Madam,
your election to the presidency of the General
Assembly at its sixty-first session is the sign of a
favourable turn of events in the world. I congratulate
you and I welcome you not only as an experienced
diplomat, with established skills and qualifications, but
also as a great advocate of human rights. I wish also to
commend, through you, your country, the State of
Bahrain, for its tremendous contribution to the
promotion of the values of peace, freedom and
equality.
I should like also to express our deepest gratitude
to Mr. Jan Eliasson for the wisdom and competence
with which he guided the previous session. He
deserves plaudits for having led to a successful
outcome the difficult negotiations on the establishment
of the Human Rights Council and of the Peacebuilding
Commission. I would also like to congratulate a great
son of Africa, a friend and brother, Mr. Kofi Annan, for
his work as Secretary-General. His outstanding work
was recognized at the seventh session of the
Conference of the African Union held last July at
Banjul and was given a moving and memorable tribute
that I would like to reiterate here. Mr. Secretary-
General, the world is grateful to you; Africa is proud of
you. Furthermore, I would like to welcome
Montenegro as a Member State, whose admission
reinforces the universal character of our Organization.
We wish that country a warm welcome.
This session opens at a time when the overall
situation in the world is becoming more and more
complex with reasons for concern and reasons for
hope. It is our responsibility to ensure through
multilateralism that hope overcomes fear and that the
world becomes safer for future generations. We must
reaffirm our faith in multilateralism, because the many
challenges of our time must be confronted collectively;
no State can deal with them alone. The same is true for
the environment, terrorism, drug trafficking etc. Since
its creation, the United Nations has never slackened in
the search for ways and means to assume its
responsibilities.
But today more than ever, it is necessary to
encourage the search for collective solutions for the
many sorts of phenomena that weaken global peace.
Today more than ever, we must join our energies to
build a world in which human beings can live where
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they wish in dignity, safe from need and fear. That is
the purpose of our joint activities.
In order to eradicate armed violence, we must
work for peace through the prevention and settlement
of conflicts. The situation in the Middle East continues
to be a serious threat to international peace and
security. It is urgent that a just, lasting and
comprehensive solution be found to this conflict that is
ravaging this region. We need a solution based on the
agreed proposals, such as the Road Map and the
relevant resolutions of our Organization. The role of
the Quartet in this respect is crucial. The cessation of
hostilities, after one month of pointless violence in
Lebanon, must be consolidated in order to achieve a
lasting ceasefire.
As for Africa, positive advances have been made
in the Democratic Republic of the Congo with the
holding of general elections. Every effort must be
made to ensure the successful conclusion of the
electoral process, namely the second round of the
presidential elections. The fact that we are now
speaking of peacebuilding in Burundi, Liberia and
Sierra Leone is not only a reason for satisfaction but
also a reason for hope for other countries still in a state
of conflict. At the same time, in many other situations,
such as those in Côte d’Ivoire, the Sudan or in
Somalia, the search for the way to solve those conflicts
is still on the agenda. We wish to develop a natural
partnership between our regional organization, the
African Union, and the United Nations in managing
these crises in accordance with the provisions of
Chapter VII of the Charter. This is the case in Côte
d’Ivoire with the creation of an international working
group.
By deciding to hold the meeting of its Peace and
Security Council on Darfur here in New York City, the
African Union has reiterated its willingness to consider
all constructive proposals regarding this conflict. The
African Union’s unflagging efforts to ensure peace in
Darfur has never been in question. The seriousness of
the situation in this region of the Sudan calls for more
energetic and more effective action. We solemnly call
on the Government of the Sudan to make a full
assessment of the tragedy that is taking place before
our eyes.
In the case of Somalia, we appeal to the
international community to provide its support to
efforts to re-establish peace and reconciliation in
Somalia. The international community must not lose
patience faced with the meagre results in the search for
peace in several of the African conflicts. The
international community must provide strong support
for the efforts undertaken at many levels with, of
course, the agreement of the countries concerned. As
the current chair of the African Union, we promise to
work fully to promote peace and security on the
continent.
I do not wish to end my statement on this subject
without recognizing the courage of peacekeepers
throughout the world, especially in Africa. Our
gratitude also goes out to the civil society and
humanitarian organizations that work courageously and
with dedication to relieve the suffering of people.
One of the major challenges that I mentioned
earlier is that of development. The international
community dealt especially with this question during
the Millennium Summit by establishing the
Millennium Development Goals to be achieved before
2015. The assessment that we conducted last year
revealed serious weaknesses. It was clearly apparent
that resources were lacking and that it was essential to
look for new sources of financing.
Also, we must give due credit to the initial
responses to the appeal launched here a few months
ago during the High-Level meeting held on eradicating
HIV/AIDS, within the framework of our commitment
to achieve universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention,
treatment and care by 2010.
We welcome the International Drug Purchase
Facility (UNITAID) initiative launched by the French
Government to mobilize resources derived from the
taxation of airplane tickets. Congo, among other
countries, has joined this initiative. This effort is in
line with the Abuja Declaration and Framework for
Action for the Fight Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis
and Other Related Infectious Diseases. It is also in line
with the Brazzaville Commitment, which presents the
common African position. The African Union summit
also declared a state of emergency in Africa with
regard to those diseases.
In discussing the issue of migration and
development a few days ago in this Hall, the United
Nations took a look at an area of involvement that has
not been sufficiently studied, specifically that of
individuals and other entities — business and
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economic institutions — in bringing people together
and sharing the common goods of our planet.
The African Union, meeting in Banjul, took this
opportunity to declare a common position that
emphasized the positive nature of the role that should
be played by migration if it is correctly integrated into
an approach to profitable development for the
receiving countries, as it is for the countries of origin
of the migrants.
Our Organization has launched a vast reform
programme, of which some results are already tangible.
A few moments ago, I talked about the establishment
of the Human Rights Council, as well as the
Peacebuilding Commission. Organizational reform
seeks to adapt our Organization to changes that have
occurred throughout the world over the past 60 years.
The African Union has made the reform of the
Security Council and the reinvigoration of the General
Assembly a major issue of concern. We must improve
the representative nature of the Security Council,
which is the true lynchpin of the entire institutional
architecture of the United Nations.
The African proposal for an equitable
enlargement of the membership of the Council
constitutes a fundamental pursuit, which cannot be
replaced by simple palliative measures. We also
believe that the Security Council must improve its
procedures and its working methods to lay the basis for
consensual work. On subjects as serious as counter-
terrorism or nuclear non-proliferation, seeking a
consensus must continually be pursued through
cooperation and dialogue. Between those who give
priority to compliance with the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and those who,
rightly or wrongly, call for effective, concomitant
disarmament and the recognition of a universal right of
access to technologies in all areas, there is no doubt
much to be discussed, but this must be done in good
faith.
We must refrain from radicalizing our attitudes
by turning the discussion into a conflict of values or
civilizations, because, most often, the problem is really
only due to a lack of dialogue and communication.
All these problems and challenges prove, if even
there was a need to do so, the importance of the United
Nations. The United Nations is necessary because it is
the instrument of international relations; it is the
enzyme that can give us global peace and security; it
is, really, the conscience of mankind. The world would
not be what it is, without the United Nations.
Still, our Organization has not succeeded, in spite
of this confident affirmation of its role, in changing
with times to fulfil the deepest aspirations of nations
and peoples. We know that the United Nations can
achieve that goal if the nations that created it, nations
throughout the world, from the most powerful to the
most humble, were to give to the United Nations,
without hindrance or hypocrisy, the means that it needs
to serve humanity.
Africa, I can assure you, is prepared to do its part
in this highly anticipated debate.