On behalf of the delegation of Guinea-Bissau, I am pleased to extend our congratulations to you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its fifty-third session. I am particularly pleased because it is unanimously agreed that you have exceptional intellectual, political and diplomatic qualities which will ensure the success of our deliberations. It also gives me pleasure to pay tribute to your predecessor, Mr. Hennadiy Udovenko, and to thank him for his dynamism and initiative and for the integrity which he displayed throughout his mandate. I wish to reiterate to the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, our appreciation for the tangible results we have seen in the Organization since his election, and to encourage him to persevere with the same determination in implementing his reform programme, which we wholeheartedly support. As we prepare to enter the new millennium, it is important to be aware of the increasing interdependence of nations, large and small, and of the consequences of globalization, so that through fruitful dialogue at the global level, we may together find appropriate responses to the numerous challenges facing us, particularly the fight against international terrorism. Poverty, underdevelopment and the major pandemics must not remain the sole responsibility of the countries affected by these scourges, because for tomorrow’s world to be stable it must be united founded on the principles of social justice and the equality of peoples and nations. Hence, the primacy of law must continue to guide us in seeking lasting solutions to the numerous regrettable conflicts throughout the world. We are pleased to note that all the peoples of the world share a determination to live in peace, within their national borders, with their neighbours and the rest of the international community. My country welcomes the positive developments in the Lockerbie affair, which has been a matter of concern to us for many years. It has been the subject of decisions by regional organizations, such as the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the League of Arab States, as well as the Non-Aligned Movement. We hope that the parties involved will spare no effort to ensure that justice is done in conditions of fairness and impartiality, with all the necessary guarantees, taking into account the recognized rights of each party. We feel that the clarifications called for by the Libyan authorities are legitimate, because they are based on the objective criteria of neutrality and fair play which govern any judicial procedure worthy of the name. The Republic of Guinea-Bissau was admitted as a fully fledged member of the United Nations in September 1974, following a lengthy and difficult struggle for national liberation. For almost a quarter of a century we have been committed to respecting and defending the principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter, because they are essential guidelines for active participation in international life and for the building of our young nation. Early on we understood that in order to give shape to our political independence we needed to establish the conditions for harmonious economic development from which all sections of our population could benefit. With the assistance of the international community, therefore, our young State focused on ways and means to build a land of freedom and peace. It goes without saying that 11 years of struggle for national liberation scarred our people and left an indelible mark on their minds and bodies. Since Guinea-Bissau is a poor country with very limited resources, everything needed to be built, despite the fact that we did not have the financial means or the necessary skills. Therefore, inspired by the courage that enabled us to galvanize ourselves to free our country, we set to the task determined to create the right conditions for the full development of our citizens and the improvement of their living standards. Over the past four years we have succeeded in laying the foundations of a democratic State based on the rule of law and respect for human rights. As members of the Assembly know, building a nation is a long-term task requiring both determination and perseverance. Guinea- Bissau, which is among the poorest countries of the world, is no exception to that rule. Over the past two decades we have focused on consolidating our national unity by strengthening the ties of solidarity that unite our citizens, whose maturity had enabled them to wage, and succeed in, one of the most exemplary national liberation struggles in Africa. It is precisely this awareness of belonging to the same people that has enabled all sectors of our population to unite and work hand in hand for the development of the country and the well-being of all. Therefore, since its independence in 1973, despite the economic difficulties all States face, Guinea-Bissau has lived in peace and has known a period of great political stability. However, since 7 June our country has experienced tragedy, previously unimaginable, just when it was beginning to make notable progress with regard to democracy and respect for human rights and in the economy. An unprecedented crisis for which we were not even minimally prepared has deeply shaken and paralysed our country for some four months now, endangering the foundations of the state of law and the existence of democratic institutions in the Republic. The act of aggression by a party of our country’s national army is a serious violation of the constitutional provisions in force in Guinea-Bissau. The international community, in particular the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the United Nations, have unreservedly condemned this act of aggression. From this podium, we