YouSaid · the spoken record

Alexander Downer

lines on the record: 162
first: 1996-09-24
most recent: 2005-09-24
sittings or episodes: 7
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

“It will also facilitate visits and secondments of appropriate participants, such as Parliamentarians, senior administrators and other influential persons to relevant Australian organizations. While human rights remain at risk, our values are compromised and international stability is jeopardized. The protection of human rights to promote the dignity of the individual is too important a matter for symbolic gestures alone. It is only through the pursuit of practical and effective efforts to promote human rights that we show our real commitment to the welfare of individuals and society. And it is vital to such practical outcomes that we orient our approach to human rights to emphasize cooperation and the creation of durable structures.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Earlier this year I announced the establishment in Australia of a Centre for Democratic Institutions. This Centre will be devoted to the provision of practical support for the consolidation and strengthening of 20 democratic institutions in developing countries included in Australia’s aid programme. It exemplifies a cooperative rather than a conflict approach towards promoting human rights, and it will be the flagship of our good governance initiatives. The focus of the Centre’s training programmes will be on electoral, parliamentary, judicial and human rights institution-building and the processes by which broader society, notably the media and community groups, can contribute to democratic decision-making.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Australia was therefore pleased to provide additional financial support this year to enable the United Nations to continue to support national institutions. We welcome the Secretary-General’s commitment in his report on the work of the Organization to strengthening cooperation on issues of democratization and good governance. We note his comment that “This past year has seen a dramatic increase in activities relating to the establishment of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights.” (A/52/1, para. 30) We are heartened by this development and by the responsiveness of the Secretary-General. His report clearly reflects the need I am stressing here for support for national institution-building to be at the centre of United Nations human rights endeavours.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“It also assists other regional Governments wishing to establish such institutions. The most recent regional meeting has just been held, in New Delhi. It attracted participation from the founding human rights commissions as well as that of Sri Lanka. Other regional countries from Asia and the Pacific attended as observers, some of which are considering the establishment of their own human rights commissions. A most effective area of United Nations operations in this field has been the work of the Special Adviser to the High Commissioner for Human Rights on National Institutions, Regional Arrangements and Preventive Strategies. The United Nations work with a number of Governments, including in our own region, is at an important stage.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Australia is a strong supporter of the development of such arrangements in the Asia-Pacific region. Since an inaugural meeting in Darwin in 1996 there has been a steady consolidation of links among established and emerging Asia-Pacific human rights commissions. The 1996 meeting saw the commissions of Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia and India — later also joined by the Philippines — establish a regional network of human rights commissions, the Asia-Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions, with a supporting Secretariat based in and financed by Australia. The aim of this network is to strengthen cooperation among national human rights institutions, including through information sharing, staff exchanges, technical cooperation and an annual regional meeting.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“I was encouraged recently by the statement of Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister that he intends to press ahead to establish a human rights commission in the near future. We will also watch with expectation the development of the proposed Cambodian national human rights commission. A credible and independent human rights commission, along with a genuinely independent national electoral commission, could make an important contribution to protecting stability and promoting the observance of human rights in Cambodia in the lead-up to what we strongly hope will be free, fair and credible elections in May next year. The work of national institutions in individual countries can be strengthened through subregional and regional arrangements which provide a framework for exchanges of views and experiences.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“The generally positive view of the work of national institutions held by most States was reflected in the adoption by consensus of Australia’s resolution on this subject at this year’s session of the Commission on Human Rights, with an increased number of co-sponsors. Developing countries are showing rapidly increasing interest in establishing or strengthening existing national human rights institutions, as a constructive way to take positive action at the national level, bearing in mind national circumstances, to promote respect for human rights. Important examples of human rights institutions recently established in my part of the world that are making a difference on the ground include those in India and Indonesia.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Such institutions, able to work with Governments and civil society, can reflect to a significant degree the different cultures and local conditions of the societies in which they are established, while remaining consistent with international human rights standards. Moreover, it is worth noting that the General Assembly has endorsed a set of minimum standards for such institutions — the so-called Paris principles. Despite considerable early scepticism, recent experience has been very positive, and many Governments and non-governmental organizations are now looking positively at independent national institutions as an important means to promote and protect human rights.