YouSaid · the spoken record

Secretary-General

lines on the record: 2,998
first: 1995-09-26
most recent: 2021-05-16
sittings or episodes: 363
sources: un-security-council

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“I urge the Council to support these efforts and to consider taking further steps towards this fundamental strengthening of the Organization's ability to protect civilians in armed conflict. The second recommendation I wish to mention relates to cases where there has been sufficient warning of impending attacks or an escalation of conflict and where the Council has in some instances made use of preventive deployments. In February this year, we successfully concluded such a mission in the Central African Republic. The positive impact of preventive measures continues to be proved also by the role of the United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka as a stabilizing force in the Prevlaka peninsula.”
2000-04-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4130 (2000) · source
“My report on the protection of civilians in armed conflict contained a number of recommendations. Today, I wish to draw particular attention to three of them and urge the Council to give greater consideration to their implementation. Perhaps the most far-reaching of the recommendations related to the creation of a rapid deployment force. During the very same week that I urged this step, events in East Timor offered the clearest evidence of the need for such a capacity. In that case, thankfully, the Australian Government, supported by other Council members, stepped in to fill the vacuum. Nevertheless, the crisis underscored the importance of having a more systematic rapid-reaction capacity in the United Nations.”
2000-04-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4130 (2000) · source
“We have sought to strengthen the protection of internally displaced persons, most recently in February of this year, when my Representative on Internally Displaced Persons undertook a mission to Burundi to urge the Government to dismantle the regroupment camps. Elsewhere in Africa, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is implementing programmes for prevention and response to sexual violence in Tanzania, Kenya, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Working with representatives in the field, the United Nations Children's Fund, the World Health Organization and my Special Representative for Children in Armed Conflict have negotiated "days of tranquility", making arrangements in Angola, East Timor, Sierra Leone and Sri Lanka in order to permit immunization and vaccination campaigns.”
2000-04-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4130 (2000) · source
“The mandates of the United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) and the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) made specific provision for the protection of civilians, and the mandates of UNAMSIL and the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MON UC) provided for support for the protection of children through the deployment of Child Protection Advisors. The efforts within the Council and the General Assembly have been supported in a variety of ways by the Secretariat and United Nations agencies, as well as by non-govemmental organizations, our valued partners.”
2000-04-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4130 (2000) · source
“The General Assembly has focused its efforts on strengthening legal protections: the adoption of a text by the working group on an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the expansion of efforts to strengthen and extend the Protocol to the 1994 Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel. The Security Council has also taken action to provide enhanced protection for civilians. These efforts have found most concrete expression in establishment of the peacekeeping operations in Sierra Leone, East Timor and the Democratic Republic of Congo.”
2000-04-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4130 (2000) · source
“I am very pleased to join you today for this important debate dedicated to the protection of civilians in armed conflict. I wish to welcome the Foreign Minister of Canada and to express my appreciation for his commitment to making this issue a priority for the entire United Nations system. I also wish to welcome the new President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mr. Jakob Kellenberger, to this meeting. The first debate on civilians in armed conflict last year laid the groundwork for today's vital effort to transform our words of commitment into a better, safer reality for the most vulnerable of our world. I am pleased to say that both the Security Council and the General Assembly followed up last year's debate with concrete steps.”
