As we say in Maori,
to all peoples and to all voices, greetings, greetings,
greetings to all.
I speak at the end of a period of intense United
Nations dialogue and engagement. This year’s general
debate provides unparalleled opportunities to reaffirm
the unique multilateral role of the United Nations. And
there has been much to debate. The events set in
motion by a single Tunisian street vendor have
transformed much of the Middle East and North Africa.
People have displayed extraordinary courage in
claiming their rights and freedoms. The transition from
dictatorship to democracy will not be easy; it will not
be quick; but it must be achieved.
For others, the struggle continues. We still look
for change in Yemen; we still look for change in Syria.
Other challenges are highlighted by this debate. We
heard from the President of South Africa and others
how the global community must move swiftly to avert
humanitarian disaster in the Horn of Africa.
We heard from the President of Nigeria how
terror networks threaten international peace and
security, and from the President of Tanzania about
growing piracy on Africa’s eastern coast, from Somalia
to Mozambique. We heard calls from the Indonesian
Foreign Minister for bold measures to avert a renewed
global financial crisis, and we heard from the President
of Brazil about the challenge of empowering women to
participate in political decision-making.
As this debate has demonstrated, much more
remains to be done. Lives have also been wrenched by
natural disasters in many countries, including my own.
On 22 February 2011, we experienced what my Prime
Minister called New Zealand’s darkest day. An
earthquake struck Christchurch, our second-largest
city. A total of 181 people were killed, a loss we share
with 15 other countries whose citizens also died. We
were humbled by the support we received, and, once
again, I thank those who gave that help.
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Despite that disaster and the literally thousands of
aftershocks that have followed, New Zealanders remain
resilient and optimistic. Christchurch is being rebuilt.
Our economy is bouncing back and the country is
returning to normal, not least by currently hosting the
Rugby World Cup, a celebration of a game we love, in
the country we love.
Despite some cause for economic optimism, the
events of just the past week suggest that the world still
faces what we have long feared: a second and even
more disastrous decline into a double-dip recession.
We do not relish the prospect of being dragged into
another recession that is not of our own making. We
caution others larger than ourselves against repeating
the mistakes of the 1930s, when autarkic protectionism
only deepened the Depression and led to war.
Instead, a successful conclusion of the Doha
Round is one of the keys to prosperity, particularly for
those of the global South. The February Christchurch
earthquake was followed by the devastation wrought
on our close friend and neighbour Japan. I reiterate our
heartfelt sympathy to Japan, so steadfast in its support
for New Zealand in our time of need. Those disasters,
and others elsewhere, reinforced the importance of
effective disaster preparedness, response and recovery.
New Zealand will work with the United Nations,
non-governmental organizations and international
agencies so that the lessons learned from Christchurch
are shared with others so that those in regions as
vulnerable as ours can be better prepared. Indeed, in
those regions, disaster preparedness is no desktop
exercise; it is a matter of survival.
Likewise, for our Pacific neighbours, another
high risk, climate change, is no abstract threat,
confined to thousands of pages of reports and esoteric
debate; it is a fundamental question of existence. For
the Pacific, climate change is a grave and present threat
to livelihoods, security and well-being.
The Secretary-General experienced those
challenges first-hand when he visited several Pacific
States, including one post-conflict society, and another
whose people see, on a daily basis, the dangers of
rising oceans. He experienced real vulnerability when
he saw that his hotel room, in addition to the towels
and the telephone, was equipped with a lifejacket. And
he saw the impact of rising oceans on the viability and
survival of many communities when his plane had to
be “wheels up” from the country’s airport — its major
link with the world — before the tide came in.
Much more of that, and whole populations will be
on the move, as they will be in other regions of the
world as well, and that will have with implications for
regional and international stability and security. Faced
with that, it is self-evident that all relevant
international forums, including the Security Council,
must play their part in addressing the challenge. That
means taking urgent and effective action on emissions
reduction. It means strengthening adaptation in
developing countries, particularly the most vulnerable.
