Austria, 1997

Let me express my

pleasure at seeing you, Sir, the Foreign Minister of

Ukraine — with which Austria has close historical links

and enjoys excellent relations — presiding over the

General Assembly. We are confident that your profound

professional experience in the United Nations system

and your negotiating skills will ensure substantial

progress in our ambitious agenda.

On behalf of the Federal Government of Austria, I

should also like to express our sincere appreciation to

Secretary-General Kofi Annan, whose wise leadership

of the Organization we fully support. In the short time

since he took office he has succeeded in reaching out

not only to Governments but also to the people and the

media, thus fostering a new awareness about the goals,

aspirations and achievements of the United Nations as

the indispensable instrument of global cooperation.

My colleague from Luxembourg has already

expressed the position of the European Union, which

we fully endorse. I should like to elaborate on a few

points to which Austria attaches particular importance.

The United Nations is currently preparing itself for

the challenges of the twenty-first century. The

Secretary-General and his team, with the

encouragement of Member States, have initiated

comprehensive reform. Austria welcomes this major

effort to redirect the Organization towards the needs of

the future, and we fully endorse the Secretary-General's

proposals. In particular I should like to emphasize the

following points: first, the streamlining of leadership

and management structure; secondly, the consolidation

of the United Nations presence in the field; thirdly, the

return of development to the centre of United Nations

activities and the better combining of the potential of

United Nations funds and programmes; and, fourthly,

the strengthening of human rights in all aspects of the

work of the United Nations.

8

Without adequate resources, however, the United

Nations will not succeed in carrying out its tasks. As

long as Member States do not fully honour their

obligations, the financial situation of the Organization

will remain critical. Settling the arrears is therefore an

imperative. Austria is proud of its traditional record of

paying its contributions to the United Nations in full and

on time. The serious political will and sincere

commitment of every Government will be required.

Needless to say, unilateral decisions are unacceptable in

the framework of multilateral cooperation.

The fight against drugs, crime and terrorism has

rightly become a first priority for the international

community. Nearly 1 per cent of the world's population

above the age of 15 today has abused stimulants. An

estimated 300 tons of heroin a year have been produced

during this decade to supply about 8 million addicts.

While I hope that regional cooperation will soon

contribute effectively to the fight against illegal

trafficking and drug abuse, the Secretary-General's

intention to strengthen the United Nations capacities in

this field deserves the support of all Member States.

Austria will cooperate closely with the newly

appointed Director-General of the United Nations Office

at Vienna, Mr. Pino Arlacchi. We are convinced that his

profound knowledge and experience in fighting organized

crime will be a strong asset in pooling the resources of

the United Nations system, the Member States and

relevant institutions. To demonstrate its support, Austria

will make a significant financial contribution to the

United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice

Trust Fund.

Illegal migration is increasingly linked to

transnational crime. The reckless exploitation of humans

in distress is a particularly reprehensible form of

international crime. An increasing number of people

smuggled illegally across borders find themselves

helpless victims deprived of all financial means and with

an illegal status in a foreign country. The perpetrators, at

the same time, earn the profits and escape justice by

cynically making use of a loophole in the international

criminal law regime. There is an urgent need for an

international legal instrument making the smuggling of

illegal migrants punishable as a transnational crime, thus

ensuring that the perpetrators are brought to justice.

I have asked legal experts to prepare a draft

international convention against the smuggling of illegal

migrants. This draft is being circulated as an official

document under the appropriate agenda item. We

propose that the United Nations Commission on Crime

Prevention and Criminal Justice consider this draft as a

matter of priority at its next session. I am confident that

our initiative will help in closing a dangerous legal

lacuna, thereby strengthening international judicial

cooperation in this field.

Substance abuse and drug-related crimes continue

to take a high toll in both the developing and the

industrialized worlds. Human and social development is

threatened on a global scale. Strengthening and

updating existing international anti-drug capacities will

require innovation and new methods. In this respect, the

special session of the General Assembly devoted to

international drug control, which is to be held in June

1998, will provide us with an excellent opportunity to

renew our political commitment by closing our ranks

against illegal drug trafficking and striving jointly for

progress in preventive efforts.

Anti-personnel landmines constitute a particularly

malicious threat to the security of individuals and

countries. Even decades after the end of a conflict, such

as the Second World War, these hidden killers take a

terrible toll among civilian populations, killing or

maiming more than 20,000 people each and every year.

Every year 20 times more mines are laid than cleared.

Estimates speak of 110 million mines laid in more than

60 countries. I think that this spiral of death must be

stopped.

Austria was one of the first countries to ban anti-

personnel landmines at the national level. We strongly

advocated a total ban, and we prepared the draft for

such a convention. Non-governmental organizations

have played a prominent role in creating the necessary

momentum, and I would like to thank them respectfully

for that on behalf of the Austrian Government. The

Oslo Diplomatic Conference negotiated a treaty on this

basis, and I look forward to signing the Convention in

Ottawa, together with so many of my colleagues who

share this goal. I urge the countries that were not able

to join the consensus in Oslo to become part of the

process as soon as possible.

Ted Turner has generously earmarked a part of his

unprecedented $1 billion donation to support intensified

demining efforts. I wish to thank him for this unique

gesture.

9

The dignity and worth of the human person are

universal. Consequently, it is the duty of our universal

Organization to help implement governmental

commitments in this field. Since the Vienna World

Conference on Human Rights, human rights have moved

into the centre of United Nations programmes and

activities. Austria welcomes this trend. There is an

intrinsic relationship between respect for human rights,

democracy and sustainable development. Guaranteeing

human rights is an essential precondition for lasting

security and stability. This link has been highlighted by

the Secretary-General in his commendable report on the

work of the Organization.

