Ireland, 2013

Every day, the peoples of

the world whom we are privileged to represent in the

General Assembly look on in helpless horror at the

slaughter in Syria. They can see gassed children lined

out, dead, on their television screens. They can access

online the facts about the 100,000 Syrians who have

been killed; the 4 million who have been displaced;

and the 2 million or more who have been driven into

refugee camps in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan.

The peoples who have sent us, Government leaders

and diplomats, to speak for them in this Hall are

asking, “Why can we not stop this slaughter and this

suffering?” They see the conflict in real time. It is not

taking place in a remote part of the planet. Its brutality

is made more visible by modern technology. The utterly

callous attack in Ghouta on 21 August marked a new

low in the endless litany of horrors.

From the very outset, Ireland has consistently

argued that the United Nations and the Security Council

must be central to any efforts to resolve the crisis and

ensure that international law and basic human rights

are upheld. And while it has taken much longer than we

would all have wished, I welcome the decisive action

the Security Council has now taken on Syria.

Security Council resolution 2118 (2013) marks a

watershed in the international community’s engagement

on the crisis. It offers renewed hope and confidence

that the United Nations is capable of discharging

its responsibilities and meeting the aspirations and

expectations of the peoples of the world. The resolution

builds on the vital breakthrough achieved by the United

States and Russia in agreeing to a framework for the

complete elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons. Full

compliance by the Syrian regime with its obligations

is imperative. Ireland has already pledged €200,000 in

funding to support the vital role of the Organization for

the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, assisted by the

United Nations, in implementing those arrangements.

Crucially, the Security Council has called for

the early convening of an international conference to

address all aspects of the conflict. The inescapable

reality is that the crisis can be resolved only politically,

not militarily. I am greatly encouraged by the

indications that the “Geneva II” conference could be

held within a matter of weeks. Peace can come only

through all Syrians engaging in a genuinely inclusive

process aimed at agreeing a new political dispensation

in their country.

The Security Council has expressed its conviction

that there must also be accountability for what has

occurred in Syria. The International Criminal Court

exists precisely for that purpose. We owe it to the Syrian

people to ensure that those responsible for the war

crimes committed against them are brought to justice.

There is also an urgent need to remove impediments

to the delivery of humanitarian assistance. Violence

against civilians must cease. All parties must facilitate

unimpeded access to people in need throughout Syria

and guarantee the safety and security of humanitarian

personnel who perform their duties at enormous

personal risk.

The humanitarian efforts being made by Syria’s

neighbours, including Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon,

are remarkable and deserve far more support from the

international community. We should not underestimate

the strain being imposed on those countries and the

threats being posed to refugee populations. Ireland has

contributed $15 million to the humanitarian operation,

and we stand ready to do more within our means.

Elsewhere in the Middle East, we also see the

prospect of progress. In Ireland, we know what it takes

to make peace after a protracted conflict. I want to

acknowledge the work being done in the current direct

talks between Israeli and Palestinian negotiators,

which all who wish for peace must welcome. I want

to commend in particular the determination and

engagement of United States Secretary of State John

Kerry, who has done so much to bring that about, and

the leadership of President Abbas and Prime Minister

Netanyahu, who have had to accept difficult choices to

begin the process of negotiation. We all know, and they

know, that many more difficult choices lie before them

if they are to succeed and to secure a comprehensive

peace settlement. They deserve all our support.

We are also encouraged by the stated determination

of the new Iranian Government to address the

concerns of the international community and build

confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of its

nuclear programme. We look forward to Iran’s serious

engagement in meaningful negotiations, leading to full

compliance with all of its international obligations, and

hope that that will also contribute to the creation of a

positive dynamic in the Middle East region.

Ireland currently participates in seven United

Nations peacekeeping missions, including each of

the three missions in the Middle East. In response to

a request of the Secretary-General, we are deploying

Irish personnel to reinforce the United Nations

Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) on the Golan

Heights. We are doing so to help ensure that UNDOF

can continue to implement its mandate at a difficult

time. Ireland’s deployment to that challenging mission

is a signal of our deep commitment to the peacekeeping

role of the United Nations. The Irish people are rightly

proud of these soldiers and of the record of our Defence

Forces, members of our police service and Irish civilians

deployed in the cause of peace.

I join other speakers at this rostrum in condemning

the recent attack in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, which

left dozens of innocent people dead and almost 200

injured. It was a chilling reminder that well-organized

and ruthless international terrorist groups and networks

are constantly searching for new locations and targets

for atrocities. My profound sympathy and that of the

people of Ireland go out to the victims of the attack and

their families. We must be vigilant against terror and

resolute in refusing to compromise our values in the

face of such threats.

Many factors contribute to human suffering.

Violent conflict, such as that in Syria, is one — and

the toll of casualties there is escalating daily. But there

are many parts of the world where underdevelopment,

malnutrition and disease exact an even greater toll.

