The responsibility to deliver
Ban Ki-moon
The past year was difficult for us all. I have called it “the year of
multiple crises.” The next promises to be even more so.
The challenges that lie ahead in 2009 - ranging from climate change
to the economic meltdown - will test our commitments and good intentions
as never before.
|
Ban Ki-moon |
In the realm of human rights, we speak of the responsibility to
protect. In the larger sphere of common international endeavour, we
should speak of the responsibility to deliver. Looking back at 2008, I
would say frankly that our record has been mixed.
I am pleased, for example, at the way the world has come together in
the face of economic recession. Yet I fear we are only at the end of the
beginning. This crisis will challenge the sense of global solidarity
that is key to any solution.
I am pleased at how we responded to natural disasters from Myanmar to
Haiti. Yet I am disappointed by the unwillingness of the Government of
Myanmar to deliver on its promises for democratic dialogue and the
release of political prisoners.
UN forces have held the line in the Democratic Republic of Congo,
with bravery under the difficult circumstances. Yet we have not been
able to protect innocent people from violence. Our record on human
rights is on trial - in many places, in many ways. But we must continue
to stand strong on the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights.
I believe we coped well with one of the year’s most serious issues.
The food crisis no longer dominates news headlines but it has not gone
away. The United Nations system has come together to tackle this problem
in all its complexity: nutrition, agricultural production, trade and
social protection.
We are well on the way to changing decades-old policies in
agriculture and public health-mainstays of our work in promoting the
Millennium Development Goals and protecting those most vulnerable to
climate change, poverty and economic crisis.
Of all the challenges before us, none is more important than climate
change. A few weeks ago, I joined world leaders in Poznan, Poland. We
recognised that climate change cannot await a resolution of the global
economic crisis. Most accepted the need for what I call a “Green New
Deal.” Investment in eco-friendly technology should be part of any
global economic stimulus.
All agreed that there is no more time to waste. We have only 12 short
months before Copenhagen. We must reach a global climate change deal
before the end of 2009 - one that is balanced, comprehensive and
acceptable to all nations.
Success will require extraordinary leadership. I myself will continue
to push the pace and galvanize political will. I plan to convene a
climate change summit at the beginning of the 64th General Assembly. But
I expect that world leaders will need to meet before then if we are to
conclude 2009 in triumph. Working together, we can fulfil our
responsibilities to the planet and its people - our responsibility to
deliver.
We should see the challenges of 2009 as opportunities for
collaborative international action. We are entering a new multilateral
era.
We face the immediate imperative of ending the violence in Gaza and
southern Israel. The escalation and suffering of civilians are deeply
alarming. A cease-fire must be put in place without delay. Regional and
international partners must use their influence to bring about dialogue
and a return to the negotiations that had been showing modest but
encouraging signs of progress. There is an urgent need for Israelis and
Palestinians to continue on the road to peace.
In Iraq, security has vastly improved. Provincial elections are
scheduled for January. I urge Iraqi leaders to work together in a spirit
of reconciliation as they assume full responsibility for their national
affairs. All this requires strong UN support, and we shall give it.
The humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe grows more alarming every day.
The nation stands on the brink of economic, social and political
collapse. I said so to President Robert Mugabe at the recent summit in
Doha. He promised to allow my envoy to enter Zimbabwe to facilitate a
political solution. Now we are told that the timing is not right. If
this is not the time, when is?
In Somalia, the danger of anarchy is clear and present. So is the
need to act. Last week I proposed to the Security Council a series of
steps that to advance the Djibouti peace process, deal with piracy and
issues of humanitarian access, reinforce the current African Union
mission in Somalia and set the stage for a possible UN peacekeeping
operation.
I am also gravely concerned by the worsening humanitarian and
security situation in Afghanistan. A political “surge” and a clear
change of direction are required. We have made a great many promises to
the people of this ravaged country. It is our responsibility to keep
them.
The demands on the UN are growing. The challenges of our time are
increasingly collaborative in nature. They require our full engagement,
all nations working together-rich and poor, north and south, developed
and developing.
Over the course of the past year, I held more than 700 bilateral
meetings, including some 350 meetings with Presidents, Prime Ministers
and Ministers of Foreign Affairs. I spent 103 days on the road, visiting
35 countries and flying more than 400,000 kilometres.
Numbers do not always equal results, but they are a measure of our
effort. The world expects no less. It is our responsibility to deliver.
(The writer is Secretary-General of the United Nations)
|