Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

I wish, on behalf of my country, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, to congratulate Mr. Diogo Freitas do Amaral on his election as President of the General Assembly. He assumes the presidency on the historic occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations. Commendation is in order too for His Excellency Mr. Amara Essy of Côte d’Ivoire, for the competence and sensitivity he displayed as he presided over the last session. Let us also take this opportunity to express to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Boutros Boutros- Ghali, our profound gratitude for the efforts which he has made so far to achieve greater flexibility, and for the enhancement of the capability of this world body to meet the new challenges posed by the seismic upheavals taking place in the international arena. My delegation is supportive of United Nations reform initiatives. We must redouble our efforts to ensure a more efficient United Nations system that will respond effectively to security and humanitarian needs, promote human rights, and build the capacity for sustainable development. Central to our concerns is the importance of ensuring democracy in the United Nations. If this Organization’s moral authority is to be preserved in an increasingly democratized world, it is inescapable that its own processes must be made more democratic. It is therefore imperative, as we consider the enlargement of the Security Council, that the existing geographic imbalance be noted, and that the five regions of the world be adequately represented. My delegation calls for a more effective and efficient United Nations. We are cognizant of the urgent need to address the deteriorating finances of this great Organization. Since the end of the cold war, funds for development in poorer countries have been drastically reduced, and peace-keeping demands now compete for the limited funds available. In his recent report on the work of the Organization, the Secretary-General revealed that Member States owed the Organization approximately $3.6 billion. Let us all work together to address this issue of arrears, which seriously impairs the effectiveness of the United Nations. The role of peace-keeping forces will have to be redefined. My delegation is concerned when lightly armed peace-keepers or unarmed aid workers on a humanitarian mission are threatened, taken hostage, harmed, or even killed. To preserve the credibility of all United Nations peace operations, personnel must be protected as they 13 carry out the duties that the international community has sent them to accomplish. The recently concluded Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing, has certainly served to raise the level of consciousness worldwide on the many problems that women still encounter in many countries of the United Nations. It is now evident that, even in those countries where legislation has opened the road to equality and equity, traditional attitudes continue to impede this process. I am happy to report that in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, women have been given the opportunity to lead. Over 40 per cent of the top administrative posts in our civil service are held by women. Women also have equal access to the political process and enjoy equal pay for equal work. Moreover, my Government amended the constitution to give women citizenship rights equal to those previously accorded only to men. Adherence to the principles of the United Nations Charter and the right to self-determination of the world’s peoples remain among the fundamental principles of the Charter. This is reflected in the growing membership of the Organization. The Republic of China on Taiwan, which was once a Member of this body, still finds itself on the outside, knocking persistently at the doors of our chambers. It is the view of the delegation of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, which we also expressed at the last session, that the time has come for serious consideration to be given to the eligibility of the Republic of China on Taiwan to become a Member of the United Nations. Our position is based on the principle of universality and in accordance with the established model of parallel representation of divided countries. We have recognized the several parts of the former Yugoslavia, and this model should continue to guide our policy. My delegation believes that the Republic of China on Taiwan is fully equipped to play an expanded role in the world economic arena. Its successful development experience can indeed serve as a reference for developing countries. Not only has the Republic of China on Taiwan achieved economic success but, in a few years, its political system has evolved from one characterized by authoritarian rule into one based on democratic principles. We cannot preach about the universality of the United Nations while at the same time ignoring the aspirations of over 21 million people. It is more than time for the Republic of China on Taiwan to be given the opportunity to make a tangible contribution to the work of the United Nations. My delegation reiterates its strong commitment to the peaceful settlement of disputes among States. The Gulf War is now behind us, but the international community must continue to recognize the potential for conflict that still exists in that part of the world. In January 1995, the Secretary-General issued a Supplement to his “Agenda for Peace” of 1992, which highlighted new kinds of United Nations operations to deal with the outbreak of ethnic and religious wars within newly independent States. It is the fervent hope of my delegation that a lasting peace will come to the troubled regions of the world, particularly to Bosnia and Herzegovina. One can recall when the despicable system of apartheid was demolished in South Africa, just over a year ago. It therefore behoves us to eradicate such evil thoughts as “ethnic cleansing” from the minds of men in other parts of the world. Let me take this opportunity to applaud the efforts of the Israeli Government and the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to pursue peace talks despite the efforts of terrorists to derail the process. My delegation fully supports a peaceful resolution of the conflict that has plagued that region of the world for so many years. The Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States