Dominica, 2002

The Commonwealth of

Dominica joins other delegations in congratulating you

on your election to chair the proceedings of the fifty-

seventh session of the United Nations General

Assembly. We are confident that you will preside over

this Assembly with the efficiency and dedication

required to take us through the agenda of the fifty-

seventh session.

We also take this opportunity to extend to your

predecessor our sincere appreciation for the excellent

manner in which he steered the work of the fifty-sixth

session of this General Assembly.

One year ago we convened in a city reeling from

a terrible tragedy which spurred the international

community to unite in the fight against international

terrorism. The world's response to the events of 11

September 2001 was one of total condemnation of

terrorism in all its forms and a firm undertaking to

uphold the principles of freedom and democracy

enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations.

The United Nations Security Council was swift

and decisive in its adoption of a resolution focused on

suppressing the financing of terrorism and denying

terrorists any safe haven in which to operate. Sadly,

terrorism remains today one of the greatest threats to

human security. The Commonwealth of Dominica

therefore once again reaffirms its commitment to the

fight against international terrorism and to ensuring

that the channels for funding of terrorist-related

activities and international crime are permanently

disabled.

My Government is making every effort towards

the successful implementation of United Nations

Security Council resolution 1373 (2001) in spite of

limited human and financial resources. Legislative

measures which have been put in place include an

Exchange of Information Act, which addresses some of

the concerns of the international community as

expressed in resolution 1373 (2001). This Act was

passed in the Dominica Parliament in January 2002,

while a bill for the suppression of financing of

terrorism will be tabled before Parliament shortly.

My delegation wishes to take this opportunity to

express its appreciation for the initiatives taken by the

Counter-Terrorism Committee, the Commonwealth, the

European Union and other countries and organizations

to assist developing countries in their implementation

of resolution 1373 (2001).

The historic entry into force of the Rome Statute

of the International Criminal Court (ICC) takes us one

step further in the fight against impunity of war crimes

and crimes against humanity. The Commonwealth of

Dominica's accession to the Statute of the ICC in

January 2001 is indicative of our support for the

establishment of a permanent international court that

will bring the perpetrators of the most serious

international crimes to justice. In this regard, the ICC

must seek to prevent or penalize terrorist-related

crimes which may be localized in action, but may have

severe global consequences.

The international situation, notably developments

in the world economy, has not been favourable to the

growth prospects of small States such as the

Commonwealth of Dominica, which remains a small,

open and largely agriculture-based economy, extremely

vulnerable to external economic shocks. While the

events of 11 September 2001 are behind us, the

irreparable damage to the economies of small

Caribbean countries is still evident. Hardest hit was the

tourism sector, one of the areas with the greatest

potential to contribute to Dominica's social and

economic development.

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The growth of our offshore financial sector,

another potential contributor to our economic

diversification, has been adversely affected by our

country's inclusion in the list of non-cooperative

countries and territories put out by the Organization for

Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)'s

Financial Action Task Force. All attempts thus far to

have our country removed from that list have proved

futile, in spite of the implementation of the measures

necessary to ensure best industry practices in the

financial services sector.

The Commonwealth of Dominica nevertheless

commits itself to the global combat against money-

laundering and stands ready to cooperate with the

international community in its anti-money-laundering

initiative. A number of new laws have been enacted by

Parliament to legislate its anti-money-laundering

policies. The Commonwealth of Dominica has also

established a Financial Intelligence Unit and a Money-

Laundering Supervisory Authority to ensure that our

financial-services sector remains free from money-

laundering.

As I address you, my country is facing one of the

most challenging periods in its history. The slowdown

in the global economy, the impact of the events of 11

September 2001 on an already deteriorating fiscal

situation, the continued difficulties of integrating into

the multilateral trading system in a globalized world

and the rapid decline in overseas development

assistance have undoubtedly affected our economic

performance in an appallingly negative way.

We have been left with no other option but to

pursue a stabilization and adjustment programme,

which, although approved by the International

Monetary Fund, has not succeeded in keeping

detractors, including the public service union, off the

streets.

The success of this programme should lay the

basis for sustained higher growth output and

employment, as well as poverty reduction. We

recognize, however, the attendant costs of

implementing this programme. The Dominican people

have been asked to make temporary, but heavy

sacrifices in order to place our country on the road to

recovery.

We wish to recognize, in this forum, the support

given in these difficult times to the Commonwealth of

Dominica at the Caribbean regional level, and look

forward to the timely support of the international

community.

Last year, as the world turned its attention to the

events of 11 September, the Secretary-General

reminded us that none of the issues that faced us on 10

September had become less urgent. Indeed, the United

Nations calendar for the past year has been crowded

with special conferences and summits, all convened to

address problems and issues of global concern that

affect the everyday lives of the peoples of the United

Nations. While it is true that those issues are current

and of interest to the smaller members of this body it is

unfortunate that many of us do not have the capacity or

wherewithal to ensure that they receive effective

representation, not only at the conferences but, more

significantly, in the preparatory committees that

precede the conferences. It is no accident, therefore,

that most often the States that least benefit are the

smallest and least influential.

