General Assembly Session 56 meeting 83

Mr. Hybl (United States)

Building a peaceful and better world is the underlying principle of the United Nations Charter. Usually the Organization does this by considering peace and security, sustainable development, human rights and humanitarian assistance. Today we are considering how to build a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal.

Through sport one learns fair play, mutual understanding, solidarity and friendship. These are virtues that the United Nations strives to embody in its work and as an example to the world community. Today, the Assembly can support the ideal of teaching the youth of the world not about sport, but to use sport to promote peace and the well-being of society.

At its forty-eighth session in 1993, the Assembly responded to the appeal of the International Olympic Committee, which revived in the modern era the ancient tradition of the "Olympic Truce". Commencing in the seventh century BC, the Olympic Truce was established as a principle of inter-State relations for ensuring the safe passage and participation of all concerned to Olympia for the Olympic Games.

The Assembly also proclaimed the year 1994 as the International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal on the occasion of the centenary of the International Olympic Committee, which was founded in 1894. Its revival was reaffirmed by the Assembly at its forty-ninth session prior to the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, the Centennial Games, hosted by our country; again at its fifty-first session on the occasion of the Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan; and then again in 1999 prior to the Games of the XXVII Olympiad in Sydney, Australia. Since 1994, various Presidents of the Assembly and Secretaries-General of the United Nations have made solemn appeals to the world community to continue this tradition.

Most recently, the historic Final Declaration of the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000 included an appeal to observe the Olympic Truce and to support the International Olympic Committee in its efforts to promote peace and human understanding through sport and the Olympic ideal.

It gives my delegation great pleasure that the United States is the host of the XIX Olympic Winter Games, to be held in Salt Lake City, Utah, from 8 to 24 February 2002. I am particularly pleased, not only because I am a member of the United States delegation to the fifty-sixth session of the Assembly, but also because I am a member of the International Olympic Committee and have served as President of the United States Olympic Committee during Olympic Games. I would like to note that there are at least several Olympians in this great Hall today and we certainly appreciate their presence. They continue to apply the lessons learned through athletic competition for promoting a peaceful and better world.

Salt Lake's opening ceremonies are a mere 59 days from today. Since the revival of the modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens, Greece, this is the eighth time that the United States will have served as host country and we invite the world to our doorstep for what we feel will be the best Winter Games ever. These will be the first Games of the new century and of the new millennium. Athletes from 80 nations, the largest number ever to participate in the Olympic Winter Games, will process in the opening ceremonies and they will pledge their honour to uphold the values of fair play and honest competition. Once again, those somewhat simple but inspiring acts will reinforce the scope and power of the Olympic movement and, for the first time, link athletes of the twenty-first century with those of ancient Greece. The Salt Lake Organizing Committee and all those concerned, including over 27,000 volunteers in Utah, are promising to do their best to ensure the success of this world festival of winter sport.

Building on the traditions established by the International Olympic Committee, my country, as host of the next Games, today introduces in plenary draft resolution A/56/L.47, "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal". We appreciate the fact that this Olympic relay team has 161 sponsors. I should like to read out the names of the countries that have been added to the list of sponsors since yesterday: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Austria, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bhutan, Brazil, Bulgaria, the Central African Republic, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Denmark, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, Gabon, Grenada, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ireland, Lebanon, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Malta, the Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Spain, Sudan, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen and Zimbabwe.

Building upon the Assembly's support for this initiative began in 1993. The United Nations and the International Olympic Committee have launched joint projects in such fields as development, humanitarian assistance, health promotion, education, women, eradication of poverty and the fights against HIV/AIDS, drug abuse and juvenile delinquency. For example, the Olympic Solidarity Fund established by the International Olympic Committee will spend over $200 million between 2001 and 2004 for the development of sport scholarships for underprivileged athletes in developing countries. The World Anti-Doping Agency was initiated by the International Olympic Committee and is composed of government representatives and sport movement leaders.

Furthermore, the Secretary-General hosted the recently established International Olympic Truce Foundation last May at Headquarters so as to promote continued cooperation. I am pleased to recall that the United States Senate subsequently passed a resolution supporting the purposes of that Foundation and that Mr. Han Seung-soo, in his capacity as President of the Assembly, is a member of its voluntary Board of Directors.

Let me close by expressing my sincere thanks to the International Olympic Committee for organizing a world conference on sport and Olympic volunteerism last month in New York City as a gesture of solidarity in the framework of the United Nations current International Year of Volunteers. As the 27,000 volunteers in Salt Lake will demonstrate in a few weeks, the Olympic movement happens only because of the spirit of volunteerism and goodwill. In that same goodwill, my delegation today welcomes the opportunity before this great gathering to draw the world's attention to the tradition of the Olympic Truce on the eve of the Games. Therefore, on behalf of the host country of both these Games and of the United Nations, the United States looks forward to welcoming the athletes of the world for the XIX Olympic Winter Games.

Mr. Shen Guofang (China)

The Olympic spirit, initiated more than 2,000 years ago, is a distillation of humanity's effort to seek self-development and fulfilment. Over this long period, the Olympic ideal has gradually developed into a symbol of mankind's aspiration for and pursuit of a peaceful and better world, encouraging us to overcome difficulties and to achieve progress upon progress.

