A/48/PV.42 General Assembly

I should like at the outset to commend the President of the Security Council, Ambassador Sardenberg of Brazil, for his cogent introduction of the Security Council’s annual report highlighting among other things a number of procedural measures adopted by the Council with a view to enhancing the efficiency of its work. We are confident that these could constitute a basis upon which to build our endeavours to further strengthen its efficacy. Recent developments in the global landscape have placed the Security Council in a position of increasing importance, with ramifications for the work of the Organization and beyond. Numerous circumstances have also contributed to an unprecedented number of activities undertaken by this body. From the expansion of peace- keeping operations to the task of constantly monitoring events that threaten peace and security, the Council has seen an active agenda, and its capacity to respond is at times overburdened. We readily acknowledge that its members have responded to the numerous demands placed upon it with the sense of responsibility required of them by the provisions of the Charter. The new cooperative spirit prevailing among its members has allowed them to take a number of unanimous positions on some of the most critical and complex issues, while we are cognizant of the fact that it has failed to address effectively certain critical issues. The This record is subject to correction. Corrections should be sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned within one week of the date of publication to the Chief of the Verbatim Reporting Section, Room C-178, and incorporated in a copy of the record. Thursday, 28 October 1993 at 3 p.m. NEW YORK Council has thus reached a critical turning point in its history, and members look forward to a more effective role now that the obstacles which paralysed it for so long have been removed. At the same time, it is the ardent desire of Indonesia and other non-aligned countries that the United Nations should become fully effective as the central instrument for a new and revitalized international order. We have always insisted that this multilateral institution should reflect the democratic spirit of equality, equity and transparency, in representation as well as in the process of decision-making. The United Nations and its principal organs should therefore periodically undergo a process of review and revitalization in order to ensure its dynamic adaptation to the evolving realities of international life so that it may continue to play a greatly strengthened role as the focal point for the management of the critical issues of our time. It is in this light that my delegation views the report of the Security Council to the General Assembly. As in the past, it provides a comprehensive account of its activities during the preceding year and describes its task in the context of its ever-increasing responsibilities. It also contains a compendium of communications and other documents as well as a listing of decisions and actions taken on the issues that were brought before it. It is clear, however, that the report is marked by symbols and a chronology of issues and events that have occurred during the past year. We believe that the annual report required by paragraph 3 of Article 24 of the Charter must be more than a mere description of activities and a reproduction of resolutions and decisions already known. It is particularly regrettable to note that it does not contain an evaluation of the issues considered by the Council or a detailed account of the work of its special committees. In Distr. GENERAL A/48/PV.42 19 November 1993 ENGLISH In our view, therefore, the reports of the Security Council to the General Assembly should contain an analysis and assessment of the decisions taken by the Council on each issue in order to meet the need for greater clarity and understanding of the Council’s reasonings and motives in adopting decisions. In addition, in the context of accountability, transparency and openness, the contents of informal consultations should be presented in summary form in the annual reports so that the extent to which non-permanent members actually participate in decision-making processes can be ascertained and increased. Furthermore, it is essential that the membership of the United Nations at large should have adequate and timely information through an agreed mechanism or modality. It might also be desirable to submit reports more frequently in order to keep the members abreast of its activities and functions. Consideration must also be given to reviewing the Council’s relations with other principal organs, especially the General Assembly. In this context, we hold that balance is essential in the relationship between the General Assembly and the Security Council in conformity with their respective mandates as enshrined in the Charter. There should be greater accountability of the Council to the Assembly on decisions and actions affecting the interests of the entire international community. We further believe that it may also be timely and pertinent to undertake a constructive review of the veto powers in line with the reform of the Organization aimed at bringing about greater democratization and transparency in the work of United Nations bodies. We also believe that restructuring and reform of the Security Council have become imperative in the light of the profound changes that have taken place on the international scene. As we are all aware, although the membership of the Organization has increased to 184, there has been no proportionate increase in the non-permanent membership. Hence, a serious review and reappraisal of the Council’s membership has become necessary to ensure a more equitable and balanced representation. Finally, we would like to express our satisfaction that the Council has agreed to implement proposals relating to its future format as well as to the adoption and timely submission of reports to the General Assembly. In the same spirit, we remain hopeful that the Security Council will be responsive to a change both in its composition and in its procedures and practices. In these endeavours, the main objective is to render the Council more responsive to changing realities and emerging challenges in a dynamic context. Indonesia is fully committed to participating

Once again this year the Security Council is submitting to the General Assembly its report on its work, this time for the year to 15 June 1993. This year, however, the exercise is no mere repetition of that of past years, since, in an effort that has only just begun, certain innovations have been introduced. We believe that the changes, which were explained in detail by the President of the Council, Ambassador Mota Sardenberg of Brazil, when he introduced the particular report this morning, have contributed significantly to improving the report. The first group of improvements affects the process of adopting the report, which this year took place nearer the end of the period covered and was more widely publicized, which allows for adequate consideration by the Assembly. Secondly, my delegation wishes to highlight the improvements seen in the contents and format of the report, which we consider make it significantly easier to read: an expanded introduction, the better to inform the reader about what is in the report; a grouping of issues and related subjects under general headings; and expanded and more detailed appendices. We hope that in future reports it will prove possible to introduce some additional improvements, such as a more analytical introduction, better reflecting the contents, as well as a rationalized list of subjects under consideration by the Council, omitting merely historical issues unrelated to current reality. These improvements in the report, both present and future, are part of the effort now being exerted by the Council to improve the transparency of its work and, at the same time, its efficiency; this began with the establishment last June of a Council working group on documentation and procedures. The initial results of this effort were reflected in the Note by the President of the Security Council of 30 June 1993 (S/26015) and followed up in the Note of 27 July (S/26176), which were duly communicated to the President of the General Assembly. We believe that, given the measures that have been adopted thus far, there has been a significant - though still insufficient - improvement in the information that the States Members of the United Nations but not members of the Council receive concerning the Council’s work. In point of fact, a monthly preview of the Council’s programme of work is now circulated to Members of the Organization, and Also, the worthwhile dialogue between the Council and the Assembly is being expanded through regular consultations between the Presidents of the Council and the Assembly; up until now, this has been effectively limited to the Council’s annual report. Even if this dialogue, which is being conducted while still observing the jurisdictions assigned the Organization’s principal organs by the Charter, is as fruitful as our common effort towards international peace and security requires, it should still be extended to all Members of the United Nations, on whose behalf the Council acts under Article 24 of the Charter. In particular, we must take up the complex and sensitive issue of information about the course and the outcome of Security Council consultations and, possibly, of participation by States that are not members of the Council in the Council’s informal discussion process when circumstances require. What we are talking about here is, first of all, setting up an information system that would operate once informal consultations have taken place - a system that should be as comprehensive as possible, without detriment, however, to the discretion such deliberations require and that would help achieve agreement between members of the Council. Secondly, the question is one of finding mechanisms that would make it possible to take into consideration, in the Council’s deliberations, the opinions of States that are particularly concerned with a particular question before any final decision has been taken. This is a matter of great interest, and we hope that the Council will go on examining it thoroughly within the working group on documentation and procedures that it has set up. Just glancing at the statistics on the number of meetings held and decisions taken by the Council is enough to show just how much of an increase there has been in its work over the last few years. Also, the Council is dealing with issues that are becoming ever more complex and that have an increasing and ever more powerful impact on all the States Members of the Organization. Just one example of this impact is the repercussions for many Member States’ economies of applying the sanctions that the Council has imposed where necessary, under Chapter VII of the Charter. Under these circumstances, the only way of ensuring that the Council’s decisions are effective is quite simply to increase the level of participation by States that are not members of the Council and to give them more information; this would increase the legitimacy of the Council’s decisions

