Mauritius, 2013

As we meet this

morning to address global concerns and seek ways to

ensure progress and lasting peace, the people of Kenya

are emerging from a terrorist attack that has cost them

many lives and shaken the continent. In expressing our

solidarity with the Government and the people of Kenya

and with the families of the victims, Mauritius would

also like to express its unreserved condemnation of that

abominable and dastardly act of terrorism. The Nairobi

attack should also compel us to revisit regional and

global responses to national and international security

threats, including extending support to countries,

particularly those on the African continent.

Mauritius commends you, Mr. President, for the

theme you have proposed for the sixty-eighth session

of the Assembly, namely, “The post-2015 development

agenda: setting the stage”. The goals we set ourselves

for the sustainable development of our national and

global economies will shape the lives of generations to

come. I would like to say at the outset that Mauritius

welcomes the report of the High-level Panel of Eminent

Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda, A New

Global Partnership: Eradicate Poverty and Transform

Economies through Sustainable Development, and in

particular the recommendation that deliberations on a

new development agenda must be guided by the vision

of eradicating extreme poverty for all in the context of

sustainable development. We also welcome the Panel’s

view that one of the transformative shifts for the post-

2015 agenda should be to bring a new sense of global

partnership into national and international politics.

Climate change should be one of the top priorities for

the global agenda. The report of the Intergovernmental

Panel on Climate Change, Climate Change 2013: The

Physical Science Basis, released only yesterday, is

unequivocal. It provides clear scientific confirmation

that we humans are responsible for global warming,

and that it is up to us to take appropriate measures to try

to save our home planet. We cannot and should not any

longer ignore the evidence that we humans are putting

life on Earth in jeopardy.

In our region, we have recently seen an increased

and unprecedented intensity and unpredictability of

weather events. In March, my country experienced

unprecedented flash floods that caused losses of human

life and heavy economic losses. No country is safe from

natural disasters and the damaging effects of climate

change. But for many small island developing States

(SIDS), the foreseeable consequences of climate change

threaten us even more dramatically, in terms of both

human and economic development. For some SIDS,

they pose an existential threat.

We fully support the Secretary-General’s proposal

to convene world leaders to a climate summit in New

York in 2014. We hope that that meeting will provide

an opportunity for world leaders to focus political

attention on climate change and take meaningful action

to mitigate its effects. We must start putting the interests

of our home planet above everything else. The world

needs a global, legally binding agreement on climate

change by 2015. At the Paris meeting of the twenty-

first Conference of the Parties to the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change, we should

adopt a treaty that is universal and ambitious and that

concretely addresses the concerns of all, including

those of the most vulnerable States.

The international community should also pay more

attention to disaster risk reduction and adopt a more

concerted and accelerated approach to reaching the

goals set out in the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-

2015 (see A/CONF.206/6). The time has come to address

disaster risks and climate-change adaptation through

an integrated approach, and to adopt resilience as a

common and shared vision. Mauritius welcomes Japan’s

decision to host the World Conference on Disaster

Reduction in early 2015 to review the implementation

of the Hyogo Framework and chart an ambitious post-

2015 framework for disaster risk reduction.

In that regard, the holding in Samoa next year of

the Third International Conference on Small Island

Developing States could not be more timely. We hope

that the Conference will be a landmark in the history of a

more active and collaborative partnership among SIDS

and between SIDS and the international community.

Furthermore, it could be an opportunity to give new

meaning to the concept of global concerns, issues that

are, or should be, the concern of the global community

at large, and not only of those who are more vulnerable

and more at risk. That would be in line with the spirit

of the global partnership that the High-level Panel has

called for.

The prospects for growth in the global economy

remain uncertain, largely as a result of the multiple

challenges faced by developed countries. In such an

interconnected and interdependent world as ours, no

nation is immune to external shocks. Small developing

countries are very concerned about the slowdown

in global growth, declines in international trade,

decreasing job opportunities and rising inequality.

Small States are particularly susceptible to external

shocks, as they are heavily dependent on foreign

markets for trade, tourism and investments. They are

also concerned about energy and food prices, which are

subject to high volatility.

My Government believes that the post-2015

development agenda should include a road map for an

interconnected world economic system, premised on the

assumption that the global economy could very well be

as weak as its weakest links. Of course, the specificities

of some countries or regions and the pace at which the

transformative shifts are implemented may not always

be appropriate for universal targets. But the conceptual

approach to, and the design of, the post-2015 agenda

should, more than ever before, start with the shared

conviction that economies are interdependent.

