Nepal, 2006

At the outset, Madam, I would

like to congratulate you warmly on your election as

President of the General Assembly at this session and

to assure you of my delegation’s full cooperation in

discharging the responsibilities entrusted to you. I am

fully confident that we will be able to bring the

business of this session to a successful conclusion

under your leadership.

His Excellency Mr. Jan Eliasson, the outgoing

President, deserves our sincere appreciation for a job

well done.

I join previous speakers in heartily welcoming the

Republic of Montenegro as a fellow Member of this

world body. The continued expansion of the

membership underlines the importance of the United

Nations as an Organization of truly global character,

centrality and indispensability in global affairs.

This is, indeed, a great opportunity for me to

represent the voice of the democratic Government and

the sovereign people of Nepal in this Assembly. I have

brought with me greetings and best wishes from the

Government and the people of Nepal for the success of

this session.

I wish to inform the Assembly that Nepal is

undergoing a fundamental transformation following the

restoration of democracy through the peaceful people’s

movement in April 2006. The people of Nepal has

become, for the first time in history, the real source of

sovereignty and State authority. The historic

parliamentary proclamation of 18 May 2006, and the

subsequent decisions of the parliament, have made real

contributions to safeguarding and consolidating the

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gains of the people’s movement. We are currently

engaged in institutionalizing an edifice of a democratic

and inclusive Nepali State through the reinstated

parliament.

The people and the Government of Nepal are

thankful to the international community for its strong

support during our struggle for democracy. We are

hopeful of even greater support and solidarity in our

transition towards full-fledged democracy and lasting

peace.

This momentous change in Nepal has also led to

the conversion of a protracted conflict into a peace

process, and we are confident that it will be brought to

a successful conclusion. I take this opportunity to

sincerely express my appreciation to the Secretary-

General for his assistance to the peace process,

including in the monitoring of human rights, assistance

in ceasefire monitoring, arms management and the

observation of elections to the Constituent Assembly,

at our request. The successful resolution of our internal

conflict will set a worthwhile example to the rest of the

world that democracy is indispensable and brightens

the prospects for resolution of conflicts of all kinds.

Now, we have pressing post-conflict

reintegration, rehabilitation and reconstruction needs.

Meeting these challenges requires an enhanced level of

international support and assistance. Peace, security,

stability, democracy and development constitute global

public goods. It is critically important that newly

emerged democracies are safeguarded and protected,

thus allowing them to develop further and flourish.

With this vision in mind, we strongly support the

newly established United Nations Democracy Fund.

The United Nations today is confronted with

numerous challenges, such as international terrorism

and transnational crime, the threat of use of weapons of

mass destruction, narcotic drugs and human trafficking,

money-laundering and other financial crimes, regional

conflicts and low-intensity wars, extreme poverty and

hunger, human rights abuses, successive natural

disasters and the threats posed by pandemics such as

HIV/AIDS and avian flu.

These challenges call for new wisdom founded on

the principles of collective security, well-being and

prosperity. The United Nations is uniquely placed to

muster the much-needed philosophical underpinning

because of its standing as a global body armed with

legitimacy. New wisdom alone will not be enough to

deal with these problems if new strategies, new tools

and new resources do not match it. Nepal firmly

believes that multilateral solutions are required to

address problems and challenges of a global nature.

Multilateralism is the key to promoting global

participation in problem-solving and to ensuring

collective ownership of outcomes.

Today, old and new threats to peace and security

exist side by side. While military threats to security are

diminishing gradually, new sources of threat have

emerged and are likely to disturb international peace

and security in more than one way.

The growing menace of international terrorism

characterizes the security scenario in our post-cold-war

world. It has been the consistent policy of Nepal to

unequivocally condemn terrorism in all its forms and

manifestations. It is disheartening to note that no

international consensus has yet emerged paving the

way for the early conclusion of a comprehensive

international convention against terrorism. In this

context, we welcome the adoption of the United

Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (resolution

60/288).

We are concerned about the dismal progress on

disarmament. After failing to agree on non-

proliferation last year, we were unable to produce an

agreement during the review of the regime to control

small arms and light weapons. We are also constantly

reminded of the deadlock in efforts to resolve nuclear

issues by peaceful means. Nepal stands for general and

complete disarmament of all weapons of mass

destruction, including biological, chemical, nuclear and

radiological weapons, in a time-bound manner. The

demand of our time is that we compete for peace, not

war, and for development, not armaments.

