Statement delivered by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy, Hon. Paolo Gentiloni, at the UN Summit on Refugees and Migrants (September 19, 2016)
Mr. Secretary General,
Dear Colleagues,
I am really proud to be here today, bearing witness to the great humanity of the Italian people in receiving those who land every day on our shores.
For years, Italy has been left alone to face the migration crisis in the Mediterranean; and we have done it, thanks to the commitment and the generosity of the women and men of Lampedusa, of the Italian Coast Guard, and of the thousands of volunteers who devoted their time to help migrants and refugees after their perilous journey across the Mediterranean. To all those people, here in front of you, I would like to extend my gratitude.
Italy has long been calling for the involvement of the whole international community in managing the migratory phenomenon. I am therefore particularly pleased to see that, thanks to the sensitivity and vision of the Secretary General, Mr Ban Ki-Moon, and of the High Representative for Refugees, Mr Grandi, the principle of shared responsibility is now welcomed by all the members of the United Nations.
After all, what we are trying to do is not simply to resolve an emergency or a crisis, but we are looking for durable solutions for a situation that will affect generations to come.
On the one hand, we are all aware of the international obligations regarding the protection of refugees. Such protection is due to those who are fleeing war and persecution. In my opinion, such protection should be extended to new categories of refugees, like people fleeing disasters caused by climate change.
On the other hand, even those seeking a better life, those fleeing poverty and the lack of a future have the right to an answer from us, they have the right to hope. They should be able to hope that a better life is attainable in their own country, in their own home.
In this spirit, Italy has promoted – also through our proposal of a “Migration Compact”, to our EU partners – a plan to develop a true partnership with African countries of origin. I have said this on other occasions and I really believe it: the future of Europe is in Africa. We have to invest in Africa to tackle the root causes of migration, primarily economic and demographic inequalities. But most of all, we should invest in Africa because it means we are investing in our own future.
However, we all know that this kind of commitment will produce results only in the long term. Meanwhile, we have to give a humanitarian, answer: we have to save lives. On this, I am asking for solidarity, I am asking for the full commitment of the whole international community.
Italy has been at the forefront of the migration crisis in the Mediterranean for years, with its Search and Rescue Operations. More than 75,000 (seventy-five thousand) people were saved in 2015, and more than 60,000 so far this year, by Italian units only. These are impressive numbers, but even more impressive and even more moving are the tales of pain and suffering behind those numbers.
To this emergency, we have to answer now. This is why, thanks once again to the support of civil society, Italy has promoted a resettlement program (the humanitarian corridor project) aimed at saving at least the most vulnerable among migrants: I am thinking particularly of women and unaccompanied children. We should be able to keep them from having to embark on a dangerous journey across the desert or the sea, in the hands of smugglers.
We hope that the Humanitarian Corridor project could be taken up, as a best practice, by other countries. Let’s give protection to refugees, but also let’s give hope to those who have lost it, to the weakest among migrants, like children, and like women who travel alone.
Let’s give them hope, and by doing it we will also give hope and a vision to our own society: by protecting the most vulnerable we are protecting our own values; by saving children’s lives we are saving our own future.
Let’s invest in our future, let’s invest in children, let’s empower women, let’s give them all a voice; this is the only way to build a fair and equal society. Let’s refuse the idea that today, for some young women, for some small children the only prospect is to rely on smugglers.
We need to give an immediate answer to those in need of protection and a practical solution for the most vulnerable migrants: this is Italy’s commitment here today. This is my appeal to all of you: protection not only for refugees, but also for vulnerable migrants. We will raise this issue with our partners during Italy’s Presidency of the G7 next year. Do not allow that a child fleeing from Aleppo find his death on a Mediterranean shore.
STATEMENT BY THE DEPUTY PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF ITALY TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AMBASSADOR INIGO LAMBERTINI, AT THE OPEN DEBATE ON “THE ROLE OF YOUTH IN COUNTERING VIOLENT EXTREMISM AND PROMOTING PEACE” (April 23, 2015)
Mr. President,
I thank the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan for organizing today’s open debate and in particular His Royal Highness the Crown Prince for chairing the meeting and for his inspiring words. Italy aligns itself with the statement delivered by the European Union and wishes to add the following remarks in a national capacity.
