Thank you for the opportunity
to address the General Assembly of the United Nations.
Sixty years ago, representatives from 16 nations
gathered to begin deliberations on a new international
bill of rights. The document they produced is called the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and it stands
as a landmark achievement in the history of human
liberty. The Declaration opens by recognizing the
inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of
all members of the human family as the foundation of
freedom and justice and peace in the world. As we
gather for the sixty-second session of the General
Assembly, the standards of the Declaration must guide
our work in this world.
Achieving the promise of the Declaration requires
confronting long-term threats. It also requires
answering the immediate needs of today.
We nations in this Hall have our differences. Yet,
there are some areas where we can all agree. When
innocent people are trapped in a life of murder and
fear, the Declaration is not being upheld. When
millions of children starve to death or perish from a
mosquito bite, we are not doing our duty in the world.
When whole societies are cut off from the prosperity of
the global economy, we are all worse off. Changing
these underlying conditions is what the Declaration
calls the work of larger freedom, and it must be the
work of every nation in this Assembly.
This great institution must work for great
purposes, to free people from tyranny and violence,
hunger and disease, illiteracy and ignorance and
poverty and despair. Every member of the United
Nations must join in this mission of liberation. The
first mission of the United Nations requires liberating
people from tyranny and violence. The first article of
the Universal Declaration begins by stating that all
human beings are born free and equal in dignity and
rights. This truth is denied by terrorists and extremists
who kill the innocent with the aim of imposing their
hateful vision on humanity. The followers of this
violent ideology are a threat to civilized people
everywhere. All civilized nations must work together
to stop them by sharing intelligence about their
networks and choking off their finances and bringing to
justice their operatives. In the long run, the best way to
defeat extremists is to defeat their dark ideology with a
more hopeful vision the vision of liberty that
founded this body.
The United States salutes the nations that have
recently taken strides towards liberty, including
Ukraine, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Mauritania, Liberia,
Sierra Leone and Morocco. The Palestinian territories
have moderate leaders mainstream leaders who
are working to build free institutions that fight terror,
enforce the law and respond to the needs of their
people. The international community must support
these leaders so that we can advance the vision of two
democratic States Israel and Palestine living side
by side in peace and security.
Brave citizens in Lebanon and Afghanistan and
Iraq have made the choice for democracy. Yet, the
extremists have responded by targeting them for
murder. This is not a show of strength; it is evidence of
fear; and the extremists are doing everything within
their power to bring down these young democracies.
The people of Lebanon and Afghanistan and Iraq have
asked for our help, and every civilized nation has a
responsibility to stand with them. Every civilized
nation also has a responsibility to stand up for the
people suffering under dictatorship. In Belarus, North
Korea, Syria and Iran, brutal regimes deny their people
the fundamental rights enshrined in the Universal
Declaration.
Americans are outraged by the situation in
Burma, where a military junta has imposed a 19-year
reign of fear. Basic freedoms of speech, assembly and
worship are severely restricted. Ethnic minorities are
persecuted. Forced child labour, human trafficking and
rape are common. The regime is holding more than
1,000 political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi,
whose party was elected overwhelmingly by the
Burmese people in 1990.
The ruling junta remains unyielding, yet the
people’s desire for freedom is unmistakable. This
morning, I am announcing a series of steps to help
bring peaceful change to Burma. The United States will
tighten economic sanctions on the leaders of the
regime and their financial backers. We will impose an
expanded visa ban on those responsible for the most
egregious violations of human rights as well as their
family members. We will continue to support the
efforts of humanitarian groups working to alleviate
suffering in Burma. And I urge the United Nations and
all nations to use their diplomatic and economic
leverage to help the Burmese people reclaim their
freedom.
In Cuba, the long rule of a cruel dictator is
nearing its end. The Cuban people are ready for their
freedom. And as that nation enters a period of
transition, the United Nations must insist on free
speech, free assembly and, ultimately, free and
competitive elections.
