
entirely, effective 30 October the Argentine Republic will
contribute, in the framework of relevant Security Council
resolutions, a field hospital to be used in the operation the
United Nations and the OAS will conduct together to support
the consolidation of democracy in that country.
As regards El Salvador, we note with satisfaction the
substantive progress represented by the peace agreements
recently signed. We trust that the elections to be held next
March will mark a decisive stage in efforts to consolidate
democracy.
We also express our support for the re-establishment of
constitutional order in Guatemala and we encourage its
people and Government to continue their efforts to
strengthen democracy and the rule of law.
There has been remarkable progress in the consolidation
of a climate of peace and détente in Latin America as a
whole, thanks to the restoration of democracy and to
economic reforms. There is still one case about which we
are concerned and about which we have repeatedly
expressed our hope for profound change. The best option is
to move forward in the same direction as the rest of the
continent. Delays will only bring about more suffering for
its people and more concern on the part of their Latin
American brothers.
The strengthening of a climate of harmony in Latin
America requires new ideas leading to the development of
a structure of regional security adapted to the present times
and based on cooperation, balance and transparency. We
believe that cooperative security is a realistic and feasible
proposal for Latin America, and we urge the countries of the
region to give it special consideration.
Latin America must enter fully into the new
international context. In accordance with the Secretary-
General’s ideas on the role of regional organizations as
stated in his "Agenda for Peace", it should strengthen the
contribution of the Organization of American States to the
maintenance of international peace and security.
Argentina shares with the rest of the international
community the constant anguish caused by the conflict
unfolding in the former Yugoslavia and supports efforts
aimed at an urgent solution.
We are contributing significantly to the work of the
United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), a force that
has helped save thousands of lives and has worked to
prevent the intensification of conflict in the areas where it is
deployed.
Forty-eighth session - 28 September l993 27
We support the resolutions of the Security Council on
this subject, and strongly condemn the practice of "ethnic
cleansing" and other war crimes. Consequently, we support
the establishment of an international tribunal to try those
allegedly responsible for violating international humanitarian
law. We particularly condemn the inhuman attacks on the
civilian population in Bosnia and Herzegovina and reaffirm
the need to reach an agreement acceptable to all parties
involved, based on the principles of the London Conference.
We are deeply concerned particularly about the serious
consequences that civil and international armed conflicts
have on children. We urge the international community as
a whole to devote the utmost attention to this serious
problem and to initiate with the greatest urgency appropriate
assistance plans to alleviate the suffering of children,
especially in situations like the one in Somalia or the former
Yugoslavia. This question - like those concerning the family -
should be given the greatest attention by organizations such
as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
With respect to Cyprus, I reiterate our support for a
prompt solution to the conflict, and we urge the parties to
accept the plan developed by the Secretary-General’s
mission of good offices.
I also reaffirm our express support for United Nations
resolutions aimed at guaranteeing the territorial integrity of
Kuwait and peace and security in the region. We will
continue to support the recently adopted Security Council
decisions that, in connection with this specific case, demand
respect for the inviolability of the international border - that
have already been defined - and the right of navigational
access.
As regards South Africa, we welcome, together with the
rest of the international community, the recently adopted
legislative measures aimed at guaranteeing free and fair
elections next April and establishing the Transitional
Executive Council. We continue to support the multiparty
negotiating process towards a democratic, united and non-
racial South Africa. This is another of those world events
that are on the point of crystallizing in the next few months,
and whose importance is really much greater than we could
have imagined even just a few months ago.
I must mention once again the question of the Malvinas
islands, just as we did a few weeks ago before the Special
Committee on decolonization. I reaffirm Argentina’s
well-founded and unequivocal sovereign rights over those
territories and over the South Georgia and South Sandwich
islands. The peaceful and negotiated recovery of the islands
is a central and permanent issue in our foreign policy.
The United Nations Special Committee on
decolonization, at its recent session, adopted, for the first
time without a vote, a resolution on this question, in which
the parties are once again urged to start negotiations. We
therefore stand ready to do so.
