STATEMENT BY
H.E. AMBASSADOR MASAO NAKAYAMA
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE
ON BEHALF OF THE MEMBERS OF THE
PACIFIC ISLAND FORUM GROUP OF COUNTRIES
AT THE UNITED NATIONS (SOPAC)
BEFORE THE
FIFTY-FIFTH
UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY
New York,September 21, 2000
Check Against Delivery
Mr. President, Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen,
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate you on the
assumption of the office of this August body. I have the honour to
speak on behalf of the members of the Pacific Island Forum group of
countries at the United Nations, comprising of Australia; Fiji;
Kiribati; Marshall Islands; Nauru; New Zealand; Palau; Papua New
Guinea; Samoa; the Solomon Islands; Tonga; Tuvalu; Vanuatu, and my
own country, Micronesia.
It is with pride that I congratulate and extend a warm welcome to
our Pacific Island neighbour Tuvalu into the United Nations family.
The members of our group may vary greatly in land and ocean areas,
population, resource endowment, economic development, social
structures, languages and cultures but we share a common goal for the
Pacific, based on security and stability, prosperity and economic
opportunities for its peoples, and the sustainability of resources.
Within the same context the Pacific Islands Forum countries
represented in New York reaffirm their commitment to play a
supportive role in the United Nations decolonization programmes in
respect to the remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories in the
Pacific.
The Pacific Ocean occupies a central place in the lives of the
people of the Pacific Islands. Preservation of this resource - which
contains the world's highest marine diversity - is critical to our
future economic development. The vast oceanic area under the control
of our members is rich in fishing potential but requires careful
management and monitoring to address illegal, unregulated and
unreported fishing; and other environmental threats. A major
achievement for us and our distant water fishing partners is the
recently adopted Convention on Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the
Western and Central Pacific, which will protect the world's last
great tuna fishery.
The first meeting of the UN Informal Consultative Process on
Oceans Affairs and Law of the Sea, under the co-chairmanship of the
Ambassador of Samoa, promises to serve as a vital part of the
preparatory process for the General Assembly's consideration of Ocean
issues. The Ocean priorities identified by the Pacific Island Forum
include ratification of UNCLOS and the UN Fish Stocks Agreement;
marine scientific research and technical assistance; and the
delimitation of maritime zones including continental shelves.
The world's security environment has become more fluid and
uncertain with new and emerging threats. Events this year show that a
reputation for stability and peace are by no means guaranteed in the
Pacific. In the light of the political crisis in Fiji and the social
unrest in the Solomon Islands, Forum Foreign Ministers met in Samoa
in August. They recognized the need for regional action to be taken
on the basis of all members being part of the Pacific Islands
extended family. In doing so the Forum must demonstrate that it is
prepared constructively to address difficult and sensitive issues
including the underlying causes of tensions and conflicts such as
ethnicity, socio-economic disparities, lack of good governance, land
disputes and erosion of cultural values. Accordingly, they decided to
recommend to the Pacific Island Forum meeting in Tarawa, Kiribati
that leaders commit themselves and their countries to a number of
fundamental principles and courses of actions including the
following:
Belief in liberty of the individual under the law, equal
rights for all citizens regardless of gender, race, color, creed,
political belief and in the individual's inalienable right to
participate by means of free and democratic political process in
framing the society in which he or she lives;
Upholding democratic processes and institutions which reflect
national and local circumstances, including the peaceful transfer
of power, the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary,
just and honest government;
Recognizing the importance and urgency of equitable economic,
social and cultural development to satisfy the basic needs and
aspirations of the people of the Forum.
The Ministers established a working group, to develop these
principles and options for action, where the principles have been
violated, for consideration by Forum Leaders when they meet in
Kiribati.
