YouSaid · the spoken record

Dilma Rousseff

lines on the record: 107
first: 2011-09-24
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

“As such, it will be an occasion for us to carry out the urgent reform that we have been calling for since that first summit. We must avoid a collective defeat of coming to 2015 without a Security Council capable of fully exercising its responsibilities in today’s world. The limited representation in the Security Council, in view of the new challenges of the twenty- first century, is a source of grave concern. Examples of that concern include the huge difficulty in providing a solution for the ongoing Syrian conflict and the state of paralysis in addressing the Israeli-Palestinian question. The recurrent polarization among permanent members on important issues has led to a dangerous inaction. The Council must be urgently endowed with voices that are both independent and constructive.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“We have relied on three key elements: first, a commitment towards sound macroeconomic policies; secondly, continuing and upholding successful social inclusion policies; and thirdly, the adoption of measures aimed at increasing our productivity, and therefore our international competitiveness. We are committed to stability and inflation-control, to improving the quality of public spending and to upholding proper fiscal performance. We reiterate our support for a reform of the International Monetary Fund. The governance of the Fund should reflect the weight of emerging and developing countries in the world economy. Delaying such adaptive reform will further reduce the Fund’s legitimacy and effectiveness. The year 2015 will mark the seventieth anniversary of the United Nations and the tenth anniversary of the 2005 World Summit.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“That phenomenon affects populations of both developed and developing countries. This is the right time for us to strengthen the trends for growth in the world’s economy, which is showing signs of recovery. Emerging countries alone cannot ensure the resumption of global growth. More than ever before, it is necessary to engage in concerted action in order to reduce unemployment and re-establish momentum in international trade. We are all in the same boat. My country is restoring growth despite the impact of the international crisis of the past few years.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“I have therefore launched five major pacts: a pact against corruption and for political reform; a pact for urban mobility, geared towards the improvement of public transportation and urban reform; a pact for education, our great passport to the future, which will be supported by royalties from oil revenues and the petroleum social fund; a health pact that provides for doctors to assist Brazilians in the poorest and most remote regions of the country; and a fiscal responsibility pact, to guarantee the economic viability of this new stage in our history. Although the most acute phase of the crisis is behind us, the situation of the world economy remains fragile, with unacceptable levels of unemployment. According to statistics from the International Labor Organization, there are more than 200 million unemployed people throughout the world.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“Rather, they asked for further progress towards a future of greater rights, more participation and more social gains. In Brazil, it was during this decade that we experienced the greatest reduction in social inequality in the past 50 years. It was during this decade that we created a system of social protection that has allowed us to nearly eradicate extreme poverty. We know all too well that democracy generates the desire for more democracy, that social inclusion creates demands for further social inclusion, and that quality of life awakens people’s yearning for even more quality of life. For us, all the progress achieved thus far is just a beginning. Our development strategy demands more, as desired by all Brazilians. It is not enough to listen. We must act. We must transform this extraordinary energy into achievements for everyone.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“By promoting social mobility and overcoming extreme poverty, as we are doing, we have created an immense contingent of citizens with improved quality of life, increased access to information and greater awareness of their rights — citizens with new hopes, new desires and new demands. The demonstrations last June in Brazil were an inseparable part of our process of building democracy and of social change. My Administration did not repress them; on the contrary, it listened to and understood the voices from the streets. We listened and understood because we ourselves came from the streets. We ourselves came of age and developed through the great struggles of Brazil. The street is our ground, our base. The protesters did not ask for a return to the past.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“In the debate on the post-2015 development agenda we must focus on the results of the Rio de Janeiro United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development as key drivers. The major step taken in Rio de Janeiro was to place poverty at the very centre of the sustainable development agenda. Poverty is not a problem exclusive to developing countries, and environmental protection is not a goal to achieve only after poverty is overcome. The meaning of the post- 2015 agenda is the development of a world in which it is possible to grow, to include, to conserve and to protect.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“In addition to those achievements, we have lifted 22 million Brazilians out of extreme poverty in only two years through out plan to free Brazil of extreme poverty. We have drastically reduced child mortality. A recent UNICEF report indicates that Brazil has achieved one of the most significant reductions in the child mortality in the world. Children are a top priority for Brazil. That is reflected in our commitment to education. We are the country that has most increased public investment in education, according to the latest Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development report. We have also just approved legislation that earmarks 75 per cent of all petroleum revenue to education and 25 per cent to health services.