Cyprus, 1993

Mr. President, it is with great

pleasure that I congratulate you on your election as President

of the General Assembly. This is not merely a recognition

of your long experience and your outstanding ability and

diplomatic skill, but also a reflection of the esteem in which

your country, Guyana, is held in the United Nations. We are

certain that, under your able guidance, the work of this

session of the General Assembly will be a landmark in the

new international scene and in facing the new challenges for

peace, democracy and progress.

I should like also to pay a warm tribute to the

Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Boutros

Boutros-Ghali, for the determined leadership that he has

demonstrated on vital international issues and for his

excellent report on the work of the Organization, which

provides much food for thought and indicates various areas

of important activities that are the object of soul-searching

consideration in this debate.

May I remind Members that, from the beginning of its

existence as an independent State after many years of

colonial rule until its admission to the United Nations in

1960, Cyprus has consciously made the principles of the

United Nations Charter central to its foreign policy, and,

within its limited possibilities, has endeavoured in every

possible way to be supportive of the Organization.

Frankly, I have to admit that we followed this approach

in our foreign policy both as a matter of principle and as a

matter of self-interest. We have always believed that the

United Nations was mankind’s best hope for a system of

international order, despite the fact that we were aware of

the possibilities of non-adherence to it and of the limitations

to the effectiveness of the world Organization resulting from

the existence of military blocs. Our self-interest as a small

and militarily weak country made us feel the need for the

protection of the world Organization, and, as a developing

country, we stood to benefit from multilateral technical

assistance and know-how.

The Secretary-General’s excellent report testifies to the

fact that, in today’s post-cold-war era, the United Nations is

at a crossroads. Some years ago, in the context of the

East-West divide and the continuing build-up of nuclear

arsenals, we were agonizing in international forums over the

future of our civilization. The cold war is finally over,

opening up new prospects for positive change in

international policies. New prospects are also opening up

for concerted action and a global approach to the problems

we face.

In some parts of the world, the old regimes have

collapsed and a move to pluralistic societies and the free

market economy is being made. However, the newly

acquired freedom has revived old enmities. This is not a

strange phenomenon because, as the eminent, late Prime

Minister of India, Mr. Nehru, said, the walk to freedom is

not an easy one. World developments indicate, and clearly

demonstrate, that unless the international community adopts

a more unified approach in its understanding of the

challenges it faces and promotes the necessary solutions,

human rights abuses, increasing insecurity and hunger and

suffering will create an explosive situation that will spare no

one; we are, though, gradually becoming aware of the

complexity and scope that even minor issues acquire in an

interdependent world.

The world is full of challenges and opportunities. Our

common responsibility is to strengthen the world

Organization in order best to respond to these challenges and

increase mankind’s expectations of peace, prosperity and

democracy. These expectations can be met only by making

the United Nations more effective, through the

implementation of its own resolutions and the mandatory

provisions of the Charter.

The General Assembly, based on the principle of

sovereign equality, has much to offer and must continue to

play its important role under the Charter.

Nowadays, however, the Security Council has a

substantially enlarged agenda. As the Charter envisages, it

is able to decide and act. At present it is able to act in a

more effective manner in the crucial areas of international

peace and security. It is evident that the Security Council

can now play a much more important role than ever before.

This is a welcome development, and within the context of

this expanded role a review of its membership to reflect the

realities of today’s world is highly appropriate.

However, the effectiveness of the Security Council, the

highest organ of the United Nations, can be achieved only if

it applies the practice of acting with determination.

Experience has demonstrated that in those cases where the

international community has shown determination to uphold

the principles of international instruments and fully apply

their provisions, progress can be made. In those cases where

unity of purpose has not been shown or interests of nations

have been placed above universal principles and rule of law,

the problems remain, and peace is elusive.

I wish to point out with emphasis that gaps in

international law and practice - failure to uphold

international law and human rights, or upholding them in

one situation and closing our eyes to their violation in others

- must no longer be acceptable behaviour, particularly in the

new world order to which we all aspire.

In today’s world, where economics plays an

increasingly important role, the United Nations, through the

Secretariat, the United Nations Development Programme and

the various specialized agencies, carries out multi-purpose

activities for the betterment and economic well-being of

people throughout the world. These activities are outlined

in the Secretary-General’s report, and in the interest of

saving time I do not intend to comment on them other than

to declare that we fully recognize their importance and

support them. We look forward to receiving later in this

session the Secretary-General’s integrated approach to

development issues in his forthcoming agenda for

development, which will no doubt appropriately complement

his groundbreaking "An Agenda for Peace" in matters of

peace and security.

In the light of our overall philosophy, as I indicated

earlier, we attach much importance to the effective

functioning of the principal judicial organ of the United

Nations, the International Court of Justice. The increase of

its jurisdiction in contentious cases is encouraging, and we

also attach importance to the possibility of clarifying legal

points in political disputes through advisory opinions. The

International Court of Justice is indeed an integral part of

United Nations peace efforts and we support the

Secretary-General’s proposal that he be authorized to seek

advisory opinions from the Court as an important component

of the United Nations peacemaking apparatus as a whole.

