YouSaid · the spoken record

Mendonca E Moura

lines on the record: 93
first: 2014-10-23
most recent: 2016-12-20
sittings or episodes: 12
sources: 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

“We cannot remain indifferent to the gross violations of children's rights that we are witnessing everywhere. We thank the leadership of Malaysia for its efforts to consolidate the mechanisms at the disposal of the Council for addressing one of the most appalling scourges of our time.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“That resolution, which my delegation will again present atthe current session of the Human Rights Council, as well as related initiatives in the General Assembly, such as the resolution on education in situations of emergency, which my country also sponsored, are steps in the right direction in order to guarantee what is not only, in itself, a fundamental human right, but also an important tool in the fulfilment of other basic rights. Against that backdrop, Portugal also endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration made public at the recent Oslo conference and calls on the parties to adopt concrete measures to deter the use of schools during conflict, including though the use oftools ofthe Lucens Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use during Armed Conflict.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“In his latest report, the Secretary-General notes the increasing trend towards the use of schools for military purposes, as well as attacks on education. We are gravely concerned about widespread and deliberate attacks against schools, teachers and students as an instrument of warfare. That is a totally unacceptable situation that needs to be urgently redressed. My country has regularly introduced a resolution on the realization of the right to education in the Human Rights Council that was at the origin of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“In that regard, Portugal supports the inclusion of child-protection provisions in the mandates of peace operations and mandatory pre-deployment training on child protection for all United Nations troop and police contingents. However, before attempting to address the difficult challenge of reintegration in society, it is fundamental that children deprived of their liberty for their alleged association with extremist groups should be recognized, in the first instance, as victims of forcible recruitment who have been exposed to extreme brutality. The inadequate provision of education to children in situations of armed conflict is also a serious problem that will have consequences in the long term for the countries concerned. Millions of children are denied their right to education because of armed conflict.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“The resolution represents a further step in holding perpetrators accountable and in investigating and prosecuting those responsible for committing atrocities against children. It is of the utmost importance to recognize the importance of action to promote the physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of child victims of conflict. Efforts should include demobilization and the return of displaced and refugee children. The international community must ensure that adequate resources are devoted to child-rehabilitation programmes and educational training as an integral part of planning for post-conflict situations. In addition, any plans for post-conflict peacebuilding should make the needs of children a central focus.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“As stated in the Secretary-General's latest report (S/2015/409), 2014 was one of the worst years with respect to the effects of armed conflict on children. Children have been disproportionately affected and are often direct targets of extreme violence. Abduction in particular has become a tactic of war used by extremist non-State actors to terrorize and control communities, and it is a first sign of alert for further human rights abuses. Portugal condemns in the most vehement terms the abduction of children and calls on all parties to release all abducted children immediately. Portugal welcomes today's adoption of resolution 2225 (2015) and the expansion of the list of triggers for listing perpetrators in the Secretary-General's annual report to include abduction.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“When children, the most vulnerable of the vulnerable, continue to be victims of armed violence and are killed, injured, abused, abducted and, in some cases, used as soldiers, that represents the collapse of the collective value system of the international community. The international community must ensure the application and observance of normative international instruments such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols, in particular the one on the involvement of children in armed conflict, as well as the Geneva Conventions. The political and ethical role of the Security Council is to send a clear message that abuse against children is unacceptable and, through its action, to combat the sense ofimpunity on the part ofbelligerents responsible for the atrocities and abuses committed against children.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“I would like to thank the Malaysian presidency for convening this open debate and thank today's briefers for their presentations. I would like to offer a special word of thanks to Ms. Leila Zerrougui for the work she has been doing to protect children. Back in 1998, the first ever debate held in the Security Council on the issue of children in armed conflict was promoted by Portugal. We were then fully convinced, as we remain today, that this issue has serious implications for international peace and security. It is appalling that the minimum standards in respect for human right in times of war are systematically ignored and violated by both Government forces and non-State actors.”
