Pot-pourri of issues discussed by speakers from all over the globe.

Each year, the General Assembly conducts its general debate, during which Member States express their views on the full range of problems on the world agenda. During the 1995 general debate (25 September-11 October), 172 speakers came to the Assembly podium.

Some of the major issues discussed during the 17-day exercise were: the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina; the external debt crisis; the growing economic chasm between developed and developing countries; the paramount importance of economic and social development; the reform of the 185-member UN that would include equitable representation on the Security Council and the enhancement of the General Assembly's role; the need for continued support for peace-keeping operations; the urgency of concluding a comprehensive nuclear-test-ban treaty and the vital necessity of eventual nuclear disarmament; the need for a drastic reduction in the proliferation of and trafficking in conventional arms; and the acute financial crisis gripping the Organization.

Several Member States believed that the UN should realign and strengthen its cooperation with regional organization especially in conflict prevention, management and resolution. There was support for the Secretary-General's suggestion to shift the emphasis of the UN from politics to global economic development.

Many States referred to security problems caused by anti-personnel land mines and other conventional weapons, calling for the control or ban of such weapons.

Most speakers expressed support for the results of the recent global conferences--in Cairo, Copenhagen, Rio de Janeiro and Beijing--and appealed for the means to implement those commitments.

There was strong support, especially from Nordic countries, for an assertive UN role in human rights-related issues, including the establishment of a permanent international criminal court.

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AFRICA 

Appeals for help to end civil conflicts and promote development figured heavily in the speeches of delegates from Africa--a vast continent inhabited by some 700 million people. Adversely affected by the consequences of what was seen as a growing economic imbalance between developed and developing countries, speakers urged the international community to take forceful steps to reverse both the "marginalization" of the continent and a disturbing decline in official development assistance (ODA). "It is no coincidence", Ugandan Foreign Minister Ruhakana Rugunda cautioned delegates attending the 50th General Assembly, "that our region, Africa, which is the least developed in the world, is also the most affected by strife and conflict."

In spite of its difficulties, it was asserted, Africa was determined to shoulder responsibility for its future. It was stated that the eradication of poverty, through provision of adequate education, health care, housing and empowerment of women, had become a top priority of the UN system. A number of delegates called for the reform of the Bretton Woods system in order to make structural adjustment programmes more bearable and better adapted to specific needs of countries concerned. The Organization was also urged to give information technology transfer higher priority.

Many speakers pointed out that development, peace and democratization were inextricably bound, but needed continuing international support to flourish. Refugees and displaced persons--numbering in the millions--threatened peace and development in countries throughout the continent. The Great Lakes region, in particular, was the object of universal concern. The floodgate of refugees opened up by unrest and war in Rwanda and Burundi was causing instability in neighbouring countries. "The tragic fate of persons displaced because of civil war or violence is one of the major humanitarian problems of our age", Kamanda wa Kamanda, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Zaire, declared. Many delegates looked forward to a conference on peace, security and development in the Great Lakes region as an opportunity to address a wide range of inter-related problems.

The situations in Western Sahara, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Somalia and Sudan, as well as recent coup attempts in Sao Tome and Principe and the Comoros, were cited as causes for concern and summonses for action, with many delegates warning strongly that smouldering, local "powder kegs" could explode and spread their fire. There were widespread calls for international support for the mechanism for conflict resolution, prevention and management of the Organization of African Unity. A number of delegates also said that efforts needed to be made against the problems of terrorism, drugs and crime. Several speakers called for the lifting of the embargo against Libya.

Cited as successes by most speakers were Angola, Liberia, Mozambique and South Africa, although many cautioned that progress to date in some of those countries could be set back without generous international support for the ongoing democratization, rehabilitation and reconstruction process. Drought and desertification continued to hold back the development of many African countries. A number of speakers demanded that Africa should have a permanent seat on the Security Council.

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ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

Asian speakers dealt with a wide variety of topics that affected their far-flung region, among them, the still continuing disputes in Afghanistan and Kashmir, the Israeli-Palestinian accords, the preservation of democracy in the former republics of the Soviet Union, and the situation in Iraq.

The countries of the Pacific almost unanimously condemned the resumption of French nuclear testing in the Pacific and called on France to stop forthwith. The testing was "a slap in the face of the leaders of the South Pacific Forum and a violent crime against the people of the South Pacific", said Fijian Foreign Minister Filipe Nagera Bole. They were also concerned about global warming, rising tides and other environmental issues which would affect the small island developing States more severely than other countries. A majority of speakers wanted the UN to pay more attention to developmental activities.

Pointing to the recent events that had taken place in the Comoros, speakers representing small States stressed that such events demonstrated once again their vulnerability to terrorism and to the activities of mercenaries. Delegates from the Gulf States expressed determination to overcome the negative effects of the two wars that had been fought in the region and to spare the region any further conflict. Iran and the United Arab Emirates were urged to settle peacefully the problem concerning the three islands of Tunb al-Sughra and Abu Musa.

Many speakers called for economic assistance to Palestinians to help solidify the peace process through development. The need for progress on the Syrian and Lebanese tracks was called for, and support was voiced to make South-East Asia and the Middle East nuclear-weapon-free zones. Concern was expressed about the shipment of hazardous and radioactive wastes to the South Pacific region. There was satisfaction with work to make the Indian Ocean a zone of peace, and States members of the Security Council, maritime users of the Indian Ocean and littoral countries were called upon to participate in that work.

