YouSaid · the spoken record

Thérence Sinunguruza

lines on the record: 41
first: 2001-09-24
most recent: 2012-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

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“For its part, the Government will spare no effort to harness, coordinate and collaborate with the efforts of all parties to fight hand in hand for people’s well-being and prosperity, in Burundi and around the world. I would like to conclude by welcoming the actions taken by the United Nations, which over the 67 years of its existence has moved the world forward at an everaccelerating pace. I would also like to see the institutional changes envisaged for the Organization take the interests of all Member States into consideration, with all stakeholders taking part in the reform and updating of the system.. Finally, I wish the President of the General Assembly every success throughout his term of office. Long live international cooperation! Long live the United Nations! Long live Burundi!”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“It goes without saying that lack of growth, along with poverty, means fewer schools, fewer hospitals and less progress in the areas of energy and transportation infrastructure — in short, less development for the country and its people. No leader worthy of the title would bequeath such a disastrous economic situation to future generations. That is why, despite the troubling international economic outlook, guidance and support are more than ever necessary for economies as weak as ours in Burundi. However sustainable it may be at the national level, our economy is still very much dependent on the global economy. I remain convinced that, with the will, commitment and vigour of the people of Burundi, supported by our friends, the scale of our political and socioeconomic gains will continue to expand.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Along with the other countries of the region, Burundi remains determined to seek solutions to that conflict through existing regional arrangements and in accordance with decisions already taken by the countries of the subregion within the framework of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region. The Assembly will have noted in the course of my statement that the Government of Burundi has made undeniable progress. Still, major challenges remain, not least of them the maintenance of economic growth. Despite the unfavourable international financial and economic context, Burundi, with the support of its partners, must keep its head above water. It must increase its economic growth with the aim of implementing its economic and social development projects.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Burundi stands ready to share with the Somalis our experience on the question of national reconciliation and in training a national republican army. With respect to the security situation in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, along with the other members of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, confirms its strong commitment to the terms of the pact of 15 December 2006 and to its related protocols guaranteeing security, stability and development. We are also a signatory to the declarations agreed by the heads of State and Government of the member States of that organization in Addis Ababa on 15 July, and in Kampala on 7 and 8 August and 7 and 8 September.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“With respect to Burundi’s participation in peacekeeping operations, I would like to say that Burundi was one of the two countries to take part in the African Union Mission in Somalia, and that it is pleased with the work accomplished by its soldiers in that context. As the Secretary-General has already done, my country commends the adoption, in August, of the provisional Constitution of Somalia by the National Constituent Assembly in Mogadishu. It congratulates and encourages the Somali delegates and leaders with respect to the new developments under way, aimed at normalizing that country’s situation, and to their commitment to ending the transition period and establishing new political institutions that represent all Somalis.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Government and the Вurundi configuration of the Peacebuilding Commission have made visible progress in a number of areas, as indicated in the outcome of the fifth review of the Peacebuilding Commission, issued on 26 April 2011. Positive results were noted in the areas of political and institutional peacebuilding issues, good governance, human rights, economic issues, vulnerable groups and regional integration, as described earlier. After this brief survey of the internal situation of my country, I now turn to Burundi’s role and position regarding certain international matters.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The professionalization of the defence and security forces and of the justice system to guarantee the rights of both citizens and foreigners on our soil are among the measures that the Government has written into its programme and will continue to promote as the country moves forward. In the area of regional integration, an intragovernmental committee has been established to develop a national strategy for regional integration, with the goal of enabling Burundi to take best advantage of its participation in subregional entities and reducing the deficits and disadvantages that stem from belonging to non-regional organizations. The Strategic Framework for Growth and Poverty Reduction has reached an advanced stage.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The social and economic reintegration of former combatants has yet to be completed and represents a genuine security risk. While it is true that there have been a few isolated instances of insecurity here and there in the country, that is not unique to Burundi. Banditry, which has taken place on a small scale in Burundi, also occurs elsewhere, in many countries. The Government is determined to stamp out all forms of criminality, including armed robbery. It considers security the sine qua non of all social and economic progress, which is why it has embarked on reforms in that regard.