Statement delivered by H.E. Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the United Nations, at Security Council meeting on “The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question”
Thank you, Mr. President,
Allow me to firstly congratulate you on the assumption of the Presidency. You have the full support of Guyana as you execute your mandate. I also express appreciation to Sierra Leone for the skilful stewardship of the council's work last month.
I also thank Under-Secretary-General Di Carlo and Director Wosornu for the information provided. I also listened carefully to the moving words of Dr. Efrat Bron-Harlev and Ms. Yuli Novak.
Mr. President,
The arbitrary deprivation of an individual’s liberty is one of the most egregious crimes. It is particularly repulsive because it attacks a person's dignity, especially when that individual – someone’s mother, father, sister, brother, grandparent, or relative, is reduced to a bargaining chip. Guyana reiterates its strong condemnation of the taking of hostages during the 7 October attacks on Israel and underscores that such actions constitute a grave violation of international law, particularly common Article III of the Geneva Conventions. On the same principle, Mr. President, we also demand the immediate release of all Palestinians arbitrarily detained in Israel. No life is more valuable than the other and a crime is still a crime regardless of its perpetrator.
Mr. President,
The people of Palestine continue to be deprived of their freedom and are now being dragged to the edge of the precipice. From all indications, they would be thrown over that precipice except drastic measures are taken by this Council and by those countries with real influence to stop the aggressor. This is simply what is needed - for the aggression of the occupying power against the Palestinian people to stop - immediately and unconditionally.
We should, however, not entertain the dangerous notion that the cessation of hostilities in the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank to which those hostilities are now spreading, is a privilege which we must implore the occupying power to grant to innocent civilians in Palestine. Neither should we entertain the equally dangerous notion that Israel has the right to defend itself in whatever manner it deems fit. On the contrary, Israel has both legal and moral obligations to end its hostilities in Gaza and the West Bank and to take all actions to ensure the protection of civilians and the provision of essential goods and services for their survival. How many more briefings do we need to hear and how many more tragic figures must we be apprised of before we take meaningful and decisive measures to stop the genocide of Palestinians?
Eighty-six days ago, this Council adopted resolution 2735 with the fervent conviction that we were setting the stage for an early deal involving a ceasefire, the release of hostages and a surge in humanitarian assistance. Sadly, in the eighty-six days since resolution 2735 was adopted, the death toll in Gaza rose by over 3,600 and those injured by more than 9,500. These developments in Gaza are compounded by increasing violence and killing of Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. Things have only gotten worse for Palestinians, for the Israeli hostages and indeed the entire region since the adoption of that resolution. The goalpost seems to shift at every turn with Hamas and Israel accusing each other of obstructing progress in the negotiations. With a deal being seemingly elusive, Guyana urges the Council to act swiftly to bring an end to the atrocities being meted out against Palestinian civilians.
Mr. President, dear colleagues,
As the UN prepares for the Summit of the Future, I am compelled to contemplate what the future means for Palestinians. With no visible horizon of hope in a struggle older than these Chambers, the future looks bleak. The occupying power sits at the head of the table of those enabling the cultivation of a culture of hatred between Israelis and Palestinians. While people on both sides suffer, politicians stoke discord for self-preservation. Let us call a spade a spade, Mr. President. Who are the real benefactors of this ongoing war in Gaza?
It is not right, moral, just or legal to continue fueling this war where those bearing the brunt are innocent women and children. Guyana believes that the majority of our leaders cannot comfortably adopt the Pact for the Future with its noble aspirations while turning a blind eye to the ongoing indiscriminate killing of Palestinians. History is already judging us but this Council has the power and responsibility to turn this tide.
Mr. President,
It is worth reminding that the situation in Palestine today did not begin on 7 October 2023. We must cast our minds back to 1948 because it was in that year that Israel first violently rejected the two-state solution. Since then that violent rejection has continued, manifested in cycles of war and ever-expanding settlement activities, inter alia. What we have seen since 7 October are the symptoms of this rejection of the two-state solution, with the victimizer capitalizing on the horrific events of 7 October to carry out its own sinister motives, even amidst protests by its own citizens. Again, Mr. President, let us call a spade a spade.
Mr. President,
Over these last few days, the names of hostages whose bodies were recovered have been repeated and we have come to know a bit about their lives. It is the least that could be done to honour their memory and the tragic circumstances under which they died. This compelled me to also contemplate the thousands of innocent Palestinians who were killed since 7 October whose names could not all be mentioned lest we took a day for every ten thousand persons killed. Guyana believes though, that the best way to honour the memory of both Palestinians and Israelis who have died in this war is for this Council to take immediate action to end this war. We have the tools at our disposal. Let us use them.
In conclusion, Mr. President, while each briefing is a grotesque recollection of all the horrors of the war, it must be more than that. It must be a call to action to which the Council responds decisively, substantively and effectively. While Plato asserted that only the dead have seen the end of war, this Council can ensure that remaining generations of Palestinians and Israelis also see and experience the end of war, and more than that, experience sustainable peace.
I thank you.