In addition to increasing incidents of civil unrest, the region
is facing new threats from international financial and cyber crime
and people smuggling as well as the challenge of preventing and
controlling communicable diseases and the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The
threat associated with the uncontrolled access to even a small
number of weapons was brought into stark relief in the region
recently, adding weight to the Forum Leaders decision in 1997 to
put in place regional cooperation and a legal framework to control
the spread of weapons in the region. This approach is in step with
the international efforts to combat the illicit trade in small
arms, particularly in the lead-up to the 2001 United Nations
Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in
All its Aspects. Work on a legal framework has progressed to a
point where we expect draft legislation to be circulated among
Forum island countries before the end of this year.
We in the Pacific retain a close relationship, both in economic
and cultural terms, with our natural environments. We, therefore,
maintain a keen interest in the development of the Environmental
Vulnerability Index through the South Pacific Applied Geoscience
Commission (SOPAC). We thank the several governments that have
kindly committed substantial funds toward the completion of the
third phase of the studies being conducted by SOPAC and encourage
its adoption by the United Nations, so that environmental and
natural risks that our members face will be recognised when
consideration is given to eligibility for concessional aid, trade
treatment and Least Developed Country status.
Agenda 21 and the Barbados Program of Action on Small Island
Developing States remain the basic guideline for protecting the
environment and achieving sustainable development. Steady progress
is required in the preparations for the ten-year review of the UN
Conference on the Environment and Development (UNCED) in 2002. We
give high priority to international efforts to have the Kyoto
Protocol come into force at the earliest possible date. We are
thus committed to achieving a successful outcome to the Conference
of the Parties (COP VI) of the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change in November. We welcome the formulation of
specific tools such as the Clean Development Mechanism, which
promise to be useful in enabling island countries to do our part
to combat climate change, and to adapt to its consequences within
the parameters of our own national circumstances. Strengthened
efforts are being made in the region to build capacity to
understand and respond to climate change including through
observational networks.
The small island nations of the Pacific face unique constraints
to development. Most have small subsistence-based economies with a
narrow export base. Forum Economic Ministers meeting in Niue in
July reconfirmed their commitment to the process of economic
reform, based on the principle of good governance, with the aim of
providing a sound economic basis upon which social development can
take place.
The World Trade Organisation remains the world's most
significant international opportunity for negotiation of trade and
commercial issues. The Pacific Island Forum has agreed to
establish a Forum delegation in Geneva and a working group of
Forum Trade Officials to improve cooperation in the WTO and to
actively engage in the policy debate about the best way to enhance
the role of the WTO in contributing to development. We recognise
the importance of finding ways to ensure that trade reform
delivers outcomes which would not only contribute to economic
growth, but also to the advancement of development and social
equity objectives and improved environmental outcomes.
The global information economy promises great opportunities,
particularly for those in isolated areas such as the Pacific, but
it also demands new skills and technology. Efficient and effective
communications services including a dedicated modern networking
system like SIDSNET are of critical importance in achieving
economic and social development and overcoming the constraints
resulting from the relatively high cost structures of
telecommunication networks for Forum Island Countries. A Forum
vision for the Pacific Information Economy seeks to develop an
appropriate mechanism for the cooperation of regional regulators
and relevant organisations. Education and training are of
fundamental importance to enhancing the adaptability of Pacific
Islanders to economic reform in a rapidly changing world and
region. By supporting education, the United Nations can help
overcome one of the major obstacles to economic growth and poverty
reduction.
The United Nations system continues to play a vital role in
protecting the interests of small island States, such as most of
the members of Pacific Island Forum. It is essential that the
United Nations remain strong by adapting to meet new challenges
such as globalisation. At the same time, the central role of the
General Assembly, with its universal membership, should be
strengthened.
The Security Council should be made more representative,
transparent and democratic to be able to respond to the
requirements of a fundamentally different international setting.
It needs to be reformed comprehensively to meet contemporary
demands and the conditions of the world today.
We welcome the Brahimi report and look forward to the
strengthening of the United Nation's ability to carry out its key
peacekeeping role. To fulfil its collective security
responsibilities, the United Nations must be afforded strong and
sustained political support together with financial and
institutional resources. An integral element is a more equitable
scale for determining peacekeeping funding.
Mr. President,
The Pacific Island Forum group remains committed to ensuring an
effective United Nations.
Thank you.
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