In May I visited
Tunisia, the cradle of the revolutions that have spread
across the Arab world. I spoke to many people there
who told me about their deep yearning for freedom,
about the decades during which their freedom had been
suppressed and about what the revolution meant for
their lives. One of them was Essma Ben Hamida, the
strong-willed director of a civil society organization
active in micro-finance. She said literally to me, “If
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democracy would mean that I lose my rights as a
woman, I do not want democracy.” In one sentence,
Ms. Ben Hamida defined one of the key challenges we
face.
The call from the streets of the Arab world for
freedom and democracy has brought about great
change. It has inspired people around the world to
claim their rights.
But huge challenges remain. And the severe
financial and economic crisis is threatening growth and
trade around the globe. This crisis is undermining
people’s ability to earn a living and enjoy freedom to
the fullest extent. It is thus crucial that we manage
these developments.
The United Nations and individual Governments
must support people’s calls for freedom. Freedom is a
right for everyone, a duty for Governments and the
mission of the United Nations. Freedom must be
supported by three key pillars: first, security; second,
democracy and the rule of law; and third, prosperity.
Lack of security is a fundamental threat to
people’s freedom. Providing security is a responsibility
of Governments and of the international community as
a whole.
In March this year, we rose to the challenge.
Security Council resolution 1973 (2011) on Libya was
truly historic. It explicitly referred to the international
community’s responsibility to protect. It highlighted
the indispensable role of the United Nations.
By contrast, the Council’s failure to reach
consensus on Syria has been at great human cost.
Every day we are shocked by new, horrific stories. This
very weekend peaceful demonstrators were carrying a
sign that read: “Help Syria. It is bleeding.” We need to
listen to the people of Syria. We need to stop President
Al-Assad’s Government from brutally murdering his
own citizens in an attempt to crush their legitimate call
for freedom. I urge all members of the Security
Council to act decisively and agree on targeted
sanctions against the regime.
Freedom and security are also key issues in the
Middle East peace process. If we do want peace, we
need direct negotiations now, not new resolutions at the
United Nations. The Netherlands endorses the time
frame outlined by the Quartet and stands ready to assist
wherever it can. We are a major donor to the
Palestinian Authority. We fully support the ambition of
the Palestinian people to build a viable, democratic and
peaceful Palestinian State. However, this cannot be
viewed separately from the Israeli people’s desire to
live in a secure, internationally recognized Jewish State
in peace with their neighbours.
It is really essential that the two parties invest in
mutual confidence, refrain from unilateral steps and
find a solution together. They should be prepared to
make the difficult and painful concessions necessary
for the fulfilment of their peoples’ aspirations. I talked
with President Abbas. I talked with Prime Minister
Netanyahu. I listened carefully to what they had to say,
and the message is simple and clear: negotiate,
negotiate, negotiate.
Democracy and the rule of law are the best
guarantees for freedom, but they require hard work. As
Francis Fukuyama put it, democracy is more than the
majority voting in elections. It is a complex set of
institutions that restrain and regularize the exercise of
power through law and a system of checks and
balances. That is what it is about.
I admire the tremendous courage that people,
young and old, have shown to claim their individual
liberty and democratic rights. We must support their
efforts to build truly democratic societies governed by
the rule of law. The United Nations should play a
leading role by helping with institution-building and
developing the rule of law. To that effect, Slovakia and
the Netherlands, for their part, are co-chairing the
Community of Democracies’ task force that is
supporting Tunisia’s democratic transition.
The international community should also support
internet access that is free and uncensored. This is an
essential tool for people to exercise their freedom of
expression, and we should take great care to make sure
they can use it. Countries supporting this cause should
really unite around it.
As Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon recently said,
“Countries do not become fit for democracy; they
become fit through democracy.”
Democracy means freedom and equal rights for
everyone. It provides opportunities to empower
women. Women represent 50 per cent of the world’s
human capital. It is in every country’s own interest to
ensure that women take an active role in society and
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the economy as well as in the political process in the
political power structures. I am convinced that in free
and fair elections, extremists who want to take away
women’s rights will not succeed.
Real democracy also means that the rights of
religious groups, including Christians, are respected.
Society as a whole should be tolerant towards those
with other religions and beliefs. There should be no
doubt about that.
Freedom offers the best route to prosperity. The
ongoing global economic crisis is affecting prosperity
everywhere in our world.
Enabling free trade is vital to economic recovery.
Market access is crucial for private sector
development. Breaking down the barriers to trade in
agricultural products can galvanize entrepreneurship in
the countries that really need it the most. The Arab
region in particular should benefit from enhanced
export opportunities to the European Union.
The beauty of well-regulated free trade is that it
is not a zero-sum game; it benefits everyone and it is
part and parcel of freedom. This is why the World
Trade Organization (WTO) Doha Round must succeed.
The world should not and cannot revert to
protectionism. The WTO has an important part to play
in preventing this. The European Union is also
ambitiously negotiating free trade agreements with
various partners. Of course, these agreements should fit
within the multilateral system.
Free trade leads to economic growth, which in
turn should also benefit the poorest countries in this
world. To further support their growth, we should
enhance their access to education, vocational training
and microfinance for women and the poor.
Freedom belongs to us all. Those who have
fought to gain their freedom will never give it up.
Freedom must be supported through security,
democracy and the rule of law, and prosperity. We can
achieve this through the efforts of Member States.
Since the United Nations is the international forum
where global issues and actors come together, it is here
at the United Nations that we must join forces. We are
witnessing international developments unfolding more
rapidly than ever before. The United Nations needs to
adapt to maintain its important role in international
relations.
For that matter, the Security Council should
better reflect changing international relations and
economic realities. The Netherlands supports a modest
enlargement of the Security Council, but with a limit
on the right of veto in order not to undermine the
effectiveness of the Council’s decision-making process.
The Netherlands supports the Secretary-General’s
drive for budgetary discipline. We have to make careful
choices about what to finance and what not to. I also
urge emerging economies to take their share of
responsibility for the sustainability of United Nations
funding.
The United Nations has an essential role in
fostering the rule of law around the world, as well as in
preventative diplomacy and mediation. The Netherlands
will play its part, including through the role of The
Hague as the international city of peace and justice.
The Peace Palace, the international courts and the legal
institutions attest to our long tradition of international
law and active role in its practice. That tradition, may I
say, goes back to Grotius’s early seventeenth-century
Mare Liberum, which laid the foundation for
international law.
I would like to congratulate Secretary-General
Ban Ki-moon on his reappointment. I call on him to
use the overwhelming support for his second term as a
mandate to reform the United Nations. A strong and
active United Nations is essential in a world in which
no country can shape the future single-handedly. To
succeed, public support for the United Nations is
crucial. Clear and tangible results are necessary to
sustain the commitment of Governments to the United
Nations. An effective and efficient United Nations is in
the national interests of all its Member States, and is,
indeed, essential for freedom throughout the world.
Through our efforts at the United Nations, we can
support the calls for freedom around the world. Then,
on my next visit to Tunisia, Essma Ben Hamida, a
strong-willed woman, can hopefully tell me that
freedom has brought her both democracy and her rights
and empowerment as a woman.