NEW YEAR’S GREETINGS BY THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS, ON THURSDAY, 11TH JANUARY, 1995
NEW YEAR'S GREETINGS BY THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS, ON THURSDAY, 11TH JANUARY, 1995, ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT, MARY ROBINSON
A Oirircis, a Oirirceasa is a Uaisle Uile,
Tá an áthas orm agus ar mo fhear chéile fáilte a chur romhaibh go léir go hÁras an Uachtaráin inniú. Is cúis mór áthais dúinn na beannachtaí a chuir sibh romhainn agus roimh muintir na hÉireann uilig. Guím sonas, síocháin agus sláinte oraibh agus tá súil agam go mbeidh blian nua faoi mhaise agaibh go léir.
Your Excellency, Excellencies,
Thank you for the warm greetings which you have offered to my husband, Nick, and myself and through us, to the people of Ireland. I wish each of you peace health and prosperity in 1995.
During 1995 we will celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, and in Ireland, that coincides with the fortieth anniversary of our own membership. It is also the 150th anniversary of the Great Famine that wreaked such devastation in Ireland and left on the national psyche an enduring empathy with all people throughout the world who may be afflicted by similar suffering.
Last year was another difficult one for the United Nations and yet it is in a very real sense irreplaceable as we seek a response to the global problems which directly affect us all and the armed conflicts which delay the dawning of peace for so much of humankind.
In the past year Ireland has maintained its much valued contribution to United Nations peace-keeping, with members of the Defence Forces and Garda Síochána serving with distinction in ten UN operations. In addition, volunteers from the Defence Forces and the public service have worked to meet the needs of the victims of the Rwandan tragedy.
The past 50 years represent a period of unprecedented human progress and international co-operation. One of the bitter ironies we must face, however, is that the benefits of growing prosperity do not devolve equally to all. In a world in which the wealth of nations has increased sevenfold since 1945, one fifth of the population of the developing world goes hungry every night.
The dilemma is most cruelly reflected in the case of Africa. That continent contains 33 of the 47 least developed countries in the world. Poverty and lack of economic growth have fuelled conflict and continue to threaten social and political stability.
My visit last September and October to Africa afforded me an invaluable opportunity to meet the Governments and people of Zambia, Zimbabwe and Tanzania. I had the opportunity to see at first hand the very substantial potential and also the needs of those countries and to discuss with the people involved their concerns and priorities. I witnessed the great efforts that they are making to implement structural adjustment programmes to improve their economies and the debilitating social cost of many of those programmes. They deserve, and urgently require, the support of the international community, moral and practical, in the difficult task on which they have embarked.
Whereas in 1992 in Somalia we witnessed the starvation of a people as a consequence solely of man-made conflict, in 1994, we discovered even more horrifying consequences of man's inhumanity to men, women and children. Genocide in Rwanda cast its dark shadow over the African continent - the orchestrated campaign of killing, the pitting of neighbour against neighbour, the violation of basic human rights, the collapse of civic society and the mass exodus of refugees to neighbouring States.
The suffering of the people of Rwanda evoked a widespread sympathetic response here in Ireland. My visit to Rwanda and to the refugee camps in Tanzania and Zaire in October reflected that sympathy and concern. I witnessed the huge humanitarian effort under way to help those refugees and, I am proud to say, I saw the extent to which Irish people were involved in that great effort. Today, there are more than 150 Irish aid workers still engaged in relief work with Rwandan refugees in Tanzania, Zaire, Burundi and in Rwanda itself. The Irish Government's support for relief in the region has included US $6 million in direct aid as well as the deployment of the expertise of some 70 public servants to Irish aid agencies and to the UNHCR.
But what influenced me most of all during my visit was the concern of those who suffered from the genocidal killings that the world recognise the injustice that was visited upon their people and that the international community commit itself to making accountable those responsible. I have briefed the Secretary General of the United Nations and have written to the Heads of State of many countries to relate how important that process of accountability will be in promoting the healing and reconciliation that is so necessary in breaking the cycle of violence in Rwanda and creating the circumstances in which refugees will be encouraged to return.
But side by side with this appalling suffering there have been significant developments in Africa which give great hope. In particular, the new democratic and non-racial South Africa which came into being following the elections in April, was an event of immense joy and hope to its people and to the whole of Africa. We all rejoice that the transition has been negotiated successfully and that a beginning has been made to addressing the immense challenges that remain.
Turning to Europe, there are both positive and negative developments. This year began with the enlargement of the European Union to 15 members and a commitment to further expansion eastwards in the future. However, on the darker side, the events which we witnessed in the Bihac region late last year underlined the imperative need for a peaceful settlement for Bosnia and, indeed, for the former Yugoslavia as a whole. Over the last twelve months there has been progress towards peace in Bosnia and also in Croatia, and more recently, the New Year in Bosnia was marked by agreement on a comprehensive cessation of hostilities. This, I earnestly hope, will enable the UN Protection Force, UNPROFOR, to provide vital humanitarian assistance and also create the climate for a just and lasting negotiated solution to the Bosnian conflict.
But the fighting and heavy loss of civilian lives in Chechnya has cast a tragic shadow over the New Year. The Irish Government has urged that a determined effort be made to end the hostilities and to achieve a peaceful negotiated solution to the conflict, one which takes full account of the human rights of the Chechen people.
In this time of change, it is important what we reaffirm our commitment to peaceful co-existence and co-operation in Europe. The Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) Summit on 5th and 6th December, provided an important opportunity in this regard.
The decision to rename the CSCE as the OSCE - the Organisations for Security and Co-operation in Europe - and the very title of the Budapest declaration "Towards a Genuine partnership in a new Era" underline the determination which we all share to strengthen our co-operation in response to the new circumstances and challenges which face us.
Here on the island of Ireland this is a time of exceptional promise and hope for all the people of the island. There is no more important goal for the Irish people than to find a basis for lasting peace and reconciliation among our different traditions.
The cessation of violence has created enormous potential for the achievement of lasting peace and given fresh impetus to the search for arrangements which will enable all the people on the island to live together in harmony and partnership.
We have an historic opportunity to lay to rest the antagonisms of the past and to construct a shared future based on agreement and consent. I believe that there is a heartfelt desire among all traditions that this precious opening should be exploited to the full for the benefit of everyone.
As this New Year begins, I know that all friends of Ireland will wish us well in our determination to achieve a comprehensive political settlement and to bring about lasting peace and reconciliation on this island.
When I spoke to this gathering last year I referred to the outcome of the World Conference on Human Rights. The appointment of a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights during 1994, in the distinguished person of Jose Ayala Lasso, offers real hope of improved implementation of the universal standards of human rights which are our common inheritance. 1994 also saw the constructive outcome of the World Conference in Cairo on Population and Development and this year we look forward to two important World Conferences, the first on Social Development to be held in Copenhagen and the second on Women next September in Beijing. I hope to have very positive comments to make on the outcome of both of these when I address you next year.
I also hope that this anniversary year 1995 will see further substantial progress in equipping the structures of the United Nations Organisation to meet the challenges of the twenty first century in a manner which is inclusive of all regions and all Member States. Our aim should be to translate the theme for the year - "We the peoples of the United Nations: United for a Better World" - into a concrete reality.
Rath Dé oraibh go léir.