UNESCO. General Conference; 30th; Records ... - unesdoc - Unesco

VISITE DE S. EXC. M. ROBERT MUGABE, PRESIDENT DE LA REPUBLIQUE DU ZIMBABWE
VISIT OF H.E. MR ROBERT MUGABE, PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE
VISITA DEL EXCMO. SR. ROBERT MUGABE, PRESIDENTE DE LA REPÚBLICA DE ZIMBABWE
ВИЗИТ ЕГО ПРЕВОСХОДИТЕЛЬСТВА Г-НА РОБЕРТА МУГАБЕ, ПРЕЗИДЕНТА РЕСПУБЛИКИ
ЗИМБАБВЕ
(H.E. Mr Robert Mugabe takes his place at the rostrum)
1.1 The PRESIDENT:
Ladies and gentlemen, I declare open the fifth plenary meeting of the 30th session of the General
Conference.
1.2 It is with great pleasure that I welcome to the house of culture and peace, to the General Conference of
UNESCO’s Member States, His Excellency Mr Robert Mugabe, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe. Allow
me, Sir, to say a few words on this auspicious occasion.
1.3 Mr President, Mr Chairperson of the Executive Board, Mr Director-General, distinguished delegates,
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, it is a great honour for me to welcome to this 30th session of the General
Conference, the last before a new century and millennium, a personality who can be listed amongst UNESCO’s
oldest and closest collaborators. Mr President, we are all aware of, and grateful for, the unwavering support
which you have given to the Organization, its programmes and its Member States, especially over the last two
decades. The 1982 and 1999 Pan-African Conferences of African Ministers of Education, the 1996 World Solar
Summit and African Youth Forum for World Heritage, the 1997 Business and Investments Forum for Renewable
Energy in Africa which launched the Project on Global and Renewable Education and Training – each of these
highly successful gatherings, which reflect the pillars on which UNESCO rests and strove for the educational and
thus social betterment of all peoples, profited from your vast experience and specialized knowledge.
1.4 We all know, of course, of the important role that you played as a freedom fighter in your great country,
Zimbabwe. We know you were instrumental in liberating your countrymen from the scourge of racism and the
chains of hatred. We also know of your key role in the rise of the phoenix which is now known as Zimbabwe
from the ashes of the former Rhodesia. You have not lost any of that zeal of the freedom fighter. This zeal is
reflected in your commitment to the issues of sustainable development, particularly in respect of the inclusion of
women in the development process, and in your commitment to the endeavour to overcome the fatal threat which
the disease AIDS represents for so many of our Member States.
1.5 And yet there is the other side to you. That side which is the man of peace. You were a great motivator
in the establishment of the Southern African Development Community, realizing that the best route to
maintaining peace in your region and in the world at large is by building up parternships which promote equity,
stability and freedom. It is surely the recognition of this quality that led to your being invited to act as mediator in
some of the worst conflicts ever seen in modern-day Africa. Wherever the conflict, whoever the protagonists, you
have always been universally accepted in this role. This is a measure of the respect you command not only on the
African continent, but also in the world at large.
1.6 Mr President, at the beginning of this short address, I spoke of a new century and a new millennium.
There was good reason for this. We have the chance at this time to truly reassess our values and our actions. As
we all look to improving ourselves and search for the manner in which to do so, it is men such as your good self
who will act as an inspiration to us all. In every way, you represent the very ideals on which UNESCO was
founded and which continue to guide the Organization today. These ideals of peace, equality, human dignity,
tolerance, partnership – and I could go on – need to be preserved now more than ever before. I am sure that they
will be for as long as we continue to have your example to follow. I thank you for your presence here today,
Mr President.
(Applause)
1.7 I now give the floor to the Chairperson of the Executive Board, Mr Christopher Chetsanga.
2.1 Mr CHETSANGA (Zimbabwe), Chairperson of the Executive Board:
Madam President, in this house of culture and peace allow me before I embark on my text to greet my
President in the customary way: Mwauya Gushungo.
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