2015-06-18 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7466 (2015) · source
“As a universal human right, the freedom of religion or belief safeguards the respect for diversity, and its free exercise directly contributes to democracy, development, the rule of law, peace and stability. We must strive to promote and protect those rights in line with the core values enshrined in all key international human-rights instruments adopted by this Organization.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Concerted action, including through interreligious dialogue initiatives, on the part of all relevant stakeholders - States, religious communities, civil society organizations, media representatives, and so on - is crucial in that regard. The promotion and protection of the rights of persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities contributes to political and social stability and peace and enriches the cultural diversity and heritage of a society. States must promote a culture of tolerance, inter alia, through education, in particular human-rights education. Accordingly, respect for pluralism can only become a reality when social, economic and political inclusion and cohesion in societies occurs. The right to the freedoms of thought, conscience, religion or belief is a fundamental right of every human being.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Addressing the threat posed by non-State armed extremist groups and terrorists calls for a comprehensive approach to the underlying causal factors, including by engaging in an effective communication strategy to prevent the evolution from radicalization to terrorism, to suppress the flow of foreign fighters, but most of all to promote political and religious tolerance, economic development, and social cohesion and inclusiveness. We obviously welcome the proposal announced by the Secretary-General this morning to establish a panel of experts to draw up guidelines to better tackle violent extremism. Long-term stability in the Middle East requires respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as tackling the root causes of extremist ideologies derived from ethnic and religious discrimination and exclusion.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“The international community should hold States and non-State armed groups to account and make them aware of their existing obligations under international law, including human-rights, humanitarian, criminal and refugee law. Overcoming a culture of impunity must be a priority. Those who commit or are complicit in acts of violence must be brought to justice. Portugal believes that the International Criminal Court should continue to play a fundamental role in deterrence, complementary to the role played by courts at the national level, by holding perpetrators accountable and by investigating and prosecuting those responsible for committing atrocities against civilian populations.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“It is the obligation of States to ensure that persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities "may exercise fully and effectively all their human rights and fundamental freedoms without any discrimination and in full equality before the law", as proclaimed in the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities. Furthermore, States have the responsibility to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, and from incitements to commit such acts. Human-rights abuses are the first signal of alert that genocide and crimes against humanity may follow.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Hatred and violence towards ethnic or religious communities do not occur without the prior stigmatization and dehumanization of targeted groups and the incitement to hate. It is the result of a social, cultural, economic and political legacy that usually finds expression in discriminatory policies and practices of exclusion and marginalization, State repression, endemic corruption, lack of trust in public institutions, a culture of impunity and the denial of human rights and the tenets of international humanitarian law.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“The attacks against the Yazidi community in Iraq, the abduction and killing of Christians in Syria, the beheading of Coptic Christians in Libya, the deliberate targeting by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) of ethnic and religious communities, such as Sunni Muslims, Christians, Yazidis, Shabaks and other groups in Syria, are some of the unspeakable examples that demand a collective and urgent action from all of us. Tactics to foment terror and fear are also being used by ISIS and other extremist groups to exert control over communities by vandalizing and destroying what is most sacred - places of worship and religious and cultural heritage sites. Human rights Violations by States can contribute to radicalization and recruitment.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“We must act together and promptly in order to tackle it. We are appalled at the increasing Violations of international humanitarian law and serious human- rights abuses, including mass killings, extrajudicial and summary executions, the deliberate targeting of civilians, mass expulsions, forced conversions and other forms of the targeted persecution of individuals on the basis of their religion, belief or ethnicity.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Manifestations of religious-based intolerance and violence are increasing in many regions of the world. Violent incidents targeting individuals, communities and sites on the grounds of ethnicity, religion or belief are occurring in increasing numbers in various countries. This situation is exacerbated in situations of armed conflict, where persons belonging to minority groups often disproportionately suffer the effects of hostilities and are particularly vulnerable to displacement through population relocations and forced migration. They often form a considerable part of the refugee flows. It is a global scourge. No region is free from that phenomenon, but the widespread and systematic violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the Middle East, a region with very diverse ethnic and religious groups, is of particular concern.”