wish to thank the United Nations family for the solidarity and support it has provided to the President of the Republic, Mr. João Bernardo Vieira; the legal Government of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau; its leaders; and especially, the innocent, victimized population. I should like in particular to convey our gratitude to the neighbouring countries of Guinea-Bissau for their active solidarity with our people. On behalf of my Government, I specifically thank the authorities of Senegal, Guinea, Cape Verde, the Gambia and Portugal for having rapidly created an appropriate rapid-response team to evacuate citizens and foreign nationals who wished to leave, especially our own desperate compatriots, a great number of whom have sought refuge and safe haven in neighbouring countries. Each of these brother countries has distinguished itself admirably in an exemplary display of compassion and 2 humanity. I wish to thank them most sincerely on behalf of our Government and all of my compatriots. I also wish to pay tribute to the courage of my own fellow citizens and to reiterate, on behalf of our Government, our keen awareness of the difficulties they face and of the need to ease their suffering by finding a speedy solution to the current crisis, so that peace and stability may be restored to our homeland, and by establishing conditions to allow our people to return to their country. It is its desire to find a peaceful and negotiated solution to this crisis that has inspired the Government of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau in its contacts with the members of the self-proclaimed military junta. Indeed, through the joint mediation of members of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries and the Economic Community of West African States, we have signed a ceasefire and begun a constructive dialogue, which we will pursue on the basis of recognition and respect for the constitutional legality of our country and the need to work together to restore peace and stability. We are grateful to all people of goodwill who have come forward, both in Africa and overseas, to assist us in overcoming all of these difficulties and in finding a final solution to the conflict in Guinea-Bissau. The people of Guinea-Bissau are peaceful. They have age-old relations of friendship and brotherhood with their neighbours in the Republics of Guinea, Senegal and the Gambia. These relations are based on the common destiny which history and geography have bequeathed us. It is a precious legacy that present and future generations must preserve and defend in the conviction that their identity and their social and cultural values will endure. It is this same committed and unfailing solidarity which enabled us to free ourselves from the yoke of colonialism, as did our brothers in Guinea and Senegal. As we have already had the opportunity to point out, the presence of Guinean and Senegalese troops in Guinea- Bissau is based on the implementation of bilateral agreements duly signed and ratified. In addition to the existence of an unquestionably legal framework, however, it is important to know and recall that, through their intervention, the Guinean and Senegalese troops bravely assisted their comrades in arms in Guinea to overcome an attempted coup that has been condemned by the OAU, the United Nations and the entire international community. They have made a courageous contribution to the maintenance of constitutional legality and democracy in Guinea-Bissau. Allow me here to pay tribute to them for their decisive action and to offer them our full gratitude. For some four months, Guinea-Bissau has been experiencing a major tragedy that has brought great loss of human life, serious material damage and much suffering to our people, who have been internally displaced and made refugees in neighbouring countries, Cape Verde and Portugal. Once again, I wish to thank the Assembly for its solidarity with our country and people. Its assistance is valued and will be valuable in healing the wounds and assisting all the citizens of our country to understand each other better and work together for the common future of their homeland. I can assure members that we will spare no effort to ensure that, through dialogue and joint endeavours, peace will return to a Guinea-Bissau united and reconciled in solidarity. More than ever, we recognize the need to establish a pluralistic democracy in a state of law and an egalitarian society that will guarantee full respect for civil, political and human rights. Today more than ever, we are aware of the importance of peace in our country and in other conflicted regions of the world where peoples of the same country have been torn apart. I am thinking in particular of the fratricidal wars which for some years now have ravaged other African countries, Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in particular. At a time when we are preparing to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it is appropriate to proclaim our complete commitment to the fundamental principles of democracy, good governance and respect for human rights, which underpin our search for harmonious development and a better standard of living. The international community, the United Nations in particular, has always heeded the aspirations of the people of Guinea-Bissau. With its solidarity, it has made our struggle for national liberation its own battle for the emancipation of peoples throughout the world. Today, as in the past, we need its support to rebuild our country and restore confidence and hope to our compatriots, who impatiently await the moment when they can return to their country, their homes, their families, their friends and their workplaces — to peace and stability.