Papua New Guinea Prime Minister's Address at the 80th UN General Debate

Papua New Guinea at 50 Years

• 🇵🇬 Prime Minister James Marape conveyed greetings from the 10 million people of Papua New Guinea, celebrating 50 years of independence and nearing 50 years of UN membership.
• 🔑 The nation's unity is attributed to its single constitution, which safeguards human rights, affirms Christian heritage while protecting religious freedom, and preserves culture and the environment.
• 🤝 The Prime Minister highlighted the crucial role of churches alongside the state in delivering essential services and maintaining national cohesion.

Lessons in Peace and Diversity

• 🕊️ Papua New Guinea offers lessons in living amidst diversity and achieving peace, citing the 2001 Bougainville peace agreement achieved through UN-supervised dialogue.
• 💬 Marape emphasized that peace can be found through dialogue and negotiation, urging conflicting parties, including Hamas and Israel, to embrace peace talks.
• 🌍 The Secretary-General's recent visit praised PNG's leadership in climate change, biodiversity, environmental preservation, and its model for peace.

Global Responsibility and Environmental Stewardship

• 🌳 Papua New Guinea, with its vast forests and oceans, holds significant global assets and biodiversity, acting as a carbon sink.
• ⚠️ The Prime Minister warned that the planet is in destruction mode and stressed the urgent need to preserve Earth, the only livable planet.
• 💰 He called on high-emission nations (G20s, industrial nations) to cut emissions, reform the financial system, and support biodiversity-holding nations like PNG.

Commitment to Development and the UN

• 📈 PNG is committed to transforming its economy to ensure no citizen is left behind and to foster prosperity.
• 🤝 The nation values trade over aid and grants for sustainable economic growth.
• 🇺🇳 Despite some viewing the UN as irrelevant, Papua New Guinea affirms its relevance as a crucial meeting place for humanity, especially in its 80th year.
• 🌍 The core message is that unity can be found in diversity, peace is built through dialogue, and this one planet must be preserved for future generations.