The Republic of Belarus attaches great importance to the Assembly’s discussions of the annual report of the Security Council. We note that, in recent years, consideration of this item has not been a mere formality, and this has made it possible for all States Members of the Organization to express their views on the work of the Council, point out its achievements and shortcomings and provide specific ideas and suggestions for its further work. Our delegation notes with satisfaction that, this time, the Security Council’s report was submitted to the General Assembly in good time. The report’s contents confirm the indisputable fact that the Council is carrying out an enormous amount of work towards maintaining international peace and security. We note the major changes that have taken place, both quantitatively and qualitatively. The number of formal meetings and informal consultations that the Council has held has increased markedly. The Council is taking consensus decisions on many acute problems, promoting the peaceful settlement of many issues in various hot spots around the world. In our view, this intense activity on the part of the principal United Nations body responsible for maintaining international peace and security deserves every support. Under Article 24 of the Charter, the Security Council, in discharging its duties, acts on behalf of all the States Members of the United Nations. Thus, we find quite understandable the interest shown by States that are not Security Council members in the effectiveness of the Council’s activities, in improving its procedures and methods of work and in enhancing its accountability and transparency. The proposals towards this end that many delegations have put forward deserve, in our opinion, thorough consideration, and we are glad that the Council has already taken into account some of the observations made by representatives. These observations refer particularly to the structure of the report now before us, and also to the publication of a tentative draft programme of the Council’s work for the next month. Of course, the Council’s working procedures and methods still leave a great deal of room for improvement. The Republic of Belarus supports the reforms aimed at adapting the United Nations to the fundamentally new As is well known, our Republic is a candidate for non-permanent membership in the Council in 1994-1995. As our State’s Minister of Foreign Affairs said during the Assembly’s general debate this session, We hope that during the upcoming elections, Belarus’ contribution to maintaining peace and international security will be judged on its merits, and that it will be taken into account that Belarus, as one of the founding Members of the United Nations, has only once been elected a non-permanent member of the Security Council. In conclusion, I should like to express my firm conviction that the positive trends that have recently begun in the development of the Security Council’s work will be further consolidated and developed, and will thus strengthen the role of the United Nations itself in solving the extremely difficult problems facing the world.

Today we are considering agenda item 11, on the report of the Security Council to the General Assembly covering the period from 16 June 1992 to 15 June 1993, submitted in accordance with Article 24, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations. This report, which for a number of years now might perhaps have been viewed as merely a matter of procedure, has since 1990 taken on a relevancy which is directly tied to the significant increase in the activity of the Security Council. According to the record as reflected in the report - document A/48/2 - during the period under consideration This activity, unprecedented in the entire history of the Security Council, reflects an international situation which allows one of the principal organs of the United Nations to operate with the harmony and firmness that the drafters of the Charter had in mind at the time, and which, on the other hand, bears witness to the outbreak of numerous regional and inter-State conflicts which, given their very nature, are jeopardizing international peace and security. The new world scene and the increase in the number of States Members of the Organization are making us think about and discuss the reforms required to make United Nations bodies better able to meet the challenge facing us in respect of peace-keeping, economic development, and the advancement of human rights and democratic values. This process of reflection and debate must necessarily affect the work of the Security Council, and the report could serve as a benchmark for the discussion on that subject. Therefore, though we do of course appreciate the new format and the timely submission of the report itself, we would also consider it appropriate for a number of periodic reports to be submitted by the Security Council to the General Assembly in the course of the year. These reports might, whenever circumstances so require, be more detailed. This would ensure a better and smoother system of information and communication, and a better and more appropriate balance between the various bodies established by the Charter in accordance with Article 24, to which I have already referred. My delegation will participate in this process of reflection to complement what was begun with General Assembly resolution 47/62 in relation to the question of equitable representation on and increase in the membership of the Security Council. We have already addressed a note to the Secretary-General on this subject and we will express our views on it when the Assembly takes up the item concerned.

May I take it that the Assembly takes note of the report of the Security Council contained in document A/48/2?

May I take it that it is the wish of the Assembly to conclude its consideration of agenda item 11? INTERNATIONAL DRUG CONTROL HIGH-LEVEL PLENARY MEETINGS TO EXAMINE THE STATUS OF INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AGAINST THE ILLICIT PRODUCTION, SALE, DEMAND, TRAFFIC AND DISTRIBUTION OF NARCOTICS AND PSYCHOTROPIC SUBSTANCES: DRAFT RESOLUTION (A/48/L.12)

I now call on the first speaker in the debate for this meeting this afternoon, the representative of the Gambia.

The holding of these high- level plenary meetings on international drug control testifies to the deep concern of the international community at the growing global drug problem. Drug abuse and its grave consequences continue to affect every section of our communities. Countries and communities that once were spared the scourge of drug trafficking and consumption have now fallen victim to the debilitating effects of these illicit and dangerous drugs. The Gambia, which only a decade ago was a drug-free country, has in recent years been used increasingly as a transit point in the international trafficking of dangerous drugs such as heroin, cocaine and all their derivatives. The spillover effect has resulted in the use of these drugs by more and more people in the Gambia. It is regrettable to note that the problem of drug trafficking and consumption is beginning to reach dangerous proportions affecting the whole fabric of our society. Young people, the cream of our society, are the primary targets and the largest group of victims. Most of these children, untutored in the ways of a wanton world and not knowing how to resist such temptation, become easy victims, serving both as traffickers and as consumers of the illicit drugs, thereby ensuring the continuity of the chain of trafficking and users. The consequence for the Gambia in the rise in illicit drug trafficking and usage is that there is an unprecedented rise in violence and dangerous crimes, unknown in the nation’s history. Violence within families, some with tragic consequences, has also risen. The number of drug-related medical cases has been on the rise, with some of these never to be cured or rehabilitated in society. The rate of drop-outs from schools, work and other gainful activities, almost all attributed to the drugs menace, is on the increase. The existing economic situation just described, however, should not suggest a state of total hopelessness on the part of the Government of the Gambia. The Government has met the menace head on. The percentage of the nation’s limited budget allocation for illicit drug control has been increasing each year to finance new programmes and measures to combat the drug problem. The laws of the Gambia relating to illicit drug trafficking and consumption are being revised and new drug enforcement measures are being formulated and effected. The Government continues to set up and strengthen structures and agencies relating to drug enforcement, drug rehabilitation and the sensitization and education of the public on the evils of illicit drug trafficking and consumption. Indeed, the prevention and eradication of drug abuse and illicit trafficking have become a national crusade utilizing the resources of the Government and of non-governmental organizations, and are extended to all facets of Gambian society. The main obstacle to our national effort, however, is the lack of adequate financial and material resources. Another reason for the inadequacy of our drug control measures is that the national drug menace is linked to the international drug situation. The link between local and global drug trafficking and drug abuse has become so formidable that small States like the Gambia, with their fragile economies, are unable to combat it effectively and consistently. Statistics on the financing of the international drug trafficking network by drug lords indicate that the money expended is usually higher than the overall national budgets of some countries. The Gambia is one such State and therefore cannot, on its own, combat successfully this global problem affecting all countries and all regions of the world. The Gambia therefore welcomes the initiative and concerted effort of the international community to arrest the growing drug problem. We will continue to rely on the United Nations and other bilateral and multilateral cooperative efforts to evolve an international drug control programme. The implementation of the Global Programme of Action and the Programme of Technical Cooperation with Developing Countries, in collaboration with the Financial Action Task Force, has been a source not only of great technical assistance but also of renewed hope and strength Similarly, the lack or non-availability of reliable intelligence on patterns and modes of international drug trafficking have severely limited the capabilities of our drug- law enforcement agencies to investigate and suppress the international drug-distribution networks successfully. The Gambia has always maintained that there is an intimate complementarity and logical relationship between drug-law enforcement and crime prevention, because there can be no doubt that illicit-drug-related activities are based on criminal practices. A two-prong attack on illicit drug trafficking and drug abuse globally through the concerted efforts of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme and the Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch would yield greater and more-lasting successes. My delegation fully supports the recommendation contained in General Assembly resolution 47/102, which invites cooperation between those two bodies. The Gambia has realized the wisdom and benefit of mobilizing and coordinating the resources of our drug- enforcement agencies and the Crime and Justice Department in the uphill task of stemming and eradicating from our society the rising tide of illicit-drug trafficking and consumption. The results have been satisfactory, given the high number of arrests, seizures and convictions in the past 12 months. With more funds and technical assistance, we intend to expand this collective inter-agency drug-law enforcement exercise as well as improve existing treatment and rehabilitation facilities. At the international level it is becoming increasingly necessary to consolidate the United Nations drug- enforcement programme by reviewing and synthesizing, where possible, the various international drug-control plans and programmes being implemented by the United Nations to ensure greater efficacy and effectiveness in combating the drug menace. In this regard we fully support recent resolutions of the General Assembly calling for an integrated approach in implementing the United Nations International Drug Control Programme. National and regional drug-law enforcement agencies and programmes would, within the context of their drug-enforcement master plans, be able to develop strong links with the United Nations drug-control It is our hope that the conclusions and recommendations emanating from these meetings will reinforce our commitment to the active observance of the United Nations Decade against Drug Abuse as well as strengthen our resolve to ensure our collective adherence to the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, which should continue to serve as the basis of international efforts to combat abuse and illicit drug trafficking.