Eradicating extreme poverty, empowering more

women, providing wider opportunities to young people

for education and jobs, improving health care and the

management of energy, water and food are all universal

concerns. The conventional divides of the past are

no longer valid. We need a common development

framework but with differentiated milestones and

implementation strategies, given the existing disparities

in the levels of development. Actions taken at the

national level are not sufficient; there should also be

reinforced cooperation and partnerships at the regional

and international levels. It is therefore imperative that

the weaknesses and the inequity of the current global

economic governance should be addressed urgently.

We are at a juncture where we have no option but

to revisit the existing global economic governance

mechanisms. An overhaul of the current economic

governance is clearly long overdue. We must have a more

participatory system of global economic governance,

where developing countries would be more involved

in international economic decision-making and norm-

setting. The voice of all nations, big or small, should be

equally heard and taken into consideration.

Mauritius has, on several occasions, reiterated that

the United Nations Economic and Social Council needs

to play a more prominent role in global economic, social,

and environmental issues. We cannot overstate the

importance of coordination and synergy for avoiding

duplication among parallel United Nations processes

and initiatives so as to ensure optimal benefit for all.

My Government is of the view that all the processes

initiated in the Rio+20 Conference last year, including

those relating to strengthening the Economic and Social

Council, sustainable development goals and sustainable

development financing, should converge towards a

single post-2015 development agenda that should be

adopted during a high-level development summit

in 2015. The post-2015 development agenda should

complete the unfinished business of the Millennium

Development Goals. However, it should also go beyond

them and provide for a systemic change and a new global

economic governance. The guiding principles enshrined

in the Declaration on the Right to Development, adopted

in December 1986 (resolution 41/133), are still relevant

today and should not be overlooked in the formulation

of a post-2015 development agenda.

My country will follow, with particular interest, the

work of the high-level political forum on sustainable

development, especially since it replaces the

Commission on Sustainable Development, which was

the primary intergovernmental forum for monitoring

the implementation of the Barbados Programme of

Action and the Mauritius Strategy for Implementation.

As we set the stage for the post-2015 development

agenda, we must, as global leaders, define a new global

vision for the world’s oceans. The United Nations system

has played a crucial role in formulating, implementing

and enforcing a new international order relating to the

oceans. Indeed, the adoption of the United Nations

Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982 will remain

one of the landmarks of the twentieth century.

The jurisprudence of the International Court of

Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of

the Sea has contributed to the settlement of maritime

disputes and the promotion of international peace,

security and equity in a manner not always witnessed in

other areas of international relations. The establishment

of the International Seabed Authority is another

significant example of what international cooperation

can lead to in other sectors. The International Maritime

Organization and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic

Commission of UNESCO are also making significant

contributions.

I believe that the United Nations must now take the

lead in formulating a global vision for the oceans that

will, in particular, expand the economic space for small

island States while ensuring sustainable use of living

and non-living resources. The health of our economies

will depend on the health of our oceans. Our vision for

the future must also preserve the inherent values of

the ocean space, to which we are looking for economic

expansion.

Mauritius has taken the initiative of launching a

national dialogue on how to promote the ocean economy

as one of the main pillars of development. We urge the

international community to build on what the world has

achieved so far in relation to ocean-related economic

activities and conservation, and we propose for future

generations a fundamental paradigm shift with respect

to economic space. While such a global vision and

strategy will be beneficial to all nations, it will be of

particular interest to small islands. With limited land

areas, the islands can potentially be large ocean States

and thus overcome some of their vulnerabilities as

small island developing States. As the world realizes

the tremendous potential of marine renewable energies,

we will see the oceans from a different perspective.

The United Nations has a key role to play in

promoting the rule of law at both the national and the

international levels. The rule of law at the international

level must be an integral part of the post-2015 agenda.

Open and participatory democracy, accountability and

transparency are not concepts that should be promoted

only at the national level. The United Nations should

lead by example here. We should focus on reforming

our Organization and on making it more responsive to

the needs and aspirations of its constituents.

In that context, we should work together on the

reform of the Security Council and the revitalization

of the General Assembly and on improving the working

methods of our Organization. Mauritius believes that a

comprehensive reform of the Security Council should

include reform in the membership of both the permanent

and non-permanent categories. We reaffirm our

commitment to the African common position enshrined

in the Ezulwini Consensus and the Sirte Declaration.

