YouSaid · the spoken record

Frederick A. Mitchell

lines on the record: 90
first: 2002-09-24
most recent: 2015-09-24
sittings or episodes: 5
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

“That poem was written before the United Nations came into being. Today, this body is at the centre of the human endeavour, so let us ensure that the centre does hold. The Bahamas is committed to the United Nations and to a sustainable future for our world. Where better than in this building, and who better than the United Nations? I say again, now more than ever we need the United Nations.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“We strive to ensure that respect for human rights is integral to our migration policies. The Bahamas will, however, take all measures within the law and international norms to protect its borders and ensure that it is not overrun by illegal migrants. I end with a plea for the young people of the world. We must commit to them afresh, here at the United Nations. They are the future, and everything we do must be done keeping in mind the fact that, whether we like it or not, we are handing things over to them. Now is the time to act to end their sense of hopelessness and their joblessness. The Prime Minister of the Bahamas said it here again last week: if we ignore them, we do so at our peril (see A/70/PV.4). Back in 1919, the Irish poet William Butler Yeats, speaking to his generation, lamented that the centre could not hold.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“Migration and the global refugee crisis are an increasing problem around the world. In the view of the Bahamas, we are facing the most pressing refugee crisis since the Second World War. In recent months, we have seen hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees from conflict- and war-torn areas throughout the Middle East embarking on perilous journeys in their search for refuge in Western Europe. For the Bahamas, illegal migration through its territory is an awful reality. We are resolute in our task of ensuring that migration is lawful, safe and orderly, and that it involves increased dialogue and greater participation in the process by all countries of origin, transit and destination. We are equally mindful of our international obligations, in tandem with our sovereign right to protect our borders.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“We affirm our commitment to a binding agreement in Paris at the forthcoming Climate Change Conference and urge all countries to work to that end. As I said earlier, even as we speak the Bahamas is under the threat of flooding and a hurricane. When one realizes that 80 per cent of our land is lower than five feet above sea level, one understands that a tidal surge is certainly an existential threat to our country and an example of a threat posed by climate change. We urge continued support for the people of Dominica, our sister CARICOM State, which suffered enormous damage and loss of life from Tropical Storm Erika in August. We would also like to express our solidarity with the people of Chile, who suffered damage and loss of life during the recent earthquake there.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“Concerning the environment and climate change, I would like to say that we welcome the launch on 30 September of the Small Island Developing States Sustainable Energy Initiative (SIDS DOCK), which was jointly developed by the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre and the secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme, in cooperation with the Alliance of Small Island States. SIDS DOCK is meant to assist small island developing States in the Pacific and Caribbean regions in addressing the effects of climate change, providing them with a collective institutional mechanism to help them transform their national energy sectors into catalysts for sustainable economic development and generating financial resources for addressing adaptation to climate change.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“In the words of our poet and singer Tony McKay: “I come to collect everything that you owe me ... pay me what you owe me.” The Bahamas supports our sister CARICOM State, Belize, in its quest to live within secure and recognized borders. Similarly, we are deeply concerned about the attempt to undermine the territorial integrity of our sister CARICOM State, Guyana. 15-29876 19/26 A/70/PV.24 01/10/2015 The Bahamas is pleased at the rapprochement between the United States of America and Cuba. President Barack Obama of the United States has made the right, courageous decision. This enhances the peace in our neighbourhood, and our officials are working with Cuba on synergies for the development of our economies. This year we will once again support an end to the economic embargo when the draft resolution is voted on in the General Assembly.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“The Bahamas is the first State member of the Caribbean Community and the first English-speaking country in the Latin American and Caribbean region to do so. We do not do so lightly. Our election to the Human Rights Council would provide a unique opportunity to bring balance in the promotion and consideration of global human rights issues in that we would provide the perspective of a small State. We hope that we can count on the support of Member States for our candidature for election both to the Human Rights Council and to the Council of the International Maritime Organization. I speak up again this year for the right of the people of the Turks and Caicos islands to self-determination. The Bahamas is among those justly demanding reparations for the damage inflicted on Caribbean societies by slavery.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“The national development plan will provide a comprehensive overview of the economy, set policy direction for economic growth and identify strategies, programmes and projects to improve the overall health and sustainability of the Bahamian economy. It is being led by one of our young Ministers, Khaalis Rolle. It will also reinvigorate our national outlook and set new priorities for our international engagement going forward. We will enhance our expertise in the areas of maritime affairs and ocean conservation, environmental sustainability and economic and tax matters to assist in the further development and execution of our national priorities, both regionally and internationally. We are continuing to try to build a stronger Bahamas. The Bahamas is seeking a seat on the Human Rights Council in the election to be held on 28 October.