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“In addition, significant progress has been made with respect to the gradual and orderly return of displaced persons and the repatriation of refugees. All those efforts have taken place within the Strategic Framework for Growth and Poverty Reduction, Vision 2025 and the MDGs. Of the total of 800,000 counted in the census of 2000-2001, all have returned to our country with the exception of 37,000 from the Mtabila camp, who are expected to return by 31 December. Many internally displaced persons have already returned to their homes. We have just finished a profiling survey of those who remain on site, which, in the light of their expressed wishes, will determine the most appropriate and humane resolution of their situation.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Measures providing free education for children of primary school age enabled millions of little Burundians to attend school, while free medical care for pregnant women, nursing mothers and children under five years of age significantly improved maternal and child health care and will help us to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in that regard in the near future. Also, with the participation of the population in communal labour, 2,024 schools, 80 health centres and more than 2,000 potable-water wells were built in just three years. With respect to socioeconomic development, Burundi is continuing to improve its basic economic infrastructure, including the management of public finances, an improved business climate and good governance.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Government had hoped to establish the commission in January 2012, but that decision had to be postponed for technical reasons owing to the fact that further consultations were required, along with specific proposals on the commission’s mandate and composition, the selection criteria for its members and matters related to its operating budget. Besides those achievements in the political sphere, the Government undertook a vast social construction project that yielded positive results.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We need a mechanism that banishes the demons of the past and at the same time affords no opportunity for any type of vengeance or the settling of old scores; in other words, a mechanism to establish the truth and to ensure that there is no recurrence of the acts in question. National consultations were held in 2009, and the related report has been made public. A technical committee was established with a mandate to pave the way for a truth and reconciliation commission. That committee proposed a methodology in its final report, which was submitted through the proper channels in October 2011.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“In October 2011 the Government adopted a national good governance and anti-corruption strategy for 2011-2015. Also, Government officials, including those at high levels, have signed performance contracts, laying the groundwork for a culture of accountability, which is essential to democratic systems. The members of the Administration and high-level officials are periodically evaluated based on those contracts. If they live up to agreed performance standards they are retained, but otherwise they are replaced. The Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement calls for transitional justice mechanisms. We are working towards a transitional justice system that carefully and rigorously balances national reconciliation requirements and those of justice.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“That is clearly a significant and bold step forward, because, rather than settle for the minimum set out in the Constitution, our Government voluntarily made the deliberate choice to go further, to ensure that the female majority in the population is represented meaningfully in the country’s institutions. In its determined drive towards change, the Government subsequently established an independent national commission on human rights and an ombudsman’s office. It initiated a zero-tolerance policy designed to eradicate corruption and misuse of public funds, a scourge that has ravaged Burundian society for several years, and also set up adequate enforcement mechanisms. We still have a way to go, as is the case in many other countries, but the structures to get there are firmly in place.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We have established democratic institutions — the executive branch, the National Assembly and the Senate — all of which are representative of the various elements of Burundi’s population, in conformity with the ethnic and gender balances agreed to in the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement, which have been incorporated into the Constitution governing Burundians today. I take pleasure in pointing out that our Senate’s composition shows a gender parity such that out of all senates worldwide Burundi’s places second in women’s representation.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Indeed, whereas my country faced crises on multiple fronts, under which the people suffered economic depletion, social degradation and political discord, seriously demoralizing them, those same people are now steadily getting back on their feet and rediscovering hope as they look to the future. That positive trend demonstrates conclusively a complete break with the spirals of violence and instability that have for decades been our ongoing lot. Thanks to the collective efforts, strength and spirit of the Burundian people, as well as to the support of our partners, I can confirm here and now that the policies begun in 2005 and carried on after 2010 have produced most encouraging results in many areas. As I said earlier, in the political sphere our country has held democratic elections twice in the recent past, in 2005 and 2010.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“What I have to say Pierre Nkurunziza, President of the Republic of Burundi, also spoke of last year at the Assembly’s sixty-sixth session. A major turn of events has placed a special stamp on our country’s history since independence. Democratically elected institutions now serve out the terms entrusted to them by the people in peace, and then, at the end of their tenure, give way to others, also democratically elected. Over two years ago, in 2010, Burundi organized democratic elections for the second time since 2005, from which were born our current republican institutions, which operate with legitimacy in a restored climate of peace and security. That development gives us great satisfaction, and the Burundian people have every reason to be proud of it.