YouSaid · the spoken record

Keisal M. Peters

lines on the record

20

first

2020-12-03

most recent

2021-06-29

sittings or episodes

3

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un-security-council

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

1. “In cyberspace, we encourage all actors in the international community to comply with their international legal obligations including the respect of sovereignty and political independence as enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, and the principles for peaceful dispute settlement in the same manner as in the physical world. The urgent drive to maintain international peace and security in cyberspace must never stop.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

2. “In our effort to advance responsible State behaviour in cyberspace in the context of international peace and security, we must be guided by the assessments and recommendations contained in the consensus Group of Governmental Experts (Group of Governmental Experts) reports in 2010, 2013, 2015 and the most recent in 2021, as well as the conclusions and recommendations of the final report of the United Nations Open-ended Working Group. To conclude, failure to agree on the rules of engagement, policy norms, and international cooperation mechanisms for a peaceful ICT environment would only yield new sources of instability and conflict.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

3. “The campaign is an awareness-building initiative to empower students to make the right digital decisions. The three focus areas are information security, hardware safety and navigating safely online. The importance of information exchange among Member States and regional and international organizations are essential for ensuring stability and to prevent escalations of cybersecurity incidents. Moreover, we call on Member States to remain committed to international law and the framework for responsible State behaviour in cyberspace.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

4. “In August of 2016, lawmakers passed the Cybercrime Bill 2016 into law, thus providing the country with substantive and procedural law to be able to deal with cybercrime more effectively. We are also committed to our regional cybersecurity agreements within the OAS and CARICOM. Due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and further disruption due to our recent volcanic eruption, schools within our country have switched to remote education, as is the case all over the world. With thousands of children receiving tablets from the Government to facilitate this transition, there has been increased volumes of Internet use and screen time. Considering this, the Ministry of Education and National Reconciliation has embarked on a #GoCyberSmart campaign to promote cybersafety.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

5. “We must explore possibilities for further capacity-building and technical assistance resources. The United Nations needs to enhance assistance to Member States and further help ensure coherence of efforts among the range of United Nations entities engaging in cyberspace. These efforts should be tied into the Organization’s broader goals. Despite our many challenges as a small island developing State, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has taken concrete steps to improve its ability to tackle the scourge of cybercrime. Two laws, the Electronic Evidence Act (2004) and the Electronic Transactions Act (2007), underpin a basic legislative framework for cybersecurity in the country.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

6. “To be sure, the misuse of ICTs poses a risk for all States and has the potential to negatively impact international peace and security. It is therefore imperative that we build on an earlier commitment to generate confidence-building measures that enhance international peace and security and increase cooperation, transparency, predictability, and stability among Member States in this field. An open, secure, stable, accessible and peaceful ICT environment is essential for all and requires effective cooperation among States to reduce risks to international peace and security. Additionally, other actors with different capacities and capabilities from across different sectors at all levels of the global ICT chain, have a key role in ensuring cybersecurity.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

7. “We would like to express our appreciation to the Estonian presidency for its initiative to hold today’s high-level open debate on a topic that is critically important, for taking stock of the Security Council’s performance in its task of maintaining international peace and security. Let me also express my appreciation to all of today’s briefers for their insightful presentations. In the contemporary world, cyberspace touches nearly every part of our daily lives. The role of information and communications technology (ICT) in enabling economic and social benefits is clear. Yet, despite these benefits, the world must remain cognizant of the serious ICT problems that exists. The global ICT environment is facing a dramatic increase in the malicious use of ICTs by State and non-State actors.”

   2021-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/621 (2021) · source

8. “As such, we reiterate our call for the perpetrators of these abhorrent acts to be held accountable. Civilians across the globe have suffered as a result of geopolitical dynamics over which they have neither influence nor control. We therefore call on parties to conflicts to demonstrate the political will required to achieve lasting peace and stability. The Council has a responsibility to advocate for the victims of armed conflict. We must continue to raise our voices to ensure their protection and to make certain that the international community honours its legal and moral responsibilities to safeguard the survival of people impacted by conflicts around the world.”

   2021-04-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/415 (2021) · source

9. “The rehabilitation of infrastructure already devastated must also be prioritized to alleviate dire humanitarian situations. In this regard, we continue to encourage the international community to contribute to the restoration of critical infrastructure in countries affected by armed conflict, without which millions will be forced to remain dependent on humanitarian assistance for basic necessities. Reconstruction is also a necessary element, which facilitates the safe, voluntary and dignified return of refugees and internally displaced persons to their places of origin. Acts committed in violation of international law must not be tolerated under any circumstances and must be met with condemnation from the international community. The link between justice and peace has long been recognized.”

   2021-04-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/415 (2021) · source

10. “In conflict-affected areas of Somalia, water and sanitation infrastructure have been destroyed, reducing access to clean water and increasing the risk of preventable diseases, such as cholera. The destruction that occurs as a result of deliberate and indiscriminate attacks hinders efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The destruction of resources needed for civilian life, living and production is causing unbearable suffering for too many people around the world. It is only through staunch compliance with the principles of international law that civilians and civilian infrastructure will be afforded the protection they rightly deserve. We call on all parties to conflict to safeguard water stations, health-care facilities and other essential infrastructure necessary to reduce vulnerabilities and promote development.”

