El Salvador, 2006

We

wish to congratulate Ms. Al-Khalifa for her election as

President of the General Assembly at its sixty-first

session, with the certainty that her distinguished

personal and professional qualities will ensure the

optimum performance of the work on the agenda. This

also represents recognition of the necessary

participation of women in the reforms of the United

Nations. I also wish to extend our special recognition

to the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, for his

resolute efforts and dedication to international peace

and security, stability, human rights and development,

in addition to his appreciable contribution to the reform

of the Organization.

The international community currently has

challenges that require our immediate attention. At the

present time, there are more than sixteen armed-

conflicts in the world where the United Nations

participates in peacekeeping operations. El Salvador is

present at some of these operations, concretely

demonstrating our belief in an international system of

law, and in an international organization capable of

resolving such conflicts that seriously threaten our

stability.

The situation of instability has an indescribable

impact in terms of the loss of human life, the

destruction of infrastructure, refugees, displaced

persons and the shortage of resources needed for life.

This impacts the affected regions, as well as the

political, economic and humanitarian condition of the

entire international community.

I have come to this rostrum to speak out in favour

of peace and security in the Middle East, as well as

dialogue and understanding, so that we can find timely

and sustainable political and diplomatic solutions that

support our belief in the right of the Israeli and

Palestinian peoples to live in peace within secure and

internationally recognized borders.

We welcome adoption of resolution 1697 (2006)

on 31 July and resolution 1701 (2006) on 11 August by

the Security Council and call for compliance with

those resolutions as they make possible a cessation of

hostilities. This should represent the beginning of a

new phase in finding a negotiated political solution to

the conflict in Lebanon and in the Middle East.

We are fully convinced that one of the keys to

progress towards peace in the Middle East is the

disarmament of all armed groups operating outside the

law and Government control in the region, as well as

the exercise by Governments of full sovereignty over

their territories. Here, we believe that it is essential for

the United Nations, in particular the Security Council,

to continue to play a proactive and decisive role in

finding a lasting, comprehensive and sustainable

solution in the Middle East and to redirect the peace

process.

After a careful analysis of the international

situation, and of the Middle East in particular, my

Government made the decision to move its ambassador

from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. We hope that this will

make a contribution to promoting the peace process in

the region and serve as an expression of our

commitment and respect for compliance with United

Nations resolutions.

We do hope that this decision, in addition to

making a concrete contribution to peace in the Middle

East, will also help to strengthen friendship and

understanding between my country and Israel. We also

wish to express our feelings of solidarity and

friendship to the Palestinian people. They can rely on

El Salvador to continue to seek peace, security and

well-being for the Palestinian people.

Terrorism is a real and merciless threat against

humanity. Accordingly, I wish to reaffirm our vigorous

condemnation of all acts of terrorism in all their forms

and manifestations, wherever or by whomever they are

committed, irrespective of the objective sought.

Today, more than ever, it is essential to strengthen

and expand international cooperation to combat this

scourge, within the framework of the rule of law,

human rights and international humanitarian law. The

06-52737 28

United Nations has a historic opportunity to combat

international terrorism through the recently adopted

Global Strategy against Terrorism. The threat of

terrorism is a daily reality, but the opportunity to deal

with it is in our hands. Let us do what we need to do to

implement this strategy and strengthen international

cooperation in combating terrorism.

El Salvador supports and participates actively in

attaining these objectives. We continue to promote

such action at the national level and hope that our

legislative assembly will adopt a law against terrorism

in the next few days.

Given the situation of the world as described, we

would like to take this opportunity to add our voices to

the call of the international community regarding the

celebration of the International Day of Peace, set by

the General Assembly on 21 September each year. The

Assembly issued a firm appeal that during that Day all

parties in conflict, wherever they might be, cease their

fighting and observe a global ceasefire, leading to

reflection about the adverse effects of war and the

benefits of peace.

One of the most serious threats to peace, social

stability, the security of citizens and economic

development is the problem of organized crime.

El Salvador, together with other countries in Central

America, has been particularly affected by this problem

in recent years. The expansion of the criminal activities

of bands and gangs that act not only within countries,

but also beyond borders. They have become criminal

organizations that not only commit individual and

group murder, but also engage in extortion and terrorist

acts related to transnational crime. They have

furthermore become involved in the trafficking of arms

and drugs, human trafficking and money-laundering.

El Salvador is aware of the dimensions of the

problem and its impact on society. For this reason, we

are one of the main countries promoting a

comprehensive approach. Not only do we directly

combat these groups, but we also use preventive

methods, namely, rehabilitation and social

reintegration. We are convinced that this task cannot be

dealt with individually. What is needed is collective

action and international coordination and cooperation.

In this connection, we believe that this

Organization should consider the adoption of measures

and mechanisms consistent with the instruments and

protocols that deal with organized crime, so that we

can achieve a broad international consensus aimed at

coping more effectively with this evil that,

increasingly, is threatening society in general.