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“Harnessing the full potential of the Internet therefore requires responsible regulation that will simultaneously guarantee the freedom of expression, security and respect for human rights. The choice of the post-2015 development agenda as the theme for this session of the General Assembly could not be more appropriate. The fight against poverty, hunger and inequality constitutes the greatest challenge of our time. For that reason, Brazil has adopted a socially inclusive economic model based on generating employment, strengthening small- scale family agriculture, expanding credit, increasing the worth of salaries and developing a vast social protection network, particularly through our family stipend programme.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“The first is freedom of expression, individual privacy and respect for human rights; secondly, multilateral, open democratic governance, conducted with transparency while stimulating collective creativity and the broad participation of civil society, Governments and the private sector; thirdly, the principle of universality, which ensures social and human development along with the construction of inclusive and non-discriminatory societies; fourthly, cultural diversity, without the imposition of beliefs, customs or values; and fifthly, the neutrality of the web, which must be governed only by technical and ethical criteria, rendering unacceptable any restriction of it for political, commercial, religious or any other purposes.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“It should also consider the importance of the Internet and social networks as part of our efforts to build democracy worldwide. For that reason, Brazil will present proposals for the establishment of a multilateral civil framework for the governance and use of the Internet, as well as measures to guarantee the effective protection of the data and information that traverse it. We must establish multilateral mechanisms for the worldwide web that are capable of ensuring key principles.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“My Administration will do everything within its reach and powers to defend the human rights of all Brazilians and all the world’s citizens, as well as to protect the fruits of the ingenuity of Brazilian workers and companies. The problem, however, goes beyond the bilateral relationship of two countries. It affects the international community itself and demands a response from it. Information and telecommunication technologies cannot become the new battlefield among States. The time is ripe to create the conditions to prevent cyberspace from being used as a weapon of war through espionage, sabotage and attacks against the systems and infrastructure of other countries. The United Nations must play a leading role in the effort to properly regulate the conduct of States with regard to those technologies.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“What we have before us is a serious violation of human rights and civil liberties through the invasion and capture of confidential secret information pertaining to business activities and, above all, a case of disrespect for the national sovereignty of my country. We have registered our protest with the Government of the United States and we have demanded explanations, apologies and guarantees that such procedures will never be repeated. Friendly Governments and societies that seek to build a truly strategic partnership, as in our case, cannot possibly allow recurring illegal actions to take place as if they constituted a normal, ordinary practice. They are unacceptable. Brazil will redouble its efforts to adopt legislation, technologies and mechanisms to protect us adequately from the illegal interception of communications and data.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“We are a democratic country surrounded by democratic, peaceful countries that respect international law. We have lived in peace with our neighbours for more than 140 years. Like many other Latin Americans, I have fought arbitrary behaviour and censorship myself and therefore cannot possibly fail to uncompromisingly defend individuals’ right to privacy and the sovereignty of my country. Without the right to privacy there is no real freedom of speech and opinion and therefore no genuine democracy. Without respect for sovereignty there is no basis for normal relations among nations.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“Such meddling in the lives and affairs of other countries is a breach of international law and as such is an affront to the principles that should govern relations between them, and between friendly nations in particular. A nation can never promote its own sovereignty in a way that damages the sovereignty of another. The right of one country’s citizens to security can never be ensured by violating the fundamental human and civil rights of those of another. It is even worse when private companies support such espionage activity. The argument that the illegal interception of information and data is allegedly intended to protect against terrorism is untenable. Brazil knows how to protect itself. We repudiate and fight terrorist groups; we do not give them shelter.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“I would like to draw the Assembly’s attention to an exceedingly important and serious matter. Recent revelations concerning the activities of a global network of electronic espionage have provoked indignation and disgust in public opinion worldwide. For Brazil the situation is particularly serious, since we have been a specific target of that intrusion. Citizens’ personal data has been indiscriminately targeted and intercepted. Business information, often of major economic and even strategic value, has been a focus of espionage activity. And communications of Brazilian diplomatic missions, including our Permanent Mission to the United Nations and the Office of the President of the Republic itself, have been subject to interception.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“I would first like to briefly express my pleasure at seeing the representative of Antigua and Barbuda, a country that is part of the Caribbean and is very dear to Brazil and our region, at the helm of the proceedings of this session of the General Assembly. You can count on the permanent support of my Government, Sir. Before I begin my statement, I would also like to voice the Brazilian Government’s and people’s repudiation of the recent terrorist attack in Nairobi, and to convey our condolences to and express our solidarity with the families of the victims and the people and the Government of Kenya. Wherever terrorism may occur and wherever it originates, we will always condemn it unequivocally and resolve firmly to deal with it. We will never compromise with barbarity.”