Despite the two tragic World Wars, people's aspiration for peace and their pursuit of the Olympic ideal have never wavered since Mr. Pierre de Coubertin initiated the modern Olympic games at the end of the nineteenth century. The establishment of the United Nations, the purposes and principles of its Charter, and the efforts it has made to achieve world peace and common economic development have also contributed in no small way to promoting the development of the Olympic Games.

Today mankind has already stepped into the twenty-first century. The nations of the world should continue to adhere to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, vigorously promote the Olympic spirit, seek peaceful solutions to international disputes and regional conflicts, enhance understanding and friendship among civilizations through dialogue and exchange, and work for continuous, global, social and economic development through cooperation. Whether they live in the East or the West, the North or the South, the common aspiration of people all over the world today is that the twenty-first century will be a new century marked by human development and progress.

The terrorist attacks on the United States on 11 September constituted a fundamental violation of the Olympic ideal as well as a serious challenge to human civilization. The international community should strengthen its cooperation against terrorism, fight it in all its forms and strive to eradicate its roots.

The nineteenth Winter Olympic Games will be held at Salt Lake City in the United States in February next year. The host country and the International Olympic Committee have carried out much careful and thoughtful preparatory work in this regard. We hope that the international community can work together to ensure that the Games will be a complete success.

On 13 July this year, the city of Beijing was awarded the opportunity to host the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. The world has seen the love and respect of the ancient Oriental civilization for the Olympic spirit as well as its aspiration for and pursuit of world peace, friendship and development. Once again we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to friends from countries around the world, as well as the International Olympic Committee, for having supported us in this effort. We believe that holding the Olympic Games in China, a country with a 5,000-year history, will not only represent the world's full recognition of China's great achievements since its reform and opening-up policy, but also provide a good opportunity for exchange between Oriental and Occidental civilizations. China will prove through real action that Beijing can give the world an outstanding Olympic Games.

Mr. Boisson (Monaco)

Every two years since the forty-eighth session of the General Assembly, in 1993, the Principality of Monaco has participated with interest in the debate on the item "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal".

We are particularly interested in the debate this year because of the excellent report of the Secretary-General, which encourages the work carried out by the Organization in collaboration with the International Olympic Committee, and also because of the final and very instructive report on the Olympic movement, which stresses the many interesting and important initiatives taken by the Committee itself and by National Committees with regard to the item now before us.

Reading the two reports makes us more aware of the irreplaceable role of sporting events in bringing people together and in fostering greater understanding among young people who sometimes come from vastly different and far-flung corners of the world. Last year, the International Olympic Committee organized six round tables -- in Athens, Nairobi, San José, Lomé, Singapore and Rome -- on the topic of sport for a culture of peace and respect for the Olympic Truce. The meetings brought together members of the National Olympic Committees, including representatives of countries in conflict and United Nations experts. The meetings were edifying and their conclusions very encouraging. We noted, for example, a real desire to promote the spirit of fair play, tolerance and solidarity at all levels in sporting competitions.

Since 1968 Monaco has been the headquarters for the International Association for Non-Violent Sport, which encourages the strengthening of sport's educative and cultural functions as well as promoting the fight against drug abuse, chauvinism and cheating, all of which are deeply contrary to the Olympic spirit.

It is important to emphasize some of the many useful recommendations made at the round tables, some of which are directed specifically at United Nations programmes and specialized agencies. They call for greater support for the development of sport through social and community projects to help young people and those in rural areas. We urge follow-up on these recommendations.

In this spirit, the Principality of Monaco decided to make a bilateral financial contribution for the construction of sport stadiums in the Republic of El Salvador, with a view to the upcoming Central American Games. After the work is done, the stadiums will be available to schools and social and community organizations for young people in difficult circumstances. We welcome the many activities organized for the International Year for the Culture of Peace by the International Olympic Committee, the Organization of African Unity and many National Olympic Committees. These activities show clearly that there is a lively interest throughout the world in promoting peace and the Olympic ideal. This is very encouraging and gives us hope for the future.

Sporting activities certainly contribute to building a better organized and more peaceful world at the collective and individual levels. This was a point made by the Nobel Committee when it announced that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2001 would go to the United Nations and its Secretary-General; the award ceremony took place yesterday. On behalf of the highest authorities and the people of Monaco, I would like to encourage and warmly congratulate the two laureates. We believe that the combined choice of the Organization and the Secretary-General shows without a doubt that the integration of the collective and the individual is absolutely fundamental to success in all human endeavours. Sports are certainly one of the most noteworthy, strongest and most convincing symbols of this essential duality.

On behalf of our Government, our athletes and our sports figures, I would like to commend the exceptional performance of Mr. Juan Antonio Samaranch, who retired this summer as President of the International Olympic Committee. He led the movement from success to success for many years and is widely recognized throughout the world.