We believe that Africa should not be deprived of its right

to permanent representation in the Council. Likewise,

we believe that Latin America deserves permanent

representation in the Council and that SIDS should also

be entitled to a seat on the Council. Mauritius further

reiterates its support for India’s legitimate aspiration to

a permanent seat in a reformed Security Council.

Mauritius also reiterates its firm conviction that the

rule of law should prevail in the resolution of disputes,

in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations.

We believe that the international community has an

obligation to ensure that, in line with the principles of

the rule of law, nations should submit their disputes to

conciliation, mediation, adjudication or other peaceful

means, both judicial and non-judicial.

The dismemberment of part of our territory,

the Chagos archipelago, prior to independence, by

the then colonial Power the United Kingdom, was in

clear breach of international law and left the process

of decolonization, not only of Mauritius but of Africa

in general, incomplete. Yet, the United Kingdom has

shown no inclination to engage in any process that would

lead to a settlement of that shameful part of its colonial

past. I am confident that the United Kingdom and the

United States of America want to be on the right side

of history. States that look to the law and to the rules

of the comity of nations for the resolution of disputes

should not be frustrated by the lack of avenues under

international law for the settlement of such disputes.

Tromelin, which is also an integral part of our

territory, is the subject of ongoing discussions with

the French Government, and pending a final resolution

of the issue, Mauritius and France have concluded a

framework agreement on the co-management of the

island and its surrounding maritime areas, without

prejudice to the sovereignty of Mauritius over Tromelin.

In our part of the world, we welcome the rise of a

re-energized Africa. The return to normalcy in Mali

and the recent holding of elections there show the

relevance of international partnerships. The situation

in Madagascar and in the Democratic Republic of

the Congo will, hopefully, be resolved soon through

the support of the international community for the

initiatives of the Southern African Development

Community in that regard.

Earlier this year, Mauritius hosted an African

ministerial conference on regional integration. We are

convinced that African nations will benefit significantly

from a greater focus on regional cooperation, and I am

pleased to note that the solemn declaration adopted on

the fiftieth anniversary of the African Union supports

that view.

The tragic events in Syria over the last two years

are of serious concern to the global community.

There is also concern about attempts to bypass the

Security Council and to initiate action in breach of

the United Nations Charter. Respect for the rule of

law at the international level entails compliance with

internationally agreed norms. Mauritius will support

the decisions taken by the organs of the United Nations

under the Charter.

We welcome the Security Council resolution

that addresses one of the issues in the Syrian crisis.

However, the international community needs to go

further and address the issue of political dialogue,

which will enable the Syrian people to live in peace.

Mauritius also supports a Middle East that is free

of weapons of mass destruction. That means that no

country in the region should hold nuclear or chemical

weapons.

Mauritius is convinced that an essential condition

for peace and prosperity in the Middle East is the

peaceful coexistence of the States of Palestine and

Israel. Mauritius wishes to reiterate its solidarity with

the Palestine National Authority and the Palestinian

people in their rightful aspiration to win full recognition

as a State Member of the United Nations.

Mauritius also supports the peaceful restoration

of democracy in Egypt, which has a key role to play

in promoting stability and security in the region.

But the international community cannot condone the

removal by force from office and the detention of a

democratically elected leader.

(spoke in French)

The general debate of the General Assembly offers

us a unique opportunity to highlight the most urgent

challenges that humankind is currently facing. We

must take advantage of this opportunity to review

recent events and to outline new approaches that will

enable us to respond to these challenges in keeping with

the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United

Nations. We must address those challenges through a

shared vision of peace, security, interdependence and

respect for fundamental rights and freedoms.

We must remain staunch in protecting the right

to development. We also have the duty to take a

differentiated approach so as to ensure that our

development model is sustainable and allows us to

leave to future generations the values our world holds

dear. Our success will depend on the collective will and

commitment. If we succeed, we will go down in history

as having met today’s challenges and expectations in

terms of the future.

(spoke in English)

To conclude, let me say that we need to act

together, in a spirit of compromise and tolerance. We

should constantly remind ourselves that we are of

one kind, humankind. There are not, and never will

be, ideal solutions that will satisfy all of us. But we,

the leaders of our respective countries, need to look

beyond the horizon and have the moral courage to look

at our common humanity so that we may move forward

towards making our world a better, more prosperous

and safer place for the whole of humankind.