19 Jan 2012

UN / RULE OF LAW

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon tells the Security Council that for post-conflict societies “nothing is more critical than establishing the rule of law” and pointed out that “when the guns fall silent the United Nations is often the first organization on the ground helping fractured countries to start building peace and strengthening key institutions.” UNTV

Posted at: January 19, 2012 4:45 pm

Duration: 02:34

Available in: SD

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STORY: UN / RULE OF LAW
TRT: 2.34
SOURCE: UNTV 
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH/ NATS

DATELINE: 19 JANUARY 2012, NEW YORK CITY / FILE

SHOTLIST:

FILE – RECENT, NEW YORK CITY

1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations headquarters

19 JANUARY 2012, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, Security Council
3. Med shot, delegates
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General:
"For societies traumatized by years of fighting and gross violations of human rights, nothing is more critical than establishing the rule of law. When the guns fall silent, the United Nations is often the first organization on the ground helping fractured countries to start building peace and strengthening key institutions. Our goal is to quickly demonstrate the value of the rule of law. That builds public confidence in political settlements."
5. Med shot, delegates
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General:
"I encourage the Council to include the promotion of transitional justice measures more broadly in the mandates of peacekeeping and political missions. I also encourage the Council to reject any endorsement of amnesty for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity or gross violations of human rights and international humanitarian law."
7. Med shot, delegates
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Mark Lyall Grant, Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations:
"A defining feature of the Arab Spring is the revolutionaries' clear demand for the rule of law and justice instead of the arbitrary rule of autocrats. Across the world ordinary people cite insecurity and lack of access to justice as one of the main impediments to a better life. Collective efforts to strengthen rule of law systems in countries affected by conflict are critical. It is the bedrock of sustainable development."
9. Med shot, delegates
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Baso Sangqu, Permanent Representative of South Africa to the United Nations:
"The Security Council is committed to, and actively supports the peaceful settlement of disputes and reiterates its call upon Member States to settle their disputes by peaceful means as set forth in chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations. The Council emphasises the key role of the International Court of Justice, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations in adjudicating disputes among states and avail of its work. To this end, the Council calls upon states that have not yet done so, to consider accepting the jurisdiction of the Court in accordance to its statutes."
11. Med shot, delegates
12. Wide shot, Security Council

STORYLINE:

The United Nations (UN) must respond as the demands for justice around the world grow, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today (19 January), calling for ushering in a new era of respect for the rule of law.

In his remarks to the Security Council meeting on the rule of law and transitional justice in conflict and post-conflict settings, Ban stated that "for societies traumatized by years of fighting and gross violations of human rights, nothing is more critical than establishing the rule of law."

He added that "when the guns fall silent" the UN is often the first organization on the ground "helping fractured countries to start building peace and strengthening key institutions."

The UN's approach has three basic components: promoting accountability and reinforcing norms through transitional justice; building justice and security institutions to promote trust; and focusing on justice for women and girls to foster gender equality.

The Secretary-General pointed out that the Organisation's goal is "to quickly demonstrate the value of the rule of law" in order to build "public confidence in political settlements."

He called on the Council "to include the promotion of transitional justice measures more broadly in the mandates of peacekeeping and political missions" as well as "to reject any endorsement of amnesty for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity or gross violations of human rights and international humanitarian law."

British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, in his statement to the Council noted that "a defining feature of the Arab Spring is the revolutionaries' clear demand for the rule of law and justice instead of the arbitrary rule of autocrats."

Lyall Grant said that "collective efforts to strengthen rule of law systems in countries affected by conflict are critical" as this is "the bedrock of sustainable development."

South African Ambassador Baso Sangqu, President of the Council for the month of January, read a Statement in which the Council recognizes the need for universal adherence to and implementation of the rule of law as an indispensable element for peaceful coexistence and the prevention of armed conflict.

The Statement further reaffirms the Council's commitment to "the peaceful settlement of disputes" and calls upon Member States "to settle their disputes by peaceful means as set forth in chapter VI of the Charter of the United Nations."

It emphasises "the key role of the International Court of Justice, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations in adjudicating disputes among states and avail of its work" and to this end, "calls upon states that have not yet done so, to consider accepting the jurisdiction of the Court in accordance to its statutes."

The Organisation's work to promote the rule of law extends to more than 150 countries and includes efforts to combat transnational crime, build confidence and capacity in State institutions and battle discrimination against women.

In September, the UN will convene a high-level meeting on the rule of law – the first event of its kind and the first time, since 2005, that these issues will be discussed by top leaders.

Filed under rule of law UNTV - United Nations Television.