The Vatican’s First Address at the United Nation Assembly

On Wednesday 29th September, the Catholic's highest Authority - the Vatican, delivered a speech to the United Nations 59th Session General Assembly at the New York Headquarters. This is the first ever speech on such a ministerial meeting since the Vatican served as an observer mission at the United Nations in 1964.

The Vatican addressed various global issues. Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, Secretary of the Holy See’s relations with states, didn’t mention the U.S.-led coalition. However, he has stated clearly of Pope John Paul II’ s opposition to the Iraq war, “Everyone can see that it (military action) did not lead to a safer world, either inside or outside Iraq.”

Moreover, he stressed, “The Holy See believes it is now imperative to support the present Government in its efforts to bring the country to normality and to a political system that is substantially democratic and in harmony with the values of its historic traditions.”

In relation to the Iraq war, Archbishop Lajolo explained that the underlying cause of terrorism is very complex and it needs to be tackle at the root. The Catholic Church have been actively engaging in inter-religious dialogue which directs towards objective mutual knowledge, sincere friendship and, wherever possible, free collaboration in the service of humanity.

He stated, “... terrorism can only be effectively challenged through a concerted multilateral approach... and not through the politics of unilateralism.”

Concerning other regional armed conflicts such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Pope John II reminded, “there can be no justice without forgiveness, indeed, without mutual forgiveness.” He invited everyone to utter generous words of peace and make bold gestures of peace. He also suggested that “immediate relevance to the supreme good of peace is the theme of total and general disarmament.”

The address also included the theme of “the right to life of every individual”. As the United Nations General Assembly is going to resume its debate on human cloning in a few weeks, the Holy See reaffirmed its standpoint on this aspect.

Even though the Catholic Church supports the advancement of medical science if conducted always in a manner that respects human dignity, as they understand that it offers healing and cure for various diseases, but Archbishop Lajolo declared the Holy See wanted a complete ban on human cloning.

“The Holy See reiterates its support for the procurement and use of adult stem cells, and believes that the way forward is to draw up and implement a clear Convention that will result in a comprehensive ban on human cloning,” he said.

In September 2005 when the United Nations reviews the progress since the 2000 Millennium Declaration which stated the target to halve the proportion of people living in poverty by 2015, the Holy See suggested the solution is “a more flexible and more just international trade system.”

Furthermore, financial structures are needed which would favour development and cancellation of foreign debt for the poorest countries. In the aspect of health care service, the results of scientific research and technology need to be generously shared with the poor as well.

In conclusion, the Holy See expressed the expectation on the role of the United Nations - to rise from “the cold status of an administrative institution” to the status of “a moral centre, where all the nations of the world feel at home and develop a shared awareness of being, as it were, a family of nations.”