Chad, 2004

First

of all, on behalf of the members of my delegation and

on my own behalf, I would like to congratulate you,

Sir, upon your election to the presidency of our

Assembly. Your election is a great tribute to both our

subregion in Central Africa and to your country, the

Gabonese Republic. It is also a sign of recognition of

your abilities as a statesman and a guarantee of our

work’s success. My thanks and my congratulations also

go to your predecessor and his team for their

dedication and the enthusiasm with which they did a

great deal of work — which was much appreciated by

all — in a particularly tense environment marked by

animated debates about the Iraqi crisis.

Finally, I would like to pay a particular well-

deserved tribute to the Secretary-General of our

Organization, our brother Kofi Annan, whose

commitment and unceasing efforts to establish lasting

peace and sustainable development in the world are

praiseworthy. He can count on Chad’s support for all of

the initiatives that he is still undertaking with courage

and tenacity, particularly in dealing with the problems

and conflicts in Africa, initiatives through which he is

thus contributing to restoring our Organization’s

credibility.

A year ago, when we addressed this Assembly

and reiterated our commitment to defend the great

causes of mankind, we took that opportunity to

condemn terrorism and all forms of blind violence and

intolerance that could lead our world astray. We

recalled at the time that our States needed to apply the

United Nations Charter in reacting to terrorist acts —

or acts considered as terrorist — that constitute a threat

to international peace and security. We reiterate those

appeals, and call again on the sense of responsibility of

our States to act together to curb by all possible means

the major scourges that are such a dangerous threat to

all mankind, physically as well as socio-economically.

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With respect to combating terrorism, the

Government of Chad, for its part, is actively

cooperating with the appropriate institutions of the

United Nations, under Security Council resolution

1373 (2001), in order to strengthen its national

capacity to prevent and combat this scourge.

The past year for Chad, as for many African

countries, was a year of serious concerns regarding the

armed conflicts raging everywhere — conflicts that

took peaceful populations hostage, destabilized our

States and continued to jeopardize the joint efforts

being made to establish democratic institutions and

promote socio-economic progress.

Let us say, however, that the accomplishments

under the agenda that led to the re-election of the

President of Chad, His Excellency Idriss Deby, for a

second term are progressing at a reasonable rate in

spite of various difficulties. This agenda, which is

perfectly in line with the Millennium Development

Goals, seeks to create, through good governance,

conditions that are conducive to the strengthening of

peace and stability in the country so that we can

promote education and health for all social strata,

employment — particularly for the youth and

women — and true synergy among the different forces

and competencies arising from the various national

entities. This must be done so that we can do an

effective job in combating poverty and the great

pandemics, such as HIV/AIDS and malaria. I recall

here that this agenda, in which the fight against

illiteracy and ignorance is written in capital letters, is

based on the most important principles: peace, security

and justice. Without these, it will not be possible to

build a society in which universal values such as

democracy and the respect for human rights are

ensured.

In addition, the task of adapting our legislation to

national and international realities was imposed on our

national representation meeting, which made a

commitment on 26 May 2004, to a procedure aimed at

amending some provisions of the Fundamental Law

adopted by referendum on 31 March 1996. This

procedure, which will harmonize the Constitution with

the requirements of democracy and fundamental

freedoms, is in keeping with the final provisions of the

Constitution, which itself authorizes the revision.

In this context of globalizing economies, in

which the rules of the game are constantly being

subverted, in particular by the practice of the largest

States of subsidizing their own agricultural products to

the detriment of the poorer countries, all efforts to

resolve these developmental problems have been

inconclusive. Even a strict application by our States of

structural adjustment measures is still seriously

threatened by the double weight of foreign debt and the

complexity of social problems. Those issues make it

practically impossible to take action to stimulate

economic growth in the developing countries.

With the exception of oil resources, we are

witnessing an ongoing decline in export earnings due

to fluctuating commodity prices on international

markets, and losses, caused principally by the policy of

providing subsidies, continue to grow; yet States have

been slow to help the least developed countries by

meeting the commitments they made at successive

development conferences.

Here, let me speak of the cotton initiative, whose

purpose is to obtain compensation for harm caused by

subsidies that have been detrimental to the economies

of cotton-producing African countries. It is

increasingly urgent to ensure respect for the laws of

competition, which the States seen as the principal

initiators and defenders of free markets now seem to be

disregarding.