In Zimbabwe, ordinary citizens suffer under a
tyrannical regime. The Government has cracked down
on peaceful calls for reform and has forced millions to
flee their homeland. The behaviour of the Mugabe
regime is an assault on its people and an affront to the
principles of the Universal Declaration. The United
Nations must insist on change in Harare and must insist
on freedom for the people of Zimbabwe.
In Sudan, innocent civilians are suffering
repression; and in the Darfur region, many are losing
their lives to genocide. America has responded with
tough sanctions against those responsible for the
violence. We have provided more than $2 billion in
humanitarian and peacekeeping aid. I look forward to
attending a Security Council meeting that will focus on
Darfur, chaired by the French President. I appreciate
France’s leadership in helping to stabilize Sudan’s
neighbours. The United Nations must answer this
challenge to conscience and live up to its promise to
promptly deploy peacekeeping forces to Darfur.
Secondly, the mission of the United Nations
requires liberating people from hunger and disease.
Article 25 of the Universal Declaration states that
everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate
for the health and well-being of himself and of his
family, including food, clothing, housing, and medical
care. Around the world, the United Nations is carrying
out noble efforts to live up to these words.
Feeding the hungry has long been a special
calling for my nation. Today, more than half the
world’s food assistance comes from America. We send
emergency food stocks to starving people, from camps
in Sudan to slums around the world. I have proposed
an innovative initiative to alleviate hunger under which
America would purchase the crops of local farmers in
Africa and elsewhere, rather than shipping in food
from the developed world. This would help build up
local agriculture and break the cycle of famine in the
developing world, and I urge our United States
Congress to support this initiative.
Many in this Hall are bringing the spirit of
generosity to fighting HIV/AIDS and malaria. Five
years ago, in sub-Saharan Africa, an AIDS diagnosis
was widely considered a death sentence, and fewer
than 50,000 people infected with the virus were
receiving treatment. The world responded by creating
the Global Fund, which is working with Governments
and the private sector to fight the disease around the
world. The United States decided to take these efforts a
step further by launching the $15 billion Emergency
Plan for AIDS Relief. Since 2003, this effort has
helped bring cutting-edge medicines to more than a
million people in sub-Saharan Africa. It is a good start.
So earlier this year, I proposed to double our initial
commitment to $30 billion. By coming together, the
world can turn the tide against HIV/AIDS, once and for
all.
Malaria is another common killer. In some
countries, malaria takes as many lives as HIV/AIDS,
the vast majority of them children under the age of
five. Every one of these deaths is unnecessary, because
the disease is preventable and treatable. The world
knows what it takes to stop malaria bed nets, indoor
spraying and medicine to treat the disease. Two years
ago, America launched a $1.2 billion malaria initiative.
Other nations and the private sector are making vital
contributions as well. I call on every Member State to
maintain its focus, to find new ways to join this cause
and to bring us closer to the day when deaths caused by
malaria are no more.
Thirdly, the mission of the United Nations
requires liberating people from the chains of illiteracy
and ignorance. Article 26 of the Universal Declaration
states that everyone has the right to education. When
nations make the investments needed to educate their
people, the whole world benefits. Better education
unleashes the talent and potential of citizens and adds
to the prosperity of all of us. Better education promotes
better health and greater independence. Better
education increases the strength of democracy and
weakens the appeal of violent ideologies. So the United
States is joining with nations around the world to help
them provide a better education for their people.
A good education starts with good teachers. In
partnership with other nations, America has helped
train more than 600,000 teachers and administrators. A
good education requires good textbooks. So, in
partnership with other nations, America has distributed
tens of millions of textbooks. A good education
requires access to good schools. So, in partnership with
other nations, America is helping nations raise
standards in their schools at home and providing
scholarships to help students come to schools in the
United States. And in all our education efforts, our
nation is working to expand access for women and
girls so that the opportunity to get a decent education is
open to all.