2013-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 68 (2013)
“I reiterate that in this necessarily collective effort, which presupposes the quest for consensus, the United Nations has a key role to play, particularly as the Organization and its various bodies become more representative and more legitimate and therefore more effective.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Those principles are also the foundation of human rights and of this Organization. At the opening of the sixty-seventh session of the General Assembly, I propose to all the nations represented here that they let the ideals of the Olympic flame shine upon them. Strengthening the United Nations is necessary at this stage when multipolarity opens a historic new perspective. We must work towards that end. We must work to ensure that in the multipolarity that is coming to prevail, cooperation predominates over conflict, dialogue overcomes threats and negotiated solutions are reached before and forestall interventions involving the use of force.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“To continue on its path, it needs the support of partners both near and far. Cooperation on Cuba’s progress is, however, hampered by the economic embargo that has plagued its population for decades. The time has long since passed for us to put an end to that anachronism, which is condemned by the immense majority of Members of the United Nations. This year, we watched the Olympic and Paralympic Games brilliantly organized by the United Kingdom. With the closing of the London Olympic Games, Brazil has begun the countdown towards the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games in 2016, which will be preceded by the 2014 World Cup. Every two years, during the Summer and Winter Games, humanity seems to reawaken to values that should inspire us permanently: tolerance, respect for differences, equality, inclusion, friendship and understanding.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Democracy is not a heritage immune to attacks. In order to avoid setbacks, the Southern Common Market and the Union of South American Nations have been firm when they had to be, because we consider integration and democracy to be inseparable principles. I also reaffirm our commitment to keeping our region free from weapons of mass destruction. In that regard, I wish to recall the existence of immense arsenals that, in addition to threatening all humankind, aggravate tensions and hamper efforts towards peace. The world clamours for food instead of weapons, for the billions of men, women and children who suffer from the cruelest punishment inf licted on humanity: hunger. Finally, I wish to refer to a brother country, beloved by all Latin Americans and Caribbeans — Cuba. Cuba has made great progress in bringing its economic model up to date.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Brazil is engaged in efforts to protect lives and reduce road accidents, one of the main causes of death among young people of the world. To that end, our Government is developing a wide-ranging awareness-raising campaign together with the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile. In a context of environmental challenges, economic crises and threats to peace in different parts of the world, Brazil continues committed to working with its neighbours to build an environment of democracy, peace, prosperity and social justice. We have made great progress in integrating the Latin American and Caribbean region as a priority for international cooperation. Our region is a good example for the world. The rule of law that we have achieved by overcoming authoritarian regimes is being preserved and strengthened.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The Brazilian Government is firmly committed to the targets for controlling greenhouse gas emissions and to the unrelenting fight against deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. In 2009, we voluntarily took on commitments and adopted them as laws. Those targets are particularly ambitious for a developing country, which must deal with pressing demands of all types in order to promote the well-being of its population. We hope that those countries that bear a greater historical responsibility for climate change and that have greater means with which to deal with it will fulfil their obligations to the international community. Another United Nations initiative we commend is the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The outcome document that we approved by consensus in Rio (resolution 66/288, annex) not only preserves the legacy of 1992 but also sets the starting point for a sustainable development agenda for the twenty-first century, with a focus on the eradication of poverty, on the conscientious use of natural resources and on sustainable patterns of production and consumption. The United Nations has before it a number of tasks mandated by the Rio Conference. In particular, I would like to make reference to the definition of the sustainable development goals. Rio+20 shone a powerful light on the future we want. We have an obligation to heed the many warnings being sounded by science and society. We must consider climate change one of the main challenges to present and future generations.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Multilateralism is stronger today after the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development — Rio+20. Together, during those days in June, we held the largest and most participative conference in the history of the United Nations. We were able to take firm steps towards the historic consolidation of a new paradigm: to grow, to include, to protect and to preserve — that is, sustainable development. I thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Ambassador Sha Zukang for their efforts and their close collaboration with Brazil, before and throughout the Conference.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“We cannot allow the Council to be replaced, as has been the case, by coalitions that are formed without its consent, beyond its control and without due regard for international law. The use of force without authorization by the Council is clearly illegal, yet it is beginning to be regarded in some quarters as an acceptable option. It is by no means acceptable. The ease with which some resort to that kind of action results from the stalemates that paralyse the Council. Because of that, the Council must urgently be reformed. Brazil will always fight to ensure that decisions emanating from the United Nations prevail. But we want legitimate actions, founded on international legality. In this spirit, I have defended the need for “responsibility while protecting” as a necessary complement to the responsibility to protect.