Jamaica, 2000

Sir, I offer you

Jamaica's warmest congratulations as you assume the

high honour of the presidency of the Millennium

Assembly of the United Nations.

At the same time, I wish to express our

appreciation to the outgoing President, Mr. Theo-Ben

Gurirab, Foreign Minister of Namibia, who, by his

astute and judicious leadership, brought to a successful

conclusion the work of the fifty-fourth session.

I also take this opportunity to welcome Tuvalu, a

fellow small island State, to the United Nations family.

We meet in the wake of the historic gathering of

world leaders last week, when the international

community sought to redefine and articulate a common

vision for the future of all its citizens. We now have the

opportunity — indeed, the responsibility — to evaluate

just how far we have come in the mission we set for

ourselves through this Organization; to address

honestly our shortcomings in commitment and action;

and to examine practical, realistic strategies that will

result in measurable progress in areas identified for

urgent action.

The Secretary-General, whom we commend for

his stewardship during the past year, has urged us to

consider a world in the future free from poverty.

Indeed, promoting development that ensures the well-

being of all peoples is one of the fundamental goals of

this Organization. However, a review of our efforts to

achieve this ideal shows uneven progress through an

increasingly diffused institutional structure.

Over the past decade, we have sought to refocus

and articulate the development agenda by addressing

key issues in a series of special global conferences.

Through the respective political commitments and

plans of action which we agreed to implement, we have

sought to devise a network of policies and programmes

to promote people-centred, sustainable development.

Yet economic strategies embracing these goals

have brought little tangible benefit to the majority of

citizens of the international community. Nearly half of

the world's people languish in extreme poverty, and

still more remain on the fringes of the global economy.

Development efforts have been frustrated by the

challenges posed by globalization and trade

liberalization. Sustainable development ultimately

involves an enhanced capacity for income and

employment generation, as well as the provision of

equitable health, education and other social benefits.

But this cannot be achieved without economic growth

and expansion. It is this opportunity that globalization,

which indeed carries the potential, has so far failed to

deliver to the majority of developing countries.

For small island States like Jamaica, there is

another dimension to the development challenge. This

is because of the well-known economic limitations of

size, market and resource base, a fragile ecosystem and

susceptibility to natural disasters. Decades of

investment in infrastructure and industry can be wiped

out during a single hurricane, destroying the economy

and diverting resources to reconstruction and

rehabilitation for a number of years.

Small economies attempting to compete

effectively in the international trading system are just

as vulnerable. There is a need for an urgent review of

the inequities in the global trading system whereby

selective application of the regulations permits

developed countries to maintain protectionist policies

and subsidies that work against developing country

exports, while stripping the more vulnerable of

preferential market access. We are deeply concerned

that a mechanism established to promote free trade for

growth and development could be so manipulated that

it exposes the smallest and weakest to a hostile trading

environment while removing their means of survival.

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Special and differential treatment provisions have not

been implemented, and the request for duty-free, quota-

free treatment for the least developed countries has not

been agreed to.

We are particularly disappointed that, in ongoing

negotiations to reach agreement on a marketing regime

for bananas that is compatible with the World Trade

Organization (WTO), we have found little flexibility,

no empathy and an unwillingness to compromise on the

part of those challenging the regime. Meanwhile,

implementation of the WTO panel ruling has resulted

in a dramatic loss of export markets in some Caribbean

Community (CARICOM) States, spiralling

unemployment, increasing poverty and many other

social ills. For there can be no development without

growth, and no growth without trade.

Deteriorating terms of trade adversely affect the

balance of payments, exacerbating external debt. Many

developing countries continue to experience severe

debt burdens, and, in some cases, the debt problem has

worsened over the past decade, trapping those

countries in a vicious circle of poverty and

underdevelopment. We must address the debilitating

effect of debt servicing, which undermines growth

prospects and compromises governments' capacity to

finance basic social programmes. The international

community should implement the debt-relief schemes

already agreed to and design new mechanisms

appropriate to different countries' circumstances.

The globalization of trade, finance and swiftly

advancing information technology will present

unprecedented opportunities well into the twenty-first

century. For developing countries, however, the

challenges of the trading system, limited access to

international financial flows, a crippling debt burden

and a low capacity to assimilate information

technology will prevent meaningful participation in the

international marketplace. Hence, the widening gap

between rich and poor nations in the face of unlimited

opportunity is the disturbing irony that we now

contemplate.

If we are now to lay the foundation for a world

free from poverty, then a new ethos in global

governance must prevail: one that gives more than lip

service to the development aspirations of developing

countries; one that addresses responsibly the need for

economic adjustment, reform and closer monitoring of

the international financial infrastructure; and one that

promotes greater coordination and cooperation between

the major institutions and intergovernmental

organizations responsible for international trade,

finance and development.

That such cooperation is already being explored

is indeed encouraging. But we will need serious

commitment. Until now, there have been no parallel

discussions on reforming the international financial

architecture and the international trading system. The

work of the Preparatory Committee for the High-level

International Intergovernmental Event on Financing for

Development, including consultations with the Bretton

Woods institutions, has progressed uneasily, leaving

uncertainty regarding the outcome and likely success of

that landmark meeting. We will wait to see whether

meaningful World Trade Organization (WTO)

participation will take place, as we consider it

important to successful deliberations.

Of course, we applaud the evolving relationship

between the Bretton Woods institutions and the

Economic and Social Council. Each brings to the

partnership its unique characteristics and strengths,

which should make for successful collaboration.

Perhaps similar relationships might also be established

with the World Trade Organization. That cooperation,

long overdue, reinforces the integral role that we

believe the United Nations should play in key

international decision-making on all issues which

affect sustainable human development. We look

forward to the extension of this cooperation beyond the

co-financing of development projects, towards the

harmonization of mechanisms and policies.