Finally, the mission of the United Nations
requires liberating people from poverty and despair.
Article 23 of the Universal Declaration states that
everyone has the right to work, to free choice of
employment and to just and favourable conditions of
work. In the twenty-first century, this requires ensuring
that people in poor countries have the same
opportunity to benefit from the global economy that
citizens of wealthy countries have.
The United Nations provides vital economic
assistance designed to help developing nations grow
their economies and reach their potential. The United
States agrees with that position. We have dramatically
increased our own development assistance, and we are
delivering that aid in innovative ways. We started the
Millennium Challenge Account to reward nations that
govern justly, fight corruption, invest in their people
and promote economic freedom. With this aid, we are
reaching out to developing nations in partnership, not
paternalism. And we are ensuring that our aid dollars
reach those who need them and achieve results.
In the long run, the best way to lift people out of
poverty is through trade and investment. A nation that
is open and trading with the world will create
economic rewards that far exceed anything it could get
through foreign aid. During the 1990s, developing
nations that significantly lowered tariffs saw their per
capita income grow about three times faster than other
developing countries. Open markets ignite growth,
encourage investment, increase transparency,
strengthen the rule of law and help countries help
themselves.
The international community now has a historic
chance to open markets around the world by
concluding a successful Doha Round of trade talks. A
successful Doha outcome would mean real and
substantial openings in agriculture, goods and services,
and real and substantial reductions in trade-distorting
subsidies. The world’s largest trading nations,
including major developing countries, have a special
responsibility to make the tough political decisions to
reduce trade barriers. America has the wi11 and
flexibility to make those necessary decisions. Our
negotiators are demonstrating that spirit in Geneva. I
urge other leaders to direct their negotiators to do the
same. And I am optimistic that we can reach a good
Doha agreement and seize this once-in-a-generation
opportunity.
In the meantime, America wi11 continue to
pursue agreements that open trade and investment
wherever we can. We recently signed free-trade
agreements with Peru, Colombia, Panama and South
Korea. These agreements embody the values of open
markets, transparent and fair regulation, respect for
private property and resolving disputes under rules of
international law. These are good agreements. They are
now ready for a congressional vote, and I urge our
Congress to approve them as soon as possible.
As America works with the United Nations to
alleviate immediate needs, we are also coming together
to address longer-term challenges. Together, we are
preparing for pandemics that could cause death and
suffering on a global scale. Together, we are working
to stop the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction. Together, we are confronting the
challenges of energy security, environmental quality
and climate change. I appreciate the discussions on
climate change led by the Secretary-General last night.
I look forward to further discussions at the meeting of
major economies in Washington later this week.
The goals I have outlined today cannot be
achieved overnight, and they cannot be achieved
without reform of this vital institution. The United
States is committed to a strong and vibrant United
Nations. Yet the American people are disappointed by
the failures of the Human Rights Council. That body
has been silent on repression by regimes from Havana
and Caracas to Pyongyang and Tehran, while focusing
its criticism excessively on Israel. To be credible on
human rights in the world, the United Nations must
first reform its own Human Rights Council.
Some have also called for reform of the structure
of the Security Council, including an expansion of its
membership. The United States is open to this
prospect. We believe that Japan is well qualified for
permanent membership on the Security Council and
that other nations should be considered as well. The
United States will listen to all good ideas, and we will
support changes to the Security Council as part of
broader United Nations reform. And in all we do, I call
on Member States to work for an institution that
adheres to strict ethical standards and lives up to the
high principles of the Universal Declaration.
With the commitment and courage of those in this
Hall, we can build a world where people are free to
speak, assemble and worship as they wish a world
where children in every nation grow up healthy, get a
decent education and look to the future with hope a
world where opportunity crosses every border. America
will lead towards that vision, in which all are created
equal and free to pursue their dreams. That is the
founding conviction of my country. It is the promise
that established this body. And, with our determination,
it can be the future of our world.