Maldives, 2001

It gives me great

pleasure, on behalf of my country, to congratulate

Mr. Han Seung-soo on his election to the presidency of

the General Assembly. His election to that high office

29

demonstrates the international community's respect for

and confidence in his ability to guide the work of this

session successfully. It also demonstrates the trust and

high regard that the international community has for

the Republic of Korea and for the important role that

country is playing in the international arena to foster

peace and security in the world. I would also like to

take this opportunity to pay tribute to his predecessor,

His Excellency Mr. Harri Holkeri of Finland, for the

exemplary manner in which he guided the work of the

fifty-fifth session.

Allow me also to congratulate the Secretary-

General, His Excellency Mr. Kofi Annan, on his

reappointment to head the Organization for a second

term. His dynamic leadership has earned the United

Nations the confidence of the international community

and has raised fresh hopes about the Organization's

ability to facilitate a world atmosphere more conducive

to peace, justice and human dignity as we enter the

twenty-first century. The award of the Nobel Peace

Prize to the Secretary-General and to the United

Nations is testimony to that confidence.

Nearly 13 years ago, the Maldives woke up to the

horrors of terrorism when a band of foreign terrorists

attacked Male, our capital island, without the slightest

warning or provocation, killing many innocent people

and destroying property. By their faceless act of

violence, they changed the peaceful life we had had in

our country for centuries into one full of fear and

apprehension.

On 11 September this year, the most powerful

country, the United States of America, itself became a

target and the victim of a horrendous act of terrorism.

The world community was shocked and promptly

condemned the barbaric attacks on the World Trade

Center and the Pentagon, and the murder of thousands

of innocent people. Consistent with its stand against

terrorism, the Maldives found itself among the first

States to condemn those attacks in the strongest

possible terms.

The tragedy of 11 September has reminded us

that terrorism is one of the biggest challenges facing

the world community today. It has emerged as an

enemy of nations, be they large or small, and as a

vicious threat to humanity. In combating such a cruel

enemy, it is important that international action against

terrorism be supported and that it be complemented by

measures at the regional and national levels.

At the international level, the legal doctrine

against all aspects of terrorism must be strengthened

and universalized. Concomitantly, action at the

regional and national levels must be brought into line

with international obligations in fighting this global

menace. The United Nations, as the global organization

responsible for international peace and security, must

play the pivotal role in this fight against terrorism. My

country fully supports the early convening of a high-

level conference, under the auspices of the United

Nations, to formulate a clear definition of terrorism and

to draw up a joint, far-sighted reaction to the ever-

growing phenomena of terrorism in its various forms

and manifestations. We are also looking forward to the

early conclusion of a comprehensive convention on

international terrorism and of an international

convention for the prevention of acts of terrorism using

nuclear, biological or chemical material or agents.

As a people who have devoted themselves to the

practice of Islamic faith and values for nearly a

millennium, we are deeply offended by the notion that

terrorism is linked to Islam or to Muslims. On the

contrary, Islam advocates peace, compassion, tolerance

and peaceful coexistence. The projection and portrayal

of Islam as an enemy of civilization or of the free

world is an insult to its noble principles. It is a

perverted view and a falsification of Islam and its

principles. Such perversions are nothing but

propaganda hatched by evil people who wish to breed

hatred among human beings; their claims are no less

harmful than terrorism itself.

At the Millennium Summit last year, our leaders

charted a course for a better world, a world in which

the whole of humanity can prosper in mutual respect

and dignity. Navigating smoothly along that course will

be a difficult task. We have to be ready to boldly

address the challenges in our way.

Over the past year, we met in several special

sessions to address some specific important issues. On

each and every such occasion, we demonstrated our

firm resolve to uphold the objectives set forth in the

Millennium Declaration. The major cross-cutting

theme that runs deep in all these issues is the

dehumanizing scourge of poverty. Poverty remains the

major stumbling block for sustainable social and

economic development in the developing world.

Eradicating poverty, therefore, is core to the attainment

of peace and development. Let us therefore make the

elimination of poverty our top priority and pursue

30

vigorously the target set by our leaders during the

Millennium Summit: to halve poverty by 2015.

The commitments we have undertaken at such

conferences involve high price tags. Unless new and

additional financial resources are made available in a

timely and predictable manner, no action plans or

programmes can be implemented. It is therefore a

collective responsibility of the entire international

community, including the private-sector stakeholders

and civil society, to muster the necessary political will

that is so vital in this regard. We are eagerly looking

forward to the International Conference on Financing

for Development to be held in Mexico early next year.

We hope that that event will provide the international

community with an opportunity to agree on new,

innovative and additional sources and strategies to

mobilize funds for development.

Globalization is now a reality. Many in the

developed world are enjoying the unprecedented yield

of globalization, while its powerful forces are

depressing the fragile economies of many developing

and least developed countries, including structurally

weak countries. The uneven playing field has indeed

contributed to widening the gap between the rich and

the poor. In fact, the obstacles to the development of

the least developed countries have grown in number

and magnitude over the years and have marginalized

those countries in the world economy. My country, the

Maldives, is heartened by the goodwill and solidarity

extended by the international community to the least

developed countries during the Third United Nations

Conference on the Least Developed Countries held in

Brussels early this year. It is now time for delivery on

the commitments made at the Brussels Conference.