As I informed the Special Committee, our relations with
the United Kingdom would be excellent but for the conflict
in the South Atlantic, where apart from the central dispute
there are problems in specific areas. However, within this
overall picture, there has also been progress in some of those
areas.
We have made progress in reducing the security
restrictions inherited from the 1982 conflict and we have
reached a provisional understanding on fishing for 1993.
We now have to negotiate a new agreement - which is being
made difficult because of certain recent unilateral British
jurisdictional decisions over the South Georgia and South
Sandwich islands - that must necessarily reflect Argentina’s
legitimate decision now to relate its own catch to the actual
potential of the area.
As regards oil, there is still an impasse, both because of
the rejection of a specific proposal for cooperation put
forward by Argentina and because of the United Kingdom’s
preference for acting unilaterally. We are still convinced
that there is no realistic alternative to cooperation. We are
sure that potential investors will also see it that way, because
their situation would be highly uncertain and unstable in any
other context.
Argentina’s relationship with the islanders is an area in
which there have been important developments in the last
few months.
Since the last session of the General Assembly, there
have been communications between the inhabitants of the
islands and Argentina. I personally have been in touch
several times with some of them. My Government reiterates
its conviction that it is in everybody’s interest to establish
normal relations between the islands and the continent. We
reaffirm that Argentina and the United Kingdom are the only
parties to the dispute, but we underline also our willingness
to conduct a dialogue with the inhabitants of the territory
because they deserve our consideration and respect. We are
also aware of the weight their opinion carries in London.
28 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
The dialogue with the islanders has wide support in my
country, and is a natural development in the civilized search
for a solution to the conflict. It is important that the
islanders themselves also understand that this is an inevitable
step, because the only realistic alternative is to march
forward together.
The recent World Conference in Vienna ratified the
universal and binding nature of respect for human rights.
Today it is no longer possible to claim, as despotic
governments have in the past, that the treatment States afford
their citizens is exclusively an internal affair.
It is a fact that the principle of absolute sovereignty has
become relative and that the international community, acting
within the framework of the United Nations, has laid the
legal foundations for denouncing violations of human rights
wherever they occur and for implementing specific measures
to ensure that human rights can be exercised to the full. We
therefore support the establishment of the post of High
Commissioner for Human Rights.
Furthermore, in the opinion of the Argentine
Government, there must be universal and complete freedom
of the press, because this is a fundamental guarantee of
respect for other essential human rights. Whatever excesses
there may be in the exercise of press freedom are nothing
compared with the awful drawbacks of policies that restrict
that freedom.
Argentina supports the restructuring of the United
Nations economic and social system in order to increase its
effectiveness and global credibility in that area.
In the field of the environment and development, we
continue to give high priority to the implementation of
Agenda 21 and the Conventions on climatic change and
biodiversity and to the use of the global environment facility
as a financial mechanism for implementing environmental
projects in the those and the related areas of marine
pollution and the ozone layer.
Argentina will participate actively in the International
Conference on Population and Development to be held in
1994. We support the negotiating process now under way
and we agree with the conceptual framework agreed upon
for the programme of action in that field.
We shall also participate actively in the World Summit
for Social Development, and we stress the great importance
of the negotiating process and of what is included in the
Summit’s agenda.
I should like to refer to the deterioration in the
Organization’s financial situation, which is so seriously
affecting its regular activities and is endangering the normal
functioning of peace-keeping operations.
Reality tells us that the only way to solve the problem
is the timely payment in full of the financial obligations of
Member States. Such payment is a fundamental factor in
restoring the financial soundness of the United Nations, but
it is undoubtedly not the only one. We consider that it is
indispensable for immediate steps to be taken to make the
allocation and use of the Organization’s scarce resources
more efficient, thus avoiding administrative disorder and
possible irregularities or substandard management practices.
A proper balance between budgetary control and the
implementation of activities will enable us to achieve the
financial consolidation needed to fulfil the goals set out in
the Charter.
