Malawi, 2001

At the outset, I would like to

convey the condolences of the people and the

Government of the Republic of Malawi to the

Government and the people of the United States of

America, as well as to the people and Government of

the Dominican Republic and other countries whose

nationals died in the plane crash that occurred in

Queens, here in New York, on 12 November 2001.

Similarly, I also wish to convey my condolences to the

Government and the people of Algeria, following the

recent flood disaster in which many lives were lost and

much property was damaged.

On behalf of the Malawi delegation, I feel deeply

honoured to join my fellow representatives in

congratulating Mr. Han Seung-soo on his assumption

of the presidency of the General Assembly. My

delegation looks forward to working closely with him

over the coming months in the pursuit of sustainable

solutions to the major global concerns and challenges

that continue to confront humankind and in the

promotion of international peace, security and

understanding.

Let me also take this opportunity to express

Malawi’s deep appreciation of and thanks to his

predecessor, Mr. Harri Holkeri of Finland, for his

exceptional skills, expertise and unswerving

commitment. We have noted with appreciation how his

tireless efforts and tenacity have resulted in progress

on most of the items of the agenda during his

presidency.

May I also take this opportunity to congratulate

our Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, and the United

Nations as a whole, for being jointly awarded the

Nobel Peace Prize for the year 2001. This demonstrates

the world’s recognition of the great strides the

Organization and the Secretary-General have made in

carrying forward the mandate of the United Nations.

This achievement is a rare feat that we should be proud

of, and it should serve to encourage all of us to do

more for the good of humanity.

I would also like to reiterate the congratulations

of the Government of Malawi to Mr. Kofi Annan on his

appointment to the post of Secretary-General for a

second term of office.

It is appalling and extremely unfortunate that at a

time when we thought we were making progress in

human development, some people among us conducted

heinous and abhorrent acts of terrorism. The terrorist

attacks in this country on 11 September serve to remind

us that the global village we are living in is under

threat from people who do not value human life and

democratic values. The Government of Malawi

believes that no cause or rationale can justify terrorism

as a means of achieving individual or group goals, as

such acts result in indiscriminate destruction of human

life and property. Clearly, it is evident that no nation

will be spared the far-reaching, devastating impact of

the attacks of 11 September.

The Government of Malawi unreservedly

condemns those acts and pledges its support and

cooperation in the fight against such unjustifiable

criminal acts. It is our sincere hope that all those

responsible for the terrorist attacks on the United States

of America and, indeed, elsewhere in the world, will

speedily be brought to justice. As we all share

sympathy with the victims of the recent terrorist

attacks, let us also demonstrate our unanimous resolve

to deal with this problem in a decisive and conclusive

manner by ratifying or acceding to all conventions

aimed at combating terrorism. That will send a strong

message to all parts of the world about our common

purpose to remove this evil from our midst.

It is common knowledge that terrorist groups and

individuals or entities operate in sophisticated

networks throughout the world. No country, therefore,

can decisively deal with this problem alone. It is

imperative that we all pool our resources to resolutely

deal with the cancer of terrorism. Security Council

resolution 1373 (2001) forms a sound and clear basis

on which our cooperation should be anchored. It is

abundantly clear that, if this resolution can be seriously

implemented, it may effectively frustrate and check

terrorist activities.

It will be recalled that the strategic priority of the

Millennium Summit held last year was to find ways of

reshaping and reorienting the focus of the United

Nations that would inspire a renewed and shared sense

of universal mission, thereby enabling it to make a real,

quantifiable difference in the lives of “We, the peoples”

in the new millennium.

And yet, regrettably, one year after that watershed

event, the commitments of the Millennium Summit

already seem to be anything but what they are —

commitments — and to be mere platitudes on the part

of the developed countries. The Summit’s much-

trumpeted visions, goals and collective social

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objectives already appear to have been consigned to the

same fate of non-fulfilment that has befallen similar,

previous commitments of the rich nations.

