Paraguay

First of all, I wish to express my thanks to the Assembly for having come to hear Paraguay's position. Secondly, I must apologize if I am interrupting your luncheon. Let me begin my statement in this general debate by expressing my delegation's gratification at seeing you, Sir, preside over the work of this Assembly. Your personal and professional qualities will guarantee that our work is successful, and you may rely on the constant and resolute support of the Paraguayan delegation. We also wish to take this opportunity to express our thanks to Secretary-General Kofi Annan for the report that he has presented on the work of our Organization, which confirms how essential this work is in the context of today's world. There is a need for all States members not simply to support that work, but also to make it even stronger and more flexible in responding to fresh challenges. Allow me also to welcome and express my country's satisfaction at seeing the accession to this Organization of the Swiss Confederation, as well as the upcoming addition of Timor-Leste. With these new Members we take an important step forward towards achieving the universality to which the Organization aspires. The events of the last year, some auspicious, others discouraging, have given us resounding proof of the role of the United Nations and the fact that the Organization's reform is now, more than ever before, a pressing and urgent challenge. I am thinking of the need for a thorough reform of its organs and structure, as well as of its functions, and of changes that would equip this Organization to respond more effectively to the fresh challenges that are emerging with unexpected speed on the international scene. Who would have thought, when this Organization was founded more than 50 years ago, that at this current General Assembly session we would be extending a welcome in the United Nations to two new Member States: Switzerland, a State that has always held its place and played its role in history and on the international scene; and Timor-Leste, whose birth we witnessed just a few months ago, thanks to a large extent to United Nations intervention? Nor could we have imagined just a few decades ago that this year we would have witnessed one of the most important and 2 anticipated events in the area of human rights that is, the establishment of the International Criminal Court. Who would have thought that one year ago, on 11 September 2001, we would have been eyewitnesses to one of the most tragic and incomprehensible events in history the history not only of the United States of America, but also of the whole of humankind and that immediately thereafter the international community would unite and respond most decisively in combating international terrorism? Those events show us that today's world is not the same as that of the Organization's founders. Among other reasons, they determine and require reform of our institution. That is why it is necessary that we give priority to the work of the United Nations, not only so that the Organization responds efficiently to political events, but also to ensure sustainable development so that its benefits reach every individual, wherever he may live, work and have a home. Undoubtedly, a renewed and reorganized United Nations will ultimately respond to the well-being of every one of our citizens. The decisions that we take in that regard over the next months will define and guide our countries and humanity in the future. Thus we cannot limit ourselves to superficial or simply procedural actions; we must achieve a genuine transformation. In that regard, we must reaffirm first of all the central role to be played by the General Assembly as the principal organ of the United Nations, since it is the most representative, democratic, universal and equitable deliberating organ. The Assembly should become the world's parliament, in which all countries regardless of their size or position can expound, debate, dissent, express their views and share positions on the most important current issues. It cannot continue to be the arena where we come to participate merely to carry out a routine function based on a pre-established and repetitive agenda, and in which our statements are mere rhetoric that is scarcely listened to by any other delegation. Therefore, we firmly support the process of revitalizing the Assembly, which should continue and should focus in that direction. The changes must be genuine and profound so as to enhance the Assembly's effectiveness and efficiency. No reform of the United Nations will have the effect that we all wish for without the much-awaited reform of the Security Council. Until that body responsible for maintaining international peace and security is reformed, we will not be able to speak of an Organization that is in accord with the time in which we live. That is why we should expand both categories of members permanent and non-permanent and include both developed and developing countries, taking into particular account that the latter are currently under-represented in such an important body. At the same time, reform should include the gradual abolition of the right of veto for permanent members until it disappears, making the Council fairer and more democratic. We believe that the time has come to assume our political responsibility in the settlement of this matter. One year after the tragic events of 11 September, we need to ask ourselves what implications they have had, as much for this Organization as for each country