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“At the same time, the exercise of civil and political rights through participatory processes is essential to good governance because it helps ensure governmental accountability and effectiveness. The interlinkages are such that action in one area of human rights has a positive reinforcing effect on other dimensions of human rights, making all human rights indivisible. Accountability, participation and effective institutions are three fundamental principles necessary for the protection of human rights. 19 It is with all this in mind that Australia gives priority to institution building in the human rights field. One of the most significant developments in recent years has been the spread of national institutions for the promotion of human rights.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“A critical element that has often been undervalued in the national implementation of human rights standards is the importance of effective institutions as a means to achieving good governance. It is this institution-based good governance that offers a real hope of eradicating the randomness and violence that can characterize systems where there is neither popular participation nor genuine accountability. Good governance creates the environment in which civil and political rights are respected and protected. Good governance also promotes an environment for sound economic management and sustainable use of resources to increase prosperity. These conditions are important to the protection of economic, social and cultural rights.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“The international human rights system, which we have worked hard to build, inevitably has a broad focus and a limited ability to assist States to implement agreed standards. Regional human rights mechanisms also have a role, and we should do what we can to encourage their establishment and strengthening, including in the Asia-Pacific. However, it is clear that the ability of each State effectively to protect human rights depends to a significant degree on the strength of its own institutions, including a representative legislature, an accountable executive and an independent judiciary. A vigorous civil society is another important element in creating a culture of human rights.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Abuses and corruption are most likely to disappear when there are institutions established to bring light into this darkness. All too often, however, instead of working patiently to encourage and help others to build these institutions, countries have tended to address issues of human rights by criticism alone. There is no doubt that in the 52 years since the United Nations was established the world has witnessed many egregious and vile acts committed for the most inhumane of reasons, and deserving the strongest condemnation. However, the condemnatory approach alone has only limited practical value. We need to recognize that in practical terms protecting human rights must primarily be done at the national level.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“However, the Australian Government does not want the important area of human rights to become an unproductive battleground or an environment for sloganeering. What we seek is results, not rhetoric, with the outcome being genuine improvements in human rights. The real basis for a sustained improvement in the quality of human rights needs to be through domestic reform founded on working institutions that guarantee participation and accountability. Reform of the institutions of civil governance must come from within. It is not something that can be imposed from outside, for if there is not the political will and the people with the knowledge and a commitment to making those institutions work, then they will simply founder. Almost all nations have dark moments in their history where abuses have occurred, where vigilance has failed.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We urge all nations to support by consensus the proposed resolution at this General Assembly calling for the convening of a diplomatic conference in June 1998 to finalize and adopt the statute of the court. As we approach the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we pay tribute to the universal standards the Declaration has helped to establish. Let us never forget as well that the Declaration, along with the two International Covenants, and the whole body of treaty law and practice that has since developed, was reaffirmed by all nations at the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights in 1993. Australia is a nation committed to the advancement of human rights and regards human rights issues as integral to its diplomacy.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We warmly welcome also the steps taken by the Secretary General to reform and reinvigorate the Secretariat’s organizational structure to support human rights, particularly the consolidation of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Centre for Human Rights into a single office. His appointment of the former President of Ireland, Mary Robinson, as High Commissioner for Human Rights is an excellent choice. We pledge ourselves to support her in her task. Another important recent development at the international level has been the negotiation of a draft statute for an international criminal court. Australia is strongly committed to the early establishment of the court as a major human rights objective.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“But further measures need to be taken involving the establishment of durable national human rights institutions to advance the goals to which our international human rights treaty commitments aspire. We are encouraged by and support the proposal to integrate human rights issues more fully into a range of United Nations activities. In our view, the linkages between respect for human rights, good governance and sustainable development are important. The fact that all four Executive Committees established by the Secretary-General will take human 18 rights issues into account in their deliberations should ensure that more effective coordination is possible across United Nations activities.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“The effective elimination of landmines as a weapon of war is another important task facing the United Nations collectively and its members individually. I have been gratified by the gains made to date, through the Ottawa process, through the Inhumane Weapons Convention, through national and regional measures and, perhaps most important, through enhanced contributions to demining and mine-victim assistance programmes to address the terrible human toll of anti-personnel landmines. We owe it to the victims of anti-personnel landmines to continue working through all avenues to achieve a real and lasting solution to the global landmines problem. The elimination of landmines is one necessary step in creating a more humane world, a world where individual human rights can demand proper respect.