Paraguay, 1998

It is with great pleasure that I speak today, before this

esteemed forum for international dialogue, on behalf of my

country, the Republic of Paraguay. First of all, I would like

to congratulate the President of the General Assembly and

to extend to him my best wishes for success in the

important task of guiding the work of the fifty-third session

of the General Assembly of this Organization.

I also have the pleasure to greet the Secretary-General,

Mr. Kofi Annan, and to extend to him, on behalf of the

people of Paraguay, our congratulations on his excellent

fulfilment of his important mission.

As the century comes to an end, so does a decade that

has been for the world, and particularly for nations such as

mine, a period of far-reaching and vertiginous

transformation.

In 1989, after almost four decades of authoritarian

rule, Paraguay regained its democracy. Since that time, a

great number of profound and dramatic changes have taken

place in the process of reaffirming our democracy, a

process that today, I am pleased to announce, may now be

considered definitively consolidated, since for the first time

in 50 years a civilian President has transferred the

presidency of the Republic to another democratically

elected civilian. This is an essential milestone in the

recent history of our freedom and a striking testimony to

the Paraguayan peopleâs firm and irreversible commitment

to this system of government.

We took over the administration of a country with

major economic, social and moral problems, but, faithful

to the peopleâs mandate, we will make the decisions that

we deem appropriate and fitting to reactivate our

economy, restore international confidence in Paraguay

and, finally, ensure the sustainable and equitable

development of its people.

This, today, is my commitment, and I will dedicate

all my devotion and labour to it, though I am aware that

this effort would be in vain without the understanding,

solidarity and support of my people, as well as the

involvement and cooperation of friendly countries.

In this regard, my Government has pledged to carry

out a State agenda that is pragmatic and realistic. Its

priorities will include restoration of the peopleâs faith in

their leaders through transparent, coordinated actions

whose immediate effects will, in the short term, result in

greater well-being for the population. We will also carry

out an all-out war against poverty by doing away with the

privileges that engender injustices and intolerable

inequalities.

Another priority will be a rapid economic recovery

through the implementation of social programmes and the

construction of an infrastructure of all-weather roads,

which will expedite and reduce the cost of the rapid

transport of goods produced in rural areas to trade

centres. We will also initiate programmes to provide

inexpensive housing for a large sector of the population.

We will give priority to the fight against crime in all

its forms, focusing on the elimination of the scourges of

drug-trafficking and the piracy and illegal appropriation

of intellectual property. The concrete actions we have

taken during our first month in office have clearly shown

our firmness, determination and commitment in this

regard.

Another priority will be combating impunity, one of

the ills that eats away at our society. We will be

assiduous in the rigorous application of the law, which is

the inevitable framework for ensuring confidence and

development, particularly against those who profit from

State resources, depriving the rest of the community of

their legitimate chance to aspire to a better standard of

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living. Exemplary measures will be adopted to address

premeditated crimes in the economic and financial sphere.

We trust that these measures, along with those for the

protection of private property and an adequate framework

of incentives and security for foreign investment, will assist

us in recovering Paraguayâs international credibility and

will bring in the flow of cooperation and investment

necessary for our desired development.

The reform of the principal organs of the United

Nations — the General Assembly and the Security

Council — is of the greatest importance to us.

We have participated in the work of the Working

Group on Security Council reform, and once again I wish

to emphasize the importance we attach to the expansion of

the Council in both of its categories; if the number of

permanent members is increased, the number of non-

permanent members must be increased as well.

This increase must include Latin America and the

Caribbean and the other regional groups, without any

discrimination.

We believe that the effort undertaken by the United

Nations with regard to item 155 on the Assemblyâs

agenda — “Measures to eliminate international

terrorism” — is of the greatest relevance.

Paraguay vehemently condemns and rejects such acts

of international terrorism as the attacks on the American

embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

In this respect, we wish to express our conviction that

any international action to prevent and subdue terrorism

must be carried out in full and complete compliance with

international law.

Another scourge, generally related to terrorism, is that

of drug-trafficking, to which I have already referred. In this

context, I must add that we are convinced that this is a

problem of shared responsibilities among all countries

involved, producing, transit and consuming countries. Our

position on this point was clearly stated in the Declaration

of the Twelfth Meeting of Heads of State and Government

of the Rio Group, held in Panama City.

