Malawi, 1997

I would like to extend my

sincere congratulations to the President on his assumption

of the office of the presidency of the fifty-second session

of the United Nations General Assembly. His election to

preside during this critical stage of change and reform in

the United Nations system is a reflection of the

confidence that the entire membership has in him and his

country, Ukraine. I wish him a successful term of office,

and assure him of Malawi’s full cooperation.

Allow me to pay tribute to last year’s President, His

Excellency Mr. Razali Ismail, for the excellent manner in

which he handled the recently concluded fifty-first session

of the General Assembly. President Razali Ismail brought

with him a refreshing sense of purpose in the work of the

General Assembly and the United Nations. His

punctuality and forthrightness are attributes which will

inspire us all as we move forward. My delegation wishes

him well in all his future endeavours.

Special tribute is due to the Secretary-General,

Mr. Kofi Annan, who, within a short period of time, has

demonstrated that a revitalized United Nations can work

meaningfully towards the full realization of the principles

and purposes of the Charter. He can count on Malawi’s

support as he continues to discharge his responsibilities.

Malawi welcomes the reforms that are taking place

within the Organization. The Secretary-General’s

commendable efforts in this regard will surely

complement the work that has been, and continues to be,

undertaken through the various intergovernmental

processes. My delegation expresses its satisfaction with

the recent adoption of the report of the General

Assembly’s High-level Open-ended Working Group on

the Strengthening of the United Nations System. By

focusing attention on the institutional aspects and

23

operations of the United Nations, the outcome of the

Working Group represents an indispensable input to the

overall programme of reform. The two-track programme of

reform submitted to us by the Secretary General adds, in

our view, a comprehensive and useful thrust in the reform

and transformation of this world body. My delegation looks

forward to participating in the consultations that are

necessary to carry through these proposals during this

session.

We welcome, too, the conclusion of negotiations on

An Agenda for Development. We need a strong United

Nations in development — a United Nations that is

efficient, effective, relevant, able and well-resourced, to

respond to the many needs of Member States. Such an

Organization, however, cannot exist without meaningful

progress in the other areas of reform. We therefore look for

some tangible progress in the work of the Working Groups

on An Agenda for Peace, on Security Council reform and

on the financial situation of the United Nations during the

current session.

Last year my delegation observed that Malawi did not

believe that the Working Groups that we had established

were open-ended in time. We continue to hold this view.

We need to seize the opportunity for change when the time

is ripe. While a time-frame may not be imposed, we believe

the time for change for the Organization is now, as we

approach the next millennium. Progress in the three

remaining Working Groups will make complete the changes

that we all seek for the Organization.

It is now over three years since the dawn of true

democracy in Malawi. The Government of Malawi

continues to work towards consolidation of good

governance and respect for human rights. We seek to build

a Malawi that is democratic and economically viable.

Malawi has made commendable efforts to improve the

promotion, protection and enforcement of human rights. A

number of independent institutions for the protection and

promotion of human rights are now in place.

Let me also note that Malawi has acceded to the major

international human rights instruments. With regard to the

Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on

Civil and Political Rights aiming at the Abolition of the

Death Penalty, the Government has decided to hold national

consultations on whether or not the death penalty should be

abolished. The initiative, whose modalities are being

worked out, has received wide publicity. In this regard, I

wish to register Malawi’s appreciation for the offer of

assistance by Amnesty International to facilitate these

consultations. In the meantime, our President, His

Excellency Dr. Bakili Muluzi, has announced a stay until

the outcome of the national consultations is known.

With respect to the combat of illicit trafficking in

narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, Malawi has

acceded to the 1988 Convention, and activities are under

way to put in place an effective administrative machinery

to coordinate the activities of government departments

and civil society. We expect to establish a national

commission on drug control as a focal point for internal

and international activities, including the promotion of

cooperation within the Southern African Development

Community (SADC) region in the fight against drug-

trafficking. Malawi would greatly appreciate any

assistance from the international community, including the

United Nations International Drug Control Programme, to

improve our own and the region’s ability to deal with the

drug problem.