I now call upon Mr. Anicetas Simutis, Permanent Representative of Lithuania.

The problems associated with drug abuse and illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances transcend national borders and are thus global in dimension. Under the Soviet regime, drug abuse was not an issue of concern, and its existence was even denied. Today, the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and my own country, Lithuania, are increasingly aware of the adverse consequences of the drug problem and of the need for a comprehensive approach in combating this scourge. The United Nations has an important role to play in the international struggle against drugs. Our Governments note with satisfaction that the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) has since 1992 sent several missions to the Baltic States and is carrying out scientific and technical assistance projects in the laboratory and law enforcement sectors. UNDCP is assisting us in acquiring the defences necessary to address drug-control matters, since our lack of resources and expertise in this area makes us extremely vulnerable at this early stage. To fill the vacuum, interministerial committees have been formed to plan national drug strategies, coordinate implementation and assure full utilization of limited available resources. The Baltic States are at present pursuing the following national objectives: We are adopting measures that will enable us to comply with the provisions of the drug Conventions while completing the comprehensive legislation needed for ratification. UNDCP has provided legal assistance in drafting new drug-control laws and in adapting our national legislation to international drug Conventions and decisions dealing with drug abuse and illicit trafficking. We are increasing our expertise, technical capacities and coordination to enhance our drug-management régime. We require more assistance in meeting our legitimate need for drugs in general, and narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances in particular, and in reducing to a minimum drug We are working with the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, the Nordic Committee on Narcotic Drugs, the Pompidou Group of the Council of Europe, the World Health Organization and the European Community PHARE Programme in developing a coherent regional strategy in dealing with traffickers using the Baltic States as transit countries for the transportation of narcotic drugs to consumer markets. We are seeking recommendations for dealing with problem areas and cultivating more effective enforcement methods and cooperation between drug-enforcement agencies and States and, in particular, between police and customs officials. We are implementing programmes aimed at strengthening our judicial, legal and law-enforcement systems, with special attention to the training of personnel. In close consultation with multilateral agencies and bilateral partners, we are developing national, regional, subregional and global drug-control strategies. We are encouraging grass-roots initiatives and programmes and the involvement of non-governmental organizations in the treatment, rehabilitation and social reintegration of drug abusers. In this regard, we welcome UNDCP’s initiative to involve non-governmental organizations, the private sector, schools and the sports community more actively in the campaign against drugs. We are creating and strengthening our control and monitoring systems for licit drugs and enhancing measures for surveillance of the diversion of precursor chemicals to illicit production. Because of the use of cheap and easily available substances, such as volatile solvents - glue in particular - we are increasing drug-education programmes, with the goal of promoting healthy-lifestyle programmes among the young. The post-cold-war era has brought with it many problems and challenges resulting from the social, economic and political transformation under way in our region of the world. Because of severe economic difficulties, there is an acute shortage of appropriate equipment in our laboratories, inhibiting our ability to analyse seized drugs. With the establishment of fully convertible currencies in the Baltic States, money laundering is another growing problem and a threat to monetary stability. This phenomenon is closely linked to organized crime, a problem The Governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania will continue to support UNDCP’s important coordinating function in the world-wide campaign against drug abuse. Because of the sophisticated and international nature of drug crime, we believe that coordinated action, based on the recommendations made under the Global Programme of Action, is needed to tackle this issue on the global front. We expect the United Nations will continue to play a leading role in the fight against illicit narcotic drugs, and we are ready to contribute our share to the reduction of this problem.

I now call on the representative of Senegal.

The head of the Senegalese delegation has already had the opportunity to congratulate you, Sir, on your illustrious election to the presidency of the Assembly at this session, and I personally welcome your election because of your outstanding qualities and talent as a diplomat. The consideration of agenda item 112, in which we are now engaged, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 47/99 of 16 December 1992, affords us an opportunity to evaluate the struggle against narcotic drugs and ponder ways and means of enhancing international cooperation in this sphere. For this reason I have no doubt that this debate will yield concrete proposals. Indeed, illicit traffic in narcotic drugs is so extensive that nothing short of well-coordinated international action can make a real contribution to its eradication. The threat of such a scourge hovering over our youth - and, hence, over the future of the world - requires that increased attention be given this problem. It should be added that most of the victims of this dangerous scourge that is spreading unabated are found among the most disadvantaged, for the simple reason that they are the most vulnerable. This is because there is a direct correlation between the continued deterioration of terms of trade - resulting in a dizzying drop in commodity prices - and an ever-growing trend towards the development of illicit drug crops that promise exorbitant income and exercise an almost irresistible attraction on the people - generally disadvantaged - of the zones of production. This, in fact, explains why the majority of areas under cultivation are found in poor countries. The Senegalese delegation is of the view that restoring balance to the world economy is one of the indispensable It is a great challenge, but there is reason for optimism, especially when we consider the results achieved by the international community and the welcome decision of the International Monetary Fund to include the problem of drugs on its list of five world priorities. These efforts should be strengthened so as to foster among the producing countries policies to encourage, promote and popularize intensive substitute crops and the establishment of a remunerative price-setting system. The international community’s fight against drug abuse will not be effective unless Member States adhere to or ratify and effectively implement the relevant international Conventions. My delegation appeals to States that have not yet done so to take such action. In this way they would show their determination to check and then eradicate this scourge, while also presenting a deterrent to those who, for personal gain, would like to see it perpetuated. The scope of the phenomenon and its grave social consequences fully justify waging the struggle at the regional and subregional levels also. In this regard, the signing of regional and subregional agreements and the regular organizing of seminars under the aegis of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) would be important steps in support of the Global Programme of Action to combat drug abuse. The seminars being held in various regions - Asia, Central America, the Near East and Africa - and the determination of the States involved to eliminate this scourge are encouraging. However, their conclusions should lead to better follow-up and to concrete action. Africa is now the drug traffickers’ continent of choice for the transit of their merchandise, as most African countries are not equipped to combat this activity. The traffickers benefit not only from this unintentional collusion, but also use more and more sophisticated methods of smuggling the desired quantities. Thus it is urgently necessary to intensify international cooperation in the provision of assistance to developing countries in general - and to Africa in particular - if they are to have effective and efficient equipment, at their airports and in the administrative bodies concerned. In addition to this lack of resources, Africa lacks harmonization of legislation for the fight against drugs. Unfortunately, this situation benefits drug traffickers, especially as, even in most of the States parties to the Conventions, legislation - if it exists at all - is often incomplete, or even obsolete. Thus, cracking down on theoretically illegal acts is often almost impossible for lack of a legal basis. At a very early stage Senegal realized the dangers inherent in the phenomenon of drug abuse. In 1963 - 30 years ago - it adopted legislation, which is regularly amended to take account of changing circumstances. In certain cases, Senegalese law provides for sanctions, such as the withdrawal of passports for periods of up to six years, in addition to prison sentences. Above and beyond the traditional law-enforcement structures, Senegal has set up a national commission on narcotic drugs, which plays a dynamic role in both prevention and education, especially through an annual national week to combat drug abuse, whose objective is to heighten public awareness. I should also refer to the fact that since July 1991 Senegal has had a central office for the prevention of illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs. In addition to its law- enforcement function, this office is responsible for centralizing information and for coordinating and encouraging all measures to fight drug trafficking. I should like to conclude by emphasizing the need to harmonize national legislation so as to provide better monitoring of the licit drug market, and thus to create a more effective system of preventing and eliminating illicit trafficking, and also to encourage all States to ratify the three Conventions I have mentioned. It is also absolutely necessary to strengthen subregional and regional cooperation, through the establishment of technical structures to wage the struggle at these two levels. More sustained and intensified international cooperation to provide logistical assistance to developing countries and practical measures against the laundering of drug money are fundamental to effective action to combat drug trafficking. Our young people, whom we have a duty to protect, educate and guide along the path of progress, are also a resource, vulnerable to devastation by this social scourge, if we are not careful.

