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Remarks by H.E. Mr. Abdulla Shahid, President of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly

Strasbourg,

8 November 2021

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Excellencies,

Distinguished guests,

I thank the Council of Europe for organizing this event and for inviting me to speak.

Humanity stands at a crossroads. We have been shattered by the pandemic, alarmed by the state of the world, and apprehensive about our climate future.

With so much at stake, how can we strengthen the democratic spirit to better uphold our responsibilities to ourselves and our planet?

Openness, transparency, participation and inclusion are the key ingredients to build accountability and trust, which are necessary for the functioning of democracies.

Accountability to the voter also gives democracies process legitimacy, which contributes to citizen empowerment and to cleaner, and fairer governments.

However, oo often marginalized voices, including the voices of youth and women, go unheeded. And too often the democratic process gets hijacked by special interests, skewing our priorities.

This undermines faith in democracy, and that skepticism now extends to the multilateral front as well.

We have the power to remedy this: by emphasizing that all individuals must have a say in local and global affairs, and by actively involving communities in the decision-making process.

Governments must create an enabling environment for civil society organizations to operate freely. Civil society organizations should in turn channel the momentum of increased political participation into initiatives aimed at empowering citizens to demand government accountability.

In countries where the rule of law is weak or non-existent, any legal and technical fixes need to be preceded by a broad societal consensus in favor of integrity and clean institutions.

Active engagement of citizens at all levels of governance would go a long way in re-invigorating the democratic process.

A free and competent press is also one of the pillars of well-functioning democracies. Governments should ensure that media have the freedom and resources to perform their watchdog function.

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Excellencies,

I am of the firm belief that healthy democracies can contribute to a more just and a cleaner, greener and bluer world.

I have been a parliamentarian for much of my career and have served as the Speaker of Parliament. I have also been a foreign minister twice and continue to wear that hat. I have devoted my entire career to the principles of democracy and diplomacy, and my faith in both remains unshaken.

My election as the President of the General Assembly was also a result of the choice exercised by the UN membership. I was not endorsed; I was elected through a democratic process.

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Excellencies,

Democracy¡¯s most powerful weapon against the challenges of this century is its ability to self-correct.

In democracies, institutions and groups working in tandem, and the culture of open debates fostered by parliamentary scrutiny and free media is what contributes to enlightened decision making.

The ambition of ¡°Net Zero¡± is not something that governments can achieve by issuing a fiat. It is something that societies as a whole must agree to do by conviction.

While to some extent it is true that democracies could be accused of being slow to make a difference when it comes to climate action, the answer lies in more than less democracy.

It is vital to connect the discussion of climate change with debates on the quality of democratic governance.

We must experiment with new and innovative forms of political deliberation, like enlarging the representation of young people by lowering the voting age, having more town-hall meetings with civil society representatives and perhaps listening more carefully to science than emotional political rhetoric.

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Excellencies,

I am from the Maldives, a country whose very existence is threatened by rising sea-levels. Our people, and all islanders, are vividly aware of this threat.

By empowering the most climate-impacted communities in our efforts to solve the crisis, and by electing representatives who are climate friendly, we can create the coalitions needed to protect our common global interests.

And we can use the momentum from climate action to revitalize global confidence in both democracy and multilateralism.

As I reiterated during COP26, I want my ¡®Presidency of Hope¡¯ to be one that listens to and empowers all voices in tackling global crises such as climate change. By strengthening our democracies, we can better address climate change; and by redoubling our climate cooperation, we can strengthen our democracies.??

Thank you.

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