2015-03-27 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7419 (2015) · source
“Children should attend school, play and be able to enjoy their childhood without suffering from the effects of war or armed conflict. It is our collective duty to do our outmost to further improve their lives by intensifying the use of the instruments at the disposal of the Security Council.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“Portugal endorses the Lucens Guidelines for Protecting Schools and Universities from Military Use during Armed Conflict as concrete guidelines to protect educational infrastructures from use by armed groups for military purposes and to minimize the negative impact that armed conflict has on education. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the adoption of resolution 1612 (2005), which established the Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict, and the first anniversary of the "Children, Not Soldiers" campaign, launched last year by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, whom I wish to congratulate, and UNICEF, which Portugal fully supports. It is time to end the suffering of child victims of armed conflict and violence.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“We must ensure adequate predeployment training in child protection for peacekeepers and effective screening of peacekeepers to ensure that individuals who have committed grave violations against children do not serve with the United Nations. Lastly, we remain severely concerned with the ongoing pattern of attacks on schools and with their use for military purposes. Schools and education facilities are being systematically used as barracks, firing positions, detention centres and torture chambers both by regular armed forces and by armed non-State opposition groups, endangering children and rendering them vulnerable to attack.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“Portugal believes that the International Criminal Court continues to play a fundamental deterrent role, complementary to the roles of tribunals at the national and international levels, by holding perpetrators accountable and by investigating and prosecuting those responsible for committing atrocities against children. On peacekeeping operations, Portugal strongly supports the inclusion of child protection advisers in mandates, as well as mandatory training on the protection of children, to ensure that the situation of children affected by armed conflict is adequately addressed in peace missions by promoting advocacy, mainstreaming, training, monitoring and reporting.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“First, we believe that the Council should consider expanding the list of triggers for listing perpetrators in the Secretary-General's annual report, to include abduction. Abduction has become a warfare tactic used by extremist non-State actors to terrorize and control specific ethnic or religious communities and it is a first sign of alert for further human rights abuses. Children are being abducted to serve as combatants or to be used as bombers, sexual slaves and other unspeakable abuses. Secondly, we must address the issue of impunity. Most of the persistent perpetrators listed in the annual report of the Secretary-General are non-State armed groups.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“Portugal believes that the Council must continue to seek the best way to promote the protection of children affected by armed conflict and to better respond to the magnitude and extent of the challenges posed by the tremendous brutality of the acts of violence committed by non-State armed groups. In that regard, action plans are an outstanding tool to engage with armed forces and non-State armed groups, and can play a positive role in ending violations against children. We welcome the ongoing coordination efforts of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, UNICEF and the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, but believe that further efforts are necessary to engage with non-State armed groups, and to that end the cooperation of concerned Governments is crucial. I wish to make a few points.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“Graca Machel presented her study (A/51/306) on the impact of armed conflict on children, much has been done, and for several years the Council has developed a normative framework for the protection of children in situations of armed conflict and for the promotion and protection of human rights and international humanitarian law. However, despite the significant progress achieved and the establishment of a strong normative framework through the adoption of several resolutions, enormous challenges remain, due in particular to the changing nature of conflict.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“Children, because of their vulnerability, not only suffer directly the consequences of armed conflict and of the collapse of the social fabric, but are deliberately targeted and subjected to forced recruitment, sexual violence, displacement, killing, maiming and abduction, among other appalling brutalities. The situation has been exacerbated by the actions of extremist non-State armed groups, as recent events that have shocked the world's conscience have proved, such as the abduction of more than 200 school girls by Boko Haram, the deliberate attacks perpetrated against a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, or the barbaric acts committed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and other extremist groups. Protecting children from the ravages of war is a moral imperative and an issue of international peace and security. Since 1996, when Mrs.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“I would like to thank you, Mr. President, for convening this open debate on children in armed conflict, with a particular emphasis on child victims of armed non-State actors, and thank today's briefers for their presentations. Portugal aligns itself with the statement made by the observer of the European Union, but let me underline some aspects of particular significance to my country. The harmful and widespread impact of armed conflict on children and its long-term consequences for durable peace, security and development are undeniable.”
