Community of Democracies
Ministerial Meeting
New York, 20 September 2006

Remarks by the
Malian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Moctar Ouane

Ladies and Gentlemen Fellow Ministers, 

Mr. Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations,

Ladies and Gentlemen Distinguished Representatives of the Non-Governmental Process,

Ladies and Gentleman,

It is a great honor for me to preside over this meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Community of Democracies at the 61st General Assembly of the United Nations.

This meeting is of special importance because it provides a forum for exchange and orientation between two ministerial conferences.  

I avail myself of this opportunity to reiterate the commitment of the Malian high officials, to supporting activities which promote and strengthen the democratic ideals to which our Community aspires.  

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Our meeting today gives us the opportunity to take a look at the state of democracy in the world and the progress our Community has made since our last meeting.

Important progress has been made in the past year which has contributed to the promotion and protection of democracy in the world. Citizens in every region of the world, including Africa, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America are, through elections, expressing their desire to choose their leaders. They are raising their voices in constructive and meaningful ways to demand their right to participate in decision making through their elected representatives.

However, even with these advances, democracy continues to face challenges and threats such as unconstitutional changes of government, violent electoral processes, blatant violations of human rights, poverty, crises and conflicts, pandemics, terrorism.  

It’s evident that terrorism constitutes a serious threat to the very core of democracy.  That’s why it is imperative that the Community of Democracies  participates fully in the fight against this scourge of the 21st century by strengthening our cooperation and by building a consensus on the elements of that fight, keeping in mind that an important aspect of fighting international terrorism is the respect of international law and human rights.

It’s also true that democracy is threatened by persistent and aggravated poverty. The endemic state of hunger and disease, in which sadly around one billion people in the world live, compels us to vigorously fight this scourge.

Convinced of the correlation between democracy and development, we should relentlessly and efficiently work to reduce poverty, strengthen democracy and achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

Given this perspective, it is crucial that efforts are carried out and well coordinated in order to mobilize resources in the promotion of sustainable economic development and the improvement of the poor economic conditions in countries which are on a democratic path.

It is in this spirit that the Malian Chairmanship is undertaking some reflection on poverty reduction as a challenge to democracy and plans to host a seminar on this issue in the lead-up to the fourth Ministerial Conference, in Bamako, Mali in 2007.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In reference to the work of our Community, I would like to first congratulate the Convening Group for all of its efforts toward the implementation of the strategic agenda of our Community, in particular for finalizing its enlargement and activating the four thematic working groups by assigning the chairs and co-chairs of each group. Membership in the working groups is open to all member governments of the Community of Democracies, regional organizations and non-governmental organizations. I urge everyone to actively participate on the working group of your choice. I encourage the working groups to develop action plans focused on specific activities and projects as soon as possible.

I am also pleased to announce that the Convening Group has established an ad hoc task force on the creation of a permanent secretariat for the Community of Democracies. Italy, which chairs this task force, will give us an update on the discussions underway on this issue.

I also salute the initiative by the Non Governmental Process to create the International Advisory Committee with a mission to make proposals and recommendations focused on improving the invitation process for the Fourth Ministerial Conference. We hope this initiative will contribute to the remarkable work accomplished by the Convening Group in this area.

The creation of the United Nations Democracy Fund and the United Nations Human Rights Council undoubtedly will contribute to the expansion of democratic ideals and the defense of human rights. I commend our Community’s active role in this process.

On behalf of the Community of Democracies, I would like to acknowledge the importance that Secretary General Annan has given these two initiatives in his framework for United Nations reforms. I would like to take advantage of this opportunity to express our gratitude for the support that he continues to extend to the work of our Community.

Ladies and Gentleman,

To conclude, I would like to appeal to our Community, to remain mobilized in the promotion of democratic governance throughout the world and to support democratic transition processes, strengthen democratic institutions and mechanisms, and collaborate with international, regional, non-governmental and civil society organizations. It is this commitment that since its creation has been the foundation of the Community of Democracies.

I sincerely thank you for your attention.