Dominica, 2010

I begin by congratulating

you, Sir, on your well-deserved election to preside over

the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly.

Additionally, I take this opportunity to thank Mr. Ali

Abdussalam Treki of Libya for his effective, strong and

dynamic leadership during the sixty-fourth session and

to salute Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his

tremendous efforts in promoting global peace, security

and development.

I address the Assembly as we confront the second

decade of this millennium, which brings such

tremendous opportunities for mankind. Scientific and

technological innovations have made the world a truly

global village characterized by continuing connectivity

and unimagined possibilities for facilitating global

development. These technologies, integrating as they

do even the smallest and traditionally most distant

countries into the day-to-day activities of the world

community, have the potential to combat hunger,

eradicate poverty, generate employment, and elevate

the standard of living of people throughout the world,

without compromising the integrity of our ecosystem

and planet Earth.

However, in order to realize the full potential of

these opportunities, the community of nations now

needs to muster the courage to pursue with

determination reforms in international and multilateral

institutions such as the United Nations which will

ensure equality of treatment, and bring the benefits of

development to those countries which, in consequence

of small size, are often the least endowed, and most

vulnerable in today’s world community.

The formulation and pursuit of the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs) has brought the world’s

attention to the main issues of development, especially

the challenges faced by developing countries. It also

brought to the fore the nexus which exists between

financial, social and economic development on the one

hand and the sustainable use of natural resources on the

other.

By and large, we in the developing world have

lived up to the commitments which we made, by

mobilizing domestic financial resources for

development and making major structural changes,

even in the face of an increasingly hostile economic,

financial and trading system. Those efforts have been

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coupled with international resources for development

in the form of foreign direct investment and official

development assistance. The results to date have been

encouraging when one considers where we were at the

beginning of the millennium. There still remain,

however, a number of unresolved global issues which

have stymied the efforts to attain the Millennium

Development Goals.

We suggest, therefore, that the next five years

before the target date of the MDGs must see a

reconfiguration and acceleration of efforts by all

Member States. This should begin with the fulfilment

of commitments already given by developed countries,

and South-South cooperation must be strengthened in

keeping with the kind of solidarity now being

demonstrated by Venezuela, Cuba, China, Brazil and

other such developing countries.

Negotiation of the Doha Development Round

must be concluded within a reasonable time, and in

that regard the very small States of the developing

world must continue to insist, even as others resist it,

on meaningful recognition by the global community of

the principle of special and differential treatment,

rather than a “one size fits all” approach, as a central

principle permitting beneficial economic adjustment

for countries like my own. This will provide

developing countries with an opportunity to compete in

the global trading system and place greater emphasis

on trade rather than aid.

The phenomenon of climate change has been well

documented by the United Nations and other

institutions over the past decade. In fact, we in the

Caribbean and other small island developing States can

speak of our experience with the increasing intensity of

hurricanes, droughts, floods, destruction to coastal

areas and rising sea levels. These have had severe

impacts on our agriculture, tourism, and physical

infrastructure, especially along our coasts, leading to

an increasingly high cost for adaptation and mitigation,

resulting in the diversion of funds which otherwise

would have been used for social and economic

development. Climate change, therefore, has become a

major threat to the ability of most developing countries

to achieve the MDGs.

For almost two decades the United Nations has

recognized the special economic, social and

environmental vulnerabilities of small island

developing States. Since the Mauritius meeting in

2005, their situation has become even more precarious.

The impacts of the world food and fuel crises in 2007

and the financial and economic crisis in 2008 have

clearly demonstrated the open and vulnerable nature of

our economies. This, coupled with the impact of

climate change, strengthens the case for a unique

position for small island developing States and hence a

more prominent place within the United Nations

system as a recognized category, with all the attendant

benefits and obligations.

Despite our many challenges, small island

developing States continue to demonstrate strong

leadership, particularly in the area of climate change

and in the work of the United Nations in general.

Significant progress has been made in the areas of the

protection of biodiversity, strategies for promoting

renewable energy, and the achievement of the

Millennium Development Goals. These efforts need to

be complemented both by the United Nations system

and by other Member States, especially the developed

countries.

It is regrettable that to date no consensus has

been reached on the best way to deal with what we

consider a clear and present danger to our planet. The

failure at Copenhagen should be further motivation for

all countries to work assiduously towards an agreement

in Mexico.

We commend the efforts being made towards a

consensus on climate change; however, we maintain

that the United Nations Framework Convention on

Climate Change should be the primary forum for

negotiating the global response to climate change. We

therefore call upon all Member States to work within

this framework in order to arrive expeditiously at a

binding agreement which will recognize the shared but

differentiated responsibilities of Member States.

Since its establishment, the United Nations has

played, as it continues to play, a critical role in

fostering greater understanding among nations and

maintaining peace and security throughout the world.

The United Nations has also been able to reduce

conflict and minimize tensions between countries and

peoples. These efforts have been buttressed by other

significant efforts, such as the Treaty on the

Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the

Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and

Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light

Weapons in All Its Aspects.

5 10-55103

In May this year the United Nations held the

Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the

Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Dominica

supports the outcome of the Conference, and calls upon

all Member States to adhere to the obligations of the

Treaty. We call for a world free of nuclear weapons,

and join the calls for total disarmament.

