Liberia, 2012

I congratulate Mr. Vuk

Jeremić and the people of Serbia on his election to

the presidency of the General Assembly at its sixty-

seventh session. I would like to assure him of Liberia’s

full cooperation and support as he carries out the

responsibilities entrusted to him in steering the affairs

of this session. I would also like to pay tribute to his

predecessor, Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser of the

State of Qatar, for his capable stewardship of the affairs

of the sixty-sixth session and the many bold initiatives undertaken in the interests of world peace during his

tenure.

My highest commendation goes to Secretary-

General Ban Ki-moon, who continues to demonstrate

sound leadership in the face of new and complicated

challenges. He has begun his second term with renewed

vigour and a clear articulation of the priorities that

represent the major concerns of the international

community.

The selection of the theme for this session, which

calls for the settlement of disputes by peaceful means,

could not have been more appropriate. When we

review the state of the world, we see an international

landscape checkered with armed conflict, economic

crises and environmental degradation. For those who

have been through the painful experience of conflict,

including my own country, Liberia, this year’s theme

becomes very pertinent. The cost of conflict in lives

and infrastructural destruction makes us doubly

appreciative of the value of preventive action in

averting conflict. The need for conflict prevention

takes on added urgency, because most conflicts are

internal, engendered by marginalization, inequity and

injustice. It becomes imperative, therefore, to identify

and remove those triggers of conflict before they cause

explosions.

Our Government’s efforts to achieve the twin

objectives of conflict prevention and peace consolidation

are being reinforced through our engagement with the

peacekeeping and peacebuilding architecture of the

United Nations. In an environment of peace, we have

prioritized actions aimed at re-establishing the rule

of law by building the capacity of our institutions

and processes to deliver justice and security. We have

formulated a road map for national reconciliation to

ensure that peace is sustainable.

Our development partners, including the United

Nations and its specialized agencies, have remained

faithful to our national agenda. They have supported

our priority programmes for women’s empowerment,

increased agricultural productivity and food security,

roads and infrastructure, and job creation. All the United

Nations agencies must be supplied with the capacity to

provide support to Government programmes in those

areas. That is particularly critical for the new gender

entity, UN-Women, which is the youngest among them

and whose viability must be assured. We have made

strong strides in gender equality, but much more must

be done for girls’ education and women’s empowerment.

Tremendous progress has also been made in health-care

delivery.

We are particularly pleased by the recent UNICEF

report, which shows a sharp reduction in the level of

child mortality. However, there are still many challenges

to overcome before we can ensure universal access to

health care.

Many developing countries, such as Liberia, have

structured their economies around the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs). While some countries

have made considerable progress in reaching some of

the Goals, many others will be unable to achieve them

by 2015. There is an emerging consensus that efforts

must be accelerated in order to achieve maximum

progress in reaching the MDGs over the next three

years.

I am honoured and humbled to have been selected

by the Secretary-General as one of the co-Chairs of

the High-level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-

2015 Development Agenda. We are mindful of the

difficulty of our task, which requires us to propose a

framework that builds on but goes beyond the MDGs

in the establishment of goals that are ambitious but

achievable. We know that the results of our work must

reflect the broad political consensus of the public and

private sectors and civil society. We know that the

defined goals should enable all people in all countries

to be freed from the shackles of poverty through

sustainable development.

Liberia remains fully committed to the ideals and

purposes of the United Nations. We believe that the

Organization should continue to occupy the centre of

global governance by leading efforts to meet our collective

challenges to peace, security and development. To meet

that objective, the intergovernmental negotiations on

Security Council reform need to come to an early and

logical conclusion. My Government is encouraged

that an increasing number of Member States support

the enlargement of the Council in both the permanent

and the non-permanent categories. That would ensure

a fairer and more equitable participation, ref lective of

the world demography. In that regard, Liberia supports

the African common position, based on the Ezulwini

Consensus adopted by the African Union.

In the same vein, we must ensure that the General

Assembly is revitalized in order for it to fully assume

all the responsibilities entrusted to it under the Charter.

It remains, after all, the most representative body of the

United Nations.

The high-level United Nations Conference on the

Arms Trade Treaty, which ended recently here in New

York, sought to develop the highest possible international

standards for the trade in conventional weapons.

However, strong national positions on that sensitive

global issue prevented an agreement on a binding arms

trade treaty. Yet, nations of goodwill and countries like

Liberia that have experienced devastation from the

illicit trade in and diversion of conventional weapons

must continue our strong advocacy, taking into account

the full range of differences and disagreements. We

would therefore encourage bilateral consensus-building

ahead of a new round of negotiations. At the same time,

we are convinced that the final draft text of the arms

trade treaty, though imperfect and incomplete, contains

essential elements, upon which future negotiations can

succeed.