I now call on the representative of Kenya.

I wish to make a few comments on this important topic of international cooperation against the illicit production, sale, demand, traffic and distribution of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. The drug menace has brought untold suffering to mankind. We support the measures that have been put in place by the international community - ranging from the Political Declaration adopted by the General Assembly at its seventeenth special session to the Global Programme of Action, which contains a comprehensive list of measures and activities. By its nature, the drug menace cannot be tackled without the concerted efforts of the international community. Over and above the global efforts to reduce the production and supply of, and the demand for, illicit drugs, efforts at the national and regional levels must be intensified. It is therefore imperative that Governments establish comprehensive global measures to fight all aspects of the illicit drugs business. The restructuring and strengthening of the United Nations machinery in the field of the International Drug Control Programme is a clear demonstration of the General Assembly’s intention to maintain an intensified fight to eliminate the illicit production and supply of, and demand for, narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. Three years after the launching of the Programme, it is now time for the international community to evaluate its success. In this regard, I wish to comment on three important areas. First, the training component of the programme is one area with great potential for achieving the desired results. My country is one of those that have benefitted from the courses organized by the Programme. We have benefitted also from some bilateral training programmes, including those organized by the Drug Enforcement Administration of Secondly, the drug menace is particularly devastating to the youth who tend to be easy victims. The need to establish facilities for treatment, rehabilitation and social integration of drug and substance abusers can therefore not be overemphasized, especially taking into account the compounding complications that arise as a result of the deadly human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and the immunity deficiency that is associated with it. It is therefore imperative that public education programmes be mounted so as to sensitize the general populace to the inherent dangers of drug abuse. International cooperation in this endeavour therefore cannot be overemphasized. Thirdly, Governments must agree on decisive measures to curb and control the easy access to and marketing of conventional weapons. My delegation is of the view that easy and uncontrolled access to arms and explosives has made it easy for drug traffickers and warlords to evade the law enforcement agencies. In the process they have caused loss of life to many innocent people and also posed a serious threat to the security and stability of a number of countries. The experience of Colombia should serve as a major challenge to the international community in this regard. I wish to assure the Assembly of my Government’s commitment to the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan on Drug Abuse Control. My country was one of the first countries to sign and ratify the 1988 United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. At the national level the Kenya Government has embarked on comprehensive legislation on the control of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances which will be debated and enacted by the National Assembly in the very near future. This legislation, among other things, aims at harmonizing national laws and regulations with a view to eliminating the drug market as well as the illicit trafficking of drugs through Kenya by imposing stricter penalties on offenders. It will also introduce measures intended to eradicate the laundering of monies made through the illicit trade in such drugs and substances. Finally, although the magnitude and scale of the drug menace is still minimal in my country, Kenya is increasingly being used as a transit point especially from the Asian and southern African regions to the European and American markets. This is not surprising because Nairobi is one of the busiest connecting airports in the African continent.

I now call on General Fouad Al- Saleh, Under-Secretary, Ministry of the Interior of Kuwait.

Allow me at the outset to thank and congratulate the Secretariat of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) on its marvelous efforts in preparing the documentation and drawing up of the reports now before us. The problems that beset the world nowadays because of the drug trade and the attendant problems of addiction that take considerable segments of the populace out of the productive mainstream of society, side by side with the link between trafficking and criminal activities of every sort, create a serious situation that calls for concerted international efforts and continuous exchanges of information and know- how between States in the war on this illicit trade. Accordingly, the United Nations system has continued to organize periodic meetings at the international and regional levels with a view to ensuring the required inter-State cooperation and coordination in that area. In this connection, I should like to pay tribute to the UNDCP secretariat with regard to documentation on the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and the provision of full information that makes it easy to understand and implement the stipulations of the Convention. The State of Kuwait has often expressed its keen interest in dealing with this scourge and has shown that interest in a number of ways by participating in international drug-combating conferences and by cooperating with the competent international bodies such as INTERPOL, the Council of Interior Ministers of Arab States and the Arab Centre of Security Studies and Training in attempting to coordinate and strengthen our efforts along those lines. Kuwait has acceded to the 1988 United Nations Convention. The competent authorities are now seeking to ratify the Convention at the earliest. We have also concluded bilateral agreements with several countries with the aim of combating trafficking and exchanging information. At the national level, we have enacted the necessary legislation to combat drug abuse and trafficking. For In trying to cope with problems associated with drug abuse and drug trafficking and in view of the increase in drug trafficking all along our land borders with Iraq, we have begun to dig a trench and to build a sand wall along our entire frontier with Iraq for a number of security reasons and also to stem the flow of drugs from that particular country, which is causing destabilization and threatening the moral fibre of those who succumb to drug addiction. The delegation of Kuwait attaches great hopes to the activities of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme, especially in the area of training, and thanks it for the information it provides. We wish to offer the following suggestions while urging the Programme Director to give a higher priority to the training of personnel engaged in the enforcement of anti-drug laws: First, the training programmes UNDCP provides should be expanded and better coordinated with relevant regional international organizations. Secondly, training programmes set up by UNDCP must be scrutinized annually so as to assess their results and develop them according to the findings of such assessment. Thirdly, the provision of the technical assistance sought from UNDCP by Member States should be linked to the assessment carried out in the annual review process already mentioned, in all areas relating to those States’ drug- combating activities.

I now call on the Permanent Representative of Kyrgyzstan.

