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

18. The PRESIDENT:
I now give the floor to the representative of Ethiopia.
19.1 Mr ETEFFA (Ethiopia):
Thank you, Mr President, I have no written statement so I will be very brief. I took the floor to react to
some of the comments made in the reports, especially the report of Commission IV which stated that people
without history have no past and no future. I think all peoples have history and therefore all peoples have a past
and I hope that all peoples will have a future. If we are talking of people without history, meaning without a
written history, I consider such statements misleading.
19.2 Mr President, the other comment I wanted to make is that the reports of the commissions mentioned
diversity but did not give it enough and appropriate emphasis. The role of diversity in the culture of peace is in
my opinion very important. Diversity should be recognized, respected and appreciated. Diversity should be given
the necessary attention in education and in the discussion of culture, religion and art. Education in general and
adult education in particular should promote diversity and the culture of peace.
19.3 The other point I wanted to raise concerns the much talked about globalization. If by globalization we
only mean the globalization of finance and trade I think it would exclude the already excluded even more.
Therefore globalization should at the same time enhance and promote diversity. In my view, moreover, diversity
and democracy go hand in hand: democracy should contribute to the safeguarding of diversity, while a proper
understanding of diversity would contribute to the reduction of violence and encourage harmony and peaceful
coexistence. The culture of peace should promote the universality of peace, human rights, justice and cultural
understanding. It should enable people to live together not only with tolerance but with understanding, respect
and harmony. Thank you, Mr President.
20. The PRESIDENT:
I thank the representative of Ethiopia and now give the floor to the representative of Spain.
21.1 Sr. BENAVIDES ORGAZ (España):
Gracias señor Presidente: Yo también pretendo ser muy breve, y por ello me limitaré a tres puntos. En
primer lugar, creo que hay que felicitar a la Secretaría por la evolución del concepto de “cultura de paz”, que está
cobrando mucha más coherencia, y la integración de las diferentes estrategias que conducen a ello. Creo que esto
es positivo para la Organización, y no podemos menos que suscribirlo.
21.2 En segundo lugar, un comentario sobre la prevención de conflictos: nadie podría pensar que la
UNESCO no jugara el papel que le corresponde en este ámbito. Simplemente quiero recordar que, dentro del
sistema de las Naciones Unidas, corresponde fundamentalmente al Consejo de Seguridad el desempeño de este
papel. Por supuesto la UNESCO, en sus áreas de competencia, no sólo puede sino que debe contribuir en este
terreno. Un ejemplo concreto es la labor de la UNESCO en la antigua Yugoslavia.
21.3 En tercer lugar, y me oriento más a los proyectos de resolución que vayamos a aprobar, mi delegación
opina que, teniendo en cuenta los informes presentados por los diferentes presidentes de las comisiones, el
concepto de “educación para los derechos humanos” debería figurar como tal en los textos que se nos presentan.
Otro tanto cabe decir, probablemente, del concepto de “lucha contra la pobreza”, que al igual que el de
“educación para los derechos humanos”, representa un método muy concreto de prevención de conflictos. Es a
través de estas actuaciones concretas en el área de la solidaridad y en el área de la libertad como se previenen los
conflictos diferentes que existen en el mundo.
21.4 Finalmente, mi delegación también opina que en nuestras conclusiones debería probablemente figurar
una referencia a la juventud, teniendo en cuenta la importancia del foro que acaba de celebrarse. Muchas gracias,
señor Presidente.
(21.1) Mr BENAVIDES ORGAZ (Spain) (Translation from the Spanish):
Thank you, Mr President. I too intend to be very brief, and I will accordingly make only three points.
Firstly, I think that the Secretariat should be congratulated on the development of the “culture of peace” concept,
which is becoming much more coherent, and on the integration of the various strategies conducive to it. I think that
this is positive for the Organization, and we cannot but endorse it.
(21.2) Secondly, a comment on conflict prevention: it is inconceivable that UNESCO should not play its rightful
role in this field. I simply wish to recall that, within the United Nations system, this is a role that basically devolves
on the Security Council. Of course, in its fields of competence, UNESCO not only can but must contribute in this
field. A specific example is the work done by UNESCO in the former Yugoslavia.
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