Luxembourg

The current Chairman of the European Union, Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, has already had an opportunity to state to the Assembly the priorities and positions of the European Union. Luxembourg, through its commitment on a day-to-day basis, reaffirms its dedication to multilateral cooperation and to the work of this universal Organization. President Kavan, you assumed your important post through a new procedure designed to revitalize the work of the General Assembly and intensify its impact. I am sure that under your guidance we will achieve other significant successes. Mr. Han Seung-soo guided the work of the previous session during a period when the international situation was difficult and beset by serious problems. Thanks to his extensive experience and his understanding of international issues, a calm and fraternal message of cooperation and concerted action resulted from our debates. We all are deeply grateful to him for that. 4 Our Organization also has the advantage of having a Secretary-General whose humanism and outstanding diplomatic skills are universally acknowledged. He has begun his second term with his characteristic dynamism, which we all admire. We wholeheartedly support the Secretary-General in the discharge of his important mission. There is no doubt that multilateralism and the support of the United Nations system for it have their own particular dynamic. We are counting on him to guide the Organization in accordance with the guidelines set out in the important statement he made last Thursday. Regarding Iraq, we believe that the international community must continue to work through the United Nations, which is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Iraq must provide unconditional and unimpeded access to the inspectors as well as the necessary cooperation. It must fulfil its obligations immediately. We are determined to support the efforts of the United Nations to achieve that goal. International law was strengthened considerably with the entry into force of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court on 1 July last. This represents a major step forward in the process of the promotion of the rule of law and in the fight against impunity. This young institution must receive our full support. Indeed, it represents a guarantee in terms of the desire for protection, which is so deeply rooted in each of us. The broadest possible ratification of the Statute of the Court must remain a high-priority objective of the international community. The European Union is actively working to that end to ensure that the Court is genuinely universal in nature. In the same multilateral context, the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development has just concluded with the observation that our planet's natural reserves and resources are limited and that only solidarity can reconcile the legitimacy of development and the preservation of an environment that respects life. It is humankind's responsibility to achieve a balance in these two cases. The Summit charted a course through the Plan of Implementation, which sets out objectives and timetables. Some may feel that they are not ambitious enough, but they certainly can guide us. We need to implement this plan, and here new partnerships between the United Nations, Governments, companies and civil society are an important tool. Governments, however, still must shoulder all of their responsibilities. In Doha, the World Trade Organization decided to link the opening of markets and technical assistance to development. In Monterrey, a global consensus emerged regarding financing for development. In the wake of Johannesburg, there is a need now to create synergetic relationships between public assistance, support from companies, local resources and the commitment of non-governmental organizations. Poverty, pollution, overexploitation and, unfortunately, violence, too, will continue for a long time to fuel pessimism. However, we are encouraged to note that democracy and good governance are concepts and practices that are moving forward and that are increasingly broadly accepted. In this context, I should like to pay tribute to the young African Union, which specifically included among its objectives the advancement of the principles of democracy and its corollary, the protection of human rights. Human rights, democracy, development and security are closely linked. The Council of Europe, whose principal mission is the championing of human rights, pluralist democracy and the rule of law, has, like the United Nations, had to face an tremendous challenge following the events of 11 September. Like this universal Organization, the Council of Europe, whose chairmanship Luxembourg has held since May — its tenure is for a six-month period — has taken a series of specific measures in the international campaign against terrorism. In addition to advancing the process of the signing and ratification of international instruments, the Council has devised guidelines for an international campaign that includes full respect for human rights. Indeed, when security is threatened, respect for human rights becomes all the more important. As statesmen, it is our obligation to prevent anti-terrorist legislation from infringing on, or even destroying, democracy in its attempt to champion the fundamental values of freedom and to safeguard human rights. The events of 11 September provided a new impetus, as we all are well aware, to cooperation between institutional partners and, above all, emphasized the need to pursue dialogue between cultures and religions and to step up the process of reflection on civilizations in order to promote tolerance 5 and universal respect for human rights when we are faced with barbarism. Like the United Nations and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the Council of Europe is committed to that policy. Coordination and complementarity between regional and international organizations are, moreover, among those priorities that Luxembourg has set for its chairmanship. It might thus be useful to establish links here with the important centres of the Council of Europe, namely the European Court of Human Rights — a unique mechanism for the protection of human rights; the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance; and, finally, the Committee for the Prevention of Torture. It is indeed my hope that the important work on norms and standards carried out by the Committee at the European level will one day be implemented at the international level, and that the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention against Torture — a Protocol that the Assembly will soon be called on to endorse — will enjoy the same success as its European predecessor. The establishment of the rule of law for all of us is an objective for which the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mrs. Mary Robinson worked tirelessly. She deserves our gratitude for her courage and her contribution to this vital cause. Her successor, Mr. Sergio Vieira de Mello, can also count on our full