As if that were not enough, in addition to the

inherent difficulties of the international economic

environment, those very farmers are today confronting

a threat of an entirely different scope: the invasions of

locusts. This raises the spectre of famine throughout

the Sahelo-Saharan countries. Chad is in a natural

reproductive zone for locusts and is also considered a

corridor for locust swarm migration.

The situation is of even greater concern because,

in addition to the other difficulties, the areas exposed

to locust invasion are the ones that are protecting the

Sudanese refugees. Our countries have taken the

appropriate measures, thanks to the assistance of our

partners; we have thus been able to deal with the

progress of the first locust swarms. However, the threat

has not disappeared.

At the risk of having to manage a humanitarian

crisis that could result from the destruction of food

crops by the locusts, we must mobilize financial

resources and the necessary technical and logistical

means while we still have the time, in order to curb the

scourge. We thank the countries and international

6

organizations that have helped my country, and I take

this opportunity to reiterate my Government’s appeal to

the international community for vigorous action

against the threat of locusts. Responses to the appeal

will help us set up appropriate structures for preventive

action.

While speaking of natural disasters, I must

mention the consequences of tropical depressions that

are doing a great deal of damage and that have, in the

past few weeks, claimed thousands of victims among

the populations of the Caribbean islands. We express

our sympathy to those populations, and I would ask the

wealthy nations to provide the needed assistance to

help them recover from the disaster.

In addition to natural disasters, armed conflicts

too play a part in exacerbating the social crises from

which our people are suffering. In 2004, my country

and the United Nations have engaged in intensive

diplomatic activity related, inter alia, to the

humanitarian and security situation along the border

between Chad and the Sudan. That situation, which is

the result of a conflict between the rebels of Darfur,

and the central Government in Khartoum, is of serious

concern to my Government. The scope of the hostilities

and the violent excesses perpetrated against civilian

populations by the various parties to the conflict, have

provoked massive and continuous flows of Sudanese

refugees to the eastern and north-eastern regions of

Chad. That flow has consequences for our people and

for the environment, whose ecosystems were already in

a precarious state of fragility caused by the aridity of

the soil and the climate.

The President of the Republic of Chad quickly

understood the consequences of the conflict and made

a commitment to help our brothers in the Sudan find a

peaceful solution, by offering to mediate between the

parties. He personally initiated the inter-Sudanese

negotiations on the Darfur conflict, with the signature

of the Abeche Agreement on 3 September 2003. That

process was followed by the 8 April 2004 N’Djamena

agreement on a humanitarian ceasefire, and the

25 April agreement on a joint commission; these will

provide a framework for negotiations on a final and

comprehensive settlement of the conflict.

In other words, we could not remain indifferent to

the tragedy that the people in Darfur were

experiencing. It is our duty, more than any other

country, to help our brothers in the Sudan to reconcile.

We have spared no effort to help President Omer

Hassan A. Al-Bashir and his Government, while

respecting the sovereignty of their country, to resolve

the Darfur conflict.

Thus, we took the risk of exposing ourselves to

criticism from the rebel movements, which accused us

of favouritism, as well as the discontent of the Chadian

people related to the people of Darfur. This clearly

contradicts the widespread disinformation claiming

that the Government of Chad might have supported

some kind of rebellion against the legitimate

authorities of the Sudan, with which our country has

close ties of friendship and cooperation in all areas. We

will never stop fulfilling our mission to mediate

alongside the African Union to urge our Sudanese

brothers to renounce war once and for all and to

promote sincere dialogue in order to resolve the

conflict.

In spite of the recent uncertainties due to the

hardening of positions, we place our hope in the Abuja

talks under the auspices of His Excellency President

Olusegun Obasanjo of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,

current Chairman of the African Union. We believe

that the adoption of Security Council resolution 1564

(2004), whose full implementation by the Government

of the Sudan is expected in order to facilitate

conditions conducive to the return of populations to

their homes, will be followed by complementary

measures aimed at convincing the other parties to the

Darfur crisis to take a constructive approach at the

negotiating table. We hope that the international

community will be firm with all sides in order to

promote a successful conclusion of the process of a

political settlement of the Darfur crisis.

Throughout the terrible times the populations

along the border of Chad and the Sudan have endured,

international solidarity has been evident. I must

express the appreciation of the Government of the

Republic of Chad for the many forms of assistance we

have received from the international community, which

has allowed us to help the refugees.

