Mr. President,
Switzerland would like to thank Kenya for organizing this debate and the speakers for their contributions.
As several of them have already mentioned, the issues of peacebuilding and sustaining peace are not only related to the situations of countries in conflict, which the Security Council deals with, but are an ongoing task for all states.
As the Geneva philosopher Jeanne Hersch described it, a peace designed for the service of people cannot be defined purely by the absence of armed conflict. Human rights must be respected. For lasting peace must be based on the free and conscious choice of women and men to live with each other, recognizing and respecting the rights and freedoms of all.
In Switzerland, for example, we have had the opportunity since 1848 to develop a long experience on the origins of and the conditions for peace. This peace was founded on principles of government and a legal system that takes into account the diversity of its citizens in cultural, linguistic, religious and economic aspects. Our system of government thus offers a great deal of freedom, but this freedom is always marked by the duty to respect the rights of others.
Mr. President, the topic of this open debate leads us to three central observations:
First, peace must be inclusive to be sustainable, and that sustainability requires constant review.
Respect for each other can never be taken for granted - and even the degree of inclusiveness of systems of society deemed to be stable must be questioned on a regular basis. Thus, on 1 October 2021, our government approved the implementation of two sister conventions of the Council of Europe: the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. And on 26 September, the Swiss people voted overwhelmingly in favor of marriage for all, allowing a number of long-excluded men and women to fully enjoy the rights and duties associated with a marital union.
Second, the Security Council has an important role to play in this area.
While the primary responsibility for ensuring this inclusion rests with states, the Security Council has for several years recognized the importance of sustaining peace, most recently through resolution 2558, which examines the whole range of peacebuilding activities, and resolution 2594, which addresses transitions from peacekeeping missions. The Security Council therefore has the legitimacy, the means and the mandate to advance the goal of building and sustaining peace.
We commend your efforts, and those of your predecessors chairing the Security Council, to increase not only the number but also the diversity of speakers.
We also call on the Security Council to continue to shape the mandates of its peace missions to ensure broad consultation, including all actors contributing to peacebuilding - from national authorities to civil society, especially women and youth. We also call for strong coordination, coherence and cooperation with the Peacebuilding Commission.
Third, while the Security Council has a particular responsibility, all member states can contribute.
Against this background, Switzerland is committed to supporting peacebuilding processes through the peacebuilding architecture, but also through bilateral cooperation, for instance in Haiti, where we will deepen our support for the reduction of community violence. Switzerland, as a member of the Freedom Online Coalition, is also committed to internet freedom and against the spread of online disinformation and hate speech. These investments, aimed at preventing rather than overcoming conflicts, deserve to be considerably increased, and we call on all states to follow the call of the Secretary General in "Our Common Agenda" to ensure sustainable funding for peacebuilding.
Mr. President,
While we have emphasized the responsibilities of our organization, of the Security Council and of the member states, we must also recall the individual duty that is incumbent on all of us personally. After all, humans are builders of peace through tolerance towards others. And as Jeanne Hersch said, "True tolerance has the same root as human rights. And this root is at the same time the root of freedom and truth”.
I thank you.