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STATEMENT BY THE
HONOURABLE MR. LOH SENG KOK,
MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT AND REPRESENTATIVE OF
MALAYSIA
ON AGENDA ITEM 34: “COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE WHOLE QUESTION
OF PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS IN ALL ITS ASPECT”,
AT THE FOURTH COMMITTEE
(Special Political and Decolonization Committee)
OF THE 62ND
SESSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY, NEW YORK,
FRIDAY, 2ND
NOVEMBER 2007
Mr. Chairman,
1. Let me
begin by expressing our appreciation to Mr. Jean-Marie Guehenno,
Under-Secretary General of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations,
and Ms. Jane Holl Lute, Assistant Secretary-General for the Department
of Field Support, for their comprehensive presentations last Wednesday
on UN peacekeeping operations. We commend the United Nations Department
of Peacekeeping Operations (UNDPKO) and the Department of Field Support
(DFS) for their efforts and dedications in seeking new and innovative
ways towards improving the capacity of the UN Peacekeeping operations in
all its aspects.
2. My
delegation aligns itself with the statement made by the distinguished
representative of Morocco on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).
I would, however, wish to highlight a few points of special interest to
my delegation.
Mr. Chairman,
3. Having
participated in UN peacekeeping activities since 1960, Malaysia could
claim certain degree of authority and comfort when speaking on UN
peacekeeping matters. Let me, however, first begin by underlining our
firm support to the central role of the United Nations in the
maintenance of international peace and security. We consider the UN
peacekeeping operation as an indispensable instrument that has
contributed immensely to the resolutions of many armed conflicts both in
the context of inter-state and intra-state conflicts. We maintain the
view that among the many roles of the United Nations, peacekeeping is
one of the most crucial role in which the United Nations could take
pride in being able to deliver, to certain extend, to the expectations
of the international community. We are mindful of the daunting
responsibility being placed on the United Nations and the desire of this
organization to be able to do more in order to secure durable and
sustainable peace in the affected countries. It is therefore pertinent
that members of the United Nations continue to provide firm and
unwavering support especially in the area of human and financial
resources to ensure the successful implementation of peacekeeping
operations. We reaffirm our belief that economic and social progress
would only be possible through maintenance of peace and stability and in
this regard, peacekeeping operations play an important role in conflict
affected countries.
Mr. Chairman,
4. My
delegation notes that the United Nations have been involved in
peacekeeping activities for more than four decades. The wealth of
experience of the United Nations in this area would be useful as the
United Nations faces the challenges of peacekeeping operations in light
of emerging multi-dimensional and complexities of some of the new and
current conflicts. Despite this experience, it would be impossible for
the United Nations to meet these challenges without the genuine
commitment and support of all UN agencies, member states, regional
organization, NGOs and donor countries.
5. In this
regard, my delegation fully support the implementation mechanism
established by the UNDPKO to create synergy between efforts made by the
Department and those of other entities of the United Nations system, as
well as other intergovernmental and non-governmental entities, towards
increasing the benefits of the collective efforts. The willingness to
shift from traditional peacekeeping operations to multi-dimensional
tasks is a manifestation of our maturity and pragmatism driven by our
concern and commitment to respond and address the increasingly
sophisticated and complex peacekeeping operations. In this connection,
my delegation fully supports the strengthening of the Peacekeeping Best
Practices Unit to enable it to play a more active role in the
development of generic guidelines, procedures and best practices for
current and future use in peacekeeping operations. In this regard, we
note the statement made by Mr. Guehenno last Wednesday that the Capstone
Doctrine is a ‘living’ document that would need to be reviewed and
updated on a regular basis to reflect the continuing evolution of UN
peacekeeping. Malaysia has contributed our views on the doctrine which
we have channeled through NAM. We hope that the views and concerns
raised by member states regarding the draft Capstone Doctrine would be
taken into consideration so as to ensure that the draft document would
eventually serve to provide the proper guideline for UN peacekeeping
operations. We look forward to working constructively with other member
states in this regard.
Mr. Chairman,
6.