There were some calls to lift sanctions against Iraq, asserting that the sanctions had had a very adverse effect on the Iraqi people. The issue of missing and detained Kuwaitis also needed to be resolved, it was pointed out. It was emphasized that Central Asian countries, facing a host of issues involving borders, the distribution of water and natural resources, and the right of ethnic minorities, needed international legal expertise to aid in the introduction of proven legal, political and socio-economic norms and regulations.

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LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

A number of speakers decried the continuing trade in illicit drugs and its harmful effects on peoples and Governments. Foreign Minister Rodrigo Pardo Garcia-Pena of Colombia, which currently presides over the 113-member Movement of Non-Aligned countries, called the problem of illegal drugs a "transnational crime of vast proportions, overwhelming dimensions and the greatest perils". He argued that there was now a historic opportunity to defeat drug trafficking once and for all. "Yet this opportunity could be missed if adequate measures are not immediately adopted to combat money laundering, the deviation of precursor chemicals and permissive consumption", he stressed.

Mexican Foreign Minister Jose Angel Gurria proposed the holding of an international conference to work out new solutions to the drug problem. Panamanian Deputy Foreign Minister Omar Jaen Suarez said his country had offered its territory to establish a "multilateral centre to combat drug trafficking and related crimes" in the American hemisphere. United States Secretary of State Warren Christopher noted that the United States, through the UN Drug Control Programme, was providing help in training law enforcement officials for countries whose laws are challenged by drug cartels.

Regional nuclear agreements such as the Treaty of Tlatelolco, which established a nuclear-weapons-free zone in Latin America and the Caribbean, were seen as important examples for other areas of the world. The successful efforts by the Guarantor countries--Argentina, Brazil, Chile and the United States--of the 1942 Rio Protocol to bring together Peru and Ecuador following their conflict were widely hailed. UN efforts in El Salvador, Guatemala and Haiti were applauded by many delegates.

There was a continuing need for vigorous support for the process of democratization in Latin America, it was stated. Calls were made for the lifting of the United States economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba. Much of the delegates' attention focused on the human rights situation of indigenous peoples, and the International Decade of the World's Indigenous People was seen as an opportunity to give the issue increased attention. Ecuador pointed out that it had submitted concrete programmes and initiatives "designed to improve the economic, social and cultural status of those groups, while fully respecting their distinctive characteristics".

Delegates from the island States of the Caribbean were visibly concerned by the damage caused by a series of hurricanes. As Antigua and Barbuda put it: "Nature appeared to have declared war on us. The engine of our economy has stalled." Tourism--the main source of income--had been badly affected, and thousands of people had been made jobless. The delegates were also concerned about trade restrictions, particularly on the export of bananas to Europe, which could lead to economic disaster and even threaten democracy in the region.

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EAST AND WEST EUROPE, OTHER STATES

Representatives from Eastern and Western Europe and from other States were concerned with how to deal with a "new set of security challenges": bloody ethnic conflicts, as in the former Yugoslavia; proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; terrorism; international crime and narcotics; and deterioration of the environment. The key to increased global security lay in disarmament and arms control, delegates maintained.

Foreign Minister Muhamed Sacirbey of Bosnia and Herzegovina hoped that the successful settlement of the war in his country could be a catalyst for strengthening regional and global security, but warned that a failure to honour basic UN Charter principles and international humanitarian law could be fatal to Bosnia and Herzegovina and threaten the UN's vitality and integrity. "We have already made many painful compromises", he stated. "We are prepared to make more--many more--in the search for a real peace. However, do not ask us--do not ask yourselves--to settle for concessions to dictatorships, to intolerance, to illegality, to criminality and hate."

A number of speakers observed that, although the collapse of communism had shattered dictatorships, bringing a "sense of exhilaration", it had also created numerous problems that threatened not only the political survival of newly liberated nations, but world stability as a whole. Some delegates suggested that cooperation between the UN and regional organization in peace-keeping endeavours should be further explored. It was pointed out that the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe had already developed a mechanism for preventive diplomacy, establishment of confidence-building measures and resolution of conflicts.

Acting through the UN, the international community would be able to effectively meet challenges of the post-confrontational world, delegates believed. "A sense of global responsibility and "awareness of an era of global society" were spreading, according to Turkish Foreign Minister Grdal Inonu. In a report entitled "Towards a Rapid Reaction Capacity for the United Nations", Canada proposed the assembly of a "multinational force of up to 5,000 military and civilian personnel" and, with the Security Council's authorization, "quickly deploy it under the control of an operational-level headquarters" responsible for the advance preparations. That was "crucial if rapid reaction is to work", Foreign Minister Andre Ouellet stated.

A number of Eastern European representatives felt that violent inter-ethnic and nationalistic conflicts stood in the way of creating a new model of general and comprehensive security in Europe--"without double standards or dividing lines"--and precluded the region's reintegration with the rest of the world.

Speaking on behalf of the European Union, Spanish Foreign Minister Don Javier Solana Madariaga stated that mankind was facing a "growing number of emergencies that require an effective response from the international community in order to alleviate the tragedy suffered daily by tens of thousands of human beings". Ukrainian Foreign Minister Hennadiy Udovenko proposed that 1996, which marked the tenth anniversary of the Chernobyl catastrophe, be declared the Year of the Commemoration of Chernobyl. He urged special activities be organized under UN auspices.