Samoa, 2005

Samoa warmly

congratulates you, Sir, on your election to the

presidency of the General Assembly at this historic

moment — a very challenging time. Samoa pledges to

you and to Sweden its full support and cooperation

throughout the sixtieth session of the General

Assembly.

I also want to pay tribute to your predecessor,

Mr. Jean Ping of the Gabonese Republic, for his

outstanding service and effective guidance during the

fifty-ninth session.

Just a few days ago in this very Hall, we met to

take stock of progress and map the way forward in the

implementation of the Millennium Development Goals

(MDGs). The MDGs are not merely a set of targets, but

encompass a process which addresses the varied

challenges to human development. While some

progress has been made over the past five years, much

more remains to be done.

It is therefore imperative that concerted global

efforts be strengthened, in terms of political

commitment and resource mobilization, if the outcome

of the summit envisaged in the summit outcome

document is to be achieved.

Samoa is progressing well towards achieving the

MDGs by the target period of 2015. Challenges

remain, however, and they are being addressed through

legislative and policy initiatives and the creation of

innovative partnerships with the donor community and

civil society.

Samoa reiterates its support for the ongoing

efforts to modernize and strengthen the United Nations.

We thank the previous President of the Assembly, as

well as the Secretary-General, for their laudable work

and tireless efforts in advancing the reform and

revitalization of the Organization.

It is our belief that reform measures must provide

for a transparent, democratic and expanded Security

Council, in both the permanent and non-permanent

membership categories, and for an effective and

strengthened Organization that reflects the realities of

the twenty-first century. Substantive changes are

therefore required with regard to both the General

Assembly and the Security Council, as well as to other

bodies of the United Nations system.

We congratulate President Ping, in particular for

his stewardship and leadership throughout the

negotiations for and the adoption of the summit

declaration last week. This is the sixtieth anniversary

of the United Nations; the time is surely ripe now to

implement the reforms needed to revitalize our

Organization and enable it to effectively realize the

principles and goals identified in the declaration.

The courageous efforts of the Israeli and

Palestinian authorities to find a sustainable peace

solution deserve our applause and prayers for

continuing success. While there have been positive

developments in the Middle East, the violence and acts

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of terrorism in Iraq and in other parts of the region

remain causes for grave concern.

Terrorism, perpetrated by those with no respect

for human decency and life, continues to plague our

world. No cause or grievances can justify acts that kill

and maim innocent people. Heinous and murderous

acts of terrorism serve only the purposes of those who

want to destabilize society and usher in a dark age for

our world. Samoa therefore condemns terrorism in all

its forms in the strongest terms and will continue to

support the international campaign to overcome that

scourge to human dignity and security.

The peacekeeping and security advocacy work of

the United Nations around the world has our full

support. Samoa presently has police contingents

serving with peacekeeping missions in Timor-Leste

and in Liberia. Within our Pacific region, Samoa also

contributes police support to the Regional Assistance

Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) under the

auspices of the Pacific Islands Forum. RAMSI

conforms to its regional responsibilities under Chapter

VIII of the United Nations Charter and recognizes the

sovereignty of the Solomon Islands.

Samoa is pleased to note that the membership of

the International Criminal Court will soon number 100.

Samoa adds its voice to the appeal for the early

ratification of and accession to the Rome Statute

establishing the Court by those States that have not yet

done so. The Court brings to justice those who commit

genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes and

is therefore an important institution in upholding

international humanitarian standards and the protection

of human rights. For those reasons, it would be a

mistake to undermine the effectiveness of the Court in

any way. Instead, the Court should be given the

necessary support to give it universality.

Samoa remains extremely concerned about the

proliferation of nuclear weapons and their threat, not

just to international peace and security, but to the very

existence of life on our planet. We regret deeply that

the Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on

the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, held in May

2005, was unable to agree on steps to strengthen the

non-proliferation regime. The Treaty on the

Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and the

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) are

the main instruments for controlling the spread of

nuclear weapons.

The South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty

highlights the seriousness with which the issue of the

threat of nuclear weapons is viewed in our region and

we call on States who have not done so to ratify the

Treaty’s Protocols. Clearly, adherence to the

requirements of the NPT, the CTBT and other

conventions on disarmament is vital. Samoa therefore

joins the call for all United Nations Members to sign

on to those treaties and for States parties to honour

their obligations to them.

Small arms and light weapons have been used

time and again in violent conflict, contributing to the

destabilization and devastation of communities in

many countries, including in the Pacific. The

proliferation of small weapons is a major problem. We

therefore fully support the holding of a review

conference on small arms next year, in particular with a

view to concluding a treaty to control the trade in small

arms and stop them from reaching areas of violent

conflict.

As the current Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum,

I wish to report that since the General Assembly

session last year new and positive developments have

taken place in the Pacific region. The programme of

Pacific Regional Assistance to Nauru, a regional

response to assist Nauru rebuild its economy, is in

progress. With assistance from the United Nations, an

autonomous government is now being established in

Bougainville. I am also pleased to announce that the

Pacific Plan — a road map to further strengthen

regional cooperation and integration to achieve our

region’s priority goals of economic growth, sustainable

development, good governance and security — is

nearing completion and is expected to be considered

and approved by Pacific Forum leaders at their next

summit, in Papua New Guinea, in October of this year.

The Pacific Plan will also improve Pacific countries’

capacities to achieve the Millennium Development

Goals.

The Mauritius Strategy for the Further

Implementation of the Programme of Action for the

Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing

States, adopted in January 2005, sets out long-term

action plans for the sustainable development of small

island developing States (SIDS). While we accept that

the primary responsibility for the implementation of

the Mauritius Strategy lies with us, there is still a

critical need for the sustained and long-term

commitment of our partners to focus on the special

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case of SIDS and to take their specific vulnerabilities,

and the challenges generated thereby, into account. We

therefore call on the United Nations system and the

international community to provide the necessary

support to implement and monitor the Mauritius

Strategy.

As has often been repeated from this rostrum,

trade is the surest path to greater wealth and a vital

component of sustainable development for SIDS. We

therefore support the successful conclusion of the Doha

Round, which took the vulnerabilities of small States

fully into account in the negotiations, particularly with

regard to special and preferential treatment for small

economies.

Let me conclude by reaffirming Samoa’s

commitment to multilateralism and to the purposes and

principles of the United Nations.