We believe that Mr. Samaranch's successor, Mr. Jacques Rogge, who was elected in Moscow last July as President of the International Olympic Committee, will be able to take over very successfully from his predecessor. The entire sporting world knows him well and has without hesitation placed its total faith in him. He has certainly abundantly deserved that trust. We wish him every success and take this opportunity to assure him of the cooperation of the Principality of Monaco and its leaders in successfully carrying out his very important task.

At the twelfth Sportel, the international encounter of sports and television recently held in Monaco, we had an opportunity to welcome Mr. Rogge. We also welcomed him to Monaco last 13 November, when we hosted the General Assembly of the European Olympic Committee. Monaco's leaders and its entire population greatly appreciated his visit.

The Principality of Monaco is a country where sports are very highly regarded. The Government devotes significant resources to promoting physical education and sporting activities, beginning by involving young people in school athletics and, of course, in extra-curricular sports. In addition, there are many major international sporting events in Monaco, such as the Formula One Grand Prix, the Monte Carlo Automobile Rally, tennis tournaments and the Herculis, which is an annual event that brings together the best athletes from numerous sporting realms to take part in various events, including sailing -- both motorized and wind-sailing -- golf and swimming, as well as soccer, handball, volley ball and even pétanque.

Some of those events have a humanitarian aspect, such as the one that took place last 3 October on the initiative of Mr. Mike Powers, organizer of the Big 3 Records Golf Tournament. The Tournament had been cancelled because it was to be held just after the 11 September tragedy -- which took place exactly three months ago today. The Tournament was turned into charity event that raised a large sum of money at an auction for the families of the firefighters, police officers and rescue workers of the City of New York who were victims of that attack. His Serene Highness Crown Prince Albert, Chairman of the delegation of Monaco to the General Assembly and a member of the International Olympic Committee, handed the proceeds over to the Mayor of New York on 23 October.

Moreover, numerous friendly sporting events are held every year in Monaco whose proceeds go to charities or charitable works. In this regard, and in response to the appeal made by President Bush, I wish to say that tribute is paying paid today in Monaco to the memory of the victims of that horrible attack. The national anthems of the United States and Monaco will be played at that ceremony of prayer and remembrance. Likewise, in recalling such a terrible and brutal attack, we cannot fail to remember that terrorism has also taken a heavy toll on the Olympic Movement, namely, at the sadly recalled Munich Olympics.

As we all know, in a few weeks' time the United States will host the nineteenth Winter Olympics at Salt Lake City. We hope that the games, which will be held in the wounded land of America, will be a historic success. On that occasion, the President of the General Assembly at its fifty-sixth session, the Secretary-General, persons associated with the President of the International Olympic Committee, and many other world personalities will launch a universal appeal for respect for the Olympic Truce. We wholeheartedly support that appeal.

We firmly believe that today, when new causes of concern for the international community are joining the many age-old conflicts, the joint initiative of the United Nations and the International Olympic Committee -- which has been renewed every two years for 28 years now -- represents an opportunity for those involved in conflict to talk, to begin or relaunch dialogue, and to reject sterile distrust of one another. Just a few weeks' respite in fighting have often been used to begin neutral, balanced humanitarian involvement to enable envoys to meet with belligerents to try to find solutions to their disputes. The delegation of Monaco fully supports and co-sponsors the draft resolution introduced by the delegation of the United States on this matter.

At the Millennium Summit, our heads of State and Government, or their high-level representatives, adopted a major moral and ethical Declaration of great significance in which they called on all Member States, individually and collectively, to observe the Olympic Truce now and in the future and to support the efforts of the International Olympic Committee to promote peace and understanding among people.

The new millennium, which so many men and women had hoped would be one of peace and conviviality, is today one of doubt and pessimism. If doubt is a tribute to hope, then the pessimism to which everything today leads us is but a fleeting feeling, a feeling that could be wiped out by a little spark of hope. The Olympic Truce decreed for the nineteenth Winter Games can be that spark of hope. We must believe that, and it should fill us with optimism and hope.

Mr. Zackheos (Cyprus)

I would like, at the outset, to express the satisfaction of my delegation at the great number of countries that have sponsored the present draft resolution. This is a clear message of the importance that the international community places on the Olympic ideal. The great challenge now is to take the first practical steps towards turning the observance of the Olympic Truce into a reality.

The Olympic ideal and Truce are expressions of the yearning of mankind for peace, understanding and reconciliation, and for the noble notion of distinction based on honest competition. In the search for excellence every athlete is equal, and victory is the result of ability, training, hard work and perseverance. Discrimination with regard to a country or a person on the grounds of race, religion, politics, sex or otherwise is incompatible with the Olympic spirit. It is important to strengthen adherence to Olympic ethics, especially the need to conduct the Games in a fair way. In that context, the efforts against the use of prohibited anabolic and other drugs are to be commended.

Since its independence, Cyprus, a small country, has followed an active foreign policy based on the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, which coincide with, and fully adhere to, the Olympic ideal. It is now ever more imperative that the spirit of freedom and tolerance, as exemplified by the very essence of the Olympic ideal, be greatly disseminated through the planet; for in these turbulent times following the abhorrent terrorist acts of 11 September, humanity should look to the idea of the Olympic spirit and the Olympic Truce as an alternative to war, destruction and the assault on civilization, which is the goal of terrorism.