domestically. Paraguay took a firm position of condemning international terrorism, fully implementing the measures imposed by the Security Council and promoting the validity of the numerous relevant international agreements. My Government responded to the requirements of Security Council resolution 1373 (2001), and to date it has presented two reports to the Committee established pursuant to that resolution. I here reaffirm our commitment to continue to cooperate with the Committee in its efforts, as we have been doing on the regional and subregional levels. Moreover, I should like to report that Paraguay, in keeping with its constitutional process, is becoming a party to the 12 international agreements on terrorism and was one of the first countries to sign the Inter- American Convention against Terrorism, adopted in the framework of the Organization of American States. We firmly support the strengthening of an international legal basis for combating terrorism. That is why we hope that during this session of the General Assembly, negotiations on the comprehensive international convention against terrorism a proposal presented by India will be concluded, as well as the Russian Federation's proposal for an international convention for the suppression of acts of nuclear terrorism. One achievement of far-reaching importance this year was the entry into force of the Statute of the International Criminal Court on 1 July, and we are gratified to be one of the first 66 countries whose ratification of the Rome Statute made this possible. We 3 are convinced that the Court will be a deterrent to unacceptable human rights abuses and crimes against humanity. Likewise, we are certain that the work of the Court will not be tarnished or manipulated by any political influence and that its independence, impartiality and purpose will be preserved. Paraguay appeals to all countries that have not yet signed or ratified the Statute to do so as soon as possible, since the Court's universality is fundamental to its effectiveness. My country has followed very closely the recent debate on the Court's competence to judge hypothetical offences, committed in the course of United Nations peacekeeping operations, in which personnel in the service of countries that have not signed or ratified the Statute might be involved. We welcome the Secretary-General's appointment of the new High Commissioner for Human Rights. We are certain that, as a Latin American, he will do honour to that appointment, which was confirmed by the Assembly. We share his desire to build a human rights agenda that will not divide peoples and States, but rather unite them more. Paraguay will provide all the support necessary to ensure that his mission is successful. For the first time, Paraguay will become a member of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, as of January 2003, and I should like to take this opportunity to reaffirm my Government's commitment to cooperate with and contribute to that body's important and altruistic work. We are prepared to work with the other members of the Commission as well as with other States and entities. Today we face a complex world that is still far from forming a stable international order. We continue to witness confrontations in various regions of the world. That is why we must devote all our efforts and resources to the reconciliation of humanity. The Republic of Paraguay will always invoke and support the peaceful settlement of conflicts through dialogue, mutual understanding and international law. In that regard, we see grounds for grave concern in the serious worsening of the situation in the Middle East: the spiral of violence, the alarming humanitarian situation and the violation of the fundamental rights of the civilian population as well as the loss of innocent lives among both the Palestinian and Israeli peoples. We resolutely support the work of the `quartet' and of the international community in general in their efforts to secure a resumption of negotiations and thus bring about much-desired peace in the region. At the same time, as a country that abides strictly by international law, Paraguay regrets the fact that the resolutions adopted by the Security Council on this question this year, which contain clear terms and references, have still not been implemented by the parties. Paraguay would underscore once again the urgent need to achieve a just and lasting peace in the Middle East on the basis of Security Council resolutions, especially 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 1397 (2002), in order to pave the way for the peaceful coexistence of two independent States, Israel and Palestine, within secure and internationally recognized borders. My country, Paraguay, has been following closely the situation in Afghanistan. We welcome the presence in this general debate of President Karzai, who deserves our recognition and our firm support in his efforts to fulfil his responsibilities and to carry out the tasks that lie ahead of him. The international community is committed to continuing to support Afghanistan so as to enable it to achieve the stability and development that its people so desire. The Government of Paraguay, in keeping with the position it has been maintaining and expressing concerning the question of the Republic of China on Taiwan, would once again reaffirm its strong wish that this issue be considered within the framework of universality embodied in our Charter and on the basis of norms of international law, in order to