Statement
by
Ambassador Vlad LUPAN, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Moldova
to
the United Nations at the UN Security Council Open Debate on
“Promotion and strengthening of the rule of law
in the maintenance of
international peace and security”,
New
York, 19 February 2014
Madame President,
As this is my first opportunity to speak this
year in the Security Council, I would like to congratulate Lithuania for being
elected and serving to this body and express our appreciations for organizing
this important debate today, in a manner to which we all can contribute.
I also wish to thank the UN Secretary General
for the today’s report and his strong commitment to strengthening and
mainstreaming the United Nations support to the Rule of Law (RoL) in all areas
of UN activities, and in this particular instance on the maintenance of
international peace and security, including in the peacekeeping operations. I
would also like to commend the amplified UN attention to the Rule of Law and Justice
through High Level Meetings on this topic, and during the discussions in the
General Assembly and Security Council, or consultations on the connection between
RoL and Conflict Prevention, and Post-conflict Building in the Sustainable
Development Goals, as well as various other activities in the United Nations
system. Latest changes in many parts of the world, the new threats and
challenges to international peace and security strengthen even more the idea
that all the aspects of the rule of law, ranging from citizen's security, to
the respect for rights and freedoms of the people, should be ever present on
the UN agenda.
Madame President,
The Republic of Moldova aligns itself with the
Statement of the European Union delivered earlier today.
During the open debates on the SDGs on the RoL
and conflict prevention and post-conflict building, we already brought the attention
to the fact that one aspect of this process is often overlooked - the need to
promoting and strengthening the RoL in the areas affected by protracted
conflicts that have not been addressed adequately during previous debates.
Nevertheless they too require our full attention and we will refer to them
further in my statement.
Madame President,
The security environment in our world is in a
permanent change and the proliferation and diversification of the risks and
threats are a constant cause of concern. Issues such as international terrorism,
good governance, internal conflicts, and cyber security are being discussed by
the international community more than before. Hence, the
respect for the RoL on the international and national levels remains as
important as ever.
From the international
point of view, the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and
non-interference in internal affairs of a state, remain valid and pertinent – and
my country's experience is a clear proof of that.
(addendum: As we
already aligned ourselves to the statement of the European Union where current
main hotspots on the international level were mentioned, the PM/Government of
the Republic of Moldova also issued a press statement mentioning that it
watches and continues to follow with deep concern the situation in Ukraine, as
neighbours and from the perspective of the regional security as well. The
PM/Government is extremely saddened by the loss of life. Sincere sympathies go
to the relatives of the deceased along the wishes of speedy recovery to those
injured. The PM/Government further urges the parties to refrain from violent
action, to defuse the situation and to establish an open dialogue that would
lead to reconciliation and identify ways to overcome the political crisis. All
divergences in this neighboring and friendly country are crucial to the
stability in the region as a whole, so we are watching for these differences to
find a solution exclusively by peaceful means, in compliance with democratic
norms, as violence is never a solution.)
From our perspective
the Rule of Law has several implications. One is that the RoL is a precondition
for a better development. We believe
that the security of the State starts from the security of the citizen - and in
a RoL state people need to have the judicial system as a guarantor of their
security. A state that genuinely strives for RoL creates more confidence for
the population, even in conflict areas, as well as in the conflict resolution process.
Moreover, we can do more to uphold international law through our national
systems by an effective implementation of international conventions.
We should also acknowledge a framework of institutions
aiming at supporting the international law, peace and security - thus, peacekeeping remains an important mechanism to assist countries passing
through a difficult transition from conflict to peace, and is a collective
effort supported by all of us. In this regard Moldova is contributing to the UN
and NATO peacekeeping efforts in Kosovo with a military contingent.
Let me refer also to the situation in my country, the Republic of
Moldova, which continues to be affected by the unresolved Transnistrian
conflict. A peacekeeping mechanism to deal inter alia with incidents in the conflict
zone was created after the cessation of the military hostilities back in 1992.
But today, the incidents we are dealing with in the former conflict zone are
not related to the military security anymore – these are usually breaches of
public order. In this context, we believe a civilian peacekeeping mission corresponding
to the UN principles and standards, in line with the RoL concept for the
purposes of durable and just peace and security would be much more relevant.
