Lesotho, 1999

I extend my sincere and

warm congratulations to you, Sir, on your election as

President of the General Assembly at its fifty-fourth

4

session. It is indeed gratifying to see a distinguished

statesman and son of Africa lead the Assembly, especially

one whose country was born out of the crusade of the

United Nations for the freedom of colonial peoples. Your

personal devotion and commitment to the liberation struggle

of the people of Namibia makes you eminently qualified to

lead the United Nations in its search for peace. I am

confident that your experience, talent and energies will

ensure a successful outcome for the work of the session,

and I assure you of my country's support in all your

endeavours.

I also pay a well-deserved tribute to your predecessor,

Mr. Didier Opertti, for the excellent manner in which he

discharged his duties as President of the Assembly at its

last session.

To Secretary-General Kofi Annan, I extend my

country's gratitude and support for his tireless efforts in the

daunting task of finding lasting solutions to problems that

face our Organization. We particularly commend him for

his latest brave efforts in East Timor.

Permit me also to express my delegation's profound

joy at seeing three States join the ranks of the Members of

the United Nations. The addition of the Republic of

Kiribati, the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga

to our Organization brings closer to fruition the hope of the

international community to see the United Nations

comprising all the countries of the world. We say welcome

to these new Members and extend to them a hand of

friendship.

I also wish to express my satisfaction with the

Secretary-General's trenchant report on the work of the

Organization. In particular, I concur with his analysis of the

moral dilemma that faces the United Nations when the

Security Council is unable to act, because of a lack of

consensus, in the face of the most heinous human rights

violations. In those circumstances, and while conflicts

continue unabated in different parts of the world, the

capacity of the international conflict-resolution machinery

is put to a severe test. Perhaps no conflict has done this as

intensely as the one in Kosovo.

The Kosovo crisis represented the very disturbing

trend towards the most serious violations of human rights

in the form of ethnic cleansing and impunity. After the

experience of Bosnia, which is still so fresh in our minds,

the world could not be expected to sit back and take no

action. It would indeed be a sad comment on the efficacy

of the United Nations if the next millennium were to begin

under a cloud of tolerance of impunity in the face of

acknowledged genocide and other gross violations of

human rights. While it is recognized that the conflict was

an internal matter of Serbia, the dilemma was whether the

world could sit idly by and watch a people being

exterminated.

The more difficult question that Kosovo raises is the

one of the role of the Security Council in similar crises.

The Charter places responsibility for the maintenance of

international peace and security squarely in the hands of

the Security Council. That body must therefore discharge

this function with seriousness and firmness. It must resist

the temptation to view questions of international peace

and security through the lenses of national fears and

preoccupations. If it is paralyzed by parochial interests,

the temptation to take unilateral action increases. The

belated submission of the Kosovo issue to the jurisdiction

of the Security Council is therefore very welcome, as is

the United Nations involvement through its civilian

administration.

In a similar vein is the tragedy that is East Timor,

whose denouement seems happily to be in sight. After

many years of inconclusive attempts to find a solution to

the problem of East Timor, the new Government in

Jakarta finally paved the way by allowing the people of

that sad country to exercise their right to choose. The

cruel violence that was unleashed against them, however,

when they did express their preference in unequivocal

terms is a source of great dismay. We are grateful,

therefore, that an international peacekeeping force has

now entered the country and hope that it will bring the

nightmare of the people of East Timor to an end. We call

on the Government of Indonesia to bring to book the

perpetrators of violations of human rights. We look

forward to welcoming East Timor in the councils of

independent States in accordance with the wishes of its

people.

The last decade of the twentieth century has been a

time of momentous changes in all parts of the world,

particularly in Africa, where for the first time

unprecedented democratic changes and reforms have

transformed the political landscape across the continent.

We remain concerned, however, that the proliferation of

conflicts in Africa has had a serious negative impact on

our development capacities, as these conflicts have

undermined efforts to improve the living conditions of our

peoples and retarded progress towards Africa's economic,

social and political transformation.

5

The situation in Angola continues to be a source of

concern for the people of Africa in general and the

countries of southern Africa in particular. As UNITA

continues to perfect its war machine and effort, the

prospects for peace have become more elusive. The people

of Angola have endured hardship for more than 40 years,

when the years of the civil war are added to those of a very

brutal colonial war. There are millions of adults in that

country who have never lived in a state of peace. Their

country is richly endowed with resources, and yet these

have not been harnessed for combating the many evils

facing the country, but have, on the contrary, been used for

prosecuting a war that has impoverished the people beyond

measure.

The States of southern Africa will continue to search

for a solution to the Angolan crisis. In this regard, they

expect to receive the support of the international community

in the form of intensified sanctions against UNITA and its

leader, Mr. Savimbi, and increased humanitarian assistance

for the victims of the conflict.

The crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

has equally been a source of concern for the countries of

southern Africa since its inception, in view of its

implications for the security of the region as a whole.