cooperation and support. The special session of the General Assembly on the rights of children in May 2002 allowed us, once again, to condemn that indifference which kills and causes great suffering to millions of disadvantaged and defenceless individuals. While the Convention on the Rights of the Child has made it possible to specifically improve the lives of countless individuals, work must be stepped up and expanded in order to guarantee that there will be a real difference for generations to come. We view action in favour of women, which falls under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, in the same context. Luxembourg would like to reaffirm its dedication to the significant work carried out by the United Nations funds and agencies in these areas. In particular I would like to mention the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). International action for reproductive health is at the crux of their programmes and today it remains indispensable. It requires firm support and the necessary budgetary resources. This is why Luxembourg firmly supports the efforts of UNFPA. Reducing funding for women in difficulty is totally unjust and considerably increases the suffering of these individuals. To be sure, the work of those dedicated persons who inspire these programmes — including quite a few non-governmental organizations — will not come to an end any more than the labours of Sisyphus. But, are we not all aware of the progress which has been made possible in the daily life of individuals, groups and peoples, progress made through institutions which have been carefully conceived, democratically established, well managed, which in addition benefit from the moral authority provided them by the United Nations? Bearing in mind the destiny of the individuals who are threatened here, international officials must be provided with the means to detect at an early stage any possible violation of peace and international security. A heightened awareness of our responsibility to provide for the protection of civilian populations is in fact necessary to allow for preventive action and, in particular, for maintaining peace. As has been rightly noted by the Secretary- General, such preventive action should be done by strengthening the capacity of operational and structural prevention on all levels: local as well as national, regional and international, bilateral and multilateral. Increased interaction between all these levels is required so as to replace a culture of reaction by a genuine culture of prevention. The importance of investing in conflict prevention strategies, which may only yield fruit much later, is not always obvious. Such a choice requires a strong will of commitment by all of its players. For its part, our universal Organization, through the Security Council and other bodies of the United Nations system, is dedicated to defining an outline of possible international action for prevention to make it more systematic and effective. The pivotal role of the United Nations and its authority are essential to achieve this end. It will be up to the fifty-seventh session of the General Assembly to deal with this question as well. Increasingly, the need to focus attention on the destinies and tragedies experienced by victims and 6 react to the fact that conflicts today deliberately and increasingly claim victims among the civilian population can be given priority status, because international relations today are no longer hampered by the ideological battles of yesterday. However, antagonisms have not disappeared and may even cloak themselves in new forms. We need to remain vigilant. One year ago, the international community was deeply shaken by the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 against the civilian populations of New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. A few days ago we visited Ground Zero as a sign of our grief and to reaffirm our determination to act against barbarity. While we can indeed note that the efforts made since that tragic day to combat international terrorism have achieved some specific results, this should not, however, prompt us to let down our guard. Other tragedies are still open wounds, such as the particularly obvious case of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Middle East, since Oslo, has seen extraordinary efforts at mediation. Faced with violence and hate, non-intervention and keeping one's distance are not real options. Efforts are continuing, aimed at creating conditions for new negotiations that might make it possible to conclude the work that has been languishing since Taba. The European Union is actively participating in this process and is making efforts, through new initiatives of the Danish presidency, to once again put the political context at the heart of our concerns. The tireless efforts of the international community are required to emphasize the need for moderation. Moderates, on whatever side, have no easy task when faced with extremism. But we support them. Peace requires all of us, in fact, to be internally split, as noted by Mr. Shlomo Ben Ami, but, I would add, it will also include reconciliation. And this must be prepared with the new external partner and also with those reluctant domestic forces, which must be reintegrated into the peace process. Developments in Sri Lanka, moreover, demonstrate that hope can win the day over violence. In the case of Timor-Leste, it is also thanks to the United Nations that this hope has been fulfilled. And in Africa, several hotbeds of tension have been eased in 2002, in Angola, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Burundi in particular. The effort made by the international community in Afghanistan must, as we know, be continued over time to insure the establishment and functioning of a stable democratic and fully representative State. The process of normalization under way in the Balkans deserves similar attention. After some 160 years of existence as an independent State, Luxembourg is fully aware of the limits inherent in its size and the means available to it. In foreign policy we are acting with the firm conviction that the multilateral system of cooperation is one which provides a place and a role for everyone. In an interdependent world, we all must shoulder our responsibilities and make our contribution. And that is the basis of our commitment to the universal Organization, as it is the basis of our action to support development in the world. This is why we wish to raise our official development assistance to 1 per cent of GNP, after having been, in 2001, in the position to go beyond the threshold of 0.7 per cent recommended by the United Nations. Our Organization brings together the international community. It is the unique forum which allows for exchanges and allows us to chart the path for totally new solutions. And I am gratified to see that during this session there are two new Members here in 2002, namely Switzerland and Timor-Leste. We congratulate them on having taken this decision and we extend a warm welcome to them to our Assembly.