Samoa, 1993

It is always an honour and

a great pleasure to address the General Assembly. My first

task, a happy one, is to congratulate you, Sir, most warmly

on your election as President of the forty-eighth session of

the General Assembly. We know that in your hands this

will be a session of accomplishments.

Let me also thank your able predecessor, His

Excellency Mr. Stoyan Ganev of Bulgaria, for his

outstanding service during the forty-seventh session.

I would next express our concern and sadness over the

recent disastrous earthquake in India and extend to the

Government and, especially, to the families affected our

profound sympathies.

Two years ago, when I last stood here, there was a

sense of high expectation, for we were witnessing the drama

of political changes to a new world. Many new nation

States emerged from that process. We welcome the newest -

and some of the smallest - Members of our global family

who joined us this year: the Principality of Andorra, Eritrea,

the Czech Republic, the Principality of Monaco, The Former

Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the Slovak Republic.

As a small State itself, Samoa is particularly pleased to add

its welcome, assured of the contribution these new Members

will make to our common effort.

Let me also pay a tribute to the Secretary-General and

express to His Excellency Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali our

deepest admiration and appreciation for the spirit of reform

and quality of leadership he brings to the work of the

Organization.

With one voice we in this Hall have hailed the ending

of East-West tensions. We are right to do so. It has

brought about deep and positive changes. Now, as never

before, the international community has real opportunities for

cooperation and peace. In Washington, barely a month ago

today, leaders of two great peoples, men of magnificent

courage and foresight, seized such an opportunity for the

Israelis and Palestinians. In our global village there is an

imperative to secure a comprehensive, just and durable

solution to the overall Arab-Israeli conflict. In turn, that

peace effort needs to be able to draw sustenance - moral,

political and financial - from the whole family of nations.

Most warmly we applaud the courage and vision of this bold

step. From our distance, and no matter how inadequate, I

pledge to the people of Israel and to the Palestinians

Samoa’s entire support.

But the new opportunities for cooperation in this post-

cold-war era are being severely challenged by conflicts that

rage in many lands and by the human misery they cause.

Tragedy and carnage are seemingly endless in Bosnia, in

Somalia, and in territories of the former Soviet Union. In

other areas, too - far too many - we witness daily the most

shocking violations of the human person and wanton

disregard for the rule of law. This year alone, there have

been close to 25 substantial conflicts in the world.

And war is not the only scourge. For we have not

freed our world of hunger, poverty or illness. Millions of

people have fled from internal strife and persecution, famine

and natural disasters. Millions more are migrating for

economic reasons.

In my part of the world, island communities now live

under the constant threat of ecological disasters. A rise in

sea levels and destructive tropical cyclones are particular

dangers. The evidence we have is that these are the global

and adverse effects of induced climate change. They prey

on the natural vulnerabilities of many lands and their

peoples, and severely undermine the national livelihood and

economic development efforts of many Governments.

My purpose is not simply to catalogue misery and the

negative, but rather to point to the vastness of our task.

There is no scope for retreat - we must advance with

resolve. The world cries out for responses and solutions.

And the fact is, the world is now looking more and more to

the United Nations. We do not, for a moment, delude

12 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

ourselves about the complexities of these conflicts or the

depth of longstanding animosities - least of all, in the

territory of the former Yugoslavia. But I am compelled to

say that the horrors being perpetuated in Bosnia offend

common decency and almost every principle for which this

Organization stands.

That is why we feel that the international community

has not been swift or decisive enough in taking action to end

the calculated brutality in Bosnia and avert the devastation

of so much that is sacred in that land. We pray for the

speediest possible settlement, one that is comprehensive and

has realistic prospects for the lasting peace and economic

prosperity of all concerned. There should be no reward for

aggression.

The grim outlook for many troubled areas of the world

should not, however, cast a shadow over the hope typified

by the Palestinian-Israeli peace accord. Cambodia is a high

point in peacemaking, and we rejoice in this special

accomplishment for the people of that ancient country and

for the United Nations, as we do in the announcement in this

Assembly by Nelson Mandela of the imminent demise of

apartheid. South Africa’s move towards a multiracial and

democratic society is the attainment of a dream we have all

shared for so long. We pray for the peaceful success of the

announced general elections in April 1994.

We are indeed at a turning-point - a point at which

we should now turn to the healing process. We must put

behind us the divisiveness and acrimony which have

characterized the debates and the decisions of past years.

