Nepal, 2010

I wish to extend our sincere

congratulations to you, Sir, on your election as the

President of the General Assembly at its sixty-fifth

session. I also thank the President at the sixty-fourth

session for his excellent stewardship of that session.

His Excellency Mr. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of

the United Nations, deserves our sincere appreciation

for his commitment and dedication.

The message of the High-level Plenary Meeting

of last week is still reverberating around this

Assembly: the continuing poverty and hunger in

today’s world, where we have made great strides in all

our endeavours, is unacceptable and must be brought to

an end without delay. It is quite disheartening to note

that the number of poor has surpassed one billion and

that they are concentrated in certain regions and groups

of countries, mostly in least developed countries

(LDCs).

The commitments expressed by the leaders

attending the High-level Plenary Meeting last week

rekindled our hope that it will be a different world in

2015. Otherwise, the Millennium Declaration

(resolution 55/2) and many other vital documents will

remain only a compilation of lofty promises. Let us

hope that we match our commitments with our deeds.

International peace and security are our shared

desire and a common responsibility. The challenges are

multiple and complex. In an ever-changing world, the

sources and the threats are varied, and so are the

actors. Political and social conflicts have been

aggravated by abject poverty and disparity. Therefore,

the stabilization of global peace and security also

demands ensuring freedom from want and hunger as a

basic human right and enabling people to realize their

full human potential. Thus we believe that

development, peace and security are inextricably

linked with one other.

Nepal has consistently and unequivocally called

for general and complete disarmament of all weapons

of mass destruction, under effective international

control. Nepal stands for the complete elimination of

nuclear weapons in a time-bound manner. The

operationalization of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-

Ban Treaty and the early conclusion of a fissile

materials cut-off treaty should be our priority. We

support efforts for the non-proliferation of small arms

and light weapons.

We welcome the signing in April this year of the

New START treaty between the United States and the

Russian Federation on strategic offensive arms. We

welcome the successful outcome of the 2010 Review

Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the

Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. However, we

call for reinvigorating the Conference on Disarmament

as a multilateral body, to start discussions on

substantive issues. We also appreciate the efforts of the

Secretary-General to advance nuclear disarmament on

the basis of the five-point action plan he has proposed.

Nepal strongly believes that regional mechanisms

complement efforts to promote the global disarmament

agenda. The United Nations Regional Centre for Peace

and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific, which we are

proud to host, must be strengthened in order to

revitalize the Kathmandu process to facilitate dialogue

and deliberations on confidence-building in the region.

In today’s world, devastating conflicts are a

constant threat to international security. Despite

progress on many fronts, violence and civil wars

10-55128 52

continue unabated. It is a matter of concern that

intra-State conflicts and extremism have steadily

grown over the years. We should work collectively. In

accordance with the principles and Charter of the

United Nations, we should all contribute to resolving

such conflicts through peaceful means and should help

stabilize situations through peacebuilding efforts.

In the Middle East, we are encouraged by the

recent direct dialogue between the Israelis and the

Palestinians. We look forward to the success of the

dialogue leading towards an independent Palestinian

State alongside a secure Israel. We would like to see a

peaceful resolution to disputes in the Korean peninsula

through dialogue.

Terrorism is a threat to all and knows no

geographical boundary. We unequivocally condemn

terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and call

for resolute international actions to fight it. Nepal has

been implementing the United Nations Global Counter-

Terrorism Strategy and is party to the South Asian

Association for Regional Cooperation Regional

Convention on Suppression of Terrorism of 1987 and

its Additional Protocol.

Legitimacy, universality and common ideals have

been the defining features of the United Nations.

Continued adherence to its core principles and

purposes will reinforce sovereign equality, territorial

integrity, non-interference and the peaceful settlement

of disputes. The inspiring values and the lofty ideals

that underpin the United Nations Charter remain as

relevant as ever.

We live in an era of continuous change. The

economic landscape is also changing with the

emergence of new, yet vibrant, poles of growth.

Globalization has changed the pattern of economic

relations, although its benefits are not widely and

equitably distributed.

The effectiveness of the United Nations depends

on our collective will to act and to deal with global

issues resolutely. In the face of new and emerging

challenges, it is urgent that the ideals of the United

Nations be translated into action effectively and in a

coherent manner. The theme of this year’s general

debate — “Reaffirming the central role of the United

Nations in global governance” — captures that

essence.

We underline the centrality of the United Nations

not only in maintaining peace and security, but also in

promoting international cooperation for development.

Its role in shaping policy debate on and establishing

global norms for economic and financial matters must

not be sidelined. The reform agenda needs to strike the

right balance to promote stability in the broadest sense.

Just as security and peace are critical for the

international community, so is the development

agenda. It must be given a focused priority within the

United Nations system.

United Nations reform should be pursued in a

systematic and holistic manner to further enhance the

Organization’s global standing.

The realities of the contemporary world call for a

change in the composition and working methods of the

Security Council. We support the expansion of

membership in the Council in both categories to reflect

the current realities of the world. We also call for

transparency in its working methods. We welcome

recent efforts to structure the debates with a view to

starting negotiations by taking into account the views

of all Member States.

