Mr. Chair,
My delegation joins in congratulating you on your election as Chair of the Fourth Committee, as well as the other members of the Bureau. We wish you every success in your work during this session.
We appreciate the inclusion of this item on the agenda of the General Assembly, which is so relevant at this time as we celebrate the 80th anniversary of the United Nations’ creation.
Almost 65 years ago, the General Assembly adopted a landmark document that recognized the right of all peoples to self-determination. The Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples proclaimed the need to bring about the swift and unconditional end of colonialism in all its forms and manifestations.
The United Nations has an essential role to play in the fight against colonialism. As long as there is a single people living under that condition, the work of this Organization will remain unfinished.
Today, we are halfway through the Fourth International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism, and despite the efforts of the international community, 17 non-self-governing territories and others, such as Puerto Rico, continue to suffer from this scourge.
The process of decolonization, which enabled the self-determination and independence of numerous peoples and territories under colonial rule, is considered one of the most significant transformations of the 20th century.
Colonialism is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. It hinders the social, cultural, and economic development of the peoples who suffer from it and undermines their cultural identity and legitimate aspirations. Colonial practices have no place in today's world.
Any action we take now and in the future to eliminate colonialism will contribute to preserving multilateralism and promoting the well-being of peoples. It will also help to definitively eradicate the historical legacies of colonialism associated with a past of slavery, plunder, exploitation, and extermination.
In this regard, we attach particular relevance to declaring December 14 as the International Day Against Colonialism in All Its Forms and Manifestations. We hope that this date will invite us to reflect on how far humanity has come in eliminating this scourge and how much more we have yet to do in this endeavor.
In this way, we will contribute to raising awareness about the lingering effects of colonialism, its root causes, and its consequences. The visibility of these issues through the Organization's media and communications channels, in addition to publicizing our work, will serve as a tool for raising awareness in the international community and fostering social commitment to the process of decolonization.
Mr. Chair,
More than five decades have passed since the adoption of the first resolution on the colonial question of Puerto Rico. Despite this and the many efforts made by the Special Committee on Decolonization, the people of Puerto Rico are still unable to exercise their legitimate right to self-determination.
The United States of America, the colonial power, is trying by all means to consolidate its economic, political, and social domination over this brotherly Latin American and Caribbean people. However, so many years of colonial rule have not been enough to rob the people of Puerto Rico of their culture, identity, and national sentiments.
Mr. Chair,
Ending colonialism in all its forms and manifestations also requires an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We strongly denounce the continued usurpation of Palestinian territories and the displacement of their population from their lands. Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, have no legal validity and constitute a clear violation of international law.
We reject Israel's continued use of hunger, food delivery, and humanitarian aid as weapons of war. An immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces are urgently needed. Israel must allow sufficient, unconditional and unrestricted humanitarian aid and must authorize the indispensable work of UNRWA.
Cuba reaffirms its conviction that only through the two-state solution, with the creation of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state within the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, guaranteeing the right of return for refugees, can a just and lasting peace be achieved.
Let us redouble our efforts in this essential and highly relevant area of the Organization's work. The eradication of colonialism in all its forms and manifestations will contribute to the construction of the world we aspire to, in pursuit of the well-being and independence of peoples.
Thank you