YouSaid · the spoken record

Gilbert Saboya Sunyé

lines on the record: 34
first: 2011-09-24
most recent: 2012-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“We must build a more sustainable, more interrelated and more co-responsible world in order to lay the foundations for more secure economic growth. A pledge to progress and prosperity also means support for democracy, for security and for peace.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Many years ago, the United Nations was created in the belief that maintaining peace and security in the world was unrealistic without advances in human rights, in international law and in democracy. There can be no lasting peace or security without liberty or justice. More recently, we have all learned not only that separating democracy from economic progress makes no sense, but also that it is foolish to believe in unrestrained, unlimited growth at any cost, the consequences of which we are still feeling. A few days ago, at the reception for the diplomatic corps, our Episcopal Co-Prince, Joan Enric Vives Sicilia, noted the dangerous tendency to prioritize having rather than being. We must learn the lessons of recent years, in which the desire to have everything we wanted too often led us to forget to pursue everything we needed.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“When the international community met in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, at what was called the Earth Summit, the need to consider sustainable growth became manifest and the subject was tackled from a threefold economic, environmental and social perspective. The conclusions of that Rio Summit, to which scant or no attention has been paid, are today so topical that the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, held in Rio in June, stressed the very same policies. However, although 20 years ago sustainability might have seemed solely an environmental issue, experience has shown us that public finance, economic growth and our model of social protections must also be sustainable. The challenge of sustainability is now, more than ever, shared and interdisciplinary.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“This entire process has been accompanied by an updating of the Andorran model, with an appropriate tax framework and a commitment to transparency towards the international community. The whole process is based on the belief that recovery means not faint-hearted withdrawal, but rather the ambition to open up to the world and a willingness to compete. That conviction is the driving force behind the implementation by the Principality of Andorra of some of the most significant socioeconomic changes in its entire history. Twenty years ago, the United Nations pioneered the promotion of sustainable development.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“A year ago, we stated in our speech that our country had one of the most closed economies on the planet and that it posed significant barriers to foreign investment, as foreigners had to meet costly requirements to attain full economic rights. Today, only 12 months later, the Andorran economy is 100 per cent open to foreign capital, and every foreign resident is granted full economic rights from the first day of his or her residency. Earlier, I referred to openness in a broad sense, but today economic openness should enable us to rediscover the path of inclusive growth that has defined us, albeit now within an open and diversified economy geared to the pursuit of competitiveness, innovation and general progress.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We should not assume that things cannot change and cannot get better. The limits that the United Nations seems to have encountered after almost seven decades of existence will be overcome one day, and today’s challenges will be viewed as things of the past. The numerous countries that form the international community have shown how rapidly things can change when there is a will to act. One only has to take a look at the determination with which many of the members of this Assembly have joined forces and coordinated their policies to find solutions to the grave financial and economic crisis that has rocked the world over the last few years. The need for rapid and profound change has also arrived in Andorra.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“What is important is to come here today to proclaim not that Andorra has one of the oldest and most stable parliaments and political systems on the planet, but that at the end of the thirteenth century its political system was consolidated in a very short period of time and in circumstances that were far from ideal. In a very brief time span, the same system was again able to adapt to modern reality at the end of the twentieth century. In our country, indeed, it was not until 1971 that women were entitled to vote. Yet only 40 years later, in 2011 the people of Andorra elected a Parliament with the second-highest number of female representatives in the world. This is why I spoke earlier of viewing things from a perspective of process and evolution. History shows us that what appeared utopian not long ago has become reality today.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Our involvement within the General Assembly in the preparatory work for the forthcoming Cadiz summit, to be hosted by our dear neighbour Spain, should also be viewed through the prism of openness and the defence of democratic values, human rights and the rule of law. The Principality of Andorra today reasserts its commitment to the founding principles of the United Nations: the promotion of peace, liberty, justice, democracy and human rights. Those are not utopian values and principles; quite the contrary, it would be unrealistic and unthinkable to seek to establish stability in the world with any other values.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We see that commitment to multiculturalism and multilingualism within the francophone community. The commitment to openness and exchange among individuals is good and is far from self-absorption in one’s own language or culture. Now is not the time for self-absorption but rather for openness; it is time for ambition and not protectionism. The work of the francophone community is deeply aligned with our values, and we will convene in Africa at the forthcoming Summit of the Francophonie to defend the spirit of openness to democratic values and human rights. That commitment to multiculturalism also belies the strong bonds we feel with our Latin American friends.