Togo, 1994

More than anyone else, Sir, you are aware of

what excellent and solid relations of cooperation,

friendship and fraternity have existed for many years now

between your country, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo. It is thus

with great joy and enormous pride that my country

welcomes your unanimous election to the presidency of

the General Assembly at its forty-ninth session.

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General Assembly 22nd meeting

I therefore wish, on behalf of the Government of

Togo, in the name of my delegation, and in my own

capacity, to congratulate you most sincerely on this tribute

to you and to your fraternal country, Côte d’Ivoire.

The Togolese delegation and I myself assure you of

our support. We are convinced that your competence and

your long experience in international affairs augur well for

the success of our work.

I should like to take this occasion to congratulate your

predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Samuel Insanally, the

Permanent Representative of Guyana, who, with

effectiveness and tact, guided the proceedings of the

General Assembly at its forty-eighth session. We extend

our congratulations as well to the Secretary-General, Mr.

Boutros Boutros-Ghali, who has dedicated himself to the

noble ideals of this Organization to which we all belong.

We reiterate to him the total support of the delegation of

Togo.

South Africa has returned from a long voyage. We

have at last seen the death of apartheid. My country is

proud to have contributed to reversing that odious system.

Togo has always supported the legitimate aspirations of

peoples oppressed the world over, but in particular the

aspirations of the black majority of South Africa, whose

fundamental rights, even the most elementary among them,

were long trampled.

It is therefore with great joy that my country,

recognizing the courage, dedication and sacrifice of the

South African nation, welcomes the return to the United

Nations of that fraternal country, which is now free and

committed to waging — together with all the States

Members of this Organization — the necessary fight for

democracy and for the total independence of other peoples.

In 1995, our Organization will celebrate its fiftieth

anniversary. A new era of hope lies ahead for our nations.

Unfortunately that era of hope also contains concerns,

disquiet at the increasing impoverishment of the poorest

countries, concern too about a world constantly devastated

by conflicts and difficulties of all types. The period of

upheaval in which we live presents our Organization with

a challenge — that of understanding all the major changes

that are under way and of finding rapid solutions to the

many problems confronting our planet.

It is therefore urgent to redefine the broad guidelines

of the Organization on the basis of greater humanism on

the global level, so that man can again regain the strength

to better exercise his freedom, to enjoy it fully, to respect

the laws of nature, and to break away from egoism and

hard-heartedness. We must also lay new foundations for

cooperation to help the United Nations not only to

eliminate the consequences of the cold war, but also to

solve the problems of today and those of tomorrow. This

is the only way to respond to the expectations of our

peoples and to respect the spirit of those who, 50 years

ago, created our world Organization, with the purpose,

among other things, of preventing conflicts for the peace

of nations and the well-being of peoples. The

implementation of the relevant recommendations

contained in the report of the Secretary-General, an

Agenda for Peace, should, to this end, prompt us to focus

our action, urgently, on preventive measures, to establish

stable foundations for the harmonious development of

society and to resolve its problems by developing flexible

and appropriate mechanisms within the framework of the

reforms now under way.

There are clear grounds for optimism when we see

that the adversaries of yesterday have become the allies

of today, seeking together peaceful and mutually

advantageous solutions to the international problems of

the day. We therefore have all the more reason to have

faith in the future of our Organization. Planning for the

future rather than waiting to be overtaken by events

should be the watchword of our nations.

On the internal level, my country has undertaken to

embark on the path of democracy based on a complete

and responsible multiparty system in order to establish a

State based on law and on respect for the individual.

Following the adoption of a new constitution in

September 1992, presidential and legislative elections

were held in August 1993 and in February 1994

respectively, leading to the establishment on 25 May last

of a Government of national union whose programme of

action aims basically at building a new Togo, democratic

and free, at shaping national unity, at reconciling the

people with itself, at rallying this people around its

nation, its values and its flag, in peace and regained

harmony, and at rebuilding an economy damaged under

the combined effects of a range of factors both national

and international.

Of course, all of this cannot be accomplished in just

a few months; it takes time to overcome resentment, to

reconcile the adversaries of the past, to establish the state

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General Assembly 22nd meeting

of law to which all aspire, to rebuild confidence and to lay

the foundations of a solid and prosperous economy.