2000-04-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4130 (2000) · source
“For, after all, they are not the intended targets of sanctions. That said, all of us must realize that the people of a State which is the object of sanctions must always, in some degree, be Victims - often, Victims both of their own Government and of the measures taken against it. The only satisfactory outcome of any such situation is for the State in question to return to full compliance with the decisions of the Council, so that sanctions can be ended as quickly as possible. I have no doubt that all of us look forward with impatience to the day when that will happen in the case of Iraq.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“That report, which has been echoed by many other observers, showed that, in the centre and south of Iraq, infant mortality and morbidity have increased dramatically and reached unacceptable levels. We cannot in all conscience ignore such reports, or assume that they are wrong. It is imperative that we all - the Secretariat, the Council and the Committee established by resolution 661 (1990) - implement fully and expeditiously what the Council's resolutions demand of us. I am very happy, therefore, to hear that the Committee is now ready to give us the list of drugs and other medical supplies which, under resolution 1284 (1999), the Secretariat will henceforth be able to approve on its own authority. Indeed, the Council should seek every opportunity to alleviate the suffering of the population.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“Let me conclude by saying that the humanitarian situation in Iraq poses a serious moral dilemma for this Organization. The United Nations has always been on the side of the vulnerable and the weak and has always sought to relieve suffering. Yet here we are accused of causing suffering to an entire population. We are in danger of losing the argument, or the propaganda war - if we have not lost it already - about who is responsible for this situation in Iraq: President Saddam Hussein or the United Nations. I am particularly concerned about the situation of Iraqi children, whose suffering and, in all too many cases, untimely death, have been documented in the report prepared last year by UNICEF and the Iraqi Ministry of Health.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“We need a mechanism to review these holds, in order to ensure the smooth functioning of the programme. Of course, we also need the cooperation of the Government of Iraq. I would urge it to take all necessary steps to ensure the effective and prompt distribution of the imported items. I am sure that, if the programme as amended by resolution 1284 (1999) is fully implemented, there will soon be a considerable improvement in the humanitarian situation. But let us be under no illusions: even if it is implemented perfectly, it is possible that our efforts will prove insufficient to satisfy the population's needs. The Council therefore needs to keep the effectiveness and impact of the programme constantly under review and take further steps to improve it should that prove necessary.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“However, Iraq's oil industry is seriously hampered by a lack of spare parts and equipment, and this threatens to undermine the programme's income in the long term. That is why I have repeatedly recommended a significant increase in the allocation of resources under the programme for the purchase of spare parts for the oil industry. I understand that the Council is now ready to consider these recommendations favourably, and I would very much welcome that. But I should also mention that many of the holds on contract applications, imposed by members of the Committee established pursuant to resolution 661 (1990), do have a direct negative impact on the humanitarian programme and on efforts to rehabilitate Iraq's infrastructure, most of which is in appalling disrepair.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“In its original form, it was subject to tight restrictions, both on the types of goods Iraq was allowed to import, which were limited to food and medicine and other strictly humanitarian items, and on the revenue it was allowed to generate by oil exports. Since then, as a result of decisions made by this Council over the past three years, the list of items Iraq is allowed to import has been considerably expanded and liberalized. Now, under the terms of resolution 1284 (1999), the ceiling on oil exports has been completely eliminated. Furthermore, the recent rise in the price of oil has greatly increased the value of the exports, with the result that a much larger income is now available for the programme.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“My report is already in the Council's hands. If I may, I will make just a few brief remarks about the oil-for-food programme, limiting myself to the humanitarian aspects of resolution 1284 (1999) and the actions that they call for from the United Nations. I also have with me Ms. Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and Mr. Benon Sevan, Executive Director of the Iraq Programme, who will be available to answer any questions the Council may have. As the Council knows, the oil-for-food programme has been in existence for a little over three years. Its purpose is to alleviate the impact of sanctions on the Iraqi population, since they are not its direct targets. It has undoubtedly brought them some relief, but many of the essential needs of the population remain unsatisfied.”