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Secretary-General rightly emphasized his new Education First initiative, which encourages democratic values, human rights and the rule of law. And those values can guarantee equal opportunity and social cohesion. During its forthcoming presidency of the Council of Europe, Andorra will prioritize education as a tool for encouraging democratic values, respect for human rights and the rule of law. Andorra is particularly sensitive to education, not only in the sphere of international cooperation, but also domestically, as it is aware that its unique, multicultural and multilingual educational approach, featuring three public systems — Andorran, French and Spanish — in a small society with its own identity, has not been a problem, but rather an asset and an essential element of social cohesion.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The step from dream to ambition needs perspective; dreaming requires knowing only how we would like things to be, but having and realizing ambition requires us to know how far we are prepared to go, while bearing very much in mind the path travelled and everything to be experienced along the way. In that respect the United Nations and its system allow us to face the future with cautious optimism, as the world has been better and more just with the presence of the United Nations than without it. However, when we look at its evolution, we realize that something is not quite right, as the evolution process has been fraught with limitations, shortcomings and obstacles that the international community must address in its efforts to resolve conflicts peacefully and in accordance with the law.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Secretary-General’s words accurately reflect what the world expects from all Member States. We also need to maintain perspective, because if complacency is dangerous, so too are harsh criticism and pessimism. While the working methods of the United Nations system are far from optimal, we should not forget that the reality of today seemed an unattainable dream a century ago. We should move on from talk of dreams to talk of ambition. We should move on from dreaming about change to exerting the ambition to change. We should move on from “I have a dream”, as stated by Martin Luther King, Jr., to speaking about the ambition that we all share. In his statement at the opening of the general debate (see A/67/PV.6), Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon rightly mentioned raising our levels of ambition.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“It would appear that, in order to attain a peaceful solution to a conflict or to end hostilities, justice must be sacrificed while those who have violated human rights go unpunished; or that, due to inf lexible application of international law, conflicts will continue forever. A fair balance must not allow either those who violate human rights to go unpunished, or conflicts to continue endlessly. With regard to Syria, it is time to support open societies and political transitions that can guarantee a framework for democratic development. I wish to praise the commitment of the Secretary-General and Joint Special Representative Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi to finding a solution to the conflict in Syria. The Secretary-General has said that people want progress and solutions today. They want ideas, leadership and concrete hope for the future.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“43) For over 65 years, the United Nations has been a reference for peace, justice and respect for human rights. Remarkable progress has indeed been observed in recent years. It is no less true, however, that the countries represented here cannot afford the luxury of falling into complacency. The demand for just and strong responses is very real. The change of regime in Libya and the ongoing grievous conflict in Syria have presented the international community with the awkward dilemma of having to find a fair balance between resolving conflicts peacefully and the rule of law — in short, between peace and justice.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“President Obama was right when he mentioned in this Hall that the recent attacks on diplomatic missions were not solely an attack on the United States, but also an assault on the foundations of the United Nations itself. There can be no excuse or impunity for such acts. We are all Chris Stevens. But what defines us is not how we fall but how we rise again. We will stand by all Chris Stevens as they rise to defend the ideals of the United Nations. Allow me today to echo the words of the new President of the French Republic, François Hollande, Co-Prince of Andorra, who stated before this Assembly that “The mission of the United Nations is to tackle these challenges and to find strong and just responses to them together.” (A/67/PV.6, p.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“A year ago in this Assembly, we echoed a phrase of the then French President, who stated: “Let us choose the path of compromise, which is neither renunciation nor repudiation, but which allows us to move forward, step by step” (A/66/PV.11, p. 23). Indeed, on the path of compromise and the right balance, we cannot and must not abandon the defence of human rights, the rule of law and the most essential democratic values such as freedom of expression. We cannot and should not deny respect to others. However, establishing a fair balance does not mean conducting a balancing act. Indeed, that balance must be based on strong principles. There can be no excuse for violence, intolerance or impunity.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“I would first like to extend hearty congratulations to the President of the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session, Mr. Jeremić, to whom I wish the greatest success in his work. Just one year ago, I ended my statement (see A/66/PV.27) by reasserting the notion of commitment as a fundamental value and linchpin of our political action, understood as a deep belief in the values of democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law; as the assumption of individual responsibilities for a common project; and ultimately as a desire for dialogue and understanding. It is in the pursuit of that commitment and that balance — what we might call the right balance — that the difficulty of Government resides. That is the case at home, in every one of our States, and also in our shared home of the United Nations.