YouSaid · the spoken record

Pedro Verona RODRIGUES PIRES

lines on the record: 23
first: 2004-09-24
most recent: 2008-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

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

“Allow me also to welcome the recent legislative elections in Angola and to congratulate the people and authorities of Angola for the responsible and transparent manner in which those important elections were conducted. I would further like to welcome the political agreements that led to the end of the political crisis in Zimbabwe. That is a testament to the emancipation of our continent and to its aspiration to progress, and thus helps to usher in the new era and the new world that we so eagerly desire.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“However, to perform such a role, which is now more complex than ever, the United Nations is called upon to adapt itself to the challenges of the twenty-first century, to express the major shaping forces of the contemporary world and to ensure and convey confidence to all of its Member States. Accordingly, the United Nations system must be reformed and improved and, above all, the representativeness and legitimacy of the Security Council must be urgently expanded and strengthened. Thirty-five years ago, on 4 September 1973, the Republic of Guinea-Bissau acceded to national sovereignty. I salute the delegation of Guinea-Bissau in this room. It is our firm conviction that our brother nation will be able to overcome all the difficulties currently facing it and to consolidate the foundations of its stability under the rule of law.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“We surely agree that humanity is at a decisive moment in history that clearly runs counter to the paradigms of its recent past — a time when a new world is painfully coming into being. Recent experiences show that no single nation can in isolation solve the great challenges and global 37 08-51839 problems which the world faces. However, our universal institution does present the essential conditions and the required collective responsibility for such an endeavour. Therefore, it is incumbent on the United Nations to shoulder the tremendous mission of promoting more effective world governance.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“I ask, why not consider forms of compensation for the poorest and most affected nations in view of the enormous financial surpluses that have been accumulated? Admittedly, such an act of justice and solidarity would not be enough. We must therefore act individually and collectively and continue to promote energy alternatives and energy efficiency, as well as encourage reduced dependence on fossil fuels. Urgent and global measures are required to overcome the serious environmental crisis and to develop innovative and safe options for the future of humanity. That is the challenge that we must take up for the sake of the future and that we must overcome for the benefit of all.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“It is clear that urgent action is required to ensure increased agricultural production capable of meeting current and future needs. That requires the promotion of agricultural policies consistent with the demands of the situation, the partnership of the rich and technologically more advanced countries and technical assistance from international organizations; it means that attention must be given to modernizing and increasing agricultural production and productivity in the affected countries and regions. I think specifically of my country and the African continent. Escalating oil prices have created serious problems for the economies of the least developed and non-producing countries.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“I therefore urge the Assembly to work towards the preservation of an international environment favourable to the achievement of the commitment that we undertook — the social and economic growth of the poorest countries, the eradication of extreme poverty, the consolidation of peace, dialogue and international cooperation towards international balance, the defence of life and the planet’s future. The current financial crisis is underscored by the instability of the financial markets and the volatility in the movement of capital, which put our worldwide economic stability at risk. We must retain the global financial architecture. It seems necessary for us to agree on new forms of financial regulation that are effective, trustworthy and acceptable to all. The food crisis has placed hundreds of millions of people in a precarious situation.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“However, I believe we agree that war is not the best way to overcome these challenges. We also have failed to build security and trust among all and for all, large and small, rich and poor. Without security, without social stability, without political and institutional cohesion, and above all without mutual trust between the international political actors, it is difficult to further the premises that may contribute to ensuring a solution to major global problems, resolving our main challenges, overcoming extreme poverty and the most pervasive endemic diseases, as well as moving past current global social and economic imbalances. With the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals the international community expressly undertook to contribute to overcoming this unsustainable situation.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“Indeed, we face an environment fraught with uncertainty in the short and long term, underscored by financial instability, foreign exchange volatility, escalating oil and food prices and a globally troubled world economy. There is risk to our economic, human, political and military security — in other words, our general and collective security. On the one hand, organized transnational crime and terrorism threaten international order and the rule of law. On the other hand, the effects of global warming and climate change, as well as the risks imposed by their worsening, are real facts that confront world leaders and institutions. World peace remains out of reach. Areas of armed conflict still exist. Indeed, they resurge repeatedly or persist at low intensity. In the meantime, new sources of tension arise in many places.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“First, I congratulate Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann on his election to the presidency of the Assembly at its sixty- third session. I wish him a successful presidency. I also 08-51839 36 salute Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and express my highest regard for his commitment to peace, dialogue and prosperity for all. The world grows in complexity, with its multiple challenges and numerous risks and uncertainties. This calls for increased multilateralism, more collective responsibility and greater cooperation. In short, it demands and expects more and better from the United Nations. The world is undergoing a profound and multifaceted crisis in the financial, energy, food and environmental areas.”
