South Africa, 2011

On behalf of the Government

and the people of South Africa, I wish to extend our

sincere congratulations to Ambassador Nassir

Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on his election as President of the

General Assembly. We wish him a successful tenure in

the stewardship of this body and assure him of our

delegation’s full support. We also congratulate his

predecessor, Mr. Joseph Deiss, for the diligent manner

in which he guided the work of the Assembly at its

sixty-fifth session.

I would further like to take this opportunity to

congratulate Mr. Ban Ki-moon on his re-appointment as

Secretary-General.

It is also an honour for South Africa to welcome

the Republic of South Sudan to the community of

nations as the 193rd State Member of the United

Nations.

This month, the United States and the world

marked the tenth anniversary of the horrendous

terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, which affected

the United States and 89 other countries. That horrific

incident united the international community and

strengthened its resolve to cooperate in the fight

against terrorism. We pay our respects to the victims of

the tragedy and their families. We reaffirm our

commitment to working with other Member States to

eradicate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

The theme of this session — “The role of

mediation in the settlement of disputes by peaceful

means” — is timely and well chosen. The Charter of

the United Nations mandates the Organization to

utilize mediation as one of the tools to prevent and

resolve conflicts across the globe. The role of

mediation as a tool for the settlement of disputes has

renewed relevance today, given the number of conflicts

in the world. We should defend the independence and

impartiality of the United Nations and promote the

principles of its Charter during conflicts and crises.

The United Nations should never take sides in any

conflict but should always maintain its impartiality.

The United Nations must not allow itself to be used by

any country, regardless of its history or size. All

citizens of the world should feel confident and secure

in the knowledge that the United Nations is above all

partisan interests and serves only those of the citizens

of the globe.

We are of the view that regional organizations

play a crucial role in the resolution of conflicts and in

regional mediation processes. The Charter of the

United Nations itself provides for the role of regional

organizations in cooperation with the United Nations.

This role of the regions must always be enforced and

enhanced, and not undermined. In our continent, the

African Union (AU) continues to play a significant role

in mediation and the resolution of conflicts, trying at

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all times to produce African solutions to African

problems, of course with the support of the world.

This year, the world witnessed the so-called Arab

Spring in North Africa and the Middle East. With

regard to the situation in Libya, the AU played a

crucial role in seeking a peaceful solution to the crisis,

in line with its mandate of working for peace and

stability in the continent. However, it is a matter of

record now that the AU efforts were never given a

chance. Military actions were preferred over peaceful

means.

Nonetheless, the AU continues to be seized with

the Libyan conflict, as it should be. South Africa,

through the AU and the United Nations, will work with

the National Transitional Council, the representative of

the Libyan people, as it proceeds to form an inclusive

transitional Government that will take the Libyan seat

in the African Union. During this period of working

towards normalcy in Libya, we call for a cessation of

hostilities and an end to the NATO aerial

bombardment. We also call for the lifting of the no-fly

zone, whose imposition was necessary for the

protection of civilians.

The proliferation of arms in Libya is a major

concern. The transitional Government will need to be

supported in addressing this security issue. It may pose

a serious challenge affecting the entire subregion if it is

not adequately attended to. We also urge the new

Libyan authorities to ensure the protection of migrant

workers, especially those from sub-Saharan African

countries, who number approximately 2.5 million.

Immediate measures should be taken to put an end to

the killing, arbitrary arrest and detention of migrant

workers and black Libyans.

We will fully support the people of Libya as they

go through the transition towards a new, united and

democratic Libya that protects human rights, human

dignity and freedom.

South Africa continues to support international

efforts to assist the people of Palestine and Israel to

find lasting peace. The decades-old struggle of the

Palestinian people for a sovereign State of their own

has now reached a turning point. The Palestinian

Authority, backed by the League of Arab States, has

stated its intention to seek United Nations membership

for the State of Palestine. South Africa fully supports

this position. It is a decisive step towards achieving

lasting peace, economic cooperation and prosperity for

the millions of people in the Middle East, and we urge

that it be viewed favourably.

We also support the ongoing struggle for self-

determination of the people of Western Sahara. We

urge the international community to support their quest

for freedom, human rights and dignity.

We reiterate our call for the lifting of the

economic and financial embargo against the people of

Cuba in order to help them gain their economic

freedom.

All Member States have a duty to safeguard the

future and relevance of the United Nations. Recent

international developments have made more urgent our

efforts to intensify the reform agenda of the United

Nations, particularly the Security Council, as well as

the Bretton Woods institutions. No reform can be

complete without the substantive reform of the

Security Council, whose membership must be

consistent with the principle of equitable geographical

representation. In this regard, we reiterate our call for

Africa to be represented in the category of permanent

membership of the Security Council.

South Africa is preparing to welcome the

international community and all stakeholders to the

seventeenth session of the Conference of the Parties to

the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change and to the seventh Meeting of the Parties to the

Kyoto Protocol, in November and December this year.

The success of the Conference is highly dependent on

the willingness of all parties to reach an agreement. It

does not depend on South Africa alone. As leaders, we

are accountable to the global citizenry, the ordinary

people that suffer daily from the impacts of climate

change. They hold high expectations of their leaders to

be responsible and to find effective solutions to the

threat that climate change poses to their livelihood,

quality of life, dignity and, in many cases, their very

survival. We dare not fail them.

We are witnessing the catastrophic effects of

famine in Somalia and neighbouring countries. Our

response should not be left to the United Nations alone;

it requires united action from all of us. South Africa

has been humbled to contribute in a small way to the

alleviation of human suffering. The people of Somalia

still need more support, and we urge the world to focus

its attention more sharply on Somalia and its

neighbours in the Horn of Africa.

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It is commendable that the Millennium

Development Goals and their realization by 2015

continue to feature on the agenda of the General

Assembly. We now have four years to go before we

reach the target date. It is clear that many of the Goals

will not be attained on time, particularly in

sub-Saharan Africa. We call on the international

community and the United Nations to redouble efforts

to assist countries that are lagging.

At this session, we will be commemorating the

tenth anniversary of the adoption of the Durban

Declaration and Programme of Action — the outcome

document of the World Conference against Racism,

Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related

Intolerance, which was held in Durban in 2001. Racism

and racial discrimination continue to pose a challenge

to humankind and to negate the principles of the

Charter of the United Nations. We should continue to

work together to eradicate the scourge of racism.

On 8 January 2012, the African National

Congress (ANC), the oldest liberation movement in

Africa, will mark 100 years of existence since its

establishment in 1912. The ANC spearheaded the

struggle against racial oppression, colonialism and

apartheid in South Africa. It inspired many in the

African continent to fight for their freedom and

independence from colonialism.

The United Nations declared apartheid a crime

against humanity and in that way endorsed the struggle

against racial oppression in our country. The centenary

of the ANC recognizes the immense contribution of the

United Nations and the international community in

working to eradicate racism and racial discrimination

in the world. We will, tomorrow, host a symposium on

South Africa’s contribution to the fight against racism

and racial discrimination.

Working together, let us remain committed to

multilateralism and cooperation in this session of the

General Assembly and beyond, and promote the

realization of a more equitable and just world.