Maldives, 2003

Allow me at the outset,

Sir, to convey to you, on behalf of my delegation, our

sincere congratulations on your election as the

President of the General Assembly at its fifty-eighth

session. It is indeed an added pleasure for my

delegation to see such a distinguished personality from

a sisterly small island State preside over the Assembly.

Allow me also to extend my delegation's

profound gratitude and appreciation to your

predecessor, Mr. Jan Kavan, former Deputy Prime

Minister and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the

Czech Republic, for the exemplary manner in which he

steered the work of the fifty-seventh session.

I would also like to take this opportunity, on

behalf of my delegation, to express our deep

appreciation to the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan,

for his dedication and his untiring work in promoting

the noble principles of this Organization. I also

congratulate him in particular for the courage and

foresight with which he proposed last week much-

needed reforms to this Organization. I sincerely wish

him every success in carrying them forward.

I would also like to take this opportunity to

express my delegation's sentiments of sadness and

deep sorrow at the tremendous loss suffered by the

international community in the recent terrorist

bombings of the United Nations premises in Baghdad. I

pay a special tribute to the Special Representative of

the Secretary-General, Mr. Sergio Vieira de Mello, and

to the other staff members of the Organization who

made the ultimate sacrifice in the cause of humanity.

Terrorism has always menaced the human race in

one form or another. Yet never before have we

witnessed acts of terrorism so organized, so frequent

and so lethal, threatening international peace and

security in its entirety. The Baghdad bombing and other

violent eruptions elsewhere in the world grimly remind

us that serious threats to world peace and security

remain, undermining the noble principles that had so

far contributed to the survival of the world order and to

the sustenance of the values that we upheld. Much has

been done, yet the persistence of such deplorable acts

signals our failure to address the fundamental causes of

those threats. Bold decisions need to be taken swiftly

to address them.

Since my country fell victim to a brutal terrorist

attack in 1988, we had tried, on many occasions, to

impress upon the Assembly the threats to small States

posed by increased international terrorism. A decade

and a half later, the threat of terrorism is affecting us

all, irrespective of our physical size, economic

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strength, political power or military might. For some

small States, the danger is graver, as a terrorist

onslaught could severely threaten even their

sovereignty and independence. Therefore, let me

emphasize the importance of providing support and

assistance to small States in the implementation of

Security Council resolution 1373 (2001), and of

strengthening their institutional capabilities in this

important field.

We all should recognize that the strength and

stability of the international security system or of any

political order is determined by the strength not of its

strongest, but of its weakest members.

Maldives will nevertheless continue to support

the war against international terrorism in the spirit of

contributing to enhanced international peace and

security.

The structural impediments facing small island

developing States such as Maldives are numerous. The

geophysical characteristics of our island States,

combined with their remoteness from major markets,

have accentuated our vulnerabilities. Nearly a decade

ago, we met in Barbados to address the environmental

vulnerabilities and developmental challenges faced by

small island developing States. However, addressing

those vulnerabilities and challenges requires a

meaningful global partnership, with shared

responsibility and commitments at the highest level.

My country hopes that Barbados+10, to be held in

Mauritius next year, will provide an impetus for the

international community to renew the commitments to

concrete action it made at Barbados 10 years ago.

The globalization of the world economy and the

liberalization of the multilateral trading system are

continuing to marginalize the developing countries,

especially the least developed countries. As tariff

barriers fall, so does the potential for developing

countries to compete effectively in the open market.

Hopes were dashed at Cancun recently, as the

Conference proved disappointing, leaving the

developing countries still afflicted with problems.

Abject poverty and disease in the developing

world exist at a level that defies comprehension, while

deadly diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria and

tuberculosis remain rampant. Development

opportunities for the least developed countries appear

bleak. I therefore call for a level playing field for all

countries, with preferential treatment for the weak, and,

in particular, for narrowly based economies such as

that of my own country, who find it hard, if not

impossible, to sustain their share of the global market.

My delegation believes that a greater commitment

to the implementation of the Brussels Programme of

Action for the Least Developed Countries is a

prerequisite if we are to halt and reverse the

deteriorating situation of the least developed countries.

While I express my appreciation of the donor

community's willingness to help those countries

accelerate their growth and sustain their development,

and to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, it

must be said that the Monterrey pledges remain far

from being realized.

The overriding objectives of the Brussels

Programme of Action to arrest and reverse the

continued socio-economic marginalization of the least

developed countries and to improve their participation

in international trade and their share of foreign

investment and other financial flows will also remain

but a dream if official development assistance is not

increased and international development assistance is

not augmented.