It is saddening that, at the height of a global

integration drive, a shockingly large number of

countries remains outside the globalization loop, while

a handful of economically powerful countries of the

North controls the pace and terms of participation in

the global economy, not least the skewed distribution

of its benefits. It is equally disheartening to note, in

particular, that the African continent is nowhere near

attaining even half as much of the benefit that it has

strenuously striven for in the global economy. Now

more than ever, our continent is fast sliding deeper and

deeper into a plight of deteriorating mass poverty.

This situation is aggravated by mounting external

debt, crumbling public infrastructure, marginally

functional social services, severe environmental

degradation, rising illiteracy and the rapid depletion of

human resources and the skilled labour force as a result

of endless armed conflicts and the devastation caused

by epidemics, such as those of HIV/AIDS, malaria,

tuberculosis and other transmissible infections. These

are some of the many issues that we have discussed

time and again in this Assembly and other forums, and

yet we seem to be getting nowhere.

Clearly, Africa is under the threat of imminent

virtual exclusion from the mainstream global

economy — more so if the underlying spirit, ideals,

goals and commitments of the Millennium Summit are

not faithfully upheld to ensure the concrete and

effective integration of the developing countries into

the global economic framework on terms that reflect a

shared future of promise of equality, equity, prosperity

for all and a just world.

In spite of all these apprehensions, my delegation

is still encouraged by the wide global consensus on a

range of major issues of critical concern to the least

developed countries of Africa. The positive

conclusions reached during the special session on

HIV/AIDS and the world Conferences that took place

this year — the Third United Nations Conference on

the Least Developed Countries, the United Nations

Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and

Light Weapons in All Its Aspects and the World

Conference against Racism and Racial Discrimination,

Xenophobia and Related Intolerance — reflect a newly

emerging global recognition that there is an urgent

need to begin concretely addressing the issues that will

aggressively advance the economic and social progress

of the less developed nations. The declarations and

programmes of action agreed at those Conferences

must be the centrepiece of any genuine international

crusade to reduce social and economic disparities and

inequalities between the North and the South. Indeed,

the persistence of these inequalities and injustices, in

our view, is the root cause of the political, economic

and social turmoil currently tearing apart the African

countries and some parts of the world. Malawi would

like to reaffirm its steadfast commitment to the

declarations of commitment, actions and programmes

agreed at these Conferences.

What the developing countries need is a chance

for a fresh start, which can come about only through a

comprehensive package of total debt forgiveness that

cuts across the existing initiatives for debt relief,

including the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor

Countries Debt Initiative. We also need increased

technical assistance, enhanced official development

assistance and much greater flows of capital resources

and foreign direct investment from developed

countries.

We would also like to insist on the genuine

commitment of the North to the full integration of our

economies into globalized markets through the removal

of technical obstacles placed in the way of our exports.

The United Nations ought to play a leading role in

breaking down the walls of protectionism and to

sustain the search for measures that can help the poor

nations wriggle out of their poverty and vulnerability.

This is in line with the spirit of the resolutions and

decisions taken at last year’s World Summit for Social

Development.

I take this opportunity to pay special tribute to

Secretary-General Kofi Annan for the numerous

initiatives that he has undertaken to prevent violent

conflicts in Africa and other troubled regions of the

world. The recent release to the Security Council of his

special report on conflict prevention, which addresses

in depth the many issues that arose from the Brahimi

report, is one practical demonstration of the Secretary-

General’s overpowering resolve to ensure that the

international community addresses political disputes

and tensions before they degenerate into all-out armed

confrontations and violent conflicts. These pose a

major challenge and real threat to international peace

and security.

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In the same vein, to effectively tame violent

conflicts, the United Nations needs to deal decisively

with the problem of the illicit trade and trafficking in

small arms and light weapons. Their easy availability,

transfer and proliferation remain at the centre of the

intractability of violent conflicts, rising insecurity and

instability in some parts of Africa.

My delegation is most thankful for the success,

albeit measured, achieved during the recent United

Nations Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms

and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects. In spite of a

spirited bid by others to water down the agreed global

consensus and programme of action, Africa takes heart

in the holding of the Conference itself as a good

starting point for putting in place effective measures to

curb the immeasurable damage caused by these deadly

weapons.