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Capping the amount of nuclear material available for nuclear weapons use by extending safeguards coverage over currently unsafeguarded, sensitive nuclear facilities would in itself be a significant achievement for international peace and security, quite apart from its significance as a step towards the ultimate elimination of nuclear weapons. As I said to the Committee on Disarmament in January this year, the achievement of a fissile material cut-off treaty is a priority objective for Australia, and I now commit Australia to redoubling its efforts to achieve a cut-off treaty at the earliest possible date. We must not allow ourselves to be put off by the obstacles that currently face the achievement of this goal.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“The immediate commencement and early conclusion of negotiations on a fissile material cut-off treaty has repeatedly been identified by the international community as the next major goal for nuclear non- proliferation and disarmament efforts, most recently by the parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty — which now has more members than the United Nations itself — at their first preparatory meeting for the sixth Review Conference in 2000. The Canberra Commission on the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons also identified an agreement to cease the production of fissile material for nuclear explosive purposes as an important step towards the elimination of nuclear weapons.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“In recent years we have witnessed several landmark developments in this field, notably the indefinite extension of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. The General Assembly was the forum, one year ago, for the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- Ban Treaty, and Australia is particularly proud to have been able to play a role in that historic event. There are many challenges ahead as we work with, and through, the United Nations to reduce global stockpiles of conventional and non-conventional weapons and to make the world a safer and more humane place. Let me single out two.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“In this context, and because of our long-standing historical concerns about the veto, we would like to see an expansion of the Council accompanied by a new understanding on the application of the veto. We would also support a review of any new arrangements after 10 years so that countries like Australia and all other members of the international community have a further opportunity to examine the size, composition and working methods of the Council. I am optimistic about what can be achieved by the United Nations if we can bring about some essential reforms which would make the Organization function more efficiently and effectively. Let me mention one of the areas in which the United Nations has proven it can function effectively: as a forum and catalyst for international arms control and disarmament efforts.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Australia remains committed to an expanded, more representative and transparent Security Council, better able to tackle the challenges of the twenty-first century. It should include as permanent members important Powers able to make a major contribution to international peace and security, particularly at this time Japan and Germany. It should also include permanent seats for under-represented regions as well as additional non-permanent seats. Middle Powers such as Australia have made a significant contribution to the United Nations since its foundation, notably in disarmament, development, peacekeeping and human rights. We are concerned that the interests of small and medium-sized countries not be forgotten in this exercise.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“But I acknowledge that for reform to succeed and for the United Nations to carry out its mandate adequate resources must be made available to run the Organization. Australia continues to meet all its financial obligations in full and on time and without conditions, and seeks the same commitment from all our fellow Members. We continue to believe that the negotiation of financial reforms would be facilitated by early settlement of all unpaid contributions. The adoption of a responsible negative- growth budget and a new scale of assessments which accurately reflects relative shares of national income and thus the principle of capacity to pay will also be key issues at this year’s session. It is important that the result 17 ensures the burden of supporting the Organization falls fairly on Member States.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We support the introduction of a merit-based promotion system and performance appraisal in the place of a system where seniority plays a disproportionate role. We also encourage management to improve training opportunities for junior as well as senior staff. These reforms will not only make the United Nations work better, but also provide real savings. These savings will be available for programmes, programmes which benefit all of us, but especially support the developing Members of the United Nations. Thus it is a package which is in the interests of all, and deserves support from all. We believe the Assembly needs to provide broad endorsement of the package as a whole early in this session to allow the reform process to proceed, even if some details are negotiated subsequently.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“The integration of 12 secretariats and entities into 5, and the proposed consolidation of five intergovernmental bodies into two are particularly welcome. They will help streamline and remove unnecessary bureaucratic structure and duplication from the Secretariat. It is an approach we commend also to the specialized agencies as Member nations seek to streamline and even merge some of these bodies. Important steps are proposed in reforming the way the Secretariat works. We applaud the removal of 1,000 staff posts and the cutting of administrative costs by one third to which the Secretary-General has committed himself. We also wish to see all Secretariat staff move to fixed-term, renewable contracts to allow for greater employment flexibility in the Organization.