We welcome the ongoing discussions on the

revitalization of the General Assembly in the context of

the balance between the various organs of the United

Nations, as envisioned by the founders. The role of the

Economic and Social Council must be enhanced in

promoting global economic relations and in advancing

the development agenda, in close cooperation with the

Bretton Woods institutions and other relevant

institutions. The Development Cooperation Forum and

the annual ministerial review are a welcome change in

that body.

We need to make the United Nations more

effective in ensuring coherence and consistency in the

global economic, financial and trading systems. We

call for special support for counter-cyclical measures,

social safety nets to protect the vulnerable, and fiscal

space to mitigate the crisis. We should make all these

steps particularly responsive to the needs and concerns

of vulnerable countries, such as LDCs.

Nepal welcomes the adoption of the resolution on

system-wide coherence by the General Assembly at its

sixty-fourth session, with a view to strengthening and

streamlining the operational activities of the United

Nations in the field of development (resolution

64/289). We also welcome and strongly support the

53 10-55128

establishment of UN Women as a single consolidated

entity to deal with issues pertaining to gender equality

and the empowerment of women.

Global peace and stability are our cherished goal.

Guided by that principled objective, Nepal has

extended unflinching support to all major United

Nations initiatives for the maintenance of international

peace and security through its active and consistent

participation in United Nations peacekeeping

operations around the world. In 2008, we celebrated

the fiftieth anniversary of our association with United

Nations peacekeeping operations with a view to further

consolidating our contributions to the cause of

international peace and security. Today, more than

5,000 Nepalese peacekeepers work in 13 different

peacekeeping missions around the world. Nepal’s

involvement in United Nations peacekeeping missions

has been one of the remarkable features of its

international engagement. We continue to participate

with dedication.

In line with our solemn commitment to the

United Nations Charter and our contribution to

promoting its ideals, I have the pleasure of announcing

at this Assembly that the Government of Nepal has put

forward the candidacy of Mr. Kul Chandra Gautam,

adviser to the Prime Minister of Nepal on the peace

process and international affairs, for the presidency of

the General Assembly at its sixty-sixth session.

The gradual increase in the number of

peacekeeping missions is an indicator of the sombre

fact that the number of conflicts around the world has

increased in recent years. The sustainable way to

resolve conflicts is to look at them comprehensively

and remove the factors that generate and sustain them.

Nepal’s commitment to human rights is resolute.

We are party to major international human rights

instruments. We are fully aware that the protection and

promotion of all human rights and fundamental

freedoms strengthen the sustainability of peace and

progress. The National Human Rights Commission, an

independent judiciary, a vibrant civil society and the

media have all played an important role in promoting

awareness and protecting human rights in Nepal.

Our fellow South Asian country Pakistan recently

suffered tragic loss of lives and destruction due to

unprecedented floods. Similarly, fellow LDC Haiti

faced a devastating earthquake. Those disasters have

wiped out hard-earned gains, and therefore we call for

full sympathy and support to them in their hour of

need.

Climate change has become a challenge to human

existence, a multidimensional threat to human lives

and all living things, the global ecosystem and human

civilization. It has a direct impact on our efforts to

eradicate poverty and hunger and to preserve the

ecological balance.

My country, which is a least developed

landlocked country with mountainous terrain, is highly

vulnerable to climate change. The Himalayas remain

the perennial source of freshwater for over a billion

people living in South Asia. Global warming has

precipitated the melting of snow in the Nepalese

Himalayas, and about two dozen of our glacial lakes

could burst their banks any time, causing a huge loss of

lives and property. Moreover, we face extreme weather

events, floods, soil degradation and desertification.

Because of their fragility, mountain countries face

special vulnerability to climate change.

Countries like Nepal contribute the least to

climate change, yet we bear a disproportionate impact,

and it is the poor and vulnerable people among us who

face its severe effects. We cannot wait for action

forever. At the national level, we are pursuing

afforestation programmes and promoting the use of

alternative sources of energy, as well as hydropower

generation.

There is an urgent need to make progress on

climate negotiations through an ambitious and

comprehensive outcome in Cancún, Mexico, later this

year. The international community should agree on

new, predictable, transparent and substantially

enhanced resource mobilization and a fast-track

provision to ensure resources for mitigation,

adaptation, technology transfer, reducing emissions

from deforestation and degradation — REDD-Plus —

and capacity-building in the least developed countries.

LDCs must be given priority so that they may

withstand the sweeping impact of climate change on

their people’s livelihoods.

International responses to the special needs and

concerns of LDCs have had limited success. The

implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action

has produced mixed results. The overall performance

of LDCs in the Millennium Development Goals and

other internationally agreed development goals stands

well below their expectations, despite some progress.

10-55128 54

That is primarily because we continue to face structural

handicaps and constraints, as well as a critical resource

gap in our development efforts.

Mutually reinforcing and exacerbating food,

energy, economic and financial crises, together with

the adverse and disproportionate impacts of climate

change, have further worsened the conditions of LDCs.

