Mauritania, 1996

I should like to convey to the President, on behalf

of my delegation, my warm congratulations on his election

to the presidency of the fifty-first session of the General

Assembly. We are convinced that his personal qualities,

experience and great skill are our best guarantee for the

success of this session and will enable us to achieve

positive results.

I should also like to take this opportunity to express

our gratitude and esteem to Mr. Freitas do Amaral,

President of the fiftieth session, who so ably guided the

work of the Assembly last year.

I should also like once again to extend our entire

confidence to our brother, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, and

to express to him our thanks for the great efforts he has

tirelessly expended since shouldering his heavy

responsibilities in strengthening the universality and

credibility of the United Nations and enhancing its

capacity to play its rightful role, notwithstanding

particularly difficult international circumstances.

It is gratifying to note that, as the Organization

enters into its second 50 years of life, substantial progress

is being made on the road to peace throughout the world.

Thus, East-West confrontation, more commonly

known as the cold war, has ended and the spectre of the

balance of terror has disappeared, giving way to dialogue

and cooperation in the establishment and maintenance of

world peace and security. Other important steps have also

been taken towards decolonization, the eradication of

racial discrimination and the full exercise by peoples of

their right to self-determination.

We must, however, note that these achievements,

valuable as they are, have not contributed significantly to

improving the situation in many parts of the world where,

in some countries, there are still hotbeds of tension and

bloody wars. Nor have they sufficed to eliminate the

poverty and underdevelopment that are still the daily lot

of a large proportion of the inhabitants of our planet.

Thus, developing countries continue to suffer the

combined effects of the world economic crisis and the

ongoing deterioration of terms of trade and to bear the

burden of an external debt that exhausts their resources at

the very time that official development assistance is

constantly decreasing.

The past year has seen no important improvement in

the world economic situation. That conclusion is

unavoidable, since the current economic crisis has as its

basis the inequity inherent in the world economy, an

inequity whose major consequences are macroeconomic

imbalance, unfair terms of trade and inequality in the

distribution of wealth.

In this framework, the African continent is obviously

the hardest hit by the negative effects of the deterioration

in economic conditions owing to the burden of its

external debt and the fall in the prices of the raw

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materials that make up the principal source of income for

most African countries.

The Sahel region is among those on our continent that

is suffering the most from this situation, especially given

the chronic drought from which it has suffered for over

three decades and that has weakened and sometimes

destroyed the economies of its component countries.

However, we are gratified by the increased interest

shown in recent years with regard to African development

and we welcome the System-wide Special Initiative for

Africa launched by the Secretary-General, which we would

like to see implemented as soon as possible.

The consolidation of democracy and the construction

of a State based on the rule of law and respect for human

rights are positive results of the activities of the

international community, as reflected in the resolutions of

the United Nations and its specialized agencies as well as

in the decisions and recommendations handed down by

several conferences organized under United Nations

auspices or with its support. This confirms the importance

of the collective effort of the United Nations and should

encourage the Organization to continue its pursuit of the

noble objectives of mankind.

In that connection, and in order to enable the United

Nations to strengthen such action, it is particularly urgent

and essential to work on the restructuring of its organs, the

rationalization of its working methods and the improvement

in its performance.

To that end, my country supports the proposals

designed to give renewed dynamism to the Economic and

Social Council, to end duplication in its subsidiary bodies

and to improve its rules of operation. We also support

proposals aimed at enlarging representation in the Security

Council in keeping with the requirements of democracy,

transparency and equity.

We also believe that the principle of equality among

Member States should be the basis for any action

undertaken to restructure the Security Council, which,

according to Article 24 of the United Nations Charter, acts

on behalf of all Member States. This means that the

Council has an obligation to reflect the universal character

of the United Nations.

Allow me to say a word about the democratic process

in Mauritania, the first phase of which began 10 years ago

in 1986 with the first local elections and was followed by

the adoption of the 1991 Constitution. Pluralistic, multi-

party presidential and parliamentary elections followed in

1992 and the second round of local elections in 1994.