In conclusion, we wish to reiterate our firm conviction
that, despite the serious problems that still obtain, we are
witnessing an encouraging development in the principles that
in their time guided the founding fathers of the United
Nations.
Those ideals of universal peace today seem more within
our grasp and in that context the Argentine Republic, a
democratic and peace-loving nation, is genuinely willing to
contribute to strengthening an international system based on
law and justice, and guaranteed by the United Nations.


Mr. President, your
unanimous election as President augurs well for the forty-
eighth session of the General Assembly. I extend my
heartiest congratulations to you and best wishes for success.
Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the Secretary-General, has
given a new vision and a new impetus to the United Nations
at a crucial time in its history. We wish him well in his
efforts.
My Government is deeply touched by the sympathy and
compassion expressed by the leaders of several delegations
on the devastating earthquake in India on
30 September 1993, and, with your permission,
Mr. President, I shall have to go back to India immediately.
The United Nations will soon be 50 years old. It has
had many achievements to its credit: decolonization; efforts
to alleviate poverty; peace-keeping; disarmament; devising
an accepted code of international law; respect for human
rights and concern for the environment. I would like to
reiterate India’s faith in and consistent support for the United
Nations and its efforts to establish peace and the well-being
of peoples. We take note that the United Nations is trying
to evolve so as to better serve the principles and purposes of
the Charter. We support the Secretary-General’s efforts to
make what he has called a transition from the old to the new
United Nations, which would be particularly useful and
fruitful for the less developed and less fortunate States.
The euphoria generated by the end of the cold war has
in the past two years given way to concerns about the
difficulties of achieving a new global equilibrium and
stability. Essentially, we can see these difficulties arising
from the contradictory pulls and pressures exerted by the
forces of positive integration and harmony on the one hand
and fragmentation and discord on the other.
The end of the divisions of the cold war and the efforts
to halt and reverse the arms race have generated some of the
integrative forces. Some forces of integration have also been
at work in the global economy, which has been characterized
by the globalization and interdependence of countries’
factors of production and of issues of trade, money, finance,
technology, environment, population and development. The
desire of the developing countries to participate more
actively in the growth of the world economy and the
building-up of free-market, liberalized economies for
themselves adds another positive dimension. Issues of
common concern and global survival - economic
development and regeneration, environmental sustainability,
demographic management, technological dynamism and
health for all - have provided a sense of common destiny.
The communications revolution has resulted in greater
cultural intermingling and openness around the world.
These forces of integration are, unfortunately, opposed
by those of fragmentation. Represented by sectarian and
subnational aggression, racism, religious fundamentalism,
bigotry, terrorism, drug trafficking and arms smuggling, they
pose a threat to peace, global security, democracy, human
rights and economic and social development. We are also
witnessing strife, conflicts and cruel, unceasing and irrational
civil wars in many parts of the world. Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Somalia and Afghanistan cause us anxiety and
concern. The proliferation of such local conflicts and the
ever-increasing flow of refugees across national frontiers re-
affirm the truism that peace, like freedom, is indivisible and
that the disruption of peace anywhere is a danger to peace
everywhere.
These divisive forces have caused not only political
instability but also economic collapse in several instances.
Conversely, economic sluggishness and lack of development
in several cases have led to political upheavals. Inward-
looking, exclusivist and narrowly self-centred global
economic policy-making has been in evidence at a time
when the global economy is overshadowed by recession and
lack of dynamism. Macroeconomic coordination is at its
weakest. Protectionist tendencies are strong. The potential
of developing countries to act as vigorous engines of growth
for revitalizing the world economy stands largely ignored.
In developing countries, absolute and deepening poverty,
hunger and malnutrition, disease, illiteracy and the lack of
shelter and sanitation for a large portion of the population
have caused political and social tensions. The structural
imbalances and flaws of the post-Second-World-War
international economic order persist and prevent the
maximization of the benefits of interdependence and
globalization.