Mr. President,
Today’s open debate enables us to think more strategically about the role of youth in countering violent extremism. According to the latest statistics, the current youth population (people between the ages of 10 and 24) is the largest ever. 1.8 billion people. 600 thousand of them are girls. Most of those 1.8 billion live in developing countries. They are the world’s best hope for addressing in the long term our most pressing challenges, particularly how to counter violent extremism and promote peace.
As the Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has stated repeatedly, the fight against violent extremism has to be waged at different levels: in terms of narrative, values, and financing. Which brings me to the second underlying theme of today’s debate. The importance of prevention. In the past decade extremist ideologies have increased their appeal to youth, through communication campaigns that target this specific demographic. It is both a moral obligation and a strategic investment for us to turn the tide. By countering the appeal of violent and extremist groups among young people, we will deny these groups access to their most valuable resource, pulling the rug out from under their feet.
So we should not be asking ourselves what role youth can have in countering violent extremism and promoting peace. We should be asking how young people themselves can be the heart of the solution. To this end, we have identified areas that we should be targeting.
First of all, Mr. President, education. The abduction of students and the targeting of schools and universities by violent and extremist groups are a clear sign of their weakness. Culture and education are their worst enemy. But at the same time, they are our best allies to promote tolerance, inclusiveness and open-mindedness. In the wake of the horrific attack on the Garissa Campus in Kenya, Minister Gentiloni paid an official visit to Nairobi to renew our full support for Kenya in that hour of tragedy, to pay respect to the victims, and to signal that the fight against terrorism and the protection of the right to education are a shared value. As a tangible proof of our friendship, we have offered scholarships to students of the Garissa campus to signal that assuring access to quality education, regardless of the circumstances, is our best counterattack on violent extremism.
Second, human rights and justice. To promote peaceful, inclusive and just societies, we must defend and support the shared values under attack. Human rights must be restored to the center of the agenda. In this respect, we must not underestimate the preventive power of justice by upholding rule of law and accountability.
Third, socio-economic development. Unfulfilled expectations. Unemployment. Underemployment. Inequality. All these factors have the potential to drive idle and dissatisfied young people down the pathway to radical, violent ideologies. In defining the post-2015 agenda, we must be mindful of the positive impact that a universal, innovative, easily-communicated agenda will have on youth living in developing countries.
Fourth private/public partnerships, including media. The proactive involvement of civil society is essential to our success. Governments and the international community have to provide an enabling environment and lead with projects. But a joint effort is needed to “fill in” the framework. Social media has a special role to play in countering the narrative proposed by violent extremist groups. This makes it vital to address this issue in the Framework of Analysis, which Italy supports. Social media can have both a negative and a positive effect. It can aggravate the risk of atrocity crimes, by spreading hate speech and inciting people to commit such crimes. But it can also curb messages of intolerance, hatred, and violence. The new Framework provides analytical tools for detecting early warning signs through the examination of the socio-economic conditions affecting young people.
Lastly, empowerment. Sometimes the problem is not the message but the messenger. Empowerment of youth and youth-oriented organizations is essential to promoting positive role models, responding to violence, and delegitimizing extremist messages. And a priority should be placed on empowering those 600 million young women.
Mr. President,
It is in this light that Italy proudly supports the “Change the World Model United Nations.” Every year our Mission organizes a public event that brings together young people from all over the world to discuss the three main pillars of the UN: international peace and security; human rights; and development. One month ago, more than 1500 young people from over 90 countries met at the General Assembly to discuss how to make the world a safer, better place. By promoting this event, we are planting a seed for the future. It is up to us to assure that this seed has the proper international environment in which to grow and develop. Thank you.