was of great importance to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The vulnerability of small island States such as ours is of grave concern and we eagerly look forward to the implementation of the Programme of Action agreed to in Barbados in 1994. Less than one month ago, the Caribbean region felt the impact of several storms and hurricanes which severely ravaged our sister islands of Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, Saint Maarten, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. In the spirit of Caribbean brotherhood, the entire rest of the region came to the support of those affected. The Prime Minister, Sir James Mitchell, in his capacity as current Chairman of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), along with Prime Minister Compton of Saint Lucia and Prime Minister Arthur of Barbados, immediately embarked on a tour of the islands which were severely hit. 14 A national effort was mobilized in my own country for relief supplies. My delegation takes this opportunity to call for further external assistance, which remains crucial. On behalf of the Government and people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, I wish to convey our profound sympathy to the Governments and the peoples of the islands affected, particularly to the families of those who lost their lives as a result of Hurricanes Luis and Marilyn. We also wish to express our sympathy to the Government and the people of the United States of America, and more specifically the families of those who lost their lives in the senseless bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma earlier this year. Our small and fragile States are now being threatened by another type of disaster — an economic disaster, with mounting pressures being exerted by very powerful forces which appear not to understand the importance of the banana industry to our very survival. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the other banana producing countries of the Windward Islands are limited to a mere three per cent of the world market trade in the commodity. The powerful multinational companies which are seeking to reverse the special arrangements under the Lomé Convention already control over 80 per cent of the world market. More profits for multinational companies must not be to the detriment of the small islands striving to maintain democracy. The destruction of the Caribbean banana industry will create economic and social havoc nationally and regionally, and will undoubtedly have severe repercussions at the international level. We recognize the momentum for free trade, but see no reason why, as obtains with issues related to other agricultural regions, of various countries, we cannot be given the time to adjust and restructure our economies. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has already seen its active involvement and participation at the regional level in the Caribbean as an indispensable dimension of its role as a member of the international community. We have consistently defined our objective to become members of our various institutional bodies as a logical and natural culmination of our international vocation. This definition is rooted in our country’s political, social and economic realities, as they have been shaped by our historical and cultural heritage. As a member of the recently established Association of Caribbean States (ACS), we are indeed delighted to be given a greater opportunity to strengthen relations with our Latin American neighbours. Comprising some 200 million ethnically and culturally diverse peoples, the ACS will serve as a vehicle to promote the implementation of policies and programmes designed to harness, utilize and develop the potential of the Caribbean Sea, promote and enhance economic space for trade and investment opportunities, and establish and augment, as appropriate, institutional structures and cooperative arrangements responsive to the various cultural identities within the region. My Government totally condemns the illicit production, trafficking and consumption of drugs. These harbingers of violent crimes and corruption create a serious menace to the health and well-being of our economies and our people, threaten our democratic institutions, and endanger national and regional security. We are firmly convinced that only integrated regional and international efforts can effectively address the drug problem, and accordingly stress the need for increased local, regional and international cooperation. Greater emphasis should be placed on programmes that generate employment and income for persons attracted to drug production and trafficking as a means of livelihood. With the end of the cold war, the international community, freed of the ideological and other constraints of the East-West struggle, saw new opportunities to respond more effectively to longstanding problems that had defied resolution because of super-Power rivalries. There was optimistic talk of the “peace-dividend”, and the Security Council acted with unprecedented consensus and momentum on many issues. At the same time, the thawing of the cold war triggered long-suppressed tensions and conflicts in many parts of the world. Serious global economic and social problems, ranging from poverty, over-population, refugees and migration, to unemployment, drug-trafficking and environmental decline, have affected many societies on an unprecedented scale. Despite the dramatically diminished threat of a nuclear war, the world of the 1990s turns out to be a far more unstable place than many had hoped. The reality of global interdependence, while promising new opportunities for cooperation and exchange, reminds us all too often of our shared and persistent problems. We face more tensions in more places: increasing degradation of the quality of human life and even more complex issues 15 of international laws and ethics, management and practical cooperation. It is therefore clear that the United Nations system is in greater demand than ever before. As we commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the founding of this great Organization, let us work in harmony and ensure that the United Nations is adequately prepared to face the challenges of an even more complex world. We must never forget that the United Nations is a reflection of the real world. If an ugly image appears, one should not blame the mirror.