YouSaid · the spoken record

Carlos Mauricio Funes Cartagena

lines on the record: 96
first: 2009-09-24
most recent: 2013-09-24
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

“Therefore we must not allow that fear to be translated into timid or cowardly political and economic decisions that would deprive us of an opportunity to undertake the changes that our people are calling for. We must not betray their historic will for transformation and development. It would be unpardonable, unforgivable, if we were to allow ourselves to be lulled by old political and economic dogma and continue repeating once again the same mistakes, while overwhelming majorities in every city, in every State, on every continent, have clearly expressed their desire for a new, audacious and creative policy. Over the past 30 years, while the economy has grown exponentially, so has the root cause of many of our misfortunes, and here I am referring to injustice. Daily injustice has a most significant effect on our peoples.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Millions of demoralized, unemployed people live in daily uncertainty, not knowing whether there is a future for them and their children. Entire countries have seen their economies stumble because of that lack of confidence. Hundreds of thousands of families every day face the fear that takes the form of political instability, natural disasters, the lack of urban 11-51185 12 safety, and poverty. All those people demand that their leaders give them the inspiration to overcome that fear, to regain a sense of collective self-esteem and to believe in a different and better future. That is the great historical challenge that we must shoulder with responsibility and courage. We must forge a new international agreement that will allow us to overcome such fears and lack of confidence in order once again to stride forward.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“Our societies demand of us that we be able, first of all, to understand and explain to them what is really going on. They also demand of us that we listen to their needs and satisfy those needs and, above all, that we reach a new international consensus in order to make that necessary qualitative global leap in order to achieve a planet of greater justice, stability and safety. This is, therefore, an opportunity to reconsider our policies, to review and change paradigms that seem to be frozen, to renew the international debate and to be ambitious in our aspirations as a global society. Members know that nothing undermines the morale and spirit of our peoples more than fear, uncertainty and distrust. It is those evils that are affecting our planet currently. We are suffering from fear in its various guises.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“This new session of the Assembly of the United Nations brings us together at what is no doubt an historic time of great importance, as has been said in one way or another by the various leaders who have preceded me at this rostrum. These are certainly critical times that should lead us to adopt an attitude that goes beyond addressing the specific questions of the moment, because this is a moment of change in the history of humankind. On the economic, social and geopolitical levels there are many signs indeed that show us that the world is changing and that the transition towards something new, even if still undefined, is already under way and will follow its course, whether we are able to understand it or not. That is why our peoples desire political leadership that is able to respond to this time of uncertainty.”
2011-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 66 (2011)
“We are facing a powerful, sophisticated, diffuse enemy that has blended in with our society, and we must fight it with new weapons, creativity, intelligence, and the cooperation of our societies and the global community. Only thus will our efforts be commensurate with the circumstances. Only thus will we be able to meet today’s challenges. Only thus will we provide sound responses to the needs of the majority of our peoples, who await opportunities to believe once again in democracy, institutions and politics. Once again, I appeal to the conscience and sensibility of the international community. In conclusion, I wish to do so by quoting President John F. Kennedy’s 1961 inaugural speech, which reflects what I have tried to convey today. He said that “if a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich”.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“The Under Secretariat of Transparency and Anti-Corruption is the first body in America to submit itself to the in situ control by the Inter-American Program of Cooperation to Fight Corruption of the Organization of American States, and has been commended as such. According to the Government of the United States, El Salvador is also the Central American country with the best performance in fighting organized crime and drug trafficking. Thus, it is not on the high-risk map which that Government has just published. Without transparent institutions, strong and independent institutions and without a true vocation to fighting organized crime, it will not be possible to meet the great challenges before us. We are waging a war. It is a new war unlike those of the past. We are not waging it against another nation or standing army.