Limited economic activity, stagnant growth, the early

stage of industrialization, heavy reliance on

subsistence agriculture as the mainstay of the national

economy and a lack of employment opportunities in

other sectors have made poor countries highly

vulnerable to external shocks.

Such challenges cannot be overcome without a

renewed and scaled-up global partnership for

development. The fulfilment of all commitments to

official development assistance in a predictable,

transparent and accountable manner, the enhanced

provision of duty- and quota-free market access for all

LDCs, and the early conclusion of the Doha Round

with an ambitious, balanced, equitable and

development-oriented outcome and early results in

provisions aimed at LDCs will help generate economic

growth through equitable trade. Enhanced debt relief

measures, an increased flow of foreign direct

investment, technology transfer and investment in

building long-term productive capacity will be

critically important in order to ensure resources for the

financing of sustainable development in LDCs.

The United Nations will host the fourth United

Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries

in Istanbul next year. The Conference must aim to have

an ambitious, comprehensive, forward-looking and

results-oriented outcome. As the Chair of the LDC

Coordinating Bureau, I call upon the international

community to make the Istanbul outcome a turning

point in addressing the multidimensional challenges

and constraints that LDCs face today. The success of

the Conference will be measured by its contributions to

making a difference in the conditions of the millions of

poor in our countries.

Nepal is also a landlocked country. Therefore, our

development challenges are further compounded by

that reality, which increases the cost of our

international trade substantially. Therefore, specific

support measures to improve infrastructure and trade

facilitation in line with the Almaty Programme of

Action for landlocked developing countries will be

critical to promoting their development needs.

I will now touch on the political situation and the

ongoing peace process in my country. Nepal is passing

through the arduous transition from a 10-year conflict

to sustainable peace and stability with a nationally

driven peace process. We have come a long way since

June 2006, when the peace process started, with some

ups and downs, which is only natural for a complex

peace process. Yet our national determination remains

strong and unwavering, and we are fully committed to

bringing the ongoing peace process to a meaningful

conclusion by resolving all outstanding issues.

From a longer-term perspective, Nepal has

achieved some remarkable progress since the signing

of the Comprehensive Peace Accord on 21 November

2006. The promulgation of the interim constitution, the

election of the Constituent Assembly and,

subsequently, the declaration of Nepal as a federal

democratic republic stand as notable achievements.

Today, the 601-member Constituent Assembly of

Nepal, a third of whom are women, is one of the most

inclusive assemblies. The Assembly comprises

representation from different ethnic groups, backward

regions and traditionally marginalized communities,

among others.

Historic and unique as it is, Nepal’s peace

process is not confined only to the issue of signing the

Peace Accord and the elections to the Constituent

Assembly. The next important task is to write a new

constitution for the newly born republic. That will

consolidate the gains made over the years in

establishing the people as the real source of

sovereignty and State authority and in guaranteeing

multiparty democracy, human rights, a federal structure

and inclusive governance. Therefore, the process

encompasses a much broader agenda, leading towards

the historic transformation of Nepal’s political,

economic and social structure.

The people of Nepal nurture the hope of a better

future, which they rightly deserve. Political

transformation needs to be complemented by social

transformation and economic prosperity. While

ensuring political stability, we are making efforts to

revive the economy with new and focused initiatives

for the acceleration of economic activities, including

through the celebration of Nepal Tourism Year in 2011.

We hope that visitors will enjoy the flora and fauna of

55 10-55128

Nepal, including tours to Lumbini in Nepal, the

birthplace of Lord Buddha. To that end and to

revitalize and accelerate our economy, we look forward

to ambitious recovery measures with support from the

international community.

Recently we have made some progress in

addressing the core issues of the integration and

rehabilitation of the former Maoist combatants. In that

context, I am pleased to inform the Assembly that the

Government and the Unified Communist Party of

Nepal-Maoist have agreed to complete the process

within four months, under the monitoring and

supervision of the Special Committee, formed on the

basis of national consensus, as per the Constitution.

We anticipate accomplishing the outstanding

basic tasks in the peace process within the coming four

months, with the positive contributions of national

stakeholders and the goodwill and support of the

international community. Earlier this year, we also

achieved remarkable success, with the help of the

United Nations, in releasing the disqualified minors

living in cantonments, based on the action plan signed

on 16 December 2009.

The United Nations Mission in Nepal has been

involved in support of Nepal’s nationally driven peace

process. We express our appreciation to the United

Nations for its consistent support of our peace process.

Nepal’s commitment to the purposes and

principles of the United Nations Charter is total and

unflinching. For us, the United Nations is the best

expression of multilateralism. It has served the

international community in the past and continues to

work as a linchpin of international relationships today.

We have no doubt as to its indispensability.

However, it needs to do more in this globalized

world. Global problems require global solutions. That

is possible only through multilateralism, based on

inclusiveness and equity. We look for an enhanced and

coherent role of the United Nations in dealing with all

global issues, but in particular those that affect the

lives and livelihoods of the poor around the world.