STATEMENT

BY

H.E. DR. ALWI SHIHAB

MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS

OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA

AT THE

55TH SESSION OF THE

UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY

 

NEW YORK, 19 SEPTEMBER 2000

 

 

 

Mr. President,
Distinguished Delegates,

 

It gives me great pleasure to congratulate you on your assumption of the Presidency of the 55th session of the General Assembly. I am confident that under your most able guidance, we will achieve substantive progress in our deliberations. I should also like to pay tribute to your predecessor, H.E. Dr. Theo Ben-Gurirab the esteemed Foreign Minister of Namibia, for the skillful manner in which he guided our work during a busy year.

 

Let me avail of this opportunity to commend the Secretary-General, H.E. Mr. Kofi Annan, for his Report on the Work of the Organization. I would also take this occasion to welcome the new member, Tuvalu, in our midst.

 

Mr. President,

 

The 55th session of the General Assembly opened with the historic Millennium Summit and the adoption of a visionary declaration offering the cardinal principles that should govern relations among nations. It charted a course that if followed will ensure durable peace and security, as well as common progress and prosperity for all humanity. It, hopefully, began a new chapter in the history of the United Nations. Undeniably, expectations are raised that the Organization will overcome the pervasive and interrelated obstacles to peace and development, while strongly reaffirming and preserving the principles and purposes of the UN Charter. We know that these goals can be achieved, but that it is crucial that member states, civil society, international organizations and the private sector cooperate and work together for that purpose.

 

These efforts must be supported by the empowerment of the Organization, entailing more than charting a new structure and new mechanisms, or providing additional resources. It demands a willingness to provide genuine authority and legitimacy to the UN, by setting new norms and agenda as needed. It also urgently calls for reform of the Security Council. New prospects for that effort may have emerged in the Joint Statement of the Heads of State or Government of the permanent members, on 7 September. In that statement they pledged to foster a more transparent and broadly representative Council to enhance its effectiveness for peace and security.

 

One major issue confronting us is the lack of progress on the elimination of nuclear weapons. We are even more concerned to see a new rationalization for their continued use, coupled with repeated assertions of their legitimacy and necessity, and the danger of the deployment of anti-ballistic missile defense systems. This lack of progress increases the prospects of a new nuclear arms race, which will threaten the existing arms control agreements and the Non‑-Proliferation Treaty. Ridding the world of the dangers posed by nuclear weapons pending their total abolition is the greatest challenge of our time.

 

In contributing to peace and security, Indonesia has since 1957 actively participated and contributed to the various peacekeeping operations of the United Nations. And ,anticipating the new and emerging problems as identified by the Secretary-General and, in particular, the Report of the Brahimi Panel, we are in the process of responding to the new requirements with a view to bolstering the numbers, quality and effectiveness of our participation in future United Nations missions.

            Mr. President,

 

Armed conflict and tensions persist in many parts of the world. In the Middle East, we must continue to focus our attention at the core of the conflict, namely, the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people to secure their inalienable rights to self­determination and sovereign statehood in their own homeland with Jerusalem as its capital. In this context, my delegation would like to commend the Palestinian leaders on their statesmanlike approach. They have demonstrated their commitment to peace, through the decision to share the city of Jerusalem, while remaining committed to their national rights, in order to reach a compromise. Hence, it behooves on the part of Israel, to make a similar compromise so that a final settlement can be achieved.

 

The withdrawal of Israel last June from southern Lebanon following more than two decades of occupation has finally restored the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon with its internationally recognized boundaries. My delegation also hopes for a resumption of the Israeli-Syrian peace talks based on the Madrid peace formula.

 

In various regions of the world, we however, see many positive developments which reflect a new spirit of cooperation and compromise. These are exemplified, among others, by the Summit Meeting of the two leaders of North and South Korea, the formation of a new government in Somalia and the cease-fire agreement between Eritrea and Ethiopia.

 

It is my delegation's expectation that the same spirit of cooperation and compromise will prevail in easing the impact of sanctions on the people of Iraq. It is also an imperative on humanitarian grounds.

Mr. President,

 

In the afterglow of the Millennium Summit and the first ever South Summit, which took place this August in Havana, there was a distinct sense of optimism that the enormous power and promise of globalization and the information revolution could be harnessed in the service of development and the combat of poverty. In this regard, the declarations and programmes of action provide us with an excellent blueprint for charting the path ahead.

