DRC

Mr. President, His Excellency Mr. Joseph Kabila Kabange, President of the Republic, is unable to attend but has instructed me to convey to you his most heartfelt congratulations on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its sixty-fourth session. The head of State has no doubt that your vast experience in the Organization, broadened by your talents and your knowledge, will help you to overcome the myriad of challenges that come with your new office. He expresses his wish also for every success in your work at this regular session. Let me, as I begin my statement, commend your predecessor, Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, and express to him our gratitude for his excellent service as President of the General Assembly at its sixty-third session, which has just been completed, and this to the satisfaction of all Member States. Lastly, I pay well-deserved tribute to Secretary- General Mr. Ban Ki-moon for his commitment to the quest for peace and security worldwide, in general, and for his very commendable involvement in restoring 33 09-52598 lasting peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, my country, in particular. At this time when the sixty-fourth regular session of the General Assembly is beginning, it is worth dwelling on the situation currently prevailing in certain regions of the planet. In the Middle East, the situation continues to be tenuous and to be the focus of attention of the global public. The Democratic Republic of the Congo recognizes the right of the people of Israel to live in peace in a State with internationally recognized borders, just as it would like to reiterate that the settlement of this conflict specifically entails recognition of the fact that the Palestinian question is at the heart of the very problem in the Middle East. The situations in Afghanistan and in Iraq continue to be of concern. The Democratic Republic of the Congo urges the international community to eradicate the scourge of terrorism, so that those two countries can fully return to their place on the international scene. In Africa, and speaking just about our own geographic area in the central and southern portion of the continent, we would like to refer to the healthy progress made in the implementation of the agreements reached in 2006 between the Government of Burundi and the Forces Nationales de Libération; the smooth evolution of the inclusive political dialogue in the Central African Republic; the needed promotion of good-neighbourly relations between Chad and the Sudan; the admittedly slow but sure and determined promotion of democracy; and the consolidation of peace and stability in Southern Africa. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the South African facilitation, the Economic Community of Central African States, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the international community, as well as other bilateral and multilateral partners, for the efforts that they have continued to make to achieve the considerable progress that we hail today. With respect to the Republic of Madagascar, I would particularly like to express my full satisfaction with the mediation by the eminent SADC representative with respect to the political dialogue. Here, I would like to reiterate the SADC position, which rejects and condemns any unilateral decision that would violate the spirit of the Maputo agreements. No social or economic order remains safe, if it fails to bring beneficial effects to the greatest number of people. The crisis of the global financial system continues to undermine global economies worldwide, be they developed or developing. For my country, in particular, this crisis has led to a significant drop in export commodity prices, declining currency reserves, the growing cost of imports, with a depreciation of the national currency, declining growth rates and a decline in budget and tax revenues. The consequences of this turn of events are considerable. This crisis has led to a shortfall in resources to finance infrastructure. It has led to broad job loss, worsening of social conflict, and, particularly at a time when we are coming out of a complex conflict, a shrinking budget to finance the necessary restoration of State authority throughout the national territory in order to complete the establishment of peace. It is urgently necessary therefore to review the international financial system. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is aware that we will need colossal resources to ensure sustainable development in a world context that has seen surging food and energy prices and a global financial crisis. These phenomena are compounded by the effects of climate change. That is why I welcome the holding by the Secretary-General on 22 September 2009 of the high-level event on this issue. If we do not make decisions on the fate of present and future generations with respect to global warming and climate change and if we are not able to prevent rising sea levels, desertification or the extinction of species and the loss of biodiversity, inter alia, our world will inevitably move towards the risk of a disaster for which the African continent will be the first to bear the costs. The issue of adopting a post-Kyoto agreement that would require polluter countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and financially compensate those who have forests needs to be seriously considered. The Democratic Republic of the Congo accounts for more than half of the forests in the Congo basin, which is the second largest in the world after the Amazon region. This area has an enormous asset that it will defend at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, scheduled for December 2009 in Copenhagen. 09-52598 34 With respect to reform of the United Nations system, the Democratic Republic of the Congo agrees with the view that the current United Nations system is no longer, in its current design, in keeping with the expectations of those who promote it or even with the letter of Charter, which is its inspiration. That is why we would like to reiterate our plea for the full representation of Africa in the decision-making bodies, and more specifically in the Security Council. Regardless of the outcome of the current negotiations on this matter, my delegation continues to be of the view that any viable reform of the Security Council must take into account the political and numerical weight of Africa in the General Assembly, especially since two thirds of the situations before the Security Council involve Africa. With respect to the responsibility to protect, we believe that it is up to each State to protect its people from genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity or ethnic cleansing. We are also of the view that the principal role of the international community in these areas should be to determine how to build institutional capacities and provide substantial assistance to States, more specifically to the Administrations of countries in post-conflict situations, so that they can acquire the means to ensure that they have the resources to provide this protection. I have very succinctly addressed the major challenges that today’s world faces and for which we need to build a common response. I have talked about reform of the United Nations and about the responsibility to protect. I have not addressed the Democratic Republic of the Congo or the troubled region of the African Great Lakes. Three years after the success of the electoral operations in 2006, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is now, at long last, facing the trying process of normalizing democratic life. We understand that restoring the rule of law is an urgent priority. In that context, peace and stability can only persist if the citizens realize that politically sensitive issues can be resolved by legitimate and fair means. The rule of law cannot go hand in hand with corruption. It is no exaggeration to assert that the efforts initiated recently by the President of the Republic and the Government to