Sri Lanka, 1995

Let me at the outset

extend to Mr. Freitas do Amaral of Portugal the sincere

good wishes of the Government and people of Sri Lanka on

his election to the presidency of the General Assembly at

this its historic fiftieth session. We are privileged to have

him guide its deliberations. My delegation offers him the

same full cooperation that we extended to all his

predecessors in that high office.

Our gratitude is due Mr. Amara Essy of Côte d’Ivoire,

who presided over the forty-ninth session with great skill

and wisdom.

When I addressed the Assembly last year, I reported

that the people of Sri Lanka had secured an electoral

victory for

“moderation, tolerance and unity” (Official Records of

the General Assembly, Forty-ninth Session, Plenary

Meetings, 5th meeting, p. 23)

in a society that had passed through harrowing times. I

detailed the initiatives taken by the Government of

President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga,

supported by a number of political parties, including those

of the two principal minority communities, to resolve

outstanding ethnic and other disputes through a bold

process of political negotiation. That process was

launched, but later encountered set-backs, primarily

because one of the groups with which the Government

had commenced talks abruptly returned to violence and

terrorism, rejecting the peaceful option to which the rest

of the country is committed. The Government has been

constrained to take unavoidable reactive military measures

to safeguard the lives, the security and the welfare of

those who are threatened by the terrorist group. So long

as they aim at our leaders the threat of assassination, we

cannot believe that their professions of peace are sincere.

We continue to fulfil our obligations to all our

citizens, including those trapped in the north of the

country. Supplies of food and other essential requirements

are being made available by the Government and

delivered through the International Committee of the Red

Cross to our citizens in affected areas. This is an

exceptional exercise which the late James Grant of the

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) described as

uniquely humanitarian in a conflict situation.

We are deeply troubled and concerned about the

situation in which the children of the north and east of

our country are placed. That mankind owes to the child

the best it has to give is universally accepted. Yet we are

appalled that in their desperation the militants, spurning

the entreaties of distraught parents, have descended to

conscripting children as young in age as 10 years to wage

war and have even assigned them to suicide missions. A

recent military encounter in north-eastern Sri Lanka

revealed grim evidence confirming our worst fears. Most

of the lives sacrificed by the leadership of the militants

were teenagers barely able to carry arms, let alone

understand the twisted mono-ethnic separatist ideology

they have been indoctrinated to defend. In truth, it is the

militants who must bear the ultimate responsibility for

civilian casualties in this conflict. One of the challenges

of peace that Sri Lanka will soon have to face is the need

to overcome the terrible legacy of the subverted and

distorted young minds, of the broken, bereft families and

interrupted lives that the conflict will leave behind.

All this has only increased my Government’s

determination to fulfil an imperative mandate from the

people, to rebuild a free society in our Republic which is

23

based on tolerance and understanding and in which all

communities throughout the nation could live in harmony

and dignity in accordance with the principles of democratic

governance. The Government has accordingly presented

comprehensive proposals, daring in their scope and reach,

for the devolution of power to regional units. True to our

long-established democratic tradition, a free-ranging

national debate among Sri Lankans is proceeding on these

proposals. The eventual implementation of agreed proposals

will require compliance with the procedures appropriate for

the amendment of our Constitution, including a two-thirds

majority in Parliament and a national referendum.

To help further enhance conditions of confidence for

the observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

my Government has presented legislation in Parliament to

establish a Human Rights Commission in Sri Lanka. The

Commission will consist of members chosen from among

persons with knowledge and experience in the field of

human rights. They will be appointed on the

recommendation of a Constitutional Council — an

independent and widely representative body reflecting all

shades of political opinion. The proposed Commission will

have monitoring functions in respect of executive and

administrative practices as well as investigative functions to

inquire into any infringement of fundamental rights. It will

also have advisory and other functions, inter alia, to ensure

that laws and administrative practices accord with

international human-rights norms and standards and to

facilitate inexpensive access to remedial relief. Sri Lanka

has consistently supported United Nations initiatives for

national institution-building in the field of human rights.

It has been a source of major encouragement to us that

the international community has supported the efforts of the

Government of Sri Lanka in the pursuit of peace. While the

eventual solution of our problems lies essentially in our

own hands and through mechanisms of our own devising,

we sincerely appreciate the interest and support of the

international community. It is in this context that I have

volunteered today to brief the Assembly on the situation in

Sri Lanka.

The significance of this session of the United Nations

General Assembly extends well beyond the fact that it

commemorates 50 years in the life of the Organization.

International life is in constant flux. No era is wholly static.

Yet the last decade or so has seen radical changes affecting

virtually every aspect of life on this planet. Not all of such

changes have been welcome. Not all of the changes have

reached their logical, or indeed illogical, conclusion.