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“We know that corruption is one of the worst enemies of the democratic system; therefore, working for transparency has become a fundamental aspect of our national and regional strategies. Throughout Central America, this struggle is a matter not only of ethics, but also of democratic 23 10-54965 survival. In other words, we must oppose the potential emergence of a drug State by building strongly democratic and transparent States. It has been proven that the more corruption there is, the less economic development there is. Corruption poisons public policies, especially those that assist the poor; it reduces citizens’ trust in their system and makes markets inefficient. My Government has created a specialized body to fight corruption.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“Central Americans are striving to create strong, democratic and just societies. In the specific case of El Salvador, my Government is moving forward with the building of a social State that reformulates social policy, taking into account the failure of past mechanisms that I mentioned earlier. Gangs have become veritable criminal organizations coordinated with organized crime. We shall not overcome this reality with mere assistance policies or improvements in the standards of living. This phenomenon is found among young people who, from earliest childhood and adolescence, join gangs, and is so widespread that gangs have become a complex subculture. Our response must be equally so. Within the framework of a social State, we must deepen democracy and strengthen republican institutions.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“Our response must therefore also transcend these boundaries; our response must be integration. Until the establishment of such a commission, my country shall work along these lines and has launched dialogue and action with neighbouring countries with a view to coordinating policies to prevent and punish crime. My second proposal concerns the establishment of an international alliance to support the priorities of regional integration, which are the fight against poverty and inequality and the creation of opportunities that will allow our populations to stay in their communities of origin. Central Americans understand this, and are willing to give battle to poverty, exclusion, and organized crime. To that end, we have started joint work by relaunching our integration organization, the Central American Integration System.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“First, we should establish, under the auspices of the United Nations, a Central American commission to investigate organized crime. The establishment of such a body would be based on the good experience of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala known as CICIG, which was established with the support of the United Nations, the United States, Canada and Spain. Such a commission would no doubt contribute to strengthening institutions. We must recognize that State organizations have been infiltrated by organized crime and that all means must be made available to recover them and to wage the war against crime. My proposal is based on an implicit acknowledgement of the obvious truth that organized crime does not recognize borders or respect States.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“The territory of criminal violence today is the border between the United States and our small countries, but tomorrow it will be in the major cities of the developed world, the capitals of America, Europe, Africa and Asia. So let us not leave it to Mexico alone, and let us not leave it to Central America alone. This is my appeal to the international community. The help our countries need is economic; it is intelligence; it is support for training and equipping our law-and-order forces to combat crime and control money-laundering. But we also need help with the new social and regional policies that the Central American Integration System has prepared, because those investments will address the causes of our tragedies. For these reasons, I wish to bring two proposals to the General Assembly.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“First, the righteous battle against organized crime and on behalf of the human rights of migrants does not fall exclusively to Mexico and Central America. Here, I would like to say that we must not leave it to Mexico or to Central America alone. Our region is not the main consumer of drugs. Our countries are not the major recipients of the uninterrupted flow of laundered drug money, the product of the failure of stricter controls. It is not only our people who will be hurt if the drug cartels continue to grow stronger and to endanger our countries’ survival. This battle is not irrelevant to anyone. It would be a mistake to believe that Mexico and Central America can defeat crime alone.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“It would be naïve, for example, to think that a coercive, repressive 10-54965 22 State that invests more and more in its security forces or that mobilizes its army to support the police to combat crime — as I have ordered done in El Salvador, given the rise in crime that I inherited upon assuming office — can in and of itself resolve the problem of insecurity. We would be making a historic mistake if we did not address the root causes of violence and crime. The indolent State that has prevailed in recent times must be transformed into a social State that wages as its chief battle the reduction of poverty and injustice. In this regard, I would like to lay out some thoughts based on that reality.