Fiji, 1992

It is my honour and privilege, on behalf of the

Government and people of Fiji, to convey to you. Sir, our warmest

congratulations upon your election to the high office of President of the

General Assembly at its forty-seventh session. We are confident that under

your distinguished leadership the Assembly at this session will be guided to a

most successful conclusion.

My delegation extends its deep appreciation to your predecessor,

Mr. Samir Shihabi, for his exemplary leadership during the last session of the

General Assembly.

Since our last session, a year ago, several new Members have joined the

Organization. My delegation welcomes them most warmly. We believe that the

near-universality of membership of the United Nations that we now have can

lead to greater understanding and ultimately to concrete action in the search

for lasting solutions to many of the problems facing our global community.

The report of the Secretary-General is broad, and it demonstrates the

complexity of the issues that concern the world today. My delegation commends

the Secretary-General for his comprehensive report and for the important steps

he has taken to carry out the various tasks that our Organization has assigned

to him. We hope that at its forty-seventh session the General Assembly will

help to find real solutions to these problems.

The last few years have been a period of profound changes. With the end

of the cold war, we have witnessed a new wave of nationalism surging in

several parts of the world. This reflects an intense yearning for

self-determination, especially in the political and economic spheres. At the

same time, we have seen the world economy moving towards even greater

interdependence and integration. In these developments, we see bright

prospects and opportunities, but we also see the emergence of new problems,

greater uncertainties and more unresolved inequities.

In the Horn of Africa in Somalia a human tragedy of unprecedented

dimensions is unfolding. War, drought and the collapse of civil authority

threaten the lives of millions. Starvation has already claimed the lives of

thousands of Somalis. All international efforts to respond to the

overwhelming needs of the people of Somalia must be stepped up.

We fully support the United Nations in its role in Cambodia, and we have

contributed 50 police personnel to the United Nations Transitional Authority

in Cambodia (UNTAC). The task facing UNTAC is certainly not easy. Fiji

believes that the Cambodian people must be given the opportunity to determine

freely their own political destiny and to enjoy the peace, stability and

well-being to which they have aspired for so long.

We hope that the reform process in South Africa can build on the progress

that has already been made. We urge that the efforts to dismantle apartheid

proceed as quickly as possible so that more deaths and bloodshed may be

avoided. The international community must continue to assist the people of

South Africa in their endeavour to bring an effective end to violence and to

create the conditions for dismantling of apartheid in their country.

My country commended both Koreas for taking seats last year as new

Members of this Organization. It is encouraging to note that since then the

two Koreas have intensified their dialogue and that they are taking important

steps to strengthen further the ties between their two countries. The

reunification of the Koreas will go a long way towards ensuring peace and

stability in North-East Asia.

Fiji welcomes the Middle East peace process that is taking place. We

hope that the parties concerned will seize the opportunity to seek a

comprehensive and just solution to the Middle East issues, in line with the

relevant Security Council resolutions. We call upon all the parties involved

to make every possible effort and to demonstrate all possible understanding,

with a view to bringing about a just and permanent peace in the area. Fiji

has already lost several of its soldiers engaged in peace-keeping duties in

the cause of peace in the area. We therefore firmly believe that a positive

outcome to the process would be a fitting tribute to all those gallant

soldiers who died for the noblest cause in our world - the cause of peace.

The gap between the developed countries and the developing countries has

widened. The world's population has grown to 5.5 billion, and much of the

growth has taken place in the developing countries, which are home for

77 per cent of the world's people. Moreover, about 1.4 billion of the world's

people live in extreme poverty, and the external debt of developing countries

continues to grow.

As Fiji is a developing country, faced with its people's rising

expectations of improved conditions of living, we believe that the

international community must make every effort to address and find solutions

to the economic problems that we face. We urge the United Nations to continue

to play a catalytic role in the creation of an international economic

environment that will enhance the economies of the developing and

underdeveloped countries of the world.

I am aware that a process of review and revitalization of the United

Nations is already under way. We in Fiji fully support the process, and I

urge all Members of the Organization to do likewise so that programmes to meet

the challenges of closer international cooperation may be created.

We welcome the reforms that have already been put in place to strengthen

the Economic and Social Council. The Charter envisages the Council's being

able to provide Member States and relevant bodies and agencies within the

United Nations system with overall direction and guidance on all matters

relating to social and economic development. The Council should explore new

needs, priorities and opportunities for joint international action and should

coordinate them. A sense of priority in such changes will strengthen the

impact of resolutions.

My Government firmly believes that the private sector has a pivotal role

to play in the development of the economy and therefore of the nation. We are

taking a number of steps to enhance and facilitate private-sector activity.