The acclaimed transformation in South Africa has

been a blessed exception. Institutionalized racism in its

grosser forms has at last been vanquished. The South

African experience has demonstrated the power of

tolerance, understanding and inspired leadership to wear

down the brutal, evil legacies of the past. It has also

shown that there is a capacity for change in human

attitudes once considered unthinkable. Racism, however,

has continued in subtler forms elsewhere in the world.

The international community must continue to be vigilant.

That ugly phenomenon must never be tolerated, wherever

it occurs and whatever its manifestations.

Sri Lanka feels deeply that the African continent

needs the wholehearted and vigorous support of the

international community to overcome the obstacles to

development and growth in this vital region of the world.

The strengthening and utilization of the capacities and

resources of Africa, identified by the African countries

themselves and the Economic Commission for Africa, and

concerted action to implement the Programme of Action

for the Least-Developed Countries are urgently called for.

The Middle East is the cradle of three of the world’s

great religions. Yet historical prejudices have weighed

down the quest for peace. Resort to violence and

terrorism, the expropriation of land and the development

of illegal settlements have conspired to impede the

momentum for peace. Sri Lanka supports the continuation

of the peace process in the Middle East, the realization of

the inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people

and the establishment of conditions of peace and stability

for all States in the region which would enable them to

develop within secure boundaries. Commitments made on

interim agreements towards this objective, as Chairman

Arafat of Palestine stated last Thursday, must be precise,

honest and mutual.

In Bosnia, Sri Lanka welcomes the fact that the

parties concerned have found it possible to commence

peace negotiations although the guns have yet to be

finally silenced. We feel deeply for, and share the sorrow

of, those who mourn for lives lost, lives disrupted in the

affected communities. We hope that a viable settlement

acceptable to all will soon be concluded. I had occasion

recently, speaking in the Parliament of Sri Lanka, to

condemn unreservedly the inhumane and cruel treatment

that has been inflicted upon the Muslims in Bosnia. These

and other atrocities committed in Bosnia have been fully

documented by the United Nations rapporteurs and

humanitarian agencies and need to be condemned by the

international community.

24

The role of the United Nations in that conflict has

received special focus as the Organization, in this its fiftieth

year, undergoes a period of introspection. The situation in

Bosnia has been an unusually complex one in which the

United Nations has had to deal with developments without

precedent in the Organization’s peace-keeping history. In

terms of Article 17 of the United Nations Charter, peace-

keeping is the collective financial responsibility of all

States. A healthy, albeit controversial, debate has proceeded

in the United Nations on peace-keeping and other related

issues. The debate has made abundantly clear that United

Nations intervention or involvement in any situation can

expect to be successful only if certain basic considerations

are heeded. First, any intervention must enjoy the general

support and confidence of the international community and

not be promoted merely to satisfy the political exigencies

and partisan objectives of members of the Security Council

or other powerful States. Secondly, in any intervention the

consent of the countries in conflict must be clearly

obtained. Finally, such politico-military operations must

neither dominate United Nations activity nor be its principal

financial liability. They must certainly not be carried out to

the detriment of the pressing development priorities of the

United Nations.

In “An Agenda for Peace” the Secretary-General has

sought to evaluate manifold aspects of contemporary peace

and security, not merely the question of peace-keeping

operations. This evaluation has had a continuous focus in

the General Assembly, in the Security Council, in other

forums such as the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries as

well as in national debate since the Secretary-General’s

initial report was presented in 1992. The cardinal aspect of

“An Agenda for Peace” is the conviction that it is clearly

better to prevent conflicts through heeding early warnings

and encouraging quiet diplomacy rather than through

launching major politico-military ventures to settle conflicts

after they have erupted.

While economic factors have not always been the

cause of conflict, we very much agree with the Secretary-

General that the foundations for peace lie primarily in the

realm of economic and social development.

The 1990s have often been described as a period of

economic globalization, considering the increasing

interdependence among States, greater international

integration and flow of goods, services, capital and markets,

as well as a more widespread and rapid dissemination of

information and ideas through technological advancements

in communications. Globalization is sometimes over-

simplified as a phenomenon favourable to the emancipation

of international economic activity. It is true that most

economies which had been constricted or centrally

controlled have now been liberalized and have, as it were,

plugged in to the global economy. Yet, in the process,

many developing countries have had to make painful

structural adjustments in their economies at heavy cost to

vulnerable sections of their populations. If there is greater

overall international economic activity, it is also true that

for many developing countries, despite their best efforts,

the economic outlook has not been encouraging. The

recent Conference of non-aligned countries held at Jakarta

issued a renewed call for a new orientation between

developed and developing countries whereby constructive

dialogue and partnership were emphasized, based on a

mutuality of interest and benefit, genuine interdependence

and shared responsibility.