In spite of the end of the cold war, we see disorder

constantly blurring the geopolitical landscape. The situation

now prevailing in Africa is hardly encouraging. The

continent, marginalized, awakens only the minds of the

most attentive observers, when, across mountains and

valleys, they hear the cries of anguish and death. The cases

of Rwanda, Angola, Liberia, Somalia and Mozambique

suffice to illustrate this bitter fact.

The defeat of the system of apartheid in South Africa

and the tragic events in Rwanda illustrate the two extremes

in the evolution of the African continent, characterized by

the contrast between hope and despair, progress and

destruction. While, at the present time, South Africa seems

to represent hope, Rwanda, on the contrary, symbolizes the

face of an Africa mutilated and ravaged.

Togo appeals to the Government of Angola and to

UNITA to show goodwill and the flexibility that is

necessary if a speedy and comprehensive settlement of the

question is to be achieved in the framework of the Lusaka

talks.

In Liberia, despite a number of agreements, the

disarmament of the factions has not yet occurred, and the

general elections that it was hoped would take place seem

to be becoming a mirage. Let us hope that good faith will

find its way into the hearts of the parties concerned so that

this fraternal country may regain the advantages of

reconciliation and find again the path of development.

As for Somalia, Togo appeals to the international

community not to grow weary and leave that country. We

therefore invite the parties to the conflict to refrain from

contributing to discouragement and to resume real dialogue

aimed at the rapid establishment of reliable national

institutions.

In respect of Western Sahara, my delegation supports

the Secretary-General’s report on the question and urges all

the parties to cooperate fully with the United Nations to

ensure that the referendum on self-determination, to be held

in February 1995 for the purpose of deciding the future of

the territory and its people, is organized effectively.

The Togolese Government is gratified at the recent

positive development in the socio-political situation in

Burundi and invites the new leaders to do all in their

power to secure the definitive restoration of peace in that

country.

Togo supports unreservedly the efforts of the

Secretary-General and of the Security Council to bring

peace to Mozambique. It invites the parties to commit

themselves totally to accepting and respecting the results

of the forthcoming general elections.

Faced with this situation of armed conflict, tension

and insecurity, Africa must shoulder its responsibilities.

It is through its own efforts that the African continent will

be able to overcome the difficulties it faces today. This

is the sense of the proposal that General Gnassinmgbé

Eyadema, President of the Republic of Togo, made to the

Tunis Summit of the Organization of African Unity in

June 1994, when he advocated the creation of an African

peace force whose mission would be to ensure peace

where it is threatened by acting as a buffer between the

belligerents and making possible a negotiated solution to

conflicts. The delegation of Togo is delighted that this

idea aroused a great deal of interest on the part of certain

large Powers that are prepared to provide logistical

support for such a buffer force.

The unprecedented positive development of the

peace process in the Middle East, reflected over the past

12 months in the Israeli-Palestinian accord of September

1993 and in the historic Washington D.C. meeting of

25 July 1994 between His Majesty King Hussein of the

Hashimite Kingdom of Jordan and Prime Minister

Yitzhak Rabin of Israel, opens up before us a horizon of

hope. These encouraging developments are important

steps in the direction of peace. They demonstrate clearly

that disputes can be settled effectively only through

peaceful means and that only resolute political will can

help to build a peaceful society.

In total agreement with the initiators of and the

protagonists at these gatherings, my country asks the

United Nations, all Governments of the region and

especially the Israeli and Palestinian leaders to continue

the negotiations with a view to the establishment of a

global, definitive and lasting peace in that part of the

world to enable all States concerned with the Arab-Israeli

conflict to live henceforth within secure borders

recognized by all, on the basis of mutual respect for the

sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence

of States.

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As regards the future of the Palestinian people, the

transition period, which is just beginning, must be

sustained, not only politically but also, and above all,

through financial, economic and technical assistance from

the international community. The United Nations will

therefore have to assume its responsibilities fully until the

Palestinian question is definitively and satisfactorily

resolved in all its aspects.

In the eastern part of Europe the situation is still

constantly characterized by violence and by an explosion of

nationalism. States have been dislocated, borders have

been called into question, and dreams of annexation and of

“ethnic cleansing” inspire and haunt both minds and hearts.