The latest manifestation of our determination to become a bridge of peace in our sensitive region in the Eastern Mediterranean, and a homeland of harmony and understanding for all communities living on the island, is the proposal of President Clerides for the demilitarization of Cyprus. On this solemn occasion, we renew our appeal for the acceptance of this proposal and express our hope for a just and lasting settlement in accordance with United Nations resolutions, so that Cyprus can participate in the next Olympics as a reunited and peaceful State, with a team that will include the best Cypriot athletes, irrespective of their background.

The people of Cyprus were immensely satisfied with the decision of the International Olympic Committee concerning the hosting of the 2004 Olympic Games in Greece, the birthplace of the Olympic movement, and we are particularly pleased at the quick pace of preparations for their realization. We look forward to a successful Athens 2004 and are certain that the Olympic ideal will be fulfilled, thus opening a new chapter in the history of the Olympic movement. We also wish every success to the Winter Games in Salt Lake City and express our appreciation to the Organizing Committee.

I would like in conclusion to express our appreciation for the great efforts of the International Olympic Committee to imbue youth with these ideals, which are the guarantee of a better and more humane world.

Mr. Jacob (Israel)

The Government of Israel is proud to lend its support to the draft resolution entitled "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal".

Israel is of the view that athletic competition, undertaken in a spirit of mutual respect, fairness, and good sportsmanship, is an ideal way to foster goodwill and good relations between peoples. The values of sports are international values that transcend national boundaries and provide a medium through which diverse peoples can interact and promote greater understanding of one another.

The Olympic Games, as the world's premier sporting event, have long been one of the primary meeting points for nations divided by politics or geography. In this respect we support the observance of the Olympic Truce as an expression of our common yearning for peace and reconciliation, and we hope that all Member States will join together in ensuring that peace and security prevail for the duration of the Games.

In our own region we have tried to harness the power of sport to forge relationships and build bridges across the dark waters of conflict. We hope that these types of competitions will continue to develop and expand in future.

Israel has a long history of involvement in international athletic competition. Every four years, thousands of athletes from all over the world converge on the State of Israel for the Maccabiah Games, which bear the name and spirit of the Maccabim, whose heritage the Jewish people celebrate at this time, during Hanukkah, the festival of light. This quadrennial event, which dates back to 1932, embodies the best of Jewish culture and athletics and is an unforgettable experience for participants and spectators alike.

For the people of Israel, the idea of the Olympic Games cannot be separated from the memory of the horrific act of terrorist murder that tarnished the 1972 Munich Games. At those Games, gunmen from the terrorist group Black September broke into the Olympic Village disguised as athletes and killed 11 Israeli athletes and coaches.

This disgraceful act of terrorism and murder is unprecedented in the annals of Olympic history and is the very antithesis of the Olympic ideal. Rather than transcending politics and conflict, the Games were used as a vehicle for the expression of hatred and the perpetration of murder. This blemish on the history of the Games must not be forgotten as we strive to ensure that future Olympic events serve to broaden understanding, tolerance, respect and peace.

Israel reaffirms its support for the noble objectives of this draft resolution and for the observance of the Olympic Truce. The Olympic Games is one of the world's only truly global events and, as such, presents us with an extraordinary opportunity to focus the world's attention and utilize the goodwill that the Games inspire to build a more peaceful and more harmonious world.

Mr. Gounaris (Greece)

It is a great honour for me to take the floor on the draft resolution presented today in the plenary under agenda item 23, entitled "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal".

The draft resolution, introduced by the United States, the country hosting the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, calls on all Member States to promote the Olympic ideal, to observe the Olympic Truce and to revive the ancient Greek tradition of ekecheiria, which dates back to the ninth century BC

The term ekecheiria, which in ancient Greek literally means "holding hands", indicates the suspension of hostilities and the creation of appropriate conditions to allow athletes participating in the Olympic Games, as well as their relatives and thousands of ordinary pilgrims, to travel, unobstructed by fear, to attend the legendary Games in peace, and then return to their hometowns in safety and security.

The purpose of the Olympic Truce movement is more far-reaching. It could become a positive factor in international rapprochement and a useful tool for diplomacy. In every nation and society, culture and religion, the Olympic Games are recognized as the major sporting event of our world, a unique sports and cultural festivity that should promote the values we wish to cherish in our global village.

In this context, we welcome the common declaration of Pope John Paul II and His Beatitude Christodoulos, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece:

"We are pleased to add our voice to the many voices around the world which have expressed the hope that, on the occasion of the Olympic Games to be held in Greece in the year 2004, the ancient Greek tradition of the Olympic Truce will be revived, according to which all wars had to stop, and terrorism and violence had to cease."

Let me remind the Assembly that the United Nations Millennium Declaration, adopted in New York in September 2000 by more than 150 heads of State and Government, included a paragraph on the promotion of peace and mutual comprehension of the Olympic Truce.

