Ethiopia, 2011

It gives me great

pleasure to congratulate the President on his election to

lead the General Assembly at its sixty-sixth session. I

wish to assure him of the full cooperation of my

delegation in successfully discharging his high

responsibilities. I would also like to express our

appreciation to his predecessor for his excellent

stewardship of the Assembly’s previous session. And

allow me to take this opportunity to once again

congratulate Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on his

reappointment to a second term, and to express our

admiration for work well done during his first term.

It is with a great sense of brotherhood that I

warmly welcome the Republic of South Sudan to the

family of our global Organization and offer our sincere

congratulations and best wishes to the newest Member

State. We also welcome the Libyan delegation, which

we recognized some time ago. We are not oblivious to

the Herculean challenge that they face.

The globalizing world has always presented

challenges to Africa and the developing world.

However, the negative developments over the past few

years, which appear to be far from being mitigated,

have made it even more difficult for countries such as

ours to move ahead on the path to development as fast

as we would have liked and our potential and

commitment would have allowed. There is a need for a

redoubled effort so that the achievements of the

Millennium Development Goals are not frustrated.

That was also the hope of the fourth United Nations

Conference on the Least Developed Countries. For our

part, we feel that we have been on track for almost all

the targets, and our commitment is to be even more

ambitious, in line with our five-year Growth and

Transformation Plan. Nevertheless, the global

economic situation is a source of concern.

37 11-51384

Within that global context, the Horn of Africa has

been hit by the worst adverse climatic conditions in 60

years, causing a very tragic drought situation. At this

critical juncture, the international community should be

galvanized, particularly in helping to alleviate the

crisis in Somalia. The call made on Saturday at the

mini-summit on that issue needs to be reiterated and

amplified. We should do more for the people of

Somalia and those others in the region who have been

affected by the calamity.

Even more crucial in the Horn of Africa is

sustainable development. Our youth need to have their

hopes for the future not frustrated, and the condition of

our women and children requires much greater

attention. On top of denying people their human rights,

poverty is not a solid foundation on which peace and

security can be built. That need compels us to draw

attention to a number of challenges that we, in the

Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)

region, face, particularly with respect to climate

change. The adverse consequences of climate change

are becoming evident in various ways. The challenges

are global, requiring global solutions, on the basis of

common but differentiated responsibility. We do not

believe that enough is being done commensurate with

the gravity of the threat to humanity in general.

Moreover, the whole issue embodies injustice because

Africa and the developing world happen to be the

worst affected, while contributing the least to climate

change.

As members of IGAD, we have for some time

tried to bring our collective effort to bear on the

various challenges the Horn of Africa faces. Realizing

the fact that one of the major factors hindering

development in our region is related to security and the

lack of durable stability, apart from doing our best to

lay the basis for the integration of our subregion

through various infrastructure-related projects, we have

continued to strengthen our common endeavour for

peace and security in the IGAD region.

The positive outcomes are there to be seen. No

regional group has been as closely identified with

peacemaking in the Sudan as IGAD. In Somalia, in

close collaboration with the East African Community,

the African Union and the United Nations, IGAD has

been the lynchpin in the effort to assist the people of

Somalia in achieving peace, stability and national

reconciliation. Now, with the extremists and

Al-Shabaab having been driven out of Mogadishu and

the tide turning against them, there is new hope in

Somalia, which should be sustained. The Kampala

Accord laid the basis for a breakthrough in Somalia,

for which we owe gratitude to President Yoweri

Museveni and Ambassador Mahiga, Special

Representative of the Secretary-General.

Let me take this opportunity to pay tribute to

Uganda and Burundi for the sacrifices that they have

made, and continue to make, as the two countries that

spearheaded the efforts of the African Union Mission

and the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia to

keep those such as Al-Shabaab and their supporters at

bay. It must be underlined that it is a fight that has

humanitarian and development implications, not only

security or political. That is why the successful

cooperation of the IGAD countries for stability and

security in the Horn of Africa, and in the fight against

terrorism and extremism, has been so vital. It requires

the wholehearted support of the international

community, the General Assembly and, most

particularly, the Security Council.

