Saint Lucia, 1997

My delegation welcomes

the experience and expertise which Mr. Hennadiy

Udovenko brings to the leadership of this session of the

General Assembly, and would like to applaud his

predecessor, Ambassador Razali Ismail of Malaysia, for his

outstanding contribution during the fifty-first session.

We feel a quiet sense of elation that the Secretary-

General has emerged as the personification of the new

possibilities of the United Nations. His recent succession to

the distinguished position of Secretary-General of this body

is symbolic of the new vision and the new order which

heralds our entry into the twenty-first century.

Our historical moment is a defining one. Change has

brought us to the stage at which we can either transform or

be transformed. All of us — large as well as small nations,

individuals as well as Governments — are challenged to

make a decisive break with the old ways of doing and

seeing things. The people of our planet continue to yearn

for justice, equality and fairness. The human spirit

continues to thirst for all that is good and beautiful. The

soul of humankind is still seeking to reinvent itself in ways

that are noble, kind, compassionate and caring. That is the

new wave that is beginning to swell on the cusp of the new

millennium, and we can discern its gathering momentum in

the emotive milestones of the past few months. The

expression of universal public grief infused with private

intensity over the deaths of Mother Teresa and Diana,

Princess of Wales and the donation of $1 billion by Ted

Turner to United Nations charitable causes — these are the

affirmations of the emergent humanist temperament of the

new age.

In these times, this body must welcome the inspiration

of those who, by their example, generosity, selflessness and

courage, seek to protect the defenceless in a bid to reshape

the horizons of our common humanity. It is a global wave

sweeping local shores as well as distant ones. In my own

tropical corner of our global village, Saint Lucia, on 23

May 1997 the people elected a new Government with a

decisive mandate predicated on a vision of hope, change

and possibility.

The wave of people’s aspirations at the national level

is faced with its own counter-turbulence in the conduct of

relations among States. Arrayed against this popular

impulse for humanism in affairs of state is the assertion of

all that has been selfish, greedy and exploitative. The

powerful continue to parade their might without any regard

for others. They exercise their influence without any

compassion, and accumulate their wealth without any

charity.

The icons of free trade, market liberalization and

economic liberalism represent the hardening of the

arteries of human conscience in the sphere of commerce.

The movement away from concerns of social and

economic justice to the preoccupation with market forces

and economic rationality is leading inexorably to a new

world order at odds with the impulse of the world’s

billions for a more caring and compassionate world.

At the level of the international system, we are

witnessing a rolling back of the structures of social

responsibility, the progressive erosion of the capacity to

respond and the annihilation of the will to act humanely.

We see the inability to care for the welfare of the people,

the apathy towards their growing material deprivation and,

most frighteningly, the calculated institutional insensitivity

to the plight of the disadvantaged who wish to continue

to earn with dignity and by the sweat of their brows.

There is no better example of this callous disregard

than the situation facing the African, Caribbean and

Pacific (ACP) countries, and in particular the banana

producers of the Caribbean. Only last month, the small

banana-producing countries of the Caribbean Community

received a particularly harsh and crushing blow, when the

appeals board of the World Trade Organization (WTO)

upheld an earlier finding that the preferential treatment

accorded in the European market to bananas of the

Member States of the ACP contravened World Trade

Organization rules on free trade.

The intent behind the current move towards

globalization as manifested in the World Trade

Organization is evidently most commendable. Indeed,

Saint Lucia was among the founding members of the

WTO. We were led to believe that the World Trade

Organization would help raise the living standards of our

peoples and, by emulating the ideals of the United

Nations, would promote fairness in world trade. It was

our hope that it would end, once and for all, the law of

the jungle as the dominant feature of international

commercial relations. In short, it was hoped that the WTO

would establish a standard of arbitration premised on

fairness, civilized negotiation of vital interests and the

inculcation of equity in international trade and commerce.

The WTO ruling on the European banana regime is

nothing short of a capitulation to the machinations of

those who are blinkered by free trade and sheer greed.

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We speak in these strong terms because the world

community must understand that the WTO, and the

complainants to the European banana regime, completely

and steadfastly ignored the fact that the import of its ruling

is the economic and social destruction of a number of small

Member States of this body that together enjoy a miniscule

2.5 per cent of the world trade in bananas and only 5 per

cent of the European market.

Consider for a moment the flaws in the process

through which the WTO’s dispute settlement body sought

to resolve this issue. The initial panel did not have a single

representative from a developing country, although the

matter was of utmost importance to developing countries.

To render fair play even more remote, the appellate board

was chaired by an American, despite the fact that the

principal complainant was the United States of America.

While that may have been permissible under the rules,

surely good sense and fairness should have dictated that it

was nothing but highly improper and undesirable. But then,

even the nature of the major complainant was improper: the

United States of America does not produce a single banana

for export. Yet, while it activated and participated in the

proceedings, we, the banana-producing countries, were

denied the right to full participation and were relegated to

the sidelines as spectators.

