Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2013

When the nations of the world come together in the

General Assembly to consider the major issues facing

humankind, it is an honour and a privilege to take the

floor and to express the viewpoint of one’s country.

Animated by those twin sentiments, on behalf of the

Congolese people I address the Assembly and through

it the community of nations as a whole.

At the outset, I wish to express my most sincere

congratulations to Mr. John Ashe on his election as

President of the General Assembly at the sixty-eighth

session. I also congratulate the members of his Bureau.

I further wish to hail his predecessor, Mr. Vuk Jeremi.,

for the outststanding way in which he fulfilled his term

as President. I would also like to pay well-deserved

tribute to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for all his

initiatives for peace and security throughout the world

and for his personal involvement in seeking ways

and means to bring peace and stability to the eastern

part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the

entire Great Lakes region. His efforts are all the more

commendable given the fact that the enemies of peace

are always on the lookout, ready to strike anyone,

anytime and anywhere, as we have unfortunately been

recently reminded by the terrorist attack that brought

such tragedy to the Republic of Kenya. On behalf of

the Congolese Government and people and on my own

behalf, I condemn that despicable act. We express our

condolences and solidarity with the brotherly people

and leaders of Kenya.

We welcome the President’s choice of theme for this

general debate, namely, “The post-2015 development

agenda: setting the stage”. He mentioned the equally

relevant need to draw lessons from the implementation

of the Millennium Development Goals, consider new and

emerging development challenges, create measurable

indicators, establish new types of partnership and

better integrate the economic, social and environmental

aspects of sustainable development. The importance of

the theme chosen and the relevance of the indicators

that accompany it are undeniable. Our thinking must

be even more rigorous, as we witness several troubling

elements in the international environment.

With respect to organizing for the post-2015

period, the international community is increasingly

witnessing non-compliance on the part of certain

Members with the basic principles of international

relations, persistent selfishness on the part of States and

convulsions in the global economy. The consequences

are manifold. They range from threats to peace to

deadly conflicts and from globalization driven mainly

by the unbridled pursuit of profit to the aggravation

of poverty. That comes in addition to the food crisis,

famines, diseases — including endemic diseases that

had once disappeared and are now reappearing — and

environmental destruction, which is the main cause of

climate change and its deplorable effects.

To remedy the situation, the General Assembly

has established several bodies, and I welcome their

creation: the Open Working Group on Sustainable

Development Goals, the Intergovernmental Committee

of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing

and the high-level political forum to promote the

implementation of recommendations and decisions on

sustainable development. My hope is that that process

will be consistent with the ongoing transformation

of the Economic and Social Council and, beyond

that, of the entire United Nations system, in order to

better integrate the three dimensions of sustainable

development, namely, the economic, social and

environmental dimensions, in the new post-2015

agenda.

The new programme that we are called upon to

create must be universal, ambitious and able to meet the

huge challenges facing humankind. It must bring about

positive change, based on the principle of common

but differentiated responsibilities. In that respect, it is

important to utilize the contribution of women, youth

and civil society in both the design and the execution

of the agenda. We should also draw lessons from the

implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

With regard to climate change as an important issue

to resolve in the post-2015 period, allow me to recall

that, under the final document of the United Nations

Conference on Sustainable Development (resolution

66/288), States pledged to abandon unsustainable long-

term patterns of consumption and adopt sustainable

ways of managing natural resources as the basis for

economic and social development and the very future

of humankind. Climate change is a threat to humankind

and fundamental human rights, particularly for

vulnerable populations and especially those from the

African continent and island countries. Seeking to limit

its impact is, for each of our countries, a responsibility

that we must shoulder as a duty towards our people, a

service to the human race and an act of international

solidarity.

Recognizing that fact, the Democratic Republic

of Congo, a country of exceptional biodiversity, has

always sought to manage its natural resources with a

view to the future. The management policy for of our

forest ecosystems is aimed at that. The Grand Inga

project has also been designed along those lines. We

should emphasize, in fact, that that project should

eventually enable us to produce enough electricity to

meet the energy needs of nearly half of Africa. It will

also be clean and renewable energy, consistent with the

requirements of sustainable development.

Today we must begin to set the stage for the post-

2015 period. In that context, I express the hope that

proposals will be made during this session to translate

into reality our common desire to promote the economic,

social and environmental dimensions of sustainable

development. Such proposals should cover our local,

national and regional development programmes. They

should also encourage bold international cooperation

and reflect the will of each of our States to contribute

to international peace and security.

Without peace, no progress is possible. Without

the minimum conditions for the safety of persons and

property, all development is hypothetical. That is all the

more unacceptable since a breach of the peace is the

result of aggression. That is the sad recent history of

my country.

It is also important to remember other parallel

truths that are often overlooked or hidden. Because we

acted in solidarity by welcoming Rwandan refugees to

our territory, the Congolese population in the eastern

part of the country has been deprived of peace — a

fundamental right of all persons — and they continue

to count their dead. The most recent episode of the

unending tragedy occurred when bombs crushed the

women and children of Goma last July. It was truly a

tragedy unequalled in history and which cannot leave

any heart untouched. It is time to ask ourselves what will

remain of international humanitarian law if welcoming

refugees in distress, which is a humanitarian act par

excellence, becomes sufficient reason to justify the

eruption of war.

The recent bombing of Goma was all the

more reprehensible as it was perpetrated while the

Government of the Democratic Republic of the

Congo was in the process of implementing the Peace,

Security and Cooperation Framework of Addis Ababa,

including talks with the armed group responsible for

the bombings. Nevertheless, I wish to reaffirm my

country’s determination to comply with all of the

commitments contained in the Framework agreement.

From that perspective, my Government has already

undertaken the following definitive actions: the

establishment of the National Follow-up Mechanism to

implement the commitments of the Democratic Republic

of the Congo; the acceleration of security sector

reform, especially the army, police and justice sectors;

further progress in decentralization, by adopting the

necessary implementation laws; the reform of public

finance management; and the restructuring of the

Independent National Election Commission. This last

was immediately implemented in order to prioritize the

organization of local, municipal, provincial, senatorial

and provincial governor elections. A national dialogue

has been organized, starting on 7 September, with the

goal of seeking national cohesion to better respond to

all of the challenges facing the country.

Beyond those efforts on the part of the Democratic

Republic of the Congo, the dawn of sustainable peace

in the region depends on two main conditions — ending

impunity in all its aspects, and the diligent execution

of their commitments by the other signatories of the

Framework agreement. Therefore, my country again

urgently appeals to the Organization to deal with all

Member States with equal rigour and to require that

each one strictly respect the principles of the Charter of

the United Nations. It is clear that denouncing violations

of those principles is a good thing, but punishing those

who violate the principles is preferable by far, especially

when those violations are ongoing and recurrent.

I cannot conclude my remarks without expressing

my thanks to the Southern African Development

Community, the International Conference on the Great

Lakes Region, the African Union and the European

Union for their essential role in maintaining peace in

our region. I also thank the United Nations, in particular

the members of the Security Council, and all of those

States that have, for many years, remained at our side

in order to ensure peace in the Democratic Republic

of the Congo. We are all the more thankful to them, as

they have participated in one of the breakthroughs of

the post-2015 development agenda aimed at ensuring a

better world for all.

We must be convinced that beyond our differences

lies a common future. Our diversity must be seen as

the essential source of wealth that it is. It is high time

that we, the international community, find the ways

and means to enable millions of people to not simply

live, but to live a life of dignity in a world where peace,

security and justice are a reality for all.