Press Statement by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjong, Lim Kit Siang in Petaling Jaya on Saturday, September 30, 1995:
Mahathir has made a good speech at the 50th UN General Assembly in his call on the United Nations to stand on the side of the collective needs of the people and nations and not be an instrument of the rich and powerful
The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad has made a good speech at the 50th UN General Assembly in his call on the united Nations to stand on the side of the collective needs of the people and nations and not be an instrument of the rich and powerful.
The 50th anniversary of the United Nations is the time to press for radical UN reforms, whether in the structure of the Security Council and the abolition of the veto power, or the procedures of the United Nations, its financing system, secretariat and agencies as well as for a review of the Big Power-small state relationships in the world body which makes a mockery of the principle of sovereignty of nations.
The Malaysian Parliament should take the lead for all Parliaments in the world in focusing on the issue of United Nations reforms on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.
The Malaysian Parliament can do this by devoting the first two days of the Budget Parliament on Oct. 16 & 17 to a special debate on the 50th Anniversary of the United Nations where the aspirations of Malaysian, not only the Prime Minister but all political opinions as well as all sectors of Malaysian life, could find a forum to articulate their hopes and aspirations for a more effective and purposeful world governance.
I hope the Cabinet meeting next Wednesday cold give this proposal serious consideration and will take the decision that the Governance will present such a motion in Parliament, to be seconded by the Opposition, to demonstrate that on the question of the reform of the United Nations, both government and opposition political parties can take a common stand.
Although I commend Mahathir’s for his good speech at the UN General Assembly, I would be happier if he had devoted some attention to the issue of democracy and human rights, not only a the international level, but also inside developing notions.
In his speech, Mahathir spoke of the new threats with the advent of the Information Age. He said poor countries have long suffered from biased reporting by the world media controlled by the developed world.
This is a valid criticism and would be even more impressive if governments in poor and developing countries address parallel problems in their own societies, where the rich and powerful are responsible for mass media bias against the poor and the weak.