Almost every speaker in this debate has focused on

peace-keeping and the unprecedented demands being made

of the United Nations. Our support of United Nations

peace-keeping operations is total, as is our acceptance of

preventive diplomacy as fundamental to "An Agenda for

Peace". We have no military resources or experience, and

we have been able to assist only by way of our assessed

contributions. But it is clear to us that failure to provide

adequate financial and other resources undermines both the

peace effort and the authority of the United Nations.

It seems to be generally acknowledged that, in the

space of some two years, the cost of United Nations peace-

keeping has quadrupled to a level currently four times larger

than the United Nations regular budget. In our humble

opinion, peace-keeping at such a level cannot possibly be

sustained without adequate and improved financing and

financial management. Above all, peace-keeping objectives

and mandates need to be clearly identified and managed.

There is everything to be gained by the application of the

principles of accountability, consistency and transparency.

Peace-keeping at current levels has compounded the

tragedy of war through the loss of United Nations staff and

personnel. In the strongest terms, we condemn the attacks

and deliberate targeting of United Nations peace-keeping

forces wherever they occur. We support early and effective

international measures and necessary arrangements within

the United Nations system for the full protection of United

Nations personnel and forces, as well as action against those

who commit acts of violence against our messengers of

peace.

In all this, the Security Council is the vital link. We

now have a proposal before the Assembly to take a closer

look at the arrangements and strengthening of the Security

Council. We also acknowledge the useful report the

Secretary-General has sent us on the various views

expressed. Our own concern is for the efficacy and

effectiveness of the Council. So long as these are assured,

Samoa would support the required reforms to the Security

Council. But, no doubt, we should all take sufficient time

to ponder these matters.

In the wider aspect, we believe that no amount of force

and no measure of peace-keeping can sustain peace and

security without attention to the root causes. The general

experience is that human misery, brought about by poverty

and the denial of human and democratic rights, is the real

and fundamental problem. We therefore uphold the belief

expressed by many leaders from this rostrum that socio-

economic development and democratic reforms areessential

to the prevention of political and social crises. We think this

should remain a major preoccupation of the United Nations.

We believe deeply in the underlying importance of

human rights in all United Nations activities. In this respect,

we welcome the Declaration and Programme of Action

produced by the World Conference on Human Rights in

Vienna and the acknowledgement in unquestionable terms of

the universality of human rights. The results of the Vienna

Conference constitute a significant advance in the promotion

and protection of human rights, not least in the recognition

that development has a true claim to be considered a human

right.

We agree with and support the proposal to establish a

United Nations high commissioner for human rights. Such

an office could serve as a strong focal point for coordination

of the currently fragmented branches of the United Nations

human rights system and could help to ensure that human

Forty-eighth session - 12 October l993 13

rights are integrated into the work of all United Nations

programmes.

The very basis of human rights is the right of peoples

to determine their own future and governance. This is

fundamental, and it is something very close to our hearts,

given our experience and the political evolvement of our

own State. The South Pacific Forum has continued to call

on the metropolitan countries to take into account the wishes

of the people in the Territories and to respect their right to

self-determination.

We welcome the ongoing dialogue between France and

all parties in New Caledonia regarding the future of the

Territory. The peaceful evolution towards self-determination

in New Caledonia is in accordance with the principles of the

United Nations Charter. Its attainment was made possible by

the constructive intervention of the United Nations

decolonization Committee and by the willingness of the

Government of France, the parties in New Caledonia and the

South Pacific Forum to show restraint to give full

consideration to each other’s concerns and sensitivities.

What we see in New Caledonia today stands as a testament

to the cooperative spirit characteristic of the Pacific region

and as a true example of peaceful and preventive diplomacy

at work.

At the same time, we acknowledge and respect the

views and interests of those Territories that wish to continue

with the status quo.

Peace, stability, security and the preservation of our

environment are crucial to the South Pacific region. Our

commitment to these objectives is unwavering, and Samoa,

together with its regional partners, will continue to call for

a permanent end to nuclear testing, to the dumping of

chemical and toxic wastes and to the transportation of these

materials in our waters. The South Pacific Forum countries

have continued to urge the remaining nuclear-power States

to heed our concerns and to accede to the Protocols of the

South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty. That Treaty is the

paramount symbol of the region’s strong feeling about and

commitment to a nuclear-free environment. We are

encouraged by recent indications from some of these States

that they will reconsider their current positions on the Treaty

and on other nuclear-related issues that are of concern to the

region.