2000-03-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4120 (2000) · source
“We must also renew our efforts in the political sphere, where we can do more to channel differences peacefully through the rule of law; in the military and security sphere, where we can do more to help armed factions transform themselves into political civilian organizations; in the humanitarian sphere, where we can do more to alleviate the suffering of civilians as the first victims of war and the last beneficiaries of peace; and in the socio-economic sphere, where we can do more to link post-conflict reconstruction with assistance for lasting development. Only within such a broad framework can the international community make a meaningful contribution to the success of this crucial element of post-conflict peace-building.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“Regional organizations and international and local non- governmental organizations can contribute to disarmament and demobilization, and, as we have seen recently in Kosovo, may assist in rebuilding the social and political infrastructure that permits reintegration. Allow me to conclude by urging the Council to view disarmament, demobilization and reintegration processes as only one part of the multifaceted approach necessary if we are to succeed in peacekeeping in the twenty-first century.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“These elements include the destruction of weapons, the provision of seed money for quick-impact projects and measures for child soldiers, including girl soldiers. Finally, we need to improve our ability to locate experienced disarmament experts and trainers for service within peacekeeping operations in the field. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations has worked over the past year to develop training materials in this area for the use of Member States, and will continue these efforts. Today's peacekeeping operations engage a wide spectrum of partners within the United Nations system, including the World Bank, in disarmament, demobilization and reintegration activities. More and more, however, they also need to look beyond the United Nations system.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“In order to succeed in confronting this key challenge, however, we need to extend the range of tools available to peacekeeping operations. We need, in particular, to continue and strengthen our special focus on the needs of child soldiers. That means following up our most recent discussions to include in two United Nations operations, in Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a child protection adviser who can identify child-related concerns in the planning, disarmament, demobilization and reintegration phases. We also need to see a more flexible approach by the Security Council to the use of assessed funding for critical elements of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration so that the process can go ahead, even while funding through voluntary sources is being mobilized.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“Prerequisites for a successful regional approach include bilateral decisions to share intelligence and information, cooperation by relevant regional organizations and continued support from the Security Council. Responding to arms trafficking may also require a focus on financial flows, including information on where faction leaders are obtaining funds, where they are holding them and how they are spending them. While primary responsibility for reintegration falls outside peacekeeping, I believe that peacekeeping operations can nonetheless play a key role in this important element of post-conflict reconstruction. In particular, peacekeeping operations can help ensure that all factions View the political process as one in which they can reasonably hope to compete, and that it provides a fair and legitimate alternative to violence.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“If peacekeeping operations are to support DDR processes efficiently, it is essential that the provisions for DDR be integrated into any peace agreement that is reached. My report before the Council suggests that, where feasible, arrangements for the disposal of arms and ammunition should be decided as part of peace negotiations, so that questions of how to dispose of the collected arms and ammunition do not subsequently become a stumbling block. In addition, it is clear that an operation aimed at addressing the issue of demobilization may require a considerable deterrent capacity, which should be provided early in its deployment. It is also often essential that arms issues be considered in a regional context.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“Still, the deployment of a United Nations peacekeeping operation has frequently made a crucial contribution, not least by helping create an environment where this process can proceed. We are here today because we are united in our will to strengthen the United Nations ability to play an effective role in helping societies address the complex issues of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration. I hope that today's discussion can lead to a renewed determination to provide those peacekeeping operations that are supporting these tasks with the mandates and resources they need. I will briefly address some of the larger issues concerning this process, but I urge the Council to review carefully my report, which covers the challenges in this area more broadly.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“Let me begin by thanking you, Mr. President, and the members of the Security Council for your decision to convene today's meeting. As the Council is well aware, peacekeeping today bears little resemblance to its original character. Many of today's peacekeeping operations seek not only to bring stability to areas of conflict, but also to address the root causes of conflict. This means tackling a wide variety of needs, ranging from the political to the social and the economic. In many conflict situations, the processes of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) are at the heart of these efforts. That said, let me emphasize at the outset that no efforts of ours can be a substitute for the political will of the parties to commit themselves to peace.”
