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Mr President
On behalf of Australia, New Zealand and Canada, I would like to thank the Co-Chairs for organizing these informal consultations on the Secretary-General’s report outlining a comprehensive global strategy against terrorism.
Tragically, terrorist activities continued to take a horrific toll throughout the world in 2005. And the first four months of 2006 have given far too many tragic indications that our work in combating terrorism is not yet done.
We have come a long way since 1999. We now stand at a critical juncture for the United Nations as a whole, as we take stock of where we stand in the fight against terrorism, and as Member States renew their commitment to strengthen their ability to counter terrorism and promote the rule of law, while protecting human rights.
The UN must continue to be at the center of our collective effort to fight terrorism. To this end, Australia, New Zealand and Canada welcome and support the comprehensive report prepared by the Secretary-General. The report is both forward-looking and grounded in reality.
The proposed strategy is important for the UN as an organization. However, it is just as important for Member States in providing a useful lens and framework through which we can examine our own national counter-terrorism efforts. We support the five pillars upon which the strategy rests.
A global counter-terrorism strategy cannot be so broad that it loses focus, nor so narrow that it is ineffective. We believe that the strategy proposed has achieved this delicate balance of providing us with broad principles and objectives, while also giving us the tools to attain them.
We have noted the concerns expressed by some delegations that the strategy does not address those political issues that have, thus far, divided the General Assembly. We are grateful that the Secretary-General has not attempted to prejudge solutions to issues which Member States are working to solve in this forum. We agree with this approach and acknowledge that there are indeed issues that Member States will continue discussing on other parallel tracks.
And while we believe it is important to conclude, as soon as possible, a comprehensive convention on international terrorism, we also agree with the Secretary-General that there is no reason for delay in moving forward on an operational and coordinated counter-terrorism strategy.
I would like to touch on a few key aspects of the report which are important to our Governments. This is by no means an exhaustive list. We understand as well that we will be discussing the report and way ahead in more depth next week.
Mr. President,
In particular, we welcome the clear statement by the Secretary-General that terrorism is unacceptable under any circumstances, and agree that the UN, regional organizations and individual Member States must maintain and project this message. This includes the universal condemnation of terrorist acts.
We are also pleased that the report addresses, in some detail, conditions conducive to exploitation by terrorists. All states have a role to play in creating environments that prevent terrorism from flourishing. That said, decades of research demonstrate that there is no established empirical or analytical evidence definitively linking a particular set of causal factors to the emergence or prolongation of violent movements, including terrorism.
We welcome the new emphasis on the role of civil society, which has an important role to play in dissuading groups from resorting to terrorism, in particular in providing legitimate means of addressing grievances. We also support the call for increased opportunities for public dialogue between faith communities, to counter the notion that we are experiencing a “clash” between civilizations. We must reinforce the message that, as the report states, terrorism is antithetical to all the world’s major religions.
We agree that UN Security Council resolution 1624 (2005) is an important new tool in preventing the incitement of terrorist acts. At the same time, we agree that the prohibition of incitement must not be misused to limit freedom of expression.
CANZ welcomes the thorough examination of measures through which we can deny terrorists the means to carry out their attacks, including recognition of efforts to combat and prevent the illicit transfer of man-portable air defence systems (MANPADS), which have already been used by terrorists. These measures must continue to be an essential component of our efforts, and must continue to respect fundamental rights and freedoms.
We welcome the report’s emphasis on global efforts to prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and fully support these efforts. Resolution 1540 is an important benchmark in creating strong measures across the international community to prevent non-State actors from acquiring WMD. In particular, we welcome the Secretary-General’s attention to the important and emerging issue of biological terrorism.
Mr. President,
CANZ especially supports the sections dedicated to developing State capacity to prevent terrorism. No counter-terrorism strategy will be effective if the means to implement it are lacking. We recognize that part of the challenge in implementing international obligations is individual state capacity, and that the UN has a responsibility to engage its efforts in a coordinated and coherent manner.
CANZ reiterates its continued and ongoing support for counter-terrorism capacity-building directly through States and via international and regional organizations. We must also simultaneously seek to simplify the demands on states’ limited resources, such as through the streamlining of UN reporting mechanisms.
It is important to recognize the significant benefits of regional efforts in the fight against terrorism. There are extensive, ongoing regional efforts which account for much of the practical, on-the-ground counter-terrorism work.
The UN and regional organizations play a mutually reinforcing role. As the strategy suggests, synergies among and within these organizations should be enhanced. We also agree with the need for better coherence, and coordination throughout the UN system.
Mr. President,
In our view, the proposed strategy rightly highlights the need for all Member States to comply with their international obligations to prevent and suppress terrorism. In their efforts, states must also comply with their international obligations in the field of human rights. Accordingly, CANZ welcomes the defence of human rights as a theme which cuts across all the five pillars.
Good governance, democracy, respect for human rights and the rule of law are a first line of defence against the spread of extremist ideology. A credible counter-terrorism strategy must founded on these principles, and reflect our respect for diversity. To fail to do so would undermine the very values on which our societies are founded, and ultimately would defeat our efforts to counter terrorism.
Thank you.
