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STATEMENT
THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY
NEW YORK, 14 SEPTEMBER 2000
Madame Chairperson, My delegation is pleased to see you preside over our deliberations. I would also like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation to South Africa for providing the Movement with dedicated leadership since the Twelfth Summit held in Durban. I will be remiss in my duty if I do not express our deep appreciation to the Government and people of Colombia for successfully hosting the 13th NAM Ministerial Conference last April in Cartagena. My delegation wishes to commend the Chairperson ofthe Coordinating Bureau for the report on the activities of the Movement. Madame Chairperson, Our meeting has been convened against the backdrop of the Millennium Summit. Indonesia is gratified to note that numerous Heads of State and Government of NAM participated in that historic event and made significant contributions to its outcome. In adopting a visionary declaration, the Summit identified the core values essential for international relations, expressed determination to establish a just and lasting peace and enumerated measures for security and disarmament the equitable sharing of the benefits of globalization, development, eradication of poverty, sustainable environment, information and communication technologies. Thus, in many ways, the Summit addressed issues of concern and interest to the members of our Movement and generated a momentum which we must seize in creating conditions conducive for the developing countries to pursue the objective of promoting the welfare and well-being of their peoples. In these endeavors, unity and solidarity among us would solidify our common interests and enable us to project a common viewpoint in various international fora, especially the UN. As far as the Security Council reform is concerned, Mr. Chairman, my delegation is encouraged by the statement issued after the meeting of the Heads of State or Government of the permanent members early this month in which they committed themselves “to fostering a more transparent and broadly representative Council to enhance its effectiveness” in the maintenance of international peace and security. It also contains a pledge to augment the operational and financial resources necessary for peacekeeping activities. In the context of making the Organization stronger and more effective, the permanent members agree to have regular exchange of views on important international issues. I believe, that these would constitute an essential foundation to build the edifice of a reconstituted Security Council that would reflect contemporary realities and thereby gain legitimacy and credibility. At the Review Conference of the Non-Proliferation Treaty held last May, the Movement played a prominent role and advanced realistic and achievable proposals on various issues, particularly, on the acceleration of steps for nuclear disarmament. Although the nuclear powers gave an unequivocal undertaking to achieve this goal, the divergence of views between the nuclear haves and havenots were too substantial for reaching a common ground. Hence, NAM should stand firm in its position for the total abolition of nuclear weapons with a time-bound frame-work as an obligation and a priority. Regarding UN peacekeeping activities, my delegation commends the Secretary-General for the Report prepared by the Brahimi Panel on Peace Operations which contains worthy recommendations on improving these missions. Many of those recommendations warrant our consideration in a critical and constructive way. The continuing imposition of sanctions on Iraq has already wrecked havoc on the civilian population, especially on the most vulnerable. This dire situation calls for the immediate lifting of sanctions. In the Korean peninsula, we welcome the Summit level talks held last June between North and South Korea which augurs well to accelerate greater contact between their peoples, encourage political reconciliation and leading ultimately to the reunification of their countries. In the Middle East, Indonesia has adopted a consistent policy that a sustainable peace must be based on Security Council resolutions 242 and 338 and on the land for peace principle. As the peace negotiations moves forward to a decisive stage, there is an imperative need for all concerned parties to pursue the talks on this basis. On its part, the Palestinian leaders have demonstrated their commitment to peace and in light of one of the main impediments in that process, particularly, the City of Jerusalem, they have made a statesmanlike decision to share it while remaining committed to its national rights, in order to reach a compromise. Such a bold and courageous stance demands that Israel make similar concessions so that a final settlement can be achieved. Meanwhile, the Israeli Government should cease all actions that run counter to the resolutions of international legitimacy and agreements already signed with the Palestinians. Now more than ever, the solemn responsibility to strike out for real peace rests with the leaders of Israel in order to ensure that a harmonious coexistence will reign for all peoples in the region. The withdrawal of Israel on 24 June 2000, from southern Lebanon following more than two decades of occupation, has finally restored the territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence of Lebanon within its internationally recognized boundaries. My delegation also hopes for a resumption of the Syrian-Israeli peace talks based on the Madrid peace formula. Madame Chairperson, Allow me to appraise you of the recent developments regarding the East Timorese refugees in East Nusa Tenggara. The incident that took place on 6 September 2000 that caused the deaths of 3 UN personnel in Atambua is deeply regrettable to my Government. It has voiced its strong condemnation of this senseless act of violence and my Government is taking concrete steps to restore normalcy and order to the situation with the deployment of 2 battalions of the armed forces and one police battalion. Two investigations are already underway, including at the high level, the Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security Affairs, as well as the representatives of the TNT, the police and the provincial Office of the Attorney-General. The outcome of these investigations as well as the measures taken by my Government will be conveyed to the UN Secretary-General by the Personal Envoy of President Wahid, the Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security Affairs who will be visiting New York shortly. My delegation therefore believes that a mission by the Security Council would serve no useful purpose as the Indonesian Government has already taken measures to resolve the situation. The situation in some parts of Indonesia might be of concern to some members of our Movement. It is not my intention to play down this concern, but I do have a feeling that the overall situation in Indonesia is starting to move in a positive direction. In addressing those issues, we will be guided by flexibility, rule of law and respect for human rights. The Government is speeding up the implementation of the new law on regional autonomy which will guarantee greater self-rule for local governments and larger share of revenues for their own people. In any event, the Government of Indonesia strongly opposes any form of interference by foreign countries in those parts which constitute an integral part of the Republic of Indonesia. Any attempt to revise the history and “to turn the back the clock” will certainly set a very dangerous precedent. Any effort to subvert our sovereignty over those parts and to instigate separatism therein will indeedjeopardize the principles contained in the UN Charter and will be interpreted as violating our territorial sovereignty. Madame Chairperson, In the aftermath of the deliberations of the South Summit and the Millennium Summit we must have exhausted every possible way of saying that globalization dominates the world economy, that it is here to stay, that it largely works to the disadvantage of the developing countries and that thus our compelling challenge is to seek ways and means to harness the awesome power of globalization and to put it to full use in the promotion of development and the eradication of poverty. What we seek is globalization with a human face, globalization that is inclusive and participatory, rather than exclusive, and one whose processes are transparent and accountable. Put another way we must seek ways to minimize the damaging risks of globalization and to maximize its opportunities. For if globalization cannot be shaped to benefit all countries, its validity is questionable. The developing countries must be integrated into a more conducive global system. And, as called for at the High-level segment of this year’s substantive session of the ECOSOC, concerning Information and Communication Technology (ICT), we must harness ICT in the service of development. For, if we fail, we run the serious risk of further exacerbating the economic gap and the digital divide with their attendant consequences. Thus we must ensure that the Programme of Action of the South Summit must be vigorously followed through. In meeting this challenge, there can be no alternative to revitalizing international cooperation for development through a reinvigorated North-South dialogue and partnership on the basis of mutual interests and benefits, shared responsibility and global interdependence. In this way, we are in a better position to ensure an enabling environment that is more conducive to development and the eradication of poverty. But, we also know the simple truth that our bargaining power with the developed countries can have little impact unless we can bargain out of relative strength with our development partners. Therefore, we must complement our North-South negotiations with intensified South-South cooperation. For this purpose, we must continue to enhance cooperation and coordination between the NAM and the Group of 77 particularly through the agency of the Joint Coordinating Committee (JCC) in New York. Thank you, Madame Chairperson.
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