Various efforts made under the auspices of the Southern

African Development Community (SADC), coordinated by

President Chiluba of Zambia, in collaboration with the

Organization of African Unity (OAU), the United Nations

and other interested parties, have started to bear fruit with

the signing of a Ceasefire Agreement in Lusaka on 10 July

1999 by the heads of State of Angola, the Democratic

Republic of the Congo, Namibia, Rwanda, Uganda and

Zimbabwe. The signing, finally, of this Agreement by the

representatives of the rebel Congolese Rally for Democracy

should help to pave the way for a permanent and peaceful

solution.

On the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea, we wish

to commend the Organization of African Unity (OAU)

Secretary-General for his untiring efforts to find a durable

solution to the problem. We believe that the OAU

Framework Agreement remains the only viable option for

the resolution of that unfortunate conflict. We, therefore,

appeal to the two parties to the conflict to implement, as

soon as possible, the technical arrangements worked out by

the OAU, the United Nations, Algeria and the United

States.

We continue to support the United Nations efforts to

hold a referendum to determine the true wishes of the

people of Western Sahara and once more appeal to the

Government of Morocco to assist the process and ensure

its success in accordance with the will of the Saharawi

people.

In Sierra Leone we welcome the ceasefire that has

been arranged under the auspices of the President of

Togo. However, the settlement raises some troubling

questions. It is difficult to accept that those who hold

grievances against a legitimately elected Government can

shoot their way into power-sharing, especially when they

have been accused of the most chilling atrocities, as

occurred in Sierra Leone. Certainly those who are

aggrieved have a right to challenge the governance of

their Government, but this should be done within the

limits of constitutional order and propriety. In spite of

these reservations, we wish the people of Sierra Leone

well and will continue to support their efforts to establish

lasting peace in their country.

We also wish to congratulate the countries of West

Africa under the Economic Community of West African

States (ECOWAS) Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) for the

sacrifices they have made to bring about peace in their

neighbourhood.

Regarding Palestine, all peace-loving people dream

of the day when the permanent status negotiations will

commence and soon be followed by a permanent peace

and a permanent State for the Palestinians. We therefore

encourage the parties to the Middle East conflict to

persevere in their quest for the attainment of the goal

which has eluded them for so long.

The need to secure our global neighbourhood has

never been greater. Unfortunately, the threat of weapons

of mass destruction continues to bedevil our hopes for a

peaceful world, and there does not seem to be a global

determination to eliminate these weapons. This is so

despite the fact that over the years this Assembly has

adopted numerous resolutions on the issue of arms control

and disarmament and in particular on the establishment of

nuclear-weapon-free zones in different regions of the

world. Unless the United Nations of the future is able to

make significant progress in nuclear disarmament, it runs

the risk of losing credibility as an institution dedicated to

the pursuit of peace. The United Nations of the twenty-

first century, therefore, should be one which can give

humankind hope for a world of diminished poverty and

no threat of a nuclear war.

6

Tomorrow, 24 September, marks the third anniversary

of the opening for signature of the Comprehensive Test-Ban

Treaty (CTBT). It has long been accepted that the future

credibility of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear

Weapons (NPT) will depend on the effective

implementation of the CTBT. Convinced of the need to

enhance the institutional fabric of the CTBT, Lesotho

deposited its instrument of ratification of the CTBT with

the Secretary-General earlier this month, thus joining the

steadily increasing number of States that have so far ratified

the Convention. Lesotho supports the holding of the special

conference on the CTBT, as envisaged under article 14 of

that Treaty, with a view to accelerating its ratification.

In the midst of all these conflict situations is the

dramatic and unacceptable deterioration in the level of

adherence to the norms of humanitarian law as opposite

sides to a conflict indiscriminately and ruthlessly employ

any and all means that might advance their ends. Civilian

populations have become the main targets and direct

victims of fighting between hostile armies, with women and

children suffering disproportionately from atrocities that

include rape, sexual exploitation, murder and the mutilation

of civilians.

The plight of the victims of these heinous crimes

underscores the imperative for the creation of a new

judicial body that would extend the rule of law in its

broadest conception. Following the overwhelming

endorsement by 120 nations in Rome last summer of the

idea to set up an International Criminal Court, the early

establishment of the Court is now a top priority. It is

gratifying to see that just over a year since the conclusion

of the Rome Treaty 86 States have reaffirmed their

commitment to the Court by signing the Treaty, while four

have already ratified it. My Government remains committed

to the early establishment of the International Criminal

Court and has every intention to abide by the terms of the

International Criminal Court Treaty and will ratify it soon.

In his report “Renewing the United Nations: A

Programme for Reform”, of 14 July 1997, the Secretary-

General proposed the holding of a Millennium Assembly

with a summit segment in the year 2000, at which heads of

State and Government could “come together to articulate

their vision of prospects and challenges for the new

millennium and agree on a process for fundamental review

of the role of the United Nations.” (A/51/950, para. 91)

For us in the developing world, the most crucial

question facing the international community is how to

bridge the huge gap between the haves and the have nots of

this world. Unless we redouble our efforts in this regard,

our endeavours to curb such social ills as crime will be in

vain. By the same token, illegal immigration in search of

better living conditions elsewhere, which is the direct

consequence of economic inequalities, will continue to

increase. It behooves us all, therefore, to treat the problem

of poverty with all the seriousness it deserves, and this

fact must be reflected in the deliberations during the

millennium summit.

