Niger

Allow me at the outset, on behalf of my delegation, to extend my warm congratulations to you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of the fiftieth session of the United Nations General Assembly. Coinciding as it does with the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Organization, your election is indeed evidence of the esteem in which you and your country, Portugal, are held by the international community. You can be assured of the full cooperation of the delegation of Niger. To your predecessor, Foreign Minister Amara Essy, who has just added to his rich career the record of a job well done here, I convey my best wishes for success in his future activities. In this transitional year in our Organization’s history, I should also like to pay tribute to the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, for the dynamic manner in which he is performing his duties at the head of our Organization. 10 A half century has gone by since the creation of the United Nations at San Francisco in 1945. Hence, this year’s session affords us a unique opportunity to recognize the importance of the historic gesture by which the leaders of the day created the Organization as well as to renew our faith in the ideals and principles of the Charter, which unquestionably stands as one of the most important documents available to mankind for building the world of tomorrow. For young States like Niger, which acceded to international sovereignty 35 years ago, it would be remiss to overlook the forceful role the United Nations has played in the emancipation of peoples and its invaluable contribution to the progress of mankind as a crucible of international cooperation in the political, economic, social and cultural spheres. Fifty years after the creation of the United Nations the threats created by the cold war, which long paralysed it, have disappeared, making way for healthier and more constructive cooperation between States. This new climate enabled the Organization to extend, a year ago, an emotional welcome to South Africa following its successful victory over the system of apartheid, thus closing after many years one of the most painful items on its agenda. Since the Madrid Conference, the Middle East too has moved along the irreversible path to peace, crowned by the signature on 13 September 1993 of the Agreements on autonomy for the Gaza Strip and Jericho. However, this new climate has also created other kinds of threats, threats as formidable as those of the cold-war period and just as disturbing to the peace of many peoples. Conflicts that intermingle nationalism, ethnic rivalries and religious intolerance have erupted in many parts of the world. Democracy, notwithstanding the progress it has made, is finding it hard to take root in countries where worsening poverty, malnutrition, disease and environmental deterioration mete out indescribable suffering. In other words, the global context in which the present session of the General Assembly is meeting is far from giving grounds for complete optimism. This session should furnish us with an opportunity for a fruitful analysis of ways to create a better world, a world free of such atrocities, a world in which mankind will no longer suffer and in which the ideals of peace, true development and justice will prevail. The situation of my country, Niger, like that of many other African States, is still fraught with difficulties of all kinds arising out of a disastrous economic environment. A 50 per cent devaluation of our currency, the CFA franc, in January 1994 dealt a severe blow to the living standard of the population. The economic recovery expected as a result of this fairly drastic monetary step has been delayed, for the collective and uniform nature of the measure made it unsuitable to the specific situations in the various countries affected. Unable to count on a significant increase in its raw-material exports, Niger has, on the contrary, experienced an unreasonable increase in the pressure of its external debt and the cost of imports. Despite that, my Government, in conjunction with the Bretton Woods institutions, has undertaken a programme of economic structural adjustment based on a policy of systematic restructuring of the public and semi-public sectors combined with a balancing of macroeconomic aggregates based on a substantial improvement in State revenues and a reining in of public expenditure. Politically speaking, the democratic process entered into in 1990 is being pursued and expanded, although it continues to experience the growing pains that accompany any new experiment — excesses and abuses of new-found freedoms, a tendency to civic impunity, the excessive growth of all kinds of interest groups, special interests, and so on. However, the existence of active trade unions, an independent and free press and a dynamic civil society are creating the basis for a lasting democratic structure capable of ensuring respect for the rule of law and contributing to the gradual growth of a democratic culture. After less than four years of institutionalized democracy, Niger held elections for President and for the Legislature. The holding of the last set of elections for the Legislature, advanced to January 1995, was entrusted to an independent electoral commission headed by a magistrate and made up primarily of persons from the Non-Governmental Organization sector, and from human rights organizations and organizations advocating democracy. Several international observers witnessed the vote and all of them said that it was a model of transparency and equity. These elections resulted in a majority in Parliament for the opposition parties. Thus, since that time, Niger has been living under a regime where the presidential minority does not coincide with the parliamentary majority. This so-called cohabitation regime is the most delicate form of the distribution of 11 constitutional powers and of relations between the different institutions of the Republic. Despite all the difficulties inherent in the exceptionally delicate and unprecedented experience we are undergoing, the regular functioning of the institutional machinery has never been found wanting. The Supreme Court, the institution entrusted with interpreting the Constitution and stating the law on the basis of which the operation of the Republic’s institutions can be ensured, has played a crucial role. Systematic reliance on the machinery of law has been an option of principle supported by the entire political community, which constitutes its dedication to the rule of law and to the stability as well as the security of the country. It is precisely to ensure the country’s security and stability that my Government undertook all the efforts that finally led to the Agreement of 24 April 1995, between the Government and the leaders of the Tuareg rebellion, joined together in the Armed Resistance Organization. As the Assembly knows, since 1991 there has been in the northern part of Niger an armed rebellion claiming to represent the Tuareg community and calling for the establishment of a federal regime, which it