El Salvador, 2014

I am

proud to represent a small but great nation, El Salvador,

before the Assembly. Our history has been full of

painful moments, but also times of hope and courage.

For years, we struggled to achieve democracy. We

marked a historic global milestone when we became

the first country in the region to end a painful civil war

through dialogue and reconciliation in order to begin to

build a democratic country.

Like most developing countries, we face the familiar

challenges of reducing poverty and social inequalities

and building the conditions needed for families to

have healthier and safer lives. Experience has shown

us that it is only through solidarity, respect, inclusion

and equity that we can overcome those challenges. In

recent years, we have made significant strides in human

development. In rural areas, we have reduced extreme

poverty to 13.6 per cent; we have allocated 14.8 per cent

of our gross domestic product to social spending; and

we have raised primary education coverage to 93.7 per

cent and reduced illiteracy by a little over 5 percentage

points. We have achieved an important reduction in

maternal mortality, and we have improved sanitation

services and access to drinking water for the population.

We have witnessed significant changes, and just

as we did 14 years ago at the Millennium Summit, we

are working on the parameters that will lead us to a

more just and equitable world. However, our debt to

humankind remains. We continue working to create

factors that can enhance our human development and

provide stronger social protection, which will allow us

to ensure universal access to basic social services on a

sustainable basis.

We are one year away from the most important

world summit in our history, where we will evaluate

the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), in

particular the goals that have been achieved, and

where we will define the new post-2015 development

agenda, based on a new comprehensive, transformative

and inclusive development paradigm. We believe in

a vision for development that meets the needs of our

peoples, in which all human beings have a full and

dignified life, living in democracy and enjoying the

right to sovereignty and determination and the right to

choose our path towards peace and development. The

new agenda must integrate universal issues, such as

migration, climate change, food security, education,

health, public safety and world peace. We must not keep

repeating the errors of the past. Based on the experience

of the MDGs, we must reduce the inequality gaps and

the structural causes of poverty and exclusion.

The new global agenda requires us to come to an

agreement on how to face the great threat of climate

change, which afflicts us with hardships and limits the

opportunities for families to live with dignity. The next

few months are key for the establishment of a road map

to implement the parameters of the new development

paradigm. We must work together, using an approach

based on shared but differentiated responsibilities.

It is urgent to amend the existing financial

architecture and international cooperation mechanisms

so that they meet the needs of our peoples with

effective institutions and transparent mechanisms.

We must renew the terms under which development

assistance is granted, review its amounts and ensure

the implementation of procedures that facilitate

the principles of sustainable development. The new

development indicators should make exclusion and

inequality visible. To that end, measurements must focus

on whether needs are met and opportunities provided.

The objectives and goals should address personal

fulfilment and our right to the pursuit of happiness as

much as the economic growth of countries.

I call upon the United Nations to maintain its

resources and programmes in Latin America, and

in particular in Central America, regardless of the

macroeconomic classification of our countries. To

reduce the United Nations presence would only

exacerbate the serious economic and social inequality

problems suffered by the region.

Financing for development is vital for the

implementation of the sustainable development goals

and the post-2015 development agenda. I reaffirm the

resolution adopted by the Council of Ministers of the

Central American Integration System (SICA), which

stresses that financing for development should be based

on the priorities of the countries concerned, making use

of innovative financing mechanisms. We must explore

new sources, such as the resources found in offshore

areas, a global asset to which only a handful of countries

now have access. El Salvador expresses its commitment

to the new global alliance for development, based on

the Monterrey Consensus, the Doha Declaration on

Financing for Development and the outcome document

of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable

Development (resolution 66/288, annex).

Much work still lies ahead. However, countries will

not be able to accomplish that work unilaterally, but

should rather take action within the framework of the

United Nations. We must also unite to advance the reform

process of the United Nations, especially since we need

a strengthened and renewed Organization. We need a

General Assembly, the main forum for global debate,

with an agenda focused on the most pressing issues of

the international community, and a Security Council

open to increased representation and participation

by all Member States. We call for the strong support

and political will of all Member States, so that we can

have an Organization that can provide timely support

in the face of the new challenges posed by history. In

the context of those global challenges, our Government

reaffirms its call for a comprehensive and inclusive

development agenda for social peace, capacity-building

and consensus-building across sectors.

In recent years, my country has launched a

transformation process that focuses on sustainable

development, the fight against poverty and the

reduction of inequality, exclusion and social injustice,

and that promotes an equality agenda with a focus on

gender and human rights. In our country, the Universal

Social Protection System Law is an invaluable tool that

integrates for the first time a network of social policies

and strategies that provides basic services to people, is

focused on the most vulnerable population groups and

is designed to address the main challenges we face.

