Marshall Islands, 2007

I bring warm greetings of

“iakwe” from the people of the Republic of the

Marshall Islands, on whose behalf I have the honour to

address the General Assembly at its sixty-second

session.

I wish to convey our congratulations to you,

Mr. President, on your election in the presidency of the

Assembly at this session. I am confident that, under

your able leadership, consensus on crucial issues will

be achieved, benefiting the entire membership,

particularly the often-forgotten remote small island

States of the Pacific. My commendation also goes to

your predecessor for her successful stewardship of the

work of the Assembly at its sixty-first session.

Allow me to also congratulate you,

Mr. Secretary-General, for your election as the eighth

Secretary-General of this Organization. Steering the

United Nations in today’s interwoven world of

complex trials and tribulations remains ever more

challenging, and I wish to express my country’s

confidence in your stewardship and to commend you

for your current efforts in taking a range of measures to

strengthen the capacity of the United Nations.

For the past 62 years, we have come to this

Assembly to express various issues and concerns dear

to our heart, as they affect the daily lives of our

citizens. Education, health and the environment are

among the issues at the top of my country’s priorities,

but these issues are nothing if we, the community of

nations, fail to attempt to avert the forthcoming

ecological disaster.

My people are concerned with or rather

terrified by with the issue of our very survival. Will

we even exist 50 years from today? If we are to exist at

all, we must put a stop to the rising tide of destruction

unleashed by global warming. Our future or

perhaps, our absence of future depends on the

decisive actions of this Assembly. I find no pride in

having coined the term “ecological refugee”. It is my

deepest hope that no one, and certainly no one in the

Marshall Islands, will have to bear that name.

Since my election more than seven years ago,

educating the world about the threat my people face as

a result of sea-level rise and global warming has been

one of my Government’s priorities. In addressing the

issue of climate change, actions and real progress are

needed. In saying this, I am proud to announce the new

alliance that my Government established earlier this

year with the local government of Martin Luther King

Jr. County, in Washington State in the United States,

aimed at confronting the threat posed by global

warming.

The unwavering faith I have in this Organization

is the reason why I am standing at this podium today

on behalf of my people. On our shoulders, as leaders,

lies the responsibility entrusted to us, to keep not only

the peace to live in harmony and with dignity, but to

preserve our environment to ensure the very survival of

our children for generations to come.

I commend the Secretary-General for convening a

high-level meeting on climate change this week. I am

also hopeful that we, as leaders, will come up with the

necessary agreements on the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change in

December. While we are committed to playing our part,

strong leadership is required by the major

industrialized countries. We once again renew our

support for the Framework Convention and the Kyoto

Protocol, and we call upon all States that have not yet

done so in particular the major emitters to ratify

the Protocol without further delay. We also call upon

the international community to assist small island

developing States in developing and implementing

comprehensive adaptation strategies.

I remain hopeful that the international community

can reach a consensus on moving forward the

necessary agreements to achieve lasting peace, security

and diplomatic solutions to the seemingly endless web

of issues. We are so integrated and interconnected

today that we all face equal challenges, be it in

terrorism or the proliferation of nuclear weapons. I

commend this Assembly for adopting last September

the historic United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism

Strategy, which will prevent the global scourge of

terrorism. The Marshall Islands remains committed in

the fight against terrorism, and we continue to take

action at the national level and to cooperate at the

regional and international levels to ensure that we

combat terrorist threats with comprehensive and united

action.

In the area of disarmament and non-proliferation,

our collective efforts need to be invigorated to

overcome stalemate. Nuclear weapons and the testing

conducted on our islands in the past is a nightmare that

continues to haunt my people. The 67 atmospheric

weapons detonated on my island of Bikini Atoll from

1946 to 1958 continue to inflict pain and suffering on

my people to this day. The Marshallese people were

under the care of the United Nations Trusteeship

Council when the United States nuclear testing

programme was in progress. Once again, I call on the

United Nations and its agencies and Member States

who share similar experiences and have the expertise to

assist us with the restoration of our radiation-

contaminated environment to provide the needed

assistance for my people’s health-care needs that are

linked to radiation exposure, and to support the

Marshall Islands’ Changed Circumstances Petition,

which was submitted to the United States Congress in

2000.

I commend the work of the Assembly at its sixty-

first session in adopting resolution 61/109, which

requests the United Nations Scientific Committee on

the Effects of Atomic Radiation to continue its work,

including its activities to increase knowledge about the

levels, effects and risks of ionizing radiation from all

sources, and requests the United Nations Environment

Programme to continue to provide support for the work

of the Committee and for the dissemination of its

findings and to review and strengthen the Committee’s

present funding. I am confident that my people will

benefit from the Committee’s work, noting that

previous policy and resettlement decisions based on

misleading scientific opinions have caused so much

suffering among my people.