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Both in March and in July this year he announced significant organizational reforms aimed at the renewal of this body. I have enthusiastically supported these initiatives. We must now build on them. We share the Secretary-General’s conclusions about the shortcomings of the United Nations. The Organization’s mission, as enshrined in the Charter, has been repeatedly reaffirmed and remains valid today. But the machinery and the working methods to pursue that mission need thorough review and revision. We agree that there is too much fragmentation of structures, too much rigidity within bodies and too much emphasis on bureaucracy and process. I would like to highlight in particular the reforms suggested to the United Nations structure and to the Secretariat.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Australia wants to work with you, Sir, and with the Secretary-General and all Members of the United Nations, to ensure that by the end of this session of the General Assembly further, substantive progress has been made in the three critical areas of reform: financial reform and resolution of the crisis surrounding the United Nations budget and scale of assessments; reform of the Security Council; and reform of the Organization. When I made my first statement to the Assembly last year, I stressed the need to move ahead urgently with reform and the reinvigoration of this important Organization, to ensure its future effectiveness and relevance. This year reform has been given real impetus by the new Secretary-General, whose appointment Australia warmly welcomed.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“In dealing with reform, my purpose is to build a world for the next generation, and I am inspired by the hope and aspirations of the next generation. In that context, I am pleased that we are joined in the General Assembly today by Mr. Perry Cross, a distinguished and courageous young Australian who is leading the fight against paralysis. He exemplifies the Australian belief that individuals with a will and a practical focus can make a difference in fighting barriers and reforming structures which are representative of an earlier era.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“We would like to thank the former President of the Assembly, Ambassador Razali, for the outstanding contribution he made to pursuing the reform agenda during his presidency, notably 16 in his capacity as Chairman of the General Assembly Working Groups. Today I want to concentrate on three issues in particular: reform of the United Nations; reorienting our approach to human rights so as to promote cooperation and institution building, creating durable structures to give substance to the goals set out in the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments; and reconfiguring the traditional United Nations groups better to reflect the regional groupings of the contemporary world.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Let me begin by congratulating Mr. Udovenko on his election as President of the General Assembly at this fifty-second session. The country and the Group he represents have seen great changes in the last decade. It therefore seems particularly fitting that he is presiding over a General Assembly which will lay the foundation for significant changes to the United Nations itself — changes which must equip it better for the new and potentially more cooperative international environment in which we find ourselves. It is thus not only right but necessary that reform is the major theme of the United Nations at present, and of this General Assembly in particular.”
1997-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 52 (1997)
“Serving a term as a non-permanent member of the Security Council during 1997-1998 would enable Australia to make a substantive contribution to that goal and to work for a more effective, modernized and transparent Council. That is why we have asked for the support of Member States at the elections to be held a few weeks from now. 13 Let me conclude by summing up what I have said today. The United Nations is unique and needed, but it must pursue, and work on the basis of, a relevant Agenda. This is the central point. The United Nations must be put to work on the agenda of the twenty-first century. Much work needs to be done to tackle the key challenges that face the United Nations. Only a sustained, cooperative effort among all Member States will bring success. Australia will make that effort.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“It is also crucial that the financial situation of the United Nations be repaired. Australia believes that all Members should pay their contributions in full and on time. We therefore welcome recent moves by some countries to pay their arrears. It is time to establish a revised scale of assessed contributions that more fairly reflects what Governments can pay. The current minimum payment is too high for many small-economy countries, and Australia would like to see it reduced or even removed. These are the reforms that Australia believes are necessary to equip the United Nations for its role in the twenty-first century. It is in this overall context that Australia is deeply committed to contributing to the United Nations goal of maintaining international peace and security in an active way.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Finally, it is important to address the issue of reform of the United Nations. Much work still needs to be done to bring about greater efficiency and effectiveness in the United Nations and its specialized agencies. While Australia applauds the dedication and hard work of the General Assembly Working Groups that were set up in 1995, Member States must not lose sight of the fact that to achieve real change, the Groups have to come up with realistic and achievable recommendations. Those recommendations must in turn lead to practical and measurable outcomes. It is important that the work of the groups be focused and that their momentum be restored so that early and positive outcomes can be achieved. We must all commit ourselves to this end and to bringing about structured change within the United Nations.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“We recognize the importance of dialogue and cooperation, based on mutual respect. In addition to public and private diplomacy, Australia’s approach to the improvement of human rights also encompasses development cooperation. Australia strongly supports the development of strong and independent national human rights institutions. For example, Australia provided financial support for a workshop of Asia-Pacific national human rights institutions, which agreed to establish an informal forum to work for the strengthening and further development of such institutions in the region. Australia has also provided financial support to the United Nations for the creation of a position of special adviser to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on national human rights institutions.