2000-03-23 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4118 (2000) · source
“The lamentable truth is that far too many of the peace agreements that are signed collapse before they are implemented or relapse into conflict after initial implementation - in part, because there are not enough resources to foster essential post-conflict recovery and stability. The Council must find ways to avoid this tragic and wasteful pattern of events. In closing, let me express my gratitude to the Council for drawing the attention of the international community to the challenges facing humanitarian action. It is my hope that, from now on, humanitarian concerns will be fully integrated into the Council's efforts to foster peace and security. Only thus can we hope to fully grasp the humanitarian challenge and ensure that our assistance will reach those most in need.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“The Security Council can strengthen its support for humanitarian action in at least three ways. First, it can press Member States to commit themselves fully to providing the financial support needed for humanitarian programmes. Recent Council efforts to do this in the case of Angola have shown a direct positive result. Secondly, the Council could consider including in peacekeeping mandates provisions for financing the early stages of post-conflict reconstruction and the restoration of the rule of law. Thirdly, the Council should address the fact that post-conflict peace-building activities are routinely hampered by the failure to sustain the flow of resources, leading to gaps between the provision of direct humanitarian assistance and the restoration of longer-term reconstruction and development.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“The legal framework for humanitarian action in war is provided by universal norms embodied in international humanitarian law, human rights law and refugee law. The basic purpose of these intersecting bodies of law is to ensure that civilians are protected from the impact of war, and when that does not occur, that the essential needs of all victims are met and their fundamental rights respected. We must do more to ensure that this principle is understood and applied in every part of the world. Finally, I wish to make a few points about the vital issue of resources. As I have said, inadequate support for humanitarian action can have adverse effects - both by exposing civilians to the risk of increased suffering and by undermining the positive contribution of humanitarian action to peace and security.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“In addition, the success of a peace agreement frequently depends, at least in part, on humanitarian work, including permitting refugees to return or resettling displaced persons; giving assistance to demobilized combatants; restoring the livelihoods of people affected by war; and giving fighters alternative ways to earn their living. Recent examples where such humanitarian work has helped consolidate peace agreements can be found in Mozambique, Cambodia and Central America; more recently in Guinea-Bissau; and, hopefully, in Sierra Leone. I also believe that we must rededicate ourselves to ensuring that the legal and principled basis for humanitarian action is maintained, respected and strengthened.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“In positive terms, effective humanitarian action to help civilian populations can give them a sense of stability, restore respect for human rights and lay the foundation for reconciliation. It is equally important that humanitarian concerns be given early consideration when comprehensive peace agreements are negotiated, as well as in peacekeeping missions. This helps ensure that there is sufficient advance planning on the humanitarian side for operations undertaken to implement a peace agreement and that early efforts can be undertaken to mobilize resources for recovery in the immediate aftermath of a conflict, which is essential if there is to be lasting peace.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“There are no more acute examples of this vicious and violent cycle than the current crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the crisis in Angola. The crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has implicated a dozen States and over 50 million people, and had its roots in the humanitarian crisis in the Great Lakes region. It is clear, therefore, that humanitarian action not only serves to protect the victims of conflict from further loss and suffering, but can actually contribute to maintaining peace and security. This is true in both negative and positive terms. Negatively, weak support for humanitarian action can result in delays to refugee reintegration, lack of adequate assistance to demobilized combatants and failure to restore livelihoods or rebuild societies.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“Today, I wish to emphasize three major issues facing humanitarian action: first, how such action can make a positive contribution to efforts to restore and maintain peace and security; secondly, how we can continue to make progress in integrating humanitarian and political-military elements of peace operations; and thirdly, how we can ensure that the legal and principled basis of humanitarian action is respected and strengthened. It is clear that in many instances, the causes of humanitarian and security crises are the same, or that the one arises from the other. It is equally clear that while conflict and war are the main causes of humanitarian crises, involving violations of human rights and international humanitarian law and producing mass population displacement, such crises often perpetuate instability.