Zimbabwe, 2011

I would like to take this

opportunity to congratulate Mr. Al-Nasser on his

election as President of the sixty-sixth session of the

General Assembly. My delegation is confident that

under his able leadership the General Assembly will

successfully address the pressing issues on the agenda

of the current session. I also wish to pay tribute to his

predecessor, Mr. Joseph Deiss, for having successfully

steered the proceedings of this House during the sixty-

fifth session.

I wish also to congratulate the Secretary-General,

Mr. Ban Ki-moon, on his reappointment for a second

term. We remain hopeful that the Secretary-General

will strive to shepherd the United Nations with an

open, transparent and inclusive multilateral approach.

Such an approach, I believe, would renew and revive

the hopes and expectations of developing countries in

the efficacy of this world body. Zimbabwe places its

hopes in a United Nations that recognizes the equality

of sovereign States as enshrined in the founding

Charter.

I want to express my heartfelt congratulations to

the Republic of South Sudan on its attainment of

independence and its subsequent admission as the

193rd Member of the United Nations family. As we all

congratulate this new nation, Zimbabwe calls upon the

international community to render all the necessary

support to its Government and its people in tackling the

numerous development challenges that lie ahead of

them. Zimbabwe stands ready to make its modest

contribution to that end.

The theme “The role of mediation in the

settlement of disputes by peaceful means” is most apt.

But how do we, the United Nations Members, measure

up in relation to it in our activities here at the United

Nations and out there, in the real world? It is my

principled view that we must be duty-and honour-

bound to operationalize the principles upon which the

Charter of the United Nations is based. We must not be

guilty of manipulating the Charter to serve our

particular or sectional designs and ambitions. The

Charter is our set of commandments that must be

strictly obeyed by each and every Member if

international and regional peace is to be maintained.

We cannot honestly say today that this is the

position with regard to NATO States versus Libya.

Whatever political disturbances might have first

occurred in Benghazi, the process of mediation and

peaceful negotiations was never given full play. It was

deliberately and blatantly excluded from positively

influencing developments. There was quick resort to

invoking Chapter VII of the Charter, with a gross,

deliberate misinterpretation of the scope of the

mandate originally given NATO to oversee and protect

civilians.

Bilateral hatreds and quarrels or ulterior motives

must not be allowed to creep into the consideration of

matters pertaining to threats to international peace and

security, or even to the principle of the responsibility to

protect.

We have yet to be convinced that the involvement

of the mighty Powers in Libya’s affairs has not

hindered the advent of the process of peace, democracy

and prosperity in that sister African country. Our

African Union would never have presumed to impose a

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leadership on the fraternal people of Libya, as NATO

countries have illegally sought to do, and, in fact, have

done. At the very least, the African Union would have

wished to join those principled members of this body

who preferred an immediate ceasefire and peaceful

dialogue in Libya. The African Union was and remains

fully seized of this crisis and will spare no effort in

working to fully complement the United Nations so

that peace may return to Libya and its tormented

people. We wish that process Godspeed.

The newly minted principle of the responsibility

to protect should not be twisted to provide cover for its

premeditated abuse in violating the sacred international

principle enshrined in the Charter of non-interference

in the domestic affairs of States, because to do so

amounts to an act of aggression and causes the

destabilization of a sovereign State. Moreover, to

selectively and arbitrarily apply that principle serves

merely to undermine its general acceptability. Indeed,

more than other States, all five permanent members of

the Security Council bear a huge responsibility in this

regard for ensuring that their historical privilege is

used more to protect the United Nations Charter than to

breach it, as is happening currently in Libya through

the blatantly illegal, brutal, callous and murderous

NATO bombings. There we see NATO bombing places,

seeking out, hunting and hounding the children of

Al-Qadhafi. Have the alleged sins of the father now

been visited on the sons? Have the children lost their

right to life? They are no longer human beings; they

are being hunted every day. Or is it because each of

them is no longer worth the price of a barrel of oil?

After more than 20,000 NATO bombing sorties

that targeted Libyan towns, including Tripoli, there is

now an unbelievable and most disgraceful scramble by

some NATO countries for Libyan oil, indicating

thereby that the real motive for their aggression against

Libya was to control and own its abundant fuel

resources. What a shame.

Yesterday, it was Iraq, and Bush and Blair were

the liars and aggressors as they made unfounded

allegations of possession of weapons of mass

destruction. This time, it is the NATO countries that are

the liars and aggressors, as they make similarly

unfounded allegations of destruction of civilian lives

by Al-Qadhafi.

When we in Zimbabwe sought to redress the ills

of colonialism and racism by fully acquiring our

natural resources, mainly our land and minerals, we

were and still are subjected to unparalleled vilification

and pernicious economic sanctions, the reasons — lies

again — alleged to be violations of the rule of law,

human rights and democracy, which never, never

occurred. My people have condemned these illegal

sanctions, and recently more than two million

protesters’ signatures have demonstrated their

antipathy for them. We thank the Southern Africa

Development Community (SADC) and the African

Union for supporting us and demanding the immediate

removal of the illegal sanctions.

We in Africa are also duly concerned about the

activities of the International Criminal Court (ICC),

which seems to exist only for alleged offenders from

the developing world, the majority of them Africans. A

blind eye is routinely turned to leaders of the powerful

Western States guilty of international crimes, such as

Bush and Blair. Such selective justice has eroded the

credibility of the ICC on the African continent.

My country continues to work with others for a

revitalized General Assembly. However, our ambitions

extend to the need to reform the Security Council as

well. Africa’s call for at least two permanent seats on

the Security Council for its members has been constant

for decades. Africa cannot remain the only region

without permanent membership in the Security

Council.

The current global economic crisis and the

attendant financial crisis compounds the plight of the

most vulnerable, that is, the developing countries. The

present international economic and financial

architecture has to be reformed and made to respond

timeously to the real needs of all our peoples. The

situation challenges the ability of our developing world

to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

As we celebrate the tenth anniversary of the

Durban Declaration and Programme of Action against

racism, xenophobia and other related social ills, let us

all recommit ourselves to fighting and defeating these

evils.

My country fully supports the right of the gallant

people of Palestine to statehood and membership in the

Organization. The United Nations must become

credible by welcoming into its bosom all those whose

right to attain sovereign independence and freedom

from occupation and colonialism is legitimate. Let us

all accept Palestine as a legitimate State and a Member

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of this body. Similarly, the tormented people of the

Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic must not be

forgotten. We call for immediate progress in the

engagements for a solution to their long-running saga.

The Conference of the Parties to the United

Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to

be held later this year, is a pivotal occasion from which

we should emerge with agreed measures to address

matters of climate change and how to mitigate threats

to the very existence of small island States in

particular, and to the coastal regions of many heavily

populated nations. Zimbabwe will be fully engaged in

those negotiations.

Let me reiterate my country’s full belief in the

aspirations enshrined in the Charter of the United

Nations. We must all resist any abuse to which it may

be exposed through the unwelcome behaviour of a few.

My country celebrates the UN-Women entity, as it

addresses the position of more than half of humankind

in all our countries.

The African Union must not be undermined;

rather, it should be allowed to complement the efforts

of the United Nations for peace and security on the

continent. Zimbabwe is a peaceful member of the

African Union, SADC, the Common Market for

Eastern and Southern Africa, the Non-Aligned

Movement and many other international economic and

trade organizations, and thus desires to continue to play

its part in creating a peaceful environment in the world.

The United Nations can count on the unqualified

support of Zimbabwe as required, even if only in our

modest way.

I wish the sixty-sixth session of the General

Assembly every success.