I would first
like to warmly congratulate you, Mr. President, on your
election to the presidency of the General Assembly at
its current session, and to express my full appreciation
to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Ban
Ki-moon, who has closely followed developments in the
situation in Lebanon.
I particularly wish to point out the presidential
statement issued by the Security Council on 10 July
(S/PRST/2013/9), which provides an effective road
map for what the international community can do to
help Lebanon in order to preserve its stability, promote
its institutions, support its economy and army and to
help it face the growing burden created by the refugees
entering from Syria. That is definitely the core objective
of the meeting of the International Support Group for
Lebanon, which will be launched tomorrow afternoon,
25 September.
Many countries represented here have witnessed
uprisings, civil wars or foreign aggression. Lebanon,
too, has experienced many wars, which have led to
influxes of numerous refugees in our territory. Against
all odds, the Lebanese have sought to assume the
responsibility for restoring the glory of our country
as a space for freedom and coexistence and to hallow
their presence in the East within the confines of a State
that embraced democracy from its very inception while
ensuring respect for diversity within unity as well as
personal and public freedoms.
Through dialogue, the Lebanese will continue
to develop their political system and improve their
democratic practices. They will have to remain
committed to the Baabda Declaration, which advocates
Lebanon distancing itself from regional crises and axis
politics. It is equally essential to reach an agreement
on a national strategy to ensure the exclusive defence
of Lebanon in the face of Israel’s hostility and ongoing
threats.
Nevertheless, however strong the Lebanese
commitment may be, we still require the care and
support of brotherly and friendly countries in order
to address the repercussions of external conflicts and
crises that threaten our security and stability and have
negative impacts on our socioeconomic situation. The
Lebanese look to assistance not only in the name of
brotherly solidarity and the shared responsibility of the
international community as a whole, but also in the face
of events that pose a threat to regional and international
security.
The first challenge is rooted in the repercussions
of the Syrian crisis on Lebanon’s security and
economy. An existential challenge has arisen, related
to the growing number of Syrian refugees on Lebanese
territory, which is far beyond Lebanon’s capacity to
assimilate them. The number of refugees has already
exceeded one quarter of the Lebanese population. As
the Assembly knows, Lebanon is a country of limited
geographical area and resources, as well as sensitive
balances.
Therefore, while we understand that it is not possible
to impose the impossible on nations, it is important
for me to reiterate my call on the States Members of
the United Nations to provide sufficient human and
financial resources to manage the presence of Syrian
refugees in Lebanon and meet their humanitarian
and essential needs, bearing in mind that the pledges
undertaken at the meeting of donor States hosted by the
State of Kuwait on 30 January have only been partially
fulfilled; to expand infrastructure and reception areas
for Syrian refugees within Syrian territories themselves
and organize an international conference on the issue
of Syrian refugees, with the aim of sharing the burden
among different countries in accordance with the
principle of shared responsibility while also assisting
the International Support Group for Lebanon; and to
garner support from all concerned States for the work
of the International Support Group. Of course, all of
that must take place while we work towards finding a
political solution for the Syrian crisis that will preserve
the unity of Syria.
Lebanon has called attention to the need to bring
to justice the perpetrators of the crimes that have been
committed. Solutions must be found to ensure that the
conflict does not spread to neighbouring countries.
Today, we have an opportunity to condemn all terrorist
attacks perpetrated anywhere in the world, particularly
in the Middle East.
I would like to comment on the attack that took
place upon the historic town of Maaloula. That attack
represents an assault on civilization and the tolerant
spirit of religions. That is why the international
community must adopt a firm stance in order to protect
such sites, in particular through the adoption of an
investigative mechanism that will assess the reality of
the situation on the ground.
We must work to encourage the countries of the
region currently engaged in conflict to ensure that the
logic of dialogue and negotiation prevails and to keep
Lebanon from getting involved in the Syrian conflict,
while encouraging those countries to contribute the
necessary assistance and support for the Baabda
Declaration, just as the Security Council has pledged
its support.
However, the main challenge that we face remains
the Arab-Israeli conflict and Israeli settlement policy
practices, not to overlook the difficulties created by it
in terms of refugee flows. The settlement policy has
fostered a sense of frustration and a tendency towards
extremism. Lebanon has been affected by the daily
Israeli attacks against Lebanon and its infrastructure
through the use of all sorts of prohibited weapons.
