Haiti, 2002

On behalf

of the President of the Republic of Haiti, His

Excellency Mr. Jean-Bertrand Aristide, I should first of

all like to congratulate Mr. Jan Kavan on his election to

the presidency of the fifty-seventh session of the

General Assembly. He can be assured of the Haitian

delegation's full support in the exercise of his duties. I

should also like to congratulate his predecessor, His

Excellency Mr. Han Seung-soo, on the talent he

demonstrated in conducting the work of the fifty-sixth

session.

I should also like to pay tribute to Mr. Kofi

Annan, Secretary-General of the Organization, for his

ceaseless efforts to maintain international peace and

security.

In addition, I wish to welcome the Swiss

Confederation and East Timor to the Organization as

States Members. Undoubtedly, their presence in this

institution will contribute significantly to the pursuit of

the noble objectives of the United Nations.

The entire world has just commemorated the first

anniversary of the tragedy of 11 September 2001. The

Government and the people of Haiti again express their

sympathy to the people and the Government of the

United States. We continue to share the distress of all

the families of the victims of that barbarity, which

touched all races, cultures and nations of the world. It

is humanity that has been struck, and humanity will

always remember that sad event.

The Government of Haiti reaffirms its

condemnation of terrorism, one of the most flagrant

forms of human rights violations. Terrorism represents

a grave danger, and we must unite all our efforts to

combat it in all its forms and manifestations. In that

connection, my Government reaffirms its commitment

to supporting the relevant resolutions of the

Organization as an expression of its respect for the

precepts of international law.

Reform of the Security Council, which has been

discussed for some time, is, more than ever before, of

the highest importance. Haiti continues to call for more

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openness in its operations and for greater participation

in its decision-making.

The Charter of the United Nations, ratified by all

States Members, evokes the sacred principles of

maintaining international peace and security as well as

the right of peoples to determine their own future with

the leaders they choose.

In that connection, the Government of Haiti

expresses its grave concern at the escalating violence in

the Middle East, and particularly the Israeli-Palestinian

conflict. The Haitian Government supports the creation

of a Palestinian State, while recognizing Israel's right

to exist within safe and internationally recognized

borders. We call on the parties to settle their

differences peacefully through dialogue and diplomatic

means.

In the same spirit, we appreciate the negotiations

initiated between the two Republics of Korea, and we

are in favour of a rapprochement between the

populations on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

Despite Iraq's acceptance of the unconditional

return of the inspectors, the Haitian Government is

concerned at developments in the Iraqi situation. In

order to deal effectively with this problem, the relevant

United Nations resolutions must be applied.

Regionalization is an important tool to facilitate

partnerships among States as they strive to ensure the

well-being of their people. In that context, my country

is gratified by its full integration within the Caribbean

Community (CARICOM), where it will contribute to

the socio-economic development of the region.

Humanity today is facing serious challenges,

including poverty, the AIDS pandemic, drug abuse,

hunger and illiteracy. The population of the least

developed countries is about 614 million, one third of

whom have to survive on less than $1 per day.

Characterized by weak institutions and an inadequate

infrastructure, those countries are affected by many

different problems. The sub-human conditions under

which many of their people live are a source of social

tension. Poverty increases in proportion as capital

decreases.

We returned from the Doha, Monterrey and

Johannesburg summits with renewed hope.

Expectations are great, in keeping with the promises

made. It is not enough, however, to hope for

sustainable development. We must have the will to

implement measures to attain it and respect the

commitments undertaken. Leaders must take action to

ensure sustainable development, which is in the best

interests of our peoples.

Education and training can roll back poverty, free

people from ignorance and put them on track to social

and economic progress. On the basis of that conviction,

the President of Haiti, Mr. Jean Bertrand Aristide,

officially launched, on 7 September 2001, a national

literacy campaign, to which he attributes overriding

importance. The goal of this large-scale and ambitious

initiative is to help 3 million people learn to read

before 1 January 2004, when we will celebrate the

bicentennial of our independence. The head of State is

counting on the active participation of our literate

citizens in the work of national construction.

Glaring injustices are built into our country's

traditional socio-economic system. These injustices are

responsible for wide disparities between the various

social sectors — a situation that contributes in large

part to the anachronistic nature of the general

structures of our country, which is the only least

developed country in the Americas.

Against that background, the Government has

been doing its utmost to fight the financial embargo,

which the international community imposed in

response to the controversy of the elections of 1 May

2000. Unfortunately, it is the most vulnerable sectors of

society that are penalized by those unjustified

sanctions.

The recent adoption by the Permanent Council of

the Organization of American States (OAS) of

resolution 822 in support of strengthening the

democratic process in Haiti has opened up encouraging

prospects for our country in beginning to move towards

normalization.

My Government is determined to stay the course

in ensuring that elections remain a crucial element of

that advance. We have great expectations of the

international community's support in this regard. In

this context, we are hoping for assistance, and for

election observers in particular. At the same time, in

the spirit of resolution 822, we appeal once again as a

matter of urgency for an end to the financial embargo.

The adoption of OAS resolution 822, which

demonstrates the commitment to Haiti of a number of

OAS member countries, constitutes a step in the right

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direction. We would like to draw attention to that

expression of fraternal solidarity.

We are also grateful to the States members of

OAS whose joint efforts made possible the adoption of

that consensus resolution, in particular the Federal

Republic of Brazil, which currently coordinates the

Latin American Integration Association and OAS

groups, and the Central American countries. We would

like to make special mention of our neighbour, the

Dominican Republic, which has continued to reaffirm

its solidarity with Haiti during this difficult period —

solidarity that is manifested in different ways wherever

the Haitian cause is discussed and needs to be

defended. Above all, we would like to thank our sister

nations in CARICOM, whose delegations to the OAS

co-sponsored, with Haiti, the draft resolution, thereby

maintaining the spirit of fraternal generosity, as is their

custom.

During the crisis, a number of countries Members

of the United Nations, in particular Japan and Cuba,

continued to cooperate with Haiti. Despite the embargo

and the other difficulties that it has to deal with, Cuba

is enthusiastically pursuing a programme of

cooperation with Haiti, in particular in the areas of

health and agriculture. The Haitian people owe a debt

of gratitude to all of those countries for their

expressions of solidarity in our quest for dignity and

collective affirmation.

OAS resolution 822 provides the entire nation

with an opportunity; it holds out the potential for

progress for all the Haitian people. In the context of the

forthcoming celebrations of two centuries of

independence, Haiti needs to galvanize its collective

energy so that we can build our national home. To that

end, the Haitian Government will hold an ongoing

dialogue and continue to practise openness and

flexibility, as called for by President Aristide. In that

spirit, despite our well-known scarcity of resources, it

has decided to compensate the victims of 17 December

2001, in accordance with OAS resolutions 806 and

822. Likewise, President Aristide will continue to call

on the opposition to observe a patriotic truce in order

to facilitate the rehabilitation of the country and

support the Haitian people.

In this context, my country appeals once again for

us to place human beings at the forefront of relations

among various countries. This planet — the theatre of

our common destiny — can thus become a world fit for

all of its inhabitants through the advent of a

“humanism without borders”. On that basis of that

conviction, the Republic of Haiti, on the eve of the

bicentenary of our independence, invites the

international community to help us to set in motion a

process that will enable us to overcome the shocking

reversals of the past and bring us into the modern

world.

I hope that all of the nations of the world share

these exalted hopes and that they will join us in

celebrating this important event, to which the

Government and the people of Haiti invite them, in

January 2004.