GA/SM/111
OBV/117

IN UN DAY MESSAGE, GENERAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT SAYS UN FOUNDING PURPOSES, IDEALS REMAIN AS VALID TODAY AS 54 YEARS AGO

Following is the message of the President of the General Assembly, Theo-Ben Gurirab (Namibia), on United Nations Day, which will be observed 24 October:

This year's United Nations Day celebrations mark the last commemoration of the founding of the United Nations before the turn of the twenty-first century. Today's celebratory event is, therefore, instructive for a number of reasons.

Firstly, the ideals and purposes for which the United Nations was founded 54 years ago remain as valid today as they were then. The ideals of peace, fundamental human rights, justice, promotion of social progress, better standards of life in larger freedom, human security, tolerance, gender equality, friendship and cooperation continue to be as all-embracing, important and pressing as they were in October 1945. Today's celebrations afford us all, individually and collectively, an opportunity for rededication to these lofty virtues and objectives. We must also teach the youth and children to appreciate and follow them.

Secondly, today is equally an occasion to celebrate the magnificent achievements of the United Nations and its agencies in the area of the maintenance of international peace and security, the reduction of poverty, conflict resolution, as well as the advancement of the cause of freedom, justice, the rule of law and development around the world. Mindful of this, we are paying on this day deserved tribute to the staff members of the Organization who have sacrificed and are sacrificing their lives in the line of duty and in service to humanity.

Thirdly, today's celebrations provide us with an opportunity to reflect on the United Nations as a living organization, which is undergoing constant change, including needed reforms to meet the challenges of our age. In this context, we must renew our commitment to carrying out the necessary restructuring and democratization of the United Nations. This will include the long overdue enlargement and strengthening of the Security Council to make it more democratic, transparent and responsive to the demands of humanity at the dawn of the twenty-first century.

- 2 - Press Release GA/SM/111 OBV/117 19 October 1999

Fourthly, the major challenges that the United Nations must address, if it is going to be effective, relate to: the prevention, management and resolution of armed conflicts; eradication of poverty; alleviation of the plight of the world's children; and ensuring concerted action globally against the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Equally important is the protection of our living environment; the promotion of sustainable development; the establishment of a just and equitable international economic and information order; the consolidation of democracy, gender equality and human rights; the elimination of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; and the prevention of the spread of small arms.

Finally, as we celebrate the fifty-fourth anniversary of the one and only United Nations, we should remind ourselves that future generations will judge us less for our brilliant achievements in science and technology or the enormous wealth amassed by some individuals and a few nations. Instead, we will be remembered for the extent to which we have achieved global peace, sustainable development, human equality and security, and an end to hunger, poverty and environmental degradation.

Long Live World Peace! Long Live the United Nations! Long Live Human Friendship and Cooperation! All God's Speed for the Twenty-first Century!

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United Nations