|
Statement NEW YORK, 26 APRIL 2000 Excellencies, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is indeed a great privilege and honor for me on behalf of the government of the Republic of Indonesia to be a co-sponsor, together with the government of Uganda and the World Information Transfer, in jointly hosting this Ninth International Conference on Health and Environment here in New York. This timely conference on the theme “Solutions for the Millennium” will address the specific issue of Health and Environment and seek to identify global partnerships for global solutions on preventing the adverse impact of environmental degradation on human health. It is also a privilege for me, in my capacity as the President of the ECOSOC, to address to this august meeting on this critical issue, which I consider to be one of our greatest collective challenges as we enter the 21st Century. As we enter the new millennium, we have come to a decisive crossroad, a truly defining moment in our history. We have a choice. We can continue to loose our grasp on our own destines and our economic history or we can strife to reclaim them. Our overall challenge is there for to seek to create a new vision for the South in its efforts to foster development and the eradication of poverty within the framework of globalization and interdependence. As to globalization, a phenomenon that has many subtexts, we should pose the question why globalization has not delivered the promised generalized prosperity for all, a prosperity that we so anxiously expected. And, we should seek to answer it in a coherent and concrete way. While it is true that globalization and liberalization have propelled many developed economies to new and spectacular heights and that they hold enormous potential for the developing countries, it is equally true that the majority of our countries have been unable to take full advantage of that promise, and many of our countries have been thus consigned to the sidelines of the global economy and to marginalization. In the preamble of the United Nations Charter, the authors specifically call for the promotion of social progress and better standards of life for all in larger freedom. That directive was subsequently elaborated upon and expanded in 1992 at the United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, when the environment and its sustainability became central to the global agenda and within that context, human and environmental health became mutually inclusive. As eloquently stated in a subsequent report of the Secretary-General, “healthy human beings can better combat poverty and care for the environment while a healthy environment is essential for a healthy human beings.” That, I believe, is the crux of the question and it was comprehensively reflected in chapter 6 of agenda 21 the blueprint for action of the Rio Conference on environment and development titled, Protecting and promoting human health. It is therefore propitious that this Conference today takes place against the backdrop of the Eight Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development United which has been charged with following-up and reviewing the implementation of the Agenda 21 on various thematic issues over the years. At the same time, we are also at the threshold of the new millennium and in the process of preparing ourselves for the review conference on environment and development at the end of ten years of implementation. That review conference in 2002 will take stock of progress or lack of it and seek to inject the process of implementing Agenda 21 with renewed urgency and momentum. The beginning of the new millennium has been marked by significant milestones in human history, not least the rapid pace of globalization and the revolution in information technology. It is also a time when the six thousand millionth human inhabitant of this planet was born. Yet, regrettably, out of that number of inhabitants, over one billion reside in absolute poverty with up to one thousand million homeless or living without adequate shelter. These millions are directly affected in terms of appalling health conditions by the impact of continuing degradation of environment quality. And, more ominously this figure will further increased without drastic change and adequate access to health services. Excellencies, Distinguished guest, Ladies and Gentlemen, Since we live in an increasingly interdependent world, we cannot go it alone. We must forge new partnerships. Thus, the more we learn how the global environment impacts the health of the people and how our actions can best prevent the further suffering of those people particularly in the developing countries, the more we recognized that urgent global actions and programs in partnerships with all countries and relevant international organizations including non-governmental organizations, are crucially needed. Great natural disasters took place last year and the beginning of this year causing the deaths of hundred of thousand of people and making further millions homeless and impoverished. We must act now. Imbalances also continue to abound. As the century progresses, that proportion of the global population living under the poverty line and without adequate access to health services also increases. Meanwhile, the lion’s share of the planet's resources are increasingly being concentrated within the affluent minority. It is no surprise that these issues of poverty and excessive and unsustainable patterns of consumption and production are the main causes of environmental degradation and in consequences also contribute to adversely impact human health and on the welfare of the people. In this regard, let me sincerely commend the efforts of the World Information Transfer for bringing this issue of health and environment to the agenda of the international community. We fully agree that the impact of environmental degradation on human health should be addressed as a matter of urgency and it should be central to the agenda of the international community. In this way, we are fulfilling the United Nations charter’s mandate to achieve the betterment of the social and economic conditions of the international community, particularly that of the developing countries. An in-depth discussion involving experts and our efforts to identify applicable solutions is an imperative part of the necessary global dialogue and should always be supported. Addressing the issue from different perspectives is of crucial importance in our efforts to identify comprehensive ways and means to successfully tackle the issue. Before concluding, I should say that I sincerely hope that we will grasp the opportunity for greater global partnerships and cooperation between governments, non-governmental organizations, businesses and industries, community groups and individuals. Only in this way, I believe, can our efforts to take concrete steps to improve the quality of the environment be assured and at the same time help minimize the adverse impact of environment degradation on human health be successful. Having said that, I hope that the human race will be able to look forward to a better future of sustainable development where, even as our standards of living improve worldwide, so too will the health of the environment on which we all depend. Excellencies, Distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, To conclude, I would like to once again take this opportunity to extends our appreciation to the Government of Uganda in joining our efforts to bring this important issue to the agenda of the international community and to extend my sincere gratitude to the World Information Transfer for their fruitful cooperation in organizing this important meeting. I wish you all success in your deliberations for the next three days and I certainly hope that we will be able to produce a fruitful, practical and concrete outcome. Thank you. |