Myanmar, 2014

We are gathered here at a time when the world is facing pressing global challenges and security threats that

must be addressed collectively and with urgency. Our

planet is heating up owing to the clear and imminent

danger of climate change. Terrorism is rearing its ugly

head once again. The global village is gripped with fear

of the spreading Ebola epidemic. Tension and mistrust

are building up among the major Powers, reminiscent

of the rivalry of the Cold War. The number and scale

of regional and local conflicts is growing in some parts

of the world. One billion people are still trapped in

poverty. The world we want is still a distant dream.

Climate change is no longer merely an issue for

scientific argument; it is one of survival that requires our

urgent action. Many developing countries economically

dependent on agriculture, as well as small island States,

will bear the brunt of its impact. It is of the utmost

importance that we agree a new global commitment

on climate protection and emissions-reduction

objectives. My delegation is therefore thankful to

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for organizing the

Climate Summit 2014, whose message that urgent and

united action is needed was loud and clear. Myanmar

will continue to work together with the international

community towards a meaningful, implementable and

universal climate agreement in Paris in 2015.

In support of the vision of the President of the

General Assembly for a transformative post-2015

development agenda, we must intensify our efforts at

this session to set the world on the path to sustainable

development in its economic, social and environmental

dimensions. In that process, we must also work together

to find effective means for implementation, including

the mobilization of financial and technological support,

in order to ensure the success of the new agenda and the

sustainable development goals.

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa, with its

unprecedented nature and scope, is alarming. We must

not see that outbreak as unique to one particular people

or place. It is a common challenge to all of humankind.

Myanmar welcomes the swift and timely response by

the Secretary-General in proactively establishing the

United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response.

Terrorism cannot be condoned for any reason

or under any circumstances. Ruthless killings and

atrocities in the name of religion must not be tolerated.

Myanmar has always opposed terrorism in all its forms

and manifestations. We are not oblivious to the fate

of those who have fallen victims to terrorism. The

international community must be united to eliminate

those horrible crimes. In that regard, my delegation

fully supports the statement issued by the Association

of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers

a few days ago here in New York.

Myanmar firmly believes in the continued relevance

and legitimacy of the United Nations in world affairs.

We will continue to actively cooperate with it, in line

with the principles of our foreign policy. Thanks to the

positive changes in Myanmar, the cooperation between

Myanmar and the United Nations is now better than

ever. The United Nations and its agencies are showing

greater interest in Myanmar, extending a helping hand

to the people of Myanmar in all aspects of their lives.

The Government, for its part, is facilitating the effective

implementation of the United Nations missions.

The maintenance of international peace and

security is one of the main purposes of the United

Nations. Myanmar, as a peace-loving nation, abhors

weapons of mass destruction and is fully cognizant of

the danger of nuclear weapons. To that end, Myanmar

has annually submitted, since 1995, a draft resolution

on nuclear disarmament. We will do so once again

at the present session of the General Assembly. We

encourage all Member States to positively support

our draft resolution. If we follow the road map in the

resolution with a strong political will, a world free of

nuclear weapons will be within our grasp soon.

I would like to inform the Assembly that Myanmar

is making domestic preparations with a view to

ratifying major international disarmament instruments.

Considerable achievements have been made in that

process. I am pleased to announce that the Pyidaungsu

Hluttaw, our Union Parliament, has just approved

Myanmar’s accession to the Biological Weapons

Convention.

The winds of change have blown across Myanmar

over the past three years. The scope and pace of

positive changes in Myanmar have earned remarkable

recognition and encouragement from the international

community. Those changes have contributed to raising

Myanmar’s profile in the regional and international

arena. On the regional stage, Myanmar held the Chair

of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral

Technical and Economic Cooperation until March this

year. After successfully carrying out that responsibility,

we are now shouldering the prestigious responsibility of

chairing ASEAN. Under our chairmanship, ASEAN is

exerting its efforts to speed up the ASEAN community-

building process with the theme of “Moving forward in

unity to a peaceful and prosperous community”.

Myanmar is advancing well on the path of peaceful

democratic transition, which began over three years

ago by setting in motion various waves of political

and economic reforms. The first wave was the

peaceful transformation from a military Government

to a multiparty democratic system, where all political

forces are working together to overcome differences

through dialogue in our two houses of Parliament. An

all-inclusive political system has been established,

bringing in all stakeholders in the process through

national reconciliation. The first wave of reform

brought about national reconciliation, the granting of

a series of amnesties, the creation of greater political

space, freedom of the media, freedom of expression,

and freedom of association and peaceful assembly. It

was followed by the second wave of reform, unleashing

an array of political, economic, administrative and

private sector development reforms. Now, the third

wave of reform has been launched, which aims at laying

down a firm foundation for a new democratic State and

delivering benefits to the people by fulfilling their

socioeconomic needs. We are determined to keep the

reforms on track through ensuring peace, stability and

national reconciliation.

Since our democracy is still in its infancy, we are

facing a multitude of daunting challenges, like other

countries in transition. The Government has a long to-

do list despite its limited capacity. We are determined to

overcome the challenges and we are convinced that we

will achieve our objectives. We need the international

community’s understanding and continued support in

our efforts for economic development and capacity-

building to lay a solid foundation for a democratic

society.

One of the issues that attracts domestic and

international attention is the process of amending

Myanmar’s present Constitution. In that regard,

the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw set up the Constitutional

Amendment Review Joint Committee in July last

year. Further, after soliciting suggestions and

recommendations from the general public and political

parties, the Constitutional Amendment Implementation

Committee was formed to address the issues of

constitutional amendment based on the suggestions

received.