Drawing lessons, as is imperative, from all these

tragedies and conflicts, the United Nations must promote

and encourage further the use by States of the principle of

the peaceful settlement of disputes. Of course, the

Organization has in recent years clearly demonstrated its

usefulness, especially in the fields of humanitarian affairs

and the maintenance of peace. But sometimes lack of will

to act promptly paralyses its action. This paralysis reveals

profound shortcomings in the system of collective security

provided for in the Charter and is due, above all, to the

refusal of many Member States to commit themselves to

peace, despite the special responsibilities entrusted to them

by the Charter.

This being the case, it is clear that, as it makes

decisions about the maintenance of international peace and

security, the Security Council should be broadened and,

thereby, adapted to the changes in the world of today.

Togo believes that the United Nations is the most

appropriate forum for the creation of a new international

order and the maintenance of international peace and

security, as well as for the peaceful settlement of disputes.

That is why we support its actions. We demonstrated this,

inter alia, in the framework of peace-keeping operations by

sending military contingents and police officers to Rwanda,

Western Sahara and Mozambique to serve under the flag of

the United Nations.

Profoundly committed to peace and to the principle of

general and complete disarmament, Togo rejoices in the

many positive developments that have taken place in this

field over recent months. But we remain concerned at the

constantly increasing proliferation of conventional weapons.

The massive international transfers of such weapons

dangerously compromise the success of effective general

disarmament. It has become urgent to strengthen the role

and the capacity for action of the United Nations regional

centres for peace and disarmament, which are at present

poorly structured and lack both the material and the

human resources they need to function properly and

produce the results the international community expects

of them.

The particularly alarming case of the United Nations

Regional Centre for Peace and Disarmament in Africa, of

which my country is honoured to be the headquarters, is

quite illustrative, and should be examined with care. For,

paradoxically, while the African continent is prey to

violent and constant civil wars, which endanger regional

and international peace and security, the Centre, which

the United Nations could well have used to contribute to

the quest for appropriate solutions to these conflicts, is,

either by design or by circumstance, left out and its

existence is almost ignored.

As regards the nuclear problem on the Korean

peninsula, my delegation welcomes the agreement

recently reached between the Democratic People’s

Republic of Korea and the United States of America. It

also welcomes the readiness expressed by the Democratic

People’s Republic of Korea to comply with the provisions

of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear

Weapons. Togo views this courageous position adopted

by the North Korean party as edifying testimony of its

determination to maintain peace in the region.

The world economy continues to be characterized by

trends toward stagnation and the growing disparity

between North and South.

As we prepare to enter the third millennium, the

elimination of poverty should be one of the main

objectives of our Organization. In this context, the World

Summit for Social Development, which the Government

of Denmark has offered to host in March 1995 in

Copenhagen, assumes its full importance. Togo fervently

hopes that Member States will demonstrate political will

and, in a surge of collective responsibility, give this

Summit the attention necessary to obtain concrete results

and practical decisions whose implementation should lead

to the true elimination of poverty, the creation of

genuinely productive jobs and the complete integration of

marginalized or excluded sectors of society.

During the last 15 years, there have been many

obstacles to growth in our countries, including the decline

in foreign capital, the debt crisis, and the constant decline

in public development assistance, whose level is clearly

short of the target 0.7 per cent of gross national product

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General Assembly 22nd meeting

that was set and strongly recommended by the United

Nations. All of this leads to widespread poverty,

aggravated by structural adjustment programmes that have

insupportable social effects.

There has been constant regression in Africa’s share

of world trade. The recent Marrakesh agreements that

resulted from long and difficult international negotiations in

the Uruguay Round, far from meeting the expectations of

the developing countries in general and of Africa in

particular, are likely to lead to new imbalances in

international trade which may require more than a decade

to redress.

In this respect, my delegation views the Agenda for

Development proposed to us by the Secretary-General as a

timely initiative, offering as it does an opportunity to begin

a process of constructive dialogue and political mobilization

to create a true and just partnership that can engage in

better consideration of development issues.

Together with the Group of 77 and China, Togo

strongly supports the idea that this Agenda should build an

international consensus for the global liberalization of trade,

on the one hand as an effective means for international

cooperation for development, and on the other to give new

impetus to the efforts made over the last decade to avoid

protectionist policies.

