Nepal

I have the pleasure to extend to Mr. Ganev the warm congratulations of the delegation of Nepal on his unanimous election to the presidency of the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly. We are happy to have an eminent person like him, with wide experience and skill, to guide our deliberations at this particularly important stage in the history of the United Nations. I take this opportunity to express the great appreciation of my delegation to Mr. Samir Shihabi, who presided over the forty-sixth session with great distinction. I should also like to pay a tribute to our Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, for his dedication to the ideals of the United Nations. His statesmanship and wise leadership are crucial in our collective efforts towards realizing the vision of the Charter. The pace of change in the world has presented humanity both with promises and with challenges. The events of the last few years have underlined the universal applicability of the Charter of the United Nations. Its validity as a universal guide has withstood the test of time and flux. Confidence in the Organization as the central agency for upholding the rule of law and as a forum for harmonizing the actions of nations has never been greater. We have seen a united international community, acting on the precepts of the Charter, overcome an act of aggression. After decades of paralysis, the Security Council is functioning as envisaged in the Charter. Efforts to revitalize the role of the United Nations in the economic and social fields have gained momentum. This unparalleled resurgence of faith in the United Nations is best symbolized in the admission of 20 new Members in a single year. We are closer than ever before to the cherished goal of universal membership. A period of rapid changes is also a period of uncertainties. The old global order has passed but the new order is still very fluid. At this threshold of a new era in international life, we have a broad framework for a better future in the Charter of this Organization. The challenge before the United Nations is to harness the new mood and dynamism in international life and bring them to bear on the global problems facing mankind. It is the challenge to seize the opportunity to end war, to protect the dignity and worth of the individual, to ensure freedom and the rule of law and to promote economic development. In an interdependent world, the United Nations is indispensable for international cooperation. The task is by no means simple. In one single year, there have been upheavals of epic proportion: the break-up of political entities of long standing and brutal ethnic and religious wars. Narrow nationalism is threatening the norms of a stable international order. The cost in terms of human suffering has been appalling. The horrors of Somalia and of Bosnia and Herzegovina force us to ask if we, the peoples of the United Nations, are really determined to combine our strength to maintain international peace and security. The persistence of widespread poverty and destitution forces us to ask if we are indeed resolved to employ international machinery for the economic and social advancement of all peoples. The historic summit-level meeting of the Security Council in January this year was an important landmark in the search for answers to these and other questions. That meeting launched a serious search for new ideas and provided an impetus to meet new situations in the world. As the Secretary-General has pointed out, the tumultuous events of the last few years have already driven home several lessons: the need for democratization at the national level with a corresponding process at the global level; the defence of human rights, including minority rights and the right to development; the need for new ways to prevent internal and inter-State confrontations, including the increasing use of regional arrangements; and universal acceptance of the rule of law transcending changing perceptions of expediency. These observations form the core of the Secretary-General's report, "An Agenda for Peace". Several of the Secretary-General's recommendations can and should be implemented immediately. These relate to the more effective use of the traditional forms of peace-keeping, the safety of peace-keeping personnel, and the finances involved. His recommendation for greater resort to fact-finding missions is equally pertinent. Some other recommendations raise fundamental issues related to the perception of an international organization, its role vis-a-vis State sovereignty, and the role of the Secretary-General himself. My delegation looks forward to a full-scale discussion of this important document during the present session. It is obvious that there is today a greater need for the United Nations to address itself more seriously to the great divide between the rich and poor nations. This, along with the universalization of a human rights regime, is a fundamental issue of the new era. As a least developed country, Nepal accepts the principal responsibility for its economic and social development. Our development policies are directed towards creating a basic infrastructure for development. Human resources development is a priority with us. We consider it extremely important to improve the living conditions of our people, to raise the level of literacy, improve basic health and nutrition, and reduce the rate of infant mortality. We are committed to these goals because we believe that it is the human being and not the State which has the ultimate right to development. We fully share the view that these goals can be attained only in a society that is committed to the inalienable right of its people to elect their own leaders in free and honest exercise of their will. We have already put in place the foundations necessary to achieve these objectives. Principal among them are the constitutional guarantee of political pluralism, the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary, and