And it means acknowledging and planning for the
security implications before they become threats to
regional and international security.
This year’s Durban meeting must set us on the
road to full implementation of the Cancun agreements.
New Zealand is committed, both through the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
negotiations and its active assistance in the Pacific and
elsewhere, to integrate adaptation and mitigation
measures into its development activities.
New Zealand also initiated the Global Research
Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases. Supported
by more than 30 countries, the Alliance seeks to ensure
that reducing agricultural emissions does not
compromise global food security.
Increased agricultural productivity — the ability
of many countries to feed themselves — is one of the
great achievements of recent decades. Constraining
agricultural production would put much of the world’s
population at risk, and no country will do that. We
must therefore maintain investment in agricultural
research, so that productivity and efficiency gains can
continue, but with fewer greenhouse-gas emissions.
That is what the Global Alliance is all about.
New Zealand takes pride in its diversity. We are
indigenous Maori; we are European; and we are the
many peoples from the Asia-Pacific region and
elsewhere who now call New Zealand home. We are
also proud to be part of the Pacific Islands Forum, the
foremost regional body. For 40 years, it has been
central to the region’s efforts to address its own
problems, be they the special development challenges
of small, isolated, vulnerable island States, or halting
and healing the impacts of violent conflict. It has done
that in the time-honoured Pacific way, through
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respectful dialogue and cooperation and then through
joint action.
Three weeks ago, at the Forum’s fortieth
anniversary meeting in Auckland, Pacific leaders
honoured that legacy by agreeing on measures aimed at
converting Pacific potential into Pacific prosperity.
The themes of their discussions will resonate in
other regions: strong, sustainable economic growth,
protecting vulnerable populations and ensuring that
they are healthy and educated and that they can have
long lives.
A key focus of that meeting was the alarming
incidence of non-communicable diseases, a scourge
that is rapidly encircling the globe. Almost half of all
New Zealand deaths relate to cancer and heart disease,
but the situation is even more critical in many Pacific
island countries, where diabetes in particular
approaches epidemic proportions. We thank those who
brought that cause here to the United Nations,
particularly the countries members of the Caribbean
Community.
With the 2012 United Nations Conference on
Sustainable Development (Rio+20) very much in mind,
Pacific Forum leaders also focused on sustainable
development. Rio+20 will be an opportunity to assess
the progress made since the 1992 Conference, take its
agenda forward and highlight best practices. For
example, New Zealand’s aid programme includes
energy, agriculture and tourism initiatives that promote
sustainable development.
Pacific peoples were navigating their ocean, the
world’s largest, at a time when others were still
confined to their coastal waters. New Zealand Maori
call the Pacific the ocean guarded by the god Kiwa.
Our region is uniquely dependent on its ocean. For
those who call the Pacific home, the “green economy”
is in reality a blue economy. Our ocean underpins
livelihoods, food security and economic development.
That is why Pacific leaders have focused on ensuring
its sustainable development, management and
conservation. That is why they made addressing
acidification, pollution and illegal, unreported and
unregulated fishing urgent matters. That is why our
leaders want us to work towards integrated ocean
management, with our own Pacific Oceanscape
framework as a very good model. And that is why they
called for Rio+20 to recognize the Pacific’s economic
and environmental significance, and its contribution to
sustainable development. At Rio+20, we will seek the
support of the United Nations for that blue economy.
We work to protect the health of people and their
environment, but we must also enhance collective
security by advancing the disarmament agenda. Over
the coming year, we must focus on the full
implementation of the action plan agreed at the 2010
Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. As coordinator
for the New Agenda Coalition, a group of non-nuclear-
weapon States committed to a nuclear-weapon-free
world, New Zealand will soon introduce a draft
resolution highlighting the work that will be required
to achieve its implementation during the coming
review cycle of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of
Nuclear Weapons. We commend that draft resolution
for the Assembly’s consideration.
There have been gains over the past year with
respect to conventional disarmament, but we have yet
to see the results of those achievements. There has
been pleasing progress towards an arms trade treaty,
but hard work remains. Next year’s Diplomatic
Conference must deliver a treaty establishing the
highest possible common international standards for
conventional arms transfers.