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“This is the dilemma that too often has forced us to provide food and clothing not only to the victims of conflict, but also to its architects. It is the dilemma that too often allows combatants to use humanitarian aid and its recipients as tools in war. It is the dilemma that at times has turned camps created for the needy and vulnerable into havens for extremists and bases from which they could continue their acts of hatred. It is the dilemma, finally, that makes clear that humanitarian assistance is no substitute for political action. One thing is clear, however: these humanitarian dilemmas have made the global humanitarian mission more important, not less.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“I recently presented the case for better and more cost-effective prevention strategies for both man-made and natural disasters in my annual report on the work of the Organization. And within the United Nations, I have launched a major effort to develop a system-wide framework for warning and preventive action. The fact is that humanitarian aid does not exist in a vacuum. In some cases - such as Mozambique today, or with the floods in Venezuela or the earthquake in Turkey last year - we face true natural disasters. In others, however, we confront man-made disasters which are rooted clearly in war and tyranny. From the Great Lakes to Bosnia, we have learned that while the humanitarian imperative is sacred, there is also a humanitarian dilemma.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“Wars and natural disasters, often joined in a terrible combination, continue to cause massive loss of life, tremendous suffering and great dislocations of peoples and groups. The need for effective humanitarian assistance has never been greater. In all these situations, we must ask ourselves: Are we doing enough? Are we helping those most in need or just those most immediately in reach? Is our aid the right aid for the emergency in question? Is it affecting a conflict in a way that may perpetuate it rather than end it? These are the questions that we must keep asking in order to ensure that we provide the best, most effective humanitarian assistance. We must strengthen our capacity to bring relief to victims, but we must also devise more effective strategies to prevent humanitarian emergencies from arising in the first place.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“We have seen how humanitarian action can save lives, but we have also seen how it can be exploited and abused by parties unwilling to abide by international humanitarian principles and only too willing to subvert such action to further their own inhumane policies. As we meet today, it is clear that Mozambique presents us with a most urgent case of need. Even as the assistance in some places has been too little too late, I am pleased that the Council is addressing the plight of the people of Mozambique and that the overall response has been very generous. Mozambique today is only the most urgent of a number of cases. Over the last year, from the Balkans to the Sudan, from Venezuela to Afghanistan to Central Africa, the world has been confronted with humanitarian emergencies that seem only to grow in horror and in pain.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“I wish first of all to pay tribute to you, Sir, and the Government of Bangladesh and its Permanent Representative for convening this meeting on a critical aspect of our work and our mission to end suffering and alleviate hardships around the world. Let me at the outset express the hope that this meeting will build on the progress made at the first meeting of the Council devoted to humanitarian activities, hosted by Brazil last January. The experiences of the past decade, from Africa to the Balkans to Asia, have taught us that our humanitarian mission holds both greater promise and greater peril than almost any other part of the United Nations work.”
2000-03-09 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4109 (2000) · source
“Bildt to answer. So I would ask the Russian Ambassador to be patient. These questions are being discussed, and we will come back to them. I think Mr. Bildt focused on regional issues today, not wanting to usurp the role of Mr. Kouchner, from whom the Council will hear. I think some of these issues should be reserved for him. So if Ambassador Lavrov will be patient, we will get back to the issues he has raised.”
2000-02-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4105Resumption1 (2000) · source
“I will follow these briefings up in April with a comprehensive report that will touch on what is happening in the region and on our operations in Kosovo, so that we can move forward and take decisions with a broader picture in mind. I think Ambassador Lavrov is right in raising the question he has raised, but I do not think it is Mr. Bildt who should answer the question. I think some of these issues will be raised when I submit the report in April. I think the question that has been raised has lots of impact on our activities, on elections and on other things. If we are going to go ahead with elections, and if we want to register the Serbs and have them participate, can we go to register them in Serbia without reference to Belgrade? There are all sorts of issues involved, and they will be raised. I do not think it is for Mr.”