Against this backdrop, the task of the United Nations
should be to construct a new global equilibrium by fostering
positive integrative forces and discouraging, if not
counteracting, the forces of fragmentation and discord. For
this, the new United Nations will have to reiterate the
fundamental and immutable principles on which it was built:
respect for the national sovereignty, territorial integrity and
sovereign equality of nation States. I am glad that the
12 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
Secretary-General stated in his report to the forty-eighth
session:
"National sovereignty is the art of rendering
unequal power equal. Without State sovereignty, the
very instrument of international cooperation might be
destroyed and international organization might itself
become impossible." (A/48/1, para. 16)
The United Nations will have to set an example for the
conduct of relations amongst nation States on the basis of
respect for the rule of law, democracy and pluralism. Any
international framework, whether it be associated with peace
or development, must be transparent and must deal with
issues of global concerns on a non-selective and non--
discriminatory basis.
In the final analysis, the institutions, concepts and
agencies that represent the new world order will be judged
by their ability to harness and channel the beneficial and
creative forces of integration for the benefit of peace and
development for all and by the ability of the United Nations
to ensure that the interests of its weaker Member States are
fully reflected therein. In these still perilous times, they
would have to promote development cooperation and
effectively arrest the plunge into insecurity, strife and chaos,
particularly when these threaten the very foundation of
Member States, where ultimately the United Nations is
rooted.
There have been references in this Assembly to all
these conflicts, big or small, local or with international
dimensions, describing them in the generic terms of ethnic,
religious and civil wars. The plurality and complexity of our
post-cold-war world do not permit such generic labelling.
Nor are these conflicts amenable to generic and instant
remedies. A number of instances of strife or aberrations are
part of the historical legacies inherited by Member States.
Each is posited in a different socio-economic and cultural
matrix of causation; each is caught up in a different cycle of
circumstance and violence. The imposition of peace through
unilateral external intervention will only perpetuate situations
embodying the Orwellian logic of "peace is war" that we see
in many parts of the world today.
Wisdom lies in overcoming conflict situations with a
positive vision animated by peace and amity and in creating
the necessary confidence and will for peace among countries
and peoples. It is in this spirit that India is ready to initiate
a dialogue with Pakistan to build mutual confidence and to
promote a climate of stability in our region. I can only hope
that Pakistan will respond to this, and have a dialogue with
us, instead of trying to go around the world accentuating
differences that will be difficult to resolve later.
We welcome the recently concluded peace accord
between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO), and earnestly hope that this will be a true harbinger
of further positive developments aimed at establishing lasting
peace and prosperity in West Asia. We also welcome the
announcement by Mr. Nelson Mandela that irreversible
progress towards a non-racial, democratic South Africa has
been made. In response to his suggestion, India, which had
imposed trade sanctions against South Africa as early as
1946, has initiated action to lift those sanctions and to
normalize relations with South Africa.
We trust that the recognition by the Security Council of
the international boundary between Iraq and Kuwait will
contribute to the stabilization of the situation in the Gulf
region. We hope that the faithful implementation of the
relevant Security Council resolutions will lead to the
alleviation of the present difficulties of the peoples of the
region.
In Somalia, a whole population has gone through a
protracted civil war and famine with hardly any
governmental machinery to tackle the situation. This made
it imperative for the United Nations to act. As an
unprecedented humanitarian mission, the multilateral action
in Somalia enjoyed the support of the entire world, including
the factional Somali leaders themselves. India, for its part,
has contributed one of the largest contingents to this mission.
Now that the situation has improved and starvation has been
averted, the United Nations operation faces new problems.
It is necessary for the United Nations to reassure all sectors
of the people of Somalia about its role in the country,
intensify the process of political reconciliation and adhere
strictly to the original objectives of the mission.