The Second World Assembly on Ageing and the

special session on children attempted to deal with

issues which affect the most vulnerable members of our

societies. The World Assembly concluded in April with

a Plan of Action for implementation by the

international community. In small countries like the

Commonwealth of Dominica, this implementation

must, of necessity, include the recognition of older

persons as the pillars of our societies — people who

make a significant contribution to our economic

development.

My Government has developed a national policy

on ageing which seeks to ensure that older persons are

provided with protective care and given an opportunity

to continue to participate in the development of our

nation. A few weeks ago, we were privileged to host

the tenth annual regional meeting of HelpAge

International — a happy coincidence, given that among

our population of 75,000, we have 22 centenarians. I

want to make specific mention of the world's oldest

living person — a Dominican woman, Mrs. Elizabeth

Israel, affectionately known as Ma Pampo — who is

allegedly 127.

Civil society organizations like HelpAge must be

recognized for their vigorous attempts to deal with

issues affecting older persons. As a family of nations,

we established set goals, strategies and actions in

pursuit of a better life for children at the special

session of the General Assembly on children. As a

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signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child,

the Commonwealth of Dominica remains committed to

ensuring that children's rights are protected and

respected. Children are one of our most valuable

resources.

The Monterrey Conference on Financing for

Development was convened in March this year, and

was hailed as a “turning point in the approach to

development cooperation” by the international

community. It was widely acknowledged at Monterrey

that, in order for development assistance to be

effective, both the donors and the recipients had to

share the same goals of sustainable development and

the alleviation and eventual eradication of poverty.

We applaud the commitment expressed by the

major donor Governments to the Monterrey Consensus.

What we desire, however, is an equitable distribution

of the increased official development assistance funds

pledged by the heads of State or Government of the

European Union in March 2002. The same can be said

of the “new compact for global development” proposed

by President George W. Bush on 14 March 2002, by

which the United States pledged to increase its core

assistance to developing countries by 50 per cent over

the next three years.

We are still confident that global conferences can

work, because it has been proved that they serve as

forums where new proposals can be debated and

consensus sought on topical issues. At the recently

concluded Johannesburg Summit, world Governments

agreed to halve by 2015 the number of people lacking

clean water and basic sanitation.

My Government was particularly pleased that at

the conclusion of the Johannesburg Summit the richer

countries stated their willingness to reach an

agreement, by January 2005, within the World Trade

Organization, for “substantial improvements in market

access” for food exports from developing countries.

The Johannesburg Summit underlined the

necessary linkage between environmental protection

and natural resources management and the issues of

poverty, underdevelopment and social justice. The

Summit demonstrated the interdependence of social,

environmental and economic factors, which must work

in unison if long-term sustainable development is to be

achieved. Empirical evidence exists to show that poor

and weak national economies impact negatively on the

environment, while environmental degradation and the

over-utilization of natural resources result in declining

economies and impoverished communities.

The Government of Dominica remains fully

committed to Agenda 21 and the Barbados Programme

of Action for Small Island Developing States. We

reiterate our unwavering support for the Johannesburg

Plan of Action and urge all Member States to make

good on their commitments for the successful

implementation of all sustainable development

conventions.

The increase in levels of official development

assistance, to which I alluded earlier, is essential when

viewed in the context of the implementation of

development strategies by small island developing

States. It is recognized that the small, open economies

of these small States require effective means, including

financial resources, to counteract the negative effects

of globalization and trade liberalization and to foster

sustainable development.

The Commonwealth of Dominica is acutely aware

of the magnitude of the challenges facing our pursuit of

sustainable development. Ours is a country with a

history of consistently seeking a national development

path guided by sustainable development. An integrated

development plan, undertaken with the participation of

a diversity of stakeholders and sectors, will shortly be

completed and will provide us with a framework within

which we can address physical, economic and social

vulnerabilities in an integrated manner.

At this time, my Government wishes to place on

record its appreciation of the continued commitment of

the Republic of China on Taiwan to the social,

economic and infrastructural development of small,

vulnerable economies very much like its own. As the

fourteenth largest economy in the world, the Republic

of China on Taiwan has demonstrated the benefits of

having a global perspective on development. We

welcomed the decision of the World Trade

Organization, in November 2001, to admit the Republic

of China on Taiwan as a full member of that

organization. We look forward to a similar occasion

when the Republic of China on Taiwan will take its

place in these halls as a full member of the United

Nations family.

The Commonwealth of Dominica joins other

delegations in congratulating the African nations for

two important developments. First, the transformation

of the Organization of African Unity into the African

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Union, which we are confident will be a strong

institution committed to the promotion of peace and

stability, democracy and human rights, cooperation,

development, prosperity and human dignity. Second,

we have the programme for socio-economic

revitalization of the African continent, the New

Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). The

United Nations has a central role to play in ensuring

the success of this bold initiative of the African States

to eradicate poverty and underdevelopment. These two

development provide great examples that our

Caribbean region can emulate.

In conclusion, I wish to reiterate the resolve of

the Millennium Declaration that

“the central challenge we face today is to ensure

that globalization becomes a positive force for all

the world's people.” (A/54/2000, para. 5)

We must ensure, through the global and regional

programmes, that globalization truly contributes to

sustainable development and prosperity for all. We

wish the 57th General Assembly every success in

advancing the goals of peace, democracy, prosperity

and sustainable development.