In July 2000, International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch and the Greek Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. George Papandreou, inaugurated the Athens International Olympic Truce Centre. The Centre, in full compliance with relevant United Nations resolutions, is an ambitious undertaking by the International Olympic Committee, in cooperation with the Greek Government, to promote an international ceasefire during the Olympics, thus allowing the building of bridges among rivals.

Greece will have the distinct honour of hosting the 2004 Summer Olympics. The return of the Olympic Games in 2004 to Greece, their ancient home, more than a century after their revival in 1896, provides an opportunity to enrich the modern Olympics by restoring some of the forgotten ideals of ancient Greece. Our endeavours aspire to refocus on the athlete as the centre of our attention and the measure of our success. In a contemporary manner, we aim to organize, in the most efficient and secure way, the 2004 Olympic Games in the authentic traditions and with the original values embodied in the Olympic ideal.

Furthermore, we aspire to promote a cultural Olympiad -- a cultural event of a global scale that is designed to link sport with culture and hopes to send a strong message for a culture of civilizations, in order to act as a platform for universal cooperation.

In our bid, we pledged to help the revival of the Olympic Truce, which in our times would serve to promote dialogue, reconciliation and the search for durable solutions to conflicts around the world. In no other year could this message be more timely. We aim to emphasize the importance of the issues of dialogue, tolerance, mutual understanding, respect and cooperation between cultures, religions and civilizations. This is our everyday challenge under the Charter of the United Nations: to promote those issues that unite us and to practise dialogue on those who stand between us. We need to open ways of communication and to promote dialogue among those who do not already practise it.

I would like to express our appreciation to the mission of the United States for introducing this draft resolution and to extend our heartfelt thanks to the delegations that sponsored it. The message of peace and reconciliation originating in this draft resolution will give us, I am sure, hope and vision towards our common goals.

Mr. Requiejo Gual (Cuba)

Sport and the Olympic ideal undoubtedly contribute to better understanding and mutual comprehension, as well as to the development and strengthening of friendship and fraternity among peoples, which are indispensable to the promotion of peace, cooperation among nations and the harmonious development of mankind.

In this respect, we attach special importance to the observance of the Olympic Truce for the cessation of all hostilities during the Olympic Games and to the search, through diplomatic solutions, for a peaceful settlement of international disputes, in accordance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter. This is the basis for the creation, through sport and the Olympic ideal, of a better world in which peace prevails. However, there are many factors today that run counter to that objective.

The growing negative effects of neoliberal globalization can also be felt today in the area of sport, where the gap between rich and poor has widened. One figure suffices to confirm that inequality: in the most recent Olympic Games, held in 2000, a mere seven countries from the first world took 50 per cent of the medals to be won.

We are not surprised by this, since sport requires the financial resources to create the infrastructure necessary to its development and since the developing countries do not have such resources. The meagre resources available to them today must be allocated to the eradication of poverty, hunger, poor health conditions and many other problems that violate the most fundamental human rights: the right to life and the right to development.

Furthermore, it is regrettable that some of those medals are won by talented athletes from countries that have hardly any sports installations and trainers or resources for the development of sport and that many of these athletes have no alternative but to take the path of professional and profit-making sport and to compete under other flags. The delegation of Cuba denounces that practice, which, unfortunately, is growing day by day. At the same time, we call on the international sports federations to take the measures necessary to curb the buying and selling of sporting talents, which corrupt and tarnish the purity of sport and damage the Olympic ideal that we wish to promote. It is also necessary to encourage the honesty and impartiality of sports officials and judges and to deem any case of corruption to be a grave offence against the Olympic spirit.

Another violation of the Olympic ideal is represented by the colossal sums of money that today surround the competition to host Olympic Games and, essentially, to organize Olympiads. Hosting the Olympics must also be a right enjoyed by the poor countries and not the exclusive monopoly of the super-rich. In that respect, Cuba reiterates its aspiration to host some Olympic Games in the near future. Our sporting record justifies that aspiration.

Our small country, in spite of the criminal blockade that has been imposed on us for 42 years by the United States, has begun this century with thousands of sports installations used by 1.5 million citizens systematically practising sports or physical exercise under specialist guidance; by over 2 million children, teenagers and young students with physical education and sports teachers; and by men and women of the third age, pregnant women and other categories of citizens for whom sport or physical exercise means health and longer life.

In Cuba, the teaching of sport is free of charge, making a reality of our aspiration of guaranteeing sport as a right of the people. Cuba is also working to strengthen sport in the countries of the third world, as demonstrated in the inauguration this year of the International School of Physical Education and Sport in Havana, where young people from over 50 countries of the South are studying today to graduate as qualified professionals in various branches of sport. We are also pleased to affirm that almost 8,000 sports specialists and trainers from Cuba have provided services in dozens of countries whose athletes have on occasion competed with and won competitions against our own athletes.

The delegation of Cuba joins in the consensus on the draft resolution entitled "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal" because we consider it to be an acceptable and useful text whose contents we entirely support and endorse. However, the Cuban delegation is not a sponsor, as it has been in the past, because we believe that, although it is a positive text, it represents a step backward from resolution 54/34, adopted by consensus with the same objective in 1999.