We must also maintain focus on small arms and
light weapons, which for many regions are their
weapons of mass destruction. The year 2011 marks the
tenth anniversary of the United Nations Programme of
Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit
Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its
Aspects. There has been much to celebrate, including
the first Open-Ended Meeting of Governmental Experts
on the implementation of the Programme of Action,
which I had the honour of chairing in May. But next
year’s Review Conference must work to ensure that the
Programme delivers on its potential for keeping
communities safe from such weapons.
To deal with all of that, we need a strong, nimble
and effective United Nations, and we need a Security
Council that reflects geopolitical realities — realities
that have changed since 1945. Today, some States
might credibly seek a fuller, longer-term Council role.
New Zealand supports change that acknowledges those
realities.
But most United Nations Members are not major
or emerging Powers, they are small States. They too
are crucial to the universality and legitimacy of the
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United Nations; they too must contribute at the Council
table. Let me put it simply: if we reform the Security
Council to provide a fuller, longer-term role for
emerging Powers, we must also ensure a role for small
States. Speaking as a small State, I say that we are the
United Nations. And so we agreed with the Minister for
Foreign Affairs of Trinidad and Tobago when he said
that the smallness of a country is not a deterrent to the
realization of big dreams (see ), and with
the Prime Minister of Cape Verde, who told us that
small States must have a greater voice in international
decision-making (see ).
There are real risks if we cannot achieve genuine
Security Council reform. Emerging Powers will be
denied a role consistent with their global significance,
and small States will continue to be squeezed out of
positions of responsibility. It is in everyone’s interests
that the Security Council be more representative. As
we saw earlier this year with respect to Libya, the
Council is an extraordinarily powerful instrument for
maintaining international peace and security. But with
extraordinary power comes extraordinary responsibility —
responsibility that must be exercised with regard for the
views of all countries, large and small.
The Council must also build on its partnerships
with regional groups, such as the African Union, which
increasingly plays a critical role in maintaining
regional and global peace and security. Recognizing
the importance of closer relations with Africa, we are
encouraging New Zealand investment in and trade with
Africa, supporting peace and security and providing
development assistance. Last week, we increased our
diplomatic engagement by appointing a dedicated
ambassador to the African Union and the Federal
Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
New Zealand is proud of its history of active
contribution right across the United Nations agenda.
We have a strong record as an independent and
principled voice advocating collective security and the
rule of law. We take an even-handed approach to
security issues, as has been shown by our voting record
and our tangible contributions to peace processes. We
take seriously our international responsibilities.
That is why, in 2004, we announced that we
would seek a non-permanent Security Council seat for
the 2015-2016 term. Nearly 20 years have passed since
New Zealand’s last time on the Council. The time is
right for us to again bring the fresh, independent
perspective of a small Asia-Pacific country to the
Council. That candidature, which I confirm here today,
is based on the belief that States, large and small, have
a place at the Council table. Modern New Zealand was
founded on a compact, a treaty-based partnership with
its indigenous Maori people. That, and our diversity,
means a unique history and perspective on promoting
tolerance and conflict resolution; a perspective that we
have previously brought, to good effect, to the Council
table, and which we will bring again.
For the United Nations, 2011 has been a truly
historic year. The Organization has quickly responded
to change in the Middle East and North Africa. It
stands ready to provide post-conflict support, and not
just in Libya. It has been critical to relief in the Horn
of Africa. Its essential role in State recognition has
been at global centre stage. Even the most cynical, the
most jaded, have had to relearn that the United Nations
is at the epicentre of much that happens, and much that
matters. We need the United Nations. We need it to
address the woes of the world and to consolidate its
successes. Its fundamental importance stems from its
universality, its legitimacy and its mechanisms to
confront challenges. Its effectiveness depends on its
ability to adapt as those challenges emerge and on its
ability to address them together. Member States, large
and small, come together in that collective endeavour.
New Zealand, as always, stands ready to play its part.