As I have stated on many occasions, Maldives is

not simply an island nation; it is a nation of many far-

flung islands covering 90,000 square kilometres of

ocean. Our islands are resource-poor, and the saline

soil conditions prohibit most agricultural production.

Transport and communication costs are exorbitant. The

scope for economic diversification is very limited. That

is why we have appealed to the international

community to take a closer look at our true situation

before the issue of our graduation from least-

developed-country status is considered by the

Economic and Social Council.

As I emphasized in my statement to the Assembly

last year, the structural weaknesses of our economy

could have grave implications for my country's

development, should it be deprived of the preferential

access to markets and the concessional capital that it

has critically relied upon.

The Committee for Development Policy (CDP)

has fully recognized the special circumstances of small

States like Maldives that are environmentally fragile

and economically vulnerable. The CDP has also, over

the years, highlighted those vulnerabilities and the

severe costs that small island developing countries will

have to endure in the event of their graduation. We

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believe that, unless these vulnerabilities and costs are

addressed in a concrete and meaningful manner, the

conditions for graduation set forth in Assembly

resolution 46/206, particularly that of smooth

transition, will not be met. We are concerned that, if

such issues are not adequately addressed, graduation

will reverse the progress that we have made so far.

Although the criteria for inclusion in the list of

least developed countries and graduation therefrom

have been regularly reviewed and refined, they still fail

to cover the entire range of structural and other

handicaps. We are glad that the CDP is continuing its

work on refining the criteria. We also believe that, of

the three criteria for graduation, that relating to the

Economic Vulnerability Index must be a requirement,

if we are to ensure that a country will not lapse back

into a lower category of development after the fatal day

of graduation.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and

Development profile of Maldives also highlights a

number of circumstances not covered by the criteria.

The profile very clearly states that graduation would

result in an unsustainable debt burden, even if there is

sustained growth. The rate of our economic growth has

declined significantly since 1997 and graduation at the

present time would therefore amount to a serious

exogenous shock. This is precisely the situation that we

are so desperately trying to avoid.

In accordance with the decision taken at its 2003

substantive session held at Geneva, the Economic and

Social Council will soon consider the issue of the

graduation of Maldives from least-developed-country

status. We sincerely hope that we will receive the

necessary support and cooperation of all countries with

a view to adopting a comprehensive resolution that

would address the issue of graduation in a holistic

manner and require an appropriate mechanism to

ensure a smooth transition.

In this connection, we would like to express our

full support for the call by the CDP to convene an

expert group meeting to address the issue of smooth

transition. We also expect the International Meeting on

Small Island Developing States, scheduled to take

place in Mauritius next year, to formulate

recommendations to guide policies on the graduation of

small island developing States.

Following the glimmer of hope for the revival of

the Middle East peace process, we are again witnessing

an unprecedented deterioration of the situation in

Palestine and the Middle East. We strongly condemn

the Israeli move to deport President Yasser Arafat from

the Palestinian territories, as well as the continued

Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people. We

have consistently supported the just struggle of the

Palestinian people to regain their inalienable rights and

to establish an independent Palestinian State with Al-

Quds as its capital. We call upon the members of the

Quartet, particularly the United States, to ensure the

implementation of the road map for peace. While we

sincerely believe that the United Nations has an

important role to play in the peace process, we are also

convinced that the United States needs to remain

actively engaged, as it currently is, in a spirit of

sincerity, in the search for a just, permanent and lasting

peace in the region.

The international community should maintain the

high priority that it has accorded to disarmament and

arms control efforts, without any discrimination among

nations or regions, with a view to making the world a

more peaceful place. The international community

must strengthen and improve the enforcement of the

non-proliferation regime. In this context, we believe

that the United Nations not only must be at the centre

of the multilateral process, but must remain the

principal player in grappling with important global

issues. We believe that, with unity of purpose and in a

spirit of complementarity, bilateral, regional and

multilateral approaches can lead to the resolution of

these issues.

As the Secretary-General emphasized, the need to

reform the United Nations to enable it to face the

challenges of a changing world remains paramount. We

are convinced that the United Nations, with its

universal membership, is not only the sole legitimate

body responsible for the preservation and maintenance

of international peace and security but also a unique

body, capable of achieving the goal of a better and

secure world for humankind. We should never,

therefore, allow the United Nations to be marginalized

or diverted from its role or the principles of the

Charter. Maldives remains committed, and will do its

utmost to contribute to strengthening the role of the

United Nations and to making it more efficient and

effective.