The current increase in UN peacekeeping operations reflects the
confidence of the international community, including the affected
parties, on the positive role of the UN peacekeeping operations towards
the maintenance of peace and security in the affected areas. In this
regard, we welcome the efforts of the UNDPKO at enhancing
professionalism, management and efficiency of UN peacekeeping. We share
the view on the need for the UNDPKO to have within its pool, high
quality personnel who would be able to meet the new challenges of UN
peacekeeping operations. At the same time also, we wish to see a
geographical balance on the representation of personnel and troop
contributions particularly at Headquarters.
7.
In light of the many challenges confronting UN peacekeeping
operations and as an active troop contributing country, Malaysia
reiterate our commitment to zero tolerance policy on all forms of
misconduct, including sexual exploitation and abuses by any of the UN
personnel. In this regard, Malaysia will work constructively with other
member states in ensuring the implementation of the recommendations of
the Special Committee on peacekeeping operations.
8.
The efforts of the United Nations to increase its peacekeeping
capacity a
nd capabilities in
order to further improve the prospects for conflict resolution, would
entail financial implication that would be a strain to the already
stretched resources of the UN. In this regard, while member states
continue to honor their contribution to the peacekeeping budget, we call
on member states, particularly those which have the means, to also
increase their voluntary contribution. We also call on them to actively
participate and contribute peacekeeping troops, staff officers or
military observers. It is important that all member states, in
particular the developed countries that possess well-equipped and
well-trained military personnel, to actively contribute to increase the
capability of the United Nations in meeting the current surge in the
demand for UN peacekeeping operations.
Mr. Chairman,
9.
Malaysia recognizes the usefulness and supports the cooperation between
the United Nations and regional entities in peacekeeping in accordance
with Chapter VIII of the Charter. In order for such cooperation to be
feasible we are of the view that the United Nations should continue to
provide all the necessary support through its larger membership,
including advisory, logistic and financial support towards enhancing the
capacities of regional organizations or arrangements in peace-making,
peacekeeping and peace-building activities. However, it is imperative
to ensure that missions undertaken on a regional basis are governed by
the basic principles of peacekeeping, in full conformity with the UN
Charter and the involvement of regional solutions would not absolved the
UN of its responsibility.
Mr. Chairman,
10. The
Government of Malaysia is constantly reviewing its position with a view
to assess the best possible ways and means to effectively contribute in
the work of the UNDPKO and participation in UN peacekeeping missions.
Although the total number of our personnel participating in UN
peacekeeping missions is less than what it used to be in the past, this
does not in any way reflect a diminishing commitment on our part to the
peacekeeping activities of the UN. In fact, we are currently actively
involved in ten UN peacekeeping missions by providing military
observers, staff officers, Protection Company and Police personnel. As
a member of the UN Standby Arrangement System, Malaysia is also ready to
meet our obligations in the form of making available a troop contingent
whenever they are required.
11.
Malaysia’s commitment towards UN peacekeeping is also manifested through
the setting up of the Malaysian Peacekeeping Training Centre (MPTC),
which among others provide training for Malaysian military and civilian
police personnel as well as foreign participants. This centre is the
only training institute dedicated for peacekeeping in the Southeast
Asian region. Recently, the MPTC, in collaboration with the UNDPKO-Integrated
Training Services, successfully conducted a training course for 43
peacekeeping trainers from 23 nations.
Mr. Chairman,
12. My
delegation joins others in offering our high tribute and honor to the
memory of those, including twenty three (23) members of our Malaysian
armed forces, who have made their supreme sacrifice in the service of
the United Nations and for the noble cause of peace. We strongly
condemn attacks and act of violence against the UN peacekeeping
personnel. We urge the immediate stop to these acts of violence. While
acknowledging the risks that these peacekeepers would face in carrying
out their duties, these risks could be minimized with the full
cooperation of the conflicting parties concerned. The security and
safety of all peacekeeping personnel is our collective concern.
Mr. Chairman,
13. Let me
end my statement by reiterating Malaysia’s commitment towards the
collective attainment of global peace through its unwavering support to
the central role of United Nations in the maintenance of international
peace and security. We remain ready to work under the banner of the
United Nations with other member states towards meeting this
objective.
I thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
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