CHILE, MYANMAR, SYRIA, PERU, NORWAY, ALGERIA, AUSTRALIA AND CHINA ADDRESS CONFERENCE ON DISARMAMENT

The Conference on Disarmament this morning heard a statement by the non-governmental organization NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security on the occasion of International Women's Day, which highlighted the crises of human security and sustainable development caused by military spending, war and weapon profiteering, and the persistence of ideas and expectations of gender that shaped how war, women and peace were considered. It also heard a farewell statement from Ambassador Juan Martabit of Chile, in which he laid out a number of procedural items that the Conference could reconsider with a view to unblocking its impasse, and from Myanmar, on the need to prioritize nuclear disarmament, inter alia, by commencing negotiations at an early date on a phased programme for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons, including a nuclear weapons convention.

The statement by the NGO Working Group, read out by Conference President Ahmet Üzümcü, focused on the 2008 International Women's Day Disarmament Seminar, held from 5 to 6 March 2008, which had included over 100 participants from non-governmental organizations from more than 40 countries. They struggled to find language to express their dismay and their anger at the failure of Governments over the last 11 years to advance the items on the agenda of the Conference on Disarmament. They also stressed that the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) had to gain a new lease on life if it was to deliver tangible results at the 2010 Review Conference. The Conference's contribution to the success of that meeting was to start negotiating a verifiable fissile material treaty. They, as women, also unanimously called on Governments to abandon narrow concepts of military security and instead focus their human and economic resources on addressing the real daily threats to the security of their citizens, such as poverty, hunger, HIV/AIDS, climate change and environmental degradation. Weapons could do nothing to alleviate those security problems. If they wanted security for all, they needed both women and men, working as equals, to take responsibility for their common security.

Ambassador Juan Martabit of Chile recalled that the Chilean delegation had always shown flexibility, and given its support to various initiatives designed to restart work in the Conference – among others, the Amorim proposal, the Five Ambassadors Proposal, and presidential draft decision CD/2007/L.1 introduced last year. L.1 represented a delicate compromise, the result of much hard work. The Conference should not miss that opportunity. They could not stand aside from the process of renewal and innovation that the multilateral system was undergoing, both globally and regionally; they could not continue to work in a body that was a relic of the past. The time had come for a deep reconsideration of such issues as the composition of the agenda; the method of adopting decisions; the group systems; the informal mechanisms; and requests for expansion of the membership, and appropriate participation by civil society, to the extent that that could help to unblock the impasse.

Myanmar reiterated its firm belief that the only effective defence against nuclear catastrophe was the total elimination of nuclear weapons. Fully aware of the priority and importance of nuclear disarmament to the international community, Myanmar had tabled a comprehensive draft resolution on nuclear disarmament at the United Nations General Assembly since 1995, which enjoyed broad support. Resolution 62/42 on "nuclear disarmament", adopted by the General Assembly in 2007, called on the Conference to negotiate a phased programme of nuclear disarmament. It was sincerely hoped that, with the concerted efforts of the six Presidents, the Conference would soon commence substantive work during the 2008 session and that the Conference could arrive at a decision to start negotiations at an early date on a phased programme for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons with a specified framework of time, including a Nuclear Weapons Convention. Despite the impasse in the work of the Conference, they must not let their resolve be weakened by the negative trend, and instead should work constructively with renewed determination and political will to address the legitimate security concerns of the international community.

Also speaking this morning were Syria, Peru, Norway, Algeria, Australia and China. Speakers warmly thanked Ambassador Martabit of Chile for his efforts to move the agenda of the Conference on Disarmament forward. A number of speakers also reiterated their call for the greater inclusion of civil society, in particular via the participation of non-governmental organizations, in the work of the Conference. Several speakers hoped that next year the annual statement delivered by a women's non-governmental organization group on the occasion of International Women's Day could be delivered to the Conference in person.

In 2007, the Conference was not able to reach agreement on a programme of work and so was unable to start work on substantive issues. A Presidential Draft Decision (CD/2007/L.1) was submitted as a basis for an agreement to begin substantive work in the Conference, and successive Presidents conducted intensive consultations with a view to reaching agreement on it. Presidential draft decision CD/2007/L.1 calls for the appointment of four Coordinators to preside over substantive discussions on the issues of nuclear disarmament; prevention of an arms race in outer space; and negative security assurances; and to preside over negotiations on a treaty banning the production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices. The Complementary Presidential Statement, CD/2007/CRP.5, reflects an understanding of the Conference on the implementation of the Presidential decision, and the third text CD/2007/CRP.6 is a short decision stating that when the Conference adopts the Presidential decision, it will be guided by the Presidential statement in its implementation. At the end of the 2007 session, it was decided that the documents before the Conference would be held over for consideration at the 2008 session.

The next plenary of the Conference will be held on Thursday, 13 March at 10 a.m.