achieve a satisfactory solution through dialogue among the parties concerned. This year has been marked by important conferences. The World Assembly on Ageing in Madrid, the special session on children, the Monterrey Conference, the Johannesburg Summit and the World Food Summit took place in a context of increasing deterioration in the socio-economic conditions affecting many of our peoples, thus heightening frustration and despair because of the lack of tangible and concrete results. In order to prevent the situation from persisting, what is needed on the one hand is urgent political resolve on the part of all Member States to implement and fulfil the commitments undertaken at those conferences and, on the other hand, an increase in the participation and integration of developing countries in the process of global political decision-making. 4 Consequently, Paraguay has been striving to channel the limited resources at its disposal into areas of pressing priority in the social and economic fields, particularly in the areas of education and health, to the point where now they represent a majority of Paraguay's national budget. We have also reduced military expenditure to below 1 per cent of gross domestic product, the lowest level in our history. We have also been giving priority to State expenditure directed at building road and energy infrastructure, which will make it possible to integrate Paraguay into the transport and energy corridors that will link the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in South America. Sustainable development in its broadest definition, as we addressed it at Johannesburg, increasingly requires shared solutions in a globalized world as well as differentiated commitments. For this reason, we deem it essential that the industrialized countries share in and support our development plans. Official development assistance should play only a complementary role that will enable us to incorporate, in a timely manner, the available financial resources from both internal and external sources so as to enable smaller countries to be properly incorporated into a competitive and independent world. One of the instruments that is constantly touted as a producer of development is free trade. The developing countries want to see free trade on a double track. We want to have access to the markets of the developed countries, and we wish to see the elimination of measures that distort trade, such as agricultural subsidies, domestic export assistance and the abuse of anti-dumping measures. If these protectionist practices persist, they will delay our countries' participation in the supposed benefits that, we believe, stem from free trade and will also considerably worsen the social divide in all its manifestations. Combating poverty is not just a political commitment but, above all, a moral one. Paraguay welcomes the General Assembly's plan to devote a day 16 September to considering ways and means of providing support to the New Partnership for Africa's Development. High-level plenary sessions and interactive round tables will be held. We trust that the outcome will make a decisive contribution to promoting renewed commitments to the social and economic development of the whole of the African continent. The International Ministerial Meeting of Landlocked Developing Countries and Transit Developing Countries will be held next year. It will address the problems that beset countries such as my own, such as integration into international markets, excessive costs related to transit transport, customs delays, restrictions and technical barriers to trade, as well as the need for financial support and the requisite investment in infrastructure and capacity development in order to overcome the disadvantages that stem from being landlocked. Paraguay has offered to host the subregional Latin American preparatory meeting for the Ministerial Meeting, with a view to defining clearly all of the necessary measures to establish our country's requirements, in particular with respect to the differential treatment to be given to landlocked countries, through tangible commitments in the areas of transport, customs and duty-free zones and in the area of opening markets through reduced customs tariffs, the elimination of special excise duties and other measures that hinder the competitive participation in international trade of landlocked developing countries. Paraguay, in the context of its democratization process, to which all citizens are committed at the State, regional and municipal levels, will be holding elections in April next year, which will once again confirm the consolidation of our democracy. Unfortunately, as in many other countries of the world, and especially in Latin America today, the democratic system is threatened by heightened poverty and the serious economic situation, which has caused the living conditions of our citizens to deteriorate. For that reason, our country must also receive the consideration that it deserves in the context of efforts to find solutions to these problems. I trust that the Organization and the financial agencies and their principal members will respond appropriately at the right time. In concluding my last address to this plenary as head of State of the Republic of Paraguay, my term of office, according to the Constitution, ends on 15 August 2003, I wish to reaffirm my country's commitment to this Organization and its trust that it, in turn, will respond to the hopes and expectations of a better future for our peoples.