I need not go into the details of what the IGAD

countries have requested of the Security Council in

terms of support for them to succeed in the effort that

they are making for peace in Somalia and to contain

those who not only encourage, but also take part in

carrying out terrorism. It is particularly vital for the

Council to act on the conclusions and

recommendations of a body established by the Council

itself. Sweet talk, devoid of any behavioural change in

practice and on the ground, should not lead the

Security Council to wish away concrete evidence

presented to it by a committee of its own creation.

Let us admit that there are double standards in the

fight against terrorism. Our counter-terrorism effort

cannot succeed if we are selective in that struggle. The

Prime Minister of India could not have been more

correct when he said from this rostrum last Saturday:

“There cannot be selective approaches in dealing

with terrorist groups or the infrastructure of

terrorism. Terrorism has to be fought across all

fronts.” ()

We in Ethiopia have never had a short-sighted

perspective on what we need to do to ensure that our

national interest and our national security are

protected. In this day and age, it is only through

collective effort that we can ensure peace, security and

stability. Some might imagine that they would benefit

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by encouraging discord in their neighbourhood. The

Horn of Africa has suffered because of policies

emanating from that kind of mindset for too long. That

should be combated. We seek the support of all fair-

minded people in that endeavour.

For our part, we have been guided by the

objective of protecting and defending the collective

security interest of the people of our region. That has

guided our policy in the Sudan and in the effort that we

have been making to nurture mutual confidence

between us and both the Republic of Sudan and the

new nation of South Sudan. We have also followed that

signpost in conducting our policy with respect to

Somalia.

Ethiopia is not a newcomer to international

diplomacy. As a founding member of the United

Nations, we take our responsibility as members of the

human family seriously. We view our vocation to be a

factor for strengthening international peace and

security and for enhancing friendly relations among

nations, large or small, on the basis of full equality.

That is why, as we continue to call for the reform of

the Security Council, we also remain committed to the

revitalization of the General Assembly, the true

representative of the people of the world in the true

spirit of the United Nations Charter, whose very first

phrase is: “We the peoples of the United Nations”.

In that same spirit, Ethiopia wants to express its

position on the historic turning point that the people of

Palestine and the people of Israel are passing through

and the challenges that they are facing. We are

convinced that no great wisdom is required to realize

that, at the end of the day, it is only through peaceful

negotiation and mutual accommodation that the two

parties can reach the final destination.

In that regard, it is not enough that the right of

the Palestinians to a viable State of their own be

acknowledged and be paid lip service. It is also

necessary that real, tangible and practical steps be

taken, and in good time, towards the realization of that

objective. That has not been done. No doubt, that is

partly the explanation for where we are today and at

this moment. On the other hand, while it is self-

defeating, and also unjust, to use it as a pretext for

delaying the realization of the dreams of the people of

Palestine, nonetheless, it is neither proper nor realistic

to underestimate and belittle the security concerns of

Israel.

When the time comes for us to pronounce

ourselves on this signature issue of the sixty-sixth

session of the Assembly, the position we take will be

based on our objective assessment of all dimensions of

the issue in good faith and in line with what we believe

is dictated by the cause of justice and sustainable

peace.

We are passing through a period not only of

uncertainty, but also of great historic and momentous

change. The world that emerged from the Second

World War is almost no more. Periods such as this need

to be handled delicately. That is why it is so critical

that more attention be paid to the need for preventing

conflicts and for mediation. We are pleased that the

President Al-Nasser has made this one of his top

priorities. We want to assure him that he can expect the

full cooperation of the IGAD countries.

Let me conclude by asking for the support of all

Member States for the draft resolution that the IGAD

countries will be submitting requesting observer status

for IGAD at the United Nations.