Many evils such as slavery, the slave trade,

colonialism, apartheid, genocide, the HIV/AIDS

pandemic, poverty and starvation have afflicted the

continent of Africa and its people. These evils have

been entrenched to such an extent that even the

international media only look forward to reporting on

the tragedies befalling the continent. However, despite

these ills, Africa deserves a special place in the

economic, political and social spheres of the world. It

is in cognizance of this fact that our leaders, in their

quest for a prosperous and dynamic Africa, resolved to

transform the Organization of African Unity into the

African Union.

The birth of the Union has ushered in the New

African Initiative, now renamed the New Partnership

for Africa’s Development, which seeks to pull Africa

out of stagnation and put the continent on a new

footing for economic recovery and prosperity as well

as for the promotion of human rights and good

governance. As a developing region with very limited

financial resources, we shall rely on our cooperating

partners in order to ensure that our dream for a new

Africa is realized. Therefore, I wish to appeal for

global support for this noble initiative being espoused

by our leaders so that the people of the African

continent may see real social, economic and political

transformation for the betterment of their lives.

Malawi recently assumed the one-year rotating

chairmanship of the Southern African Development

Community (SADC). While SADC member States take

pride in the relative peace and stability that prevail in

much of the subregion, we still have serious concerns

about the persistent general economic slowdown and

the deterioration of human development in the

subregion. SADC is experiencing an unfair share of

problems and challenges which require the

international community’s enhanced generous

assistance and good will.

It is common knowledge that SADC is reeling

under the pressures of the untold devastation caused by

the HIV/AIDS pandemic, which is unravelling decades

of hard-earned economic gains. The subregion

accounts for 75 per cent of the world’s total number —

that is, 36 million — of people living with deadly

HIV/AIDS. SADC’s modest average economic growth

rate of 3.2 per cent becomes a cause for serious

concern when compared with its staggering population

growth rate of nearly the same level.

Apart from causing untold human suffering, the

continuing civil wars in Angola and the Democratic

Republic of the Congo — two of the subregion’s

potential economic powerhouses — have hamstrung

every genuine endeavour by SADC to promote itself as

a prime destination for foreign capital and investment.

Therefore, we call upon the United Nations to step up

its efforts to bring pressure to bear on the belligerents

in Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo

so that the ongoing peace initiatives can yield the rich

rewards of an early and decisive settlement. We also

call upon the international community to continue

rendering vital support and cooperation to the peace

facilitator in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to

ensure that the inter-Congolese dialogue bears fruit and

serves to consolidate the gains achieved so far by the

United Nations peacekeeping operation and the Lusaka

peace process.

SADC would also like to see much more pressure

exerted on Jonas Savimbi in order to force UNITA to

return to the 1994 Lusaka peace framework. Only the

intensification of the United Nations sanctions against

UNITA and the punishment of those violating the

embargo would genuinely achieve that goal.

The attainment of durable peace and stability in

the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola and

the removal of tensions in the rest of the subregion

would put SADC on a stronger footing for economic

recovery and a firmer foundation for sustainable peace,

security and tangible economic growth and

development.

31

Time and again, Malawi has spoken in favour of

readmission of the Republic of China on Taiwan to

United Nations membership, which would grant to that

country a well-deserved opportunity for active

engagement in international affairs. Malawi finds it

grossly unjust that the hard-working and peace-loving

people of Taiwan should suffer diplomatic isolation so

unnecessarily. Therefore, Malawi would like to appeal

to the entire United Nations membership to look

beyond narrow political considerations and face up to

the geopolitical and economic realities that obtain on

both sides of the Taiwan Straits. The diplomatic

isolation of Taiwan remains both a curiosity and a

contradiction in terms. First, almost every country

deals with Taiwan in terms of trade and other forms of

bilateral cooperation. Secondly, the isolation of Taiwan

violates its people’s inalienable right to free association

within the framework of the United Nations Charter.

Lastly, let me reaffirm Malawi’s trust and

confidence in the leadership role of the United Nations

in making our world a better place in which to live. I

would also like to reaffirm Malawi’s unwavering

commitment to its obligations and responsibilities as a

member of the international community of nations.