We welcome initiatives such as resolution 49/96, on

horizontal economic cooperation and other modalities for

cooperation among developing countries. We must also

mention last yearâs Declaration and Plan of Action of San

José, Costa Rica, which defines specific modalities for

dealing with sectoral problems relating to cooperation in

the spheres of trade, investment, finance and business.

However, we feel that the United Nations system

should identify mechanisms, such as economic and

technical cooperation, that will enable it to strengthen

integration more effectively, and adopt decisions aimed at

providing increased assistance. In this regard, my country

will support such measures as will, in a more effective

and coordinated manner, interest all participants —

particularly private-sector participants — in the

development process.

We also endorse strengthening the United Nations to

increase efficiency within the institutions of the

Organization.

If our Government programmes focus on supporting

development with social justice we can give our peoples

democracy, freedom and respect for human rights.

However, we cannot ask our peoples to fight for

development, to make greater sacrifices, if they do not see

similar trends towards change and a unified commitment

on the part of the international community.

Complying with our commitments made at the

Summit for Social Development, Paraguay intends to

achieve the goals set there. In this regard, I am pleased to

state that the priorities of our Administration include the

social development of the country; reduction of the

unemployment rate; the eradication of poverty;

preservation of the environment — a commitment to our

future generations; heeding the demands of our youth; and

supporting the advancement of women and of integrated

societies.

Based on the fundamental principle of universality,

the Republic of Paraguay feels that the United Nations

system must welcome, without exception, all States that

meet the requirements of the San Francisco Charter.

Given this, and bearing in mind the elements that make

up a State as well as other essential considerations,

Paraguay feels that the proposed participation of the

Republic of China in the United Nations and all its

related bodies must be considered. This is what we would

do with any other State that met the requirements of the

Charter.

I would now like to refer to one of the most important

strategies for the socio-economic development of my

country: its participation in the Southern Cone Common

Market (MERCOSUR), which is a fundamental objective of

our foreign policy. The achievements of MERCOSUR,

which was created in 1991 through the Treaty of Asunción,

as part of the process of integration, are a matter of pride

for our four countries — Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and

Paraguay — as well as for Bolivia and Chile. These

achievements have encouraged us to renew our efforts,

certain that the political will that has guided us so far will

lead us to achieve the goals that we have set for ourselves:

to strengthen and consolidate the Customs Union and to

move towards a greater level of integration.

Moreover, it is encouraging to note that the path we

chose in 1991 has attracted more and more interest from an

increasingly globalized world. In this regard, MERCOSUR

has shown its openness to dialogue, in particular with the

sister countries of Latin America. We are not a closed

community, but, rather, are open to initiatives that will

promote economic, political and social cooperation. In this

spirit, we are giving particular attention to the negotiations

initiated to establish a free-trade zone for the hemisphere

and to the negotiations we intend to hold in the near future

with the European Union.

The recent crisis in financial markets in South-East

Asia and Eastern Europe, which have in turn threatened the

stability of the financial markets of emerging economies,

are a disturbing feature of todayâs international scene. It

was mentioned in the Declaration of the Twelfth Summit of

the Heads of State and Government of the Rio Group, held

in Panama City, in which the position of the signatory

countries is clearly expressed.

A great deal of hope has been placed in the work

carried out by this Organization. We are on the threshold of

a new millennium; the twenty-first century looms on the

horizon, rich with opportunities and challenges. Our

societies are suffering from the crisis of the birth of a new

era, a new order, because we are not all yet adequately

prepared to confront it.

Therefore, our societies demand leadership from the

United Nations. The conclusions, recommendations and

actions that may come from this Assembly could be of

fundamental importance for our immediate future.

The problems emerging from the increase in

globalization and interdependence, as well as the dizzying

speed with which changes are taking place in the world,

affecting all aspects of the human condition, force us

inexorably to confront the challenge of finding the most

ideal mechanisms for dialogue, understanding and

effective and united international cooperation. We trust

that the United Nations will be capable of meeting this

challenge.