A major thrust of this approach has been to work out

new practical aspects of international development

cooperation which would embrace developed as well as

developing countries, the more secure economies as well

as those that are more vulnerable. The final communiqué

issued earlier this year in Halifax, at the Summit of the

seven major industrialized countries, proclaimed their

willingness to cooperate with others to develop a new

approach to international cooperation and to define the

particular contribution expected of the United Nations

system to develop such an approach. A vital aspect of this

exercise should be the enhancement of cooperation

between the United Nations system and the Bretton

Woods institutions.

Calls made earlier for a restructuring of international

economic relations and a North-South dialogue have

floundered in a sea of slogans. But we must realize that

global interdependence has made international cooperation

an imperative, not a slogan. The United Nations must

assert its part in a more effective new multilateralism.

Almost two decades ago Sri Lanka adopted a liberal

free-market economy in order to accelerate economic

growth. My Government is taking steps to privatize State-

controlled enterprises, in particular utilities and services

provided by the Government, and to encourage foreign

investment. We intend to benefit from the opportunities

arising from the globalization of economic activity.

A number of world conferences have recently been

held, covering a series of generic issues which have a

direct bearing on the lives of people the world over.

These have demonstrated both the promise and the

paucity of international cooperation. Agenda 21, produced

25

by the Rio Conference on Environment and Development,

is yet to be fully operationalized due to the lack of

necessary resources. Last year the International Conference

on Population and Development affirmed the central role of

the human being in all development and population

activities. The World Summit for Social Development, held

in March this year in Copenhagen, sought to promote

concerted international action to deal with a crucial trio of

contemporary concerns: poverty, unemployment and the

disintegration of society. The World Conference on

Women, in Beijing last month, dealt with a range of

issues — political, social, religious and economic —

affecting women and adopted a Platform for Action to

empower women.

All these conferences have emphasized that

responsibility for major global problems needs to be shared

and that action to deal with them needs to be taken in

concert. Regrettably, if expectations have been great,

resources for their realization have been meagre. The

political determination necessary to transform commitments

into action still appears far less than adequate.

Despite the absence of optimal international

cooperation in certain areas, some regional activities have

made good progress. In our own region, the South Asian

Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) celebrates

its tenth anniversary this year. The SAARC Preferential

Trade Arrangement has made much headway and is

expected to enter into force this year. We look to the future

confident of consolidating our gains in a South Asian free-

trade arrangement. Sri Lanka, together with our South

Asian partners, will explore all avenues to seek and build

on common ground and optimize regional cooperation in

areas of mutual interest. Indeed, cooperation within, as well

as between, regions offers much scope for economic

progress and equitable sharing of global wealth. We look

forward to greater interregional cooperation to advance this

process.

Sri Lanka was privileged to have served the Review

and Extension Conference on the Treaty on the Non-

Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and to facilitate

the adoption of a package of decisions without resort to a

vote. While the outcome of the Conference has been widely

hailed, it is vital also to emphasize the need for the

establishment of a comprehensive disarmament regime to

meet the security concerns of all countries, including the

non-nuclear-weapon States, through the realization of

commitments undertaken under the Treaty and the decisions

taken at the 1995 Conference by the nuclear-weapon States.

These commitments include the conclusion of a

comprehensive test-ban Treaty, legally binding assurances

to non-nuclear-weapon States against the use or threat of

use of nuclear weapons, the unimpeded,

non-discriminatory transfer of nuclear technology for

peaceful purposes and the eventual elimination of all

nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction

throughout the world.

We have expressed our deep disappointment and

concern over the resumption of nuclear testing by some

nuclear Powers, which is contrary to the undertakings of

utmost restraint entered into at the NPT Conference. We

therefore urge that expeditious negotiations be conducted

on a comprehensive test-ban treaty, with a view to

concluding it in 1996. In this regard, we are happy to

support President Clinton’s initiative to place the Geneva

negotiations on a comprehensive test-ban treaty on a

faster track in order to achieve a zero-yield test-ban treaty

by 1996. We also note the recent assurance in this respect

given by President Chirac of France.

The establishment of nuclear-weapon-free zones and

zones of peace is an essential part of regional security.

The non-aligned countries, including Sri Lanka, have

sought to establish conditions of peace, security and

stability in the Indian Ocean region. The United Nations

Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean, taking into

account current realities, has been considering new,

alternative approaches to ensuring peace and security in

this vital but volatile region of the world. Sri Lanka, as

Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee, has been in

consultation with those permanent members of the

Security Council that have not been participating in the

Committee’s work in order to re-enlist their active

participation and give fresh impetus to the process of

strengthening cooperation in the Indian Ocean region,

including in respect of non-military aspects of security.