2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)
“I emphasize the need for all countries and all formal and informal institutions to guarantee and respect the security of such noble men and women, for they are on a mission to serve all of us. I hope, Sir, that this fifty-ninth session of the General Assembly, which is taking place under your presidency, will provide new gains for peace, justice, social progress and global stability. Finally, I should like to reiterate the words of Pope John Paul II, the unquestionable moral authority of our time, in his appeal to world leaders on 1 January this year: “The United Nations ... needs to rise more and more above the cold status of an administrative institution and to become a moral centre where all the nations of the world feel at home ...””
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“From that perspective, we would then have a more balanced international community and a more equitable sharing of responsibility in the building of humanity’s future. Before concluding, I should like to highlight the successful actions carried out in the past few years by the United Nations under the leadership of the Secretary-General, Mr. Kofi Annan, who has enabled us to keep on the international agenda substantive issues that confront many societies daily, which has enabled this universal institution to be in direct contact with concerns and challenges that are worrisome to all members of the human family. Here, I should also like to honour the memory of all those who have served the United Nations and fallen victim to senseless acts resulting from intolerance and the terrorism of radical movements.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“My country joined the community of nations in large part because of the intervention of the United Nations to promote the freedom and human rights of colonial peoples, for which we shall always be grateful. I believe that, in the light of the profound changes that have occurred over the past six decades in all areas of the international arena and the emergence of a new balance of forces and extremely complex challenges requiring urgent and immediate responses, it is becoming clear that we need to move forward with reform of the United Nations, particularly the Security Council. In my view, the planned reform should, in addition to reflecting new global geopolitical realities, guarantee representativity and appropriate intervention and participation for all continents and all communities.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“International democracy based on dialogue and cooperation among States and among cultures, on tolerance and respect for cultural diversity among communities and on human solidarity and respect for the legitimate political and material interests of all parties, of nations large and small would show itself in the implementation of genuine multilateralism in global governance. Herein undoubtedly lie the foundations for triumph over today’s challenges and the assurance of a safe, peaceful, predictable and prosperous future for humanity. In several months, the United Nations will mark 60 years of rich and intense life that has been filled with challenges, upheavals and extremely complex problems, but that has also been marked by innumerable victories and hopes for humanity.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“It must also be recognized that there are still tenuous vestiges of the old orders, which must once and for all be rooted out and eliminated from relationships between individuals and communities, such as racism, religious and cultural discrimination, 3 gender inequality, and scorn for the fundamental rights of indigenous human communities in various countries. We must also ask whether democracy within States is reflected in relations among States, particularly when we note the existence of an imbalanced world in which the inequality of power between the haves and the have nots continues to grow day by day. Therefore, there is a critical need to promote the democratization of international relations by seeking better balance in relations among States.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“So too, peace and stability within States require institutions and policies that are inclusive and that respect and engage all sectors of nations and meet their legitimate political and economic aspirations, while at the same time ensuring the protection of their cultural identity. There can be no doubt that, owing to profound changes in the scientific, technological and socio- political fields, a huge movement of democratization of human societies is under way, backed by the institutions of the rule of law. However, mere political democracy is not sufficient. The ordinary citizen must be guaranteed participation in public affairs and a decent, worthy and dignified life, since there can be no freedom without dignity.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“President, are a part, continue to be faced with enormous and varied challenges. Regarding the critical issue of peace and political stability, we also note a genuine commitment on the part of African States to resolve conflicts and eliminate hotbeds of tension. But the political will of States, regional organizations and the African Union is not enough, and the international community’s commitment and its indispensable contribution in the form of adequate resources are necessary for peace and security to become a reality for all our peoples within a reasonable period of time. Peace is not merely the absence of war. Genuine peace requires sufficient time and confidence-building among parties, as well as a strategy for building peace.