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“It is obvious that the neoliberal policies implemented in recent decades have run counter to the desire of the international community to reduce poverty, as expressed in the Millennium Development Goals. Let us therefore keep in mind the wise words of Albert Einstein, who said that an insane person is he who does the same thing over and over again and expects different results. I am not speaking of my country alone. I believe that everyone has to undertake profound changes in the way social policies are designed in order not to perpetuate failure.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“We can say without exaggeration that the map of poverty and injustice is the same as the map of migration; of the traffic in drugs, humans and weapons; civic insecurity; money- laundering and crime on a major scale. I mentioned the lack of positive results in fighting poverty and injustice on a global scale, especially in Central America. I will now offer an example of the failure of policies implemented in my country over the past decade. According to a report of the United Nations Development Programme, the wealthiest segment of the population in El Salvador received 23 per cent of the State’s social spending. The lowest segment — the poor and marginal population — received only 18 per cent of that social spending. The State actually promoted and expanded injustice and contributed to greater poverty.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“Our migrants — indeed, the migrants of the entire world — leave their civil rights behind when they leave their country and arrive in new lands that do not recognize those rights. As experts on migration have said, the migrant is a pariah, a human being without rights. For the more than 200 million migrants around the world, mostly young people, human and social rights, such as those embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are not guaranteed. Another reality in our region is the very high incidence of violence against women, which also calls for our special attention. We note the close relationship between poverty, injustice and migration. Furthermore, another, closely related factor in our region is the strong presence of organized crime and the extremely high incidence of violence and criminality.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“I am referring first to the lack of opportunities, exclusion, backwardness and widespread injustice that affect Central American societies and account for the mass emigration of their young people. The second is that of migration, a consequence of the first. The third is violence, crime and the shadow business of organized crime, which exploits the breeding ground of poverty and the transit of dispossessed migrants for its illicit purposes. El Salvador has 6 million inhabitants in its territory and 3 million more living elsewhere, mainly in the United States. Migration has grown year by year in the wake of Governments’ lack of response to the aforementioned problems.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“The recent massacre in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas of 72 migrants, of whom 14 have been identified as Salvadorans — and we continue to try to identify others — reveals the magnitude of the tragedy that, while centred on Mexico and Central America, affects the whole world. Those 72 murdered desperate young men and women, who lost their lives trying to find a future in the United States or Canada, are an expression of the tragedy in the region, as well as a metaphor for global injustice. This tragedy was not the result of a plane crash or climate change. It was the result, essentially, of three factors that point to the lack of positive results in the fight against poverty and injustice.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“It is not easy for me to be so blunt in my assessment, but that is the reality and the international community must be sensitive to the plight of the vast majority of the world’s population. For many years now, the agenda of the United Nations and other multilateral forums has included the struggle against poverty. The hoped-for improvements, however, cannot be discerned. As far as social justice is concerned, far from achieving the desired progress, the gap between rich and poor countries, and between the rich and poor within individual countries, has widened. Injustice has prevailed over our good intentions. That is the truth.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“It is an honour and a great responsibility to address the 21 10-54965 Assembly today. It is a responsibility because we need to make the right analysis of the serious problems we face and, in my particular case, of the difficult reality in my country. El Salvador is one of many nations on this planet beset by the problems of poverty, backwardness and, above all, injustice. The more a leader is weighed down by the tragedy of his people, the greater the responsibility, as we know well. When the Assembly reviews the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the struggle against poverty in the world, and we look at the reality in Central America, we can say that the efforts made have not yet yielded the expected results.”