In this regard, as a relatively small island State, we welcome several

private-sector initiatives which the United States of America has announced

for our region, including the proposed United States-Pacific island countries

joint commercial commission.

Fiji also strongly supports efforts to liberalize world trade, and in

particular we look forward to a successful conclusion to the Uruguay Round of

trade negotiations. In fact, Fiji is already committed to giving the smaller

Pacific island countries in our region duty-free access to our markets for a

number of commodities and products.

To ensure the economic development of developing countries, it is vital

that our exports be ensured greater access to markets of developed countries.

The terms of trade for developing countries' exports, especially for

commodities, should also be significantly improved. There can be no doubt

that the only credible option for generalized prosperity and development is a

truly open and liberalized trading system.

The Government of Fiji is committed to this objective. In the last few

years our own trade regime has been liberalized considerably. Import quotas

have been replaced with tariffs. The Government remains committed to

continuous and steady reductions in the overall level of import protection.

In addition, we are continuing to pursue a policy of attracting foreign

investments through generous incentives to foreign investors wishing to set up

export and manufacturing facilities in our country.

My country was pleased to participate in the United Nations Conference on

Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, in June. I reaffirm

our full commitment to the several decisions taken at the Conference,

including the Rio Declaration, Agenda 21, the Framework Convention on Climate

Change, the Convention on Biodiversity and the Statement on forest principles.

My Government supports the proposed commission on sustainable

development, which is to be discussed later in this session. We particularly

support the proposal that the commission be the main forum for consultation

and leadership on the implementation of Agenda 21 at the global, regional and

national levels. The commission should be able to review progress in

implementation of Agenda 21, as well as provide a forum for further

development and updating in the light of all future developments in the

technological, legal, economic, financial and other areas. To be effective,

the commission must be supported by a. small and well-organized secretariat.

Global warming and a rise in the sea level pose serious threats to the

very existence of a number of our neighbouring small island States in the

South Pacific, and, I dare say, in other parts of the world. We welcome,

therefore, the Framework Convention on Climate Change as an important first

step towards addressing these threats. We want to see the Convention put into

effect as early as possible. Negotiations of protocols should commence soon,

especially on targets and timetables for the reduction of carbon dioxide and

other greenhouse gas emissions.

We also welcome UNCED's call for a series of meetings and conferences on

the sustainable development of small island countries. Fiji supports the

convening of the first global conference on small island states' sustainable

development and its implications, and we will eagerly follow progress on the

arrangements for the conference.

Agenda 21 also called for conferences on the conservation and management

of fish resources, one of the main sources of livelihood for many of our small

island countries. Fiji endorses the Agenda 21 chapter on marine living

resources and, in particular, the proposed United Nations intergovernmental

conference to address the issue of straddling fish stocks and highly migratory

species in the context of the Convention on the Law of the Sea.

UNCED was a major step forward, but the next step may be more difficult.

The spirit in which the various agreements were conceived and adopted needs to

be matched by their speedy implementation.

We are pleased that a good start has been made with the recently

announced "Capacity 21" initiative by the United Nations Development Programme

(UNDP), which aims at providing support to developing countries in the

preparation and management of their own sustainable development plans. This

initiative will go a long way towards translating Agenda 21 into effective

national programmes.

Today the world recognizes that basic human and social dimensions of

development have long been neglected. UNDP's latest "Human Development

Report" reminds us that development means involving people, placing them at

the centre of all decision-making. At the United Nations, we, too, must place

people at the centre of all our activities.

I ask Member States to support the proposed world summit for social

development, to be convened in 1995. The summit should elevate important

social issues and allow socio-economic questions to be addressed more

comprehensively than has been done in the past.

Furthermore, the International Conference on Population and Development,

to be convened in Egypt in September 1994, will provide an added focus on the

relationship between population and.social development. My country looks

forward to participating in both conferences.

We have received the report of the Secretary-General, "An Agenda for

Peace" (A/47/277), containing his constructive analysis and recommendations on

ways to strengthen the capacity of the United Nations for preventive

diplomacy, peace-building and peace-keeping. We applaud the Secretary-General

for his pertinent recommendations and for some of the measures that he has

already taken.

Peace-keeping has eased tension and conflicts in several areas of the

world. Fiji takes pride in being one of the countries contributing troops

that are helping to promote and maintain peace in different parts of the

world. We support the extension of United Nations peace-keeping into new

fields, including the prevention of conflicts and peace-building, as suggested

by the Secretary-General in his report to the Assembly. We recognize,

however, that peace-keeping operations can be successful only with the full

cooperation of the parties and a clearly defined mandate from the Security

Council.