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“It also maintains that gross domestic product and gross national income per capita, should not serve as the main component in determining the levels of assessment for peacekeeping operations and, furthermore, that no developing country should be categorized above level C. I would now like to address the issues of human rights, the human rights aspects of national development and the fact that we are presenting our candidature for election to the Human Rights Council. With the same critical sense of direction, commitment and urgency expressed earlier with regard to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and reform within the Organization, the Bahamas is actively crafting, with a critical eye, a 25-year citizen-driven national development plan — Vision 2040.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“These acts, in our view, enhance our commitment to human rights. Scales of assessment for peacekeeping are being reviewed. The Bahamas attaches great importance to the United Nations peacekeeping operations as these, in part, underpin the purposes of the United Nations. It remains fully committed to meeting its financial obligations to the Organization in a full and timely manner and without any conditions. The Bahamas is, however, of the view that those scales of assessment should take into consideration the unique circumstances of small island developing States, particularly those that are most vulnerable.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“Manley rightly pointed out many years ago, the developed world will not be immune if the matter is not brought under control. With regard to development and reform, there can be no economic and social development unless we achieve gender equality and empower women and girls. The Bahamas is committed to this achievement and empowerment and has actively participated in various meetings on gender equality and the advancement of women, regionally and here at the United Nations. We were represented on 27 September at the Global Leaders Meeting on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment by our Minister for Gender Affairs, the Honourable Melanie Griffin. The Bahamas is proud to have now ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Optional Protocols to the Convention of the Rights of the Child.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“That is why we have 18/26 15-29876 01/10/2015 A/70/PV.24 been so strong in our support of the small arms trade treaty. The carnage of our young people, which is due in particular to the fact that guns are easily available to young males, is not acceptable and is unsustainable. The Bahamas was pleased to have participated actively in the First Conference of States Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), held in Mexico in August. While we are disappointed that the ATT secretariat will not be located in our region, in our sister Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country of Trinidad and Tobago, we, nevertheless, are committed to the full and effective implementation of that Treaty. We call on the producers of these weapons to do more to stop their illegal export to our region and end the carnage. As Mr.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“With respect to crime and security, I recall the words of a former Prime Minister of Jamaica, the late Michael Manley, who often spoke of a symbiotic relationship between the developed world and the Caribbean region. He said that each year, millions of people from the developed world travelled to our region to have a peaceful, quiet and salubrious vacation. That, he argued, was a benefit to them. The Caribbean region, including the Bahamas, provides a tourist experience that is unparalleled in the world. However, the world must pay attention to the underlying development issues that the region faces, lest that benefit be threatened. For example, we must stop the escalating crime and violence from drug trafficking, human trafficking and smuggling and juvenile gangs.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“As we look back, despite the world’s troubles, we can repeat the words of the old African American preacher: “I know we ain’t what we want to be, but thank God we ain’t what we was.” I also repeat the concerns that I raised last year: the environment, climate change, crime and security, the economy and the development of our young people (see A/69/PV.20). I want to turn to the Sustainable Development Goals. Our Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Perry Christie, was among the world leaders who last week unanimously adopted the ambitious, transformative and universal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (resolution 70/1), which will chart our way forward for the next 15 years and solidify and reaffirm our commitment to the pillars of the Organization and to environmental protection.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“We return this year, on the seventieth anniversary of the Organization, to reaffirm the values we committed to in 1973 when we subscribed to the Charter of the United Nations — from democracy, the rule of law, the protection of the weak and vulnerable to the elimination of all forms of discrimination. Each year at this time we join the struggle anew to fight to uphold those values. Tonight, I pause to reflect on the progress we have made in some areas. This year, for example, marks the thirtieth year since the Nassau Accord was agreed and signed by the Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Nations in our capital city, in October 1985. That Accord led to a comprehensive set of sanctions on the apartheid regime of South Africa and helped free Nelson Mandela and establish full democracy in the Republic of South Africa.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“I bring you, Sir, and the Assembly warm fraternal and sisterly greetings from the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, the country which one of our most famous sons, the Reverend Dr. Myles Munroe, now sadly deceased, described as the place where God resides. I would like to pause just for a few minutes to acknowledge the expressions of concern that have come from across the world about the fact that there is a hurricane sitting over the southern part of the Bahamas. There has been considerable flooding. We have not heard of any loss of life. There is likely to be some property damage. I suppose that by morning we will know the true impact of the hurricane. I would like to thank the Assembly for its expressions of concern.”
