Bangladesh, 2005

I wish to congratulate

you, Mr. President, on your election. I am confident

that you will carry forward the able legacy left by your

predecessor, Mr. Jean Ping. Our warm tribute is also

due to the Secretary-General as he strives to

reinvigorate our Organization.

We meet in the wake of the High-level Plenary

Meeting, where bold decisions were made to promote

implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

Our problems transcend national boundaries. Solutions

need a global consensus. All of us must emphatically

reaffirm the central role of the United Nations in the

cooperative management of the worldís problems.

We are constitutionally committed to uphold the

Charter and its legitimacy based on the rule of law. In a

globalizing world, no nation is an island. None can

prosper alone. The United Nations remains the only

bastion of peace, justice and development in the world.

Reform of the United Nations is vital. We must

focus on its effectiveness and ability to deliver quickly.

Its agenda and mandate must be meaningful. Its

administration must be reformed. Its budget must be

purged of waste. Its major organs need to be

reconstituted and revitalized to serve purposeful

priorities. Expansion of its major organs is necessary

but must be tailored to the efficacy of the Organization.

The dynamics of todayís world have been created

by immense forces of change. Among them are

advances in science and technology and widespread

awareness of individual rights. The resulting

globalization and progression of humanitarian law have

given rise to a world where the very concept of

sovereignty is being challenged, where the dimensions

of security are in a flux, where the nature of conflict

has seen a seismic shift and where social exclusion has

added complex uncertainty. The need for constructive

engagement, dialogue, tolerance and understanding is

imperative. Development and the rule of law must take

centre stage.

New challenges confront us today. While

terrorists sow panic and xenophobia in our societies,

deprivation, hunger, disease and environmental

degradation continue to fuel insecurity and

destabilization. The recent bombings in London and

Egypt shocked us all. They have hardened our resolve

to face this menace unitedly. Bangladesh condemns

terrorism in all its forms. We have acceded to all anti-

terrorism conventions of the United Nations and

relevant regional organizations. We support the early

conclusion of a comprehensive United Nations

convention on terrorism. I would like to underscore our

conviction that terrorists do not belong to any one

country or religion.

In Bangladesh, sustained efforts are being made

to pursue the twin objectives of responsibility at home

and a contribution abroad. Despite enormous

constraints, we have made good progress to advance

democracy, development and human rights. We

recognize that those goals are linked with one another.

We have moved slowly but surely to shore up a

democratic ethos. The late President Ziaur Rahman led

Bangladesh out of the morass of a failed democracy in

1975. He introduced a multi-party system, freed the

press and opened up the economy. In 1990, a popular

uprising against an entrenched military dictatorship

brought the first real push towards sustained

democracy. We have not looked back. Three

consecutive free and fair elections have been held

under a neutral caretaker Government. That unique

constitutional innovation has ensured the peaceful

transfer of power on an alternating basis. Democracy

has become firmly rooted in Bangladesh. A key

element of the last election, in 2001, was the

participation of more than 70 per cent of the electorate.

Women voters outnumbered men. They voted not for

symbols but for issues.

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A quiet revolution is under way in Bangladesh in

the field of development. The progress is visible on six

key fronts: stable growth of the gross domestic product

(GDP) at a rate of 5 per cent or more for over two

decades; higher per capita income; food security;

increased resilience in the face of natural disasters;

improvement of the human development index; and

better social and health outcomes. Our performance in

those areas compares favourably with the results in our

own region and elsewhere. A set of pragmatic, targeted

policy approaches have made that progress possible.

We have completed a full-fledged poverty reduction

strategy paper through an extended consultative

process. It sets out a road map to meet country-specific

MDGs. The fundamental principle of the poverty

reduction strategy paper is to promote employment-

generating economic growth and to invest significantly

in priority sectors such as education, health and social

safety-net programmes. It is a matter of some

satisfaction that Bangladesh has achieved two of the

MDGs: the elimination of gender disparity in primary

and secondary schools and access to safe drinking

water. We are close to achieving two more goals: the

reduction of extreme poverty and under-five child

mortality rates.

Bangladesh is committed to upholding the dignity

of individuals and promoting human rights. Bangladesh

is a party to all United Nations human rights

conventions. We are moving steadily to strengthen

good governance through strong democratic

institutions, establish the rule of law and eliminate

intolerance in our society.

Deeply entrenched pockets of poverty continue to

exist around the world. The most vulnerable are the

least developed countries. Their products should be

granted immediate duty-free and quota-free access

globally. As reaffirmed at Monterrey, the specific

allocation of 0.15 to 0.2 per cent of the GDP of

developed countries must be earmarked for official

development assistance to least developed countries.

Financing for development is a critical issue.

Innovative initiatives in that regard, which have been

the subject of discussion, need to be pursued in earnest.

The devastation caused by natural disasters

affects all countries, rich and poor alike. How can we

meet the challenge of effective relief, rehabilitation and

reconstruction, as well as pre-disaster warning and

preparations? That continues to the responsibility of

the United Nations.

We are profoundly shocked at the huge toll of

damage caused by Hurricane Katrina on the Gulf coast

of the United States. Natural disasters do not

distinguish between rich and poor countries, and the

human misery and suffering caused are the same. We,

in Bangladesh, have weathered many severe floods and

cyclones, and the toll in terms of life and property has

been huge. We can therefore feel the torment that the

affected people have undergone, and we offer our

heartfelt sympathies. We know that the American

people can overcome the disaster and move on with

their lives.

All countries, including Bangladesh, must seek

ways and means to contribute effectively to the United

Nations, whether through peacemaking, peacekeeping

or peacebuilding. Active participation, innovative ideas

and best practices in shoring up development together

can enhance our combined capacity to address the

worldís problems, especially those that no one country

can tackle alone. We, in Bangladesh, are particularly

proud of our contribution to peacekeeping on many

simultaneous fronts across the globe. In all, we have

contributed more than 39,000 troops to 24 missions

and are currently among the largest contributors. Sixty-

seven of our blue-helmeted soldiers have died in that

cause. Our commitment to peacekeeping remains

unflinching. We also fully support the establishment of

the Peacebuilding Commission.

A priority concern for us is our close identity

with Africa. Through our peacekeeping efforts, we

have established special bonds of friendship. The New

Partnership for Africaís Development is particularly

encouraging. We believe that South-South cooperation

has specific relevance in that context.

Bangladesh reaffirms its support for the early

establishment of a sovereign independent State in

Palestine, in accordance with the relevant United

Nations resolutions. The road map for peace in the

Middle East needs to be implemented fully and

urgently.

With respect to Iraq, we believe that the present

situation should be resolved by preserving the interests

of the Iraqi people, in particular their territorial

integrity, and by ensuring the long-term peace, security

and stability of the region.

Bangladeshís constitutional commitment to

general and complete disarmament is the reason for our

progressive support of international and regional

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treaties and agreements covering all the Atomic Bomb

Casualty Commission (ABCC) weapons. We are a

party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear

Weapons and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban

Treaty. We give precedence to human over weapons

security.

Each year we come to the Assembly to reaffirm

our faith in the United Nations. This sixtieth

anniversary year is of profound significance. We must

provide a renewed mandate to the United Nations to

meet the challenges of the new millennium ó to rid

the world of poverty and injustice, to usher in the rule

of law, to promote the cause of development, to

eradicate terrorism and, above all, to promote peace

and security. We can prevail only if we act responsibly

and together. Support for the United Nations and its

legitimacy remains a paramount priority.