Samoa is particularly pleased about the extension of the

nuclear-testing moratorium. However, we are deeply

distressed to have learned last week of a breach of that

moratorium. I have cause to believe that substantial

numbers in the Assembly share our concern and our earnest

prayer that no further tests will be carried out and that other

nuclear Powers will not resume their nuclear-testing

programmes. It is our dearest hope that such testing will

one day cease - permanently. We also urge all Member States -

the nuclear Powers in particular - to work towards the early

conclusion of a comprehensive test ban treaty.

We welcome the unique opportunity offered by the end

of the cold war to focus and develop comprehensive-nuclear-

disarmament initiatives. We stand ready to do what we can

in support of these. We should say, however, that the

prospect of the proliferation of nuclear weapons and - worse -

of their acquisition by unfriendly parties is of major concern

to us, as, of course, to the world community as a whole. It

underscores the urgent need for the control, reduction and

eventual elimination of these deadly weapons. The

Non-Proliferation Treaty, which is a vital part of the

disarmament process must be extended indefinitely when it

comes up for review in 1995.

We look to the nuclear-weapon States to take the lead

in the nuclear-disarmament process and, at the same time, to

illustrate with concrete action their full commitment to our

collective goals and objectives. The South Pacific region

cannot continue to be a testing ground for nuclear devices;

or to be a dumping ground for chemical wastes; or to be

exposed to contamination by toxic wastes and other

environmentally threatening substances.

Environmental security is crucial to Samoa and other

countries of the South Pacific. The United Nations

Conference on Environment and Development, held in Rio

in 1992, provided us with an opportunity to put our global

house in order - an occasion of promise, of rising hopes.

The setting of Agenda 21 and the establishment of the

Commission on Sustainable Development are only first steps.

Implementation is the difficult task - the true test.

Like other places, our small island States and low-lying

atolls face a host of constraints. Isolated and ecologically

fragile, small island States like my own are amongst the

most vulnerable to external economic, trade and climatic

factors. Without international cooperation, and without an

integrated approach, the outlook is not promising.

The Global Conference on the Sustainable Development

of Small Island Developing States - to be held in Barbados

in April 1994 - will provide a first opportunity to implement

Agenda 21 and to reaffirm commitments made in Rio. We

firmly believe that international attention, focused at next

year’s global conference, will provide valuable guidance

14 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

towards a sustainable-development effort worldwide. It

seems to us that if there is failure to secure sustainable

development for small island States, there will be no real

chance of success elsewhere.

The work of the Preparatory Committee remains

incomplete. But the stakes are too high for

inconclusiveness, so a resumed preparatory session before

the Barbados Conference is essential.

I should say that our call for international cooperation

is fully matched by our resolve to do what is necessary and

possible at the domestic level. As a country, we

acknowledge and accept primary responsibility for our

environment and development. To this end, we have

completed a national environment-management plan, have

put in place the necessary legislative framework and have

taken steps to adhere to the appropriate international

Conventions.

In all of this, we have had the fullest cooperation of the

South Pacific Regional Environmental Programme - an

organization established by the Pacific region and partner

countries to coordinate not only national and regional

activities but also the region’s participation in world-wide

initiatives on the environment. This underlines our basic

belief that the total efforts of all nations, acting responsibly

and in concert, will be crucial if we are adequately to protect

our environment and our planet.

I should note the general satisfaction of my delegation

with the world-wide debate, which is now under way, about

the future of development - and, thus, about our common

future. The United Nations Conference on Environment and

Development was a special landmark. A few months ago,

contrary to predictions, the Vienna World Conference on

Human Rights registered important accomplishments. Next

year, we shall see the particularly crucial Conference on

Population and Development; thereafter, the Conference on

women, and then the social-development Summit.

Yesterday, we heard Papua New Guinea’s initiative on

opportunity and participation. We consider this a pertinent

proposal, and that it is an important element in the overall

effort to involve citizens and to enhance, in particular, the

economies of developing countries.

These global conferences and initiatives will map out

new priorities and courses of action requiring from States

and ordinary citizens the highest degree of commitment and

cooperation. Meantime, we will need to concentrate on

strengthening and revitalizing our Organization if we are to

respond efficiently and effectively to present and future

priorities. To this purpose, Samoa supports all remedial

reforms to the United Nations system to ensure optimum use

of scarce resources.

Next year has been declared, by the Assembly, the

International Year of the Family. In two years’ time, the

United Nations will mark its fiftieth anniversary. This gives

us all reason to move ahead with our work, resolved to

improve the condition of our world and the well-being of

our global family.