For me this is an extraordinary opportunity most cordially to congratulate you, Sir, most warmly on your election to the presidency of the General Assembly at its forty-eighth session. A month has gone by since you took up that historic gavel in your hands and in that time you have convincingly demonstrated that the presidency is indeed in the firm hands of an extraordinarily able international diplomat. My delegation rests assured that under your skilful guidance this session cannot fail to achieve major success that will lead us to a bright new horizon. The international community is following the drug issue very closely. This emerges clearly from the report (A/48/329) of the Secretary-General and from this debate. From the report we see that the "infection" of drug abuse has spread vertically through almost all international structures, which to date have been trying in vain to fight against it. The report presents in painstaking detail the many steps that have been taken in this regard within the United Nations system, both organization-wide and on a narrower scale. We are left with the impression that after so much work and so much intellectual, human and, of course, financial effort, significant results should have been reached. If that is not the case, the far-reaching effects of this illness and the extent of its poisonous spread through societies have been confirmed. Because of our Organization’s precarious financial state, we think it is now essential to weigh the expenditures to which I have referred against the results that have been obtained. An analysis would yield fresh insights as to how to proceed. We wish to stress that our proposal would be valid only in the absence of such an analysis. The Kyrgyz Republic also suffers from this disease, and it compels us to expend considerable effort on confronting many specific problems. The scale of drug trafficking is cause for concern, while the criminality associated with drug use and the number of drug addicts is alarming. For a very long time, opium poppies were cultivated in Kyrgyzstan, and this became a favourite literary and cinematic theme in our society, like some others. This phenomenon refused to go away, despite the fact that since 1973 the planting of poppy in Kyrgyzstan had been completely banned. Recently, when democracy and independence were established in Kyrgyzstan, it was forced to mount a stern resistance to active movements, even in Parliament, to resume the planting of poppy. Proponents of this movement argued that our Republic would thus save sufficient capital in foreign currency to solve other economic problems. However, after carrying out a full, in-depth analysis of the possible consequences of such a step, being aware of the dangerous experiences of many other countries, and acting in accordance with the relevant international Year after year, the Kyrgyz Republic wages a struggle to prevent the exploitation of vast expanses of wild cannabis and other narcotic-containing crops. But, in addition to domestic factors, there are also external ones. Poor control of borders - indeed, the complete absence of such control in some parts of our region - cannot but contribute to the unchecked spread of raw opium originating in neighbouring territories. Unfortunately, poverty, hunger and the economic and geographic isolation of such areas and their peoples make trafficking in opium the only form of subsistence available to them. All sectors of the population, including women with many children, are at times involved in drug trafficking. According to available data, the volume of drugs involved in illegal trafficking is growing, with the opening of the new Khorog-Osh route for transshipment to the other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States. It is no wonder, then, that drug trafficking in those areas appears to be a permanent feature. There is a very strong temptation to become involved in it, particularly for the most vulnerable sectors of society. In the case of some neighbouring countries, for example, on the basis of data we have obtained, an investment of one ruble in the production of opium poppies yields an income of 1,242 rubles. Other data indicate that annual exports from that zone total almost 200 tons of raw opium and that at this very time tons of it are ready for export to the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States. Clearly, the border services have no tranquillity to look forward to. There is also the probability that Kyrgyzstan will gradually become another transit point for moving drugs from the countries of the so-called Golden Crescent to Europe. In these circumstances, our Government is taking the steps it deems appropriate. Aware of the still graver consequences of trafficking in and illegal use of narcotics if appropriate steps are not taken, and with the aim of cooperating in solidarity with the international community in the effort to solve the problem of drug abuse, the Parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic intends to ratify at its current autumn session the United Nations international Conventions of 1961, 1971 and 1988. By presidential decree, the State Commission responsible for drug control and attached to the Government has already been created, and the Kyrgyz organization affiliated with the international association for the battle Finally, it is clear that what is happening in the world of drug trafficking is of concern to our country. We have taken certain steps in this regard, but it seems to us there is still a long and difficult road ahead. As a newly independent country that subscribes to the principles of democracy, market economy, the protection of human rights and the secular State, Kyrgyzstan is ready to cooperate internationally to the extent it can to free our societies of drug abuse, while hoping that the international community will want to help us in our endeavours in this area. We are genuine and sincere members of the international community. We share all its concerns and problems, and we stand with it in resolute solidarity in its struggle to find solutions. We long for that happy day when free and democratic mankind will at last have eliminated the scourge of drugs.

I now call on Mr. Abdul-Hai Elahi, Minister of State and President of the High Commission for Drug Control of Afghanistan.

I am pleased to have the opportunity to participate in these high-level meetings of the plenary of the United Nations General Assembly. I intend to bring to the attention of the General Assembly the strategy that the Islamic State of Afghanistan has adopted in the struggle against the cultivation, stockpiling and trafficking of illicit drugs. I would begin by assuring you, Mr. President, and representatives, as well as the relevant United Nations offices, of the full awareness of the Islamic State of Afghanistan of the destructive impact on and consequences for the individual of the illegal use of narcotic drugs on the social, national, regional and international levels. Until recently, many types of narcotic drugs, including heroin, were unheard of in our country. However, the 14 years of war against the former Soviet Union’s aggression in Afghanistan, which caused millions of Afghans to leave their homeland, were a factor in leading some of our youth into becoming involved with these physically and mentally ruinous addictions. In addition, the consequences of that war - lawlessness and the lack of a central Government - left our frontiers porous and vulnerable in the face of the international smugglers’ network, who, taking advantage of the poverty resulting from the war and the flaws in the rule of law and order, induced the farmers to grow poppies. As It must be mentioned, however, that the figures reported by the international mass media relating to the amount of narcotic drugs being exported from Afghanistan seem to be exaggerated. It must also be noted that within Afghanistan there are no laboratories to process opium into heroin, nor do any conduits or staging areas for exporting narcotics exist. The production and export of illicit drugs from Afghanistan is incompatible with the national reputation that the Afghan nation gained as a result of its 14 years of victorious struggle against foreign aggression. Moreover, illicit drugs are the source of calamities that threaten the well-being of human societies. The Islamic State of Afghanistan, therefore, has adopted a strong and effective policy to combat illicit drugs. To organize its struggle against this great catastrophe, the High Commission for control of production, smuggling and abuse of drugs was established four months ago under the patronage of the office of the President. Seventeen executive branches of the Government actively participate in this Commission, which consists of eight subcommittees. It has the responsibility of mobilizing all available national resources in Afghanistan, including young people, intellectuals, writers, journalists, lawyers, religious scholars, artists and so on in the fight against illicit drugs. The Commission further intends to coordinate its activities with similar regional and international institutions. The High Commission is resolutely dedicated to expanding its struggle to other areas of Afghan life such as the health, social, cultural and legal spheres. The High Commission, within a very short span of time, and despite extremely limited resources, was able to accomplish the following: first, the adoption of a national policy on combating illicit drugs and the introduction of this policy to other executive branches of the Government for implementation; second, the expansion of its structure and composition for the purpose of increased effectiveness; third, the preparation of plans of action and practical initiatives in conformity with the provisions of the message of the Secretary-General of the United Nations dated 26 June 1993, including the publication of a plan of action with a view to its enforcement and implementation by the Government and by the Afghan people; fourth, plans for the establishment of mental- health clinics and special institutions for drug addicts; fifth, the establishment of local commissions against illicit drugs in 31 provinces under the supervision of the Governors; sixth, the preparation of videotaped materials and posters, extensive press campaigns and radio and television programmes; seventh, the destruction of poppy fields Afghanistan is committed to observing the 1988 United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances and other pertinent international Treaties. We are in great need of the assistance of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme in preparing the favourable ground that will enable us to effectively work towards the realization of our commitments. The President of the Islamic State of Afghanistan, Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani, sent on 5 August 1993 a comprehensive message regarding this highly important matter to the United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, who responded to the President of Afghanistan by his very positive message of 28 September 1993. Both texts contain important elements and provisions for an effective anti-drug campaign in Afghanistan. The Government of Afghanistan, having studied the Memorandum of Understanding between Iran, Pakistan and the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), has agreed to adhere to it. We are ready to cooperate, in all fields of drug control, with Iran, Pakistan and our Central Asian neighbours. Such cooperation is the main condition for success in the anti-drug efforts in the region. The Afghan authorities have adopted a national-strategy plan of action against drugs. This is to be implemented through pertinent projects and programmes. However, as our resources for post-war economic reconstruction and revitalization are extremely scarce, we shall be able to fund the plan only if we receive financial assistance from the United Nations and the international community. If it is to have a comprehensive strategy on research and statistical records, if it is to keep track of patients, if it is provide drug addicts with medical treatment and rehabilitation, Afghanistan will require funding. We need a major campaign in public relations and information to heighten public awareness. All of this demands financial and technical preparation. Special teams are to be trained and mobilized for the purpose of manning observation posts that are to be constructed in border regions and along highways, as well as the mobile law-enforcement units that are to be formed and activated. These are some of the main projects for whose realization we shall certainly need international financial and technical assistance. We could Our strategic plan also aims at the implementation of income-substitution programmes. One of the basic steps taken by the Islamic State of Afghanistan is replacement of poppy cultivation with the cultivation of useful plants. Farmers need financial assistance if they are to cease poppy cultivation, if they are to convert from illicit activity to legal agricultural production. In fact, tackling poverty and unemployment is a prerequisite for the struggle against the production and use of narcotic drugs. We therefore need the help of the United Nations and of the donor countries and institutions. Training for technical personnel involved in implementation of the anti-drug plans at various stages of our endeavours is another field in which we need international assistance. Afghanistan’s 10-year master plan for its struggle against illicit drugs consists of four basic projects. The financial implications amount to at least $580 million. We should therefore welcome, as a first, urgent step, the appointment of a United Nations mission to spend a few weeks in Afghanistan studying and assessing the country’s anti-drug plans. Subsequently, an office of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme would have to be established in Kabul. With an improvement in the security situation in Afghanistan, illegal activity - including the production, trafficking and consumption of narcotic drugs - will decrease substantially. The convening of an Islamic National Assembly, through which our people will elect the future Head of State and Government, will enable Afghanistan to transform armed confrontation into political competition. The attainment of normality and political consolidation will certainly enable us to pursue our struggle against narcotic drugs in a more efficient and effective manner.