2000-02-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4105Resumption1 (2000) · source
“Let me first of all apologize for joining the Council late, but this was my first day back and I had to tackle some urgent issues. But I wanted to come to this meeting, to hear Mr. Bildt and to participate in the briefing. Let me say that what you have heard today from Mr. Bildt is going to be one in a series of discussions and briefings on the region. You heard from Mr. Bildt today, and you will be hearing next from Mr. Klein, who is my representative in Bosnia, and then you will hear from Special Representative Bernard Kouchner and General Reinhardt, who will be coming from Kosovo. I think it is important that we discuss the region as well as Kosovo because we are operating in a very difficult neighbourhood. Without understanding what is happening in the neighbourhood, we will find it extremely difficult to make progress.”
2000-02-28 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4105Resumption1 (2000) · source
“That will lay the groundwork for progress to be made on their own. Just as important, it will offer a convincing argument in favour of the international support that Africa merits and that can help bring about a decisive change for the better.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“By their presence here at today' s meeting and at tomorrow' s mini-summit, the leaders in this Chamber have a chance to reaffirm their commitment to the Lusaka Agreement. The peace process is fragile; leadership can strengthen it. Millions of civilians are suffering grievously; leadership can inspire them and give them hope. The United Nations is here to help. But the United Nations has also had bitter experiences of help gone wrong. This has made Member States profoundly uneasy, and has raised the threshold of persuasion for new involvements, even when suffering claims our attention and when solidarity demands that we act. If this is an illness of our international system, leadership can provide an antidote. The challenge facing these leaders is to reach consensus with one another, and to transform that consensus into action.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“Whether that means intense political engagement, a sustained commitment of resources or decisive action in the face of unforeseen circumstances, we must see this involvement through. At the same time, we must guard against creating inflated expectations of what can be realistically expected from the United Nations. And we must never lose sight of our central dependence on the compliance of the parties involved. Whether we are speaking of the political process, of military deployments or of protection for humanitarian and other United Nations personnel, the parties themselves bear primary responsibility for adhering to commitments and creating the conditions conducive to progress. Time is of the essence.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“I also have in the region my Special Representative for the Great Lakes region, Berhanu Dinka, who will be exploring how the United Nations can help unravel the regional problems that have impeded progress. And the United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, if given the necessary cooperation and allowed to do its job, can help foster confidence among the parties and keep the peace process on track. If the United Nations is to make the right kind of difference in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and is to avoid the wrong turns that have led to tragic consequences elsewhere, we must be ready not only to act, but to act in a way that is commensurate with the gravity of the situation.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“The Congolese signatories, with the assistance of the OAU, have taken an encouraging first step in designating Sir Ketumile Masire, former President of Botswana, as the neutral facilitator for these negotiations. His prestige, expertise and moral authority can help reinvigorate the Lusaka process. The United Nations, for its part, has been actively involved in the search for a peaceful solution since the start of the conflict. We have supported the efforts of President Chiluba and the OAU. We have made significant contributions through the missions carried out by my former Special Envoy, Moustapha Niasse. And now, my new Special Representative for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kamel Morjane, will contribute his utmost to the peace process.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“The Lusaka Agreement remains the most viable blueprint for resolving grievances and for achieving a comprehensive negotiated solution. But if peace is to take hold, and if international engagement is to be sustained, the warring parties face a paramount challenge: they need to demonstrate the political will to apply the agreement fully, without further delay. All else flows from that essential requirement. Ultimately, we will find a sustainable solution to this crisis only if we address its root causes. That is why the drafters of the Lusaka Agreement placed inter-Congolese negotiations at the heart of the process. That dialogue is indispensable.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“The entire subregion has been engulfed in a crisis of such complexity that it continues to defy our best efforts to resolve it. On a long list of needs, wisdom and statesmanship, as well as an understanding of the limits of the use of force, are at the top. In July last year, a mediation effort led by President Chiluba of Zambia on behalf of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), and with the support of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), resulted in the signing of the Lusaka Peace Agreement. Since then, however, there have been many ceasefire violations which have caused fresh suffering. The deployment of United Nations military liaison officers has been obstructed, undermining confidence in the implementation process. The belligerents must do better.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“When war again erupted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in August 1998, barely a year had elapsed since the end of the country's previous conflict, which itself had followed decades of dictatorship and misrule. In succeeding months, violence intensified. Human rights violations multiplied. Today, millions of people are trying to eke out an existence amid chronic insecurity, economic despair and widespread disregard for international humanitarian law. Massive numbers of refugees, internally displaced persons and other vulnerable men and women are unsure of shelter or their next meal. The recruitment of child soldiers continues, with thousands serving as combatants. Unaccompanied minors have been reported in large numbers.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“I would like to begin by paying tribute to Secretary of State Albright and Ambassador Holbrooke for their extraordinary efforts in convening yet another in a series of important meetings during the United States presidency of the Security Council. They are making the world sit up and take greater notice of Africa. That is an accomplishment we must applaud and of which they can be proud. It is remarkable to see so many African leaders gathered in this Chamber. You have travelled long distances in an effort to resolve a conflict that has brought so much suffering to so many people and for so long. The political distance still to be travelled is even greater. But that is your responsibility as leaders, and this is your opportunity to serve the African people and enlist international support for peace and stability on the continent.”
