YouSaid · the spoken record

Jaime Gama

lines on the record
114
first
1996-09-24
most recent
2001-09-24
sittings or episodes
5
sources
un-general-debate

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  1. “We believe that it is the responsibility of every Government to guarantee in their respective countries the full enjoyment of all human rights, but that it is also legitimate for the international community to concern itself with ensuring the promotion and protection of those rights around the globe. We consider that the United Nations has a key role to play, and thus it is indispensable that the High Commissioner and the Centre for Human Rights be provided with adequate human and financial resources for the fulfilment of his important task. A constant pursuit of Portuguese foreign policy has been to stress the need to find a political and diplomatic solution to the question of East Timor, without which it will not be possible to put an to end the systematic abuses of human rights that continue to prevail in that territory.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  2. “Furthermore, on Portugal’s initiative, the General Assembly, at its forty-ninth session, declared 1998 International Year of the Ocean. Focusing on this subject, Expo 98 will be held in Lisbon that same year, with the theme, “The oceans: a heritage for the future”. Its central focus will be the relationship between the current state of knowledge on marine resources and the urgency of ensuring, through a rational and scientific management process, a greater ecological equilibrium on our planet. The defence and promotion of human rights is one of the principal concerns of Portuguese foreign policy.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  3. “The protection of the environment is becoming an increasingly prominent issue. In this field, we recognize the great importance of the problems of climate change, 20 desertification and the protection of the marine environment. For this reason, Portugal has been closely following the implementation of the principles and decisions adopted in this regard at major United Nations conferences. I would also like to underline the particular sensitivity of Portugal, whose territory includes two archipelagos — the Azores and Madeira — to questions relating to the sea from a perspective of the development of balanced management of fishing and marine resources. To this end, my country is currently concluding the necessary procedures that will soon permit it to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  4. “We advocate that the Conference on Disarmament should, early at its next session, begin negotiations on a treaty for the banning of the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons. With regard to the serious problem of anti-personnel landmines, Portugal hopes that concrete measures will be taken this year towards a complete prohibition of the manufacture and export of those devices of death and destruction. For our part, we have already decreed a moratorium on the manufacture and export of such weapons. Furthermore, I would like to mention that on 23 August last my country ratified the Convention on the banning of chemical weapons. Among the many activities of the United Nations, I would like to single out two areas which I consider essential: the environment and human rights.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  5. “Portugal welcomes the adoption of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). Portugal, which will contribute significantly to the CTBT verification system, has signed and will shortly ratify the Treaty, and appeals to all Member States of the United Nations to do the same. It is urgent that the process of enlarging the Conference on Disarmament be completed, as well as that of deliberating on its agenda and the rules for decision- making and for admission of new members, which should be improved. It is increasingly essential to seriously debate nuclear disarmament, with a view to achieving the ultimate goal of the permanent eradication of nuclear weapons.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  6. “It is true that the United Nations cannot abdicate its mission of helping to restore peace. We also believe, however, that efforts should be focused on conflict prevention. But in both areas, the question of cooperation between the United Nations and regional intergovernmental organizations has been discerningly raised. This can be seen in some recent successful examples, such as the joint action of the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Western European Union (WEU), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Union (EU) in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, organizations of which Portugal is a member and in which it participates actively. Another component of the efforts towards peace is disarmament.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  7. “In this context, our official development assistance exceeds the goal established for donors at the Paris conference in 1990. At the multilateral level, allow me to single out the importance we attribute to the Lomé Convention as a vital instrument of aid and cooperation between the members of the European Union and the countries of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Thus, we have strongly advocated a review of the Convention based on maintaining the principles of partnership and cooperation. Maintaining international peace and security undoubtedly continues to be the priority challenge faced by the United Nations. The results achieved in most of the relevant missions lead us to conclude that we should not lessen our commitment or the dynamism of our activity.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  8. “To meet these objectives, it will also be necessary to implement the decisions taken at the major United Nations global conferences, as it has been at those conferences that the Agenda for Development has gradually taken shape. This question is all the more important to us in Portugal, since we focus special attention on the North-South dialogue, which is attested to by the fact that the North-South Centre is located in Lisbon. Aware of the fact that today the important task in this area is to help the developing countries, especially the more vulnerable ones, Portugal has gradually increased the funds it sets aside for development aid, both at the bilateral level and through the framework of international organizations of which it is a member.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  9. “We are convinced that only with an adequate and balanced representation of all the world’s regions will the Security Council be more democratic and, consequently, more effective in the formulation and implementation of its decisions. When considering the process of reform, I must also refer to issues related to the Agenda for Development and the Agenda for Peace. With regard to the former, we must recognize the need to review the entire system of international aid for development and consider the role the United Nations should play in this domain. The integrated and sustainable development we propose should be pursued in all its facets, not only in the economic field, but also in the consolidation of democratic institutions.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  10. “We believe that the resolution of the crisis can be found through three essential approaches: the fulfilment of commitments, in full and on time; review of the scale of assessments in order to reflect the capacity of Member States to pay; and financial rigour and rationalization of existing resources. In the spirit of contributing to the resolution of this crisis, Portugal voluntarily increased its 1995 contributions to the peacekeeping budget, moving from Group C to Group B 19 in the scale of assessments. That decision will result in a five-fold increase of our initial contribution. Equally important is the reform of the Security Council.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  11. “It will always be an open forum, based on mutual support and close relationships with all Portuguese-speaking communities of the world and cooperation with other, similar organizations. One year after the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary, we are still far from meeting the expectations created and the real needs of the Organization. It is clear that a process on this scale can be realized only in the medium term. A core issue of the reform process that we must address is the resolution of the serious financial crisis of the United Nations.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  12. “This is probably the newest international organization, and as President of its Council of Ministers, I foresee an important role for it in the concert of nations, in useful and effective cooperation with the United Nations and its agencies. It represents a strengthening of the solidarity and fraternity that unite these countries and will empower the economic and social development of its peoples, while affirming and disseminating the Portuguese language, which is the common heritage of over 200 million people scattered over every continent. The Lusophone Community, made up of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Sao Tome and Principe and Portugal, is a political project based on the Portuguese language, which is the historic bond and a common heritage of the seven countries, despite geographical separation.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  13. “I wish also to express to the Secretary-General my admiration for the manner in which he has carried out his functions during a period in which the United Nations has been called upon to take an ever more active role in a variety of aspects of international life. My colleague from Ireland has already addressed the Assembly on behalf of the 15 member States of the European Union, expressing positions to which Portugal fully subscribes. Nevertheless, I would like to reflect on some questions that are of particular importance to my country. Allow me to point out that while speaking in my capacity as Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal, I am also speaking as a representative of a country that is extremely proud to belong to the Lusophone Community.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)

  14. “I should first like to congratulate the President of the General Assembly on his election and to express our confidence in his capability to conduct the work of the current session. In congratulating him on his election, I am pleased by the fact that he represents a country, Malaysia, with which Portugal has excellent relations in addition to deep historical and cultural ties. I believe that it is understandable that I should also take this opportunity to pay tribute to the outgoing President, my fellow countryman Mr. Freitas do Amaral, for the dedicated, competent and innovative manner in which he directed the work of the fiftieth session of the General Assembly.”

    1996-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 51 (1996)