safeguards for human rights. We now have the legal framework to enable people locally to take primary responsibility for their own development. With the basic political and legal grounds in place, I wish to reiterate our appeal for measures to reach the targets set out in the programme of action adopted by the Second United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries. While expressing deep gratitude for the generous assistance we have been receiving from donor countries and multilateral agencies, we look forward to increased cooperation to complement our own efforts to meet the needs of the poorest of our poor. It is now universally recognized that, if development is to be possible, the life-sustaining ecological systems must be preserved, and that development alone can make it possible to safeguard the environment. It is imperative to improve the living conditions of the poor in developing countries so that they are not forced to destroy the ecological basis of their children's future to meet the immediate challenges of sheer survival. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in June this year was the most potent expression of global interdependence. The Conference has established that developing countries need to mobilize their own resources for sustainable development. It obliges developing countries to take global environmental consequences into consideration in their development planning. It has also established the right of developing countries to development. It has underscored the need for the transfer of additional resources and technology from industrialized countries to enable developing countries to fulfil their responsibility to safeguard the environment for present and future generations. Equally important, the Conference has established that developed countries need to reduce the great burden they impose on the environment. The Rio Declaration and Agenda 21 place people at the centre of concern. Agenda 21, with its far-reaching implications, can be the centerpiece of a mutually beneficial international cooperation. Nepal sincerely hopes that the philosophical commitment of Rio will be followed through and strengthened. We hope that establishing a high-level commission on sustainable development will receive the utmost priority it deserves during this session of the General Assembly. While speaking of international cooperation in economic and social fields, I appreciate the ongoing efforts to enable the Economic and Social Council to play the role envisioned in the Charter. Political justice will mean little if the health and happiness of people, especially those in developing countries, are ignored. Indeed, global economic and social development alone can constitute the lasting foundation of international peace and security. We welcome the serious and out-of-the-ordinary approach of the 1992 session of the Council as the first tangible move towards restructuring set in motion by General Assembly resolution 45/264. The holding of the first high-level segment of a regular session of the Council was a promising beginning. Also important was the examination of operational activities including the workings of organs and agencies of the United Nations family in economic and social fields. The times call for an integrated approach to economic and social issues in the field as well as at headquarters. They demand that we avoid inter-agency competition, duplication and waste of limited resources by improving coordination among agencies, including the Bretton Woods institutions. My delegation has noted with appreciation the Secretary-General's determination to pursue restructuring of the Secretariat to meet these larger goals. One of the most satisfying reforms undertaken during the last year has been in the area of coordinating humanitarian assistance. My delegation welcomes the establishment of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs and expresses its warm appreciation to Under-Secretary-General Ambassador Jan Eliasson for his good leadership. We have already seen several examples of effective balance between principles and operational guidelines, improved coordination and governance. The situations in Somalia and the former Yugoslavia present unique tests of international commitment in this area. Indeed, it might not be too far-fetched to visualize the operation of effective humanitarian emergency assistance and the equally important roles of follow-up rehabilitation and development phases as new arms of the United Nations in preventive diplomacy and peacemaking. The relationship between freedom and democracy, on the one hand, and peace and stability, on the other, needs no reiteration. Nepal rejoices in the resurgence of democracy in various parts of the world in recent years. We strongly support this trend, which we believe to be in full conformity with the purposes of the United Nations. Developments in recent years have made it clear that, without respect for human rights, other achievements will have little meaning. The starting-point of democracy is the recognition and worth of each human individual. Respect for human rights alone makes freedom meaningful. The protection and promotion of human rights are becoming a common basis for international cooperation. Respect for human rights is an essential condition for the conduct of international relations in a spirit of openness, trust and confidence. The realization by many peoples within well-established political entities of their right to self-determination has raised the complex question of the rights of minorities. Clearly, absolute self-determination of each minority would have unforeseen consequences for the system of international relations. Clearly, multi-ethnicity, cultural and religious pluralism would continue to enrich most of the nations of the world. However, it is a duty incumbent on governments to ensure that members of minority groups are guaranteed the full enjoyment of the