I now call on the Permanent Representative of Morocco.

I should like, at the outset, to join those representatives who have congratulated you, Mr. President, on the outstanding manner in which you have been conducting these high-level plenary meetings on drugs. As has been said by a number of delegations, the drug problem is sparing no country - whether industrialized or developing; whether of the North or the South, whether Eastern or Western. One finds everywhere the same quantitative and qualitative worsening of the situation, with increases in drug trafficking, in the extent of abuse and in Furthermore, drug trafficking is a major handicap in the field of socio-economic development, as it impairs the productivity of individuals, distorts the rules of the game in the economy, and puts an awful burden on the institutions providing medical care and social security. At the same time, it reduces the stability and jeopardizes the security - indeed, the very sovereignty - of States. On the other hand, it appears that the policies adopted and the means employed for the purpose of coping with these phenomena are largely inadequate and are failing to check the problem. Indeed, notwithstanding the efforts that have been made, the demand for and supply of drugs continue to be a major problem. The Kingdom of Morocco, convinced of the importance of international cooperation, became a party to the major Conventions on this problem at an early stage. At the regional level, it has participated actively in the work of a variety of symposia and gatherings - Arab, African and Islamic - that have become involved in various ramifications of the illegal trafficking in and the abuse of drugs. Moreover, it has entered into bilateral agreements with numerous countries - notably, the States members of the European Community and the United States of America. Our law enforcement agencies - in particular, the national police force, the royal gendarmerie, the auxiliary forces, the customs service and the tobacco bureau - have been restructured with a view to the formation of units with special expertise in fighting drugs. With respect to crop conversion and substitution, activities are under way to reduce the scope of drug abuse through the launching in 1989 of an integrated pilot project on conversion of cannabis cultivation and through public- information and prevention programmes. Moreover, we have established care centres in several provinces and have opened a pilot reception and orientation centre for addicts and their families. Once again, I thank all the organizations that have been good enough to support our efforts, especially the United Those activities constitute, it is true, a major step in the struggle against the production, traffic and abuse of drugs. But, unfortunately, the data show that, despite the achievement of notable results, our goal is still beyond our grasp. Firmly committed to the process of bolstering political, economic and social freedom, Morocco could not remain indifferent to this grave, growing problem. Hence, in 1992, His Majesty King Hassan II, with his keen understanding of the problem and of the importance of the stakes, issued a series of royal directives to intensify the combat against drugs and continue it unflaggingly. On the occasion of the Edinburgh summit of the European Community, King Hassan II addressed a letter to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Mr. John Major, then President of the European Community, in which he unambiguously set out the position of Morocco’s position, while stressing the complexity of the problem, the close connection between supply and demand, and the need for increased cooperation, particularly with the countries concerned, to put an end to this scourge that is eating into contemporary society. At the December 1992 meeting of the Trevi Group, the Minister of the Interior and Information of the Kingdom of Morocco presented our Government’s five-year programme for the northern provinces of our country. It is an integrated development programme. In recent months, royal decrees have given rise to many other initiatives as well. In the legislative and legal sphere, we ratified the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988. We then took immediate action to amend and revise Moroccan legislation and bring it into line with the provisions of the Convention. Other provisions have been enacted to stiffen penalties against all drug traffickers. There have been great strides in law enforcement on the part of the criminal investigation department, the royal police, the customs service and the tobacco bureau. Detailed plans have been put into effect, making use of considerable human and material resources, for close surveillance of drug trafficking, especially on the borders, where a mechanism has been set up to cover the entire Mediterranean coast. Along with legislative efforts and our fight against drug sales, we have begun to strengthen our social and public health activities. For example, for several months we have been carrying out a broad preventive education campaign We support action by non-governmental organizations and promote the inclusion of drug-related themes in the activities of charitable organizations in the cultural, sporting and scientific spheres. The first Moroccan anti-drug association was founded in May 1992 with the primary objective of reducing the demand for narcotic drugs. We are doing everything possible to implement all the elements of the Global Programme of Action. We shall continue our fight, our study and our analysis in order to understand this serious problem better. But it is already clear that we are dealing with a complex problem with many elements that can be approached only in a comprehensive way in the framework of concerted international action. The line between producer and consumer countries is growing ever more blurred. Traditional producer countries are increasingly consuming all manner of drugs, and some traditional consumer countries are increasingly producing a great variety of drugs and of licit psychotropic substances that are being diverted to illicit use. Production is linked to underdevelopment; it is not enough to promote substitute crops if there is no market outlet for these or if they are unprofitable. Implementing and strengthening anti-addiction activities require that both producer and transit countries - the majority of them developing countries - make great efforts that interfere with the development strategies and policies that are so vital for raising the often precarious living standards of their peoples. The economic situation of those countries must be taken into serious consideration in the context of bilateral and multilateral cooperation. We have barely reached the mid-way point of the United Nations Decade against Drug Abuse. We have achieved some results, and we have encountered new problems. This will be a long-term battle, in which victory will depend largely on the political will of States and on international solidarity. Morocco is convinced that the fight against drugs is essentially the responsibility of each country, and will pursue its national efforts, always aiming to find the most appropriate solutions. We also understand the collective In our view, the United Nations system, in particular the Commission on Narcotic Drugs and UNDCP, is the proper and the authoritative framework for any global policy to wage war on drugs at the national, regional and international levels. We salute the considerable efforts made by UNDCP, sparked by its Executive Director, Mr. Giacomelli. We hope the potential and operational resources of the United Nations system will be strengthened, especially with an influx of the resources necessary for successful action. The public at large, people directly affected by this scourge and, especially, the parents of drug addicts are often confused and are demanding quick solutions. They are questioning the policies of Governments and international organizations. I wish to conclude by unequivocally stating the firm political will of the Government of the Kingdom of Morocco to continue to fight this scourge, and by appealing to the organs of the United Nations system and to regional institutions, in particular the Commission of the European Economic Community, to join and continue their association with our efforts in this sphere.

I now call on Mr. Vladimir Tonkovic, Assistant Minister o Health of Croatia.