fight corruption and to put an end to the rule of impunity have begun to bear fruit. However, we accept that much remains to be done in terms of capacity-building to ensure proper administration of justice. The Congolese experience of the 2006 democratic elections was built on a difficult legacy of the dark years of foreign occupation followed by an internal rift, the consequences of which are still seen today in the ongoing use of rape as a weapon of war. To address that situation, at the request of the Congolese authorities, the first investigation of the International Criminal Court began by considering the serious crimes that had been committed on the territory of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 1 July 2002. The rest is well known: the first three cases before the International Criminal Court are based on that submission and the national courts have also been called upon to work on those issues. The Congolese courts currently involved are certainly already playing an important role in restoring the rule of law, but a successful transition from war to peace, from a divided past to a shared future, cannot be envisaged for the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo without a mechanism that can bring a sense of justice to all citizens, establish or renew civic trust, restore the duty of memory and reconcile the people and the communities. The sexual violence perpetrated against women and girls in the eastern part of Democratic Republic of the Congo is, in our view, the most shameful and gravest crime witnessed by humankind in the twenty- first century. Statistically, 80 per cent of the crimes committed in the entire country took place mainly in the two provinces in the East of the country most affected by the effects of war, namely South and North Kivu. In fact, 60 per cent of the rapes were committed in North Kivu and 20 per cent in South Kivu. Justice must be done to the women and girls who have been raped. I can already attest to the strong resolve of His Excellency President Joseph Kabila Kabange to put an end to impunity for the perpetrators of those heinous crimes, whether civilian or military. Despite the apocalyptic picture, the situation that persists in the East of my country continues to improve. In conformity with the relevant provisions of the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, working with Rwanda and Uganda respectively, launched joint military operations last year and early 35 09-52598 this year with a view to disarming and, where necessary, forcing the rebels of the Lord’s Resistance Army, on the one hand, and those of the Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR), on the other, to return to their respective countries. As part of the same military operations, called Kimia II, the Forces armées de la République démocratique du Congo (FARDC) are carrying out an offensive against the elements of the FDLR that have remained in the mountains of South Kivu, in order to bring peace to that region. The results, I repeat, are positive. By way of illustration, the authority of the State has been restored; the FDLR command posts in North and South Kivu have been destroyed; more and more FDLR troops are surrendering to the FARDC and to the United Nations Observer Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC); several FDLR elements have returned to their country of origin; all the communication and supply lines in North and South Kivu are now open; the fight against the illegal exploitation of natural resources and the protection of Virunga National Park have been strengthened; and the incidents of rape and all other forms of sexual violence against women have seen an appreciable decline. Peace is gradually being established to the great benefit of the Congolese people. Moreover, fruitful talks aimed at benefiting our bilateral and multilateral relations with Burundi, Uganda and Rwanda are under way, and the future looks better. The return to normalcy in our subregion is enabling us to make efforts towards the urgent peacebuilding and economic recovery of the country. As the President of the Republic continues to underscore, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has resolutely undertaken to strengthen and promote the ideals of national reconciliation, peace, democracy and good governance within its borders, and is unquestionably committed to a policy of openness without exclusion based on dialogue and cooperation of all kinds with all countries that favour peace and dialogue. Our wish today is to see the international community step up its efforts and continue to support the process of bringing about peace and unity. On the elections, my country is preparing to hold city, municipal and local elections, which represents a great meeting of the people with its history. The steps to update the national register of the Independent Electoral Commission started in the first half of 2009. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is already involved in the reform of its institutions. It is important to conclude those various reforms, in particular in the area of the administration of justice. The Congolese justice system will be more effective and efficient if it has the international community’s support, especially in terms of capacity-building. Reform of the security system is also under way. The reform of the army and police services has had the consistent support of bilateral partners and of the United Nations through MONUC, its Mission in the Congo. My country is firmly committed to working to successfully conclude that reform aimed at ensuring not only its peace, unity, territorial integrity, national sovereignty and stability but also those of the entire subregion by preventing the reoccurrence of the security problems and tensions seen there. In addition, the Government is doing its utmost, through duly identified ways to increase prosperity, to implement programmes in order to meet the basic needs of the people, in particular on health, education, food self-sufficiency, basic infrastructure, electricity and drinking water for all, not to mention, of course, the fight against malaria and HIV/AIDS as well as poverty alleviation. Like other post-conflict countries, the Democratic Republic of the Congo underscores the urgent need to organize and hold an international conference on the financing of its reconstruction as soon as possible. For us, it is a question of building a new Congo, a nation opening up to the world at the centre of a continent full of change, a country where every foreigner, indiscriminately, can be free, assured of the protection of his investments, to work for his better future. All that foreigners do to contribute to our development will be duly acknowledged and appreciated. Emerging from a long war with many outside implications, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, my country, is fully aware of the importance of regional cooperation. The most fervent wish of the Congolese people is to restore relations of trust and cooperation with all its neighbours, without exception. The Government intends to pursue a policy of dialogue, openness, friendship, cooperation and good- neighbourliness, because the country has always strived to work to bring about a more united Africa that 09-52598 36 stands together, distinct in its greater understanding, tolerance, peace and solidarity. By way of conclusion, allow me to reiterate that so much war and fratricidal violence has taught us that the most expensive peace is still less onerous than the cheapest war. In this regard, I appeal for international solidarity during this stage of building our hard-won peace, for a peaceful and stable Democratic Republic of the Congo is an asset to our planet’s common destiny. I would be remiss if I did not conclude my statement without thanking once again all those whose commitment, courage and determination have helped and continue to help my country embrace the concepts of negotiation and peaceful settlement of crisis by casting aside war and the use of force.