2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)
“We believe that the future of humankind largely depends on the intelligence, honour and generosity of the larger nations in ensuring the full and fair development of emerging countries so as to put an end to the discrimination and differences that offend human nature. I thank the General Assembly for its attention and its support for my country and the Salvadoran people.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“It is time to adopt measures and mechanisms to rectify the mistakes and shortcomings of the past, and to launch a process to bring development into harmony with environmental protections. As participants here are aware, in my country we have done away with ideological prejudices and stereotypes in our international relations. We believe in multilateralism and in particular in the systems of our continental organization, the Organization of American States, and of the United Nations. We believe in the rich and valuable contribution that new and emerging nations can make to the work of those two systems.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“The high-level meeting on climate change convened by the Secretary-General provided us with an opportunity to consider that issue, especially with respect to compliance by States, and in particular the industrialized countries, with the provisions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which was adopted shortly before the Earth Summit, and with later commitments to eliminate the danger posed by environmental degradation and ongoing activities that have exacerbated climate change. We therefore hope that we will act in earnest, responsibly and decisively at the Copenhagen conference to achieve a new agreement in this area so as to ensure that States do not put their own interests before the common well-being of humankind.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“In this context we appeal particularly to developed countries to ensure follow-up, support for and implementation of the recommendations and commitments set out in the Monterrey Consensus and the Follow-up International Conference on Financing for Development to Review the Implementation of the Monterrey Consensus that took place in Doha in 2008, as well as the recommendations contained in the Outcome of the Conference on the World Economic and Financial Crisis and Its Impact on Development (resolution 63/303, annex), in particular the need for donors to maintain and fulfil their commitments and objectives with regard to official development assistance. To that end, there is a need for political resolve to reform the international financial structure and system in order to address the current difficulties.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“In this regard we call upon the industrialized countries and on the donor community to join every international effort and initiative to overcome the current challenges, which jeopardize 27 09-52228 achievements made to date and future progress for humankind. We recommend taking full advantage of the experience and expertise within the United Nations system in fostering international cooperation and coordinating efforts to achieve common goals.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“Thus we commit ourselves to strengthening our national system for the protection of human rights and to promoting and guaranteeing a policy of justice, truth and compensation for serious infringements of human rights, by implementing a policy of openness, honesty and transparency in public affairs. The effects of the international crisis that broke out last year have been felt by all, but especially by poor and developing countries whose economies are dependent on large markets and that suffer from the consequences of the decline of economic activity, employment and consumption. Given this situation, international solidarity and cooperation take on extreme importance for developing countries, which have limited natural and financial resources and are very vulnerable.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“We are implementing policies that are geared towards meeting the commitments we have entered into at major international conferences, in particular the Millennium Development Goals and the promotion and full protection of human rights. We will also be joining international agreements aimed at strengthening human rights and freedoms. We believe in the role that the United Nations has played in the field of cooperation and development, and we reiterate our support for the reform of its principal organs, programmes and subsidiary bodies, which will allow the Organization to adapt to the demands and complexities of new challenges, in particular through the interrelationship and interaction that exist among political, economic, social, environmental and security phenomena.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“The United Nations has played and will play a leading role in the maintenance of international peace and security and in the promotion of democracy and development. El Salvador is a leading example: the Organization helped in reaching the Peace Agreements that succeeded in resolving our internal conflict — a contribution for which I am deeply grateful, because it led us from war to peace and from peace to a phase of transition to democratization and development. In this regard we will engage in a major review of the international agenda in order to set priorities and to ensure compliance with the key guidelines issued by this global Organization and which benefit the well- being and dignity of our peoples.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“The de facto Government in our brother country has ignored the clamour of voices raised by the international community, calling for Honduras to return as quickly as possible to constitutional order through dialogue and political negotiation in accordance with human rights and the fundamental freedoms of the Honduran people. Until the Constitution is restored in Honduras through the immediate reinstatement of President Zelaya and the creation of a government of national unity in keeping with the San José Agreement, the electoral process currently being prepared in our brother country will lack the legitimacy or transparency necessary to guarantee reliable results which might help resolve the crisis in our brother country.