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“It is a great pleasure for me to address the representatives here today and to express my congratulations to Mr. Vuk Jeremić on his election as President of the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session, and to his cabinet as well. I also thank his predecessor, Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, for his excellent work during his presidency. In addition, I extend my appreciation to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his work for the good and well-being of Member States and their peoples. It is an honour and a pleasure for me to speak from this rostrum about current issues of great importance to my country and the world. It is a pleasure especially because Burundi is right now at a decisive and historic turning point.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Indeed, my delegation shares the same conviction as the Secretary-General of our Organization, Mr. Kofi Annan, when he affirms that we must build a world where order and justice reign in terms of respect for the primacy of law in international relations. The challenges confronting the international community are multiple and take many forms. The efficacy of the Organization will be judged by its ability to keep cohesion intact and to promote people’s holistic development, so as to fashion a world where all can realize their potential and where we all espouse peace, fraternity and equality. We are all called upon to strive towards the realization of that noble cause.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Yet another issue of concern to my delegation continues to be that of human dignity, which cannot be conceived as divorced from respect for human rights, including that of self-determination. Towards that end, the delegation of Burundi continues to hope that the Second International Decade for the Elimination of Colonialism, from 2001 to 2010, proclaimed by the Assembly by its resolution 55/146 of 8 December 2000, will help to eradicate its last bastions. It is impossible to talk about international concord without calling to mind the right to justice, genuine justice and real fairness in the settlement of disputes. On that score my delegation would like yet again to reiterate the importance the Government of Burundi ascribes to the International Criminal Court, regarding which preliminary steps towards ratification are being taken.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“My delegation continues to hope that the International Conference on Financing for Development, scheduled for March 2002 in Mexico, will adopt strategies to reduce these inequalities between and within countries. It expects from that Conference a definition of the strategic objectives in terms of consistent policies for integrating developing countries into the global economy, whatever their level of development. As to globalization, many indeed are those that denounce its perverse effects, as witness the clashes in Seattle and Genoa. In this context, we are duty-bound to see to it that globalization becomes a positive force for all mankind in the best interests of all.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“There is a chain directly linking desperate acts and the fanaticism bred of frustration and humiliation. Thus, the imbalance between the North and the South is unlikely to promote harmonious equilibrium. Indeed, on the basis of available statistics, more than one third of mankind lives in absolute poverty. This is liable to grow worse if the rich countries continue not to shoulder their responsibilities in terms of aid for development. Improving the living conditions of people contributes, through its induced effects, to reducing other anachronistic factors growing out of poverty, such as the child labour ban by International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions and the spread of the HIV/AIDS pandemic.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Our surest hope is for that Programme to be effectively implemented to relieve the suffering of people in the regions where this kind of weaponry continues to take the lives of thousands of innocent people. What is more, the Government of Burundi remains devoted to the goal of the total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, whether they be nuclear, chemical or biological. To have peace and security prevail required adopting a working strategy for conflict prevention, with a view to understanding fully the motives and dynamics of confrontation and to curing this evil at its root. It also means resolutely attacking the structural causes that drive people to revolt, namely ignorance, want, disease, extreme poverty, underdevelopment and its corollaries, and inequities in the distribution of wealth.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“My delegation, notwithstanding all that, remains confident that the work of the Working Group concerned will be quickly concluded, the results being of the keenest interest in terms, once again, of galvanizing this major body. Burundi wishes to draw the attention of the Assembly to the problems that have grown more and more serious and alarming because of the accumulation and excessive and destabilizing proliferation of small arms and light weapons and the arms race. In this connection it is ever more necessary and urgent to develop and effectively implement specific disarmament programmes. We welcome the adoption of the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects at the United Nations Conference, held from 9 to 20 July 2001, here in New York.