We have offered to host, in Kathmandu, the

United Nations Regional Centre for Peace and

Disarmament for Asia and the Pacific. Despite our

long-standing commitment and sincere efforts, the

Centre has yet to be relocated. I wish to reiterate that

the Government of Nepal is ready to sign the host

country agreement, pursuant to the Assembly

resolution, as soon as the Secretariat provides it with a

draft. We urge the Secretariat to conclude the necessary

procedures for the relocation of the Centre to Nepal

without further delay.

The recent upsurge of violence in Lebanon has

left unbearable human tragedy in its wake and has

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resulted in the large-scale destruction of material

property. We welcome the ongoing ceasefire and

express our support for Security Council resolution

1701 (2006) on strengthening the United Nations

Interim Force in Lebanon. We are committed to

contributing a battalion of troops for the cause of peace

there.

Nepal’s profound interest and continued

participation in United Nations peacekeeping missions

underscores its contribution to the maintenance of

international peace and security. Even when it had its

own internal conflict, Nepal never stopped sending

troops to United Nations peacekeeping missions.

Nepalese Blue Helmets have served in various

missions, including in many trouble spots, in an

exemplary manner, earning international repute for

them and their country. Currently, Nepal has over

3,500 troops in various United Nations missions. Many

of them have sacrificed their precious lives in the

service of peace and humanity. Nepal will continue to

uphold this noble cause and participate in future

missions when asked to do so.

Nepal’s commitment to human rights is total and

unflinching. Nepal firmly believes that all human

rights are universal, indivisible, interrelated,

interdependent and mutually reinforcing. We welcomed

the establishment of the Human Rights Council in the

belief that that body will prove effective in protecting

and promoting human rights around the globe based on

the salient principles of universality, objectivity and

non-selectivity.

The current Government of Nepal has accorded

top priority to the protection and promotion of human

rights with a view to translating Nepal’s international

human rights commitments and obligations into reality.

We have been working closely with the United Nations

human rights bodies, including the United Nations

Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in

Nepal, to create an environment in which full

enjoyment of human rights by all is guaranteed. The

return of democracy and the start of the peace process

have led to a significant improvement in the protection

of human rights in Nepal. We greatly appreciate the

role played by the Office of the High Commissioner for

Human Rights in Nepal in improving the human rights

situation in the country.

We are determined to bring to an end the culture

of impunity which was so pervasive during the

autocratic regime. Our belief is that no one is above the

law and that those who violate and abuse human rights

must be brought to justice. We are fully committed to

protecting human rights in all situations and creating a

framework to bring to justice those who have violated

human rights in the past.

Opportunities arising out of globalization, such as

those associated with global migration, have been

stifled by unfriendly policy regimes around the world.

The rights of migrant workers must be protected in all

situations in accordance with international norms.

Nepal’s experience shows that the benefit of

remittances generated by migrant workers counts a

great deal for developing countries. But that cannot in

any way be a substitute for development assistance,

debt relief or trade concessions.

The benefits of trade liberalization are not

distributed equitably. The multilateral trading regime

must be made responsive to the needs and requirements

of the developing and least developed countries.

Enhanced trading opportunities, coupled with

productive capacities, are critically important for the

achievement of sustained economic growth and poverty

reduction in the least developed countries (LDCs). The

agreed commitments for duty-free and quota-free

access for the products of the least developed countries

need to be complemented with favourable rules on

origin.

We are concerned about the suspension of World

Trade Organization (WTO) talks on the development

round, and urge the immediate revival of the talks to

complete the Doha Development Agenda.

Our development agenda has been advancing

rather slowly. We realize that, given the current pace,

many countries will not be able to achieve the

internationally agreed development goals, including

the Millennium Development Goals. It reminds us that

we must urgently and sincerely implement all the

commitments agreed to in the various global compacts

of recent years, including the Monterrey Consensus,

the Millennium Declaration, the Johannesburg Plan of

Implementation and the Brussels Programme of Action

for the Least Developed Countries.

This year’s midterm review of the Programme of

Action for the Least Developed Countries showed that

most of the least developed countries will not be able

to achieve the agreed targets within the previously

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defined time frame unless we accelerate the pace of

implementation.

The least developed countries need better policies

on aid, trade, investment, debt relief and

capacity-building, as well as timely reforms in the

international financial institutions. We call on the

international community to take a holistic approach,

combining policies to support the LDC development

agenda. The least developed countries need a

substantial flow of external aid and investment if they

are to meet those goals. Investment in poorer countries

is not just a moral responsibility; it is investment in the

collective security of the world.

