Eswatini, 2011

It is a great honour for

me to address the Assembly on behalf of His Majesty

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King Mswati III, Head of State of the Kingdom of

Swaziland. His Majesty King Mswati III, Her Majesty

the Queen Mother, the Government and the people of

the Kingdom of Swaziland send best wishes and

congratulations to the State of Qatar and Mr. Al-Nasser

on his election to the presidency of the General

Assembly at its sixty-sixth session. We are confident

that his wide experience and diplomatic skills will

ensure success in the challenging issues that face this

session. I should also like to commend the excellent

work of his predecessor, Mr. Joseph Deiss.

The founders of the United Nations envisaged an

international Organization whose primary strength

would rest in its Members acting collectively and

cooperatively in resolving international problems. In

this regard, the theme of this general debate, “The role

of mediation in the settlement of disputes by peaceful

means”, pertinently captures the initial vision.

The pursuit of peace and security in many parts

of the world is vital to a future of continued

coexistence. We owe it to posterity to maintain a

habitable world. International efforts to intervene and

mediate in internal conflicts should not be taken lightly

and interlocutors should be alert to the sensibilities

involved in every specific situation. History has taught

us that transplanted solutions never work successfully.

There is no one-size-fits-all in the pursuit of peace

because every situation and era is unique. The

international community should also be quick to spot

irrelevant forces that seek to champion narrow

interests.

The Kingdom of Swaziland wishes to

congratulate the Republic of South Sudan on the

independence it obtained this year and celebrated on

9 July. Credit must also go to the Republic of the

Sudan for its steadfast resolve to see to it that the

process was successful. The efforts of the High-Level

Panel on Darfur and the Panel of the Wise

commissioned by the African Union are also

acknowledged. The African Union has been

instrumental in utilizing the vast experience of former

leaders of Africa as it seeks to identify African

solutions for African problems. My country wishes to

reiterate its commitment to this concept.

For a similar reason, the Kingdom of Swaziland

prays with the people of Libya that there will be a swift

end to the current conflict and a sustainable solution

that has the quest of peaceful resolution as the

watchword when dealing with any transitional

difficulties. In this regard, we look forward to the

formation of an all-inclusive Government that will

ensure that Libya moves towards a brighter future. The

world needs a unified and stable Libya to resume its

place in global affairs.

It would be remiss of me if I did not mention the

hugely damaging long-term effects of the war in

Somalia. The difficulties are now compounded by a

terrible famine. While the blame might be placed on

climate change, nevertheless we hold the view that

Somalia would manage this latest humanitarian

disaster — the famine — considerably better if the

international community were to collaborate on a

sustainable political solution, which is essential for

economic recovery. Sadly the world appears to have

forgotten Somalia, with only the African Union and

other regional arrangements dealing with the effects of

the war in that country.

The piracy problem, which has clearly deepened,

is one of many signs that Somalia needs a

comprehensive political intervention that involves all

international interlocutors. There has been a great deal

of support for the fight against piracy, but not as part of

a more holistic approach. The world surely does not

want to send the message that its interventions take

place only when specific interests are threatened.

In the same spirit, the Kingdom of Swaziland

encourages the Quartet on the question of Palestine to

remain resolute in finding common ground between

Israel and Palestine. We are well aware that there have

been setbacks before, but we are optimistic that at the

end of it all there will be a groundbreaking solution,

with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace

and harmony.

The Kingdom of Swaziland joins the rest of the

world in its condemnation of terrorism and threats to

international peace and security. In the same spirit, we

recall the 9/11 criminal attacks that occurred 10 years

ago and all who were affected. We therefore commend

the Secretary-General for hosting the Symposium on

International Counter-Terrorism Cooperation, which

underscored the importance of greater international

cooperation among States on a whole range of counter-

terrorism topics, as covered in the United Nations

Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. We hope that the

recommendations thereof will provide a source of

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reference to all Member States, international

organizations and relevant stakeholders.

The promotion and protection of human rights are

a common objective of all countries. While great

achievements have been made in international human

rights cooperation since the adoption of the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights, challenges still exist. As

a developing country, we believe that greater

importance should be attached to the right to

development so that everyone can enjoy the benefits of

globalization. The international community should pay

more attention to economic, social and cultural

rights — such as the right to life, the right to food and

the right to health — and promote international

cooperation in this regard. The developed countries

should do more to honour their commitments in terms

of development assistance, technology transfer, debt

reduction and market access so as to create favourable

conditions for the effective promotion of the universal

realization of the right to development.

The Kingdom of Swaziland voted in favour of

resolution 60/251, which established the Human Rights

Council. We also formed part of the consensus on

resolution 65/281 on the review of the Human Rights

Council adopted this year. To this end, we also support

the engagement of Member States in the Universal

Periodic Review mechanism, which examines the

human rights situation in all countries. Our country

will be among those to be considered at the Universal

Periodic Review in October 2011, and we look forward

to engaging in an open and candid dialogue with other

members of the Council.

Throughout the past session, we pursued many

development topics, notably the High-level Meeting on

HIV/AIDS in June at which our political will to

intensify our efforts to eliminate the scourge was

reaffirmed. The Kingdom of Swaziland is proud to

have made great strides in this regard. For example, the

percentage of children born HIV-free to HIV-positive

mothers enrolled in the prevention of mother-to-child

transmission programme has risen to 83 per cent and is

expected to reach 100 per cent by 2015.

In today’s highly integrated and interconnected

world, almost all issues demand the full participation

of international partners. Taiwan is one of the leading

economic and technological powerhouses of the world

today, and the Kingdom of Swaziland is of the view

that Taiwan can contribute successfully to the

international community. We therefore urge the United

Nations to find a suitable way to allow for Taiwan’s

meaningful participation in its specialized agencies and

mechanisms, including the International Civil Aviation

Organization and the United Nations Framework

Convention on Climate Change. There is no doubt that

the there is a functional need to include the people of

Taiwan in the United Nations system and that their

inclusion would be in the common interest of the

international community.

In conclusion, may I say that the Kingdom of Swaziland has confidence in the initiatives already taken towards the renewal of this Organization and looks forward to a new dynamic and vibrant working period.