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“That commitment is understood as a deep belief not only in peace and equal opportunities, but also as an involvement in and shouldering of individual responsibilities regarding a common project and, last but not least, as a wish for dialogue and understanding. On Wednesday, President Sarkozy stated in this Assembly: “Let us choose the path of compromise, which is neither renunciation nor repudiation, but which allows us to move forward, step by step” (). Andorra will continue to work towards such a commitment within the Organization.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“No, the ultimate reason for a peace and security maintained for more than seven centuries has been the ongoing effort to respect individual rights and freedoms and the rule of justice and of fairness, and the existence of mechanisms of solidarity, as was well demonstrated in the recent universal periodic review. Our democracy and our centuries-old parliamentary system are not the fruit of peace and stability, but the reverse. Peace, security and stability are the fruits of democracy because, without democracy, there is no possibility of peace or lasting security either in Andorra or anywhere in the world. From the position of humility that governs our support for the United Nations, we wish to reaffirm here the idea of commitment as a fundamental value and the linchpin of our political action.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“11-51398 24 A possible intermediate step, in a shorter term, by becoming an observer State could represent an element of hope for the Palestinian people, provided that it is not used for purposes that are incompatible with continuing negotiations, but for the aforementioned goal. Israel also must contribute to that spirit, avoiding attitudes that could affect the final status. Andorra is a country that has lived for more than 700 years without an army, without taking part in any war and without internal conflicts. The perpetual peace and permanent stability, of which we Andorrans are proud, is not founded on an autocratic regime that controls its people with an iron fist or on a whim resulting from the deterrence of larger or more powerful neighbours.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Today, we are pleased at that reality and we most warmly welcome it. A more democratic world is a more dynamic world, but also safer because it is fairer. Most failures of security in our world, as I said a moment ago, are fuelled by injustice. Likewise, with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we must keep encouraging dialogue and mediation. The Palestinian people’s aspiration to have a democratic and peaceful State is as legitimate as the Israeli desire to obtain guarantees for its existence and security. The final aim of a mutual recognition of two States by two peoples, on the basis of the 1967 lines with the agreed and equivalent exchanges, is now under discussion.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Allow me now to recall the spirit and the philosophy of the twenty-eighth President of the United States, President Wilson, father of the League of Nations, the precursor of today’s United Nations. Wilson taught us that it was of little use to be democrats at home if we were not capable of exporting democracy beyond our borders, and that a State that turned its back on countries still living under oppression and in which the most fundamental rights and freedoms were not respected could not presume to be democratic. That is why we must welcome with an especially positive attitude what we have called the Arab Spring. We sincerely hope that those movements for democracy strengthen in the future. In that context, in July, we supported South Sudan becoming the 193rd member of the United Nations.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“That is why, in the promotion of a safer world, our efforts will always be needed to combat all kinds of discrimination. In that regard, I wish to underscore the political declaration against racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia and related intolerance that was adopted at that time during the General Assembly. It is also 10 years since the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. Today, as the States represented here, we say that we cannot afford to lower our guard since, in an increasingly globalized and complex world, the threat of discrimination is growing. At the beginning of my statement, I spoke of the need to continue building the world on the principles and values that inspire this Assembly.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“This year marks the tenth anniversary of the tragic attacks of 11 September here in New York, the seat of United Nations Headquarters. As President Obama recalled last Wednesday (see ), we are today seeing the symbol of New York’s renewal rise at ground zero, where 10 years ago there was an open wound and twisted steel, a shattered heart in the centre of the city. This year, we close the first decade of the millennium without having resolved the threat to the security of our world, that is, international terrorism. Despite progress on that front, the threat continues. Terrorism arises from hatred and wickedness. However, we must be aware that it dwells, in particular, where there is a lack of economic prospects, illiteracy, lack of culture, poverty, marginality — where, in short, there is a lack of democracy.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“We should never lose sight of the fact that the main goal of the United Nations is to guarantee peace and security in a context of freedom and respect for human rights. Just as in the past, States emerged to ensure the social peace and individual freedom of their citizens, the United Nations also have their raison d’être in the maintenance of peace and security and the rule of international law. Today, we speak of inclusive and sustainable economic growth and of a new and profound awareness of the threat of climate change. We cannot forget that such issues are closely linked to the promotion of a safer world. Growth that leaves more vulnerable groups behind and that excludes the least developed countries, added to the effects of climate change, leads to a less safe and less stable world.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“We now know that growth cannot be at any price and that development must be sustainable in economic terms, but also, and more particularly, in environmental terms. That is why the threat of climate change is as great as or stronger than that of the global recession. Some developed countries, in particular those that survive on their own natural resources, are seriously threatened by climate change. That may also be the case for Andorra, which bases a good part of its economic welfare on snow and mountain tourism. That is why we will always support any initiative aiming at greater awareness of the need to combat climate change, and take steps to adapt to what is probably already a reality. In that context, we should underscore the entry into force in Andorra of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change on 31 May.