 

Today, particularly in the developing countries, millions remain untouched by the benefits of globalization and the information revolution and, being bypassed and marginalized, can greatly provoke instability. Thus, rather than generalized peace and prosperity, the world at the turn of the century continues to be disfigured by ruthless conflicts, wrenching poverty and blatant inequalities including hunger, illiteracy and disease. While declarations and programmes of action are of critical importance for changing this reality, it is their implementation that is the key. To that end, I am convinced that there can be no alternative to productive dialogue to achieve this aim and such dialogue must be based on mutual interests and benefits, shared responsibility and genuine partnership.

 

One of the core issues of development greatly impacted by globalization that requires such dialogue is that of financing for development; an issue that has assumed immense importance in the new global economy. While enormous financial flows have characterized the global financial system, the basic problem for the majority of the developing countries is, that they are not in a position to benefit from such flows and must instead depends on Official Development Assistance, which has sharply declined. Hence, the importance of the forthcoming International High-level Event on Financing for Development to be held in 2001.

 

 Another area greatly impacted by globalization and closely associated with financing for development is the issue of the indebtedness of the developing countries which often seriously undermines their development efforts particularly in this era of globalization. Regrettably, the numerous debt strategies and initiatives employed over the years have failed to resolved this problem.

 

Equally important in this age of information is the need to harness the potential of the information and communication technologies in the service of development. Progress has been made in placing this critical issue on the agenda of the United Nations when for the first time the High-level Segment of the ECOSOC this year considered Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for development as its major theme. The outcome, particularly the Ministerial Declaration, underlined the critical importance of unlocking the vast potential of ICT for all humanity.

 

More than ever before, due largely to globalization, we must strive for sustainable development as adopted in Agenda 21 in Rio in 1992. The outcome of this Conference committed the international community to meet the economic needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of the planet to provide for the needs of the future generations. But almost a decade later, with the exception of a number of conventions that have been enacted, relatively little else has been achieved in fully implementing Agenda 21, known as Rio + 10. It is therefore important that we seriously prepare for the ten year review of its implementation. In doing so, we should be able to generate the highest political commitment to help ensure the full implementation of the Agenda. In this regard, I am pleased to inform this Assembly that Indonesia's offer to host Rio + 10 has been strongly supported by the Ministerial Conference on Environment and Development of Asia and the Pacific.

 

            Mr. President,

 

Only a short time ago, the five-year reviews were held on the Social Development and Beijing conferences. From those two special sessions, we learned valuable lessons. We recognize that for many people social development remains an elusive goal and that only through gender equality and women's empowerment can true prosperity be achieved. Clearly the time has come to move beyond rhetoric and fully implement the commitments of the various international conferences of the 1990s.

 

Also, we must work towards eradicating ethnic and racial discrimination, religious intolerance, and xenophobia, which threatens to undermine all progress: political, economic and social. The forthcoming World Conference against Racism, in 2001 therefore presents an opportunity that must be seized.

 

We are committed to ensuring that humanitarian assistance is available wherever and whenever needed throughout the world. The plight of refugees and displaced persons must continue to hold a prominent position on the global agenda, with each nation meeting its responsibilities to render aid and assistance in times of natural disaster, civil conflict or other emergency situations. We must work also to ensure the integrity of humanitarian missions. The murder of UNHCR staff in Atambua, West Timor, has shocked and saddened the world, and nowhere more than Indonesia. That humanitarian workers should become victims in the performance of their work is unacceptable. Let me be clear in stating that this crime should not go unpunished. The necessary measures must be taken to ensure that such a heinous crime is never again repeated. This tragedy should not however result in a withdrawal of humanitarian assistance, thus compounding the loss. We should work together to resolve any and all obstacles to the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance.

 

International cooperation in the millennium would be unavoidable and indispensable. The quality, extent and timeliness of such cooperation will make the difference between despair and progress. In this setting, the significance of the UN should be evident and accepted. Preserving the role of the Organization requires the participation of all member states, large and small. Beyond declarations, it is time to translate our ideas into action. Achievement is required in the 21st century. This was the message of the Millennium Summit.


Thank you, Mr. President.