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The international community has encountered growing difficulty in dealing with the exacerbation of regional conflicts. That is clear from the stalemates within the Security Council. It is one of the gravest problems that we face. The crisis that began in 2008 demonstrated the need for reform of the mechanisms of global economic governance. In point of fact, to this day we have still not fully implemented such reforms. Increasingly intense regional wars and conflicts, the tragic loss of human lives and the immense material losses for the peoples involved all demonstrate the utmost urgency of undertaking the institutional reform of the United Nations, in particular of its Security Council.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Brazil is one of the players in the generous Alliance of Civilizations initiative originally launched by the Turkish Government. With the same vehemence, we repudiate the terrorist acts that took the lives of American diplomats in Libya. With our eyes still set upon the Middle East, where some of the most important challenges to international peace and security lie, I wish to once more touch upon the Israeli-Palestinian question. I reiterate my words of 2011, when I expressed the Brazilian Government’s support for the recognition of the Palestinian State as a full Member of the United Nations. I added then, and I repeat today, that only a free and sovereign Palestine will be able to fulfil Israel’s legitimate desires for peace with its neighbours, security in its borders and regional political stability.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“However, we are also aware of the responsibilities of armed opposition groups, especially those that increasingly rely on foreign military and logistical support. As President of a country that is home to millions of people of Syrian descent, I call on the parties to the conflict to lay down their weapons and join the mediation efforts being undertaken by the joint United Nations-Arab League special envoy. There is no military solution to the Syrian crisis. Diplomacy and dialogue are not simply our best option; they are the only option. As President of a country where thousands and thousands of Brazilian Muslims live, I declare here today our vehement repudiation of the escalation of Islamophobic prejudice in Western countries.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Nor is it difficult to find in those events the traces of historical grievances caused by decades of colonial or neocolonial policies carried out in the name of a supposedly civilizing agenda. Little by little, the economic interests behind those policies became clear. Today, we are witnessing with consternation the unfolding of the dire situation in Syria. Brazil condemns in the strongest terms the violence that continues to claim lives in that country. Syria is witnessing a large-scale humanitarian tragedy on its territory and in that of its neighbors. The Government in Damascus bears the largest share of responsibility for the cycle of violence that has victimized a large number of civilians, especially women, children and young people.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“There are moments in which we cannot choose between one alternative or the other. Both must be developed separately at the same time. Just as in 2011, the Middle East and North Africa continue to be at the center of the attention of the international community. Important social movements, with different political orientations, have swept away despotic regimes and brought about transition processes whose meaning and direction still cannot be clearly discerned. However, it is not difficult to identify in almost all those movements a cry of protest against poverty, unemployment and the lack of opportunities and civil rights imposed by authoritarian governments on large sectors of those societies, especially young people.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Fiscal responsibility is as necessary as growth measures are indispensable, because fiscal consolidation can be sustainable only in a context of economic recovery. History reveals that austerity, when exaggerated and isolated from growth, is self-defeating. Brazil has chosen to face both of those challenges simultaneously. While exerting strict control over public spending, we have increased our investments in infrastructure and education. While controlling inflation, we have acted vigorously through policies aimed at social inclusion and poverty eradication. Furthermore, while carrying out structural reforms in the financial and welfare areas, we have reduced the tax burden and the cost of energy, and we have invested in infrastructure and knowledge to generate science, technology and innovation.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“In recent years, we have pursued prudent economic policies, accumulated significant foreign exchange reserves, strongly reduced public debt and, with innovative social policies, lifted 40 million Brazilians out of poverty, thereby strengthening a large domestic market. Like all countries, we were affected by the crisis. However, despite the temporary slowing in our growth rate, we have managed to maintain extremely high employment levels and to continue to reduce social inequality while significantly increasing workers’ income levels. We have overcome the incorrect view according to which measures to stimulate growth are incompatible with austerity plans. That is a false dilemma.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Such cooperation must seek to reshape the relationship between fiscal and monetary policies in order to prevent the recession from worsening, to control the currency war and to again stimulate global demand. We know from our own experience that the national debt of States and bank and financial debts will not be addressed in the context of a recession. On the contrary, recession only exacerbates such problems. It is urgent that we establish a comprehensive agreement for the coordinated resumption of global economic growth in order to prevent the despair caused by unemployment and a lack of opportunities. My country has been doing its part.