    2021-04-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/415 (2021) · source

11. “When coupled with climate change, severe weather events and environmental degradation, these conflicts have a dramatic impact on civilians, particularly women and children, and extend further, impeding the overall recovery of the countries affected. We have seen the reality of these effects across protracted conflicts on the Security Council agenda. In Yemen, the health system is crippled, leaving half of the facilities operational, rendering the country ill-equipped to combat the coronavirus disease pandemic. A similarly grave situation exists in Syria, where 10 years of war have left over 13 million Syrians in need of multidimensional forms of humanitarian assistance, including shelter, following mass displacements, and basic health care.”

    2021-04-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/415 (2021) · source

12. “Sanctions and ill-designed counter-terrorism measures continue to stymie both development and humanitarian access in many locales, bringing untold suffering upon the local population in an attempt to achieve narrow political objectives. To be sure, counter-terrorism operations are sometimes necessary to protect people and preserve a country’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. However, both sanctions and counter-terrorism measures must comply with all principles of international humanitarian law and international human-rights law. The socioeconomic impact of armed conflict often gives rise to perilous humanitarian crises.”

    2021-04-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/415 (2021) · source

13. “Saint Vincent and the Grenadines thanks Viet Nam for convening this timely open debate, and, furthermore, we extend our gratitude to the briefers for their insightful remarks. The prohibition against the attack, destruction, removal or rendering useless objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population remains a core tenet of international humanitarian law, as enshrined in the Geneva Conventions. Military objectives should never take precedence over the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure. Far too often, State and non-State actors alike have violated well established principles of the law of armed conflict, particularly those of distinction, proportionality and precaution.”

    2021-04-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2021/415 (2021) · source

14. “We also encourage the donor community to increase its efforts to provide predictable, reliable and sustainable financing to security sector reform initiatives through their overseas development assistance programmes. In conclusion, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines emphasizes that all security sector governance and reform efforts must place people at the centre. Security architecture must provide protection and access to justice for all, without discrimination, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. As we commence this important Decade of Action for the Sustainable Development Goals, let us recommit ourselves to building a more peaceful and prosperous world.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source

15. “These processes must be context-specific and structured around the unique histories, cultures, politics and the material circumstances of development that exist within each particular country.In the light of the foregoing, we underscore the importance of the African Union Policy Framework on Security Sector Reform and the range of measures spearheaded by the African Union (AU) to enhance continental peace and security, including the Silencing the Guns initiative and the AU’s Agenda 2063. We encourage closer collaboration between the United Nations and the African Union in providing operational guidance to those peacekeeping operations mandated to provide security sector reform assistance to host-countries in Africa.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source

16. “It must also be highlighted that the positive social changes envisaged through these initiatives can never be externally imposed — they ought to emerge organically from within the State with the support of those actors who have the expertise and contextual understanding of local and regional security dynamics. There can be no one-size-fits-all approach to security sector governance and reform.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source

17. “To maximize the impact of security sector governance and reform, these initiatives must be linked to wider development efforts to enhance the judicial and legislative system, improve training and education and address structural barriers to social, economic and political participation. In that regard, it is crucial that a holistic view of the drivers of conflict across the peace and security, development and humanitarian nexus be incorporated into the reform process. The effects of contemporary drivers of insecurity, such as climate change, environmental degradation, health crises and cyberactivity, should not be overlooked.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source

18. “It is therefore essential that all security sector governance and reform efforts be based on inclusive public consultations that allow for the engagement of all segments of society, including civil society organizations, women and youth advocacy groups, faith-based organizations, academia and the private sector, as well as regional and subregional organizations and other partners that assist Member States with their reform agendas. We welcome the capacity-building assistance provided to conflict- affected countries in the areas of police, justice and corrections through the Global Focal Point for the Rule of Law, as well as the programmatic activities of the Peacebuilding Commission.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source

19. “In conflict-affected countries, especially those that suffer the deleterious effects of armed group activity, security sector reform has an important normative impact. As those with the responsibility for protecting civilians, upholding the rule of law and providing security become more organized and professionalized, a culture of security permeates throughout society as people become predisposed to building lasting, peaceful and stable relationships. Such mending of the social fabric can be facilitated only through effective, transparent and accountable institutions that are responsive to the needs of citizens.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source

20. “Saint Vincent and the Grenadines welcomes today’s discussion on security sector governance and reform. We commend South Africa through you, Mr. President, for this initiative, and we thank the briefers for their insightful remarks. The complex security challenges facing our world today can be successfully resolved only through integrated and coherent strategies that address the root causes of insecurity, strengthen social cohesion and bolster national ownership of political and peace processes. Security sector governance and reform play a central role in peacebuilding and sustaining peace by streamlining critical governance functions and reordering institutional arrangements to promote stability, enhance community engagement, build public trust and create an environment conducive to national development plans and priorities.”

    2020-12-03 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/2020/1176 (2020) · source