Looking back, UN's Ban calls 2010 'a big year for the United Nations'

[News_Editor]

Looking back, UN's Ban calls 2010 'a big year for the United Nations'

2010-12-19 11:55:25 GMT+7 (ICT)

UNITED NATIONS (BNO NEWS) -- In his end-of-the-year "state of the world" news conference, United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called 2010 "a big year for the United Nations," with progress on issues from biodiversity to electoral support in Iraq and Afghanistan, but warned of challenges ahead in Sudan, the Middle East and other countries of concern.

"Looking ahead, our challenge is to carry our progress forward," he said of the 2011 agenda, which he will lay in more detail in January. "Resources are tighter. Demands on the UN are growing. This requires us to focus more on prevention, preparedness, being proactive, being persistent, all within a framework that is transparent and accountable."

Dealing with potential crises looming on the eve of the New Year, Ban focused on Côte d’Ivoire, where outgoing President Laurent Gbagbo's refusal to step down despite opposition leader Alassane Ouattara's clear victory in November elections has led to renewed violence in the divided country. Meanwhile, in Sudan, the South is to hold a referendum on independence next month.

Ban stressed that Gbagbo's efforts to flout the public will cannot be allowed to stand, and pledged UN assistance to help the northern and southern Sudanese address challenges following the January 9 vote.

Turning to the Middle East, Ban once again urged Israelis and Palestinians to engage seriously in peace talks, be forthcoming on substance, and reiterated Israel's obligation to freeze all settlement activity, including in East Jerusalem.

On Myanmar, Ban called the elections, despite serious shortcomings, and the release of democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, significant developments. He said the Government can and should build on them and pledged continued long-term comprehensive engagement.

The UN will also seek progress on many of the longer-term challenges, Ban said, including peace on the Korean Peninsula, the Iranian nuclear issue, bringing a stable government to war-ravaged Somalia, and helping to reunify Cyprus in a bi-zonal, bi-communal country with a Turkish Cypriot Constituent State and a Greek Cypriot Constituent State of equal status.

On Haiti, Ban voiced concern at allegations of fraud in the recent first round of elections and pledged continued UN support to ensure that they reflect the will of the Haitian people.

Looking back on 2010, Ban cited progress made on the UN anti-poverty Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which seek to slash a host of social ills by 2015. There was also process in regards to the $40 billion mobilized for the new Global Strategy on Women's and Children's Health, conserving biodiversity, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, forest protection, climate finance, adaptation and technology.

Ban further mentioned UN preventive diplomacy with the support for 34 different mediation, facilitation and dialogue efforts, citing the easing of the political crisis in Kyrgyzstan and keeping the transition to democracy on track in Guinea.

The UN was also very active on the humanitarian front in the face of natural disasters, responding to the devastating earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, as well as the floods in Pakistan.

"Looking back and looking ahead, I want to reiterate a point that I believe defines today's complex and connected world," Ban said. "Truly global action requires mobilizing support, creating broad alliances and building coalitions. In the search for solutions, progress does not come with big bangs but with steady, determined steps."

"It is the accumulation of these small steps, these steady elements of progress that set the stage for larger changes - the breakthroughs of tomorrow. We live in a unique multilateral moment, a world changing in the most dramatic ways since the end of World War II," Ban concluded. "The United Nations must keep pace. We have made progress this year. But we can and must continue."

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