Many least developed countries are handicapped

as a result of being landlocked, which significantly

reduces their competitive edge in regional and

multilateral trading regimes. This state of affairs

continues to frustrate their development efforts. We

urge the international community to pay greater

attention to the plight of those countries and to make

serious efforts to implement internationally agreed

commitments.

It is a scar on our conscience that hundreds of

millions of people are living as refugees in various

parts of the globe. The international community must

take it as its bounden duty to address their concerns in

a non-selective manner.

I regret to inform the Assembly that more than

100,000 refugees from southern Bhutan have been in

camps in Nepal for over a decade and half — a painful

experience — despite the bilateral agreements reached

between Nepal and Bhutan. With no early and lasting

solution on the horizon, the refugees are showing

increasing signs of frustration and desperation. In

essence, this is a problem between the Government of

Bhutan and its citizens. Nepal has entered the picture

simply because it has provided shelter to fleeing

refuges on humanitarian grounds. The issue cannot be

resolved in the absence of a genuine willingness on the

part of the Government of Bhutan to solve this

problem.

The international community must exert a

positive influence so as to break the impasse. We stress

that the Bhutanese refuges must be given the right to

return to their home country in conditions of dignity

and respect and that any solution must be acceptable to

them. Nepal also supports the democratic aspirations of

the people of Bhutan and urges Bhutan to

accommodate the plight of the refugees in their

political dispensation.

Our Organization has made great strides,

especially in the adoption of the reform measures

endorsed by world leaders here last year. The

Government of Nepal remains committed to supporting

all reform initiatives aimed at addressing the concerns

and aspirations of all Member States.

The strength of the United Nations lies in its

democratic decision-making and in its impartiality,

neutrality and efficiency. The General Assembly — the

only global body in which the voices of the peoples of

the world can be heard — must be placed at the

forefront of all decision-making processes within the

United Nations. The organs dealing with socio-

economic issues must be strengthened and enabled to

take a lead role in the fulfilment of international

development objectives.

Contemporary realities dictate that the United

Nations must undergo a fundamental transformation

without undermining its founding principles and

objectives. Any reform of the United Nations will be

incomplete without a commensurate reform of its

principal organ responsible for the maintenance of

international peace and security. The Security Council

must be democratized so as to provide it with greater

legitimacy and credibility. There is a genuine need to

increase Council membership, in both the permanent

and non-permanent categories, so as to make the

Council more representative. Such an increase should

include two permanent seats each for the Asian and

African regions, one for Latin America and one for

Western Europe. We also need to improve the

Council’s working methods.

This year, Member States will elect the next

Secretary-General of our Organization. In accordance

with the principle of equitable geographical

representation and that of rotation, Nepal reiterates that

the next Secretary-General should come from Asia. We

also believe that a greater role should be played by the

Assembly in the appointment of the Secretary-General.

I commend the role played by the outgoing Secretary-

General, Mr. Kofi Annan, during his term of office. He

led important reforms at the United Nations and made

genuine efforts to establish the central role of our

Organization in resolving global problems and

debating international issues.

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Nepal has submitted its candidature for non-

permanent membership of the Security Council for the

period 2007-2008. We think that we rightly deserve it,

as nearly two decades have elapsed since we last

served on the Council, in 1988-1989. This world body

is fully aware that Nepal has for a long time been

making substantial contributions to the maintenance of

international peace and security by regularly providing

troops to various peacekeeping missions. Moreover, we

believe that Nepal’s election to the Council this time

around would represent a significant recognition of its

democratic credentials in a changed context. The

people of Nepal deserve due recognition from the

international community for their unprecedented

courage and for the determination with which they

have defeated autocracy and restored democracy. I

make a sincere appeal to fellow Members to extend

their valuable support to Nepal’s candidature and allow

it to serve on the Council with renewed confidence in

the fulfilment of its fundamental responsibilities.

The purposes and principles of the United

Nations contained in its Charter, including the

sovereign equality of nations, the peaceful resolution

of all disputes, non-interference in the internal affairs

of States, and the principle of refraining from the threat

or use of force are sacrosanct to Nepal. I solemnly

reiterate Nepal’s profound commitment to the founding

objectives and principles of the United Nations, as

enshrined in its Charter.

The United Nations today suffers from a lack of

credibility, an inability to arrive at important decisions,

weak implementation of its own declarations and

decisions, and slowness in responding to challenges

that require its most pressing attention. We need to

change this situation. Together, we can better equip our

Organization to respond to those challenges.