We
wish to congratulate Ms. Al-Khalifa for her election as
President of the General Assembly at its sixty-first
session, with the certainty that her distinguished
personal and professional qualities will ensure the
optimum performance of the work on the agenda. This
also represents recognition of the necessary
participation of women in the reforms of the United
Nations. I also wish to extend our special recognition
to the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, for his
resolute efforts and dedication to international peace
and security, stability, human rights and development,
in addition to his appreciable contribution to the reform
of the Organization.
The international community currently has
challenges that require our immediate attention. At the
present time, there are more than sixteen armed-
conflicts in the world where the United Nations
participates in peacekeeping operations. El Salvador is
present at some of these operations, concretely
demonstrating our belief in an international system of
law, and in an international organization capable of
resolving such conflicts that seriously threaten our
stability.
The situation of instability has an indescribable
impact in terms of the loss of human life, the
destruction of infrastructure, refugees, displaced
persons and the shortage of resources needed for life.
This impacts the affected regions, as well as the
political, economic and humanitarian condition of the
entire international community.
I have come to this rostrum to speak out in favour
of peace and security in the Middle East, as well as
dialogue and understanding, so that we can find timely
and sustainable political and diplomatic solutions that
support our belief in the right of the Israeli and
Palestinian peoples to live in peace within secure and
internationally recognized borders.
We welcome adoption of resolution 1697 (2006)
on 31 July and resolution 1701 (2006) on 11 August by
the Security Council and call for compliance with
those resolutions as they make possible a cessation of
hostilities. This should represent the beginning of a
new phase in finding a negotiated political solution to
the conflict in Lebanon and in the Middle East.
We are fully convinced that one of the keys to
progress towards peace in the Middle East is the
disarmament of all armed groups operating outside the
law and Government control in the region, as well as
the exercise by Governments of full sovereignty over
their territories. Here, we believe that it is essential for
the United Nations, in particular the Security Council,
to continue to play a proactive and decisive role in
finding a lasting, comprehensive and sustainable
solution in the Middle East and to redirect the peace
process.
After a careful analysis of the international
situation, and of the Middle East in particular, my
Government made the decision to move its ambassador
from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. We hope that this will
make a contribution to promoting the peace process in
the region and serve as an expression of our
commitment and respect for compliance with United
Nations resolutions.
We do hope that this decision, in addition to
making a concrete contribution to peace in the Middle
East, will also help to strengthen friendship and
understanding between my country and Israel. We also
wish to express our feelings of solidarity and
friendship to the Palestinian people. They can rely on
El Salvador to continue to seek peace, security and
well-being for the Palestinian people.
Terrorism is a real and merciless threat against
humanity. Accordingly, I wish to reaffirm our vigorous
condemnation of all acts of terrorism in all their forms
and manifestations, wherever or by whomever they are
committed, irrespective of the objective sought.
Today, more than ever, it is essential to strengthen
and expand international cooperation to combat this
scourge, within the framework of the rule of law,
human rights and international humanitarian law. The
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United Nations has a historic opportunity to combat
international terrorism through the recently adopted
Global Strategy against Terrorism. The threat of
terrorism is a daily reality, but the opportunity to deal
with it is in our hands. Let us do what we need to do to
implement this strategy and strengthen international
cooperation in combating terrorism.
El Salvador supports and participates actively in
attaining these objectives. We continue to promote
such action at the national level and hope that our
legislative assembly will adopt a law against terrorism
in the next few days.
Given the situation of the world as described, we
would like to take this opportunity to add our voices to
the call of the international community regarding the
celebration of the International Day of Peace, set by
the General Assembly on 21 September each year. The
Assembly issued a firm appeal that during that Day all
parties in conflict, wherever they might be, cease their
fighting and observe a global ceasefire, leading to
reflection about the adverse effects of war and the
benefits of peace.
One of the most serious threats to peace, social
stability, the security of citizens and economic
development is the problem of organized crime.
El Salvador, together with other countries in Central
America, has been particularly affected by this problem
in recent years. The expansion of the criminal activities
of bands and gangs that act not only within countries,
but also beyond borders. They have become criminal
organizations that not only commit individual and
group murder, but also engage in extortion and terrorist
acts related to transnational crime. They have
furthermore become involved in the trafficking of arms
and drugs, human trafficking and money-laundering.
El Salvador is aware of the dimensions of the
problem and its impact on society. For this reason, we
are one of the main countries promoting a
comprehensive approach. Not only do we directly
combat these groups, but we also use preventive
methods, namely, rehabilitation and social
reintegration. We are convinced that this task cannot be
dealt with individually. What is needed is collective
action and international coordination and cooperation.
In this connection, we believe that this
Organization should consider the adoption of measures
and mechanisms consistent with the instruments and
protocols that deal with organized crime, so that we
can achieve a broad international consensus aimed at
coping more effectively with this evil that,
increasingly, is threatening society in general.
Moreover, we should develop policies and cooperation
to this end. I would mention, in particular, programmes
for young people in high-risk situations or who are at
odds with the law in our countries.