Statements

AHMET ÜZÜMCÜ (Turkey), President of the Conference, read out a statement by the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security, a women's non-governmental organization collective, on the occasion of International Women's Day (10 March), saying the 2008 International Women's Day Disarmament Seminar had highlighted the crises of human security and sustainable development caused by military spending, war and weapon profiteering, and the persistence of ideas and expectations of gender that shaped how war, women and peace were considered. This year's seminar, held from 5 to 6 March 2008, had included over 100 participants from non-governmental organizations from more than 40 countries and had marked two significant anniversaries. The first was the thirtieth anniversary of the First Special Session on Disarmament of the United Nations General Assembly, which had created the Conference on Disarmament and set out its ten-part agenda. The Seminar was directly linked to neglected items on the Decalogue, namely, the reduction of military spending, the linkage between disarmament and development, nuclear disarmament, conventional weapons, and disarmament as confidence building. The NGO Working Group had struggled to find language to express their dismay and their anger at the failure of Governments over the last 11 years to advance those agenda items, and their commitments made by consensus 30 years ago. A 40-year-old treaty had also been discussed – a treaty that had inhibited nuclear proliferation somewhat, but that had not yet delivered on nuclear disarmament. If, indeed, life began at 40, then the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) had to gain a new lease on life if it was to deliver tangible results at the 2010 Review Conference. The Conference's contribution to the success of that meeting was to start negotiating a verifiable fissile material treaty. States parties had to get serious about compliance with the disarmament obligation and commence negotiation of a nuclear weapons convention.

Civil society had documented how small arms and light weapons were killing and wounding hundreds of thousands of people every year and how they threatened sustainable development throughout the world, but still that issue had met with a less than adequate international response. They, as women, unanimously called on Governments to abandon narrow concepts of military security and instead focus their human and economic resources on addressing the real daily threats to the security of their citizens, such as poverty, hunger, insecurity, HIV/AIDS, climate change and environmental degradation. Weapons could do nothing to alleviate those security problems. Instead, the acquisition of arms diverted enormous financial, technical and human resources from where they were really needed. The arms trade had turned people into mercenaries and parts of our planet into cemeteries. Reducing military spending was on the Conference's agenda, and it was mandated to address and curb that disastrous and misplaced political and economic power that military corporations exercised. Participants in the 2008 International Women's Day Seminar had also focused on the roles and responsibilities of women, outlined in Security Council resolution 1325, to participate in conflict prevention, disarmament and all levels of security decision-making. Without women's equal participation, sustainable peace, sustainable development and true human security were unattainable. But they needed to examine the relationship between masculinity and war as much as the relationship between women and peace. Men and women experienced war very differently. In any given army, 90 per cent of the soldiers were men, while in any given refugee camp, 80 per cent of the adults were women. Good human qualities like tenderness and care got allocated to women and deformed into the badge of submission, with both parts of humanity ending up as less than fully human. If they wanted security for all, they needed both women and men, working as equals, to take responsibility for their common security.

JUAN MARTABIT (Chile), in a farewell speech, thanked the six Presidents of 2007 and those of 2008 for having maintained the platform and the organizational activities that they had presented to them. Chile appreciated the efforts of that platform, which had achieved greater cooperation, inclusion and transparency in the Conference on Disarmament. Chile was sure that that exercise, in particular relating to the thematic content of the agenda, would allow them as soon as possible to resume the work of this important and irreplaceable negotiating forum. They had to overcome that blockage as soon as possible and get down to work. With that in view, the Chilean delegation had always shown flexibility, and given its support to various initiatives designed to restart work in the Conference. Among others, it had supported the Amorim proposal, had took an active part in the Five Ambassadors Proposal, and had welcomed the presidential draft decision CD/2007/L.1, as complemented by documents CRP.5 and CRP.6, introduced last year. Chile had also participated as a "friend of the six Presidents" in 2006, and today was serving as Coordinator agenda items 1 and 2: cessation of the nuclear arms race and nuclear disarmament; and prevention of nuclear war, including related matters. The Conference had been very close to achieving a consensus that would have allowed them to resume their work. Draft decision L.1 represented a delicate compromise, the result of much hard work. They should not miss that opportunity.

The Conference had both external and internal problems. They lived in a complex world, with political attitudes and interests that were often difficult to reconcile. In many respects, that situation was beyond their control, in particular for small countries, which nonetheless showed their constant desire to create and participate in a better world. But, nonetheless, they had to assume their responsibility with regard to the internal problems faced by the Conference. They could not stand aside from the process of renewal and innovation that the multilateral system was undergoing, both globally and regionally. The time had come to give serious consideration to a large range of issues. They could not continue to work in a body that was a relic of the past. The time had come for a deep reconsideration of such issues as the composition of the agenda; the method of adopting decisions; the group systems; the informal mechanisms; and requests for expansion of the membership, and appropriate participation by civil society, to the extent that that could help to unblock the impasse.

