T Mbeki: Non-Aligned Movement Summit Conference

14 September 2006

Chairperson, Comrade Raul Castro Ruz,
Your Highnesses,
Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government,
Your Excellencies, ministers and ambassadors,
Distinguished delegates, observers and guests,
Ladies and gentlemen:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you, Mr President, your
government and "la gente de Cuba" (the people of Cuba) for your warm and
cordial welcome.

I am indeed very happy to extend our word of congratulations to President
Castro and the Republic of Cuba for having been elected to chair this movement
of the countries of the South, the NAM. We are confident that the Republic of
Cuba, which since independence has demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to
the liberation and empowerment of the poor, will bring the same attributes to
this important organisation of developing nations.

Again, we wish Fidel Castro a speedy recovery so that this important leader
of the South can take his rightful place in this conclave. We would also like
to sincerely thank the outgoing chair of the NAM, Prime Minister Abddallah
Badawi of Malaysia, for steering the organisation with distinction over the
past three years.

In coming to the Caribbean, we reaffirm, as the Non-Aligned-Movement does
time and again, the solidarity of our movement across the divides of continents
and oceans. As South Africa ends her term as a member of the Troika, we reflect
on a full circle from Cartagena to Durban and Kuala Lumpur and back again to
the Americas. This is a circle that has often been drawn and will again
continue to repeat itself in accordance with the universality of the
Non-Aligned-Movement and our endearing aspirations to make of the world a
better place for us and our children.

That lies at the heart of our Movement and that is the circumference of our
potential strength. It is with such an ongoing sense of aspiration and
anticipation that South Africa vacates her seat on the Troika in favour of
another African country, Egypt.

Half a century ago, Indonesia hosted an important gathering that sought to
make a contribution to the ordering of the system of international relations in
the period following the end of the Second World War and the onset of the Cold
War. Bandung, more that anything else, was an initiative on the part of the
anti-colonial and anti-imperialist movement to ensure that the peoples of the
South take their destiny into their own hands and give notice that colonialism,
apartheid and foreign domination would no longer be tolerated. I am confident
that this resolve has not changed! In fact, it is now more than ever necessary
to be vigilant and protect the legacy of our past achievements in ridding
ourselves of the legacy of foreign domination and third-world status.

Ours is therefore also more than a mere geographical bonding of countries of
the South, but a commitment to respect the history of our Movement, remaining
loyal to the causes that inspired us from the very beginning of our common
journey. On its recent past a cohesive and united NAM made significant advances
at key global conferences and on issues culminating, among others, in the
historic Millennium Declaration. In addition, the Havana South Summit
formulated a comprehensive and focused agenda for interaction between
ourselves, as countries of the South as well as with the developed countries of
the North.

Your Excellencies,

For us to do justice to the high ideals of our predecessors and address the
ongoing pressing needs of our peoples, we must remain focused on the essential
reasons why all of us, representatives of billions of peoples of the world,
have elected to be part of this Movement.

We cannot suggest that this will be the case if we do not set ourselves
unambiguous and attainable goals – and deliver the same! In this day and age we
cannot afford the luxury of waiting for things to happen of their own accord,
or worse, by the will of others.

The agenda before us today recognises the need to reform the structures and
methodology of our Movement and seek new coherence and solidarity if we wish to
be heard. Can we, as we return to our own countries, be assured that we have
taken the right decisions – decisions that will work towards the alleviation
and eradication of poverty and underdevelopment and the upliftment of the
masses of our peoples?

Can we go from here to gather in the meeting halls of the United Nations
(UN) knowing that we are coherent in our solidarity to confront pressing issues
of development, security and human rights in the context of the current debate
on UN reform? Will we say, as we conclude this important Summit that we have
interrogated all issues and formulated appropriate responses that would help us
defeat the scourge of unilateralism and the continuing impoverishment and
marginalisation of billions of our citizens?

Indeed, Your Excellencies, many of these issues demand principled responses
from us. These include the ongoing debate on the right of access to nuclear
technology for peaceful purposes; the self determination of the peoples of
Palestine and Western Sahara; the centrality of the UN Charter and
international law in the peaceful resolution of conflicts and the scourge of
terrorism and its root causes. These challenges also include the matters of
conflict resolution in Africa, the pressing matters of development, with Africa
being a special case where our collective efforts are required to assist
individual countries meet the Millennium Development Goals. Indeed this
Movement should have a unified and principled position and respond
appropriately to the comprehensive reforms of the United Nations including the
newly established mechanisms such as the Human Rights Council and the Peace
Building Commission.

Our meeting here in Havana – so very close to New York, the seat of the UN
General Assembly and the Security Council – seems an opportune moment for us to
adopt decisions that will expedite the completion of the reform of the UN. As
members of both NAM and the G77, our gathering here as the XIV Summit of our
Movement, must carry a unified and unequivocal message reaffirming to the world
at large that the NAM is very much alive, relevant and will continue making the
necessary interventions so as to ensure that the poor and the marginalised
would begin to walk tall as equals among the people of the world.

Together we must continue to say – the struggle continues and victory is
certain!

I thank you for your attention.

Issued by: The Presidency
14 September 2006