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“The world must continue to seek ways to break the poverty cycle in Africa so that its potential for economic development is realized. Sustainable economic development is essential to overcome poverty, disease and conflict. The United Nations system needs to give greater focus and impetus to the development effort in Africa. I now turn to the issue of human rights. Human rights are important in international relations for two main reasons: first, political instability and major conflict can result where human rights are breached or are under threat; and secondly, the freedom and dignity of individuals is, in itself, of fundamental value to the world community. The Australian Government aims for practical outcomes that will improve the lives of individual men, women and children.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Rich in promise yet wearied by emergencies, Africa stands today at a decisive juncture in its history. African leaders seized the moment with the Organization of African Unity’s 1995 Cairo Agenda for Action, in which they called for immediate action to implement the development strategies for which an international consensus now exists. The United Nations responded this year with the launch of a 10-year, $25 billion United Nations System-wide Special Initiative for Africa. The Australian Government welcomes the Special Initiative as a concrete demonstration of the international community’s concern with Africa. The international community cannot allow disease, poverty, war and underdevelopment to become entrenched in the 53 nations — almost one-third of United Nations Member States — that make up the African continent.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“The United Nations is uniquely placed to build consensus on how to advance these various elements of the development agenda. In this context, Australia welcomes the constructive outcomes achieved at the ninth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) held in Midrand, South Africa, earlier this year. The decisions taken there should help developing countries benefit from the opportunities of economic globalization. We also underline the importance of encouraging investment and technology transfers and providing trade opportunities to stimulate economic development. Such 1 development is the only enduring foundation for independence and economic and social well-being. It is in Africa that these development challenges are most stark.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Another great requirement of our times is the economic needs of people and the promotion of development. Much has been done through the United Nations and its agencies to advance the development cause. They have been pivotal to the emergence of a multilateral approach in which institutions with special competencies such as the specialized agencies, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, together with policy deliberative bodies such as the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council, have complementary roles to play. Development is about more than just economic growth, however. There is also the need for internal stability, sound environmental management, a vigorous civil society and a lively democracy.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“There is also a regional role and, in that context, Australia was pleased to have promoted the concept of a regional HIV/AIDS ministers’ meeting at the Post- Ministerial Conference of this year’s session of the Association of South-East Asian Nations. As we move towards the twenty-first century, it will be crucial to the execution of that responsibility to ensure that we have a healthy United Nations that is devoted to international cooperation aimed at defeating the major non-military threats to the security of the human family. These threats are tragically evident to us today. They will only become larger if we do not agree, now, to begin cooperative action to defeat them. History will surely judge our generation harshly if, having identified the problems of human security, we fail for lack of will to address their solutions.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“These threats cannot be dealt with effectively by States acting alone. Sometimes they require new international law, but more specifically they require political will to defeat them and to foster cooperation among nations to ensure maximum effectiveness of action. The United Nations is the ideal environment in which to develop such cooperation. It is here that the world is represented. We have here a tradition of debate, of discussion, of identification of problems and of consensus. We have the ability to make law when it is necessary. Above all, we have pledged ourselves to defending and providing a decent standard of living to the peoples we represent.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“The Security Council can use it to undertake a leadership role by calling on disputing parties to seek a solution using negotiation, mediation and other peaceful means. As I indicated at the beginning of this statement, one of the chief results of the end of the cold war must surely be an increase in our ability to turn away from military concerns and to give a greater degree of attention to threats to the security of individuals, as distinct from those threats to the security of States that have dominated our thinking in the past, important and basic though they have been and remain. In today’s world and in the world we see unfolding into the twenty-first century, the security of far too many people is threatened in ways no less immediate than the threat of the gun. I have in mind narcotics, HIV/AIDS and major threats to the environment.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Australia welcomes recent moves by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations to begin implementing measures aimed at improving United Nations rapid-reaction capability, but in taking these measures forward, the United Nations should consult adequately with all Member States. Australia is also keen to see the United Nations develop the preventive-diplomacy agenda and it welcomes the greater resources the Secretariat now devotes to such activity. The Security Council, the General Assembly and the good offices of the Secretary-General, as well as regional arrangements and agencies, have important roles to play in preventive diplomacy. Australia supports greater use of Chapter VI of the Charter on the pacific settlement of disputes. Article 33 is particularly important.