Central African Republic, 2000

Our stubborn quest for a world of peace,

progress, solidarity and of concord recently prompted

the Heads of State and of Government from the world

over to commit themselves at the Millennium Summit

to joint reflection about the ways of making a reality of

this aspiration in the twenty-first century.

The conclusions they arrived at, conclusions that

can be summarized as the need for us to usher in a new

era in international relations, without a doubt mark the

framework for the future work of our Organization.

It is thus a positive circumstance that our work is

unfolding against this backdrop so that during our

deliberations we might strive to act in accordance with

the guidelines set for us by our Heads of State.

But before my delegation attempts its own

assessment of the state of the world as we look at the

fresh challenges facing us in the twenty-first century, I

should like, on behalf of His Excellency Mr. Ange-

Félix Patassé, President of our Republic and Head of

State, who wishes us every success in our work, to

address to you, Mr. President, as well as to the other

members of the Bureau, our heartfelt congratulations

on your election to the presidency of this session.

Your superb mastery of international affairs in the

context of which your country, Finland, holds a very

special place, bodes well indeed for the success of this

session and, in this connection, you can count on the

cooperation of the delegation of the Central African

Republic.

The competence with which your predecessor,

Mr. Theo-Ben Gurirab of Namibia, guided the work at

the fifty-fourth session, has earned the full appreciation

of my delegation.

I should like as well to express again to the

Secretary-General the full support of the Government

of the Central African Republic for all he is constantly

doing at the helm of our Organization to provide solid

underpinnings for peace and development in a world

which has become complex indeed. The relevance of

the proposals that he put forward in his introductory

report at the Millennium Summit reflect his deep

commitment to fully serving the cause of the

Organization, and we are deeply grateful.

Furthermore, the Central African Republic, which

has always encouraged our Organization to stride

forward towards universality, welcomes the admission

7

of Tuvalu as the 189th Member State. I am delighted to

congratulate this young republic on behalf of the

delegation of the Central African Republic.

A world of peace, of progress, of solidarity and of

concord, such was the philosophy of the founding

fathers of the United Nations.

How can one explain then that 55 years later we

should be so far from attaining that goal?

Peace, when it is not assured, gives way to war.

Factors such as penury, destitution, poverty, AIDS,

malaria and tuberculosis — compounded by

intolerance, injustice, indifference and social

inequalities — these make up the threats to the balance

of peace.

Progress is a reality for only a quarter of

humankind, while three quarters still are not enjoying

decent living conditions.

Solidarity still is something selectively applied in

a world that is nonetheless interdependent.

All this cannot foster fellowship within this

constantly changing world.

That is the state of the world as we enter the

twenty-first century.

The Secretary-General's report entitled “We the

peoples: the role of the United Nations in the twenty-

first century” has the merit of having pointed out all

these distortions that do not help to ensure the smooth

unfolding of international relations.

But even though the United Nations, 55 years

after having come into being, has not fulfilled the

hopes to which its inception gave rise, the fact

nonetheless remains that it does exist. And the fact that

it still does exist is something which first and foremost

is due to the determination of States, which do in fact

feel the need for this Organization. We must therefore

stimulate renewed interest in the United Nations; that

is what is at stake at this session.

The United Nations must regain its authority in

order to contribute to regulating the course of events in

the world in the twenty-first century. On the basis of

real solidarity among States, we must conceive of a

new kind of cooperation that would make it possible

for us collectively to organize a defence of peace, the

promotion of development and of progress, as well as

the fostering of human rights and of democracy

everywhere around the world.

The fact is that as you look around the world

these days, you find that peace is jeopardized in many

different countries, and especially on the African

continent.

What is more, all this is happening as though the

conventional conflict-settlement machinery were no

longer suited to coping with crisis situations. Still, the

resources afforded by the United Nations, as well as by

regional organizations, have made it possible for a new

attitude in the face of conflict to emerge, one which

first and foremost involves regional solidarity.

It is in this context that my country today still

plays host to a United Nations office, the United

Nations Peace-Building Support Office in the Central

African Republic (BONUCA), responsible for striving

to consolidate peace. Indeed the tragic events for which

the Central African Republic became the staging

ground in 1996 and 1997 prompted African countries

first to intervene in the context of the Inter-African

Mission to Monitor the Implementation of the Bangui

Agreements (MISAB), before bringing the United

Nations into the picture. The United Nations Mission in

the Central African Republic (MINURCA) made a

genuine contribution by its very presence and by what

it did in restoring peace and in promoting national

reconciliation, thanks to the support provided in

organizing both legislative and presidential elections.

I would like here again to express the

appreciation of the Government of the Central African

Republic to the Secretary-General of the United

Nations, to the members of the Security Council and

especially to the countries that so generously

contributed to supporting that mission of peace by

providing the wherewithal for MINURCA.

The experience gained in the Central African

Republic can be made available as an asset to the

United Nations, reflecting a success in keeping the

peace and consolidating it. My delegation, which

supports the Brahimi report, hopes that the

recommendations it embodies will be fully

implemented so that we really see take root a new

doctrine for United Nations operations of

peacekeeping.

In the same vein, my delegation hopes that the

United Nations provides the same resources to

8

promoting a lasting settlement in the situations in

Sierra Leone, in Angola, in Burundi, between Ethiopia

and Eritrea, as well as in the Democratic Republic of

the Congo.