basic human rights common to all. It is also a duty incumbent on governments to ensure special protection when needed. The current upheavals in various parts of the world underscore the need for the United Nations to work out principles that can serve as common points of reference for the peaceful resolution of conflicting aspirations. The historic Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, unilateral disarmament decisions taken by the United States and the Russian Federation, and the agreement reached between the two countries this summer are crucial steps towards lower levels of armaments and greater security. There is an overwhelming consensus today that the opportunity provided by the uniquely favourable international relations must be seized in order to achieve a comprehensive test-ban treaty. Events in the Persian Gulf have made the non-proliferation of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction the subject of global focus. My delegation sincerely hopes that at this session the General Assembly will be able to adopt the long-awaited Convention on chemical weapons, the first comprehensive international instrument to outlaw a whole class of weapons of mass destruction. In this context, Nepal welcomes the recent agreement between our two neighbours, India and Pakistan, on chemical weapons. We have been following events in the territory of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia with utmost concern. The use of brute force against the civilian population, especially in Bosnia and Herzegovina, has been appalling. We find the policy of forced mass expulsion abhorrent. We cannot accept the use of force to change internal or external borders. Nepal joins in the international demand that parties to the conflict respond immediately to the successive resolutions of the Security Council. We appeal to the European Community to redouble its efforts, in cooperation with the United Nations, to seek a negotiated settlement of the crisis in the Balkans. Nepal welcomed the extraordinary session of the Commission on Human Rights devoted to Yugoslavia. We look forward to the report of the Secretary-General on the findings of the Special Rapporteur on allegations of grave violations of human rights throughout the former Yugoslavia. We pay a tribute to the personnel of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), the United Nations humanitarian agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross, which have been doing an outstanding job in the most difficult circumstances. My delegation reiterates its full support for the territorial integrity and non-aligned character of Cyprus. We hope that the October round of talks under the good offices of the Secretary-General will produce the desired results. Nepal has welcomed the implementation of the United Nations plan for Cambodia. We reiterate our appeal to all Cambodian parties to cooperate fully with the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) for the successful conclusion of this important United Nations mission. I take this opportunity to express my Government's appreciation to Mr. Yasushi Akashi, Special Representative of the Secretary-General, for the great efforts he has been making to ensure the successful implementation of the plan for Cambodia. We are following with keen interest talks between North and South Korea, now fellow Members of the United Nations. We sincerely hope that these bilateral talks will facilitate the fulfilment of the wishes of the Korean people for peaceful national reunification. Nepal is gravely concerned over the violence and the deaths of innocent civilians in Kabul. We appeal to the various Afghan factions to end the cycle of violence and to engage in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the war-torn country. Events of the past year have not diminished the urgency of finding a solution to the Middle East conflict on the basis of Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973). Israel and the Palestinian people must recognize each other's rights: the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including their right to form a State of their own, and the right of Israel to exist within secure and internationally recognized borders. The Government of Nepal strongly supports the continuing efforts of the sponsoring Powers of the Middle East peace process to bring about a negotiated settlement of the crisis. South Africa is today at a critical juncture. Negotiations thus far have indicated that difficulties in the establishment of a united non-racial democratic South Africa are not insurmountable. Violence should not be allowed to dampen hopes for a peaceful end of apartheid. My delegation welcomes the report of the Secretary-General and the endorsement by the Security Council of his proposal for involvement of the United Nations in order to put the dialogue on track again. My delegation hopes that the Pretoria regime will respond positively to the proposals contained in the report, expecially those relating to ending the violence. As I said at the beginning of my statement, the vision of the Charter is more valid today than ever before. It is, however, clear that models and policies of the past are not adequate to meet today's global issues. The magnitude and severity of economic and social problems in many countries of the world today are unprecedented. The emergence of the Security Council as the central instrument for the maintenance of international peace and security, as intended by the Charter, is a welcome development. The United Nations must seize this historic opportunity to promote with equal vigour and urgency international cooperation in the economic and social fields. The precepts of the Charter should be our guide in bringing in a new era of international relations. This family of nations must strive to create a world where all people are entitled to political freedom, economic and social justice, a clean environment and full human rights.