Without
forgetting a more grass root level, one should mention that Confidence Building
Measures (CBMs) are also very important, in particular in conflict prevention
and often in peacekeeping efforts. (addend.: As an example) A number of CBMs are implemented in the Republic of
Moldova as part of the Transnistrian conflict resolution process. CBM programs
in case of Moldova cover matters related to rebuilding and reconnecting
infrastructure, freedom of movement, education, ecology, social-economic
activities. Such CBMs will also be essential for the post-conflict
rehabilitation and reconstruction.
One more element
linked to the RoL more and more is the Security sector reform (SSR), along with
a potential post-conflict disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR)
of military and para-military – whose successful reintegration may, in some
cases, be closely linked to the sustainability of peace. These topics can and
should be in the focus of both the Governments and UN or/and UN mandated
organizations (addend.:
thus regional cooperation is important for the purposes of our discussion).
We shall also refer to the important role of both
national contributions to RoL efforts and to the Justice institutions we
support. Thus, the Republic of Moldova has been present with our
lawyers and judges at the highest level in Timor-Leste, Bosnia and Herzegovina and in Kosovo. At the
same time we have indicated our clear support to the International Court of Justice in peaceful
settlements of disputes, and, in our capacity of the state party to the Rome
statute, the importance and increased role of the International Criminal Court,
complementary to national jurisdictions in fighting impunity for the crimes of
genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in conflict and post-conflict
situations.
As such examples show, we remain deeply
committed to our general aim to uphold and develop an international order based
on the RoL, where international law, including human rights is fully respected
and implemented, and where accountability is important to maintain a sense of
responsibility for all. Hence, either through national participation or
international support, every state has the chances and possibilities to
contribute to the RoL and international peace and security.
Speaking about
the human rights, which we have mentioned earlier in the context of the
conflict resolution efforts, we shall refer that among many factors, it is also
important to have a free, independent, pluralistic and responsible media. In a
globalized world, such a media could be a window for dialogue, peace and
reconciliation, as well as a conduit for a correct or balanced understanding of
the development and conflict resolution matters. Referring to the freedom of
the media situation in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova, we
have to acknowledge that media outlets in this region fully controlled or
experience significant pressure from the administration – and this is not a
positive factor in the overall context of the conflict resolution.
We will probably
sound similar to our EU colleagues, who spoke in October 2013, during the
United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee on Agenda item 85, when we say
that Rule of Law presumes a full respect for human rights – and we will add from
our own experience - that this is particularly important for the societies in
conflict areas.
During the
recent Rights up Front launch at the UN, the violations of human rights have
been marked as indicators of a potential conflict, while unfortunate ongoing
violations of human rights in conflict areas have been highlighted as conflict
aggravators – respectively the need for the UN to watch the human rights situation
have been stressed, along with the idea that promoting the respect for human
rights may reduce existing problems in conflicts.
We have brought
in this context the example of my own country, where the UN expert, Thomas
Hammamberg (former Human Rights Commissioner for Council of Europe) at the
request of the Moldovan government conducted in 2012 a human rights survey in
the conflict area, where unfortunately, the human rights situation, in
particular the one related to children's rights to education, has aggravated.
The need to respect human rights, from such a concrete experience in the Transnistrian region of the Republic of
Moldova, shows a valid point elsewhere - that the respect for human rights is
essential from both humanitarian perspective and for the conflict resolution as
a whole. This goes along with the idea already voiced in this Council that the promotion of the RoL and universal human rights constitute fundamental
requirements for achieving sustainable peace, and, in this context, we commend
the SC for its increasing attention to the promotion of justice and the RoL in
the context of sustainability of peace and security.
While RoL
presumes the respect for human rights and freedoms, for the purposes of conflict
resolution it is also important to understand that the involvement of various
state and non-state actors in the mediation, conflict resolution and
development has to take into account the fact that a conflict in itself is an
extremely sensitive situation – and hence needs a coordinated approach.
Madame President,
In conclusion I am referring once again to the
High Level Dialogue on the Rule of Law and its Declaration, unanimously adopted
by all Member States, strengthening the links between the RoL and the three
pillars of the United Nations: peace and security, sustainable
development and human rights. Republic of Moldova remains directly
interested and committed to continue to actively participate in all efforts
aimed at promoting and strengthening the RoL at the international and state
levels for the purposes of ensuring peace and security.
Thank you.