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“A first step would be to convene a summit that would focus on a balanced integration process and an analysis of greater transfer of competencies to strengthen the mechanisms of supra-nationality, in order to further the aims and principles established in the Tegucigalpa Protocol, to ensure its credibility and viability. Among the aims, of course, would be to strengthen regional democratic institutions, helping us to avoid occurrences such as the Honduran coup d’état, of which members are all well aware. Working together we must ensure that it will be impossible to return to the times of authoritarianism or military or civilian- military dictatorships. The coup d’état in Honduras must not be allowed to set a precedent which will jeopardize the achievements that we have reached in terms of regional stability and democratic institutions.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“We long ago emerged from the era of nationalities, and we are now ready to embark on a new phase, one of greater integration. In this regard the European Union is perhaps the most advanced example. I appeal to my Central American colleagues to consider this point. There are many pending issues that we must address. There are common challenges that we must face shoulder to shoulder. We have everything to gain and nothing to lose in the full integration of our region. In these years of the bicentenary we must regain the free and independent spirit of our ancestors, which was exemplified in the concept of a Central American union as a basis for development, well-being and peace for our peoples.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“In good faith it is guided not only by national interests and priorities but also by the common goals and interests of the international community, in particular the quest for and promotion of peace, political dialogue, cooperation in solidarity, security and sustainable development. One example of this is the restoration of diplomatic relations between El Salvador and Cuba, which overcame a lingering breach in our country’s hemispheric relations. I also wish to underscore that a further key objective of my Government is to strengthen the ties that we have with our brother countries in Central America. In this context, I am certain that there will be no solution or future for any of our countries if we act in 09-52228 26 isolation from each other.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“My Government is carrying out a foreign policy geared towards strengthening and broadening relationships of friendship and cooperation with all countries of the world, both at the bilateral and multilateral levels, based on solidarity, mutual respect and compliance with the principles of peaceful coexistence, such as respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, non-interference in internal affairs, the non-use or threat of use of force, the peaceful settlement of disputes, respect for the right to self-determination and respect for international law and international commitments, in accordance with the principles and purposes of the United Nations Charter. The foreign policy of El Salvador is free from ideological or partisan political stances.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“We will bring this vision to the process initiated at the High-level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, and we pledge our participation at the third Global Forum on Migration and Development, to take place in Athens.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“We are concerned, moreover, not only by the unstable situation of migrants living abroad with no legal status, suffering constant uncertainty and fear of being deported, but also by the difficult situation they are currently experiencing as a result of the global financial and economic crisis. For this reason a policy for the inclusion and protection of the rights of our migrant population and their families is a priority for us. We will be undertaking measures within and with countries of transit and destination countries to guarantee migrants’ rights everywhere in the world, and in particular the rights of our Salvadorian brothers. We will emphasize an integrated and long-term approach to addressing migration, considering all its causes, manifestations and effects.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“I have personally raised the flag of our country’s full democratization, which means that emigrants should have access to the vote that has been denied them to this day. That unjustifiable denial is added to the pain of separation and the loss of human rights to which they are subjected as immigrants. I have called on political parties, intellectuals, academics and judges to draft the outlines of a national political accord that advances the necessary reforms to expand and strengthen democracy, increase transparency in the workings of political parties, improve the administration of national elections law and — as a key element of my appeal — ensure the right to vote for our brothers and sisters abroad.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“The other wound to which I referred is the ongoing waves of immigration by Salvadoran men and women that have been taking place for many years. All those who have left have been in their productive years, the most skilled, seeking the work, security and well-being denied them in their own country. With 3 million Salvadorans abroad, remittances equal about 18 per cent of our gross national product. That tearing apart of families is difficult to overcome. It is also a constant reminder of the fact that we have not been able to put in place the necessary conditions to keep our children home, as well as of the fact that we will never be able to achieve our potential, individually or as a society, unless we heal this terrible wound.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“However, this is not a task for a single president or Government; it is also one for society as a whole. I have therefore called for the widest possible level of participation from all groups and people of good will in carrying out what is called “the good fight”, referred to by the Apostle Paul in his first letter to Timothy — a good fight against insecurity, fear and hopelessness. That is the great challenge that brings us together, let us make no mistake. I should like to propose the holding of an international conference to address these problems in order to consider best practices with which to confront that battle together. To that end, we would require the logistical and financial support of both the Organization of American States and the United Nations.