Moreover, we should develop policies and cooperation

to this end. I would mention, in particular, programmes

for young people in high-risk situations or who are at

odds with the law in our countries.

Speaking of the reform of the United Nations

means talking about the suitability and relevance of an

international organization could respond adequately to

the opportunities and challenges of today’s world.

We believe that it is particularly important to

break this stalemate in negotiations and settle as soon

as possible the question of expanding the membership

of the Security Council, both permanent and non-

permanent members, so that it can be more

representative with respect to the current number of

States that are Members of this Organization. For my

Government, this is a subject that is extremely

important. Therefore, it is essential to make this

important body more representative, to give it greater

transparency, to make it more democratic and

legitimate, particularly in the decision-making process

for important decisions.

Also, recognition should be given to some of the

reforms adopted, and we welcome the beginning of

work of the new Human Rights Council and the

Peacebuilding Commission, of which El Salvador is

honoured and appreciative of being a part. Here, I wish

to reaffirm the commitment of the Government of

El Salvador to respect and protect human rights, while

we make available to the Peacebuilding Commission

the experience gained by El Salvador in its successful

peace process. This would initially apply to some

countries, such as Burundi and Sierra Leone, that are

now being considered with regard to which the

Commission will be able to provide advice to the

Security Council.

In the life of nations there are always special

questions that determine direction and destiny as they

move towards their future. The question of the

Republic of China in Taiwan is one of those questions.

Even though it is a political reality that has evolved in

parallel with other States and embodies all of the

characteristics needed to be a State, there is still failure

to recognize its existence. This denies the right of 23

million people of Taiwan to be represented in

international organizations and, in particular, the

29 06-52737

United Nations. We firmly believe that the situation of

Taiwan should be examined pragmatically in the light

of the current political reality. The United Nations is

the proper forum to do so — not only because it should

recognize the right of the Taiwanese people to be

represented, but also because a globalized world

should not allow exclusion or marginalization from

international cooperation. Such cooperation

strengthens efforts to combat challenges and problems

that are common to all and could undermine the quality

of life and obstruct the development of peoples. Here,

we reiterate the need to open up room for the

representation and participation of Taiwan in the

United Nations, particularly in the specialized

agencies, which by their nature are related to

humanitarian, economic and social questions.

The President returned to the Chair.

A subject of special interest for El Salvador is the

strengthening of international cooperation for

development, particularly with a view to complying

with the Millennium Development Goals. In this

connection, we believe that, in order to implement and

follow up on our development plans, we must have the

support of the international community so as to create

fairer and more open conditions that would enable us

to accede to technological resources, the transfer of

technology, environmentally friendly technology, the

support for the generation of technical capabilities and

new financial resources in favourable conditions.

El Salvador is firmly committed to attaining the

Millennium Development Goals, as envisaged in our

Government plan, and accordingly, we have made

efforts and directed resources, primarily through

national impact programmes, together with

international cooperation, with special focus on

education and health.

Even though we agree that every country must

assume fundamental responsibility for its own

development, the developed States should contribute to

creating the opportunities needed to enable the

relatively less developed countries to reduce the

political and economic impact of the social deficit,

through the implementation of measures that will

enable us to enjoy the benefits of free trade, economic

globalization and international cooperation and

increase our technical capacity and productivity. This

must include the commitment to give 0.7 per cent of

gross domestic product as official aid to development.

We recognize and express our appreciation to the

countries that have already done so.

In this perspective, we have warmly welcomed

the adoption of the General Assembly resolution on the

follow-up to the results of the 2005 World Summit on

development. It is of great importance if we are fully to

comply with the Millennium Development Goals that

we have set ourselves. We firmly believe that low-

income countries and middle-income countries should

not be excluded from international cooperation and

technical and financial assistance, whether bilateral or

multilateral, particularly those countries that have

maintained good responsible management of resources

obtained through international cooperation and public

finance. However, despite the progress achieved in

improving the quality of life of our peoples, there are

still groups of populations that suffer from extreme

poverty and require cooperation and international

assistance to supplement the efforts we are making to

attain those objectives.

This could not be otherwise, given the fact that

middle- and low-income countries continue to face

challenges in the development process. Therefore, we

would like to make a resounding appeal to the

developed countries, the middle-income countries and

the multilateral financial agencies to become real

partners and strategic allies, so that we can overcome

our problems and help us to promote the agenda for

development and progress for our peoples.

In this respect, I am pleased to announce that

El Salvador is planning to hold a forum next year of

low-income countries where we hope to unify criteria

and positions on this subject, in addition to considering

the strengthening of cooperation and technical,

scientific and financial assistance among participating

countries. On this occasion, we cordially invite middle-

and low-income countries, together with donor

countries and development agencies, to participate in

this meeting. We hope that their participation and

contributions will enrich our analysis and will benefit

the middle- and low-income countries, which are

frequently excluded from development funds.

My Government attaches great priority to the

Agenda for Development, particularly to expand

coverage of basic services and generate opportunities

for productivity in those areas and communities where,

because of their poverty indicators and their growth

06-52737 30

potential, we have felt that they deserve strategic

attention.

