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Speech by President Gusmão on the International Day of UN Peacekeepers


29th May, 2003

It is a pleasure to celebrate here today at the Palácio Das Cinzas, this historical first Day of International Peacekeepers. We join the rest of the world to pay tribute to all UN Peacekeepers for their service in the protection and promotion of peace.

Timor-Leste had the privilege of being assisted by peacekeeping missions. As you all know, the role of UN peacekeepers in Timor-Leste took on a different form. The UN Mission was empowered with full responsibility for the administration and for setting up the skeleton institutions of a new State, an unprecedented task in UN history.

UNTAET was a new experience and an added responsibility to all those involved. Every single man and woman was aware of the enormous task ahead of them, because they knew that none of them had similar experiences. They knew they would be learning every step of the way. And they also knew they would be making mistakes, which would impact on our people and processes. In this extremely hard process of building a nation from scratch, while also trying to meet the urgent humanitarian needs of our people, we shared the immense joy of witnessing the coming into existence of some of the State institutions.

The peacekeepers in Timor-Leste knew something which for us, was the most important lesson in the whole of the mission: That we would work together, that we the Timorese would be part and parcel of the process, we would share the responsibility of the mistakes and we would learn together. The cooperation between Timor-Leste and UNMISET is developing in this spirit. Today, UN peacekeepers continue to work with us side by side in the government departments to help strengthen our institutions.

Last September, Timor-Leste became the 191st member of the United Nations and took its place at the General Assembly. With this membership come heavy responsibilities, including our right to vote on important issues affecting our world today. Even though we are a tiny nation, and as yet still the youngest member of the United Nations family, we are already in our small and humble way, making a contribution to peacekeeping missions elsewhere, such as in Congo. One day, we hope to contribute more fully to ensure that peace is secured not only in our region, but throughout the world.

However, today is not only to commend all peacekeepers around the globe, but it is also to remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the cause of peace. The people of Timor-Leste will never forget the grief and the pain felt by the loss of life of the brave peacekeepers on our soil, including some of our own people.
On this occasion, I humbly bow in tribute to their memory and courage.

It is sad to note that in today’s world, we continue to face threats to our peace and security; we continue to face violence and terrorism. In this context, the Peacekeeping Missions not only make sense but are concrete contributions from the community of nations, to ensure our common future is one of peace.

I am certain that one day, the nature and essence of these missions will shift to become treasured contributions to development and the dignity of every human being.

For all the peacekeepers who have and continue to serve in Timor-Leste, I thank you for your unwavering dedication and brave service in the cause of peace. I wish to take this opportunity to also thank all the countries who sent their citizens, many far from their homes, to secure peace in our land and help us to re-build our nation. Your contributions have ensured that Timor-Leste’s future looks brighter and that we can move forward and meet our enormous challenges with confidence.

Now allow me and other representatives of the people of Timor-Leste, to offer you small gifts as an expression of our gratitude and solidarity.

Thank you all very much.