As a former military officer, I know only too well that peace-keeping

costs money and that financial contributions to our Organization are vital to

the ultimate goal of secure and lasting peace in our universe. My delegation

appreciates the undertaking by previous speakers to ensure adequate financial

support for United Nations peace-keeping and humanitarian activities.

It is perhaps appropriate at this point to remind this gathering that

when the former Deputy Prime Minister of Fiji, the Honourable

Josefata Kamikamica, addressed the Assembly in 1991, he indicated that my

country would hold a general election in 1992 under our new Constitution. A

peaceful general election, in which all the major political parties

participated, was held in May this year. Since then, we have had two sessions

of the new Parliament. I felt constrained to mention this because there is a

growing demand in the world today for democracy, a necessary aspect of which

is the holding of regular elections.

Previous representatives of my country who have addressed the Assembly

within the last four years adverted to the changes which had taken place and

were still taking place in Fiji on the new Constitution that was promulgated

in 1990 on the basis of recommendations by an independent multiracial national

commission. I take great pleasure in informing this assembly of the world

that my Government has committed itself to a review of the 1990 Constitution

of Fiji. Preparatory work has already begun with regard to the mechanism and

procedures for implementing this review. All communities in Fiji will be

consulted fully in the review process. It will also involve the

representatives of the people in Parliament and all the political parties.

As of December 1988 indigenous Fijians numbered about 345,000 out of a

total population of 720,000. Fiji is their indigenous homeland. In fact, the

Fijians, through their mataqalis land-owning units own 83 per cent of all

the land in Fiji. We have a distinct culture and identity which we must, of

necessity, foster and develop for the very survival of the Fijian race. My

Government is committed to providing continuing special assistance to the

indigenous Fijians until they achieve comparable economic status with the

other communities in Fiji, in keeping with the indigenous policies and

programmes in many of our member countries.

I should also like to express my Government's sincere and deep

appreciation of the valuable efforts of the Working Group on Indigenous People

in drafting the Universal Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. My

Government, while reviewing our Constitution, is also committed to taking into

account the meaning and obligations of this United Nations Declaration and all

the recent developments in international and constitutional law on indigenous

and tribal rights. My Government also supports the declaration of 1993 as the

International Year for the World's Indigenous People.

And while we look forward to observing 1993 as the International Year for

the World's Indigenous People, we are also coming to the close of a very

important year, the International Year for Disabled Persons. The disabled are

present in every class, in every race, in every culture and in every country.

A feature the disabled share with indigenous groups is that, while they are

present, they are often not heard. We commend the United Nations for its

efforts all along, including this year, in bringing to the fore the concerns

of the disabled.

My country remains committed to the work of the Special Committee on

decolonization. The success that has been achieved so far should not lead us

to forget what remains to be done. In the South Pacific region, we are

encouraged by the measures being taken by the French Government under the

Matignon Agreements to provide a framework for New Caledonia's evolution

towards self-determination and independence. My Government welcomed the

French Government's decision to allow a South Pacific ministerial mission to

visit New Caledonia last year and to facilitate regular visits by United

Nations missions in the future. We look forward to the mid-term review of the

Matignon Agreements towards the end of the year. We consider this essential

in ensuring that progress is maintained towards the decolonization of New

Caledonia.

Fiji will continue to oppose nuclear testing and the dumping of nuclear

and other toxic wastes in the South Pacific region. The cessation of these

activities is vital for our very survival and the preservation of our fragile

ecosystem. We in the South Pacific welcome the recent decision by France to

suspend its nuclear testing in the region. We are greatly encouraged by

France'^ accession to the nuclear non-proliferation Treaty, and we hope that

France will also become a party to the Protocol of the South Pacific

Nuclear-Free Zone Treaty.

At the same time, my Government also welcomes the decision by the United

States to cease the operation of its chemical-weapons incineration facility at

Johnston Atoll.

We also applaud Japan's decision to cease large-scale drift-net fishing,

often described as the "Wall of Death", in our South Pacific waters, and we in

that region earnestly pray that other distant-water-fishing nations will soon

make similar decisions.

Secure and lasting peace in our world is what we must all aspire to.

Disarmament and the elimination of weapons of mass destruction are essential

requirements for peace. I believe that the Members of this Organization, all

of us, should work together with total commitment to create and maintain

secure and lasting peace on our planet, and simultaneously to increase and

expand economic and social benefits to all the peoples of our world.

Finally, our world today is what we, its nations, make it. With a

knowledge of yesterday, with our experiences of today, let us all, great and

small, rich and poor, as Members of this international Organization,

rededicate our energies and efforts and commit ourselves to building a better

world for us and for those generations which come after us.