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Statements / Addresses
Address by the honorable Mr. Ramesh Nath Pandey, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Leader of the Delegation of the Kingdom of Nepal at the High-Level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly (New York, 16 September 2005)
Co-Presidents,
Distinguished Heads of State and Government,
Mr. Secretary General,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have the honour and privilege to bring with me warm greetings and best wishes from His Majesty King Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev, His Majesty’s Government and the people of the Kingdom of Nepal for the success of this Summit. The people of Nepal feel proud to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Nepal’s membership to the United Nations this year. At this juncture, we would like to reiterate our unflinching faith in and commitment to the founding principles and Charter of the United Nations, and pledge to work together with fellow members for creating a world order to realize the aspirations of the humanity.
The United Nations has over the years become a beacon of hope for a just, equitable, and peaceful international order. The principles and purposes enshrined in its Charter reflect the true aspirations of humanity. This institution has made significant strides for the sake of world peace, security and development. It has proven the centrality of multilateralism in managing global affairs. We have to revitalize the United Nations to make it more capable of realizing aspirations of our succeeding generations, and equip it to overcome the newer challenges ranging from the spread of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, poverty, environmental degradation and HIV/AIDS and other pandemics.
Co-Presidents,
Five years ago in September 2000, this august House adopted the Millennium Declaration, which sought to make the United Nations as "the indispensable common house of the entire human family". The Millennium Development Goals can only be achieved if the aid targets are met, debts are cancelled and barriers to trade are lifted, especially in the case of countries with special needs such as the least developed and landlocked developing countries like Nepal. These goals can only be achieved when we implement seriously the internationally agreed commitments in Doha, Monterrey, Johannesburg, Brussels and Almaty.
Co-Presidents,
Terrorism poses serious threat to democracy, rule of law, and the very soul of human civilization. It operates without borders. It knows no logic, no language or religion. No country, no person, no religion is totally immune from the scourge of terrorism. Whether it is an attack in New York or Madrid or Bali or Belsan, London or Cairo or Madi in Nepal, its targets have been innocent civilians.
Terrorism anywhere is a threat to peace and prosperity everywhere and it must be fought comprehensively, collectively and resolutely, and condemned in all its forms and manifestations. There could be no selective standards in fights against terror as there can be no good or bad terrorism. Violence anywhere can never be an instrument of political change.
Co-Presidents,
Nepal has been the worst victim of senseless terror for over a decade now. It has seriously undermined our socio-economic development efforts. Terrorists in Nepal are propagating violence in the name of outdated, rejected and failed ideology of totalitarianism.
His Majesty's Government is committed to resolving the problems confronting Nepal with patriotism being the point of convergence. It has been making sincere efforts to restore peace and security, rebuild destroyed infrastructures, and reenergize democratic institutions and ensure that people enjoy their basic rights in a free and democratic atmosphere. Our roadmap to peace incorporates inclusive process to make democracy meaningful, and to provide good governance to the people.
We are open to all sincere efforts leading to peace and stability in the country. However, lasting peace is possible only when terrorism is rejected totally as a means of furthering political objectives.
As the 21st century belongs to multi-party democracy, we, in Nepal, are working to make it an effective system of governance. To this end, preparations are underway to hold municipal elections by April 2006. This, we believe, will pave the way for national elections.
We greatly cherish universal values and ideals of democracy. However, "one-size-fits-all" model does not apply for peoples with different historical, socio-cultural, and economic backgrounds. All sovereign and independent countries and peoples are free to choose the form of governance that suits to their conditions and requirements.
Nepal is committed to the protection and promotion of human rights. We have unequivocally expressed our readiness to fulfill all obligations arising from the international human rights instruments. Atrocities committed by the terrorists have seriously undermined human rights situation in Nepal. We cannot equate the constitutional duty of the government to protect lives and property of ordinary citizens with that of the dreadful activities of terrorists. The security forces in Nepal have been maintaining the highest standards of human rights despite the most difficult conditions, just as they have demonstrated sterling performance in the United Nations peacekeeping operations around the world.
Co-Presidents,
It is our firm conviction that the United Nations is best positioned to take up the onerous responsibility to meet the challenges of our times because of its universal character and widespread reach. We firmly believe in the indispensability of the United Nations. While addressing this august House in 1967, His late Majesty King Mahendra said, and I quote" My country has come to the United Nations with as much faith in its organization as in the Charter, with as much faith in its effectiveness and ideal. Indeed, there is no alternative to the United Nations. So far as we are concerned, the only real alternative to the United Nations is even more powerful United Nations." Unquote. These assertions are as relevant and as valid today.
It is our deep conviction that the strength of the United Nations lies in its universality, neutrality, and impartiality. All sovereign independent nations, big or small, rich or poor, and powerful or weak look up to the United Nations as the best hope for a shared destiny. It is, therefore, our bounden duty to reshape the world organization and make it more vibrant and dynamic in the face of the changing realities.
I am confident that the decisions we will adopt today in the outcome document, including the various reform measures of the United Nations, will have far-reaching impacts for making the world a safer and better place for the humanity to live and prosper.
I thank you for kind attention.
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