2015-03-25 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7414 (2015) · source
“I take this opportunity to call on all countries that have not yet done so to accede to or ratify the 1954 Convention relating to Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, the key legal instruments and fundamental elements for the prevention of international conflicts and for the mitigation of their effects.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“Statelessness is widely recognized as a source of injustice, discrimination, marginalization and life-long stigma for millions of individuals. It perpetuates the tragic effects of conflict, forced displacement and migration. The discrimination against women in nationality laws is a widespread and grave source of statelessness. Women are particularly victimized in that instance not only because of gender- based discrimination but also because they can be perceived as the source of discrimination from which their children and extended families suffer, often with pervasive, devastating effects. It is high time that the matter be addressed at the highest level with a view to its complete eradication.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“Our work on this matter strengthens the broader women and peace and security agenda and underlines the need to further empower women politically and economically. The year 2015 will provide a unique political opportunity for the advancement of the women and peace and security agenda. The high-level review of the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) and the global study requested in resolution 2122 (2013), as well as the celebrations of Beijing+20 and the discussions of the post-2015 development agenda, will all take place. All of us will have a renewed chance to make our policies on that matter more tangible. Let me conclude with a specific call to action by drawing the Council's attention to the goal that the High Commissioner for Refugees has set: to eliminate statelessness worldwide by 2024.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“At the multilateral, regional and national levels, we should also welcome the fact that organizations such as the African Union and NATO have named special envoys for women and peace and security and that an increasing number of countries have developed national action plans to implement resolution 1325 (2000) and its successors. It is now necessary to sustain and develop the progress already achieved. The Security Council, as well as the entire United Nations system, must maintain its commitment to that agenda. In that regard, Portugal welcomes the expanding focus on sexual violence in conflict. Sexual violence is a scourge that affects directly and indirectly generations of victims of conflict.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“Portugal is encouraged by several very positive developments as regards women and peace and security, such as the fact that this issue is a consistent feature in Security Council resolutions and peacekeeping mandates, as well as the fact that gender-sensitive reporting is now understood as a fundamental element for a thorough understanding of a given situation. We are proud to have worked towards such mainstreaming, together with many partners within the Security Council during our recent mandate on the Council, as well as with the wider membership of the United Nations, thereby fulfilling pledges assumed before our election to this body. A very special word of thanks and encouragement must also go to the non-governmental organizations and civil society community, which has been of invaluable support and generosity in its advocacy.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“Disease generates panic and the disruption of economic and social networks and is itself fanned by further displacement, misinformation and fear. The short- and long- term impact of mass displacement requires no further description. Nonetheless, it requires mutual cooperation and concerted action by all stakeholders. However unprecedented and unconventional today's conflicts may appear, they nevertheless have well- known, traditional and destructive effects on the civilian population, in particular those at the greatest risk: women and girls.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“It has also led to the orientation of resources towards a deeper knowledge of the consequences of conflicts and better institution- and capacity-building with regard to the role and the empowerment of women. Turning to the matter at hand, I would like to congratulate Argentina, and the Security Council at large, on the choice of the subject for today's open debate. It is a subject of cruel pertinence. This year, we have reached the highest number of refugees and internally displaced persons since the Second World War. Unfortunately, we must expect the situation to worsen before it improves. New reasons to expect further displacement are emerging at an alarming rate. State and non-State sponsored violence, often tinged with religious extremism, targets civilians, in particular women and girls.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“I wish to thank Ms. Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN-Women, Mr. Mulet, Assistant Secretary-General of Peacekeeping Operations, Mr. Beyani, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, and the representative of the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security, Ms. Allami, for their briefings. We also welcome the adoption of presidential statement S/PRST/2014/2l earlier today. The role of women in peace and security and the specific impact of the lack of peace and security on women have only recently attracted consistent attention from the highest international decision-making bodies. Yet the progress made is very significant. Such progress has led to a better comprehension of the sources of conflict, as well as of the paths towards peace and reconstruction.”