The Secretariat’s role in an improved and more

effective United Nations is indisputable, and we pay tribute

to the many men and women in the international civil

service whose competence and dedication enable the

Organization to respond to the ever-increasing demands

made of it in today’s world conditions. The

Secretary-General has already done much in the direction of

rationalizing and streamlining the Secretariat, as well as in

putting in place effective machinery for inspections and

investigations whenever necessary, and he certainly has our

support in the additional measures needed to carry out this

Herculean task. We join in recognizing the undoubted need

for an adequate financial basis for the Organization and for

assessed contributions to be paid early and in full by

Member States, in terms of both the regular budget and the

costs of peace-keeping. Voluntary contributions are also to

be encouraged in order to carry out the tasks at hand, and I

might recall that Cyprus, besides endeavouring to play its

Forty-eighth session - 5 October l993 3

modest role in as many such cases as its means allow, has

also undertaken to make, on a continuous basis, a major

contribution towards the financing of the United Nations

Peace-keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP).

Past and recent experience in every region of the world

has demonstrated that the protection and promotion of

human rights is an indispensable ingredient of a stable world

order. Over the years the United Nations has played its full

part in affirming human equality, which is, indeed, the heart

of all rights, and in building bridges across the divides of

race, ethnicity, culture, socio-economic disparities and

political philosophies. Democracy and human rights are two

of the United Nations Charter’s most cherished principles,

and they have always figured prominently in United Nations

conferences.

Democracy is the only system of government that can

safeguard the liberty of the people, respect for human rights

and quality of life. We have a duty to remain vigilant and

continue to look for ways in which these new opportunities

presented by world developments may be used for the

promotion of international peace, the advancement of the

rule of law and the protection of human rights.

The world community must clearly oppose chauvinistic

nationalism, take a clear-cut stand against policies of "ethnic

cleansing" and unequivocally continue making all efforts

until we achieve the complete dismantlement of the unjust

and inhumane social systems based on ethnic political

segregation and the development and consolidation of a

non-racial, democratic South Africa.

The effective promotion of human rights cannot be

separated from the global trend towards democratization.

Cyprus is in the forefront of States that have become party

to treaties for the protection of human rights, both at the

global level, within the United Nations, and at the regional

level, primarily through the Council of Europe. We are

especially sensitive on this subject, since one large

component of the Cyprus problem in its present dimensions

is the massive violation of the human rights of the displaced

persons who have been evicted by force from their homes by

the Turkish forces of occupation. Their homes and

properties have been usurped by illegal settlers imported

from Turkey to Cyprus in an effort by the aggressor to

change the demographic composition of the population of

Cyprus.

All these flagrant violations of human rights have been

committed by Turkey, a Member of the United Nations,

despite General Assembly and Security Council resolutions

calling on all United Nations Members to respect the

independence and territorial integrity of the Republic, avoid

any actions which could change the demographic

composition of the population of Cyprus, withdraw all

foreign forces from the territory of the Republic and allow

the return of the refugees to their homes under conditions of

safety.

Cyprus is a case in point of the complete defiance of

General Assembly and Security Council resolutions by one

of its members. In reality, the intransigence of the Turkish

side, which has rendered every effort to find a solution

impossible, accounts for the hesitation of the Security

Council to adopt measures for compliance with its

resolutions. If a viable and lasting solution of the Cyprus

problem is to be arrived at without further delay and a

federally united State is to be established without occupation

troops and settlers, concerted action is required by the

international community as a whole.

It is not only in the solution of the Cyprus problem that

Turkey shows intransigence. The Turkish intransigence

extends to purely humanitarian issues, such as cooperation

in ascertaining the fate of missing persons and in

implementing the third Vienna agreement regarding persons

enclaved in occupied areas.

I wish to express appreciation for the support extended

to Cyprus by the General Assembly, the Secretary-General

and the Security Council. We consider a good omen of

further determined action the declaration of the

Secretary-General in his most recent report to the Security

Council on Cyprus, and the Council’s positive response to it,

that unless progress is made on the Cyprus problem he will

request the Security Council to consider alternative ways of

securing compliance with the many resolutions of the United

Nations on Cyprus.

We have had occasion in the past to express our

support for the constructive suggestions of the

Secretary-General for improving the potential of United

Nations peace-keeping operations in today’s increasing

demand for them, including the training of personnel, the

strengthening of the Department of Peace-keeping

Operations and the earmarking of appropriate equipment and

personnel for use by the United Nations. We are encouraged

that progress has been made in all these areas and in the

setting up of a peace-keeping Reserve Fund, but, in view of

the ever-increasing demands and the worsening of financial

problems associated with these operations, complacency is

not justified and we should all continue to do our best to

4 General Assembly - Forty-eighth session

assist in discharging this major responsibility thrust on our

Organization.