The phenomenal increase in peace-keeping operations
in the post-cold-war period and their inclusion as an element
of the new agenda for peace is at once a matter of comfort
and concern. It is a matter of comfort because the United
Nations at long last has started playing its Charter role in the
area of peace and security. In the altered international
political environment, we would like the United Nations to
realize its full potential. At the same time, the involvement
of the United Nations on an unprecedented scale with peace-
keeping operations causes us concern because operationally
the United Nations is not fully prepared and equipped to
discharge this role effectively. And, legally and
conceptually, the limits, procedures and rules of the
involvement of the United Nations are not clearly defined.
Forty-eighth session - 1 October l993 13
For peace-keeping operations to be successful, it is
necessary to follow certain guidelines and criteria. All
avenues of pacific settlement of disputes, as laid down in
Chapter VI of the Charter, should be fully explored and
exhausted before resorting to peace-keeping operations under
Chapter VII. Decisions on such operations should be taken
in a democratic and broad-based manner, and after thorough
consideration of all aspects. To command universal
endorsement and maintain their non-partisan character,
United Nations peace-keeping operations must be based on
the consent of all the States parties to a dispute. They
should be undertaken with a specific mandate and a clear
time-frame. Greater efficiency should be achieved in both
planning and execution of peace-keeping operations. The
Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, in his address to
the General Assembly a few days ago, put forward a few
proposals in this respect which merit consideration by the
General Assembly. The concept of invoking humanitarian
relief as a basis for peace-keeping operations may have to be
approached with a great deal of caution and circumspection.
Any new United Nations operation for providing
humanitarian relief must be completely non-partisan - in fact
and in the perception of the parties involved.
That consideration must also guide any discussion or
decision on preventive deployment. The United Nations
must not allow itself to be burdened indefinitely with
obsolete and ineffective peace-keeping operations. Every
possible measure should be taken to ensure the safety of
peace-keeping personnel.
Another aspect of the agenda for peace which we
would like to underline is the particular importance we
attach to Article 50, which enjoins the Security Council to
find solutions to the special economic problems faced by
third States on account of the implementation of sanctions
imposed by the Security Council. We call for an automatic
mechanism that would put remedial action in place
simultaneously with the imposition of sanctions.
An integral element of any agenda for peace in our
time is the achievement of disarmament, particularly nuclear
disarmament. Having endorsed the Chemical Weapons
Convention, the United Nations should move on to consider
similar steps in other areas of disarmament.
We welcome the unilateral decision of the United States
to extend its moratorium on nuclear testing until the end
of 1994. The focus of the nuclear-weapon Powers should
now be on the early conclusion of a universal, verifiable and
comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty leading to the
elimination of all nuclear weapons.
India’s commitment to non-proliferation is complete
and unequivocal. India has an unblemished track record.
India’s proposal made in 1988 for an action plan for nuclear
disarmament within a specific time-frame is of continuing
relevance in our bid to rid the world of the global scourge
of nuclear weapons. We believe that a new, just and
uniformly applicable regime for non-proliferation which does
not discriminate between the nuclear-weapon and the
non-nuclear-weapon States should be considered at an early
date. Such a treaty should place equal obligations on all
States. For a non-proliferation regime to be truly
meaningful, it must also address the questions of a
convention on the non-use of nuclear weapons, a verifiable
freeze on the production of fissionable material, a total ban
on nuclear-weapon tests and negotiations on general and
complete disarmament. The global spread and reach of
nuclear weapons reduce to a travesty the objective of
achieving genuine peace and security within a narrow
regional framework. It is our hope that the United Nations
will take firm action in this direction to achieve this in the
sense I have mentioned.
One area of concern for developing countries is the
question of ad hoc and unilateral export controls and other
restrictions being placed on the transfer of dual-use and high
technology with the ostensible purpose of curbing
proliferation. Non-proliferation concerns must not be made
a pretext for denying developing countries access to
technologies critical for their development. There is,
therefore, need to evolve multilateral, non-discriminatory and
transparent arrangements to regulate the transfer of such
technologies so that peaceful uses and dissemination of some
key technologies are not denied to the developing world.