Sri Lanka’s initiative for Indian Ocean Marine

Affairs Cooperation (IOMAC) has focused on the

development of international cooperation in marine affairs

in the economic, scientific and technical fields. The recent

Mauritius and Perth initiatives on the Indian Ocean have

recognized IOMAC’s pioneering effort in helping to

widen cooperation in the marine sector. The process for

the formalization of IOMAC through the ratification of

the 1990 Arusha Agreement on the Organization for

Indian Ocean Marine Affairs Cooperation is being further

accelerated in order to provide an effective mechanism for

intensifying cooperation, in keeping with the growing

aspirations of the countries of the region.

26

The fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations has

spawned a variety of studies on the future of the

Organization, initiated within as well as outside the United

Nations. Working groups of the General Assembly have

been busy during recent sessions, studying the financial

situation of the Organization, development issues, the

Security Council, the Agenda for Peace and other aspects

of the United Nations.

The issues are complex. Progress is slow. Decisions

are few. A resolution on the strengthening of the United

Nations system, patiently negotiated on the initiative of the

President of the forty-ninth session of the General

Assembly, was adopted by consensus. There is much to

support a coordinated, rational and informed examination of

recommendations which seek to strengthen the United

Nations and render it a more effective and efficient

Organization. A piecemeal approach may not be an

effective one, given the complexity of the individual issues

involved as well as their interrelationship. We look forward

to further work on this initiative next year.

The Security Council has perhaps been the single most

contentious United Nations organ under scrutiny. Sri

Lanka’s own position is that in many respects the Council

still reflects power realities that prevailed 50 years ago.

There can be no warrant for the perpetuation of exclusive

rights without accommodation of other relevant

considerations. A substantial increase in the membership of

the United Nations, particularly from among developing

counties, needs to be more equitably reflected in the

composition of the Council as well. Furthermore, there are

reasons, at least as compelling as those proclaimed 50 years

ago to justify the status conferred at that time on the

Council’s five permanent members, to now advance the

claims of other States that aspire to join the five. These

new aspirants to permanent-member status include,

reasonably and justifiably in our view, non-aligned

countries as well. Regrettably, eligibility claims for

membership in the Council continue to be made on

assumptions of power, military or economic, and its global

or regional projection. But this vitiates basic principles

underlying democratic representation and considerations of

justice and equity. If regional criteria are considered, then,

Asia, Africa and Latin America are either unrepresented or

severely under-represented in the present Council. Finally,

the veto power, given its untrammelled character and its

association with the possession of nuclear weapons, needs,

in our opinion, careful, sober review.

The Security Council’s methods of work have in the

recent past been subject to welcome improvement,

particularly in permitting a better exchange of views

between Council members and others. There is, however,

much more that needs to be done to make the Security

Council truly accessible, democratic and responsive to

Member States of the United Nations, on whose behalf

the Council is meant to act in accordance with Charter

principles. A single example relating to the imposition

and implementation of sanctions would suffice to indicate

the gap between principle and practice. Situations in

which sanctions are imposed vary greatly and no uniform

rules are applicable. Sanctions cannot be applied with

surgical precision to impact exclusively on those at whom

they are aimed. Sanctions can thus hurt innocent civilians,

affect entire economies and, as the Council itself

acknowledges, impact adversely on third countries that are

in no way involved in the transgressions of the regime

against which sanctions are imposed. Yet decisions by the

Council on the imposition of sanctions are not based on

prior consultations with the countries concerned, to assess

carefully the true impact, extent and reach of such

extreme measures. As sanctions are mandatory, all

countries are bound to implement them even when they

have had no part in the decisions leading to them. In his

“Supplement to An Agenda for Peace'”, the Secretary-

General has made a number of useful recommendations

relating to the serious problems encountered in the

implementation of sanctions. The non-aligned countries

have studied these proposals and we await further developments.

Later this month, the United Nations will mark its

fiftieth anniversary with a special commemorative

meeting. Although the occasion will, by its very nature,

embody the highest possible political commitment made

by the international community to the United Nations, it

must not be seen purely as an opportunity for the

Organization to garner a harvest of tributes. Much ails the

Organization. Nevertheless, it is Sri Lanka’s firm

conviction that the membership of the United Nations has

within it the means to reinvest in the Organization all it

requires to fulfil the principles of the Charter. This would

require much more than a symbolic declaration of

commitment by each Member State. We owe it to the

people we represent to strive diligently in the years to

come to make this Organization truly a place where the

highest aspirations of humanity can be fulfilled.

Tentative programme of work