In my country, the Republic of Croatia, we are deeply concerned and alarmed that the illicit production, trafficking and abuse of narcotics and psychotropic substances are increasing every day and that these illicit activities are claiming a growing number of victims in my country and all over the world. All of us here today are responsible for the future of the world community and for the welfare of our children, our young people and all human beings. We have to work together and develop measures to strengthen international cooperation against the illicit production, sale, demand, trafficking and distribution of narcotics and psychotropic substances. Related activities are also needed. The proposed draft resolution, however, is an important step and must be adopted. The principle of shared responsibility should always be the guiding principle in our work. We must also emphasize and take into account the experience gained thus far. We have to bear in mind that no one can fight the problem alone because of the growing violence and economic power of the A global, comprehensive and multidisciplinary long- term programme of action is to be followed by future activities in drug abuse and control, taking into account all the possible health, economic, social and political elements. Action against drug abuse and the illicit trafficking and production of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances is a high priority of my Government. All Conventions on narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and Conventions on illicit traffic have been ratified and fully implemented in Republic of Croatia. The Government’s Commission on Drug Abuse was established to coordinate the programmes and activities of the Ministries of Health, Justice, Police, Finance, Work and Social Welfare, Education and Foreign Affairs. The Commission is developing a national programme on drug abuse, which will be the general plan for long-term activities. In the Croatian National Programme the importance of international cooperation will be noted, as well as cooperation with non-governmental organizations. Those organizations have tremendous importance for various reasons. My country has been a victim of aggression. One third of my country is destroyed and devastated by war. The war damage is estimated to amount to about $23 billion. There are nearly 600,000 displaced persons and refugees in Croatia at this very moment. Their care costs Croatia about $62 million per month. This year we have already spent over half a billion dollars for their care. This is significant for an economy of a mere $8 billion. In Croatia 31 health-care facilities, hospitals or health centres have been damaged or destroyed; 16,000 have been disabled or handicapped by the war. The cost of war damage to the health network is over $1 billion. We have already noted that the illicit traffic and distribution of narcotics and psychotropic substances is increasing in Croatia. There is a tremendous need to support the work of the Croatian governmental Commission on drug abuse and the financing of equipment, training programmes and health, social-welfare and education programmes. I appeal to members for such assistance.

These high-level plenary meetings of the General Assembly clearly demonstrate that the problem of illicit narcotic drugs has become a world-wide phenomenon that transcends national boundaries and that is of concern to all States, a problem that poses a challenge to the concept of sovereignty, national borders and national legislation. There is therefore a need to strengthen international cooperation in the campaign against this grave problem that is posing such an enormous challenge to efforts being made to achieve development and economic growth throughout the world. Since the convening of the seventeenth special session of the General Assembly in 1990, which dealt with international cooperation to combat narcotic drugs, the United Nations has been attempting to coordinate international efforts in this sphere by following the Programme of Action adopted for the control of narcotic drugs under the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), which has underscored the focal role of the United Nations as the centre for directing and coordinating efforts in this sphere. In facing up to the challenge of the scourge of drugs and the serious economic and social problems it creates, our efforts will be crowned with success only if we adopt an integrated approach that deals with both supply and demand, production, trafficking - including arms trafficking - the control of basic chemical products and money laundering. We would also emphasize in order for such efforts to succeed, they must be based squarely on the principles of the United Nations as set forth in the Political Declaration and Global Programme of Action adopted at the seventeenth special session, which include, inter alia, respect for State sovereignty, shared responsibility, non-intervention in the internal affairs of States, strengthening of international cooperation in agreed circumstances and through bilateral, regional and multilateral agreements. My country has been an active participant, along with the regional, Arab and specialized institutions, in coordinating international efforts to combat the use, production, distribution and trafficking of narcotic drugs and the investment of the income derived from the drug trade in other illicit activities that have an equally serious social and economic impact. My country’s cooperation in these efforts is in keeping with the control mechanisms mentioned in the Secretary-General’s report on international drug control and with the goals of the United Nations Decade against Drug Abuse 1991-2000. My country is also a party to bilateral conventions on information exchange on drug-trafficking with Cyprus, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon. At the international level, Syria participates in all international drug combating meetings and conferences, the latest of which was the meeting of the Heads of National Drug Law Enforcement Agencies held in Vienna in 1992. Other meetings continuously take place in Syria between the Syrian drug combating agency and the coordinators of drug combating activities in the Western embassies to my country. Syria also participates in the meetings organized by INTERPOL and the United Nations on combating drugs. As a matter of fact, Syria has furnished very important information to INTERPOL which enabled that agency to confiscate several tons of hashish and other narcotic drugs over the period from 1991 to 1992. As I have said, the problem of narcotic drugs has become truly universal without distinction between producer, transit or consumer States. Although Syria is basically a transit State, because of its geographical position between the producer and consumer countries, the political will to combat the transit activities of the drug trade across Syrian territory is strong indeed. As an example of the results of such resolve, 10 tons of hashish have been destroyed in Damascus in the presence of liaison officers from the European Community and the United States. A delegation from the United Nations International Drug Control Programme has visited Syria and Lebanon, at the invitation of the Governments of the two countries, over the period from 15 through 21 May 1992. In the course of its visit, the delegation was informed of the joint operations undertaken by the Lebanese and Syrian authorities to destroy narcotic drugs. In order for peace to be comprehensive and just, it should be based on solid legal and political foundations. It cannot be established between societies that are at odds with each other, just for the sake of combating drugs. Therefore, the call for regional cooperation and a united front in the war on drugs are matters that should be considered after the The Middle East region is, perhaps, more interested than any other region in combating the scourge of drugs as it is a region that has suffered enough already from the economic and social dislocation brought about by the scourge of aggression and the resultant evils of occupation, deprivation and the wasting of development potential and resources that could have been channelled towards the betterment of standards of living of our populations. There is no doubt that a just and lasting settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict - a process that was begun in Madrid on the basis of Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978) and the principle of returning the occupied Arab territories to their rightful owners in exchange for peace - could put an end to the wasting of the huge resources my country as well as many other Arab countries have been forced to divert to self- defence and the ending of Israeli occupation. In conclusion, my delegation welcomes the efforts of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme and reaffirms its readiness to cooperate effectively and closely with the Programme’s Executive Director, Mr. Giacomelli, because we wish to participate in strengthening the international strategy to combat drug abuse.

I now call on Major-General Abdel Ghani Elrabie, Director of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Ministry of the Interior of Sudan.