As to the Democratic Republic of the Congo,

which shares a rather long border with my own

country, my delegation calls for cooperation from the

international community in the context of the United

Nations, so that a solution may be found to this

conflict, the consequences of which have already taken

a heavy toll, both for the Congolese people, with which

we are bound by fraternal ties, as well as for the

neighbouring States such as the Central African

Republic, which is currently hosting tens of thousands

of refugees that have fled the effects of the war. My

delegation takes advantage of this opportunity to call

upon the competent international authorities, the Office

of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

in particular, to devote special attention to the Central

African Republic in this instance.

Moreover, my delegation firmly supports the

ongoing process seeking to bring about a settlement to

the question of the Middle East. We do not doubt that

the determination of the parties involved will make it

possible to lift the last remaining obstacles so that a

fair, negotiated and lasting solution in accordance with

Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338

(1973) may be found.

The United Nations subsequently should regain

its authority in order to enable it to contribute by

letting multilateralism work to promote development

throughout the world. The fact is that without denying

what has been done internationally to fight poverty and

while acknowledging that developing countries should

shoulder primary responsibility for ensuring the

necessary preconditions for their development, my

delegation hopes that the community of States will

come to grips with the question of poverty and will

apply a fresh way of thinking to it in this twenty-first

century.

All the indicators of poverty are there for us to

see, and you can find them everywhere in Africa: weak

primary educational systems, a lack of sanitary

infrastructure, a lack of drinking water, of the proper

conditions for hygiene, to name but a few. The African

continent is part of that 1 billion inhabitants of our

planet living on less than one dollar a day, while two-

thirds of the population of the planet hold three-

quarters of the world's income.

Poverty is extreme in Africa; we must do our

utmost to come up with new ways to reduce it in the

twenty-first century.

The Central African Republic, which at the

beginning of this year took part in the Libreville

summit on growth and poverty reduction in Africa,

abides by the new strategic framework to combat

poverty proposed by the Bretton Woods institutions.

My country therefore calls for an increase in the

resources allocated to such agencies as the United

Nations Development Programme, the United Nations

Population Fund, the United Nations Children's Fund

(UNICEF) and the United Nations Educational,

Scientific and Cultural Organization to support the

Central African Republic's strategy to combat poverty.

Of course, eradicating poverty will be necessary

in order to make it possible for developing countries to

take part in the work of development. That is

particularly true with regard to the countries of Africa.

But it will also be necessary to put developing

countries in a position where they can really rise to the

development challenge. In this connection, the issue of

the debt burden comes to mind, for it continues to

substantially handicap all development efforts.

How, then, can we ensure that globalization

stimulates development in Africa instead of leading to

marginalization? Inasmuch as the new technologies

that are being introduced contribute to the overall

progress of mankind, Africa must expect to benefit,

and we once again call for the rules governing the work

of the World Trade Organization to take Africa's

interests into account.

In his introductory report to the Millennium

Summit, the Secretary-General reminded us that all

activity is people-oriented. Nothing is more true. My

delegation hopes that the United Nations will regain its

authority so that it can contribute to ensuring the

necessary conditions for the promotion of rights and

democracy throughout the world. Guaranteeing and

protecting human rights contributes to national

consensus and strengthening democracy in a country.

We have understood that so well in the Central

African Republic that we have created a government

body called the High Commission for Human Rights,

whose mission is not only to monitor respect for human

9

rights, but also to implement the various international

legal instruments signed by the Central African

Republic aimed at promoting human rights. That

implementation requires resources in order to bring

about the most widespread dissemination possible of

human rights at the national level. As human rights are

indivisible, it is important to establish cooperation

between States to promote human rights throughout the

world. My delegation hopes that in the course of the

twenty-first century the United Nations will become

increasingly involved in international efforts to

establish a worldwide culture of human rights. It must

be reformed and renewed in order to be able to take on

that role.

Renewal means adaptation to the realities of the

world today. The Organization's procedures, methods

and approaches to every issue within its competence

will have to be streamlined. However, let us not forget

that protecting international peace and security is the

primary task entrusted to the United Nations. That role

is primarily the responsibility of the Security Council.

My delegation would like to see the Security

Council reformed in order to better discharge that

responsibility. The world has changed profoundly, and

the composition of the Security Council should reflect

that. Even though the veto power is not as abused today

as it was during the cold war, we should restructure the

Council in both the permanent and non-permanent

categories to take into account the new international

reality. That is the opinion of the delegation of the

Central African Republic.

In that way we can contribute to setting relations

between nations on a different course. That requires a

real and willing commitment by States. This year's

adoption of the Constitutive Act of the African Union

as an expression of Africa's willingness to join the

United Nations in meeting all the challenges is a

manifestation of that commitment. My country will do

everything in its power to encourage this new

movement towards integration.

The century that witnessed the birth of the United

Nations has ended. A new century is beginning, one in

which there is still a United Nations — something that

is cause for satisfaction to mankind. But what shall we

make of the United Nations in the twenty-first century?

That is indeed the fundamental question raised by the

Secretary-General in his report to the Millennium

Summit.

Should we continue to keep the United Nations

locked in the vice of contradictions that exists between

Member States? Should we continue to look on

helplessly as its authority is flouted in peacekeeping

operations? Should we continue to accept the

Organization's being left behind as the world moves

forward? The answer, in the opinion of the delegation

of the Central African Republic, is a resounding “No”.

Let us therefore return to the dream of the

founding fathers and make sure that in the new century

the United Nations has the necessary means to bring

about peace, solidarity and harmony throughout the

world. Such a world is possible if we want it. That is

the world our Heads of State spoke of in their message

to us at the Millennium Summit.