The WTO has dismally failed to match up to the

commendable goals which inspired its creation. The

implementation of the ruling will bring about a generalized

reduction in the living standards of our peoples and an

acceleration of poverty.

Far from providing reassurance of a civilized approach

to resolving world trade disputes, the ruling leaves a

lingering suspicion that “might” will always be “right” and

that the strong and powerful will always be able to use the

system to achieve their own ends, regardless of the human

dislocation and suffering that result.

If the World Trade Organization is to be of any value

to us small, developing countries, there must be a

fundamental reform of its system of dispute settlement. This

is essential, because the implications of the scope of the

ruling on bananas are not confined to bananas. The ruling

raises questions about other import arrangements for

agricultural goods as well as the future of trade and

development cooperation agreements between rich and poor

countries. The real challenge to the WTO is not how

effective its Dispute Settlement Body can be in rigidly

applying the letter of its regulations, but, rather, whether the

process by which decisions are arrived at is perceived as

being fair. The system must be reformed so that it takes

account of the consequences of the implementation of its

rulings. It must of necessity consider the impact of its

decisions, particularly when, as in the case of the ruling

on the banana regime, the affected countries have small,

vulnerable and fragile economies.

Trade and development must, in the final analysis,

be about the development of people. Therefore, the WTO

criteria for settling disputes must be redesigned to take

into account social, health, cultural and environmental

issues. If national security issues can be raised as a reason

why the law of one powerful country should not be

brought before WTO jurisdiction, then why should the

WTO not take into account the special social and

economic circumstances of small, vulnerable countries in

its dispute deliberations? What is the point of the WTO’s

Dispute Settlement Body rigidly applying rules, when in

so doing it takes decisions which are in direct contrast to

the very principles which justify its existence? In such a

situation the principles become worthless and the

organization becomes amenable to manipulation.

We do not seek international charity for our banana

farmers. We seek only fairness and opportunity. We are

not irrevocably opposed to free trade, but we need fair

trade. We are a proud people seeking to earn our living

in as honest a manner as the wealth of nations permits.

The nations of the European Union entered into a

partnership for development with us when, together, we

signed the Lomé Convention. We call upon them not to

cast aside their solemn commitments and obligations

under that Convention, as they respond to those who want

this most unfair ruling by the World Trade Organization

implemented immediately and in its entirety. We are

heartened by the statements made so far by the European

Commission expressing the European Union’s deep

concern about the negative political, economic and social

effects of the WTO ruling on a number of countries from

the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of

States. We take comfort from the Commission’s

expression of its intention to take these factors into

account, and to stand by the European Union’s

international obligations and the principles of its

development policy. We also welcome the statements of

support for Caribbean banana producers from the

European Parliament and its call for the revision of the

criteria used by the WTO in the resolution of trade

disputes. We look forward to working with the European

Union to find a formula which will allow us continued

access to the banana market in a manner which will

23

permit our farmers to continue earning a decent and

dignified living. We urge the European Union to be

steadfast in protecting the spirit and substance of its

obligations under the Lomé Convention, to remain

committed to ensuring development and equity in

international economic relations, and to remain faithful to

its ACP friends.

Such are the challenges confronting those who are

small and weak, yet proud. It is within such a context of an

uncertain international system that my country has to shape

its foreign policy. The changing characteristics of the

international system have necessitated that we redefine the

boundaries of our alliances. We must look beyond the sea

of uncertainty to the mountains of possibility. The

contemporary confluence of forces challenges us to create

new relationships to assist in our social and economic

development. Having been forced out of our traditional

partnerships, we must find new friends and reconstruct

relationships. In this process, we must be guided by the

imperative of finding and mobilizing new sources of

investment that are predicated on creating new paths to

sustainable growth.

For us, foreign policy is about building bridges to

other people, other cultures and other markets. It is about

contributing to the emergence of a new climate of tolerance

and international understanding; it is about matching

domestic need with international possibility. Consistent with

these basic principles, Saint Lucia has proceeded in a

direction in which the majority of the States of the world

have already gone by establishing diplomatic links with the

People’s Republic of China.

Saint Lucia will always cherish the principles of

respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and the rule of

international law. All countries, regardless of size, must

have the comfort of these irrevocable principles and be

secure in the confidence that the conduct of nations will be

guided by them.

It is in the context of these basic principles that we

urge the United States of America to re-examine some of

its recent policies towards the States of the Caribbean. Its

lead role in the challenge to our banana marketing regime

has damaged our peoples’ confidence in its declarations of

friendship. Its new immigration laws are causing

apprehension and dislocation for thousands of persons who

originated from the Caribbean, and is eroding the bridges

between our peoples. The imminent deportation of persons

who have lived for decades in the United States will create

a humanitarian problem of mass proportions. This is no

longer a domestic matter. The consequences for the

human rights of those affected have transformed it into a

subject for international concern.

In addition, the deportation of persons who have

become hardened criminals to lands they do not know as

home is further rocking the social and economic fabric of

our democracies. If there is a law of unintended

consequences, the United States of America must accept

the negative repercussions of its policies. It must therefore

embark on corrective action to undo the damage which

these policies have unleashed on the peoples of the

Caribbean community.