WUNNA MAUNG LWIN (Myanmar) reiterated Myanmar's firm belief that the only effective defence against nuclear catastrophe was the total elimination of nuclear weapons. Fully aware of the priority and importance of nuclear disarmament to the international community, Myanmar had tabled a comprehensive draft resolution on nuclear disarmament at the United Nations General Assembly since 1995. That resolution enjoyed broad support of co-sponsors from Non-Aligned Movement countries as well as other countries interested in nuclear disarmament. Resolution 62/42, entitled "Nuclear disarmament", adopted by the General Assembly last year was comprehensive in scope and included essential interim steps for reducing the danger of nuclear weapons. In addition, it called on the Conference on Disarmament to negotiate a phased programme of nuclear disarmament. In that regard, Myanmar fully reiterated its support to the proposal of the Group of 21, as contained in documents CD/1570 (1999 proposal on a programme of work) and CD/1571 (1999 draft decision and mandate on the establishment of an ad hoc committee on nuclear disarmament), and suggested that all the members of the Conference revisit that proposal. Myanmar further noted that, the final document of the 2000 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, called for an "unequivocal undertaking" by the nuclear weapon States to accomplish the total elimination of their nuclear arsenals. The will to fulfil that undertaking needed to be demonstrated by the full implementation of the "13 practical steps" – progressive and systematic steps to dismantle and eliminate nuclear weapons, irreversibility of nuclear reduction and disarmament measures. Pending the total elimination of nuclear weapons, they should aim, inter alia, to pursue efforts towards conclusion of a universal, unconditional and legally binding instrument on negative security assurances to non-nuclear weapon States; universalization of the NPT; strict adherence to the provisions of the NPT by Member States; the establishment and strengthening of nuclear-weapon-free zones; de-alerting and de-activating nuclear weapons; and diminishing the role of nuclear weapons in strategic doctrines and security policies.

Myanmar noted with regret that the work programme of the Conference could not be agreed upon by Member States. Myanmar was of the view that the parties concerned would demonstrate their unwavering commitments to the process of disarmament and exercise the firm political will to overcome that deadlock. It was sincerely hoped that, with the concerted efforts of the six Presidents, the Conference would soon commence substantive work during the 2008 session and that the Conference could arrive at a decision to start negotiations at an early date on a phased programme for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons with a specified framework of time, including a Nuclear Weapons Convention. Despite the impasse in the work of the Conference, they must not let their resolve be weakened by the negative trend, and instead should work constructively with renewed determination and political will to address the legitimate security concerns of the international community.

ABDULMAOLA AL NUQUARI (Syria) expressed Syria's best wishes for Ambassador Juan Martabit, who was leaving the Conference, in his future assignments. The contributions of Chile and of Ambassador Martabit had been very important in the context of the Group of 21, in particular. The representatives of the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security were also thanked for their contribution. Syria reiterated its position that non-governmental organizations should be given the opportunity to address the Conference personally.

ELMER SCHIALER (Peru) bid farewell to Ambassador Martabit of Chile, and thanked him for the untiring manner in which he and his whole delegation had worked to progress on all items of concern to the Conference on Disarmament. The great level of commitment and exceptional diplomatic qualities of Ambassador Martabit clearly showed the way forward in the Conference, to convert that elusive progress into tangible reality.

HILDE SKORPEN (Norway) joined others in wishing Ambassador Martabit the best in his new life. Norway was taking the floor as one of the supporters of the International Women's Day Disarmament Seminar, in particular supporting developing countries' representatives to participate. The Foreign Minister of Norway had underlined the role of civil society when he had spoken before the Conference last week. The involvement of civil society was vital to moving the agenda of the Conference on Disarmament forward. Women had played an important role in disarmament, working to ban landmines, and campaigning for nuclear disarmament.

HAMZA KHELIF (Algeria) also thanked Ambassador Juan Martabit for all the efforts he had made in the Conference as a contribution to progress further, and for his valuable ideas put forward today to inject new dynamism into the Conference and to emerge from the deadlock. Algeria also supported the position put forward by others today regarding civil society participation in the Conference. As had been expressed by Algeria previously, the nuclear threat was endangering the international community in all its components, and thus it needed the concerted efforts of all those components, inter alia, Governments, civil society and others to address it. Algeria regretted that the Conference could not hear directly from the non-governmental organizations representatives, and hoped that the women's body would be allowed to take the floor before the Conference in the future, pending a decision by Member States to widen the participation to other non-governmental organizations and representatives of civil society.

CRAIG MACLACHLAN (Australia) thanked Ambassador Martabit for his work and cooperation over the year. Australia also agreed with Norway that the non-governmental organizations representatives themselves should be allowed to address the Conference. Like Norway, Australia was one of the supporters of the seminar held last week, and had provided support for delegations to come from far away to participate in it. That was part of Australia's commitment to disarmament and arms control.

LI CHIJING (China) said China, like other speakers, thanked Ambassador Martabit of Chile for his contribution to the Conference, and wished him well.


For use of the information media; not an official record

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