2014-10-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7289 (2014) · source
“They are good news for accountability and transparency, two aspects very dear to the Accountability, Coherence and Transparency Group, of which Portugal is a member.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“We would encourage members of the Council to use these coming months before the end of the year, in consultation with the recently elected members, to put into practice this agreement, thereby engaging in a more participatory informal process of appointment through the establishment of a facilitation arrangement involving the incoming members, but also the participation and experience of those who remain in and those who will be leaving the Council. I would say one final word to congratulate the Council for reintroducing and reinvigorating the wrap- up meetings. We think that they represent a bold step in the right direction in promoting the relationship between the Council and the wider membership.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“Finally, on the election of the chairs of the subsidiary bodies, again, the Council already agreed in December 2012, in its note contained in document S/2012/937 to "support an informal process with the participation of all Council members as regards appointing the Chairpersons of subsidiary bodies from among Council members in a balanced, transparent, efficient and inclusive way" (S/2012/937, para. 2).”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“Next month, we will have the opportunity to debate this issue when the annual report will be presented in the General Assembly. Secondly, on penholders, we welcome the note by the President (S/2014/268) on this issue and recent positive examples of co-penholdership in drafting initiatives, which is encouraging. We would welcome, in that vein, more joint initiatives by Council members. We encourage in particular the newly elected members, who we take the opportunity to congratulate again on their election, to use the avenue opened by this note. Through co-penholdership, we believe one can improve the end result in substantive terms, even in the facilitating of the negotiating process within the Council.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“Before I conclude, I would like to highlight with a few brief remarks, in view of the time available, some of the very important aspects related to the Council's working methods. First, the annual reports serve two purposes: statistical records and information. A considerable part of the report is not meant to be read, but rather consulted. That is the part containing statistical data for historical record and future reference. The other part, which is basically the introduction, should be informative, and that is where there is still much work to do. We think that it is through more informative monthly assessments, particularly on subjects discussed in consultations, that those parts should be substantially enhanced.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“Once the Council uses that instrument, it should remain engaged with the International Criminal Court (ICC), in particular in the cooperation aspects necessary for the Court to perform a judicial function. From the perspective of working methods, it makes sense that the Council establish an efficient way to address those aspects of its relationship with the ICC without necessarily having to overburden its already charged plan of work. In that regard, it should be worth considering having issues relating specifically to the follow-up of Council referrals considered by a subsidiary body, which should review them and, whenever needed, recommend Council action. That is a matter that is not only relevant to the ICC. It has to do with a broader issue, which is the implementation of the Council's own decisions.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“Bearing in mind the substantive results of its work, the Office of the Ombudsperson offers today a remedy for those requesting delistings that has proved to be real and effective. It would be useful to replicate that experience in other sanctions committees. For our part, we reiterate our support to extending the mandate of the Ombudsperson to other relevant sanctions committees. Those will lead to strengthening the targeted nature of sanctions and will help States in their domestic implementation, thus improving the overall effectiveness of the sanctions regimes. Secondly, referrals are a prerogative of the Council and an instrument to counter impunity made available to the Council by the Rome Statute.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“I wish to now briefly address the issues you highlighted, Madam President, in your very comprehensive concept paper (S/2014/725, annex). First, the work of sanctions committees represents, no doubt, a heavy portion of the Council's activity, but a significant part of it remains invisible. Sanctions committees require efficiency in their working methods, but also transparency. Transparency is key to facilitating an understanding of the sanctions regimes by States, which are the ones committees rely upon for the effective implementation of sanctions. The past decade has brought about new developments in this area. One of them is the establishment of the post of Ombudsperson for the Committee pursuant to resolutions 1267 (1999) and 1989 (2011) concerning Al-Qaida and associated individuals and entities, which we warmly welcome.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source
“I would like to thank Argentina for putting the working methods of the Council at the centre of the agenda during its presidency this month, and for your leadership, Madam President, of the Informal Working Group on Documentation and Other Procedural Questions, which since 2013 has produced six important President's notes on working methods. What we are debating today is no longer only about the implementation of the note contained in document S/2010/507 but also the implementation of subsequent notes that complement it and even innovate. That might suggest changing the title of the agenda item to "Security Council working methods", reflecting that the debate is not about the implementation of note 507 alone but now goes well beyond it.”
2014-10-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.7285Resumption1 (2014) · source