Ecuador, 1999

I take great

pleasure in congratulating the President on his well-

deserved election, which honours him personally and his

great country, Namibia. On behalf of the Ecuadorian

Government and on my own behalf, allow me to greet

him most cordially and wish him every measure of

success.

I warmly welcome the three new members of this

Organization, Nauru, Kiribati and Tonga, and congratulate

the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uruguay, Mr. Didier

Opertti, for the intelligent way with which he conducted

the work of the previous session of the General

Assembly.

The border conflict between Ecuador and Peru that

had prevailed since the very foundation of our republics,

during the first part of the last century, was concluded on

26 October 1998 by means of a negotiation process begun

22

in February 1995. This historic event, reached by the

signing of the peace agreement in Brasilia, allowed the two

countries to change their relations entirely and to transform

the conflict into peace and, now, to transform peace into

development.

Immediately upon the signing of the peace agreement,

Mr. Jamil Mahuad, President of the Republic of Ecuador,

put an end to the acquisition of war materials, reduced

mandatory military service and, in close collaboration with

Ecuadorian soldiers, reoriented the action of the armed

forces toward tasks linked to development and internal

security.

The comprehensive peace formula, reached with the

assistance of Argentina, Brazil, Chile and the United States,

included not only the delimitation of the border, but also a

treaty on navigation and trade, a broad-ranging agreement

on the integration of borders and the establishment of a

commission on building trust and security, among several

other peace measures.

In accordance with the agreement, Ecuador and Peru

have established an institutional structure that is now fully

operational in order to attain the goals of an ambitious

programme that includes the construction of five bi-national

roads, joint development of our river basins, the building of

physical infrastructure and the achievement of a human

development programme designed to improve the living

standards of the residents along our borders, who during so

many decades of stagnation in their territories were victims,

paralysed by fear and uncertainty.

To reach this goal, we have combined our efforts,

convinced, at the same time, that we will be able to count

on international cooperation. We hope that the border

between Ecuador and Peru will serve as an example of the

fruits of peace for the world. We want to see highways

instead of trenches, irrigation canals instead of

fortifications, hospitals instead of combat airplanes and

electric plants instead of missiles and anti-personal mines.

In the name of Ecuador, I call upon the international

community, on each one of the member countries, on

financial and development cooperation organizations and on

non-governmental organizations to contribute their aid,

small or large, to this new peaceful and friendly space our

two Latin American nations have built.

Having resolved its long-standing border dispute,

Ecuador reiterates its traditional commitment to continue a

permanent search for mutual agreements through the

peaceful settlement of disputes and its firm decision not

to become involved in any international war conflict.

Within the framework of these principles, Ecuador

recognizes the gravity of the armed confrontation that is

searing its neighbour the Republic of Colombia, but

considers that fight to be of an internal nature. Hence, it

fully supports the efforts of the Government of President

Andrés Pastrana to reach peace by negotiating with the

rebel groups in that country. In that regard, any intention

to internationalize an armed conflict whose solution

concerns only the people of Colombia could be counter-

productive and dangerous.

The struggle for development and the efforts to

combat poverty undertaken by Ecuador during the past

year have been severely affected by multiple crises in the

international arena and by natural disasters that strongly

hit many places of the world, and Ecuador in particular.

The violence of climatic phenomena makes it imperative

to urgently implement a strategy for international

cooperation to prevent the disastrous consequences of

those natural disasters on the population, the economy and

the environment. With the support of the United Nations,

Ecuador has proposed the creation of an international

research centre on the El Niño phenomenon that would

contribute to improving the world capacity for prediction

and early warning and to facilitate the adoption of

protective and precautionary measures to mitigate the

effects of the phenomenon.

The aftermath of the El Niño phenomenon cost the

equivalent of one half of our annual export revenues. In

addition, the severe impact of the sharp price deterioration

of our main export products, particularly oil, has caused

economic stagnation, the closure of production units and

the rise of unemployment. The crisis in the financial

markets of Asia and Latin America has also spread its

negative effects over our country, while the prosperity of

other, developed areas did little to mitigate the effects of

that crisis. Within that context of great difficulties, the

conditions under which Ecuador renegotiated its foreign

debt became extremely difficult to comply with. On 28

August 1999, the national Government used the legal

mechanism of deferring for one month the payment of its

Brady bonds debt service and at this time it is preparing

to commence a process of restructuring these obligations

that will enable it to share in a more equitable way the

debt load among all the actors of this financial

relationship.

In 1999, poverty affects 61.3 per cent of the

Ecuadorian population. Last June the unemployment rate

23

was 15.6 per cent. Four out of ten Ecuadorians have a daily

income of less than $2, and two out of ten earn less than $1

per day. Global malnutrition affects more than 40 per cent

of the children; one out of three do not complete the sixth

grade, and 40 per cent of all children and adolescents are

school drop-outs. These imbalances break social cohesion,

limit the possibilities for the exercise of an effective

democracy and reduce the validity of citizens' rights. The

economic readjustment measures that the Government of

Ecuador intends to apply will necessarily be conditioned by

social development objectives, such as the reduction of

poverty and malnutrition, the improvement of health

indexes, the increase of access to better education, the

reduction of unemployment and the increase of family

income.

