YouSaid · the spoken record

Jack Straw

lines on the record
29
first
2003-09-24
most recent
2003-09-24
sittings or episodes
1
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “"The Council invites all Members of the United Nations, and other parts of the United Nations system with relevant expertise, to contribute to this process of reflection and analysis on these matters, beginning with the further meeting on this subject which will be convened on 30 September 2003." This statement will be issued as a document of Security Council under the symbol S/PRST/2003/15. As there are no further speakers inscribed on my list, the Security Council has thus concluded the present stage of its consideration of the item on its agenda. The meeting rose at 11.40 a.m.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  2. “Ministers considered that it would be appropriate to examine further how to harness and direct this expertise and experience so that it was more readily accessible to the Council, to the wider United Nations membership and to the international community as a whole, so that the lessons and experience of the past could be, as appropriate, learned and built on. The Council welcomed in particular the offer by the Secretary- General to provide a report which could guide and inform further consideration of these matters.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  3. “the "The Security Council met at ministerial level on 24 September 2003 to consider 'Justice and the Rule of Law: the United Nations Role'. Ministers expressed their respective views and understandings on, and reaffirmed the vital importance of these issues, recalling the repeated emphasis given to them in the work of the Council, for example in the context of the protection of civilians in armed conflict, in relation to peacekeeping operations and in connection with international criminal justice. "The statements made on 24 September demonstrated the abundant wealth of relevant experience and expertise that exists within the United Nations system and in Member States.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  4. “I believe that today we have made a start by focusing attention on the importance of the rule of law in post-conflict societies, and I hope that we can continue the debate in the future. We look forward to hearing more from the wider United Nations family on 30 September. As President, I encourage the United Nations agencies and the United Nations membership to offer their fullest contributions. We look forward in particular to the Secretary-General's report and to the analysis that we trust it will offer on the way forward on these issues. I now resume my functions as President of the Security Council. After consultations among members of the Security Council, I have been authorized to make the following statement on behalf of the Council.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  5. “People can carry on with their barroom jokes about lawyers, and those of us who, as lawyers, earned an honest pound or dollar in the past will have to bear them. But those barroom jokes should not extend to undermining faith in the rule of law because faith in the rule of law is absolutely fundamental to the way our societies operate and to the operation of the international community. When peacekeeping mandates are under discussion, the Council should be offered advice on securing the necessary expertise. Those responsible for ensuring the rule of law in the absence of effective civilian authorities should follow codes of conduct. That approach should be expanded throughout all relevant United Nations operations and agencies.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  6. “How many times have I been asked in a United Nations forum or, for example, in a European Union forum, for suggestions of such experts. Each time we go back to scratching our heads about who could make a contribution, whereas, frankly, with modern data base systems and the kind of cooperation that is essential, those names and their expertise ought to be available on a standing basis. I hope that the Secretary-General will be able to offer his thoughts on the feasibility of those proposals. The Council should also look at mainstreaming rule of law issues into our work. I say this as a lawyer who has often been the butt of jokes that lawyers are somehow parasitic on society. Whatever people's views may be about lawyers, the rule of law is absolutely fundamental to the operation of societies.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  7. “To achieve that and to help societies break out of persistent poverty by creating the right climate for economic aid and investment in which the rule of law plays a crucial role, we have to harness better the skills and expertise within the United Nations and within other international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. We need expertise that can be delivered speedily and efficiently. I have noticed that a consistent theme of contributions today is the way in which the United Nations could help by establishing a standing data base of experts, nominated by Member States, who would be available if called upon by the Security Council or by States to assist in these areas.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  8. “But the problem is that conflict often breaks out in exactly those societies where democratic structures, including an independent judiciary, are weak. The international community must therefore provide better resources and expert assistance to help rebuild or establish robust democratic structures, including courts. The United Nations experience from its operations in Kosovo, Afghanistan and East Timor underline the fundamental importance not just of judicial systems but of what has to go alongside those systems: police reform, good governance and a functioning and accountable system of public administration.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  9. “I think it will be a very odd situation when the international community is able to find $100 million for the tribunal in Rwanda for a very limited number of indictees but cannot find $4 million to enable this very important tribunal contributing to reconciliation in Sierra Leone to operate. I hope that we can show our commitment to that process. We also hope from our point of view that the International Criminal Court will eventually remove the need for separate international tribunals. As a party to the Statute, the United Kingdom is fully committed to the Court, and we have fully accepted its jurisdiction. That said, we all know that justice is always best delivered at a national level. Therefore, international mechanisms should be a last resort.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  10. “Both those tribunals are costing well over $100 million a year. We need to think about whether that has turned out to be the most efficient expenditure of money. In contrast, the Sierra Leone court has made a good start. In little over a year, it has indicted 12 individuals, and it should begin trials in January of next year. But its continued existence is threatened by the failure of the international community to provide the necessary resources. Bluntly, if we do not receive $4 million before November, the court will be bankrupt before those trials begin.