General Assembly Security Council

Statement by Ambassador Bhagwant Bishnoi, Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations at the Open Debate of the UN Security Council 'Maintaining of International Peace and Security : Security, Development and the root cause of conflict', 17 November 2015

 

 

 

Mr. President,

 

The topic of today's debate is interesting. It posits the concepts of development and security together and seeks greater understanding of the root causes of conflict.

 

Most of us would agree that development and peace are mutually supportive. Eradicating poverty, providing basic human development and economic opportunity will certainly strengthen the foundation for peace and stability. It is true that grievances driven by a sense of deprivation, which is often linked to the absence of development, can at times lead to conflict, particularly within countries. People who do not have the means to shape their own destiny are susceptible to be caught in a vicious cycle of hopelessness, despair and anger. The recent adoption of a transformative 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is both an acknowledgement and response by the international community that ending poverty and achieving sustainable developing is an urgent task.

 

That being said, the terrible events of last week, in Beirut and Paris, demonstrate to us that the greatest threat to peace and security comes from violent extremism and religious fanaticism, not from the absence of economic and social development. It is the purveyors of hate and those who characterize others as infidels who are responsible for the violence that threaten our civilizational values. We need to also acknowledge that it is the absence of state authority, or weak state authority, that provides the breeding ground for extremist organizations to operate.

 

Terrorism is evil, as is violent extremism. The lack of economic and social development cannot be justification for either. Terrorism has to be eliminated. The events of last week have shown so tragically that there can be no other alternative.

 

All terrorist organizations - Daesh, or Al Shabaab or Lashkar-e-Tayyaba or Al Qaida - have an ideological basis that contradicts the basic tenets of humanity. Ideology alone, however, is not enough to sustain terrorists. They need financing and space to operate. That is, unfortunately, provided to them. And that is what needs to be addressed collectively.

 

The events of last week also highlight our unfinished business in the fight against terrorism. Leaders had, in the 2005 Summit, decided that expeditious action would be taken to finalize the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism. That has not happened. The price that we pay for procrastination is often in human lives. That should not be allowed to continue. Terrorism takes away the foremost of human rights, the right to life. It is truly a crime against humanity.

 

Mr. President,

 

I will, in conclusion, refer to the tendency of the Security Council to encroach on the jurisdiction of the General Assembly. Just because the three pillars of the United Nations - namely, peace and security, development and human rights - are inter-dependent, it does not ipso facto mean that the Security Council must arrogate all these functions to itself. The Security Council is a non representative, limited member body with opaque working methods. It cannot presume to prescribe policy choices on issues of development and social inclusion to the wider membership of the United Nations.

 

The Council will, however, have our full support in its efforts to curb dangerous and extremist trends. The consolidation of political processes and solutions, while also building durable state institutions, will go a long way in addressing extremism and radicalization. We would encourage the Council to pursue such solutions.