Ecuador strongly believes that market mechanisms

stimulate competitiveness and efficiency, but also that the

institutional framework within which these processes take

place must be capable of correcting distortions, putting

limits on financial speculation and contributing to putting

in place more stable and predictable systems of pricing, so

that the living conditions of millions upon millions of

human beings are not put at risk, and the stability and

longevity of democratic regimes are not threatened by

social discontent and economic crises.

In Ecuador, President Jamil Mahuad and his

Government have maintained democracy with a strong grip

despite difficult circumstances. Social discontent from the

contraction in output, natural disasters, the financial crisis,

the drop in international prices for raw materials and

commodities caused an increase in poverty and unleashed

extensive manifestations of social discord.

In facing situations such as these, we need to have an

institutional economic order that gives a way out,

particularly for countries with small economies, which are

the most vulnerable to and most likely to be affected by

extreme economic crises.

On the eve of a new millennium, humankind is

developing one scenario alone, a scenario not only of

interdependence but also of globalization. In this global

environment, all countries are involved in huge processes

of market integration, liberalization of trade barriers,

standardization of norms and adaptation and establishment

of institutions so that they can cope.

Nevertheless, globalization has so far not generated an

equal distribution of prosperity, scientific progress, human

health or cultural benefits. Right now, more than ever,

when humankind is a single whole, we must establish

shared ways to preserve, first and foremost, human

dignity and well-being, the basic requirements of the

human being, which are based on security and human

development.

One example of the effects of human insecurity are

the great migratory waves that we are presently

witnessing. Ecuador calls upon the General Assembly to

orient cooperation strategies in terms of the human

security perspective in dealing with shifts in human

population that demand a better distribution of prosperity

far from the extremes of opulence and destitution.

Ecuador eagerly welcomes the new focus on providing a

model for international policy including the notion of

human security, especially at a time when the scourge of

violence, drug trafficking, terrorism and environmental

deterioration have become more acute and when we have

witnessed armed conflicts around the world during the

past year.

Combating transnational crime is a shared endeavour

for all civilized peoples. In particular, controlling the

traffic in drugs and illicit drug consumption warrants

coordinated, universal action. Ecuador has made its

contribution and is prepared to continue making its

contribution towards this end. It has therefore acceded to

many international treaties and undertaken many

international obligations, which it has fulfilled faithfully.

Our country is looking forward to the Millennium

Summit with great anticipation. The summit will be a

historic opportunity for the community of nations at a

time when the challenges of the twenty-first century

oblige us to define and to affirm a common commitment

to a universal project of understanding and cooperation

that will inspire the United Nations in the coming century.

The Millennium Round negotiations of the World

Trade Organization, and other continental and regional

rounds, should be processes that open up to the

opportunities and challenges for creativity and effort and

enable us to narrow the gap between the prosperity of just

a few countries and the poverty of the great majority.

Ecuador firmly believes in open markets, economic

integration, foreign investment and strengthening the

multilateral trading system. For this reason it has worked

within the Andean Community on improving relationships

with the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) and

the European Union on negotiations for the Free Trade

Area of the Americas, and on its growing links with the

24

Pacific basin, but it believes also that these processes must

not ignore the individual features of the smaller countries

and must strike a balance that will enable them to achieve,

soon, an international system that is equitable and based on

solidarity.

Ecuador was the second country in Latin America to

promulgate a national human rights plan, and it did so from

a broad-based and democratic perspective. The plan was

conceived and prepared on the basis of a consultation

process in which civil society and the State participated

fully. This fact has earned special recognition from the

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for

Human Rights, which described the Ecuadorian plan as a

model for other countries.

Our country gives national priority to the project

entitled “Towards a culture of peace”. In this context, under

a presidential initiative, Ecuador is promoting wide-ranging

activities linked to international efforts in accordance with

the United Nations culture of peace project and the

proclamation of the Year 2000 as the International Year for

the Culture of Peace.

Over the past year the international community has

witnessed an aggravation of regional conflicts: war has left

deep scars in various parts of the world. In this context, the

United Nations has had to play a special role in resolving

international conflicts, and its concerted and decisive action

has enabled it to resolve some of them successfully.

Nevertheless, strengthening our world Organization's

activities in this field must be carried out in such a way

that all measures taken under the Charter follow its

principles faithfully so that the United Nations keeps the

necessary international credibility and continues to be the

legitimate mouthpiece and manager for collective action to

maintain international peace and security.

As a party to the Ottawa Convention on anti-personnel

mines, and given that it has been directly affected by the

problem of anti-personnel mines, the elimination of these

weapons of war is of particular interest for Ecuador. Since

the signing of the peace agreement with Peru, our two

countries have begun removing and destroying the mines

along the border. We are sure that the international

community will continue to offer its cooperation in carrying

out our two countries' demining programme. On behalf of

Ecuador, I thank the States and organizations that have

contributed or pledged to contribute to this cause.

In the light of the realities of the situation facing

humankind, Ecuador reaffirms its unwavering support for

the multilateral system and, consequently, for the United

Nations which, since its creation, has been the universal

meeting place of all nations to work for the ideals and

goals shared by all peoples inspired by the purposes and

principles of the Organization. Ecuador draws its

inspiration from the ideal of achieving a world of peace

and freedom, of social justice and development, of fruitful

coexistence of peoples and nations, a world in which

Governments work together to solve the complex

problems besetting humankind.