We continue to make strides in socio-economic

development. Against the background of prudent

economic management, we have succeeded in arresting

rising inflation and the stagnation in industry and

construction as well as the total loss of confidence in the

business sector. Although the situation is currently

manageable, we are the first to realize that much more

needs to be done. Like many other small countries, our

economy continues to weather stormy turbulence caused

by many exogenous factors. Drought has wrought havoc

in the region in recent years. According to the current

forecast, this season the region will experience yet

another drought. Poverty continues to be the main source

of concern. There is no doubt that democracy in Malawi

has engendered massive expectations among the people,

especially after having lived in an atmosphere of

deprivation for decades. The level of expectation has

generated insurmountable pressure on the limited

resources which the Government has at its disposal.

As a developing country, and one of the least

developed among them, we are not yet able to mobilize

adequate resources to accomplish all our national

development programmes. Recurrent drought in the

southern Africa region this decade, the weak economic

base of the country, which is almost exclusively

agricultural, a rather unbalanced social infrastructure,

which is partly due to the low literacy rate inherited from

the previous regime, and the problem of disease,

including HIV/AIDS, pose a serious threat to our nascent

democracy. A combination of these domestic as well as

other factors of an international character bear the

24

frightening potential of reversing the noble gains we have

made over the past three years.

Despite these adverse forces, the Government is

determined to broaden the economic base of our country.

Political stability now obtaining in the country has created

a conducive atmosphere for foreign investment. Malawi has

abolished all retrogressive legislation which hindered both

domestic and foreign investment. The economy has been

liberalized, and a number of incentives have been

introduced for potential investors. Measures include a

comprehensive privatization programme.

In a further effort to tackle the root cause of poverty

in my country, our Government has instituted measures

which seek to empower the common person, including

youth, and women. Free primary education was introduced

in 1994 to develop our human resources. This is coupled

with the provision of free tuition at secondary school for

the girl child. The aim of the Malawi Government is to

double the average literacy rate by 1999.

The efforts and impact of globalization are well-known

to us all. Malawi cannot go it alone in the implementation

of its development programmes. International cooperation

among all nations in all sectors of human endeavour is no

longer an option, but necessary for the very existence and

survival of humankind. The truth of this proposition is very

apparent and clear today, particularly in the areas of

environment, development and international peace and

security.

We in Malawi recognize the importance of protecting

the environment for the sustainable livelihood of all the

people. The Government of Malawi participated in the

nineteenth special session of the General Assembly, devoted

to the overall review and appraisal of the implementation of

Agenda 21, held in this very Hall from 23 to 27 June 1997.

We trust that having candidly taken stock of the state of

implementation of Agenda 21, and taking into account the

shortfall at mid-decade, the international community will

now redouble its efforts to fulfil its commitments in the

next five years and beyond. The common and differentiated

responsibilities that were agreed upon at the Earth Summit

regarding the protection and preservation of the

environment in order to achieve sustainable development

were reaffirmed and accentuated, once again underscoring

the importance of international cooperation. We will play

our part in the protection of the environment for the benefit

of present and future generations.

The critical socio-economic situation of Africa

continues to be an area of priority concern to us. More

than one year after the United Nations System-wide

Special Initiative on Africa, the situation still leaves

something to be desired — though there are, of course,

some hopeful signs for improvement. We find

gratification in the fact that African ownership of African

development is becoming a reality. We look forward to

the consolidation of a global partnership for Africa.

Malawi appreciates the assistance that it receives from the

donor community. There is absolutely no doubt that

increased international assistance and initiatives for debt

relief or cancellation, increased official development

assistance to meet agreed targets, private capital flows,

increased foreign direct investment, and improved terms

of trade would play a catalytic role in Africa’s efforts to

achieve economic development. The remarkable progress

achieved in the areas of regional integration and South-

South cooperation gives us hope. Africa is indeed not a

hopeless case. A genuine partnership in development and

finance is, therefore, imperative.

The demise of the cold war rekindled all our

aspirations for lasting global peace and prosperity. The

highly symbolic tumbling down of the Berlin Wall

heightened expectations for a peace dividend.

Unfortunately, the situation has not improved. Today, the

United Nations continues to utilize most of its resources

in managing or containing conflicts of varying origins and

intensity. The role of the Organization in the maintenance

of international peace and security has become more

relevant than before. The situations in Angola, Burundi,

the Republic of the Congo, the Great Lakes Region,

Sierra Leone, Western Sahara, Afghanistan, Bosnia and

Herzegovina and the Middle East, among many others,

continue to occupy the work of this Organization.

It certainly should be possible to resolve many of

these problems that beset the world so that the United

Nations can rechannel its efforts towards promoting the

most refreshing aspects of the human experience. And

there are many examples where the human spirit has

triumphed over forces of doom and despair.