Small arms and light weapons continue to pose a

major threat to peace and security throughout the

world. Dominica is very concerned over the increase in

that illicit trade in the Caribbean region. We are not

convinced that the larger nations of the world

comprehend the extent of the inability of smaller

nations like my own, which bridge the producers and

consumers of narcotic substances, to cope with this

new horror.

The continued demand in the North for drugs

produced in the South, and the growth of the related

trade in small arms and light weapons, have placed us

in the crossfire of these illicit activities. Yet it appears

to us that the larger nations of the world only take

decisive steps to cope with this situation when it has

become untenable for themselves. In that context, we

do not believe that sufficient consultation now exists to

ensure that the smaller States are provided, on a

continuous basis, with the capabilities needed for

persistent attention to the problems that arise in our

jurisdictions. This is yet another aspect of the case for

special and differential treatment in the security and

social development spheres.

The threat of terrorism is of concern throughout

the world. Radical extremism has created an

environment in which cultural and religious

misunderstandings and misplaced anger have claimed

the lives of thousands. We extend our sympathy to all

the Member States which have lost citizens at the

hands of those who have sought to destabilize

Governments and to instil fear in the rest of humanity.

By its very nature, the fight against terrorism requires

global action. This must involve the efforts of the

United Nations in fostering a culture of peace,

tolerance and understanding among the peoples of the

world.

During last year’s general debate (see A/64/PV.7),

Dominica recognized the important role of the United

Nations in the rebuilding process of our sister nation of

Haiti. We also called upon those Member States that

had pledged assistance to make good on their promises

in order to foster Haiti’s social and economic

development. Today, the challenges facing Haiti have

been magnified to a degree which requires further

commitments from all Member States of the United

Nations. The destruction wrought in Haiti by the

earthquake in January has made the need for resource

mobilization a matter of extreme urgency.

In March the United Nations hosted the

International Donors’ Conference towards a New

Future for Haiti. Dominica wishes to commend the

organizers and the contributors to this initiative.

During the Conference several Member States pledged

their support for the reconstruction efforts.

Commitments of several billion dollars were made.

Sadly, to date the Government and people of Haiti have

been able to access only a fraction of those pledges.

We call on all Member States to make good their

promises so as to ensure that the rebuilding process can

continue and to avoid further deterioration of the

political, social and economic situation of that country.

The focus in rebuilding Haiti should be not solely

on physical infrastructure, but also on the building and

rebuilding of institutions to strengthen the governance

of Haiti and to empower its people through technology

transfer and capacity-building. It should also include

development of the productive sectors to place Haiti on

a path to economic independence.

Most important, the international community

must recognize and accept that the Government and

people of Haiti must be placed at the centre of the

reconstruction process so as to engender a spirit of

unity of purpose, ownership and meaningful

partnership, even at these most challenging times.

The crisis in Haiti presents both a challenge and

an opportunity, not only to the international

community, but also to the Governments and financial

institutions to which that country remains heavily

indebted. We call on those international financial

institutions and Governments to cancel the remaining

debt owed by Haiti in order to provide more latitude

for that country to fully realize its recovery efforts. As

regards trade, we urge all Member States to liberalize

trading regimes so as to allow greater access of Haitian

products into their markets without barriers.

Earlier I spoke of the threats which plague

mankind in the era of globalization. I also highlighted

the need for multilateralism and the need for

cooperation between States. Those challenges can be

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overcome only in a global environment where there

exist respect for each other’s territorial integrity; non-

interference in each other’s domestic affairs; and

respect for sovereignty and the right to self-

determination. It is in this context that Dominica again

calls on the United States of America to discontinue its

economic blockade against the people of the Republic

of Cuba.

The rule of law is an important aspect of

international law. Adherence to our international

obligations is important to the maintenance of peace

and security and to ensuring that all persons, regardless

of race, nationality, creed or gender, continue to

believe in the international system and to recognize

that this system is for the benefit of all peoples and

nations, whether large or small. That is why the

situation in which our sister nation of Antigua and

Barbuda has been placed vis-à-vis its dispute with the

United States of America is extremely unfortunate and

must be remedied as quickly as possible. We urge the

parties involved to quickly seek to resolve the situation

and arrive at a negotiated settlement that is fair and

just.

The citizens of this planet have come to

recognize that new developments in technology have

brought an interdependence among peoples and States

as they vigorously pursue the development of their

separate countries. They have also come to realize that

there must be increasing cooperation between nations

in order to ensure a deliberate and planned approach to

the maintenance and development of the resources of

this planet. In that connection, regional processes of

cooperation have increasingly come to characterize the

conduct of nations.

But as the technology of communication has

increased international connectiveness, it has also

become apparent that regionalism often proves

insufficient, and that a global approach must be taken

to new issues which arise. Therefore, my country

strongly supports the principle that it is the United

Nations, to which all countries turn in times of crises,

that must play the fundamental role in the surveillance

of all developments affecting our planet. Consequently,

we hereby reaffirm our commitment to the central role

that the United Nations should play in global

governance.