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  11. “The contributions today from colleagues around the table and from the Secretary-General bear that out. I believe that the Council therefore has many lessons to learn and to synthesize from this experience. The tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda have broken new ground in international law. They have shown that no one - no head of Government or State - is above the law. But we also need to recognize that those tribunals are slow and very costly as a form ofjustice. We have tried to apply some of those lessons with the establishment of the Special Court for Sierra Leone. It is set up in the country where the crimes took place and within a time limit of three years. It will deal only with those most responsible for war crimes. It has avoided the top-heavy bureaucracies of the tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  12. “But in too many cases which have come before the Security Council, conflict has soon re- ignited, and this is wasteful not only, obviously, of United Nations resources, but of the hopes and lives of those who suffer. I think that we therefore need to look hard at the reasons why conflicts so often re-ignite and apply the lessons from this to future United Nations interventions. I suggest that we need a more strategic, more coordinated and more consistent approach. The United Nations obviously has much to contribute to this increasingly pressing priority of the international community of managing post-conflict situations. The United Nations has the relevant experience, ranging from international criminal tribunals to training, policing and justice.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  13. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Chile, whom we are very glad to see, for the kind words she addressed to the United Kingdom. I shall now make a statement in my capacity as the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. I have listened today with very great interest to the interventions and suggestions of colleagues assembled here today. I think that we all understand very clearly that free and prosperous societies need order, security, stability and the rule of law. Without the proper protection of human rights, post-conflict societies can easily lapse again into a cycle of violence. In its history, the Security Council has expended a great deal of effort in trying to secure peace around the globe.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  14. “I thank the representative of the United States for his kind words addressed to me. I now give the floor to Her Excellency Mrs. Soledad Alvear Valenzuela, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Chile.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  15. “I thank the Permanent Representative of Angola for his kind words addressed to me. I now call on His Excellency Mr. Martin Belinga- Eboutou, Permanent Representative of Cameroon.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  16. “I thank the representative of Germany for his kind words. I call now on His Excellency Mr. Ismael Gaspar Martins, Permanent Representative of Angola to the United Nations.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  17. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Spain for her kind words addressed to me. I now give the floor to His Excellency Mr. Gunter Pleuger, Permanent Representative of Germany to the United Nations.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  18. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Guinea for his kind words addressed to my colleague Jack Straw. I now call on Her Excellency Ms. Ana Palacio, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Spain.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  19. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria for his statement and for his kind words addressed to my colleague, Jack Straw. I now call on the distinguished Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Guinea, His Excellency Mr. Francois Lonseny Fall.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  20. “I thank the distinguished Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Syrian Arab Republic for his kind words addressed to me. I now call on His Excellency Mr. Solomon Passy, the distinguished Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  21. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Mexico for his kind words. I now call on His Excellency Mr. Farouk Al- Shara', Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Syrian Arab Republic.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  22. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of China for his kind words addressed to me. I now give the floor to His Excellency Mr. Luis Ernesto Derbez, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Mexico.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  23. “I thank the Minister for Foreign Affairs of France for his kind words addressed to me. I now call on His Excellency Mr. Li Zhaoxing, Minister for Foreign Affairs of China.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  24. “I thank the representative of the Russian Federation for the kind words he addressed to me. I now give the floor to His Excellency Mr. Dominique Galouzeau de Villepin, Minister for Foreign Affairs of France.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  25. “I think the representative of Pakistan for his kind words addressed to me. I now call on His Excellency Mr. Igor Ivanov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  26. “I thank the Secretary-General for his important statement. I now call on His Excellency Mr. Khurshid Mehmud Kasuri, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Pakistan.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  27. “Can we anticipate better, and in an integrated way, the need to make laws, to establish judiciaries and to police and implement laws so that we can maximize the chances of States succeeding in their transformation to justice and stability? I invite my colleagues here today to offer their comments and analyses of what the Council has achieved in the past and to offer thoughts and advice on how the Council and the wider United Nations system should address these issues in the future. In view of the demanding schedule of all participants, I should like to remind Council members of the understanding reached among ourselves to limit our statements to eight minutes each. I thank you very much for your understanding and support on that. I give the floor to the Secretary-General, His Excellency Mr. Kofi Annan.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  28. “The United Nations family as a whole has much expertise and experience on these issues. The debate is therefore an opportunity to affirm again the central importance of the rule of law and justice in the work of the United Nations. It is also, I hope, the start of a process. On 30 September there will be an open meeting of the Council, and that will be followed by further meetings, which we hope will involve the wider United Nations family. In sharing and learning from experience, our aim in the presidency is practical. How can the international community be better prepared to support States coming out of conflict?”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source

  29. “Before we go on to the item on the agenda I would like to tell members of the Council that because of other business as President of the Security Council, I shall have to be vacating the chair at about 10.20, and my colleague Hilary Benn, Minister in the Department of International Development, will be taking it for that short period. The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. Justice and the rule of law are vital for the proper functioning of States. They are essential elements in creating and sustaining stable, peaceful and democratic States, so our theme today is important and fundamental. The United Nations and this Council have long wrestled with the challenges of bringing countries out of conflict and into societies based on justice and the rule of law.”

    2003-09-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4833 (2003) · source