We express our deep condolences on the death of

the United States Ambassador and staff and the Libyan

nationals in the attack on the United States consulate

in Benghazi. All nations should be concerned about

the spreading of violence in reaction to a film that

demonstrates unacceptable insensitivity to the Islamic

faith. Even in such circumstances, we must all be

mindful that democracy requires freedom — freedom

of ideas, freedom of association, freedom of religion

and, more important, freedom of expression. That

often results in statements and actions that may offend.

Tolerance, not violence, is the appropriate response to

prevent further violence. Liberia is a clear example,

where, were it not for our own tolerance of our new-

found freedom of expression, our country would be

back in chaos.

While the majority of the countries in our

subregion are consolidating economic and social

gains, underpinned by democratic processes, some

are, regrettably, still dogged by serious challenges

that risk undermining the peace and progress of the

entire region. We in Liberia, like many other countries

in the region and the world at large, were particularly

appalled by the unconstitutional unravelling of the

democratic Governments in Mali and Guinea-Bissau in

the early part of this year. We unequivocally condemn

such attempts to seize power through unconstitutional

means.

Accordingly, Liberia endorses the decisions of

the Economic Community of West African States

(ECOWAS), which sought the full restoration of

constitutional order in both countries in the shortest

time. Liberia enjoins the world community, particularly

the Security Council, to buttress the efforts of ECOWAS

in restoring peace in our region, most especially in

Mali.

As the current Chair of the four-nation Mano River

Union, comprising Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and

Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia has committed itself to never

allowing an inch of its territory to be used in order

to destabilize its neighbours. In that context, we

categorically condemn all attempts to undermine the

peace and democratic gains in Côte d’Ivoire and are

working closely with the Ivorian authorities and the

United Nations peacekeeping bodies in both Liberia

and Côte d’Ivoire to protect and consolidate the peace in

our two countries. We call on all countries in our region

to work in concert so that those intent on destabilizing

some parts of our region are treated as enemies in all

parts of it.

We are all part of a rapidly changing world in which

the forces of globalization cannot be reversed. Our

farming systems must adjust to the unusual weather

conditions. The places where we live and work will

need, in some cases, to be relocated from traditional

safe areas. Our societies must also find responses to the

distractions resulting from the demonstration effect.

Developing countries, such as my own, must make

globalization work if we are to achieve our growth

targets and lift our people out of poverty. That means

greater commitment and effort on our part to create an

environment that ensures economic growth based on

mutual benefits and responsibilities.

Since its founding, Liberia has been a complex

nation, and the divisions that led to decades of war still

run deep.

Our experience clearly shows that success has its

pitfalls. Displaced citizens returning from refugee

camps in the subregion and deportees from around the

world swell the ranks of the desperate unemployed,

thereby intensifying our vulnerability. Communities

long deprived of basic services demand instant attention

to their individual needs, thereby straining our capacity.

Civil servants lacking a decent wage for two decades

rightfully clamour for raises, thereby undermining the

budgetary process.

As Liberia moves towards its tenth year of

sustained peace, we can say with conviction that our

country has turned the corner. Liberia is no longer a

place of conflict, war and deprivation. We are no longer

the country our citizens f led, our international partners

pitied and our neighbours feared. Our stabilization

efforts over the past six years have resulted in average

annual growth of over 6 per cent, major foreign

investment, expanded fiscal space and unprecedented

debt cancellation. More important, we have earned our

rightful place on an irreversible path to sustained peace,

growth and development. Our Vision 2030, resulting

from a robust nationwide consultation, is a long-

term programme for transformation that prioritizes

youth development, infrastructure, reconciliation and

capacity development.

Yet, our Government is keenly aware of the

challenges to be faced over the next three years.

United Nations peacekeeping forces are gradually

being withdrawn from Liberia. In our discussions

with various United Nations teams that have come to

Liberia — the technical assessment mission in March

and the Security Council delegation in May — we

have emphasized the need for a responsible transition,

through a gradual process occurring over a period

of three to five years. We also seek the alignment of

transitional activities with our budget cycle, reflecting

Government priorities.

We wish to express our appreciation to the United

Nations, which has been a very committed and effective

partner. We owe the Organization much gratitude for

preserving an enabling environment for peacebuilding

and State-building.

In conclusion, I wish to note that today, for the first

time in two generations, Liberia has a second successive

democratic Government elected by the will of the

people. Despite the distractions, local and external, our

people are determined to take their destiny into their

own hands, and determined that our ambitious goal of

making Liberia a middle-income country by the year

2030 will be achieved.