My people’s survival and well-being also depend

on our ocean resources. We are encouraged by

international and regional agreements and treaties that

aim to protect these scarce resources. However, illegal,

unreported and unregulated fishing continues to

threaten our major source of livelihood. In protecting

our ocean resources from exploitation, we continue to

seek assistance from Member States with the expertise

and capacity in conducting and enforcing conservation

and management measures, as well as in the

development of our domestic fisheries. I reiterate once

again my support for a moratorium on bottom-trawling

until there are clear indications on its negative effects

on the ocean biodiversity.

The Micronesia Challenge a commitment led

by the Republic of Palau, the Federated States of

Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands

aims at conserving that biodiversity and our vulnerable

ecosystem by effectively conserving at least 30 per

cent of the near-shore marine and 20 per cent of the

forest resources across Micronesia by 2020. The

Micronesia Challenge is part of a much larger and

growing commitment by island nations throughout the

world to take the international lead in preserving

primary ecosystems. I call on the international

community to support the efforts that have been put in

place and to develop and provide the resources for

realistic financial plans in support of conservation and

sustainable use of our natural resources.

Within the Pacific region, we continue to

cooperate closely to ensure that effective regional

actions are taken in our endeavour to combat our

vulnerabilities in the economic, social and

environmental areas, which are priority areas

highlighted under the Pacific Plan and Kalibobo

Roadmap, endorsed by Pacific leaders almost two

years ago.

My Government has had the pleasure of hosting

and actively engaging in several regional meetings held

to that effect. The Eighth Pacific Islands Conference of

Leaders, which I was honoured to chair in Washington;

the Seventh Annual Micronesian President’s Summit,

held in Chuuk, Federated States of Micronesia, earlier

this month; the seventh Food and Agriculture

Organization meeting of the South West Pacific

Ministers for Agriculture, held in May; and the

Micronesians in Island Conservation conference, held

last June in Majuro all these provided the

opportunity for our leaders, development partners and

non-governmental partners to meet with other leaders

from the region to address the wide range of issues and

challenges that continue to plague the Pacific.

In my view, the successful implementation of

regional commitments international obligations can be

achieved only with the support and commitment of

member countries, regional and international

organizations, development partners and a range of

stakeholders.

In that regard, I wish to emphasize that the

assistance of the international community, which has

played a crucial role in enabling us to meet current and

emerging challenges, is still very much needed. There

is only so much that we can do as small island

developing States; thus, now more than ever, I continue

to call on the international community for considerable

investments and comprehensive assistance, including

the much-needed policy reorientation to address the

interlinked issues of economic, social and

environmental security.

The Republic of the Marshall Islands was

founded on the ideals of freedom, democracy and

respect for human rights. We continue to observe and

stand for those democratic values and the defence and

promotion of human rights. The United Nation’s noble

ideals of good governance, democracy, multilateralism

and respect for human dignity also serve as my guiding

light in my capacity of high steward of my people.

However, while the United Nations continues to

work with States in resolving disputes peacefully and

in helping to create democratic societies, it still turns a

blind eye to the 23 million people of Taiwan and

silences their voices. The absence of Taiwan in the

United Nations creates a gap in the global network for

cooperation, goes against the ideals and concept of

justice upheld by the United Nations and contravenes

the principle of universality.

We reiterate our support for the reform and

expansion of the Security Council and for a criteria-

based approach under which potential members, such

as Japan, must be well qualified, based on factors such

as economic size, population, commitment to

democracy and human rights, financial contributions to

the United Nations and contributions to United Nations

peacekeeping efforts.

During the general debate of the sixtieth session,

we noted in this historic Hall that the United Nations

and its offices and agencies did not have a permanent

presence in many of the small island developing States

of the Pacific. In June 2006, it was announced that a

coalition of the United Nations Development

Programme (UNDP), United Nations Children’s Fund

(UNICEF) and United Nations Population Fund

(UNFPA) would open a total of eight new offices in the

Pacific island countries. We welcomed that historic

accomplishment, the progress it marked towards

harmonization within the United Nations and the

assistance and support the new offices would provide

in developing national capacity and meeting the

Millennium Development Goals.

We, Member States that pay our dues, deploy

peacekeepers, and discharge our responsibilities in the

international community, deserve offices that give

relevance to the United Nations and the

implementation of its doctrines. The Marshall Islands

is appreciative of the work currently under way for the

establishment of a joint presence in our country by

UNFPA, which will be the leading agency on behalf of

UNDP and UNICEF. We, however, ask the General

Assembly and the Secretariat to ensure that offices

befitting the ideals and reputation of the United

Nations are established in the other identified Pacific

island countries.

In closing, I wish to reassure you, Mr. President,

that the Marshall Islands remains committed to the

implementation of the commitments made over the last

decade, and we expect our partners to fulfil their

commitments as well. The sustainable development of

small island developing States, such as the Marshall

Islands, can only be achieved through a genuine

partnership within the international community. Only

then can we realize the commonly shared goal of

universal peace and prosperity.

My delegation looks forward to a productive

session under your able leadership, Sir. Komol tata,

and God bless.