believes is the only one that can provide its people with free self-government. The discussions undertaken with the leaders of the rebellion constantly stressed the need to avoid useless bloodshed, and to focus on dialogue, the major focus of which would be the best interests of the country. Thanks to mediation efforts by the friendly countries of Algeria, Burkina Faso and France, to which I once again extend the gratitude of the Nigerian people, we were able on 24 April 1995 to sign a definitive peace agreement. That agreement, based on the principle of respect for the constitution, which enshrines the indivisibility of the Republic, emphasizes two main elements: first, at the political level, the agreement recommends the acceleration of the establishment of decentralized structures and a consequent devolution of administrative and political powers to those structures; secondly, at the economic level, the agreement recommends the implementation of a special programme of economic and social development in the northern part of the country. With respect to the first aspect of the commitments undertaken in this important agreement, the responsibility of the Government is almost exclusive. But that is not true of the second aspect. Indeed, it is quite clear that the motives for this rebellion, which started at the very time when the country had embarked on the road to democracy and institutionalization of freedoms, are primarily economic. The northern area of Niger, after the past few years of cyclical draught, was in a highly precarious condition due to the upheaval of its ecosystem. Livestock grazing became highly problematic, condemning nomadic communities to wandering and inducing in them a feeling of malaise, which quickly led to claims for a separate identity. The only way to deal appropriately with this rebellion, which is, after all, only a symptom of the real difficulties faced by these people, is to restore hope to all of these hard-hit regions. That is why the peace agreement provides for the holding on 30 and 31 October 1995 of a round-table meeting involving all the countries and institutions linked to Niger, with a view to preparing a special development programme for the northern area. I appeal to all those who wish to help Niger definitively restore and consolidate peace to kindly lend their support to this undertaking. On the international level, the tragic conflicts in Rwanda, Somalia, Liberia and the former Yugoslavia — to refer only to them — bear witness eloquently to the fragility of the international order that emerged from the end of the cold war, and also to the inability of present structures to provide an adequate collective response when national stability breaks down and when the ensuing internal conflicts give rise to unspeakable suffering. The situation of Rwanda is among those which, given their gravity and their undermining of the basic principles of our Organization, deserve special attention. My country is following with great attention the efforts undertaken for a year now by the authorities of Rwanda to overcome the consequences of the tragic events that took place there and to consolidate the work for national reconciliation and lasting peace. The situation in Liberia, after a series of initiatives leading to the establishment of a new Council of State, has taken a truly positive turn. This is an opportunity for me to extend my congratulations to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and to all those whose help has been so useful, in particular President Sani Abacha of Nigeria and President Rawlings of Ghana. I wish to congratulate the people of Liberia on their courage and encourage them to persevere on the path of peace and hope that they have paid so dear a price to find again. In Angola, Niger is following closely the progress achieved along the path to peace and we congratulate President Dos Santos and Mr. Savimbi. Niger is following with the same attention the developing situation in Western Sahara and we deplore the slow pace of the process for the restoration of peace there. 12 With regard to the sanctions imposed on Libya by the Security Council, Niger believes that the constructive proposals made by the authorities of that country constitute a serious basis for a resolution of this crisis, whose consequences are so burdensome to the Libyan population and to neighbouring countries such as Niger. Outside of our continent, Niger welcomed the signing on 13 September 1993 in Washington of the Agreements between the Palestine Liberation Organization and Israel envisaging autonomy for the Gaza Strip and Jericho. The ensuing dynamic led — after very hard work — to a significant breakthrough with the signing of the Agreement on 28 September 1995 in Washington which extends autonomy to the West Bank. The long tragedy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a Member State of the United Nations, gives rise to many questions about the capacity of our Organization to ensure respect even for its principles. The Muslim population of that country has suffered too much from the inconsistencies, improvisations and hesitations of the international community, while the Bosnian Serbs, grand masters of fait accompli politics, have been allowed to calmly continue their abominable practice of “ethnic cleansing”, calling seriously into question the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Niger welcomed the military pressure exercised upon the Serbs by our Organization and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization last September, and we warmly welcome the latest peace initiatives led by the United States of America with a view to the return of peace to that region. We hope that this great stride will provide a basis for bringing about just and lasting peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Fifty years after its creation, the United Nations must strengthen its mission of promoting dialogue and cooperation between peoples. It must, even more than in the past, work to limit tensions as far as possible, and to settle conflicts when they erupt but, in particular, to prevent situations that could threaten international peace and security. In this spirit, in this special year in the life of our common Organization and in accordance with the principle of universality enshrined in Article 4 of the Charter, Niger has advocated the establishment of an ad hoc committee to look into the question of the representation of Taiwan. The end of the cold war has not helped to shield the world from the emergence of local conflicts any more than it has made it possible to remove the heavy burden weighing on mankind as a result of the stockpiling and improvement of weapons. However, it is now an established fact that disarmament and the non- proliferation of weapons of mass destruction have a pivotal role to play in preventing conflicts and promoting peace and social and economic development. For this reason, we can congratulate ourselves on the results of the 1995 Review and Extension Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. This Conference, in addition