Speaking of the reform of the United Nations
means talking about the suitability and relevance of an
international organization could respond adequately to
the opportunities and challenges of today’s world.
We believe that it is particularly important to
break this stalemate in negotiations and settle as soon
as possible the question of expanding the membership
of the Security Council, both permanent and non-
permanent members, so that it can be more
representative with respect to the current number of
States that are Members of this Organization. For my
Government, this is a subject that is extremely
important. Therefore, it is essential to make this
important body more representative, to give it greater
transparency, to make it more democratic and
legitimate, particularly in the decision-making process
for important decisions.
Also, recognition should be given to some of the
reforms adopted, and we welcome the beginning of
work of the new Human Rights Council and the
Peacebuilding Commission, of which El Salvador is
honoured and appreciative of being a part. Here, I wish
to reaffirm the commitment of the Government of
El Salvador to respect and protect human rights, while
we make available to the Peacebuilding Commission
the experience gained by El Salvador in its successful
peace process. This would initially apply to some
countries, such as Burundi and Sierra Leone, that are
now being considered with regard to which the
Commission will be able to provide advice to the
Security Council.
In the life of nations there are always special
questions that determine direction and destiny as they
move towards their future. The question of the
Republic of China in Taiwan is one of those questions.
Even though it is a political reality that has evolved in
parallel with other States and embodies all of the
characteristics needed to be a State, there is still failure
to recognize its existence. This denies the right of 23
million people of Taiwan to be represented in
international organizations and, in particular, the
29 06-52737
United Nations. We firmly believe that the situation of
Taiwan should be examined pragmatically in the light
of the current political reality. The United Nations is
the proper forum to do so — not only because it should
recognize the right of the Taiwanese people to be
represented, but also because a globalized world
should not allow exclusion or marginalization from
international cooperation. Such cooperation
strengthens efforts to combat challenges and problems
that are common to all and could undermine the quality
of life and obstruct the development of peoples. Here,
we reiterate the need to open up room for the
representation and participation of Taiwan in the
United Nations, particularly in the specialized
agencies, which by their nature are related to
humanitarian, economic and social questions.
The President returned to the Chair.
A subject of special interest for El Salvador is the
strengthening of international cooperation for
development, particularly with a view to complying
with the Millennium Development Goals. In this
connection, we believe that, in order to implement and
follow up on our development plans, we must have the
support of the international community so as to create
fairer and more open conditions that would enable us
to accede to technological resources, the transfer of
technology, environmentally friendly technology, the
support for the generation of technical capabilities and
new financial resources in favourable conditions.
El Salvador is firmly committed to attaining the
Millennium Development Goals, as envisaged in our
Government plan, and accordingly, we have made
efforts and directed resources, primarily through
national impact programmes, together with
international cooperation, with special focus on
education and health.
Even though we agree that every country must
assume fundamental responsibility for its own
development, the developed States should contribute to
creating the opportunities needed to enable the
relatively less developed countries to reduce the
political and economic impact of the social deficit,
through the implementation of measures that will
enable us to enjoy the benefits of free trade, economic
globalization and international cooperation and
increase our technical capacity and productivity. This
must include the commitment to give 0.7 per cent of
gross domestic product as official aid to development.
We recognize and express our appreciation to the
countries that have already done so.
In this perspective, we have warmly welcomed
the adoption of the General Assembly resolution on the
follow-up to the results of the 2005 World Summit on
development. It is of great importance if we are fully to
comply with the Millennium Development Goals that
we have set ourselves. We firmly believe that low-
income countries and middle-income countries should
not be excluded from international cooperation and
technical and financial assistance, whether bilateral or
multilateral, particularly those countries that have
maintained good responsible management of resources
obtained through international cooperation and public
finance. However, despite the progress achieved in
improving the quality of life of our peoples, there are
still groups of populations that suffer from extreme
poverty and require cooperation and international
assistance to supplement the efforts we are making to
attain those objectives.
This could not be otherwise, given the fact that
middle- and low-income countries continue to face
challenges in the development process. Therefore, we
would like to make a resounding appeal to the
developed countries, the middle-income countries and
the multilateral financial agencies to become real
partners and strategic allies, so that we can overcome
our problems and help us to promote the agenda for
development and progress for our peoples.
In this respect, I am pleased to announce that
El Salvador is planning to hold a forum next year of
low-income countries where we hope to unify criteria
and positions on this subject, in addition to considering
the strengthening of cooperation and technical,
scientific and financial assistance among participating
countries. On this occasion, we cordially invite middle-
and low-income countries, together with donor
countries and development agencies, to participate in
this meeting. We hope that their participation and
contributions will enrich our analysis and will benefit
the middle- and low-income countries, which are
frequently excluded from development funds.
My Government attaches great priority to the
Agenda for Development, particularly to expand
coverage of basic services and generate opportunities
for productivity in those areas and communities where,
because of their poverty indicators and their growth
06-52737 30
potential, we have felt that they deserve strategic
attention.
