Guyana, 2002

Over the Assembly

hangs a cloud of uncertainty — indeed, of unease —

about the future of multilateralism and of international

relations generally. The tragedy of 11 September 2001,

which we commemorated just three days ago, has so

numbed our minds that we have yet to fully understand

its consequences. Therefore, it is meet that, as a family

of nations, we should not only remember the disaster,

but also seek to learn from it how we can best restore

to mankind some measure of faith and hope in our

common humanity.

My delegation is pleased to see Mr. Jan Kavan

presiding over the Assembly, since, as the

representative of a country that has known the horror

of war, he will undoubtedly inspire us to find our way

forward. In wishing his presidency well, I would also

like to place on record our gratitude to His Excellency

Mr. Han Seung-soo of the Republic of Korea for

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guiding us through a most difficult and challenging

time. Our appreciation and thanks must also extend to

the Secretary-General, who, throughout these past

months, has helped to sustain our commitment to the

purposes and principles of the United Nations.

We are pleased to welcome Switzerland as a full

member of the family of nations, and we look forward

to doing the same for East Timor when it takes its place

among us.

The international system is now plagued by

dangerous instability which threatens to undermine —

if not to destroy — many of our States. Not only do we

face terrorism, with its horrific violence, but we must

also live with other manifestations of terror in the form

of poverty, hunger and disease, which, although more

silent, are no less deadly.

Conflict, both within and among States, clearly

demonstrates how poorly an economy functions

without political and social cohesion. Divisions that

rend the fabric of our societies — divisions that derive

ultimately from ethnicity and race — are not only

severely counterproductive to our attempts to better the

commonweal, but preclude the emergence of the

durable peace and tranquillity without which we will

never be able to prosper.

Recent global conferences have focused our

attention on the importance of a rights-based approach

to social inclusion. However, commitment to inclusive

policies rests not only with States but with civil society

as a whole. Poverty and underdevelopment are now

easily exploited by some elements in our societies to

undermine the authority of democratically elected

Governments and to exacerbate ethnic and other

tensions.

This instability is further compounded by the

rampant trade in illegal drugs and arms, with its

attendant corruption and violence, which daily tests the

legal, financial, security and governance capabilities of

most small States. The social contract between the

State and its citizens has been seriously jeopardized by

these new political developments. Greater national

endeavours and international solidarity are now

necessary if we are to confront these challenges and

ensure the economic and social progress of our

peoples.

Old conflicts persist, denying entire populations

the opportunity to live in peace and security. The

situation in the Middle East must be of special concern

to us all, since it threatens to become a wider conflict.

The right of the Palestinian people to national self-

determination — a right guaranteed by international

law — must be upheld if there is to be a just and

lasting solution to the region's problems.

The tensions which exist in India-Pakistan

relations with regard to Kashmir should not be allowed

to persist, given the risk of calamitous nuclear conflict.

As a country which is committed to the pacific

settlement of disputes and as a friend of those two

important countries of Asia, from which many of our

own ancestors originated, Guyana wishes to encourage

them to continue their search for a definitive solution.

Global instability results also from our failure to

implement the Agenda for Development. After more

than a decade of development-related conferences, we

have yet to grasp fully the implications for

international cooperation of an increasingly

interdependent world and a globalized economy. The

recent meetings in Doha, Monterrey and Johannesburg

brought the international community full circle in

assessing the effectiveness of global collective action

aimed at the realization of the millennium development

goals and the eradication of poverty. We should now be

fully persuaded that global action remains

indispensable to the development process.

What is less clear, however, is the relationship

that should underlie such action, which continues to be

a daunting challenge. To what extent can equality be

achieved in a system of skewed economic and military

power? Will sovereignty ever subject itself to the

imperatives of the global good? How can trustworthy

procedures be found for international intervention in

situations characterized by the threat of collapse of

national social and economic structures? What more

can be done so that the current international trading

system is beneficial for all States, not for only a select

few? How can the policies of the Bretton Woods

institutions be made more responsive to the concerns

and needs of the developing countries in particular?

I know that there are no easy answers to these

questions. Indeed, each international conference and

every general debate that takes place in this Assembly

has made us more aware of how difficult it is to find a

consensual approach to these issues. Dialogue and

engagement are continuously balanced against hasty

attempts to achieve short-term goals. Yet the

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imperative of global stability — both political and

economic — requires a greater symbiotic relationship

among States. The increased permeability of borders,

which has made all countries vulnerable to contagion

from outside, is a reality which we cannot ignore.

Meanwhile, the debate on the benefits of

globalization is becoming increasingly polarized.

Despite their own best efforts at reform and

restructuring, many developing countries have not

really seen any significant improvement in their

economic and social condition. The growth rate of

most developing countries was 2 per cent lower in the

1990s than it was in the oil crisis years of the 1970s.

Similarly, although the number of people living in

extreme poverty, on less than one dollar a day, has

reportedly decreased the past 15 years, those living on

less than two dollars a day — an insignificant sum —

has increased. Thus, poverty figures have in effect

remained high, despite an improvement in world

income over the past decade by an average of 2.5 per

cent annually.

The situation has been especially difficult for

small States. Over the past 10 years, the States

members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM),

of which we are one, have been pursuing aggressive

socio-economic reform measures designed to enhance

the region's economic competitiveness so as to benefit

from globalization. The results have generally been

disappointing, in large part due to the small size, and

the geographic location of the CARICOM countries, as

well as their limited natural resource base and high

dependence on international trade, all of which make

their economies vulnerable to changes in the global

economy. The situation is further aggravated by the

high incidence of HIV/AIDS — the second highest in

the world.

Small States such as ours in the Caribbean require

development cooperation that is based on mutual trust

and the fulfilment of commitments. One major step in

this direction should be to focus on new ways of

balancing equity, economics and ecology in order to

create opportunities for small economies without

inflicting disillusionment and despair. Every effort

should also be made to ensure the full implementation

of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Debt Initiative

so as to liquidate the debt burden in the poorest

countries. To address the challenge of development, an

integrated strategy must be found to address all the

different elements of the problem.

Now — especially since Monterrey — it is

fashionable to speak of partnership for sustainable

development. Indeed, partnership, if properly

conceived and implemented, can serve to eradicate

poverty and promote economic growth. However, as

the President of Guyana stated at the World Summit on

Sustainable Development, in Johannesburg, if it is to

succeed, partnership between States must be based not

on double standards but on mutual trust and respect and

on the interests of all parties. Public/private-sector

partnerships must be founded on equity and

transparency, with full regard to the laws of our

countries. Finally, partnerships with multilateral

financial institutions must be informed more by an

understanding of the situation in our countries and less

by a doctrinaire approach to policy-making. To quote

the President directly, “Progress will only come if there

is an enlightened understanding of partnership.”

Concerned by the inadequacy of past

development models and the trend towards leaving

development matters largely to market forces, Guyana

has sought to promote at the United Nations the

concept of a new global human order based on a

genuine partnership for cooperation. By addressing the

problems of peace and development in a holistic

manner, this “concordat” would provide developing

countries with the structural, strategic and long-term

support that they need. Guyana hopes to build upon

resolution 55/48 in the coming months with the aim of

bringing greater predictability and stability to

international development cooperation.

It is clear that the period ahead of us is fraught

with difficulty, and that some of the challenges are

historically unprecedented in scale. The instability and

uncertainty by which so many societies around the

world are afflicted must be attended to if we are to

avoid failure. We must therefore ready the United

Nations, the most important and most widely supported

international governmental organization in existence,

to address these problems. There is simply nowhere

else to take them.