This process is being strengthened once again by the

holding on 11 October of the second round of legislative

elections in a free and transparent climate. Two hundred

and sixty-nine candidates, most from 13 political parties,

will appeal to the voters for the 79 seats of the National

Assembly. All provisions have been made to ensure that

this election takes place under the best conditions.

With this new achievement, the Mauritanian people

will confirm that it has become, as stated by His

Excellency President Maaouya Ould Sid’Ahmed Taya,

“the source of sovereignty and legality” and the master of

its own destiny and affairs.

Having won the struggle for democracy and

achieved the institution of the rule of law and the

guarantee of all individual and collective rights,

Mauritania is engaged in another, equally determined

struggle against economic and social underdevelopment.

In this regard, many economic reform programmes have

been implemented since 1985 within the framework of a

liberal policy incorporating all development dimensions

and designed to raise the living standards of citizens and

making basic services available to them.

These reforms have allowed us to reinvigorate public

finances, overcome inflation and restore continued

growth. Many projects have also been carried out in the

areas of communications, transportation infrastructure,

village electrification, expanded water-supply networks

and increased health-care coverage. Let me express our

appreciation to all of the brotherly and friendly countries,

institutions and non-governmental organizations that have

supported my country’s efforts towards these goals and

thank them for the aid they have provided and continue

to provide.

Strengthening democracy and economic and social

development requires the consolidation of peace and

security both for States and individuals. We must

therefore note the striking paradox, despite the end of the

cold war and new hopes for peace and justice, of the

re-emergence of terrorism, instability and the proliferation

of hotbeds of tension around the world.

The Middle East is one region where, unfortunately,

this paradox is most alarming. My country, renewing its

full support for the peace process, remains convinced that

Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and

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425 (1978) and the principle of “land for peace”, adopted

at the Madrid Conference, remain the bases for any

comprehensive, just and lasting peace in that region.

We also believe that there can be no real solution to

the Middle East problem as long as Israel has not

withdrawn from all the occupied Palestinian territories,

including the Holy Arab City of Al-Quds, the Golan and

southern Lebanon.

We had therefore welcomed the new era that seemed

to have emerged with the signing on 13 September 1993 of

the Declaration of Principles on the autonomy of Gaza and

Jericho and other positive advances that followed,

especially the 1994 Cairo agreement, the peace Agreement

between Israel and Jordan, and the Taba Agreement on the

implementation of the second phase of the Declaration of

Principles, signed in Washington on 28 September 1995.

We had hoped that the Palestinian people will soon see the

end of its tragedy by recovering its legitimate right to self-

determination and to establish its independent State on its

territory.

On this basis, and in order to ensure the continuation

of the peace process, the concluded Agreements must be

implemented and commitments undertaken must be

honoured. Negotiations must resume among all the

concerned parties on the basis of the principles arrived at

and accepted by all and in accordance with the relevant

Security Council resolutions. My country also insists on the

need to lift the embargo imposed on the brotherly

Palestinian people, the devastating consequences of which

on the fledgling Palestinian economy and the repercussions

of which on security in the Palestinian territories could

endanger the peace process.

Finally, we invite the two sponsors of the peace

process to assume fully their responsibilities in order to

allow the people of the region to recover their legitimate

rights and to open a new chapter in the history of this

subregion, so that its potential can be put to the service of

economic development and social advancement.

Nearby, the aftermath of the Gulf War continues to

raise obstacles to the normalization of the situation in that

region. In this regard, my country has always affirmed and

wishes to reaffirm today its dedication to respect for

international legality and the United Nations resolutions

pertaining to the Gulf War and its consequences. We

reiterate our rejection of any threat to the independence of

Kuwait and its territorial integrity and we call for the

settlement of the question of Kuwaiti prisoners.

We also reaffirm our consistent position of rejecting

any action threatening the unity of fraternal Iraq and the

integrity of its territory. We call for the lifting of the

embargo imposed on the Iraqi people, which is subjecting

them to famine and disease. In this regard, my country

wishes to see implemented, as soon as possible, Security

Council resolution 986 (1995) on the issue of oil for food.