My country has been recognized for having
adopted a series of measures to strengthen democratic
institutions, economic freedoms and social investment.
This has gained us the confidence of the international
community, which we believe is indispensable for
establishing an environment conducive to mobilizing
alternative sources of funding that can make possible
social programmes aimed at reducing poverty.
From the beginning of our term in office, we have
done much to seek innovative forms of cooperation,
such as those offered by various millennium funds. We
have applied for Millennium Challenge Account
financing for a country programme based on national
dialogue and with the participation of our citizens. It
will be an integrated, comprehensive strategy directly
benefiting more than 850,000 inhabitants of 92
municipalities in northern El Salvador, thus
contributing reducing poverty in that region.
No less important and closely complementary, we
believe that international cooperation based on
solidarity encompasses the swapping of debt for social
programmes. We welcome the proposals and decisions
of some developed countries, which are supporting
such mechanisms, especially in health and education,
thereby encouraging countries that have honoured their
foreign debt obligations. There is no doubt that these
activities strengthen democracy and freedom.
We feel that despite the decline in oil prices,
continued high prices are not only detrimental to the
efforts of developing countries to improve and
strengthen our economies, because they make exports
and imports more expensive, reduce income and create
inflation. They also have a negative impact on chain of
production, and on basic necessities and services,
opening the way to the possibility of a worldwide
recession, which clearly would have political and
social repercussions. We feel that oil should not be
used as a tool to achieve goals of any kind, but rather
as a means to strengthen the global economy in
general. It is important to define rules for creating a
more stable oil market and at the same time to enhance
our efforts to find alternative sources of energy that are
accessible and environmentally friendly.
For El Salvador, migration is one of the priorities
on our domestic and international agenda. We have
decided to create, for the first time in the history of
El Salvador, the post of Vice-Minister for Foreign
Affairs for Salvadorans Living Abroad, a high-level
Government position within the Foreign Ministry,
whose main function is to serve emigrants through a
comprehensive, multidimensional policy. The vice-
ministry is operating successfully. Salvadorans living
abroad are on the presidential agenda. Last week, the
Assembly held a High-level Dialogue on International
Migration and Development. El Salvador participated
proactively and chaired one of the round tables. I am
thankful for the confidence placed in us.
Allow me to reaffirm what was expressed by the
Foreign Minister of El Salvador at the High-level
Dialogue. We stress the importance of this issue and
the need to continue discussions from a broad-based
and positive perspective, which gives us a
comprehensive view and a higher level of
understanding of the issue of migration as an
international social fact. Migration gives rise to a
dynamic and complex process involving various
aspects including flows of individuals, capital, goods
and services. It involves rights and obligations,
organization, assistance, cooperation, legal and
legislative processes, analysis, studies and research on
this issue, and subsequent oversight by the United
Nations system, as a complement to domestic,
subregional and continental efforts.
I welcome the outcome of the Dialogue and
express the hope that the United Nations will give the
issue of migration human, just and balanced
consideration.
On 16 January 2007, we will celebrate the
fifteenth anniversary of the signing of the peace
accords for El Salvador. Fifteen years ago, Salvadorans
were fully convinced that we were worthy of a better
future and deserved a rebuilt, democratic country, a
country of reconciliation and freedom for us and for
our children. We can now be proud of our endeavours
to genuinely fulfil the commitments made at
Chapultepec, whose spirit should prevail as we
continue to strengthen democratic institutions in my
country.
I would like to pay public tribute to the entire
people of El Salvador for their dedication to the cause
of peace and national reconciliation. I would also like
to acknowledge the men and women who signed the
peace accords, whose historic action was the basis for
our present and future as a nation. Likewise, I would
31 06-52737
like to pay a special tribute to the United Nations for
its work and for its effective mediation, which led to
the completion in 2003 of its work to monitor the
peace accords, and to the countries of the Group of
Friends of El Salvador for their important support for
the successful completion of the peace process.
Today, the United Nations — an Organization
created to promote and realize universal principles and
ideals that are still valid in our contemporary world,
especially the ideal of promoting progress for the
millions of persons throughout the world who struggle
daily to secure their basic rights, dignity and
importance as human beings — has a choice: either to
ossify and become anachronic, or to modernize and
become an Organization that can deal more efficiently
and effectively with the challenges of the twenty-first
century in a complex, globalized and interdependent
world.
It is clear that we all wish for a modern and
viable Organization to meet the challenges together,
but Member States will decide whether the
Organization changes to fulfil its mandate, especially
to maintain international peace and security and
promote respect for human rights and economic and
social development.
Thus, it will depend on us whether the present
and the future of the today’s world will be based on
diplomacy or will be condemned to use force to resolve
differences in international relations. This is the serious
dilemma that we must resolve. The task is complex
because of its size and ramifications, due in turn to its
diversity in the face of the phenomena of power and
the exercise of power. We hold the hope that reason
and conscience will prevail over force and
domination — for the benefit of all humanity.