The Economic and Social Council deserves our

congratulations for highlighting the problem during both

its high-level and operational activity segments this year.

Of course, the problem of poverty has received United

Nations attention on several occasions, most prominently

during the social summit of 1995 in Copenhagen, when

the target of halving absolute poverty by the year 2015

was agreed. Nevertheless, the problem is still with us and

there are no signs that it is abating; hence the need to re-

dedicate ourselves to that noble goal.

As is well known, Lesotho is one of the least-

developed countries. It is in recognition of that fact that

we are committing a considerable proportion of our

meagre resources to the war against poverty. Among

other measures, we have decided to tackle educational

deficiency in the country, which is one of the main

contributors to poverty. In this regard, Government has

been increasing the annual budget for education by 4 per

cent in real terms, and this increase has had a significant

impact on the delivery of education and the attainment of

an adult literacy rate of 70.5 per cent. Furthermore, the

Government has recently announced its intention to

introduce free primary education beginning in the year

2000.

What we, however, find puzzling is the scepticism

of some of our development partners regarding the

sustainability of the programme. If its viability were a

cause for concern, we would have expected expressions

of support to ensure the success of such a worthy

initiative, which is in keeping with so many goals of

global conferences for poverty eradication.

The rampant HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan

Africa is putting an unbearable strain on already fragile

health systems, eroding the gains made in child survival

and the achievement of better health. The combination of

HIV/AIDS and malaria is closely associated with

increases in maternal mortality and the significant

reduction in life expectancy in many African countries.

We commend the work of the United Nations system in

7

this regard, and in particular the indication that the response

of the United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, in

partnership with various bodies, including the private sector,

is commensurate with the gravity of the situation. The

assistance of the international community is required to

continue these efforts.

The problem of external debt, which continues to be

a developmental problem for Africa, received considerable

attention at the recent Cologne Summit of the G-8, and

promising decisions were taken to relieve the debt of the

highly indebted poor countries. Lesotho appreciates the

various initiatives to ameliorate the problem and in general

supports them, including the effort to find appropriate

financing mechanisms for the Heavily Indebted Poor

Countries Debt Initiative. While Lesotho has successfully

endeavoured to meet its international financial obligations

and commitments, my Government is now faced with a

heavy and unbearable burden of debt-servicing, which is

constraining our national development efforts. We therefore

call for a review of the Initiative, with a view to

substantially relaxing the eligibility criteria so that debt-

stressed countries like Lesotho may also benefit from it.

The recent sale of gold reserves by some countries has

already resulted in a substantial drop in the price of gold

and the consequential closure of marginal gold mines in

South Africa. The overall impact has been reduced

employment opportunities, not only in South Africa but also

in neighbouring countries, such as Lesotho, which have

traditionally depended on employment in South African

gold mines. Let us take care not to create an African

employment crisis so soon after the Asian financial crisis.

It is incumbent upon the international community to work

with affected countries to develop strategies for mitigating

the negative effects of whatever mechanisms are agreed for

financing the HIPC Initiative.

The General Assembly decided at its fifty-second

session to hold an event in the year 2001 for the purpose of

addressing, in a holistic manner, the question of financing

for development in both its national and international

aspects and in the context of globalization and

interdependence. We must face up to the fact that

development is in crisis and that, unless we take bold

measures to find resources for financing it, the future of

mankind is bleak indeed. My delegation fully shares the

view that through this process, which will also address

development through the perspective of finance, the

international community will be afforded a unique

opportunity to start the new millennium with a momentous

political gesture that demonstrates global solidarity for,

inter alia, poverty eradication and the attainment of

economic growth and sustainable development.

It is in the interest of all countries to pursue

development cooperation on the basis of genuine

partnership and mutually beneficial arrangements. We

remain convinced that the contemporary realities of

globalization and liberalization make it clear that capital

flows from developed countries not only benefit

developing countries, but also combine in a dynamic

process with the resources of developing countries in a

manner that brings benefits to both developing and

developed countries.

We also want to stress that every effort should be

made to narrow the gap between developing countries —

in particular, the least developed countries, such as

Lesotho — and the developed countries. In this regard,

we await with anticipation the outcome of the review next

year of the Plan of Action for the Least Developed

Countries.

It is worth repeating that when we adopted the

Programme of Action at the United Nations International

Conference on Population and Development in Cairo in

September 1994, we were committing ourselves to the

support of strategies aimed at enhancing the quality of life

for families and individuals through recognition of their

rights to quality services. The Conference was indeed a

turning point that marked a departure from the notion of

population control to a human-rights-based approach in

addressing our demographic concerns.

In conclusion, my delegation would like to

rededicate itself to the principles of democracy, good

governance, observance of human rights and the rule of

law as the only way in which all of us can ensure a

prosperous and lasting future for all our peoples.