2000-01-24 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4092 (2000) · source
“I would, very briefly, like to thank you, Mr. President, and the members of the Council for having focused attention on this very important issue, and for having invited President Mandela, as Facilitator, to join us in our work. I think we have demonstrated to the Facilitator and to the people of Burundi and their leaders that we are prepared to work with them on the peace process, and that if they work honestly and sincerely with President Mandela to push the process forward, the Council and the entire United Nations will be there to work alongside them. I think they owe it to the people of Burundi, to the region and to Africa. I hope that when next we meet we will have considerable progress to report. The meeting rose at 12.45 pm.”
2000-01-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4091 (2000) · source
“To place such hopes in the generosity and enlightened self-interest of donors may seem naive in the light of past experience, but your success, Sir, in focusing attention on this Council's work in Africa emboldens me to expect that, where Africans really do show a willingness to tackle their own problems, more fortunate countries, led by your own, will indeed be willing to help. Meanwhile, I know the Council is impatient to hear from Mr. Mandela, so let me not delay him any longer.”
2000-01-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4091 (2000) · source
“But once donors are convinced that there is a serious effort by the Burundian parties to find a political compromise, they too should be prepared to make an effort. Burundians will need generous help to reverse the effects of seven years of conflict and to begin at last to address their country's most basic development needs. With that help, they could lay the foundations of a tolerant, democratic political order, in which all ethnic and social groups can find their place. And that, in turn, would be a major contribution to peace and security throughout the region.”
2000-01-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4091 (2000) · source
“It is a grievous obstacle to those of us who are trying to engage the sympathy and support of the rest of the world on their behalf. I strongly urge all parties to cooperate with him in seeking a political solution. If they do, I remain hopeful that, this time, the international community will assist them. This help cannot be confined to the diplomatic sphere; it must also have an economic dimension. While humanitarian aid has continued to flow to Burundi - and the United Nations Development Programme, in particular, has mobilized $6 million in a trust fund to address the needs of local communities affected by the crisis - other forms of international support have been interrupted since mid-1996.”
2000-01-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4091 (2000) · source
“And certainly, no party should assume that outsiders will come to rescue it from the consequences of its own folly and intransigence. One side may think itself entitled to the world's sympathy because it represents an ethnic minority, the same ethnic group which has been the victim of genocide in Rwanda. The other may equally plausibly see itself as the victim, right now, of oppressive minority rule. But neither can escape its share of responsibility for the escalating violence or for the lack of progress towards a political solution. As a fellow African, I can only echo Mr. Mandela's words to the parties in Arusha on Sunday. Their willingness to sacrifice the lives of their fellow citizens on the altar of their political ambitions amounts to a betrayal of millions of other Africans who are struggling to promote the continent's recovery.”
2000-01-19 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.4091 (2000) · source