28 Oct 2016
Madam Chair,
1 My delegation thanks the UN Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on Myanmar Mr Vijay Nambiar for his presentation of the Secretary-General’s report. Singapore congratulates Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Mr Nambiar for the constructive role they have played in engaging Myanmar and supporting its smooth transition. We commend in particular Mr Nambiar for his tireless dedication and commitment in carrying out the work of the Secretary-General’s Good Offices in Myanmar.
2 Singapore appreciates the invaluable efforts by the UN to support the ongoing democratic transition in Myanmar. The Good Offices in Myanmar has operated for nearly a quarter of a century, and is one of the longest such diplomatic efforts in the history of the UN. Mr Nambiar in particular has been an honest broker. His low-key and quiet diplomacy has won the trust and confidence from all stakeholders, including Myanmar’s neighbours.
3 However, the context in which existing UN mechanisms such as the Good Offices Mission and the Secretary-General’s Partnership Group on Myanmar were created has evolved. Myanmar’s democratic government has been implementing national priorities mandated by its people following the watershed General Election in November 2015. Despite numerous challenges, visible progress has been made within a short span of time. It is now timely to review existing UN mechanisms on Myanmar to ensure that they are fit-for-purpose to better support Myanmar’s path of peaceful national reconciliation and development.
4 Singapore will continue to support Myanmar and its people, bilaterally and multilaterally, particularly through capacity-building projects. We trust that the Myanmar government will continue to work closely with the UN and other international partners to develop new mechanisms and strategies better suited to the present context, and to achieve peaceful national reconciliation, long-lasting stability and steady development for its people.
5 I thank you.
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