ADDRESS TO THE UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL

September 7, 2000
New York, U.S.A.

Mr. President,

I will begin by expressing Canada’s outrage at the murder of innocent, unarmed humanitarian personnel in West Timor. Those who attack UN staff attack this Organization, and undermine the purposes and principles we have all come here to reaffirm. It is incumbent on the Indonesian Government to bring the perpetrators to justice.

It is fitting that the Security Council is meeting during the Millennium Assembly of the United Nations. An occasion when member states have come together, at the highest level, to reaffirm their commitment to our shared principles and purposes. More importantly, it is an opportunity for us to affirm our common resolve to make the UN work better; to be partners in its renewal and reform.

Nowhere is this more critical than on the Security Council. The body mandated to preserve and protect international peace and security.

Canada joined the Council with precisely that goal in mind. In the short time given an elected member, we have worked to make the Council more responsive to the security challenges and political imperatives we face at the turn of the century. We have tried to make the Council a more effective instrument of human security. And we have tried to make it more open and democratic.

We have pressed for leadership in building a more peaceful world. To demonstrate that leadership, we must restore the effectiveness of peacekeeping operations. The Brahimi Report reminds us that peacekeeping mandates must be consistent with realities on the ground and that adequate resources must be provided. In Srebenica and Rwanda we failed these tests. It is our duty to do better.

In the 21st century, peace no longer depends only on securing borders, but also on securing people. Against diverse threats: armed conflict, gross human rights violations, breaches of international humanitarian law, or terrorism.

The security of states is essential. But it is not sufficient to ensure the safety and well-being of people. Indeed, as we have seen to our dismay in recent years, the security of a given state, in the name of ethnic nationalism, has been used as a justification for the worst kind of atrocities.

Canada has worked to broaden the Council’s definition of security to encompass new human security challenges. We have argued that humanitarian principles and human rights must be given greater weight when the Council decides when to act. And we will continue to make this case. Because if the Security Council is unable to adapt it will seriously undermine its credibility as a guarantor of peace. Credibility that is essential to maintaining the moral authority of the UN as a whole.

Mr. President, I have no doubt that we are up to this task. The world is watching. People everywhere are counting on us.

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