Putting democratic values into practice, the

Government is placing much more emphasis and

consideration on the aspirations of our people as a whole.

Accordingly, we are laying foundations to successfully

conduct an independent, free and fair election within

a legal framework that does not compromise national

sovereignty. In that context, Myanmar recently received

the visit of a needs assessment mission from the United

Nations. All existing political parties are expected to

take part in the elections. The final decision will be

made by the people on election day.

Peace and stability are prerequisites for political

stability and for the socioeconomic development of

the country. Strengthening national reconciliation is

an integral part of our reform process. We are working

together with all ethnic armed groups in good faith to

reach a nationwide ceasefire agreement. So far we have

already reached such an agreement with 14 out of the 16

groups. We are now working on a draft framework for

political dialogue that will pave the way for bringing an

end to the six-decade long conflict.

The Government is serious in its commitment to

the success of the peace process. It is open to discussing

all issues, except those that could undermine the unity

and sovereignty of the State. The political dialogue will

also become a historic forum for discussion of all issues

of national concern. We are confident that we are now

getting closer to achieving a comprehensive and lasting

peace.

There has been steady progress in the promotion

and protection of human rights in my country. A

series of presidential amnesties have been granted,

which creates an enabling environment for everyone

to participate in the parliament, political parties, civil

society organizations and labour organizations. The

Myanmar National Human Rights Commission, which

was first established in 2011, was reconstituted very

recently with a view to functioning as an independent

entity. Many complaint mechanisms, including the

Commission, have been made available to citizens so

that they can file complaints in the event of violation

of their rights.

In this new era, press and media freedom is one of

the most visible outcomes of the reforms. In contributing

to the all-inclusive reform process, the media is getting

more space now. The abolishment of decades-old press

censorship, the publishing of a multitude of private

newspapers and journals and the enactment of a new

media law are among the significant achievements in

our media landscape.

With firm resolve, Myanmar is now combating

human trafficking, preventing gender violence and

protecting children. Sexual violence is a crime strongly

abhorred in our traditional values and national culture.

It is strictly forbidden by law. At the global summit

in London in June this year, Myanmar joined the

Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence

in Conflict. Its signing of the Declaration reflects

the country’s State policy of zero tolerance for use

of rape or sexual violence as a weapon of war. The

Armed Forces of Myanmar are making important

progress in its implementation of the action plan to

end the recruitment of child soldiers in Myanmar. Due

to our strong commitment, there is no new underage

recruitment, unwittingly or otherwise.

All major human rights concerns have been

addressed to a larger extent in the new Myanmar than

before. We have now reached the middle tier of the

human rights ladder. That progress is contributing to

the better enjoyment of human rights and fundamental

freedoms by the people of Myanmar. Therefore, we are

now fully convinced that Myanmar should no longer

remain on the agendas of the Human Rights Council

and the Third Committee of the General Assembly.

We are also paying great attention to and making

efforts to address the issue of the communal violence

that had occurred between the two communities in

Rakhine state. The history, diversity and complexity

of the issue must be fully understood before jumping

to conclusions. The situation should not be looked at

in a superficial manner. The international community

should contribute pragmatically and objectively to

finding a durable solution. In addressing the root

cause, we are working for peace, stability, harmony

and development for all the people in Rakhine state.

An action plan is being finalized and will soon be

launched. Once in place, it will be implemented in a

systematic and timely manner.

I take this opportunity to thank all international

partners for contributing to our efforts to address the

current needs of the affected people. As development

is one of the main challenges in Rakhine state, I

would also like to invite the international community,

particularly the United Nations, to provide much-

needed development assistance there.

The Government of Myanmar has been focusing on

poverty reduction and rural development with a view

to lifting the living standards of rural and urban people

alike. We are striving to realize the structural changes

from an agriculture-based economy to an industrial

one. As those efforts become increasingly crystallized,

we have been enjoying steady economic growth. We

have achieved a growth rate in our gross domestic

product of 5.6 per cent, 7.3 per cent and 8.7 per cent in

the past three years, respectively.

That encouraging trend in economic growth and

overall progress in our reform process has made us take

an important decision. Taking this opportunity, I would

like to announce that Myanmar is fully determined and

has initiated the internal process to graduate from its

least developed country (LDC) status. In that regard,

President U Thein Sein has communicated to the

Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, our intention

and determination to graduate from LDC status. A

high-level national committee and subcommittees are

actively coordinating domestic measures, including

a transition strategy, for our graduation. We are now

working closely with the relevant United Nations

agencies for technical and necessary assistance.

Myanmar has made tremendous progress over the

past three and a half years, since it began wide-ranging

reforms in transition to democracy. Myanmar’s success

in peaceful transformation was even lauded as a model

in the world today. Despite all those achievements,

there remain many challenges and hurdles on our path

to democracy and development. We are fully aware of

those daunting challenges. We will not be complacent.

We are resolute and determined to continue our

unrelenting efforts aimed at reform and the building of

a democratic State.

Myanmar is changing, and changing in the right

direction. We are laying a solid foundation for a

democratic State in which we can live in harmony, peace

and prosperity. Developments in Myanmar should also

be viewed in a more balanced and objective manner. It

is the primary responsibility of the people of Myanmar

to realize their long-held aspirations for democracy,

peace and prosperity. The continued support and

understanding of the international community would

contribute positively to Myanmar’s reform process.

Rome was not built in a day.