YouSaid · the spoken record

Ketumile Masire

lines on the record
13
first
2000-01-24
most recent
2000-01-24
sittings or episodes
1
sources
un-security-council

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  1. “We should move with greater speed than ever before. This meeting should accelerate the peace process if our efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are to have any meaning for the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Once again, allow me to reiterate my appreciation for having been associated with this momentous meeting of the Security Council on the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In undertaking this enormously challenging task, I look forward to, and count on, the Council's strong support.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  2. “If we falter in this regard, then the entire peace process will be in jeopardy. I therefore see an urgent need to ensure that a group of competent personnel is made available to buttress the facilitation effort. The period of the negotiations will entail extensive travel and consultations with all relevant players, including the mediator, President Chiluba, other regional leaders and the parties to the conflict. I therefore wish to emphasize that the entire process will be costly, calling for concrete support by all countries of goodwill, for in the pursuit of peace there should be no room for neutrality. This Council, I believe, should move beyond pronouncements and translate the goodwill gestures made so far into a collective international undertaking. In making this appeal, I am aware that time is not on our side.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  3. “The current goodwill expressed by the international community should be translated into concrete assistance in order to enable the inter-Congolese dialogue to commence while the commitment by all parties to the ceasefire holds. More importantly, I am convinced that international pressure should continue to be exerted on all the parties to remain committed to resolving problems in the Democratic Republic of the Congo through peaceful means. I also believe that for the inter-Congolese dialogue to succeed, the international community should continue to provide all the requisite resources for the successful completion of the peace process in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. While resources are needed to sustain the military aspects of the Agreement, adequate funding is equally critical for the inter-Congolese political negotiations.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  4. “I have come into the process with an open mind, but also with a strong determination to work with my brothers and sisters from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to help them shape the destiny of their own country. The responsibility to assist the Congolese parties to achieve this noble objective is therefore a heavy and onerous challenge for all of us. I believe that the most critical challenge to facilitating the political dialogue would be how to determine the nature and the content of the dialogue and the criteria for participation, and how to organize the infrastructure that will provide the necessary backdrop for the negotiations.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  5. “I hope that the calendar of the inter-Congolese political negotiations leading to the establishment of new institutions will be limited to the shortest possible time, bearing in mind the plight of the Congolese people and given the resource constraints. As would be evident from the foregoing, I am under no illusion that the inter-Congolese negotiations will be anything but a difficult and arduous process. I cannot claim at this point to have answers to the problems in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and neither should anyone in the international community be so presumptuous as to think that we know more about what is best for the Congolese people than they themselves.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  6. “In the Agreement the signatories have committed themselves to a political process in which the Congolese parties should agree, inter alia, on the timetable and the rules of procedure of the inter-Congolese political negotiations; the formation of a new Congolese national army; a new political dispensation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in particular the institutions to be established for good governance in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; the process of free, democratic and transparent elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and the promulgation of a new Constitution, which will govern the conduct of affairs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo after the holding of democratic elections.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  7. “I believe that for the success of the all-inclusive inter-Congolese political negotiations leading to national reconciliation, I, as the facilitator, shall be responsible for, among other things, making the necessary contacts aimed at the convening of the inter-Congolese political negotiations within a conducive environment for all participants. The Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement outlines the framework and objectives of the inter-Congolese political dialogue.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  8. “Indeed, I believe that it was precisely in recognition of this linkage that the ceasefire document itself underlined the need for inter-Congolese political negotiations. I am fully aware of the commitment of the parties as enshrined in the modalities for the implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement. The parties agreed that on the coming into force of the Ceasefire Agreement in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, they would do their utmost to embark on inter-Congolese political negotiations, which should lead to a new political dispensation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Furthermore, and in order to arrive at the new political dispensation and national reconciliation emerging from the political dialogue, the parties agreed upon a number of principles elaborated in the Agreement and its annexes.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  9. “Equally, there has also been a strong recognition of the need to address the internal political problems within the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as the security concerns of the neighbouring countries. Based on these principles and concerns, the OAU, the countries of the region and the United Nations brokered a Ceasefire Agreement among the belligerents in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There are people present here who are more competent than me to discuss the military aspects of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, permit me to underscore the important linkages between the military and the political aspects of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  10. “However, the perseverance of all concerned seems to be paying off at last, and we can, as diplomats in the corridors of the United Nations are fond of saying, claim to be "cautiously optimistic". The origins of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are complex and reflect the internal political, economic and social problems within the country itself, as well as an external dimension relating to the security concerns of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and those of the neighbouring countries. I wish to highlight the fact that throughout the peace process, the inviolability of the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been consistently reaffirmed by the OAU and the countries of the region.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  11. “This is all the more reason why the involvement of the Security Council is both timely and welcome. I wish also to express my profound appreciation to President Frederick Chiluba of Zambia and his colleagues in the region, as well as to the Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), for spearheading efforts to resolve the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and for facilitating the implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement. It is gratifying to note that since fighting broke out in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 2 August 1998 the OAU, in collaboration with the countries of the region and the United Nations, has been at the forefront of efforts aimed at facilitating a peaceful resolution of the conflict. This has not been an easy task.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  12. “This unprecedented series of meetings of the Security Council dedicated to the discussion of African issues - on the initiative of the United States presidency of the Council - is not only welcome, but will help alleviate suspicions, fears and concerns over the commitment of the United Nations, and the wider international community, to issues relating to peace, security and stability on the African continent. As we are all aware, the crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, more than any other contemporary crisis on the continent today, has pitted a number of countries in the region against each other, and therefore represents a real threat to peace and stability in the Central African region, otherwise known as the Great Lakes region.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source

  13. “Sir Ketumile Masire: I wish to express my appreciation to you, Madam President, to Ambassador Holbrooke and to our brother Kofi Annan, Secretary- General of the United Nations, for inviting me to attend this meeting of the Security Council to discuss the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This meeting is being held against the backdrop of the increasing threats to the peace and security of the African continent, which continue to militate against the socio-economic development of Africa.”

    2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source