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Australia has been contributing personnel to the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, for example, for over 20 years and has been saddened by the recent incidents of violence there. The time has come to resolve that situation, which requires the assistance of all parties. One very important area of reform for United Nations peacekeeping is to establish an enhanced rapid- reaction capability. There have been many proposals on this issue, but the Australian Government believes that the 11 Canadian study, Towards a Rapid Reaction Capability for the United Nations, contains some commendable recommendations, including the development of a deployable, operational-level headquarters to strengthen planning for operations.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Initial post-cold-war hopes about the capabilities of the Security Council have been tempered. It has become clear that many conflicts are intractable. Experience has taught us that it is difficult to reach agreement on suitable approaches and to find enough resources, particularly in the area of peacekeeping. The Security Council must be realistic in the implementation of its Charter responsibilities. It must resist pressure to embark on missions before it has completed adequate preparations, developed a focused sense of the mission’s goals and agreed on a clearly articulated mandate. At this very moment, the United Nations is confronted with major challenges in such diverse situations as those in Cyprus, Burundi and Liberia.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Australia wants to see improvements in the effectiveness of United Nations sanctions because we recognize that the Security Council’s use of collective sanctions continues to be an important and, at times, contentious enforcement measure. The effectiveness of sanctions regimes could be improved in three ways: clearer drafting of Security Council resolutions; providing specific objectives and realistic time-frames; and through relevant sanctions committees providing clear interpretative guidance on implementation. These are changes that are essential for the Security Council’s dynamism. We need to press ahead with them to ensure that the Council reflects modern-day circumstances and realities. Our contemporary circumstances have opened up new needs and prospects for peacekeeping and preventive diplomacy.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“Consultative mechanisms have improved in recent times, notably between the Secretariat and troop-contributing countries, but more needs to be done. Australia is committed to trying to improve the way in which the Security Council interacts with non-members so that the Council’s activities become more responsive to the United Nations as a whole. More needs to be done, too, to build the Council’s relationship with regional organizations. Good progress has been recorded to date, but United Nations and regional organizations should meet regularly in order to develop further the appropriate division of responsibilities. The Council also has an important role to play in preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and enhancing the effectiveness of the non-proliferation regime.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“This is the very least the United Nations can do to acknowledge their major- Power status and the financial contribution they are making to the Organization. Australia also advocates permanent seats on the Council for underrepresented regions. As to how that is to be achieved, we remain flexible. Whether those seats are filled by a single member or rotate among leading Member States agreed on by regional groupings needs to be discussed further, primarily by those regions concerned. We also see scope for an increase in the number of non-permanent members of the Council, again in the interests of ensuring greater balance in representation. I turn now to the need for greater transparency in Security Council processes.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“The three key issues to be tackled are expansion, transparency and the effectiveness of sanctions regimes. There is now a general acceptance that the Security Council must be expanded and modernized if it is to manage international peace and security more effectively. Although Australia wants to avoid making the Council too unwieldy, there can be little doubt that its membership needs to reflect better current geopolitical and economic circumstances. Expanding the membership is an important element in achieving this and Australia believes that an expansion up to a total Council membership of 25 States would be reasonable. This brings me to the more contentious point of permanent as against non-permanent membership. Australia has made clear that it supports the claims of Japan and Germany to permanent membership.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“There have been technological barriers to increasing that rate and Australia has therefore proposed that a technology working group be established among interested and capable countries with the purpose of designing the equipment required for demining on a far larger and quicker scale. If there is any doubt about the need for this action, I would place on record here that, if the current rate of demining in Cambodia were to be maintained, that country, which has struggled so hard to repair itself, 10 would not be free of these mines for a further 130 years. This must be unacceptable to all. That is why the Australian Government recently committed $12 million to practical demining initiatives in the war-ravaged fields within our own region. Security Council reform is another vitally important item on the peace-and-security agenda.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)
“This convention should be sought now. Any discussion of arms control and disarmament in today’s world that failed to address the question of landmines would be sadly incomplete. These hideous and diabolically inexpensive weapons must be banned. Australia will support efforts that will be made at this session of the Assembly to take the next step towards the negotiation of an international convention to that effect. But in the meantime, there are in excess of 100 million of these maiming weapons distributed in the soil of too many countries. Demining must proceed at a far faster rate than has been the case in the past.”
1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)