There is perhaps merit in convening a special session
on disarmament to examine the whole gamut of
disarmament-related issues that arise in the new context of
today. The question of a peace dividend arising from
disarmament in the form of financial and technical resources
for the enhancement of international development
cooperation in the context of the United Nations could be
one of the issues that special session could address.
It is obvious that there can be no global security unless
development is ensured, and we therefore attach as much
importance to an agenda for development as to the "Agenda
for Peace". Agenda 21 of the Rio Declaration, outlining the
plan and programme for global cooperation in ensuring
sustainable development; the outcome of the Final Act of the
eighth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade
and Development (UNCTAD VIII), on the partnership for
development between the North and the South; and the
14 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session
forthcoming Conference on Population and Development, as
well as the World Summit on Social Development, provide
the international community enough opportunity to promote
economic and social development and environmental
sustainability, particularly in developing countries. The work
on an agenda for development should build on all these
development-related action programmes and provide a new
impetus to development cooperation, both under United
Nations auspices and in bilateral and other multilateral
contexts. Enhancement of the role, resources and
capabilities of the organs and agencies dealing with
development in the United Nations system should be
stressed. The United Nations should also be enabled to have
a more interactive relationship with the Bretton Woods
institutions in a spirit of finding considered and innovative
solutions to global economic problems and pooling all
available resources for that purpose.
Comprehensive and constructive dialogue between the
North and the South and the strengthening of a global
partnership for development are the needs of our times if we
are to avoid the replacement of the East-West divide by a
North-South one. India has always participated in the
ongoing North-South dialogue through the Group of 77 and
the Non-Aligned Movement and in keeping with the
requirements of a more focused dialogue. India has become
part of the new group of 15 developing countries for
South-South consultation and cooperation, the G-15. We are
acting as host to the fourth summit meeting of that group at
New Delhi in December. Representing the developing
countries, we have had a promising start through an informal
dialogue with the G-7 and we hope to build on those
beginnings in a spirit of "global partnership for global
benefit", as was stated by my Prime Minister,
Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao in his message to the
G-7 Chairman.
Some key issues where there is an ongoing dialogue but
which none the less need further consideration and
implementation include: participation of developing
countries in global macroeconomic coordination and
decision-making; reciprocation by the North of the efforts of
the South at restructuring and economic liberalization
through the pursuit of expansionist policies conducive to
long-term growth and opening them up to global competition
in goods, services and manpower through reduction and
elimination of protectionist barriers; increased capital flows,
both official and private, bilateral and multilateral, to
developing countries to offset the crippling effects of the
debt burden and to accelerate growth and development; and
a balanced, successful conclusion of the Uruguay Round,
which should ensure substantial enhancement of market
access for developing-country exports and of their access to
the tool of competitiveness.
The profoundly humanistic traditions of the Indian
civilization, with its emphasis on tolerance, harmony,
non-violence and the inviolability of the individual, have
found their modern expression in the setting up of a
democratic, secular and egalitarian polity and society in free
India.
Being the largest practising democracy and effecting a
synthesis between a multiplicity of ethnic, religious and
linguistic groups and peoples has been no easy task, as some
in the West are themselves realizing even in the context of
their relatively lesser diversities. The Constitution of free
India consolidated this humanistic tradition and is indeed a
veritable bill of human rights. A strong and independent
judiciary and a totally free press have also been watchdogs
of democracy and human rights in India.
India’s commitment to the effective protection of
human rights has now received another institutional impetus
with the establishment of a National Human Rights
Commission comprised of a retired Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of India, a retired judge of the Supreme
Court of India, a former Chief Justice of the State High
Court and other eminent persons as well as the chairmen of
the three separate national commissions which already exist
to protect the interests of scheduled castes and scheduled
tribes, women and minorities. The Commission has been
mandated to inquire into allegations of violations of human
rights and has been invested with wide-ranging powers,
including the power to establish special investigation teams
to carry out effective investigations. The findings of the
Commission are to be published from time to time besides
being reflected in its annual report, which will also be laid
before Parliament. The law also provides for the
establishment of human rights commissions by the State
Governments, on the pattern of the national Commission, as
also special courts for the speedy trial of cases involving
human rights violations.