I take this opportunity to warmly welcome the

appointment of President Mary Robinson as High

Commissioner for Human Rights and to pledge Austria's

full support for her work. Her outstanding personality

will undoubtedly contribute to further strengthening the

United Nations role in human rights.

The review of the Vienna Declaration and

Programme of Action and the fiftieth anniversary of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights make 1998 the

year of human rights. This will provide us with a unique

opportunity to shape the international human rights

programme for the new millennium. Its central objective

must remain that international human rights standards be

respected at the level of each nation. For this, the role of

Governments is crucial; so is that of civil society. The

international community, therefore, not only has to ensure

compliance with these commitments and provide the

necessary assistance, but it must also promote the role of

civil society. We see this year of human rights as an

occasion for reaching out to human rights defenders in all

corners of the world. As host country of the World

Conference and as the country assuming the presidency

of the European Union in the second half of 1998,

Austria offers its cooperation to ensure a successful

human rights year 1998 in all parts of the world.

Austria places great emphasis on the promotion and

protection of minorities. We do so on the basis of our

historical experience and owing to our conviction that

ethnic minorities do not threaten but rather enrich our

societies. In this context, I am pleased to refer to the

successful solution of an important minority issue. The

Austrian minority in South Tyrol today enjoys a well-

balanced autonomy on the basis of the Paris Treaty of

1946 between Austria and Italy. This autonomy has

generated considerable interest in other parts of the

world.

With regard to the human rights year, the

implementation of the Beijing Platform continues to be

a priority. In particular, Austria supports efforts to

strengthen the Convention on the Elimination of All

Forms of Discrimination against Women. We also are

contributing to the enhanced practical implementation

of other international human rights treaties, such as the

Convention on the Rights of the Child, in particular

with regard to juvenile justice.

Employment, as a matter of growing global

concern, rightly ranks high on the political agenda.

Governments are urged to develop further instruments

to fight unemployment through the effective monitoring

of labour policies. The World Summit for Social

Development in Copenhagen provided a set of

principles and goals in this respect. In order to confirm

these commitments and to identify good practices, I

should like to recall that Austria, as a follow-up to

Copenhagen, will host an international expert meeting

on employment in early February 1998.

In our joint efforts to promote sustainable

development, the peaceful use of outer space for the

benefit of all countries has become an issue of rapidly

growing importance to the United Nations in the last

few years. I should like to reaffirm the full support of

my country for the United Nations aim to expand

activities in this field. We welcome the holding of the

third United Nations Conference on the Exploration and

Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, which will be convened

as a special session of the Committee on the Peaceful

Uses of Outer Space, open to all Member States, in

Vienna in July 1999.

My country is deeply committed to the peace

process in the former Yugoslavia, in particular in

Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Dayton accords provide

the framework for the return of Bosnia to normalcy and

stability, for its economic recovery and for

reconciliation among its ethnic groups. Full and

comprehensive implementation of the Dayton

Agreement is therefore imperative. This includes

bringing to justice all indicted war criminals, wherever

they may be. If we want to safeguard the Dayton

process, the international community must remain

firmly committed to taking the necessary political,

economic and military measures even beyond July

1998. International support must remain conditional on

full compliance with all international obligations. I

should like to pay a special tribute to the United

Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern

10

Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium, which has made

an invaluable contribution to fostering peace in that

region.

Austria is in favour of integrating the Federal

Republic of Yugoslavia fully into the United Nations

family as soon as the necessary preconditions, including

the application for membership, are fulfilled. In this

respect, I stress our expectation that Belgrade will grant a

large degree of autonomy to Kosovo and the Albanian

minority.

Austria has followed the situation in the Middle East

with great concern. We regret the fact that the peace

process has come to a near-standstill. The confidence

built up by the Oslo process has been largely destroyed.

Our main task must be to re-establish and to strengthen

this confidence step by step and to bring the parties back

to the negotiating table. The present situation increases

the risk of extremist activity. A precondition for progress

in the peace process will certainly be respect by all

parties for the agreements concluded and the

engagements undertaken.

Austria is seriously preoccupied by the precarious

economic and social situation in the Palestinian

territories, where the unemployment rate is 70 per cent. It

is of paramount importance to create the necessary

economic conditions as a basis for political stability.

There will be no lasting peace without a credible

response to the economic needs of the people in the

region.

Since 1960, Austria has participated very actively in

United Nations peacekeeping operations. Considering the

growing importance in contemporary peacekeeping of

regional arrangements under Chapter VIII of the Charter

of the United Nations, my country has started to

cooperate closely with those States and organizations that

have taken leading roles in this field. In 1997 Austria

provided about 1,200 troops, military observers and

civilian police to 11 different peacekeeping operations

throughout the world, including the Stabilization Force

(SFOR) and the operation in Albania.

Austria actively supports the standby arrangement

system, created in 1994, and in this connection took part

in establishing the United Nations Stand-by Forces High-

Readiness Brigade in December 1996, which was created

to build a capacity for quick preventive action and crisis

response.

I am deeply convinced that, especially in times of

scarce financial resources, the international community

should make a greater investment in the field of conflict

prevention and preventive diplomacy. The United

Nations has the mandate to take a leading role in

further developing instruments for preventive

diplomacy.

Austria is, and will continue to be, a loyal

Member and a strong supporter of the world

Organization. The United Nations — our

Organization — is the only global instrument that can

provide the necessary response to existing global

challenges: eradicating poverty; protecting our planet's

environment; combating drugs, organized crime and

terrorism; and promoting human rights, including the

rights of children. To this end we have to strengthen

the United Nations.