As Cuba sees it, the Olympic Truce calls "for all hostilities to cease during the Games", as affirmed in the second preambular paragraph of that resolution. This indispensable concept has been eliminated from the draft resolution now before the General Assembly.

The Cuban delegation also regrets the elimination of the contents of operative paragraph 2 of resolution 54/34, in which Member States are urged

"to take the initiative to abide by the Olympic Truce, individually and collectively, and to pursue, in conformity with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations, the peaceful settlement of all international conflicts through diplomatic solutions".

This concept is extremely important in a world in which international conflicts are proliferating and in which peace is increasingly threatened.

As President Fidel Castro has said, sport represents well-being, quality of life, health, happiness and honour for peoples, and is perhaps the most efficient instrument to combat criminal tendencies, drugs and the many other vices that afflict modern societies.

Globalization in the area of sport must be the globalization of cooperation, respect and equity, not the globalization of injustices and inequalities. On that basis, we will be able to advance towards the true Olympic ideal.

Mr. Ling (Belarus)

The delegation of the Republic of Belarus welcomes the draft resolution introduced by the United States under the item "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal". Debate on this topic in the General Assembly is a unique opportunity for the United Nations to use the full potential of the international community in maintaining international peace and security by mobilizing sport's resources to achieve its main goal -- saving current and succeeding generations from the scourge of war.

From ancient times, sport and the Olympic ideal have been an inherent part of peace and progress. We are convinced that this age-old tradition must be preserved and strengthened in the twenty-first century. The Millennium Declaration, adopted in 2000 by our heads of State and Government, set forth clearly the following goal:

"to observe the Olympic Truce, individually and collectively, now and in the future, and to support the International Olympic Committee in its efforts to promote peace and human understanding through sport and the Olympic Ideal". (resolution 55/2, para. 10)

In this context, the Republic of Belarus supports coordination by the International Olympic Committee and the Secretary-General's Adviser on Sports for Development and Peace so that sport can be used to reconcile communities in conflict or post-conflict situations, and can be considered an integral part of the general process of economic and social development and the promotion of the culture of peace and harmony, particularly among young people. All United Nations programmes focused on this goal will receive the Belarus Government's full support and cooperation.

Belarus, which recently became a fully integrated member of the international community, views the social function of sports and physical culture as an integral part of the process of creating our nation's statehood. We also see it as a means of maintaining friendly relations and partnerships with all other countries of the world. Sport and physical culture are one of the main policy priorities of Belarus, because they help solve social problems, particularly in providing health care for children, teenagers, students and all other citizens of our country.

Belarus has a well-established sports infrastructure comprising 225 stadiums, 24 sports centres, 222 swimming pools, 4,687 sports clubs, many Olympic training centres, sports palaces, tennis courts, ice-sport palaces and more than 9,000 open sports courts. Belarus is a small country, but many of our people practise sports of all kinds, with nearly 8 per cent of our overall population involved in some sport.

During the 1997-2000 Olympic cycle, sports teams from Belarus won 247 Olympic medals, including 53 gold medals. At the XXVII Olympic Games, in Sydney, Belarus won 3 gold, 3 silver and 11 bronze medals, ranking fifteenth among all teams participating in the Games. The Belarus gymnastics team won a gold medal in the recent World Championships in Brussels, Belgium.

Belarus is currently a member of the Committee for the Development of Sport of the Council of Europe and the Executive Committee of the European Sports Conference, and was elected to the Intergovernmental Committee for Physical Education and Sport of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The members of our National Olympic Committee represent Belarus in the European Olympic Committees Association, the European Non-Governmental Sports Organization and the National Olympic Committees Association of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Recently, the Republic of Belarus initiated the adoption of recommendations to facilitate a visa regime for sport delegations, including the idea of participation in large-scale sporting events in Europe on a non-visa basis. Following a UNESCO initiative, Belarus has put forth a recommendation on the topic "Physical education and sports as a means of social development". In addition, since Belarus is active in the fields of physical culture, sport and the drafting of relevant legislation, we have in place the necessary framework for the establishment of our national physical education and sports regime.

The global challenges and threats facing humankind today require a global and comprehensive response. We must explore all means available to the international community to achieve peace, and sport is a powerful means of helping us towards that goal. The Olympic Games in Sydney, at the threshold of the new millennium, reaffirmed the very close interdependence between sports and peace, which is of particular importance for us today and in the future. The Republic of Belarus will do its utmost to strengthen this relationship.

Ms. Vassallo (Malta)

It is an honour for my delegation to address the Assembly on agenda item 23, entitled "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal".

My delegation wishes to express its appreciation to the United States for introducing this year's draft resolution as host of the 2002 Winter Olympics, to be held in Salt Lake City. In reaffirming our support for the spirit of this draft resolution, we acknowledge with pleasure the high number of sponsorships it has received.

Apart from being a spectacle of competitive sport, skill and stamina, the Olympic Games are rich in symbolic significance that is as relevant today as it was centuries ago in ancient Greece. Let us recall that the Games owe their origins to a treaty which gave rise to the concept of the sacred truce, under which conflicts in the Greek world came to a halt throughout the duration of the Games.