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“The Government of Burundi counts on the active participation of our partners, particularly in making available the aid promised. On the international scene the delegation of Burundi hopes to see the implementation of the provisions of the Millennium Declaration adopted last year by the heads of State and Government of Member States of the Organization. It particularly supports the reforming of the Security Council and welcomes the fact that this matter already enjoys the broad-ranging backing of the Members of the United Nations. It 24 regrets nonetheless that discussions on the modalities that the reform is to take are at an impasse, and this, eight years after the establishment of the Working Group under General Assembly resolution 48/26, adopted on 3 December 1993.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Faced with a particularly trying situation, Burundi looks for a great deal from the United Nations and its agencies, its various bilateral partners, international organizations and non-governmental organizations to help our economy to recover, in the name of international solidarity and for the benefit of our people plunged today into a state of unprecedented poverty. I thus urgently appeal to my country’s various partners to make tangible the reality of the promises made at the Pledging Conference for Burundi, held in Paris from 11 to 12 December 2000, for the purpose of rebuilding and helping the recovery of our economy. A round table following through on these commitments made at that Conference is to be organized in Geneva in December 2001.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Notwithstanding efforts exerted by my Government, HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases such as those linked to malnutrition, continue to rage among our people, already weakened by the horrors of war. The major performance indicators for education reflect a net decline. Access to drinking water and general hygiene conditions have seriously deteriorated at a time when many of our dwellings and the basic social infrastructure, such as schools and health centres, have been destroyed by war.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Indeed, eight years of the worst kind of fratricidal war, together with three years of unjustified economic embargo, from July 1996 to January 1999, have plunged the country into a state of extreme poverty which will be difficult to overcome. What is more, international cooperation since 1996 has, as it were, been frozen, thus confronting us with a lack of foreign exchange and a major erosion of our monetary situation. Furthermore, in the year 2000, economic activity continued to suffer from the heavy blows of drought, bringing about negative growth for two consecutive years in an essentially agricultural country. Over the same crisis period, the situation with regard to health has significantly deteriorated.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“We particularly ask for the invaluable help of the countries in our subregion, all of them co- signatories to the Arusha Accords, so that all the necessary steps will be taken to stop these armed groups from attacking Burundi. Notwithstanding these various initiatives, if the rebels continue obstinately to refuse dialogue, my Government will call upon the international community and all parties signatories to the Arusha Accords to do all they possibly can to neutralize and disarm the FDD and FNL and, at the same time, the other negative forces allied to them. The continuing deterioration in the socio- economic situation in my country constitutes yet another source of major concern for the new government team.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“While thanking our partners for the variety of initiatives already launched to bring the Burundian rebels into the peace process, I should like once again to call upon all the countries members of the Regional Initiative, the Facilitation in the inter-Burundian negotiations, the Organization of African Unity, the United Nations, and the rest of the international community to continue to bring pressure to bear upon these armed groups so that they will lay down their arms and rejoin other Burundians around the negotiating table without further delay, in conformity with Security Council resolution 1375 (2001), adopted on 29 October 2001, and other resolutions of the Council.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Nonetheless we feel that these armed groups no longer have political claims that they can truly brandish, given the fact that the Arusha Accords envisage their participation in transitional institutions, their recruitment into defence and security corps and their social and professional reintegration if they so desire.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“We denounce and condemn in the strongest terms this new type of violence, namely the seizing of school 23 children by rebel elements to press-gang them into guerrilla forces or to have them do their dirty deeds. In this context the priority of all priorities for my country thus remains the quest for a ceasefire, which would make it possible to begin the major reforms envisaged during the transitional period. Notwithstanding numerous initiatives directed by our Government towards the armed groups — the Conseil national pour la défense de démocratie-Forces pour la défense de démocratie (CNDD-FDD), and the Forces nationales de la libération (FNL) — inviting them to subscribe to the peace process and join in negotiations, as yet there is no sign of a firm, formal commitment on their part that would allow us to move forward in that direction.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“The new Government has set itself as a priority task halting the war, rehabilitating victims and restoring the country in socio-economic terms. Notwithstanding, however, our firm determination to move forward, the programme continues to encounter enormous challenges, challenges such as the persistence of war and the exacerbation of poverty. With regard to the war, we must deplore the fact that armed groups continue to sow grief and desolation in various parts of the country, pursuing a nameless war, a war that is killing innocents in their homes, in the camps for displaced persons and along the roads, a war that favours pillaging and rape and that has destroyed social and economic infrastructures built at great cost.