2015-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 70 (2015)
“We therefore exhort the Members of the United Nations to stay motivated and committed, for each new effort undertaken and each achievement registered brings us nearer to our development goals. Now, more than ever, we need the United Nations.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“In addressing the General Assembly last year (see A/68/PV.19), the Right Honourable Perry Christie, Prime Minister of the Bahamas, renewed the commitment of our country to playing its part in making our planet a more peaceful and prosperous place, characterized by cooperation, mutual respect and support. We believe that each country has a primary responsibility for its own development, and, throughout my statement, I have indicated our achievements and challenges in that regard. I repeat that the environment, crime and illegal migration are issues of existential significance to our country. However, despite the many challenges, we are inspired by the possible outcomes.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“The Bahamas looks forward to the process of elaborating the post-2015 development agenda and to actively participating in the intergovernmental process that will lead to the adoption of this agenda in September 2015. Our vision for the post-2015 development agenda is creative, inclusive and transformative. The Bahamas endorses the idea of Security Council reform. As we look around at the tens of millions of dollars that have been, and are being, spent to bring the physical structure up to code and into the twenty-first century, why cannot we ensure that the organs of the United Nations, especially the Security Council, also reflect twenty-first-century realities? Last year, the Bahamas celebrated its fortieth year of independence.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“The Bahamas reaffirms its commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all people, regardless of their station or status in society. These rights and freedoms are neither negotiable nor peripheral. As a demonstration of its commitment to human rights, I am pleased to report that the Bahamas has passed national legislation, the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities) Act, which will ensure its ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in due course. In addition, four bills have been introduced in Parliament with a view to amending the Constitution of the Bahamas to bring about full equality between men and women in law. This event will mark a significant opportunity for the people of the Bahamas to usher in a new era of equality for men and women.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“We reaffirm our support for that important project. The Bahamas welcomes the convening of the third International Conference on Financing for Development, to be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in July 2015. We plan to participate in that conference, which we expect will provide a forum to address the need to demystify and replace the view that gross domestic product is the sole indicator of sustainable development — a replacement that needs to be converted into policy — as well as the matter of international cooperation in tax matters. In that regard, the Bahamas reaffirms the important role of the United Nations in addressing matters related to international tax cooperation, given its universality and legitimacy.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“This is all the more reason why we believe that the continued economic embargo by one neighbour against another in our region is counterproductive to the peace and good order of the region. We continue to keep matters with regard to the governance issues in our neighbour, the Turks and Caicos Islands, under review. The Bahamas looks forward to the forthcoming launch of the International Decade for People of African Descent, which will have as its theme “People of African descent: recognition, justice and development”. That theme could also be linked to the efforts of States members of the Caribbean Community in seeking the restorative justice due from the legacy of 400 years of slavery. We were heartened by the unveiling of the winning design for the permanent memorial to honour the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“This is one part of a multifaceted strategy to stop the flow of undocumented non-nationals into Bahamian territory. New policies and measures are now in place, and there will be stricter adherence in the future to them to stop this trafficking. A new fleet of vessels has been purchased to support our work to stop migrant smuggling. In the last few months, the Bahamas has entered into important agreements with our immediate neighbours — Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Haiti — to come to terms with the vexing situations that impact our good relations. Those accords are on fishing and on migration. Let there be no doubt that we mean to bring illegal migration under control. Nevertheless, our relations with neighbouring countries remain good.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“The Bahamas therefore became actively involved in the negotiations leading to the successful adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty and considered its adoption a landmark accomplishment for the United Nations (resolution 67/234 B). The Government believes the entry into force of the ATT will contribute to peace and security in the Bahamas and throughout our region. We deposited the instrument of ratification of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas to the Arms Trade Treaty on 25 September. We continue to fight the illegal drug trade and trafficking in persons, and we are investing in social intervention programmes, like the award-winning Urban Renewal Programme, in order to fight crime. I spoke earlier of the memorandum of understanding signed with the International Organization for Migration.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“The Bahamas welcomes the convening of the World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction next year in Japan. The Bahamas is appalled by the practice of killing sharks simply for their fins. We must make the fishing of sharks a sustainable practice, as these creatures are a vital part of the global ecosystem. The Bahamas therefore assumed the chairmanship of the United Nations Save Our Sharks Coalition in December 2013. The aims of the Coalition resonate with us, and we believe that we can help save the shark from extinction. The Bahamas has been grappling with serious crimes in our society, related largely to, first, the inability of young males to settle disputes without recourse to violence and, secondly, the resulting proliferation of gang activity and trafficking in illicit drugs, small arms and light weapons, and ammunition.