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“The resulting artificial appreciation of emerging countries’ currencies causes them to lose market space, which further exacerbates the global recession. We cannot accept the legitimate trade protection initiatives of developing countries being unfairly classified as protectionism. We must remember that legitimate trade protection measures are in accordance with the rules of the World Trade Organization. We should fight protectionism and all forms of trade manipulation, since they create greater competitiveness in a spurious and fraudulent way. There can be no effective response to the crisis without strengthening cooperation efforts among countries and multilateral bodies, such as the Group of Twenty, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Opting for orthodox fiscal policies has been exacerbating the recession in developed economies, with repercussions for us as emerging countries, including Brazil. The main leaders of the developed world have not yet found the path that combines appropriate fiscal adjustment with measures to stimulate investment and demand, which are indispensable to halt the recession and ensure economic growth. Monetary policies cannot be the only response to the growing unemployment, the increase in poverty and the dismay that affects the most vulnerable sectors of the population throughout the world. The central banks of developed countries continue to pursue expansionist monetary policies, which causes an imbalance in exchange rates.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“Once again, a woman’s voice is opening the general debate of the General Assembly. For many, we women are “half the sky”. However, we wish to be half the Earth as well, with equal rights and opportunities, free from all forms of discrimination and violence, capable of building our own emancipation and, with it, of contributing to the full empowerment of all. A year after my statement at this same rostrum (see A/66/PV.11), I note that many of the problems that already troubled us in September 2011 remain. Today, I want to again consider a few of those issues, whose solutions are becoming increasingly urgent. The grave economic crisis that began in 2008 has taken on new and worrisome aspects.”
2012-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 67 (2012)
“It is my hope that these values will continue to inspire the work of this house of nations, where I am honoured to open the general debate of the sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Besides speaking on behalf of my own beloved country, I feel that when I stand up here I am representing all the women of the world — the anonymous women, those who starve and cannot feed their children, those who are suffering from illnesses and cannot get treatment, those who are victims of violence or who are discriminated against at work, in society and in their family life, and those who labour at home to bring up future generations. I add my voice to those of the women who have dared to struggle, to take part in political and professional life, and who have thus gained the spheres of power that allow me to stand here today. As a woman who was the victim of torture while in prison, I am all too aware of how important values such as democracy, justice, human rights and freedom are to all of us.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“I am fully confident that we will achieve our goal of eradicating extreme poverty in Brazil by the end of my term in office. In my country, women have been vital to the task of overcoming social inequalities. Our income distribution programmes place mothers as the central figures in the scheme. It is they who manage the resources that allow families to invest in the health and education of their children. Yet my country, like every other nation, still has to do much more when it comes to valuing women and asserting their status. In that regard, I would like to congratulate the Secretary- General for making women a priority during his tenure at the head of the United Nations. I particularly welcome the creation of UN-Women and the appointment of its Executive Director, Ms. Michelle Bachelet.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Brazil will have the honour of hosting the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development — Rio+20 — in June of 2012. Along with Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon, I reiterate our invitation to all heads of State and Government to join us at that Conference next year. Brazil has learned that fighting poverty is the best development policy, and that a genuine human rights policy must ultimately be based on reducing inequalities and discrimination between and among regions, people and genders. Brazil has made political, economic and social progress without compromising any of its democratic freedoms. We have met almost all of the Millennium Development Goals before 2015. Forty million Brazilian men and women have come up out of poverty and been lifted into the middle class.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“I come from a country where descendents of Arabs and Jews are compatriots and live together in harmony, which is as it should be. Brazil advocates for a global, comprehensive and ambitious agreement within the framework of the United Nations to fight climate change. To achieve 9 11-50692 this, countries must shoulder their respective responsibilities. Brazil submitted a concrete, voluntary and significant proposal for reducing greenhouse gas emissions during the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. We hope to be able to make progress at the upcoming meeting in Durban by supporting developing countries in their efforts to reduce emissions, and at the same time ensuring that developed countries fulfil their obligations, beyond 2012, on the basis of new targets under the Kyoto Protocol.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Brazil is ready to cooperate with the youngest Member of the United Nations and to contribute to its sovereign development. I regret, however, that from this podium I am still unable to welcome Palestine into full membership of the Organization. Brazil has recognized the Palestinian State as defined by the 1967 borders, in accordance with United Nations resolutions. Like most countries in the Assembly, we believe that the time has come for Palestine to be represented as a full Member in this forum. The recognition of the Palestinian people’s legitimate right to sovereignty and self-rule expands the possibilities and prospects for a lasting peace in the Middle East. Only a free and sovereign Palestine can respond to Israel’s legitimate desire for peace with its neighbours, security within its borders and political stability in its region.