Unless those commitments are fulfilled, the plight of

the least developed countries will continue to worsen.

The special circumstances and needs of the small

island developing States (SIDS) have been recognized

and acknowledged by this Assembly on numerous

occasions. The Barbados Programme of Action very

clearly spells out these special needs of SIDS.

Although many SIDS may appear to be relatively more

prosperous on the basis of per capita income level, it is

also a documented fact that, due to the special

characteristics of small islands, they are generally

among the most economically vulnerable and

handicapped countries in the world today.

As a country with little more than a quarter of a

million inhabitants spread over more than 200 islands,

bereft of natural resources and with a fragile economy

based on fisheries and tourism, which are sensitive to

the harsh realities of ecology and the environment, the

Maldives provides a perfect example of this dilemma

of the small island developing States.

The stable political environment that the

Maldives has enjoyed for the past two decades,

combined with the continued flow of assistance from

our development partners, have indeed given us the

opportunity to improve the quality of life of our

people. Our efforts towards development have

remained relentless, as the structural constraints we

face are both persistent and formidable.

Given these realities, my country is convinced

that the present criteria for identifying least developed

countries need to be refined to reflect the impediments

in full. We appeal to the Committee for Development

Policy and the international community to consider

these realities on the ground and to look beyond

abstract indicators into the inherent vulnerabilities of

small island developing States in determining the

criteria for graduation.

We do not wish to remain indefinitely in the

category of least developed countries. However, should

graduation be thrust upon us prematurely, its negative

consequences could easily overwhelm us and result in

serious erosion of our achievements. We need to

strengthen the capacity of our human resources and

institutions to cope with existing and emerging

challenges to our development efforts. We need to find

ways and means to diversify our economic base and

strengthen its sustainability.

We welcome the recent resolution adopted by the

Economic and Social Council to extend our transition

period until the next triennial review of the list of least

developed countries in 2003. At the same time, we

wish to reiterate our belief that ensuring a smooth

transition for graduating countries, in accordance with

General Assembly resolution 46/206, is an essential

obligation of the entire international community.

Indeed, a decision that affects the future destiny of a

nation should not be based on hastily compiled

information that may contain erroneous assumptions

and dubious facts that could mislead the competent

authorities, leading them to reach questionable

conclusions.

31

The state of the global environment remains a

major concern of the international community. A

decade after the adoption of Agenda 21, its effective

implementation has proven to be a difficult task. The

pleas of small island developing States for new and

additional resources to implement the Barbados

Programme of Action remain to be heeded. The Kyoto

Protocol is yet to come into force. Meanwhile,

scientific predictions on the future of the global

environment remain alarming. Unless swift and

concrete action is forthcoming, global environmental

degradation will continue to threaten the survival of

humankind and our planet. The consequences of a mere

one-metre rise in the mean sea level on small island

developing States, such as the Maldives, is now a well-

documented fact. We, therefore, urge the international

community to accelerate its efforts to agree on a legally

binding greenhouse gas emissions reduction regime

and to facilitate the Kyoto Protocol's early entry into

force. In this connection, we are encouraged by the

positive developments achieved in Marrakech last

week and hope that these developments will facilitate

an early entry into force of the Protocol.

A year from now, we will gather in Johannesburg,

South Africa, for the Rio + 10 Summit to take stock of

our labour over the past decade to protect and preserve

the global environment. My country believes that this

would be an excellent opportunity for the international

community to reinvigorate its efforts and rededicate its

commitments to protect and preserve the global

environment.

The Maldives attaches great importance to the

efforts of the international community to foster

sustainable social development. The five-year review

of the Copenhagen commitments and Beijing Platform

for Action, carried out last year, and the recently

concluded review of the implementation of the

outcome of the Second United Nations Conference on

Human Settlements (Habitat Agenda), as well as the

World Conference against Racism and Racial

Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance

have added renewed impetus to the efforts of the

international community to achieve social harmony.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic has become a major

impediment to social development. The Maldives, too,

has not been immune to the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Although the number of cases may be relatively low in

our country, we are fully aware of the potential threat

that looms over us. We pledge our full support to the

Programme of Action adopted by the special session of

the General Assembly on HIV/AIDS early this year,

and we call on the international community, including

the private sector stakeholders, to commit the financial

resources required to implement the Programme of

Action.

My country wholeheartedly supports the just

struggle of the Palestinian people. My country

commends the efforts of the co-sponsors of the Middle

East peace process to help put the talks back on track.

We strongly believe that the Mitchell report should be

implemented urgently to pave the way for restarting the

stalled peace process.

Disarmament and arms control measures continue

to remain a high priority on the international agenda.

While we were encouraged by the positive outcome of

the NPT Review Conference last year, we would like to

reiterate the need for continuing efforts to strengthen

and enforce the nuclear non-proliferation regime.

Similarly, we look forward to the day when the

Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) will

come into force.

In conclusion, allow me to reaffirm the firm

commitment of the Maldives to the principles and

objectives enshrined in the United Nations Charter. We

will work with the other members of the international

community to uphold and promote these lofty

objectives. We remain convinced that the United

Nations is the only organization that is capable of

creating a more peaceful and prosperous world for

humanity.