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“The environment is central to that business. It should therefore be no surprise that the Bahamas has adopted or established the following: the National Environmental Policy, 2005; the National Environmental Management and Action Plan for the Bahamas, 2005; the Bahamas National Wetland Policy, 2007; the Bahamas Protected Areas Fund, 2013; and the Forestry Amendment Act, 2014. We believe that those policies and programmes will all help with the issue of climate change. We also believe that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is the primary international, intergovernmental forum for negotiating the global response to climate change. We believe that it should be completed with dispatch. The Bahamas is committed to the small island developing States processes at the United Nations.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“If we do not resolve the climate change issues, there will be no Bahamas. Solving the crime problem in the Bahamas is key to our domestic peace and economic survivability. No Bahamian doubts that the control of illegal immigration is central to our survivability as a country, central to our national identity, and central to our national security. We have only to see today how illegal immigration drains our financial resources, and we do not have to look far to see how unchecked immigration in other countries has been a recipe for civil strife within their borders. We do not intend for that to happen to us. All of the efforts related to the three main themes I have just mentioned are buttressed by our work to ensure that we have a robust, strong and sustainable economy. Tourism is by far the number-one economic activity for the Bahamas.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“It is a reminder of whom we really work for in this body — not for ourselves, but for that villager who needs the pump at home to be fixed. At this session, our Prime Minister gave a comprehensive statement on climate change and the need for developed countries to honour their financial commitments in that regard. In addition, we deposited our instrument of ratification of the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which helped to bring the number of countries to 50 and so caused the Treaty to enter into force. Furthermore, in the margins of the session, we signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Organization for Migration. There are no higher priorities for the Bahamas than these matters: the environment, fighting crime and containing illegal immigration. They go to the very root of our existence.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“Kamalesh Sharma, the Secretary General of the Commonwealth of Nations, said to us at a gathering here in New York a few days ago: “Do not be demoralized by your income, be inspired by your outcome”. That should be a driving principle as all countries, particularly the small island developing States, seek to determine what the post- 2015 development agenda will be. The obstacles are many. The lip service is evident. We have hope, and our moral case is strong. We are inspired by the potential outcomes of this new development agenda. We must be people-focused and, in that regard, I remember a story told by a colleague, a Minister from the Far East, who explained his absence to a constituent at home as dealing with many of the world’s problems. “Yes”, said the constituent to him, “but the water pump in the village has not been fixed”.”
2014-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 69 (2014)
“Sadly, he died on 19 September. He believed in this world body and its tenets and exemplified how it can assist small States. It is therefore only fitting that we mark and record his passing. The Bahamas continues to believe that mankind can aspire to and achieve a higher inner strength that not can only cause us to excel even beyond our dreams, but also can lift all around us, even nations and the entire world. May each one of us therefore reach for that inner strength, change our world and transform an agenda of problems into covenants of partnerships. It remains as true as always that we need the United Nations.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“In this forum, I wish to salute in particular the gold medal athletes of the Bahamas, namely, Demetrius Pinder, Michael Mathieu, Chris Brown and Ramon Miller. Indeed, the performances of the athletes from the entire Caribbean Community region are noteworthy, particularly those of our sister countries Grenada, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. Those examples can be seen as contributing as much to peace and development in our world as our deliberations and initiatives at this session, hence, our warmest congratulations to them all. My delegation also wishes to record in this forum the passing of my late friend and brother, the late Paul L. Adderley, who was the longest-serving Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Bahamas. His tenure included the most critical foreign policy challenges of an independent Bahamas to date.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We are committed to the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women, as was affirmed by the Minister for Social Services during the consideration of the report on Bahamas by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its fifty-second session, held in July. The Bahamas, nevertheless, remains concerned about the increasing incidences of non-communicable diseases among the population, in particular women, who are disproportionately affected by such preventable diseases. We can draw much strength, wisdom and inspiration from the remarkable successes of our nations’ athletes nationally and subregionally at this year’s Olympics. On behalf of my delegation, I would like to pay tribute to the youth of the world for their stellar displays of camaraderie and talent at the recent Olympics.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Given the events over the past year in the Bahamas with regard to illegal migration, some of which have been tragic, as well as poaching in our seas by illegal persons from south of the country, the Bahamas will be taking stronger measures over the next year to put a stop to those illegal activities. We appeal to all nations in the region to prevail upon their citizens to cease and desist from those unlawful activities. We intend to work both bilaterally and with the broader international community to stop these assaults on our national and economic security. The Bahamas has made significant strides in the areas of maternal and child health and HIV/AIDS in this, the fiftieth year since women obtained the right to vote in the Bahamas.