The importance of South-South cooperation as an

effective instrument for the promotion of development

among developing countries cannot be

overemphasized. The historic meeting of the leaders of

the South, held at Havana this year, strengthened our

commitment to forge a common strategy for our future,

sharing resources, expertise and best practices in

partnership with one another. We strongly urge the

continued strengthening of mechanisms that advance

South-South relations and promote self-reliance.

Increasingly, we must look to each other for our

survival in the existing global environment.

We continue to look to the organs and agencies of

the United Nations system to play a central role in

supporting and advancing the development efforts of

Member States. We are deeply concerned at the decline

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in contributions to core resources for operational

activities, and at the effect this has had in the

narrowing and re-ordering of priorities in programme

delivery. It is impossible to reconcile the contraction in

core contributions with the donor community's

expressed commitment to multilateral development

assistance. The capacity of United Nations funds and

programmes to maintain current levels of programme

delivery is a matter deserving the urgent attention of

Member States. We take this opportunity to place on

record our appreciation for the valuable work of United

Nations operational agencies in Jamaica.

Next year's special session of the General

Assembly on children will give the international

community an opportunity to renew its commitment

and to consider further action to improve the quality of

life for the world's children in the next decade.

The role of the United Nations as defender of

international peace and security has undergone major

transformation in the past decade. As inter-State

tensions dissolved with the end of the cold war, civil

conflicts developed in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe

to take their place. The Security Council is now

searching to adjust and redefine an effective strategy to

deal with the new imperatives of peacekeeping and

peace-building. This has meant seeking a delicate

balance between respect for sovereignty and the urgent

need for humanitarian intervention.

In too many cases the resolution of conflict has

remained elusive owing to political ambitions or to

racial or ethnic intolerance. Furthermore, the brutality

and violence of conflict have often taken their toll on

innocent civilians and children, creating still more new

challenges with an increasing number of refugees and

internally displaced persons. Humanitarian intervention

in such cases is imperative.

The effectiveness of peacekeeping missions is

under scrutiny in the face of sharply escalating

peacekeeping budgets. Rather than waiting until

conflicts spiral out of control, we need to place more

emphasis on conflict prevention. Jamaica therefore

strongly supports the formulation of a comprehensive

United Nations strategy to address the root causes of

conflict.

It is time that we acknowledged that economic

deprivation and social injustice lead to political and

economic instability. Therefore, effective conflict

prevention, peacekeeping and peace building must

incorporate a development component, and provide for

the strengthening of civil institutions, particularly in

post-conflict reconstruction.

And we must not forget the importance of

adequately equipping the United Nations machinery to

ensure robust intervention at every stage of the

peacekeeping process, particularly for rapid

deployment when necessary. This should also include

resources adequate to ensure the safety of our troops

deployed in missions across the world. It is the very

least that we owe them. Jamaica pays tribute today to

those who have paid the ultimate price in the service of

peace.

The deadly flow of illegal small arms around the

world continues unabated, sustained by greed and

lawlessness. This illicit arms trade contributes

significantly to the escalation and perpetuation of

violence in conflict and post-conflict areas,

undermining peacekeeping operations and frustrating

efforts at disarmament, demobilization and the

restoration of civil order. But this phenomenon is not

unique to countries in a state of war. The illegal traffic

in weapons is also linked to the illicit trade in

narcotics, and this undermines stable democracies like

Jamaica, destroying the social fabric of our

communities.

This situation simply cannot stand. Urgent action

is needed. Global interdependence warrants collective

action to stem the flow of these guns from producer to

receiving States. The responsibility to curb this illicit

traffic cannot rest with the receiving States alone.

Jamaica looks with anticipation to the convening

of the first International Conference on the Illicit Trade

in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects

next year. It is our hope that this meeting will address

comprehensively and decisively national, regional and

international measures to regulate and control the legal

manufacture, acquisition and transfer of small arms;

measures related to the marking, registration and

tracing of these weapons; and mechanisms for the

systematic exchange of information.

The transhipment of nuclear and other hazardous

waste through the Caribbean Sea poses yet another

kind of danger to the security of small island States of

the subregion. The Caribbean Community has

repeatedly expressed concern at the threat to the fragile

marine and coastal environment of the Caribbean posed

by this continued practice. A single nuclear accident in

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this semi-enclosed sea would have consequences we

dare not even contemplate.

This concern was again brought to the attention

of the international community during the 2000 Review

Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on Nuclear

Non-Proliferation, held earlier this year. We look

forward to cooperating with like-minded States, and we

propose to work towards ensuring that a regime is

established for liability and compensation to our

countries in the event of an accident.

On Friday, 8 September, Jamaica signed the

Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. We

now look forward to the contribution that the Court

will ultimately make to the strengthening of

international jurisprudence, by addressing the serious

crimes of global concern committed by individuals

who hitherto escaped the reach of the law.

We are also very pleased to report that the

International Seabed Authority has completed its

drafting of the Mining Code. This marks an important

first step in the process toward the full establishment of

operations of the Authority that will ultimately enable

all nations to share in exploitation of the resources of

the seabed. Jamaica encourages wider participation in

the work of the International Seabed Authority and

urges Member States to act to ensure its continued

financial viability.

While the United Nations is by no means perfect,

we still meet here because we hold an enduring faith in

the principles and ideals that it represents. We are

convinced that it remains the best forum for dialogue

and resolution of disputes. Let us now face the future

together responsibly, with full respect for the needs,

aspirations and rights of our fellow man. This may well

be difficult to achieve, but shared objectives, shared

commitment and shared responsibilities will ensure a

better world for all humankind.

As we contemplate the challenges for the future,

let us resolve to begin a new dialogue within the

United Nations system to forge a global partnership for

peace, democracy and economic progress.