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Statement by Ambassador Liu Jieyi at the Security Council Briefing on Post-conflict Peacebuilding

2014-03-19 00:14
 

Madam President,

I would like to thank Luxembourg for its initiative in convening this open meeting on post-conflict peacebuilding. I thank Mr. Eliasson, Deputy Secretary-General, Ambassador Patriota, Chairperson of the Peacebuilding Commission, and Ms. Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, for their briefings.

Peacebuilding in the immediate aftermath of a conflict has an effective role to play in eliminating the root causes of conflict. It has an important bearing on achieving lasting peace and sustainable development in countries and regions emerging from conflict. In recent years, the United Nations has been actively participating in peacebuilding efforts in the countries and regions on its agenda, where it has accumulated rich experience and achieved significant results. The United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone recently completed its work and is hailed as a success story in the area of peacebuilding. At the same time, peacebuilding is a lengthy, complex and difficult task. Under the current circumstances, peacebuilding faces new issues and challenges that require the international community’s in-depth consideration and proper response. I would like to highlight the following four points.

First, post-conflict peacebuilding must fully respect the ownership of the relevant countries, which should assume the primary responsibility for peacebuilding. The international community should fully respect their sovereignty and will and provide assistance pursuant to the priorities identified by their Governments. The United Nations and its agencies, in assisting in peacebuilding efforts, should strengthen partnerships with the countries concerned and help them to draw up integrated peacebuilding strategies on the basis of the local context. Owing to the different histories and specific conditions, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to peacebuilding. The international community should fully respect cultural traditions and the prevailing requirements of the countries concerned, pay attention to the actual conditions on the ground and not just automatically replicate past practices.

Secondly, post-conflict peacebuilding efforts should focus on removing the deep-rooted causes of conflict, with a particular emphasis on economic and social development. In post-conflict peacebuilding, the international community has long emphasized human rights, the rule of law and security sector reform without paying adequate attention to the economic and social development of the countries concerned and with limited input in that regard. We call on the international community to focus more on the economic and social development of the countries concerned. Only through rapid economic recovery and recontruction will the affected populations be able to enjoy the dividends of peace and will a solid foundation for political reconciliation, the stabilization of security and the establishment of a political basis for the peace process be laid.

Thirdly, post-conflict peacebuilding should enjoy adequate and guaranteed resources. The international community’s swift and timely support in the form of assistance to the countries concerned is an important factor in smoothly achieving peacebuilding objectives. The United Nations should continue to heed thefinancing requirements of reconstruction programmes in the countries concerned. The Organization should also urge the international community to continue to provide assistance to peacebuilding activities within those countries and to work together to broaden the channels for financing with no political preconditions for assistance. In that regard, China commends the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund for its active role and supports its efforts to improve its work in enhancing the evaluation of the projects that it has carried and the efficiency of the utilization of resources. China will continue to support the Peacebuilding Fund within its abilities.

Fourthly, post-conflict peacebuilding requires closer coordination and cooperation by all parties concerned. The United Nations should continue to play a coordinating role in post-conflict peacebuilding efforts and should seek to establish a stable and cooperative relationship with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the African Development Bank and other international and regional financial institutions. At the same time, it should make use of the unique peacebuilding advantages of regional and subregional organizations, such as the African Union, in order to make progress in that regard. The relevant agencies within the United Nations system should have a clear division of labour and should strengthen cooperation. The United Nations Peacebuilding Commission should have a greater role in coordinating peacebuilding activities.

China has always supported peacebuilding efforts in post-conflict countries. We are ready to continue to work with the international community in helping countries emerging from conflict to achieve durable peace and sustainable development.

Thank you, Madam President.

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