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Bahamas welcomes increased dialogue on improving international cooperation with respect to international migration and development. Illegal migration from Haiti is a vexing issue for our country. We agree that proper cooperation can certainly help to ensure that migration occurs through safe and regulated channels and to leverage the contributions that migrants can make to the development of our country. The Bahamas will continue to participate constructively in the process leading to the second High-level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, to be held by the General Assembly in 2013, with a view to addressing those and other related issues so crucial to our development.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“My delegation sincerely hopes that the next round of negotiations on Security Council reform during this session will result in tangible progress aimed at making the Council all that it can and should be. Our desire for the realization of unfulfilled potential also extends to our regional partner, the Republic of Haiti. The Bahamas has been unremitting and consistent in its support for the people of Haiti and their aspirations for peace, security and development. The Bahamas commends the important role of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti in providing security in Haiti and in laying the foundation for its long-term recovery and stability. Pledges made toward Haiti’s recovery and reconstruction must be honoured and fulfilled so that the required work can be undertaken and completed.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The General Assembly is set to consider, during this sixty-seventh session, the scale of assessments for the apportionment of the expenses of the United Nations regular budget and peacekeeping operations for the period 2013-2015. The Bahamas takes this opportunity to reiterate its long-standing position that per capita gross national income, for the reasons given, should not be accorded overriding weight in determining capacity to pay. A representative, transparent, responsive, accountable, democratic and inclusive Security Council, predicated on an increased membership in both the permanent and non-permanent categories, as well as on modification of its working methods, is overdue.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The gross national income of the Bahamas is significantly affected by a small population of wealthy expatriates whose high incomes skew the measure away from the true economic realities. The construct of per capita gross national income, therefore, takes on a unique interpretation in the context of developing countries like the Bahamas and, I would daresay, the Caribbean subregion. The Bahamas continues to be deserving of considerations that will not deny us the right to develop sustainably, supported by financial, human and technological resources. Gross national income per capita should not be used as a pretext to restrict our access to financial assistance.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Creating job opportunities and reversing the unacceptable unemployment situation in the country, which currently is at a high rate, have been identified at the highest political level as the most critical near-term priorities for the Government, especially in relation to young Bahamians. I wish to speak especially on their behalf today. The young Bahamian sector of our country has been most severely affected by the unemployment problem, and the rate of unemployment is unacceptable and cannot continue. We are committed to solving youth unemployment. The Bahamas underscores the need for enhanced policy dialogue and international cooperation on the question of building green economies, which will indeed require new investments, skills formation, technology development and transfer and capacity-building.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We also continue to deplore the use by some States of their domestic laws for extraterritorial effect in such areas as human trafficking, financial services and drug smuggling. We continue to believe that those laws with extraterritorial effect are misplaced and put an unfair burden upon small States and that they may be interpreted as a departure from the international norms of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of States. In order to reverse current economic trends, one of the core imperatives of the Government of the Bahamas is the strengthening of the domestic economy and the attendant creation of jobs, the broadening of Bahamian ownership in the economy and the attainment of a higher standard of living.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Bahamas welcomes the efforts of the Group of 20 (G-20), particularly Mexico in the role as current Chair, in helping to translate G-20 deliberations into effective actions on a global scale through broad consultation among Member States and with the United Nations itself to find solutions to many of the major challenges of our times, most particularly with respect to strengthening the international financial system. The Bahamas also envisions a greater role for the United Nations in the area of international cooperation in tax matters. The Bahamas, along with the wider Group of 77 and China, continues to call for the conversion of the United Nations Committee of Experts on International Cooperation in Tax Matters into an intergovernmental subsidiary body of the Economic and Social Council, in keeping with the Doha mandate.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“In that connection, the Bahamas looks forward to the recommendations of the Secretary-General’s High- level Panel on global post-2015 development planning and commends the level of female participation therein. The convening of the Panel offers a major opportunity to learn from the mistakes of the past and build a vision for global development beyond mere crisis management. The Panel must be seen to operate with open transparency. It should also incorporate the views of geographical and economic anomalies such as those of the Caribbean subregion, and be innovative and forward-looking. The Bahamas welcomes the acknowledgement at Rio of the need to address the adverse impacts of climate change. The Bahamas believes that the United Nations has a central role to play in global economic governance.