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“It would contribute to the creation of conditions that are a prerequisite for improving international security by lessening migration and bridging the gap between rich and poor, thus eliminating the reasons for the frustration of millions of poor and hungry individuals throughout today’s world. Another tragedy that requires action is HIV/ AIDS, which is mortgaging the future of many countries, particularly in Africa. There is an urgent need to advance and guarantee effective international solidarity in order to root out from the daily lives of millions of human beings the spectre of hunger, poverty and pandemic illnesses. It is my belief that mankind has the resources and potential which will allow us to realize this marvellous dream. The African continent, of which my country and your country, Mr.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“This is why the struggle for peace cannot be halted, and why everyone, especially the United Nations, has the imperative duty to contribute to breaking the cycle of violence and opening the way to peaceful coexistence among nations and human communities. Among the other social ills afflicting our planet which can be effectively combated are hunger and poverty. Their eradication is in fact one of the objectives of the Millennium agenda. I am convinced that success in combating hunger and poverty will have unquestionably positive global effects that would promote unity and harmony within the human family, and would strengthen human rights, including the most sacred and vital right — the right to life. It would also promote the material and moral enrichment of all of human society.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Finally, it is with respect for international law, drawn up with the participation of all and equally shared and respected by all — a respect which permeates the principles and purposes of the United Nations — that we can find a response leading to a peaceful, prosperous and just world: the world which mankind clearly wishes to see. I would like to reiterate here and now our absolute rejection of the unwarranted use of violence and our unequivocal condemnation of the use of terrorism as a way of resolving political disputes. The trivialization of life and death, which is utterly condemnable, also dehumanizes its proponents and opens the way to the worst kinds of wrongs in relations between human communities.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“Moreover, given the very advanced stage of civilization which mankind has achieved, I think it would be relevant to ask whether it is time to leave behind the concept formulated by the outstanding nineteenth-century German military theoretician Clausewitz, who stated that war is a continuation of policy through other means. I think, rather, that it is by relying on negotiations, dialogue and the acknowledgement of the legitimacy of the interests and rights of all parties, that we can tap the potential for avoiding the need for war as a means of resolving national or international disputes.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“For these and other reasons, I would like here to launch an appeal in favour of the small island States. The international community is going through a particularly complex period marked by challenges of many kinds. We are aware that it is only by focusing on peace, stability, security, dialogue and respect for diversity of interests and cultures, in an atmosphere of freedom, that we can create an international environment conducive to the just settlement of the serious problems we are encountering today. 2 War does not have to be inevitable.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“My country, the Republic of Cape Verde, is among the small island States. We believe that our States, as a result of their specific characteristics, deserve a special hearing from the international community. In the economic, social and ecological spheres, those States are confronting shortcomings and restrictions specific to them, and these must be duly taken into account. Through its own efforts, but also through the necessary contribution of the international community, Cape Verde is now preparing to better itself and its condition as a least developed country (LDC). My country continues to suffer from a precarious situation which cannot be ignored or minimized. In addition, the small island States often represent unique physical and human realities which form a genuine heritage of mankind.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)
“I should like at the outset, Mr. President, to hail your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session. I would also like to extend to you our best wishes for success in carrying out your mandate, a mandate which reflects the honour bestowed on your country, the Republic of Gabon, by the international community. I would also like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, for his selfless commitment to the causes of the United Nations and of Africa in particular. I believe this is also an appropriate time to pay tribute to and commend the actions of the former President of the General Assembly, Mr. Julian Hunte, for his considerable contribution to promoting the universality of the United Nations.”
2004-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 59 (2004)