In accordance with the Millennium Declaration, my delegation invites Member States

"to observe the Olympic Truce, individually and collectively, now and in the future, and to support the International Olympic Committee in its efforts to promote peace and human understanding through sport and the Olympic ideal". (ibid.)

The Olympic Games might be considered a diplomatic tool which enhances the efforts of the United Nations in the promotion of peace. The Games involve the same search as that of the Organization -- for cooperation, understanding and fruitful interaction -- which leads to dialogue and initiatives on a large number of issues. Gone are the days when countries believed, for whatever reason, that they had to boycott the Games. Today, all countries participate and compete side by side. It was gratifying to watch the athletes of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea marching together during the Australian Games in 2000.

My delegation firmly believes that sport plays a definite, interactive role in the promotion of a better and more peaceful world. Interaction among athletes leads to enhanced understanding among cultures and the promotion of healthy lifestyles in younger generations, as well as the broader realization of the Olympic ideal.

My delegation is heartened by the joint endeavours which have emerged between the International Olympic Committee and the United Nations.

The organization of the Games further emphasizes the significance of addressing issues of development, the protection of the environment, education, the eradication of poverty and the fight against HIV/AIDS, as well as the fight against drug abuse, violence and juvenile delinquency, all of which feature on the United Nations agenda.

The Olympic Games present younger generations with role models who promote healthy lifestyles. Some athletes are representatives of ethnic minorities; their participation is an important step towards the acceptance of ethnic minorities and the acknowledgement of their contribution to their countries. The participation of these athletes goes beyond physical strength and performance; it also symbolizes courage and the intrinsic universal value of all peoples and all cultures.

The Olympic Truce basically signifies the cessation of belligerence among countries and peoples in armed conflict for at least the duration of the Games. The United Nations has the obligation of furthering this concept, leading to a more proactive stance. Through the promotion of a better understanding among nations, the international community can contribute towards the elimination of the scourge of war.

The Olympic Games promote a culture of peace. In this respect, my country's Olympic Committee prides itself on being involved in the mobilization of all international sports organizations and National Olympic Committees to undertake concrete actions at the local, national and global levels to promote and strengthen a culture of peace based on the spirit of the Olympic Truce.

Participation is not about winning medals; winning is not everything. Although competition by nature generates a degree of thirst for success, the notion of having contributed towards the building of a peaceful world far transcends any other consideration.

It is my delegation's belief that each and every athlete, successful or otherwise, can look at his or her participation with the satisfaction of having contributed to the creation of a better world. In conclusion, my delegation would like to express the wish that the journey of the Olympic flame may serve as a beacon for the human race in its quest for good will and peace.

Ms. Crowley (Australia)

Australia is pleased to support the draft resolution and its principal call to all Member States to build a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal and by putting the Olympic Truce into effect during the period of the Games.

It is sobering to note right now that there are many places of conflict around the world where the principles being expressed in this draft resolution have no opportunity to be effective. Equally importantly, we support the draft resolution's affirmation of the principles of international friendship and cooperation, and the important role the Olympics, and sport more broadly, can play in helping to foster healthy, productive and peaceful communities beyond the limits of the Olympic Games.

Australia is an active and committed member of the Olympic movement. We are one of only two nations to have competed in every modern summer Olympiad. We have also proudly played host to the Summer Olympic Games twice: in Melbourne in 1956, and in Sydney in 2000.

Growing up in Melbourne in the 1950s, I well remember the pride and excitement our city and nation felt in hosting the XIV Olympic Games. In many respects, those Games helped bring the world to Australia and Australia to the world -- important at a time when we had been accepting migrants from many nations. Those Olympics were an important event in our nation's life, and a peaceful event in a hard year. The Melbourne Games came to be known as the "friendly Games", due to the inspiration of a young Chinese man -- a student, I think -- who wrote to the Organizing Committee suggesting that athletes walk together under the flag of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in the closing ceremony, as a symbol and example of international good will. That practice has become a part of all the Games since, and it continues.

Similarly, we Australians took great pride in the success of the XXVII Games in Sydney in 2000 -- in terms not only of numbers, but of the many memorable moments: South Korea and North Korea entering the stadium under one banner in the opening ceremony to the roar of support from 110,000 spectators; four athletes from East Timor participating for the first time under the Olympic flag; Cathy Freeman, an aboriginal Australian, lighting the torch to start the Games.

The 2000 Games also witnessed the largest participation of volunteers in Olympic history. Many of those volunteers stayed on to assist with the subsequent Paralympic Games. Their involvement, just as much as that of the athletes and officials, best captured the Olympic spirit of good will, understanding and friendship, and certainly the spirit of Australia. Our volunteers also had a great sense of humour, and left people laughing, even if they did not quite understand Australian humour. Many objective assessments claim that the Australian Olympics in Sydney in 2000 were the best Games ever.