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Our Constitution expressly states our commitment to abstain from the use of nuclear energy for non-peaceful purposes. I am proud to say that Brazil is a driver of peace, stability and prosperity in the region and even beyond it. In the Human Rights Council, we have drawn inspiration from our own history of endeavour as a nation. We desire for other countries what we desire for ourselves. Authoritarianism, xenophobia, poverty, capital punishment and discrimination are all sources of human rights violations. We know that violations occur in every country, without exception. We must recognize this reality, and we must accept criticism. We will ultimately benefit from criticism, and we should pointedly criticize flagrant violations wherever they occur. I welcome South Sudan to our family of nations.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“With each passing year, a solution to the lack of representativeness in the Security Council becomes an ever more urgent need, which in turn erodes its efficacy. Former Assembly President Joseph Deiss reminded me of an impressive fact, namely, that the debate on the proposed reform of the Security Council is now entering its eighteenth year. We can delay no longer. The world needs a Security Council that reflects contemporary realities, a Council that will incorporate new permanent and non-permanent members, especially those representing developing countries. Brazil is ready to take on its responsibilities as a permanent member of the Council. We have lived in peace with our neighbours for more than 140 years and have fostered successful integration and cooperation processes with them.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“We support the Secretary-General in his efforts to engage the United Nations in conflict prevention by tirelessly exercising diplomacy and promoting development. The world of today suffers from the painful consequences of interventions that have worsened existing conflicts. That has allowed terrorism to creep into areas where it previously did not exist, thus generating new cycles of violence and multiplying the number of civilian victims. Much is said about the responsibility to protect, yet little is said about responsibility while protecting. These are concepts that we must develop and mature together. To that end, the role of the Security Council is critical, and the more legitimate its decisions are, the more appropriate that role will be. And the Council’s very legitimacy increasingly depends upon its reform.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Since late 2010, we have witnessed a series of grass-roots demonstrations that have come to be known as the Arab Spring. Brazil is the adopted homeland of many immigrants from that part of the world. Brazilians sympathize with the pursuit of an ideal that belongs to no culture in particular, because it is by definition universal: freedom. The nations united here today must find a legitimate and effective way to aid those societies that cry out for reform — without, however, depriving their citizens of a lead role in the process. We strongly repudiate the brutal crack down episodes that victimize civilian populations. We remain convinced that for the international community, resort to force must always be the last alternative. The quest for peace and security in the world cannot be limited to interventions in extreme situations only.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“We have often underscored that development policies should be increasingly coupled with the Security Council’s strategies in the pursuit of sustainable peace. That is how we have acted as part of our commitments to Haiti and to Guinea-Bissau. As a leading country in the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti, Brazil has since 2004 undertaken humanitarian projects that integrate security and development. With deep respect for Haitian sovereignty, Brazil is proud to assist in the consolidation of democracy in that country. 11-50692 8 We are in a position to provide a solidarity-based contribution to brotherly countries in the developing world in matters such as food security, agricultural technology, generation of clean and renewable energy and the fight against hunger and poverty.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“With sacrifices, but at the same time with a sense of insightfulness, we have kept Government spending under strict control, to the point of generating a sizable surplus in Government accounts while ensuring that those steps will not compromise the success of our social policies or the pace of our investment and growth. We are also taking additional precautions to buttress our ability to withstand the crisis by strengthening our domestic market with income distribution and technological innovation policies. For at least three years now, Brazil has reiterated — time and again, from this very podium — that we must all tackle the causes, and not only the consequences, of global instability. We have emphasized time and again the interrelations among development, peace and security.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Deepening the regulation of the financial system and controlling that inexhaustible source of instability is a pressing need. Controls must be imposed on the foreign-exchange war by adopting floating foreign- exchange regimes. The task at hand is about preventing the manipulation of foreign exchange that occurs not only through excessively expansionist monetary policies but also through an artificially fixed foreign exchange. Without a doubt, the reform of multilateral financial institutions should continue, thus increasing the participation of emerging countries, which, as driving forces, are responsible for the growth of the world’s economy. We should fight protectionism and all forms of commercial manipulation. They do increase competitiveness, but in a spurious, fraudulent fashion. Brazil is doing its homework.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)