Lebanon has paid a high price for those acts of
aggression, with all that implies in terms of the burden
on human lives and destruction. It therefore falls upon
the international community to work to find a fair and
comprehensive solution to the conflict in the Middle
East, particularly with respect to the Palestinian cause,
pursuant to the terms of reference of the Madrid
Conference and the Arab Peace Initiative. Stability,
democracy and moderation will not prevail in the
Middle East unless justice is done in Palestine, based
on the belief that the security of the Arab region and
the preservation of its cultural diversity are of strategic
importance.
Lebanon calls for the adoption of an integrated
comprehensive approach that includes the participation
of all States concerned and addresses all aspects of the
Israeli-Arab conflict. At the same time, no solution
should be taken at the expense of its superior interests.
As a result, Lebanon will reject any compromise
attempting to force an influx of Palestinian refugees
on its territory.
In this transitional period where the Arab world
is undergoing major historic upheaval and deep-
wrought changes, the world as a whole is witnessing an
fundamentl structural transformation due to the amazing
scientific progress that has been achieved, in particular
in the fields of communication and information. That
progress will contribute to globalization in all aspects of
life. We must therefore convey a spirit of pluralism and
diversity within all societies as a necessary condition in
order to match the accelerating pace of change.
However, the regimes that run the affairs of peoples
and societies have unfortunately not undergone a
corresponding evolution at the intellectual level. On the
contrary, we have witnessed conflicts exacerbated by
extremist terrorism continue to spring forth fuelled by
isolationism that rejects dialogue, mutual recognition
and coexistence. That has even led some to call for
the return to religious emirates and racial segregation.
In order to do so, those groups have applied violent
methods that flout peace and public freedoms.
Amid those unilateral fundamentalist tendencies,
Lebanon remains a laboratory and a model of necessary
coexistence for the future. That model must be allowed
to benefit from support and stability because, as it has
for decades, it has led to the education of students in our
schools and universities and caused the security forces
to fulfil their national missions in military camps in a
spirit of unity. It is a model that is also experienced by
the citizens on a daily basis on the streets of our cities,
towns and in our capital, in the theatres, clubs, at the
movies, in public and private institutions and in civil
society organizations. The model, which has become
a lifestyle, is lived with the sound of the church bells
and the voices of the mosques’ muezzins ringing in
our ears, in particular at joint celebrations, the most
significant of which is the Common Religious National
Day, celebrated on the day of the Annunciation on
25 March of every year, when everyone is urged to seek
the common good.
The management of diversity and the building of
a culture of justice, peace and coexistence between
cultures, civilizations and religions requires that we all
make efforts at the following three levels.
First, we must work to improve the political,
financial and social systems that govern the affairs
of peoples worldwide, in particular the democratic
system, to make them more humane and better suited
to diversity. This must be done in such a way so as to
guarantee the involvement of all components of society,
in particular minorities, in political life and in the
management of public affairs in all States, regardless
of what ratio of the population such minorities may
represent, but, rather, on the basis of their capacity and
heritage.
Secondly, we must consider the preservation of an
active presence on the part of minorities worldwide,
with all the civilizations and specific characteristics
that they represent, to be an international responsibility,
especially in the Middle East. The Middle East is the
cradle of the monotheistic religions, whose peoples
have coexisted for centuries, forged civilizations
and enriched the history of humankind through their
culture and the values of tolerance, goodwill and
friendship. That shared responsibility cannot be based
on international interests in that part of the world while
ignoring the communities living there. Rather, it should
take into account the interests of all of those minorities
and their right to participate in all aspects of the life of
their nation, as they are an integral part of its fabric.
Thirdly, there is a need to intensify ongoing efforts
aimed at reforming and developing the United Nations
and its specialized agencies, so as to bring them into
line with current realities and restore confidence in their
capacity to resolve international issues, counter crime
and adopt the appropriate resolutions and implement
them without obstruction, free from selectivity and
the policy of double standards. That would be an
alternative to the logic of legitimate force that may be
used by peoples whose countries have fallen victim to
aggression and occupation, in the absence of a capable,
guaranteed international mechanism.
For its part, Lebanon will remain faithful to
the message of freedom and coexistence that are its
hallmark, reiterating its commitment to implementing
all decisions of international legitimacy and to upholding
the spirit of moderation and agreement upon which
Lebanon was founded. It will also remain an active
partner in the context of the promotion of a culture of
justice, peace and sustainable human development.