to agreeing on an indefinite extension of the Treaty, agreed that a comprehensive nuclear test-ban treaty would be concluded in 1996 at the latest. Niger wishes to reaffirm its deep desire to see the negotiations now under way lead to the conclusion of a treaty that comprehensively bans nuclear tests, that is universal and that can be effectively monitored. Our attempts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons should not make us lose sight of the threat of conventional weapons and the need to control them. Niger is pleased to applaud here Mali’s initiative which this year led the Secretary-General of our Organization to dispatch a mission to the subregion of West Africa to assess the negative impact of the illicit circulation of small arms upon the States of the subregion. We support the recommendations made by the Secretary-General following that mission and we retain the hope that the international community, which gave massive support to the relevant resolution, will give the backing that is indispensable for the implementation of these recommendations. In recent years, our Organization has invested heavily in conflict prevention and management. Many resources and a great deal of time have been devoted to this area, sometimes to the detriment of development measures. My delegation, however, remains convinced that there is no greater threat to peace than the current stalemate in dialogue between rich and poor countries and the widening of the various inequalities that have ensued. This session is taking place at a time when the world economic situation is riven by deep-seated imbalances. Although some regions have seen considerable progress, in other regions delays are becoming worse every year, sometimes leading to unprecedented crises. The poorest countries seem to have been left on the sidelines of the progress that the world economy has enjoyed. In some countries the very structures of the State have fallen into 13 complete disrepair and populations have been plunged into the deepest distress. Poverty, hunger and illiteracy plague more than one-fifth of the world’s population and in many parts of the world the situation is becoming dangerously worse. The African continent is requesting, as a priority and urgently, the solidarity of the international community. The weaknesses of its structures persist and frequently grow worse. The current improvement in growth rates are still too weak to compensate for 15 years of economic decline. Economic performances are disappointing even in countries that have undertaken considerable reform. Despite the international community’s commitments in the framework of major conferences and summits of every kind, flows of official development assistance are falling off every year. At a time when developing countries need it most to support their reforms, official development assistance has fallen drastically and the general malaise surrounding this assistance, christened “donor fatigue”, is growing worse and worse. My country regrets that not even the Economic and Social Council high level segment on the development of Africa, including the implementation of the United Nations New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s, nor the Mid-Term Global Review of the Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the 1990s which has just ended, has made it possible for the international community to arrive at a set of concrete measures that can reverse this trend by creating conditions for sustained and lasting economic recovery and development in the poorest countries. The silent crisis of poverty, disease and illiteracy should inspire the international community to tackle the roots of the evil by adopting a preventive and more consistent approach to the resolution of these problems. The roots of the problem include the burden of external debt which continues to hamper the development efforts of developing countries. Although we recognize the efforts to reschedule and write off debt under the Naples Terms, we must point out that this is not enough. Donor countries are fully aware that they, along with the multilateral financial institutions, are the main creditors of our countries and that a large part of the debt servicing they finance simply returns to their treasuries and those of multilateral institutions. Financial flows on favourable terms are not usually enough to make up the financing deficit of poor countries. Comprehensive and lasting solutions are needed if problems are to be solved once and for all. The radical structural reforms that developing countries, especially the least developed among them, have undertaken in their economies have proved to be very costly in social and political terms and have not been given sufficient support by the international community. Although structural adjustment remains indispensable to remedy serious economic imbalances, the needs and priorities of the poorest and most vulnerable people should not be neglected. Adjustment and transformation must be designed to improve the well-being of populations. There is good reason to encourage in practice Governments to persevere, but they must also be helped to attenuate the severe impact of such reforms. The struggle against poverty was one of the principal topics of the World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen last March. The international community made courageous commitments, which we welcome, in particular the commitment to supply the financial resources necessary for integrated strategies to combat poverty, unemployment and social exclusion. We remain hopeful that these commitments will be translated into action and initiatives at both the national and international levels. The Fourth World Conference on Women that has just recently ended in Beijing is also a landmark of our time in so far as the international community reaffirmed there the importance of the role of women, the main actor in and beneficiary of development, and committed itself to devoting greater resources to improving the status of women and their access to the political and economic life of our countries. The Agenda for Development, which is now being drafted and unanimously heralded as complementing the “Agenda for Peace” should provide the international community with a new opportunity, in addition to just reaffirming principles, to focus on producing resources commensurate with the task of implementing concrete development initiatives. A whole series of world conferences in recent years has enabled us to forge a new vision of global development and to define the measures needed to turn that vision into reality. The international community must urgently give tangible proof of its commitment to progress along the path it has chosen. 14 Any delay can only make the remedy that much more difficult and costly. The commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, marking a half-century of the existence of our Organization, is highly symbolic and we would be ill advised not to make judicious use of these symbols. This is such a rare occasion that I believe we must take advantage of it.