Bhutan, 1995

I have the honour to convey

to the President of the General Assembly, and through

him to all representatives, the warm greetings and good

wishes of His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, King of

Bhutan, for the success of the fiftieth session of the

General Assembly. I offer Mr. Freitas do Amaral the

felicitations of my delegation on his election as President

of this historic session. His election to this high office is

a tribute to him personally and to his country, Portugal,

which has always played an active role in the United

Nations. My delegation wishes also to pay a tribute to His

Excellency Mr. Amara Essy of Côte d’Ivoire for his

skilful stewardship at the forty-ninth session. His

presidency has enhanced the esteem of the international

community for him and for Côte d’Ivoire.

We also take this opportunity to welcome the

Republic of Palau into our family of nations. Its

participation will greatly enrich our Organization.

This session is of especial significance for all of us

as we celebrate the passing of 50 years since the birth of

the United Nations. It is heartening to note that the grand

and lofty vision which inspired our founding fathers still

continues to inspire and guide us. More than ever before,

we see today the evidence of the collective human will to

unite against threats and obstacles to the survival and

continued progress of mankind. The participation of no

fewer than 150 Heads of State or Government in the

special commemorative meeting later this month is

glowing testimony to our abiding faith in this world body.

The Intergovernmental High-level Meeting on the

Mid-term Global Review of the Implementation of the

Programme of Action for the Least Developed Countries

for the 1990s was held in New York recently. The least

developed countries as a group have not been able to

meet many of the objectives of the Programme of Action

and their overall socio-economic situation has continued

to deteriorate. Some of the factors responsible for this

deterioration are, internally, civil strife and natural

25

disasters with their resulting consequences and, externally,

the debt problem, low levels of export and an inadequate

flow of external finance. These countries have, however,

continued to implement wide-ranging reforms and in some

countries these efforts have shown positive results. A

number of development partners have provided increased

support to the least-developed countries, for which we are

truly grateful. We believe that the least developed countries

have the primary responsibility for their own development,

and with the support of the international community they

hope to alleviate the desperate plight of their peoples. The

Least Developed Countries Division of the United Nations

Conference on Trade and Development deserves praise for

the excellent documentation it provided for the recent

intergovernmental meeting on the least developed countries.

Earlier this year, we supported the indefinite extension

of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons

(NPT). This was followed shortly thereafter by several

nuclear tests — in what we believe is a contravention of

the spirit of the 1995 Review and Extension Conference of

the NPT. We are increasingly concerned about the fate of

the comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty and our ultimate

goal of eliminating all nuclear and other weapons of mass

destruction.

The maintenance of global peace and security still

remains the most pressing challenge for the United Nations.

It has become the yardstick by which the United Nations is

today being judged. Increasingly, concerns are expressed as

to whether the United Nations is able to carry out this task.

The tragic situations in Somalia, Bosnia and Herzegovina

and Rwanda demonstrate the inability of the international

community to put an end to the immeasurable suffering of

the innocent victims. Such cases raise an important issue.

The number of peace-keeping missions has grown

exponentially. The past year has seen 18 peace-keeping

missions involving 78,000 peace-keepers. The good news

is that the United Nations has a vital, ever-growing role to

play in keeping the peace and allowing combatants a

breathing period in which to come to the negotiating table.

The down side is that the peace-keeping missions are a

considerable drain on the finances of the United Nations.

Expenditures for peace-keeping operation are now more

than three times the entire budget for development. Surely

development merits high priority as well.

The most serious obstacles to sustainable global

development are the fast pace of population growth and the

increasing degradation of the environment. The situation is

worst in the countries that are least able to bear the burden

and where there is already an appalling disequilibrium

between people and resources. The more advanced

countries may delay their confrontation with the

environmental crisis but unless these issues are addressed

today, we may see the collapse of vital resources and

climatic changes in many parts of the world and new

security threats resulting from poverty and chaos. This is

aggravated by the fact that the most significant

developments in the world economy are taking place

outside the United Nations, and our Organization is being

increasingly marginalized on economic, financial and

trade issues.

It is important that the world continue to keep

investing in people, especially women and children, and

that it meet their basic needs in education, health and

social welfare. The historic United Nations conferences of

this decade on children, environment, human rights,

population, social development and women embody the

irreversible commitment of the international community

to chart a new course for the future. My country is firmly

committed to the goals set by these conferences.

I wish to acknowledge the special contribution of the

United Nations to the development of my country. The

United Nations has been actively involved in every sphere

of development in Bhutan, and has been responsible for

helping us set out on the right path of sustainable

development. Every effort has been made on our part to

ensure that all assistance received has been properly

utilized and meaningful results achieved. I express the

profound gratitude of the people of Bhutan to the donor

community, which supports the United Nations

development activities. We have particularly benefited

from the activities of the United Nations Development

Programme, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the

World Food Programme, the United Nations Population

Fund, the United Nations Capital Development Fund, the

International Fund for Agricultural Development, the

United Nations Volunteer Programme, the Food and

Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the World

Health Organization, the International Monetary Fund and

the World Bank. They have contributed much to the

welfare of our people. We are also grateful to our

bilateral donors, particularly India, Switzerland, Japan,

Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, Norway, Kuwait,

Germany, Australia, Thailand, and the United Kingdom

for their cooperation and support.

The Working Group on the Strengthening of the

United Nations System will once again look at

streamlining the Organization. Reform of several aspects

of the United Nations system is vital, especially as we

26

confront the many challenges of the twenty-first century.

There must be better distribution of power within the

United Nations. The crippling financial situation caused by

large arrears by Member States must be overcome. It is

also time to examine the new mechanisms for meeting the

financial requirements of the United Nations. My delegation

feels that a proper study should be made and reported to

the Assembly at an early date. In our view, the innovative

idea of a small levy on international air travel proposed by

the Foreign Minister of Australia, Senator Gareth Evans, is

sound and practical.

We are of the considered view that the Security

Council must be expanded to give greater representation to

developing countries in order to uphold the principles of

equity and justice. Many least-developed countries like

Bhutan feel they are being increasingly marginalized by the

new agendas and priorities of the United Nations. In our

view, the United Nations must represent the interests of all

countries equally, and not only those of a privileged few.

We therefore support the expansion of the Security Council

to facilitate more equitable representation of developing

countries and deserving candidates that have emerged since

the United Nations was established 50 years ago. As a

fellow South Asian nation, and as a member of the South

Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, of which India

is by far the largest member, we strongly support India’s

inclusion in the permanent-member category of the Security

Council. India’s candidature merits serious consideration on

the grounds of equitable geographic representation, the

large size and enormous potential of the Indian economy

and the fact that one sixth of mankind lives in India.

Before I conclude, I should like to join preceding

speakers in paying tribute to the many organizations and

individuals that serve with unfailing dedication and

commitment to further the principles and purposes of the

United Nations. I should like to pay a special tribute to

Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, the Secretary-General of the

United Nations; to the late James Grant, former Executive

Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF),

who did so much for the world’s children; to the many

Blue Helmets who have sacrificed their lives so that others

may live in peace and security; and to the host of United

Nations personnel and volunteers who have selflessly

dedicated their lives to the service of others, sometimes

serving under the most trying conditions.