In the name of Belgium, I would like to thank the Swedish authorities. By stimulating an in-depth, high-level debate on the subject of genocide, the Stockholm International Forum has unquestionably helped to make us aware of our collective responsibilities. Sweden has a tradition of developing genuine policies for preventing conflicts, and of promoting initiatives aimed at establishing or consolidating peace in the world. In this connection, I would like to recall the involvement of Belgium and Sweden in the process of stabilisation in the Great Lakes region, and particularly our joint participation in the Artemis operation in eastern Congo.

Genocide is one of the worst abominations that can affect our societies. It is a crime against humanity. The crime of genocide committed against a single people thus constitutes, in truth, an attack on us all. It therefore calls for action by all, both at national level and by the international community. What makes this all the more necessary is that internal conflicts often have an international dimension, with roots and support extending beyond the borders of the state in crisis.

Since the adoption in 1948 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, the international community has progressively mobilised in search of the means to fight this scourge. Keeping alive the memory of the atrocities that have been committed, punishing the perpetrators and encouraging the process of reconciliation are three interdependent duties that we must take on collectively. But we must also take preventive action by attacking the deep roots of this evil.

The fight against impunity is, in the first place, the responsibility and duty of individual nations, which must implement appropriate measures at national level so as to bring the perpetrators of genocide to justice and obtain reparation for their victims. Recognition of the crimes that have been committed is an essential condition for permitting the victims to recover their dignity.

The fight against impunity is just as much the responsibility of the international community. The world has gradually acquired the necessary international instruments for this purpose, such as the tribunals charged with judging those responsible for the crimes perpetrated in Bosnia and Rwanda. The creation of the International Criminal Court now completes this apparatus and it is essential that as many states as possible adhere to its statutes.

In a few weeks, we will commemorate the tenth anniversary of the tragic events that steeped Rwanda in blood. Commemoration is more than mere remembrance. The remembrance of past violence must be associated with the will to do everything possible to ensure that such events never recur. In this sense, one can speak of a duty of memory. For the victims, genocide is not over when the massacres come to an end. The consequences of these atrocities persist, the horror remains inscribed in the memory of the survivors for the rest of their life. History shows us that forgetting does not constitute an effective remedy. When they are not acknowledged, the injuries of the past are not slow to come to the surface again.

This duty of memory is equally a collective duty. We must dare to look our past in the face and condemn what deserves condemning, so as to be in a better position to build our future. It was in this spirit that Belgium, at that time holder of the EU Presidency, approached the United Nations World Conference Against Racism in 2001. At Durban we recognised the suffering caused by genocide. In a sense, we accomplished our duty of memory, so as then to turn resolutely to the future and take on the task of doing everything possible to ensure that this never happens again.

The confrontation with memory and the sometimes very difficult acknowledgement of the acts that have been committed are the inescapable point of departure on the long and sorrowful road that leads to reconciliation. This process makes it possible gradually to rebuild a relationship of confidence in the other, reforge a collective social identity and, finally, revive the solidarity that is the foundation of the rule of law, democracy and human rights.

If the nations and peoples that are the victims of genocide are the essential actors in the process of reconciliation, here too the international community has a crucial role to play. States and international organisations – and in the first instance the United Nations – have joint responsibility for acting in the field to facilitate this transition. Belgium, for its part, will continue, with the cooperation of the countries concerned, to participate in stabilisation efforts in the Great Lakes region. This is one of our Government’s foreign policy priorities.

But we must also take preventive action, in regions at risk, by contributing to stabilisation efforts and encouraging inter-ethnic and inter-religious dialogue. As long ago as the 17th century, Spinoza made the observation that “peace is an activity, not a passive condition”. Its establishment and preservation require us to go beyond the mantras and declarations of intent and truly equip ourselves with the means to act.

It is here that the essential role of the United Nations takes on its full meaning. Acting before it is too late is the true challenge that confronts the United Nations and the yardstick by which its credibility will be measured. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, has indicated his determination that the UN should move “from a culture of reaction to a culture of prevention”. The recommendations of the Secretary-General postulate that any conflict prevention strategy, to be effective, must be global. It must deploy both short-term preventive measures (political and military measures) and long-term, structural preventive measures (political, economic, social, environmental, development and humanitarian measures).

The European Union also regards the prevention of conflicts – whatever their nature – as a corner-stone. The Union has at its disposal a vast array of instruments that enable it to carry through preventive action to a successful conclusion, both in the short and in the long term: humanitarian aid, development cooperation, trade, arms control, support for electoral processes, the administration of justice, the improvement of police services, human rights, environmental policies, but also, more simply, political dialogue.

Belgium is participating in peace support programmes established at both EU and UN level. For we are well aware that the prevention of conflicts, and particularly of genocide, concerns the international community in its entirety. Our country subscribes to a multilateral framework to tackle horizontal phenomena such as the proliferation of light weapons, the elimination of anti-personnel weapons, transnational organised crime, the drugs trade, child soldiers. Belgium therefore takes part in programmes to promote sustainable development, environmental conservation, the reinforcement of justice through the International Criminal Court, the promotion of human rights and the fight against poverty.

In the past few years, special efforts have been approved in our country with regard to contributions to conflict-preventing activities. Belgium has given itself the means that will enable it to establish a coherent policy for prevention. We must be able to react in the very short term, after a serious crisis or disaster, by supplying humanitarian aid, restoring basic infrastructure, including access to health services and drinking water, and by enabling economic activity to restart.

Respect for ceasefires, demobilisation of combatants, the establishment of law enforcement services that are disciplined and imbued with a sense of their civil responsibilities, education in democracy and human rights – these are some of the supplementary contributions required in regions prone to violent conflicts.
In this sustained enterprise of preventing conflicts, particularly genocidal conflicts, Belgium will not fail to live up to its commitments. It will continue to labour to ensure that the ethical principles that should inspire relations between nations are constantly recalled.

Thank you.