It is an
honour for me to speak before this Assembly. The
United Nations is the very embodiment of the
commitment we have all made to contribute to peace
and security and to create better living conditions in a
greater climate of freedom. For its part, the
Government I represent has never ceased strengthening
its actions in the international arena. The Canadian
Government is a responsible partner and a fully
engaged Power. We are guided by unwavering
principles. Canada’s commitment is not only linked to
our interests, but above all to the values that inspire
Canadians, which are freedom, the rule of law,
democracy and human rights. They are the values
underlying our presence in Afghanistan, in Haiti, in the
Sudan and elsewhere in the world.
And they are the values and aspirations that are
embodied in the Preamble to the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights: the inherent dignity and the rights of
all members of the human family are the foundation of
freedom, justice and peace. Article 1 of the Declaration
says further “All human beings are born free and equal
in dignity and rights”.
Those are not abstract concepts. They are real and
concrete concepts with effects both immediate and
profound. Promoting them is not enough. They must be
protected and defended, particularly when they are
under assault in Burma, in Afghanistan, in the
Sudan, in Iran and elsewhere.
In Kabul, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has
confirmed the desire of the United Nations to stabilize
Afghanistan. Canada has engaged its political
commitment and practical capabilities to rebuild
security, democracy, human rights and prosperity in
that country.
Canada believes that a united international
community must support efforts to rebuild Afghanistan.
International organizations, including the United
Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the
World Bank, must work towards that common goal. No
one country can do that alone. To fully implement
Security Council decisions, we must work in close
partnership, both with the Government of Afghanistan
and with our friends and allies.
To ensure a successful commitment, Canada
deploys the necessary resources, as with our mission in
Afghanistan. Under the terms of a clear United Nations
mandate, Canada joined the coalition of the
International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
More than 60 countries and international organizations
have undertaken with us to help the democratically
elected Afghan Government rebuild its country.
Canada believes that the efforts of the countries
and organizations working in Afghanistan are
commendable and also reflect the core principles
espoused by the United Nations. The challenge is great,
but the principles we are defending are greater still.
The countries assisting Afghanistan are united by
a single conviction: there can be no reconstruction
without security. Democracy and political stability
cannot flourish in a climate of terror. Health care and
education cannot be provided where anarchy prevails.
Economic development is impossible when chaos is all
around. Security is the crucial foundation on which
everything depends, but long-term security requires
sustainable investment in the country’s development;
one goes hand in hand with the other.
Thanks to the assistance of Canada and the
international community, Afghanistan has made
progress. Afghan police officers are currently being
trained, Afghan refugees are returning home and
Afghan children are learning to read and write. Canada
is having a real and direct impact on the lives of the
Afghan people and is contributing to the achievement
of the vision of the future expressed in the Afghanistan
Compact which was signed in 2006. In order to make
that vision a reality, it is crucial that the United Nations
and the Government of Afghanistan ensure the
fulfilment of the Compact. And yes, despite the
incidents of intimidation and violence, the situation of
the Afghan people is improving.
Last year, Prime Minister Harper emphasized
here that the United Nations Assistance Mission in
Afghanistan was the most important special political
mission of the United Nations. The Canadian
Government continues to support the leadership role of
the United Nations in Afghanistan. For that reason,
Canada supports having a new high-level United
Nations special envoy for Afghanistan.
In the past year, our Government has
demonstrated its multifaceted commitment to that
mission. We have increased our development spending,
our diplomatic presence and our military engagement.
We welcome Security Council resolution 1776 (2007).
It extends the authorization of the International
Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and calls on
Member States to contribute personnel, equipment and
funding. The Canadian Government encourages
members of the Assembly to actively support that
resolution and its implementation.
There are other challenges we must also meet. In
Haiti, the Canadian Government has asked the Security
Council to extend the mandate of the United Nations
Stabilization Mission in Haiti. That represents
Canada’s most substantial development programme
and its largest stabilization mission in the Americas.
In Burma, it is imperative to restore democracy
and human rights. We expect the United Nations to be
at the forefront of those efforts. Although we have
disagreed on occasion with the decisions and processes
of the United Nations Human Rights Council, the
convening of a special session of the Human Rights
Council on Burma is an example of the sort of activism
and engagement that Canada expects of that body,
especially in dealing with countries that perpetuate
human rights violations.
In the Sudan, innovative peacekeeping missions
are creating a security framework which will become
the foundation upon which a durable peace can be
built. The international community must demonstrate
the political will to find new solutions. Those solutions
must be aimed not only at immediately ending the
horrific violations of human rights occurring daily in
Darfur, but also at addressing the issues of freedom and
democracy that must form the foundation for a durable
peace. Canada’s substantial contribution to the Sudan
continues in the form of humanitarian assistance and
equipment. Of course, we condemn the intolerable
attack against soldiers of the African Union force.
The scope of the challenges we must overcome to
maintain our security is such that no country can hope
to tackle them alone. We, the Member States, can and
must show the determination and political will so that
the United Nations may truly reflect the principles that
its founders wanted it to embody.
Canada is and will remain a committed partner
for all those who seek to work for freedom, to work for
democracy and to work for human rights and the rule
of law.