I am confident that members of the Assembly will
accept that India has established the most appropriate human
rights commission to ensure that there will be full human
rights protection in the country.
Our commitment to universally acceptable
non-discriminatory norms of human rights and their
protection and promotion cannot be questioned. It was in
that spirit that we participated actively in the World
Conference on Human Rights, which recognized the
Forty-eighth session - 1 October l993 15
importance of this issue. We are however pained that not
enough emphasis is put on a major threat and impediment to
the realization of human rights, namely, terrorism, especially
the kind that is aided and abetted by one State against
another. Why is it that a few so-called human rights
advocates and Member States of the United Nations choose
to focus on the human rights of terrorists - those who
indulge in senseless murder, destruction, pillage, the
disruption of civilized existence and the undermining of
democratic institutions? Why do they virtually turn a blind
eye to the violation of the human rights of the victims of
such terrorism - innocent civilians or those upholding law
and order and the territorial integrity of States? Can they in
true conscience allow terrorists and their supporters to usurp
the moral high ground on human rights?
The United Nations will have to take strong action
against terrorists because terrorists engage in all kinds of
violence. They try to upset democratically taken decisions
in a country by using force and killing people. This must be
totally condemned by the United Nations and stopped
completely so that people can live in peace and in
democracy and express their views in accordance with the
constitution of their country.
In sum, we believe that international cooperation in the
protection of human rights can succeed only if it is within
the framework of respect for the sovereignty and integrity of
States and of a vigorous global programme for anti-terrorist
action. We would, however, like to point out that any
unilateral use of human rights as an instrument of political
pressure or intervention, or as an obstacle to trade or a
condition for development cooperation and aid, in fact serves
the opposite purpose and impedes the full realization of the
human rights of people of affected countries.
The enhanced role of the United Nations in
international affairs calls for the restructuring and redefining
of the functions of its principal organs.
The responsibilities of the Security Council have grown
dramatically in the past few years, requiring a greater degree
of participation by the overall membership of the United
Nations in the Council’s decision-making process. We must
recognize that the membership of the United Nations has
grown enormously over the years. A more balanced and
expanded representation for Member States in the Council is
therefore inevitable. Unity of purpose among its members
rather than size determines the efficiency of any
organization. The expansion should not be done selectively
or in a piecemeal manner. The principles or criteria of
expansion of the permanent and non-permanent membership
should be agreed upon by consensus. For the selection of
additional States in an expanded Council, the population -
which represents the principle of democracy and an element
of power - the size of the economy and the future potential
of the countries concerned should be taken into account,
along with equitable geographical distribution and the
contribution to the maintenance of international peace and
security. There is virtual unanimity among those who have
responded to the Secretary-General that an expansion of the
Council is imperative. Interesting suggestions have been put
forward by several countries. The logical next step would
be to start a process of consultations to arrive at a suitable
and fair formula that commands universal support.
The permanent members should be responsive to the
aspirations of developing countries represented in the
General Assembly on the basis of equality. It is therefore
essential also to revive the role of the General Assembly, as
was originally envisaged in the Charter.
We stand on a decisive threshold incomparable to any
in history, a moment in time when we must bring to bear a
larger vision and foster the forces of positive integration,
democracy and cooperation at national and international
levels.
My Prime Minister has, in characterizing the 1990s as
watershed years in global affairs in the realm of political,
economic and environmental challenges and changes,
conveyed an unequivocal message:
"We cannot go wrong if we make coexistence
and peace our watchword, and common universal
good our objective".
It is my Government’s belief that this quest for the common
good, jointly undertaken, will be central to the success of
our endeavour and for the achievement of the Charter’s
objective of harmonizing the actions of nations in the
attainment of these common ends.