Around the globe, 870 million people — almost 200

times the entire population of Ireland — are living in

extreme poverty and hunger. Every single day, 18,000

children die needlessly from preventable causes in the

poorest and least developed regions of the world; 7,000

of them are children under the age of 5, who die because

they are undernourished. One in every four children is

stunted, most of them in the poorest countries. And

every day, 800 women die because of complications

during pregnancy and childbirth, for basic reasons that

could have been prevented.

Reversing those trends and creating a better future

for the countless millions of impoverished people on

our planet is, perhaps, the greatest moral and practical

challenge we face today. We can, of course, draw

inspiration and hope from our successes. And there

have been successes. Thirteen years ago, at the United

Nations, world leaders committed to taking tangible,

measurable action to tackle global poverty. Huge

progress has been made since then under the framework

of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Significant numbers of people have been lifted out of

poverty. Millions of children are receiving primary

education. Two billion people have access to improved

water supplies, and HIV/AIDS and other diseases and

pandemics are being tackled.

Nevertheless, fresh global challenges, such as

climate change, are beginning to undermine the

progress made. Communities in developing countries

that have contributed least to the causes of climate

change are suffering most from its effects. That is

an injustice — clear and simple. It is a matter of

fundamental human rights and equity. And it is critical

for the future of all of our children, in a world which is

reaching the limits of environmental sustainability, that

this injustice be reversed.

I had the privilege of taking part in this week’s

special event on the Millennium Development Goals

and co-chairing one of the round-table sessions.

Ireland is proud to have co-facilitated the special event

with South Africa and to have achieved an outcome

document that will guide negotiations over the next two

years on completing the MDGs and crafting the post-

2015 development agenda.

I believe that when world leaders gather at the

United Nations in 2015, we can and should be ready

to adopt a new set of global goals aimed at achieving a

sustainable, just and secure world for the future. I want

to see a clear commitment to ending extreme poverty

and hunger in a generation. I want to see specific

commitments in relation to the empowerment of women

and girls. And I want to see an integrated approach on

climate change and a strong focus on climate-sensitive

agriculture.

In our own aid programme, my Government

has prioritized hunger and malnutrition, a theme

that resonates with Ireland’s own history. We have

a very simple message about the vital importance of

investment in nutrition for mothers and babies. We

are leading supporters of the Scaling Up Nutrition

movement, and we are committed to doubling our aid

spending on nutrition by 2016.

Ireland is today emerging from several years of an

economic crisis that will soon be behind us. After many

tough decisions and a lot of hard work, we are about

to safely exit an international bailout and our economy

is back on track. I am proud to say that despite the

extremely difficult circumstances many Irish people

find themselves in, we have sustained our commitment

to the provision of development aid. I know that we are

ready to play our part in a new global partnership, and

that it is only through this body, the United Nations,

that it can be achieved.

It is a matter of great pride to my country that

Ireland was last year elected for the first time to the

Human Rights Council. I warmly thank the Member

States for their support in the election and the

confidence they have placed in us. Ireland played a lead

role in the adoption of two important resolutions by the

Human Rights Council this week — one on preventable

mortality of children under five; the other recognizing

the important role played by civil society at the local,

national, regional and international levels.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

adopted by the Assembly states that recognition of the

inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights

of all members of the human family is the foundation of

freedom, justice and peace in the world. It also states that

those human rights should be protected in law. Today,

instead of offering protection, we increasingly see

legal measures being adopted to discriminate against

people on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender

identity. I welcome the courageous leadership shown

by the Secretary-General when he promised in April to

lead a global campaign for lesbian, gay, bisexual and

transgender rights. Ireland pledges its full support to

the efforts of the Secretary-General, both here in the

General Assembly and in the Human Rights Council.

Ireland is a small State that is deeply committed to

the United Nations and to the principles enshrined in

its Charter. We are proud to contribute to the important

efforts of the United Nations in peacekeeping, in conflict

resolution, in development aid and in humanitarian

action. There can be no doubt that the United Nations

is the unique and indispensable forum where the

peoples of the world share their collective concerns and

determine to take action to make the world a better and

a safer place.

The membership of this Organization has

conferred primary responsibility for the maintenance

of international peace and security on the Security

Council. Accordingly, we look to the Council to

show leadership in response to international crises.

Membership of the Council is a privilege for any State,

and Ireland has been honoured to serve on it on a

number of occasions.

But the permanent members of the Security

Council have a special responsibility to work together

in a way that enables the United Nations to live up

to the commitments made in its Charter. When the

United Nations fails, or delays action, we are all the

poorer for such setbacks. But when the United Nations

works, we can achieve great things together. And

those successes, such as the definition of a post-2015

development agenda, should serve as an inspiration

and a springboard for the international community’s

responses to the other great challenges of our time.