If the transition of the General Agreement on Tariffs

and Trade into the World Trade Organization is to be

smooth, there must be a mechanism that can compensate

the developing countries affected by the new system.

Along these lines, the implementation of the United Nations

New Agenda for the Development of Africa in the 1990s,

adopted by the General Assembly in 1991, and the

implementation of the Paris Declaration and the Programme

of Action for the Least Developed Countries for the 1990s,

adopted in 1990, should, in our opinion, be geared to an

increase in the volume of official development assistance,

the promotion of respect for commitments that have been

undertaken for new and additional resources

for international cooperation, and a greater lightening of the

debt burden, or even its cancellation. It would be desirable

to adopt policies that ensured an adequate flow

of concessional financing to the developing countries, in

particular to the least developed among them; stimulated

other flows of capital, including direct investment; reversed

the negative trend in financial

flows, and created mechanisms and allocated resources

related to development.

It can never be overemphasized that sustainable

development is a prerequisite to lasting peace. The right

to development must be considered, henceforth, as a

fundamental human right, and thus be given priority

attention by the international community. Along these

lines, my Government hopes that, in addition to the

results of the International Conference on Population and

Development, held in Cairo from 5 to 13 September last,

the work of the World Summit for Social Development,

of the Fourth World Conference on Women, to be held in

Beijing in September 1995, and of the Second United

Nations Conference on Human Settlements (HABITAT

II), to be held in Istanbul from 3 to 14 June 1996, will

help produce at the international level a spirit of shared

responsibility and the necessary political will to mobilize

the resources that are indispensable if our developing

countries are to thrive.

Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration are an important

bridge on the road to sustainable development and to the

protection of the Earth from the dangers facing it. That

is why, two years ago, all the participants in the

Conference showed such enthusiasm and sincerity.

Regrettably, the results of that historic summit have still

not been reflected in concrete facts. No notable progress

has yet been observed in the implementation of the

recommendations contained, in particular, in the

Programme of Action. It is high time that States and the

international community did everything in their power, at

the national, regional and international levels, to put into

effect the commitments to sustainable development

undertaken in Rio.

The Togolese Government welcomes the entry into

force of the Framework Convention on Climate Change

and is particularly delighted at the conclusion of another

legal instrument of global scope: the International

Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries

Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification,

Particularly in Africa. The Convention was adopted by

the intergovernmental negotiating Committee in Paris in

June 1994. Togo was pleased to take part in the

negotiating process and will soon take up the procedures

for signature and ratification. We invite all States

Members of the United Nations to do likewise in order

that the Convention and related instruments may enter

into force as soon as possible.

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General Assembly 22nd meeting

Considering the uncertain future of mankind and the

numerous and formidable challenges confronting the human

race, it is imperative that we become clearly aware of our

moral obligations. As of this moment it is essential to

identify and correct the weaknesses and failings of our

Organization. The reforms under way are indispensable,

but they must not become a means of conferring even

greater influence than in the past on the large countries and

richest Powers in the world. Our new awareness must also

help define ways of establishing relations among nations in

the future, and in dealing with our present-day concerns we

must take into account the causes of the disparities in

standards of living between North and South. There is no

effect without a cause, and to deny the principle of

causality amounts to deferring our problems and never

solving them.

Only an attitude based on action, justice and

international solidarity can spare the world a conflict that

would otherwise, sooner or later, be inevitable. Thus,

tackling the deep-rooted causes of today’s problems means

seeking together the solutions that will make it possible for

men, women and children to live decently and in complete

freedom, without fear of being crushed by unemployment,

poverty and hunger. This would also make it possible to

protect the dignity of the human person and to safeguard

human security.

Tomorrow we should have a world in which all

nations and all citizens refuse to listen to the voice of their

own personal interests when they run counter to the

common weal, a world in which nations and peoples find

satisfaction not only in that which is to their own advantage

but also in that which is to everyone’s advantage.

At its forty-ninth session, may the General Assembly,

under the leadership of its President, contribute to dispelling

our concerns and to defining the ways and means of

helping us blaze the way into the future. This is my

delegation’s most fervent hope.