Statements
Situation in the Middle East, Including the Palestinian Question
Security Council
On October 18, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the Security Council Open Debate on the “Situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question.”
In his statement, Archbishop Auza stated that the Palestinian Question has been the subject of Security Council reports, debates and resolutions since 1947 and that the Holy See has always supported a two-state solution with the State of Israel and the State of Palestine living side by side within secure and internationally recognized borders. Leaders on both sides, he said, have the responsibility to lead their people toward a mutually agreed resolution and regional neighbors and other concerned States must not obstruct or scuttle the peace process to further their own national interests. The Holy See, he stated, affirms the historical status quo of Jerusalem in accordance with UN resolutions and says that it should be a place of convergence and peace with free and unhindered access for Jews, Christians and Muslims. He said that the work of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), supplemented by various charitable groups and Catholic organizations, remains the best means to prevent the humanitarian situation for Palestine refugees from worsening. He concluded by expressing the Holy See’s hope for the resumption of final status negotiations.
The statement can be found here.
Humanitarian Consequences of Nuclear Weapons
and the Ethical Imperatives for a nuclear-weapon-free world
First Committee
On October 17, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the First Committee deliberations of the Seventy-third Session of the General Assembly on Agenda Items 102 (jj) and 102 (kk), dedicated respectively to the themes of the “Humanitarian consequences of nuclear weapons” and the “Ethical imperatives for a nuclear-weapon-free world.”
In his statement, Archbishop Auza said that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, signed and ratified by the Holy See in September 2017, gives hope that one day the world will be free from nuclear weapons. He said that States signing the Treaty have rejected the fallacy that “might makes right” and that some nations have the right to nuclear weapons while others do not. Strategies of deterrence, he stated, are deeply ethically flawed, since such strategies necessarily embrace the possible use of these weapons. For that reason Pope Francis has said that the threat of the use of nuclear weapons, “as well as their very possession, is to be firmly condemned.” Abolition of nuclear weapons involves not just negotiation, disarmament and verification, but moral conversion from fear to mutual trust. He said that establishing the goal of abolition of nuclear arsenals is not enough but the means to achieve it are also needed. Among them is the global public authority to verify elimination. He commented on the situation on the Korean Peninsula and Iran, as well as on the 2020 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, the proposal for a Middle East Nuclear Free Zone, and the insights offered by the non-paper “Securing Our Common Future: the Agenda for Disarmament.”
The statement can be found here.
Sustainable Development
Second Committee
On October 16, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the Second Committee deliberations of the Seventy-third Session of the General Assembly on Agenda Item 20, dedicated to the theme of “Sustainable Development.”
In his statement, Archbishop Auza said that more than profit motives are necessary hold together the three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, social and environmental. There must be a vision of the inherent dignity of each person and of integral human development, something that statistical indicators cannot achieve on their own, he said. He spoke about the importance of tourism not only in terms of the economic and material benefits it brings to countries being visited but of the mutually enriching encounter between travelers and hosts, something that is endangered by the phenomenon of enclosed tourist areas.
The statement can be found here.
Eradication of Poverty
Second Committee
On October 17, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the Second Committee deliberations of the Seventy-third Session of the General Assembly on Agenda Item 24, dedicated to the theme of the “Eradication of Poverty.”
In his statement, Archbishop Auza said that the scourge of poverty is one of the greatest global challenges of our time, with poverty rates still high in many African and least developed countries. The number of those suffering from hunger has increased to 815 million, 844 million lack basic water services, 4.5 billion lack safe sanitation, one billion live without electricity and 1.46 billion children living in poverty in 104 countries. He focused on what UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called the “Trust Deficit Disorder” with regard to national political establishments and international cooperation. He said that to rebuild trust, leave no one behind and defeat extreme poverty, the poor must be dignified agents of their own destiny. The family, he said, must be supported as the primary agent of sustainable and integral human development, and each country must be the pro-active architect of its own development. To keep trust, he added, international economic assistance cannot undermine the ethical and cultural foundations of developing countries and societies.
The statement can be found here.
Globalization and Interdependence:
International Migration and Development
Second Committee
On October 19, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the Second Committee deliberations of the Seventy-third Session of the General Assembly on Agenda Item 22(b), dedicated to the theme of "Globalization and Interdependence: International migration and development.”
In his statement, Archbishop Auza said that the international community must go beyond the staggering and increasing numbers of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers and remember that they refer to unique persons who have the right to human dignity, safety and a decent standard of living. He described the push and pull factors of migration and said that any successful effort to address the migration crisis should begin with push factors, since very few people want to leave their families and communities of origin. He underlined how migration brings benefits and not just costs to host countries, like courage, skills, energy, aspirations, and most notably, hard workers. He praised the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration and the Global Compact on Refugees for affirming the international community’s shared responsibility to care for those most in need of solidarity and reiterated Pope Francis’ summary of shared responsibilities and authentic solidarity in the four verbs: welcome, protect, promote and integrate. He expressed his hope that the honest effort given to the Global Compacts will endure in line with these four actions.
The statement can be found here.
Promotion and Protection
of Human Rights
Third Committee
On October 17, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, gave an intervention during the Third Committee deliberations of the Seventy-third Session of the General Assembly on Agenda Item Agenda Item 74 (a, b, c), dedicated to the theme of the "Promotion and protection of human rights."
In his statement, Archbishop Auza called for the dignity of the human person to be central to every aspect of the work of the UN and to ensure that human rights always imply responsibilities, fulfilled through concrete commitments and actions, not just through ideas or words. He said that any ideological system that assigns more value to the strong and healthy, while discarding the weak and the vulnerable, leads to grave inequality and injustice, often ignoring children in the womb and treating the lives of the elderly, migrants or people with disabilities as expendable and burdensome to society. Instead principles are needed that promote the good of the entire human family, respecting the dignity of each human person, no matter how vulnerable.
The statement can be found here.
RSVP at holyseemission.org/rsvp12November2018