With regard to peace-keeping, it has been said - not

without justification - that the United Nations should avoid

open-ended involvement in peace-keeping operations.

Cyprus has been pointed out as an example of over-long

United Nations peace-keeping involvement. The broader

lesson to be drawn from the experience of United Nations

involvement in peace-keeping and peacemaking in Cyprus is

that, so long as one of the parties concerned is not willing to

comply with the dictates of the international community as

spelt out in unanimously adopted and binding resolutions of

the Security Council; and so long as the members of the

international community, and more particularly the

permanent members of the Security Council, are not willing

or able to act effectively in order to implement resolutions

for which they voted, peacemaking will lag behind peace-

keeping, resulting in the indefinite perpetuation of the

problem and of the peace-keeping operation concerned. This

is, obviously, an unsatisfactory situation - unsatisfactory to

the Government and the country directly concerned;

unsatisfactory to the countries contributing to the cost of the

peace-keeping operation; and of course, unsatisfactory to the

United Nations. I submit that the answer lies not in

abandoning the peace-keeping effort and thereby abdicating

responsibility, leaving the weak at the mercy of the strong

and striking a blow against longstanding efforts to solve the

problem, but in pressing on with effective peacemaking

through the implementation of the relevant Security Council

resolutions by all available means, so as to reach a solution

consistent with the Charter and the United Nations

resolutions. Cyprus is indeed a test-case, not, however, with

regard to peace-keeping, but with regard to the effectiveness

of the United Nations in peacemaking.

If I set out at some length our views on "An Agenda

for Peace", I did so not only because it is very important,

but also because Cyprus is itself a case-study of most of the

problems it raises. I shall refrain from commenting on the

long litany listed in this year’s report of international

problems in which the Organization is actively engaged and

which extend to all five continents. Each presents its own

complications and special characteristics. They provide a

measure of the enormous expectations placed upon the

United Nations, the awesome burden of the Secretary-

General’s responsibilities, and the respect and admiration he

deserves in carrying out these responsibilities. As he rightly

points out:

"The United Nations, by undertaking a range of

problems as wide as the globe itself, must be expected

to achieve successes but also to experience failure."

(A/48/1, para. 512)

While in the past few years the world has witnessed the

creation of new areas of tension and conflict through the

unleashing of destructive and centrifugal forces of excessive

nationalism and ethnic strife, there have also been some

notable successes through the solution of several regional

issues and the withdrawal of foreign forces following the

end of cold-war antagonism. We have witnessed in many

parts of the world the triumph of democracy and the

emergence of free-market economies. More concretely,

there has been the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the

historic reunification of Germany; major progress towards

ending the odious practice of apartheid in South Africa has

been achieved; and, as recently as last month, the historic

accord between Israel and the PLO was signed at the White

House, marking a new era in the Middle East. All three

situations had appeared to present the insurmountable

problems of unending and seemingly irreconcilable conflicts.

And yet, with vision and imagination, the political will for

solutions was found.

In contrast, the problem with which my own country

has been confronted for too long has remained intractable,

despite the existence of unanimously adopted United Nations

resolutions and despite the mutually acceptable procedure of

the good offices of the United Nations Secretary-General.

In our view, the problem is solvable and must be solved, yet

the efforts of many years have come to no result owing to

Turkish intransigence backed by Turkish military might.

We remain committed to reaching a peaceful solution

on the basis of the United Nations resolutions and the high-

level agreements. As clearly emerges from successive

reports of the Secretary-General, we have cooperated with

him in all sincerity in the exercise of his good offices for an

overall solution, and we have responded positively to his

proposals for the adoption, as a first step, of the confidence-

building measures and in particular the placing of Famagusta

and the opening of the Nicosia airport under United Nations

administration.

In 1945, the founding fathers signed the Charter in San

Francisco, in the aftermath of a devastating war, with the

vision of establishing the foundations of a better and more

peaceful world. As it nears its fiftieth anniversary, a

watershed in its history, the United Nations is again facing

a major challenge in a rapidly changing international climate.

Peoples and nations all over the world place growing

expectations in the Organization’s response to the new

summons for a universal alliance for peace and justice, for

Forty-eighth session - 5 October l993 5

democracy, development and international legal order. At

the same time, the ominous phenomena of ethnic strife,

destructive nationalism, widespread poverty and social

injustice are undermining the vital role of the United Nations

in opposing aggression and maintaining international peace,

and are thus posing new challenges.

As the Organization is restructuring itself in order to

meet these challenges more effectively, it is clear that, by

and large, the Charter has stood the test of time. As we

approach the milestone of the fiftieth anniversary of the

Organization, let us agree to spare no effort to make it more

effective, and let us look upon the Charter not merely as a

code of international behaviour that is difficult to live up to

and comply with, but as a reasonable and practical model for

everyday international behaviour and political ethics.