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Secondly, I wish to make it a point solemnly to hail the courage, vision, perseverance and tact that His Excellency the former President Nelson Mandela displayed throughout the inter-Burundian negotiations so as to help the Burundian people regain the path to peace, reconciliation and democracy. From this lofty tribune I wish to express to him our feelings of profound gratitude. We feel the same sentiments of sincere appreciation to the United Nations and all countries and personalities that have worked from near or afar to see to the signing of the Peace Accord, people who continue to invest of themselves in order to see the Agreement fully implemented. It is thanks to all these pooled efforts that some glimmer of hope is perceptible in the Burundian political skies.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“After a number of consultations held among the signatories to the Peace Agreement, and after the Facilitation and Regional Initiative, the matter of the transitional leadership for the next three years has been settled. On 1 November 2001, the solemn inauguration of the President and Vice- President of the Republic and the transitional Government was held. I wish to make a point of expressing the very sincere thanks of the Government and people of Burundi to the heads of State and other eminent personalities that elevated those ceremonies by their presence. At this important stage in the peace process, I should like to take care of a pleasant duty, namely that of paying tribute first to the late Mwalimu Julius Nyerere, who was the first to play a mediator’s role in the inter-Burundian peace process in an extremely delicate setting.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“That global response obviously, and as a matter of priority, is an imperative for us, the Members of this institution, the United Nations, on which the Charter explicitly confers the role of maintaining international peace and security. As to the situation in my own country, Burundi, the present session is being held at a time when the peace process has just completed a particularly decisive phase. Indeed the Arusha Peace Accord, which Burundi signed on 28 August 2000, has begun to be resolutely implemented. May I be allowed to bring to the attention of the distinguished representatives gathered here certain major developments worthy of being emphasized.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“Burundi hails the adoption by the Security Council of its resolution 1373 (2001) and stands committed to examining in depth its scope of application on our own national territory. In light of the plethora of sophisticated juridical provisions — extant for nearly 30 years now — to fight against this scourge, a profound awareness and far more sustained collective action today is imperative. The Government of Burundi agrees with the content of Security Council resolution 1373 (2001), which emphasizes: “... the need to enhance coordination of efforts on national, subregional, regional and international levels in order to strengthen a global response to this serious challenge and threat to international security” (S/RES/1373 (2001), op. para. 4).”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“The events of 11 September 2001 mark a new global challenge for the United Nations in its resolute fight against terrorism and for maintaining international peace and security. The Government of the Republic of Burundi fully subscribes to the relevant resolutions of the United Nations on the fight against terrorism. Committed to the ideals of peace and security the world over, it intends to make its own contribution to building a world from which international terrorism will be banished. Towards that end, Burundi endorses the various international conventions against international terrorism. It has already ratified three of them, and this morning we signed the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, adopted in 1999. The necessary steps will be taken to sign and ratify the remaining conventions.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“My Government is particularly obliged to the Secretary-General for his personal commitment to helping the people of Burundi emerge from crisis so that through the ongoing peace process they can resume the path of peace, reconciliation and development. All of us were shocked and horrified by the murderous attacks perpetrated here in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania on 11 September 2001. My Government firmly condemned those odious terrorist acts, characterized by indescribable barbarity. The President of the Republic of Burundi, Mr. Pierre Buyoya, dispatched a message of condolence to 22 President George W. Bush immediately after the tragic events had been reported.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“We all appreciated his many talents as a statesman and seasoned diplomat, which in large measure contributed to bringing the work of that session to a successful conclusion. I should like, finally, to avail myself of this felicitous opportunity to convey the greetings of the Burundian people to Mr. Kofi Annan, Secretary- General of the United Nations, and to express to him once again my heartfelt congratulations on his unanimous re-election to the helm of the Organization for a second term of office. At the same time, I address to him my warmest congratulations on the Nobel Peace Prize just awarded to him and to the United Nations itself. This token of renewed confidence is a striking expression of recognition of the United Nations family’s tireless efforts in every corner of the world for the cause of peace and development.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)
“It is for me a signal honour to take the floor today before the Assembly at its fifty-sixth session. On behalf of my delegation, I wish at the outset to express my sincere congratulations to Mr. Han Seung-soo of the Republic of Korea on his well-deserved election to the presidency of this body of the United Nations. We believe that his vast experience, his dynamism and his competence guarantee the success of our work at this session. He can count on my delegation to be fully available to him. We will spare no effort to facilitate his work so that his noble mission can be carried out to the fullest. Allow me next to pay sincere tribute to Mr. Harri Holkeri for the way he acquitted himself in his term of office leading the work at our last session.”
2001-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 56 (2001)