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“That means that we must increase our joint efforts while using all the means and intelligence at our disposal to confront those scourges. We are faced with a structural phenomenon that hampers the full normal functioning of our societies. In that regard, I am completely convinced that we must have strong, long-term, decisive and intelligent policies within our countries. However, we will fully defeat crime only if we unite as a single entity that is genuinely determined to defeat organized crime, which is a destructive element that undermines institutions and saps the creative and productive energies of our peoples. 25 09-52228 I have said to my fellow citizens, and I should like to reiterate here, that my Government will do everything the law allows to combat crime with determination and courage.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“Those wounds include public safety and immigration, which has taken about 3 million of our fellow citizens abroad in search of the work and opportunities they have not found in our homeland. I should first like to speak briefly about insecurity. As the Assembly is aware, this is not an exclusively Salvadoran phenomenon. While it is a global problem, it is certainly more pronounced in our region. Organized crime, drug trafficking and the activities of violent criminal youth gangs have developed in the past decade to become the worst threat to the stability of our countries. The policies that have been implemented jointly and within individual countries have not merely fallen short; they have been but a succession of failures.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“It was once believed that changes in Government would lead to instability and uncertainty. The complete opposite happened. We have given legal guarantees and clear examples that the new Government is serious, responsible in managing finances and trustworthy when it comes to both domestic and foreign affairs, including as regards multilateral organizations and friendly countries extending assistance to El Salvador. In that connection, allow me to thank the countries and groups for that assistance. Their generosity makes us even more determined to follow the path of responsibility, austerity and anti-corruption efforts throughout society and Government. My country has open wounds that have an impact on our daily lives, including on our family, social and cultural lives.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“It is also part of the comprehensive anti-crisis plan that I promised during my campaign, which we are carrying out through enormous effort. Also in less than 100 days, we succeeded in expanding the social safety net and the provision of assistance for the poorest families in 100 rural municipalities. Upon my return to the country, we will launch the first safety net, involving social and employment services in urban communities experiencing extreme poverty. We are responding promptly to the urgent needs of the most excluded, impoverished and neglected groups in our society. I should like to reiterate that all this is being done through an honest and wide-scale dialogue that includes the entire social spectrum of El Salvador. We have resolutely addressed the concerns resulting from changes in power.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“We were able to set up our economic and social council in barely 100 days. That body is charged with proposing and considering social and economic policies that will allow us to successfully address the crisis we are experiencing. In the same period, we were also able to launch an ambitious low-income housing programme that is unprecedented in El Salvador’s history. That programme, which was the result of Government working with the private sector, will produce 100,000 jobs. Work has already begun in the first projects. That undertaking, like others in the area of social and productive infrastructure, also helps to promote temporary work for young people at risk and to improve the housing and community conditions in the poorest areas.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“The first is to put an end to the confrontations, hatred and divisions that have drained a significant amount of vigour from our society and fuelled a bloody civil war that has left behind painful scars. The second is to put in place the foundation for peaceful and secure coexistence. That means that major national decisions will no longer be taken behind closed doors or out of sight of the majority of our people. Every measure, every step in El Salvador will be discussed and decided at the table through dialogue. Seated at that table will be representatives of the production and labour sectors, as well as of social movements, non-governmental organizations, political parties, churches and academia. It is untrue that the demands of administration require curtailing dialogue as the basic instrument of the decision-making process.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“The new Government has set just a few, but overarching, goals aimed at beginning a process of change that pulls the country out of its economic crisis and its social and cultural backwardness while establishing the foundation for the full development of its productive potential, including social integration and fair distribution of its income, as well as making it possible to achieve peace and security, which is our greatest challenge. We have set out the major outlines of my Administration in three words: unite, grow and include. 09-52228 24 First of all, the Government over which I preside is not based on a single political party, let alone on a single faction. It is a Government of national unity focused on two main goals.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)
“I would first of all like to thank Mr. Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann of the sister Republic of Nicaragua for his work during the sixty-third session of the General Assembly. I would also like to convey our congratulations to Mr. Ali Treki on his election as President of the Assembly at its sixty-fourth session, as well as to wish him every success in his efforts. We would also like to thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his leadership of the United Nations. A little more than three months ago, by changing its Government after two decades under the same political party, El Salvador began a process to expand and strengthen its democracy.”
2009-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 64 (2009)