My country has been recognized for having

adopted a series of measures to strengthen democratic

institutions, economic freedoms and social investment.

This has gained us the confidence of the international

community, which we believe is indispensable for

establishing an environment conducive to mobilizing

alternative sources of funding that can make possible

social programmes aimed at reducing poverty.

From the beginning of our term in office, we have

done much to seek innovative forms of cooperation,

such as those offered by various millennium funds. We

have applied for Millennium Challenge Account

financing for a country programme based on national

dialogue and with the participation of our citizens. It

will be an integrated, comprehensive strategy directly

benefiting more than 850,000 inhabitants of 92

municipalities in northern El Salvador, thus

contributing reducing poverty in that region.

No less important and closely complementary, we

believe that international cooperation based on

solidarity encompasses the swapping of debt for social

programmes. We welcome the proposals and decisions

of some developed countries, which are supporting

such mechanisms, especially in health and education,

thereby encouraging countries that have honoured their

foreign debt obligations. There is no doubt that these

activities strengthen democracy and freedom.

We feel that despite the decline in oil prices,

continued high prices are not only detrimental to the

efforts of developing countries to improve and

strengthen our economies, because they make exports

and imports more expensive, reduce income and create

inflation. They also have a negative impact on chain of

production, and on basic necessities and services,

opening the way to the possibility of a worldwide

recession, which clearly would have political and

social repercussions. We feel that oil should not be

used as a tool to achieve goals of any kind, but rather

as a means to strengthen the global economy in

general. It is important to define rules for creating a

more stable oil market and at the same time to enhance

our efforts to find alternative sources of energy that are

accessible and environmentally friendly.

For El Salvador, migration is one of the priorities

on our domestic and international agenda. We have

decided to create, for the first time in the history of

El Salvador, the post of Vice-Minister for Foreign

Affairs for Salvadorans Living Abroad, a high-level

Government position within the Foreign Ministry,

whose main function is to serve emigrants through a

comprehensive, multidimensional policy. The vice-

ministry is operating successfully. Salvadorans living

abroad are on the presidential agenda. Last week, the

Assembly held a High-level Dialogue on International

Migration and Development. El Salvador participated

proactively and chaired one of the round tables. I am

thankful for the confidence placed in us.

Allow me to reaffirm what was expressed by the

Foreign Minister of El Salvador at the High-level

Dialogue. We stress the importance of this issue and

the need to continue discussions from a broad-based

and positive perspective, which gives us a

comprehensive view and a higher level of

understanding of the issue of migration as an

international social fact. Migration gives rise to a

dynamic and complex process involving various

aspects including flows of individuals, capital, goods

and services. It involves rights and obligations,

organization, assistance, cooperation, legal and

legislative processes, analysis, studies and research on

this issue, and subsequent oversight by the United

Nations system, as a complement to domestic,

subregional and continental efforts.

I welcome the outcome of the Dialogue and

express the hope that the United Nations will give the

issue of migration human, just and balanced

consideration.

On 16 January 2007, we will celebrate the

fifteenth anniversary of the signing of the peace

accords for El Salvador. Fifteen years ago, Salvadorans

were fully convinced that we were worthy of a better

future and deserved a rebuilt, democratic country, a

country of reconciliation and freedom for us and for

our children. We can now be proud of our endeavours

to genuinely fulfil the commitments made at

Chapultepec, whose spirit should prevail as we

continue to strengthen democratic institutions in my

country.

I would like to pay public tribute to the entire

people of El Salvador for their dedication to the cause

of peace and national reconciliation. I would also like

to acknowledge the men and women who signed the

peace accords, whose historic action was the basis for

our present and future as a nation. Likewise, I would

31 06-52737

like to pay a special tribute to the United Nations for

its work and for its effective mediation, which led to

the completion in 2003 of its work to monitor the

peace accords, and to the countries of the Group of

Friends of El Salvador for their important support for

the successful completion of the peace process.

Today, the United Nations — an Organization

created to promote and realize universal principles and

ideals that are still valid in our contemporary world,

especially the ideal of promoting progress for the

millions of persons throughout the world who struggle

daily to secure their basic rights, dignity and

importance as human beings — has a choice: either to

ossify and become anachronic, or to modernize and

become an Organization that can deal more efficiently

and effectively with the challenges of the twenty-first

century in a complex, globalized and interdependent

world.

It is clear that we all wish for a modern and

viable Organization to meet the challenges together,

but Member States will decide whether the

Organization changes to fulfil its mandate, especially

to maintain international peace and security and

promote respect for human rights and economic and

social development.

Thus, it will depend on us whether the present

and the future of the today’s world will be based on

diplomacy or will be condemned to use force to resolve

differences in international relations. This is the serious

dilemma that we must resolve. The task is complex

because of its size and ramifications, due in turn to its

diversity in the face of the phenomena of power and

the exercise of power. We hold the hope that reason

and conscience will prevail over force and

domination — for the benefit of all humanity.