Speech of the Italian Minister of Environment, Stefania Prestigiacomo, at the High Level Plenary Session on Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) in the General Assembly (September 24, 2010) [Photogallery]
Your Excellencies
Dear Colleagues
Five years ago in Mauritius the international community made a number of commitments for meeting the sustainable development goals and priorities of the Barbados Programme of Action, recognizing that the sustainable development must be a national responsibility of SIDS and the international community must provide financial and technical support for the success of the Strategy
The present review shows that these commitments have been, to some extent, fulfilled, compatibly with constrains deriving from global crisis such as the economic, energy and food crisis, which have had and continue to have serious implications for geographically isolated SIDS.
Very positive results have indeed been achieved in all regions. Most SIDS have substantially increased the political commitments to sustainable development as well as public awareness on their importance. They have made considerable efforts to integrate sustainable development principles into national development and sectorial strategies.
Most SIDS have adopted policies for climate change mitigation and adaptation, which in some cases include the achievement of the carbon neutrality objective, and envisage a robust promotion of renewable energy. SIDS have also shown strong leadership in the area of protection of biodiversity, and achieved significant results in establishing protected marine, coastal and terrestrial areas.
In addition, the present review has shown that progress, although uneven within SIDS, has also been made in the areas of gender, health, and education, as well as towards the achievement of environmental sustainability. We commend in particular the progress made in most regions for creating an enabling regional institutional framework, aimed at maximizing the national efforts in key areas, such as the containment of the climate change threat and the prevention and management of risks inherent natural disasters.
In terms of financing, the review has shown that, while on the one side most SIDS have indeed used their own resources in the implementation of the Mauritius Strategy, on the other, the international community has played an important role in support of these efforts by providing financing and technical assistance in key strategic areas.
Much however, remains to be done. The review has clearly demonstrated that in spite of the great efforts made, the results achieved are limited with respect to expectations. The global crisis of the last five years have greatly contributed to the erosion of progress made. Climate change adaptation and sea level rise remain one of the greatest challenges to SIDS, a threat to their very existence.
Italy has long been aware of the indisputable injustice inherent the fact that the Island States contribute the least to the global Climate Change, yet are affected the most by its negative consequences.
For this reason we have concentrated our commitment towards the SIDS sustainable development in the area of climate change and related sectors. Italy has in fact supported a number of key initiatives, such as the establishment of the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC). The Centre has become a leading enabling regional institution and has laid the ground for a regional strategic approach to climate change. Rising sea levels, together with the associated coastal erosion and salt water intrusion, an escalation in the frequency and intensity of tropical storms and hurricanes, and disruptions in rainfall and fresh-water supply, threaten the very existence of the CARICOM countries. Our hope is of course that the lessons learnt from the establishment of the Centre and from the concrete actions taken by this institution will be treasured by other regions seeking to maximize the impact of scarce national resources and to streamline the search for a solution to common threats.
In addition, while the international community is still debating on the shape of the global agreement that will ensure equitable participation of all in addressing Climate Change mitigation, Italy has started actions supporting a programme in the Pacific region that stands out as a pragmatic attempt to address the adaptation urgency and search for practical solutions to the great challenge of this century.
The Cooperation Programme on climate change and renewable energy between Italy, Austria, the Municipality of Milan and the Pacific SIDS has become, after only three years of implementation, a successful model for international cooperation.
The programme is ongoing, thus the lessons generated so far are preliminary. Nevertheless, some important conclusions can already be drawn. We believe that the success of the programme is basically due to the strict application of the ownership principle, according to which the development strategy remains in the hands of national governments. Within the general goal of adaptation to Climate Change and development of renewable energy, each participating SIDS has established the priorities needed to build resilience vis-a-vis its own perception of national and local vulnerability. These priorities derive from the sustainable development policies and strategies established by the Pacific SIDS and are fully taken on board by the cooperation programme which has been able to focus, since its inception, on the achievement of measurable, concrete results.
Italy will continue to be committed to the sustainable development of SIDS. We will spare no effort to ensure that the positive lessons that can be drawn from the success stories of the Italian programme can be repeated and strengthened by other bilateral and multilateral organizations, seeking to maximize the impact of international aid programmes.
Thank you Mr. President
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