The Olympics are very important for other reasons. First, the Games are a major exercise in building capacity for the host country, from physical infrastructure to broad cultural activities. Secondly, people come from around the world to see sporting excellence and, at the same time, participate in the host country's society, activities and culture. The Olympic ideals must necessarily extend to cover all these opportunities. Many have commented, as I said earlier, that Australia did this brilliantly, from the opening to the closing ceremony. Australia smiled and Sydney sparkled.

A third point relates to the way the Olympic Games are reported. Television now provides the main coverage, and it is disappointing to learn that many nations give small or uneven coverage to the Games, sometimes featuring only their own athletes. The Olympics are about international excellence rather than nationality, and this draft resolution reflects that.

I would like to speak briefly about other important aspects of this draft resolution: its affirmation of some of the underlying principles that the United Nations and the international Olympic movement share, and the role that sports can play in helping to build stronger communities -- for example through youth education and exchange.

Australia has a long commitment to international sports development programmes through partnerships with Governments, sporting agencies and the IOC. Many of these programmes have received special recognition from the IOC and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

We have been particularly active in assisting countries in the Asia-Pacific region with sports development programmes. The focus of these activities has been on capacity-building in the areas of physical education, youth development and sports management. We see tremendous scope for the IOC to expand its work in these areas, and to find new ways to complement the activities of the United Nations and, indeed, Member State Governments, in the areas of health, development and education.

Australia has recognized the importance of providing opportunity for young people, which allows the growth of decision-making, confidence-building and capacity to learn, as well as physical skills development. Our programmes are directed towards achieving wide community participation as well as excellence in elite athletes.

While United Nations principles and activities are well reflected in this draft resolution, it is very important that the opportunities presented by the Olympic Games themselves be used to put these principles into practice -- for example, with regard to non-discrimination in bringing sporting opportunity to women as well as men. We can note that Olympic villages have become places where lasting friendships are built and no one is discriminated against because of race or religion.

The Olympics are a young people's forum par excellence. Their skills, training, hard work and dedication, their sacrifices for their sport, their pride in representing their nation, their coping with disappointment, their celebrating of other contestants are some of the vital ingredients in this draft resolution. We who are older, we whom age is wearying, must learn from our young people and provide them with the necessary support. They are the future, and we must accept the challenge of this draft resolution to leave them a better world.

Mr. Musambachime (Zambia)

On behalf of the member States of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), I have the honour to speak on agenda item 23, entitled "Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal".

When the International Olympic Committee was faced with political problems and launched its appeal in 1992 for an Olympic Truce, requesting support from the Member States of the United Nations and political entities, the Organization of African Unity was among the first to respond to the appeal. That was supported by the fifty-eighth ordinary session of the OAU Council of Ministers, held in June 1993, in Cairo, Egypt, and was endorsed by the Summit of Heads of State and Government.

Furthermore, in that connection, Egypt, in its capacity as the Chair of the OAU for the year 1993, introduced two draft resolutions in the General Assembly, on 25 October 1993. The first was on the Olympic Truce. The other was on the proclamation of 1994 as the International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal, in commemoration of the centenary of the International Olympic Committee, which was founded in 1894. The fact that those draft resolutions were sponsored by 121 Member States was an indication of the overwhelming support the Olympics enjoyed from the international community. I am delighted to express once again, on behalf of the African countries, our support for the Olympic Truce.

As the Assembly may recall, the Millennium Summit of the heads of State and Government, held in New York in September 2000, included in its final Declaration the following paragraph:

"We urge Member States to observe the Olympic Truce, individually and collectively, now and in the future, and to support the International Olympic Committee in its efforts to promote peace and human understanding through sport and the Olympic Ideal." (resolution 55/2, para. 10)

The International Olympic Committee has also cooperated very effectively with the General Assembly by organizing round tables for the National Olympic Committees whose countries were, or are still, in conflict situations in Africa, in the framework of the International Year of the Culture of Peace. Zambia was among the countries represented at the World Conference on Olympic and Sport Volunteerism, organized by the International Olympic Committee only last month in New York in the framework of the International Year of Volunteers.

Since 1993, the General Assembly has adopted by consensus three additional resolutions on the Olympic Truce, introduced by the countries hosting the Olympic Games. As a matter of fact, the resolution introduced by Australia and adopted in 1999 had 180 sponsors, a record in the Assembly's history.

It is therefore against that background that I request that this draft resolution on the Olympic Truce, introduced by the United States of America as the host of the Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City in February 2002, be adopted by consensus.

I believe that it is our duty to promote peace and human understanding for the well-being of society by encouraging observance of the Olympic Truce. This is in conformity with past resolutions of the General Assembly to pursue the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter.

Finally, I would like to commend the International Olympic Committee on its efforts to mobilize the youth of the world in the cause of peace.

The Acting President

We have heard the last speaker in the debate on this item.

The Assembly will now take a decision on draft resolution A/56/L.47.

Before proceeding to take action on the draft resolution, I should like to announce that, since its introduction, the following countries have become sponsors: Bahrain, Canada, Comoros, India, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Mauritius, Pakistan, the Russian Federation, Suriname, Thailand and the United Kingdom.

May I take it that the Assembly decides to adopt draft resolution A/56/L.47?

The Acting President

We have thus concluded this stage of our consideration of agenda item 23.