Public awareness in Sudan of the evils of drugs has always been deep-rooted and comprehensive. This can be seen in the enactment of the Law against Trafficking in Illicit Goods in 1902 which was the first legislation in Sudan to prohibit the abuse of drugs and which was followed by the Law on Hashish and Opium of 1924, the Law on Pharmaceuticals and Toxic Materials of 1963 and the Law against Illicit Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1993. This was preceded in 1989 by an important amendment of the 1924 Law. The amendment introduced the death penalty for drug trafficking, and stiffened the penalties for other related crimes. Sudanese society does not suffer as other countries do from the problem of drugs, thanks to its religious and social The geographical location of Sudan contributes to the transfer of drugs through its territory as a transit country. Synthetic and other drugs enter Sudan from West Africa across our western borders and from Central Africa across the southern borders. They are then transferred via little- used routes to our Red Sea coast and thence to Europe and the Arab world. Drug-smuggling through Sudan is done by various means and evasive tactics taken by the smugglers to penetrate the lines of our security forces. I should like here to cite a few examples of such methods. First, passing ships unload their drugs in the waters of the Red Sea near harbours. Those drugs are then picked up and transferred to the coast by specially equipped boats and loaded on trucks and pack animals headed inland. In many instances, we have succeeded in arresting the smugglers. The largest quantity yet intercepted has been 15 tons of hashish. Secondly, another form of smuggling is carried out by hiding drugs in different types of machinery that are shipped by normal means. We have seized 445,000 psychotropic pills and 3 kilograms of heroin in a bus that was being shipped. Thirdly, yet another form involves hiding the drugs on the coast to await the passage of ships that are in collusion with the drug smugglers; we have seized 90,000 psychotropic pills in that manner. Fourthly, another form of smuggling consists of storing drugs on some uninhabited island to be later reloaded onto another ship so as to avoid tracking operations, and fifthly, unloading drugs that are very carefully packed in the open sea, hiding them amid coral reefs under water in previously agreed-upon places for later collection by boats. The coasts of the Red Sea witness a great deal of drug smuggling activity which threatens both North and South, as well as Europe and America in particular. Sudan has participated in all conferences and activities against drug abuse at both the international and regional levels. I had the honour to be the only observer from outside the European Community in the Conference Against Illicit Drugs held at The Hague in the Netherlands in the spring of 1976. We have also attended other conferences in Vienna, Abidjan, Harare and Europe, in support of international efforts aimed at containing the drug problem. The Sudan has signed all the drug combating conventions including the 1988 United Nations Convention against Illicit Trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Our anti-drug strategy is based: Firstly, on preventive information and awareness campaigns aimed at preventing new victims from falling prey to the scourge of drugs. In 1992, we organized 207 lectures for those segments of our society which could be attracted to drug abuse. We have also issued various manuals and booklets and we have prepared anti-drug abuse documentary films. Secondly, on combating drug smuggling and drug trafficking: we have destroyed 67 tons of hashish cultivated on 120 acres in the region of Radom at the southern end of the province of Darfur in western Sudan. We have also destroyed 47 tons of hashish in Darfur, and the latest big operation, organized in the area of Reqsham in Darfur in November 1992, led to the destruction of 65 tons of hashish. We have also destroyed many illicit plantations in the Qadaref region of the Sudan. Yet we do not leave simple citizens without a source of income. We have transformed them into growers of licit agricultural produce, providing them with tractors and seeds. Our anti-drug efforts have been given concrete shape by the establishment of a National Committee against Drugs in 1960, whose membership includes representatives of the police force, the Ministry of Justice, the Judiciary, and the Ministries of Health, Social Welfare, Education and Sports, as well as the University of Khartoum. The Committee, which coordinates efforts, organizes various programmes and formulates plans aimed at increasing public awareness of the dangers and harmful effects of drugs operates under the leadership of Mr. Abaro, the former Director General of the police force. With the National Commission on Medicines, the Committee organizes programmes aimed at controlling the use of licit drugs and ensuring that they are used for medical purposes only. This coordinating operation covers every part of the Sudan and comes as a serious response to the recommendations of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs and in implementation of the many decisions taken by the heads of drug enforcement agencies in Africa, at their Cairo meeting in 1990. We have taken several initiatives which have had positive returns in the context of our drug combating activities. In 1991, we transformed our Customs and Excise Department into a police force. This has greatly facilitated the exchange of information and promoted coordination and cooperation between our law-enforcement agencies. Strict banking controls have blocked money laundering operations. We believe that the United Nations, while conducting peace-keeping operations in the world, should also take concrete initiatives to organize drug-combating campaigns aimed at fighting drugs. Drugs are like wars; both target human beings and their very existence. Drug trafficking is as dangerous as trafficking in arms. We look forward to more substantial support from the United Nations for our efforts. Such support began in 1987, but it has not yet risen to the level of our expectations. We have received a positive response from the Assistant Secretary-General and the Executive Director of the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) during the meetings of the thirty-sixth session of the International Narcotics Control Board in Vienna this April. We appreciate their assistance and appeal to them to help transform our aspirations into concrete actions which will help us in this fight of good against evil and enable us to control, if not completely to eradicate, drug abuse, in order to protect our societies and future generations and guarantee the continuation of civilization on earth until the end of time.

I now call on the representative of Fiji.

First, I wish to state that my delegation fully supports the statement made by the representative of the Marshall Islands, who spoke on this issue on behalf of the members of the South Pacific Forum. In recent years the use of illegal drugs has spread at an unprecedented rate and has reached all corners of the globe. No nation has been free of this devastating problem. The long-term effects of chronic drug abuse and its impact on the user, the family, the community and society have aroused the concern of the world community. Reasons for this concern include related increases in crime; drug-related automobile accidents; accidents that take place on the job; learning disabilities and other mental health problems; family dislocation and disruption; and health The General Assembly, recognizing the central role that it must play in fostering concerted international action against illicit drug production, trafficking and consumption, adopted resolution S-17/2 in 1990, by which it approved a Political Declaration and a Global Programme of Action. The Global Programme of Action outlined activities Governments could undertake to combat drug abuse and trafficking. It also proclaimed the period from 1991 to 2000 as the United Nations Decade against Drug Abuse, to be devoted to effective and sustained national, regional and international actions to promote the implementation of the Global Programme of Action. The problem of drug abuse and drug trafficking cannot be solved quickly; it will need the cooperation of all States in taking strong measures by enacting appropriate laws and enforcing them. We in the South Pacific are disturbed by the increasing problem of drug trafficking and drug abuse in the region. The region, because of its great expanse of ocean, many uninhabited islands and weak economic base, is fertile ground for drug traffickers as a staging post for the transmission of their supplies to lucrative markets in Europe and North America. Fiji, a major tourist destination, port and transit point for air traffic and small craft, is vulnerable and is now probably serving as an important drug trafficking point because of our less sophisticated detection capability, limited financial resources, and lack of adequate equipment and specialized personnel. While illicit drug abuse has not become a major concern, the changing drug scenario is worrying. In recent years, the incidence of drug abuse - especially involving cannabis, which is also grown locally - has increased substantially. The major drug find of 173 kilograms of hashish concealed inside gas tanks and buried in an isolated and uninhabited island was most disturbing. Our law-enforcement authorities have periodically apprehended non-Fiji citizens who were involved in efforts to transport hard drugs, using couriers or unaccompanied packages. A big consignment of cocaine destined for a South Pacific State was discovered some years ago. As the scourge of drug abuse establishes itself in various communities, the Fiji Government is taking steps to strengthen its preventive measures. The Fiji Police Department has created a National Drugs Enforcement Unit with the mandate of prevention and control, if not elimination, of the importation, production and use of illicit drugs in Fiji. The Unit is vigorously pursuing its work of In order to upgrade the capacity of the regional police on drug matters, Fiji will be seeking the blessing of the South Pacific Police Commissioners’ Conference in Papua New Guinea next month to establish regional training at the Fiji Police Academy. We hope that if the recommendation is accepted funds will be available from the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) to complement what will be found locally. The legislation in force in the field of drug control was recently amended to remove the discretionary powers of magistrates to impose a fine or a suspended sentence. Under the amendment a mandatory custodial sentence of a minimum of a three-month term of imprisonment for possession or use of cannabis must be imposed; this is intended as a deterrent. Last March the Fiji Government, in support of the efforts of the United Nations on drugs, acceded to the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988. The Pacific Islands Law Officers Meeting was mandated in 1992 by the South Pacific Forum island leaders, who met in the Solomon Islands, to pursue actively and implement strategies that will satisfy the law-enforcement requirements of the 1988 United Nations Convention on drugs. The Declaration by the South Pacific Forum on Law Enforcement Cooperation, referred to as the Honiara Declaration, has been pursued with some vigour by the Senior Legal Advisers of the Governments of the South Pacific region. Fiji chaired the Committee of Legal Advisers in 1992 to 1993 and has actively participated in assisting countries in our region in three principal areas, namely, a framework of mutual assistance in criminal matters, legislation on the proceeds from crime, and extradition. We have embarked on a programme of reviewing existing legal frameworks with a view to improving them to satisfy the mandatory requirements of the 1988 United Nations Convention on drugs. At this point, I wish to thank Australia for offering to fund the cost of a suitable legislative drafter, who is to carry out the review of the relevant legislation in the smaller Pacific States. Money laundering is becoming a serious problem in our region. Given our smallness and the openness of our economies, we are acutely concerned about the negative impact it has on our economies, and we are taking steps to tackle this menace. We in Fiji currently have before Parliament legislation that will criminalize money laundering not only as regards illegal proceeds from the sale of illicit drugs, but to cover all proceeds from criminal activities. Finally, my delegation supports the draft resolution that is before us, which suggests, amongst other things, that these crucial issues which we have discussed at length in these last few days be discussed further in the high-level segment of the Economic and Social Council next year.

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/48/L.12, entitled "Measures to strengthen international cooperation against the illicit production, sale, demand, traffic and distribution of narcotics and psychotropic substances and related activities". May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/48/L.12 by consensus? The General Assembly has thus concluded its consideration of the status of international cooperation against the illicit production, sale, demand, traffic and distribution of narcotics and psychotropic substances.