It is our concern for fairness, equity and

democratization in the conduct of international relations

that has caused Saint Lucia to embrace and support the

process of reform of the United Nations itself. Saint Lucia

firmly believes that if the United Nations is to adequately

address the challenges of the coming century, then three

things must happen.

First, Member States must honour their financial

obligations to the body. Saint Lucia continues to believe

that the United Nations financial crisis can be alleviated

if all Member States, large and small, rich and poor, do

so in a timely manner, without conditions. A United

Nations that is financially weak, that lurches from one

budget crisis to another, is in no condition to confront and

overcome the challenges facing mankind. If there is to be

financial reform, then the precarious financial existence of

the United Nations must be consigned to the dustbin of

history.

Secondly, the United Nations itself must take steps

to become more efficient and effective. We need a United

Nations where waste is abhorred, where the churning out

of documents for documents’ sake, at a cost of millions

of dollars, is no longer a priority. We need a United

Nations that is leaner, but more capable of making the

maximum use of its resources.

Thirdly, the United Nations must become more

responsive to the needs of all its Member States. For the

majority of the United Nations Member States, the need

is for sustainable development, for the eradication of

poverty and of illiteracy. We need a United Nations that

will show an even greater sensitivity to those needs.

The United Nations must also answer the call for

wider representation of the world peoples on the Security

Council. Saint Lucia wishes to reiterate its support for an

24

increase in the membership of the Security Council to

reflect the universal membership of the General Assembly

and to ensure the balanced representation of the developing

world.

Saint Lucia applauds the initiatives of the Secretary-

General in his proposals to reform the United Nations to

inspire greater confidence in its potential. Saint Lucia is

particularly interested in the proposed “dividend for

development”, and welcomes the idea that a large portion

of United Nations resources should be allocated to

development, particularly to meet the needs of developing

countries. It is our hope, however, that this proposed

“dividend for development” will not become like the peace

dividend — a noble idea that is yet to materialize.

It is a moral responsibility of those who are strong to

protect the weak and vulnerable. The international

community, through the United Nations, must accept its

responsibility to establish and maintain mechanisms that

will protect the small, vulnerable economies of this world

as they seek to build sustainable economies for the twenty-

first century.

Saint Lucia has begun to do its part through the

diversification of its economic base, through action to

reduce unemployment, poverty, population growth and to

improve the educational standards of our peoples. We, too,

want to be better placed to exploit the new employment

opportunities provided by the revolution in information and

communications technology. But the United Nations must

also play its part by not forgetting that small island

developing States like Saint Lucia have peculiar needs that

it must be vigilant to protect.

We applaud the work being carried out by the

Commonwealth on updating its report on the vulnerability

of small States and in revising the Vulnerability Index of

Small States, and we welcome the new report, “A Future

for Small States Overcoming Vulnerability”.

Saint Lucia notes the preparation being made for the

special session of the General Assembly in 1999 to review

outstanding chapters and issues of the Barbados Programme

of Action. However, we must express our disappointment

over the lack of progress in implementing the Programme

of Action, and Saint Lucia urges the international

community to support the mobilization of external resources

to implement the plan.

In recent times, the vulnerability of small States to

natural disasters could not have been more clearly

demonstrated than in the case of the Caribbean island of

Montserrat, whose very existence is threatened by an

intermittently raging volcano. Since the fifty-first session

of the General Assembly, the situation in Montserrat has

deteriorated. Half of the island’s population has had to

flee. The plight of the people of Montserrat is a human

tragedy that the world ignores because, once again, its

setting is another small island State which seems to be in

a remote corner of the international community. The

people of Montserrat badly need sympathy, understanding

and support.

The establishment of a Caribbean family of nations

is a historical imperative for Saint Lucia. For this reason,

we shall continue to strengthen the integration process in

the Caribbean and the closer association of our peoples.

We have a vision of the entire Caribbean Basin merging

as one nation, becoming one family, irrespective of the

division of language, size, trade and political traditions

and relationships. We may be small, but we are making

our contribution to the enhancement of civilization.

The noble ideals and goals of the United Nations

and its Charter will be meaningless if the international

community fails to protect small, vulnerable developing

countries like Saint Lucia from the predatory actions of

those who seek to destroy the livelihood of our peoples in

the name of free trade. These lofty goals will be hollow

if, in the rush to espouse globalization and the

liberalization of trade, the special circumstances of the

smaller, poorer States of this world are scorned, and their

special needs are bulldozed and smashed by the injustice

of international tribunals and the myopia of richer States.

Saint Lucia does not wish to be trapped in a cycle of

dependence. It merely wishes to be given the opportunity

to be self-sustaining in this global order.

The noble aspirations of the United Nations will

rank among the greatest failures of the twentieth century

if, by failing to be involved in the control of the process

of globalization, it allows its smaller, poorer Members to

be marginalized. The goal of sustainable development

must not be allowed to become yet another myth of our

times.