Developments in Liberia and in the Democratic Republic

of the Congo are among the most recent examples.

We congratulate the people of Liberia on choosing

the way of peace. The role played by the United Nations

Observer Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL), by the

Economic Community of West African States Monitoring

Group, and by other international observers in the

Liberian peace and electoral processes once again

25

demonstrates that a global partnership for the maintenance

of international peace and security can succeed and is

perhaps the only way forward.

Democracy, transparent and accountable governance

and the protection and promotion of human rights and

fundamental freedoms are necessary for successful people-

centred development to take place in our countries. It is

unfortunate, though, that there are some around us today

who believe that they can continue to deprive their own

people of their birth rights and freedoms. We deeply regret

that in Sierra Leone a military junta that usurped power

from a democratically elected Government is still holding

on, in spite of the international community’s opposition.

Malawi calls upon the junta to hand over power to the

democratically elected Government and President Kabbah

so that the people of Sierra Leone can experience the peace

that has eluded them for so long.

The situation in Burundi continues to be as depressing

as it was last year. We remain convinced that there is no

alternative to freedom and democracy. We strongly urge the

people of Burundi to set aside their differences and

negotiate so that they may put in place a Government that

would bring that country once again to normalcy.

My Government has followed closely developments in

the painstaking peace process for Angola. We have admired

the magnanimity of the Government of Angola in fulfilling

its obligations under the Lusaka Protocol and related

agreements. We on the other hand regret the continued

intransigence of Dr. Jonas Savimbi and his National Union

for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA). While

supporting wholeheartedly the Security Council resolutions

on the situation in Angola, we make an earnest appeal to

the UNITA leadership to fulfil its obligations in the peace

process without further delay so that the people of Angola

and the entire southern African region may realize their

desire for a peaceful and prosperous future.

We similarly regret the recent developments in the

Republic of the Congo. We appeal to all the major players

in this senseless struggle to exercise restraint and amicably

resolve their differences. The Congolese people definitely

deserve much better.

We note with growing concern the apparent lack of

meaningful progress in the implementation of the settlement

plan for Western Sahara. Malawi applauds the indefatigable

efforts of the United Nations in its search for a lasting

solution to Western Sahara. It is our sincere hope that the

recent appointment by the Secretary-General of Mr. James

Baker as his Personal Envoy for Western Sahara will help

in the resolution of that problem. We call upon the main

actors to honour their obligations without further delay.

My delegation is gravely concerned about

developments in the Middle East. A few years back, we

hailed the Middle East peace process as having acquired

irreversible momentum. Malawi strongly believes that

there is no alternative to the peace process launched in

Madrid on 10 October 1991; there is no cogent alternative

to this process for genuine peace and stability in the

Middle East. However, recent developments have

obviously shown that any provocative moves by any of

the parties concerned will not help the process. We appeal

for the utmost restraint and the quick resumption of

negotiations.

My Government is similarly pleased to note that the

two Governments on the Korean peninsula are working

together, although in a limited sense. It is our hope that

this is a starting point from which a lasting solution to the

existing tensions on the peninsula will be realized.

In recent years the world has made major strides in

the field of disarmament. The adoption last year of the

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty was indeed a

major breakthrough for all peace-loving nations. For

Malawi, however, the recent adoption of the Convention

on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and

Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their

Destruction stands out as most significant. Our resolve to

root out an evil that has adversely affected the lives of

many in the world shall remain undeterred. The support

garnered for the Convention within a short period of time

is a clear sign of what human beings can achieve when

working together for a common goal. We welcome the

Convention and look forward to its universal acceptance.

The United Nations today stands at the threshold of

a new millennium. We pray that it continues to play its

rightful role in the many issues that occupy us all in our

everyday life. As we approach the twenty-first century,

the relevance of the United Nations in enhancing

international cooperation in all areas of human endeavour

is, to us, no longer a matter of doubt but reality. We

believe that the reforms we all desire will harness the

gains already made in the area of international

cooperation. We all seek a United Nations that responds

effectively and efficiently to the needs of all people.

Let me reaffirm the commitment of the Government

and the people of Malawi to the noble goals and ideals of

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the United Nations, an institution that continues to make a

difference for humankind. We will continue to make our

modest contribution to this intergovernmental process, for

which we find no credible or viable alternative to its service

to “We the peoples of the United Nations”.