El Salvador makes every effort to improve the quality

of life of the population and to build the conditions that

will help us to strengthen family unity, values and create

opportunities for new generations and raise awareness

about the risks of irregular migration, especially to the

United States. I call upon the international community

to support us in overcoming the situation generated

by the increased flow of unaccompanied migrant

children travelling to the United States. The United

Nations system, including the General Assembly,

must play a greater role in addressing the migration

issue and recognize that human mobility is a relevant

factor in the Organization’s work and include it in the

implementation of the post-2015 development agenda.

As we address that phenomenon, which has many

causes, we are convinced that we must act with a

comprehensive approach that provides protection

for the rights of our children, ensures respect for

the due process of law and provides support for the

reunification of children with their parents. We must

work with the communities of origin of the migrant

population to create better conditions and increase the

investment in education, health, safety and jobs — all

from a perspective of joint responsibility among the

countries of origin, transit and destination.

Threats to public safety represent another major

challenge faced by our country and others in the region

and throughout the world. We will not rest until we

ensure the necessary conditions for Salvadorans to live

safely and in peace. The various sectors of our society

are responding to the call of our Government, and we

hope that the international community will strengthen

its support for the titanic struggle that El Salvador and

Central America are waging against violence in all its

different forms.

We observe with concern the many conflicts and

threats to international peace and security. We deeply

regret the loss of lives, particularly of children, as

a result of the indiscriminate attacks in Gaza. We

welcome the peace plan presented by Egypt, and we

urge the parties involved to endeavour to ensure a firm

and lasting peace that achieves the coexistence of two

States, Israel and Palestine, within secure borders.

We are concerned about the recent attacks and

human rights violations committed by the self-

proclaimed Islamic State against the defenceless civilian

population. We call on the international community to

close ranks in United Nations bodies so as to put an end

to those brutal acts. Only the coordinated action of our

multilateral system can achieve the results to which we

all aspire.

We will always be committed to peace. All citizens

of the world must become peacemakers, as Saint

John Paul II himself said during one of his visits to

El Salvador. El Salvador, as a beneficiary of United

Nations support during our historic peace process,

cannot fail to strengthen its commitment to support

peacekeeping operations around the world. As a

country, we are providing support through our prompt

contribution to the United Nations Multidimensional

Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali, and we are

standing with the Haitian people in their recovery

process, as part of a joint effort of the United Nations

system, which cannot be neglected.

I wish to stress that human rights is one of the

priority working areas of our foreign policy. In that

context, El Salvador has presented its candidacy to the

Human Rights Council, which will hold elections at

this session of the General Assembly. Our candidacy

represents an opportunity for us to continue to fulfil

our international commitments and to demonstrate the

importance of living under the rule of law in harmony

with our environment.

In our efforts in pursuit of peace and inclusive and

equitable development, there is no place for contempt

for fundamental principles and freedoms. I refer here

to the economic, trade and financial blockade against

the sister Republic of Cuba, which, in spite of that

unilateral action against its people, has overcome the

obstacles and adversity imposed on it with exemplary

perseverance and determination. Consequently,

El Salvador calls for an end to the blockade. We believe

that the inclusion of Cuba in the list of States sponsors

of international terrorism is unfounded. Cuba must be

removed from that mechanism, whose sole purpose is

to justify the blockade.

I want to highlight the contribution to multilateralism

made by the countries of Central and Latin America

and their regional organizations. Let me mention in

particular the Central American Integration System,

where we have be able to set out a multidimensional

regional agenda that guides our regional work through

five main pillars: economic integration, social

integration and the fight against poverty, comprehensive

disaster management and the adaptation to climate

change, institutional strengthening and democratic

security.

The Central and Latin American region needs

international support for the Central American

Security Strategy, which will allow our Governments

to complement national efforts and have a greater

impact on regional security. I reiterate the call for the

international community to give its full support to the

Strategy. The activities of regional bodies, such as SICA

and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean

States, are fundamental and are aimed at strengthening

solidarity and cooperation among all peoples of the

world.

As I have stated, we are witnessing an

unprecedented process of change in the world, which

brings with it both opportunities and challenges. If we

are to succeed, we must unite and integrate our peoples

and Governments in a global community — committed

to the values of democracy, peace, equality, progress

and development. I conclude by stating that, within

our modest possibilities, we are ready to meet that

challenge.