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Those also — although perhaps not so clearly as in the case of AIDS — are diseases that accentuate the inequalities among countries. That principle was recognized in the Political Declaration (resolution 66/2) of the High- level Meeting of the General Assembly on the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases held recently. Such successes cannot allow us to forget that one of the most serious challenges facing the international community and this Assembly, which is its highest representation, is the fight against climate change. To date, humankind was used to overcoming recessions and times of crisis, entering a new phase of growth, 23 11-51398 without thinking of the negative external effects of that growth.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Above and beyond the increase of resources for research and treatment and greater North-South cooperation, I am convinced that the extension of democracy and human rights is also a key factor in the fight against a pandemic that overwhelms the poorest, but that also hits peoples submerged in ignorance and oppression. With all of that, the extent of the commitments made and the progress achieved by various States in the fight against HIV should be a source of satisfaction, since seldom has the international community been capable of articulating a response so rapid and unanimous when faced with a threat on this scale. It would be wonderful if the same level of awareness and commitment could be achieved in the fight against non-communicable diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“In that connection, we note the work done at the 2011 High-level Meeting of the General Assembly on AIDS held in June and the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS (resolution 65/277) adopted by the participating States, stating their intension to intensify their efforts in the fight against this pandemic. In spite of the advances achieved in recent years, HIV is a symbol of how necessary it is for progress to reach everyone equally. While in the more developed countries AIDS has become a chronic illness appropriately treated, in the more disadvantaged areas — especially in sub-Saharan Africa — the disease is still lethal, especially in the communities with the fewest resources.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“We also have planned the construction of a model of inclusive growth that leaves no one out — a model that cannot be constructed by turning one’s back on the international community or by being isolated from the world. I have been talking about economic opening, but the opening to the world cannot be strictly economic, and it is crystal clear that recovery from the crisis and a new phase of growth will not come about solely as a result of economic measures. The search for an inclusive and sustainable balance must necessarily involve addressing factors that are not strictly economic but that do accentuate inequalities between countries.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Thirty years ago, in 1981, the United Nations held its first Conference on the Least Developed Countries. The fourth Conference was held last spring, attesting to the difficulty of achieving significant changes to improve the weakness and vulnerability of those States. Further, we observe with concern how, against the background of the global recession, some of the more developed countries often adopt protectionist attitudes. On the conviction that a freer world is a more just world, we also have to state that a more open and less protectionist world leads to a more equitable balance and improvements for the disadvantaged. Andorra, with its small scale, secular stability and seclusion among mountains, is dealing with the far- reaching process of opening its economy.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“One priority set by the United Nations is inclusive and sustainable development. There can be no sustainability without inclusion. And if the Assembly, which arose from the debris of a devastating war, is to give a voice to all the peoples of the planet, we have to be capable now of ensuring that no one is excluded from the future that we forge together. We must take care that the economic recovery from the recession does not further accentuate the inequalities — understood as a lack of equity — that already exist. Thus, just as international law protects nations like ours that have no military potential, so too economic growth must be especially attentive to the more vulnerable in order to prevent the consequences of the recession from falling systematically on them.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Recent years have been marked by a profound crisis of multiple aspects — economic, social, environmental and political — but most especially a crisis of values. Now that we must all lay the foundation for recovery, we need to be quite clear about the values and principles on which we wish to continue constructing the world. We do not need to go much further than the founding spirit of the General 11-51398 22 Assembly, an institution in which all — large and small, the wealthier and the less endowed — address one another on equal terms to promote peace, liberty and justice. Just as the United Nations arose after a world war that turned the world as it had existed until then upside down, now again we have to be able to define the moral and political bases of a new order.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“First of all, I would like to avail myself of this opportunity to congratulate Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on his well-deserved reappointment, and Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser on his election as President of the General Assembly at its sixty-sixth session. It is with pride, a sense of responsibility and a will for cooperation and proactivity that I address this Hall in the name of the Principality of Andorra and the Government that I have the honour to represent. The United Nations and the system of international law that emanates from it place all States on an equal footing. That is especially important for States like Andorra, small in terms of territorial dimension but large in values and in history.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)