I would also like to call upon States and

organizations represented here to convey to the

appropriate authorities in their countries and

organizations an appeal to continue or renew

humanitarian assistance to the refugees, whether from

southern Sudan or southern Central Africa, whom we

are sheltering in the south of our country.

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I would also like to ask the international

community to help the populations of the host regions

not only to provide shelter for the refugees but also to

make possible the reconstruction of their

socioeconomic structures that have been affected by

the unexpected flow of refugees. The flow of refugees

and their prolonged stay in Chad would — if we are

not careful — have consequences which might be

dangerous to the security of my country.

Having agreed to abide by the international

commitments it has freely entered into, Chad is

receiving the refugees and looking out for their safety.

In the long term, the international support that my

country enjoys should focus on promoting the

voluntary return, within a short and reasonable time, of

refugees to their countries of origin. International

assistance to refugees must therefore be designed and

conducted so as not to perpetuate the presence of the

refugees in Chad.

While we are working together with the

international community to ease the pain of the

refugees on our soil, we say frankly that we can in no

way tolerate Chad being used as a base for subversive

actions, for acts of terrorism or for the conduct of

hostile or destabilizing actions against the institutions

of the refugees’ countries of origin. Thus, the

Government of Chad will act, with all the unambiguity

reflected in its current position, against refugees who

become involved in such activities.

The gravity of the humanitarian and security

situation born of the crisis that is raging in Darfur has

not deflected my country’s attention from other similar

concerns on the continent. We are following attentively

and with great interest the evolution of other conflicts

that are taking place in Africa and in other parts of the

world. We are pleased to see the efforts being made

within the African Union and the United Nations to

find lasting solutions; we are available to help as best

we can. Therefore, the Government of Chad has

decided to respond to the needs outlined by the

Department of Peacekeeping Operations by making

available to the United Nations a contingent of 150

qualified men.

On this solemn occasion, how could we fail to

recall the unjust and undemocratic situation that

characterizes the structures of our Organization? I

would like to say firmly that my country remains

committed to the common African position regarding

the restructuring of the United Nations, including the

enlargement and reform of the Security Council in

order to ensure equitable representation of all regions.

All the initiatives taken by Secretary-General Kofi

Annan regarding United Nations reform are much

appreciated by my country, which awaits with interest

the outcome of the deliberations under way. The

objective is the revitalization of the United Nations.

All suggestions should help us to improve the

performance of the principal organs and the

functioning of present and future funds and

programmes.

To that end, my country would expect account to

be taken of the concerns and viewpoints of Member

States and groups of States that have been reiterated on

many occasions in the Assembly. Chad awaits with

equal interest the outcome of the study on

globalization: the current characteristics and direction

of globalization by no means enable weaker or

transitional economies to benefit fully from the

opportunities it offers.

Another injustice should be pointed out. I must

draw the Assembly’s attention to the question of the

exclusion from our ranks of a large community of the

23 million men and women of the Republic of China

on Taiwan. Those men and women, who increasingly

are asserting themselves in international trade and are

generating wealth throughout the world, deserve to be

fully associated in decision-making on subjects and in

areas with an impact on their lives and those of all

humankind. The United Nations would have everything

to gain and nothing to lose with their active

participation in debates on the many topics of

international concern. Their contribution would

undoubtedly enrich the Assembly debates and would

help us build the operational capacity of our world

institutions, funds and programmes.

The distressing legacy of armed conflicts

includes buried caches of abandoned munitions and

unexploded ordnance and, in particular, anti-personnel

mines. Referring to the danger of landmines, the

Secretary-General has said that these abominable

weapons, buried by the millions, are not only waiting

silently to kill or maim innocent children and women,

but their presence — or even the threat of the presence

of one single landmine — can put a stop to crop

cultivation, deprive an entire village of its livelihood

and thus place one more obstacle along the difficult

path to reconstruction and development. Chad is

8

actively participating in the preparations for the Ottawa

Convention review conference soon to be held in

Nairobi and will continue to act to eliminate all of

these arms so as to attain the objective of an Earth

without mines.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank,

without exception, all the States and all the

intergovernmental and non-governmental institutions

that have helped us establish and implement our

humanitarian demining programmes. We ask them for

their continued generosity, and we ask them to extend

their assistance to survivors among the victims of

landmines, to help design and implement programmes

enabling these individuals to be reintegrated socially

and professionally. I appeal to all United Nations

Member States to join in this humanitarian undertaking

by acceding to the Ottawa Convention banning anti-

personnel landmines.