We also wish to express our rejection of the plan being

entertained by some of Iraq’s neighbours to create a safe

area in northern Iraq, in contradiction to their declared

dedication to territorial integrity and unity and in violation

of the principles and rules of international law and the

United Nations Charter.

My country believes that the United Arab Emirates

has the inalienable right to recover its full and complete

sovereignty over the islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb

and Lesser Tunb. We reiterate our support for the United

Arab Emirates in its endeavours to recover its rights by

all available means.

In the Arab Maghreb, the question of Western

Sahara is a consistent source of great concern because of

its threat to stability and security in the subregion. My

country also believes that the United Nations, and the

Security Council in particular, should, now more than

ever, assume its full responsibility for the implementation

of the settlement plan, in keeping with resolutions adopted

to that end on the holding of a free and impartial

referendum that will make it possible to achieve a

comprehensive and definitive solution to the question of

Western Sahara and to ensure security and stability in the

region. For our part, we continue to be prepared to

contribute positively to the achievement of that aim.

With regard to the embargo that for several years

has affected the Libyan people, my country wishes to see

greater receptivity to Libya’s obvious willingness to

cooperate with the United Nations and other concerned

parties, in seeking a solution to the crisis between it and

certain western countries. We call for the lifting of this

embargo — which is hurting the Libyan people and all

the peoples of the Maghreb — and hope that the proposal

of the League of Arab States, which enjoys broad support,

will open up new opportunities to put an end to it.

With regard to security and stability, Africa

continues to face major problems. Conflicts are spreading

death, famine and epidemic throughout the continent. In

Somalia, the war continues to leave a train of death and

destruction and the international community, despite the

solidarity it has shown in the past through its

14

involvement, no longer evinces much interest in a situation

that is threatening the Somali people. We hope the Somali

people will overcome their differences and find a way to

conduct a constructive dialogue.

In Liberia, we hope that the peace process will

continue, in keeping with the Abuja Agreement, and we

reiterate our support for the decisions taken by the

ministerial ad hoc Committee of the Economic Community

of West African States (ECOWAS) at its seventh session

and the decisions and recommendations of the last two

summits of the Organization of African Unity and

ECOWAS on Liberia, so that peace and harmony may

return to that fraternal country.

We hope that our Rwandan and Burundian brothers

will, in their countries, resolve their conflicts and seek

dialogue and understanding in solving their problems. We

also hope that they will be able to face the challenges of

development and devote to it the energies now being

devoted to their differences.

With regard to Bosnia and Herzegovina, my country

expresses satisfaction at the important advances made along

the road to peace, especially the recent democratic

elections. We reaffirm also the need to continue

implementation of the Dayton Agreement and to see the

international community exert the necessary effort for the

reconstruction of that country, whose infrastructure has

been destroyed and whose people have suffered the most

horrifying forms of aggression.

The United Nations must adapt to the world as it is

and to the changes it undergoes. The Islamic Republic of

Mauritania wishes to reiterate its willingness and

commitment to work in concert with other Member States

towards the realization of the noble goals of our

Organization, in particular the consolidation of peace and

security in the world.

At a time when most third-world countries are facing

enormous challenges that hamper their advance towards

greater progress and prosperity, and while our planet is

facing environmental challenges that threaten the future of

all life on Earth, considerable resources are being devoted

to the production, refinement and acquisition of weapons of

mass destruction of all kinds, while official development

assistance continues to decline.

In this respect we hope that the recent Treaty

prohibiting nuclear tests will be one important step along

the way to complete and general disarmament, the only way

to free up the necessary resources for the development of

the third world.

Today, more than half a century after the creation of

our Organization, we must be fully aware of our common

destiny. We must dedicate ourselves to promoting

mutually advantageous international cooperation and

bringing about effective solidarity equal to the challenges

we face to ensure a better future for all humankind.

My country, as in the past, will continue to work

towards the strengthening of friendly and brotherly

relations among all peoples and nations in the pursuit of

the noble ideals aspired to by the founding fathers of the

United Nations.