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Bahamas also welcomes plans to convene the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States and will participate actively in the upcoming General Assembly consultations to determine the modalities of the meeting with a view to ensuring a successful outcome. The Bahamas is also encouraged greatly by the decision taken at Rio+20 to undertake work on universal, action-oriented, sustainable development goals. In that work we must take into account different national realities, capacities and levels of development and must respect national policies and priorities. The Bahamas hopes to work in the context of the open-ended working group for the development of the sustainable development goals as well as in the intergovernmental committee on financing, agreed at Rio+20, to ensure that our special concerns are fully addressed.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“For the Bahamas, it is imperative that those sustainable development strategies be complemented with appropriate actions taken by the international community. In that connection, we view the historic outcome of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) as offering significant opportunities, particularly for small island developing States (SIDS). We are encouraged by the international community’s call for continued and enhanced efforts to assist SIDS in implementing the Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States and the Mauritius Strategy for Implementation.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Some argue that finding out how to provide reliable and affordable energy may be the single largest factor affecting the future development of the Bahamas. The issue of energy is so important that the Prime Minister has made it as a personal mission to seek to solve the issue. We know that we must do it sustainably. The Bahamas has enacted legislation to foster the sustainable use and management of ecosystems through better land-use planning. Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, we have initiated actions to preserve our fish stocks by introducing penalties for overfishing. We have also taken action to ban long-line fishing, to establish the Bahamas as a sanctuary for sharks and to establish and expand marine protected areas.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“But what do we say to them and their families, who are suffering as a result of the irresponsible and unregulated international transfer of conventional arms? Commitment and a reassessment of human life and dignity versus profit are critical if we are to prevail in our fight against the scourge of armed violence and terror plaguing our societies. We look forward to a successful outcome in the next round of negotiations. The Bahamas solemnly reaffirms its commitment to the three pillars of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. Advancements continue nationally in important areas pertaining to the protection of our biodiversity and development of policies to promote renewable energy.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Bahamas was pleased to conclude an agreement with the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs last April and to have participated in a number of regional training programmes and workshops sponsored by the Regional Centre on the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and the strengthening of border controls. The Bahamas joins other delegations in expressing our profound disappointment at the outcome of the United Nations Conference on the Arms Trade Treaty held in July and the failure of Member States to agree on a text despite six long years of protracted negotiations. The Bahamas supports the views articulated by the delegation of Trinidad and Tobago on behalf of the Caribbean Community during the month- long Conference. What we say to thousands of innocent victims is that their voices must be heard.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We are committed to the creation of a national intelligence agency and a national firearms control strategy, including the establishment of a firearms department and database, as well as to the enhancement of the operations of the country’s Defence Force so that it can more effectively control the porous borders of the Bahamas. I would like to take the opportunity to thank the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs and the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean for their support and provision of equipment and capacity-building assistance in the area of firearms destruction and stockpile management.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Bahamas welcomes the recent convening and successful outcome of the United Nations Conference to Review Progress Made in the Implementation of the Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects. The Government reiterates its unwavering commitment to the full implementation of the Programme of Action. The lives of too many of our young people are being destroyed by the use of illicit weapons in our country. Now is the time to act. Creating a safe Bahamas is a top priority for the Government.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The level of armed violence and crime plaguing our society — due in large part to the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and trafficking in narcotics, neither of which our country manufactures or supplies — is increasing and cannot be allowed to continue if we are to save successive generations from a life steeped in violence and lawlessness. It has been more than a decade since the adoption in 2001 of the United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects. Yet there has been no abatement in the level and intensity of armed violence impacting our country.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Bahamas renews its call for the timely conclusion of negotiations on a draft comprehensive international convention for the elimination of terrorism. The Bahamas condemns in the strongest possible terms the violence that resulted in the deaths of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other United States diplomats a few weeks ago. We in the international community must commit wholeheartedly and sincerely to creating a culture of peace throughout the world, underpinned by tolerance and understanding, that precludes such outrageous occurrences and their causes.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)