NANAWAGAN ng kapayapaan si Pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte sa lahat ng lider sa mga lugar na apektado ng hidwaan kabilang na ang pinagtatalunang South China Sea.
Tinukoy ng Pangulo ang tumataas na geopolitical tensions sa gitna ng COVID-19 pandemic.

“I therefore call on the stakeholders in the South China Sea, the Korean Peninsula, the Middle East and Africa: if we cannot be friends as yet, then in God’s name, let us not hate each other too

much. I heard it once said, and I say it to myself in complete agreement,” ang pahayag ni Pangulong Duterte sa kanyang naging talumpati sa United Nations General Assembly sa 75th session nito, araw ng Miyerkoles (Manila time).

Aniya, walang makikinabang sa pagtaas ng global tensions lalo pa’t kapag ang armas ay dinala sa labanan.

“When elephants fight, it is the grass that gets trampled flat,” ayon sa Pangulo.

Kaya tinawagan niya ng pansin ang UN member-states na ganap na ipatupad ang Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty at ang Chemical and the Biological Weapons Conventions.

Hiniling naman ng Chief Executive sa Philippine Senate na ratipikahan ang 2017 Nuclear Weapon Ban Treaty.

Kaugnay nito, inulit ni Pangulong Duterte ang commitment ng bansa na “do everything and partner with anyone who would sincerely desire to protect the innocent from terrorism in all its manifestations.”

Tinukoy nito ang kontrobersiyal na local 2020 Anti-Terrorism Act, sinabi ni Pangulong Duterte na ang pagpapatibay nito ay isinagawa bilang pagsunod sa UN Security Council resolutions at sa counter-terrorism strategy ng global body.

“The Marawi siege, where foreign terrorist fighters took part, taught us that an effective legal framework is crucial. Our 2020 Anti-Terrorism Act shores up the legal framework by focusing on both terrorism and the usual reckless response to it,” ayon sa Punong Ehekutibo.

“Most importantly, we remain committed to rebuild stricken communities and address the root causes of terrorism and violent extremism in my country,” aniya pa rin.

Pinasalamatan naman nito ang mga global peacekeeper, kabilang na ang mga Filipino na itinalaga sa Middle East at Africa.

Ayon sa Pangulo, daragdagan ng Pilipinas ang bakas nito sa nasabing operasyon sa pamamagitan ng mas maraming kababaihan na lalahok.

Tinapos naman ng Pangulo ang kanyang talumpati sa panawagan na magbigay ng kapangyarihan at palakasin ang United Nations sa pamamagitan ng pagreporma sa komposisyon at proseso.

“To defeat the COVID-19 pandemic and other challenges, we must work with seamless unity which demands complete mutual trust and the conviction that we will win or lose together,” anito.

“We cannot bring back the dead but we can spare the living; and we can build back better, healthier, and more prosperous and just societies.

To this end, we rededicate ourselves to multilateralism. The UN remains humanity’s essential organization. But it is only as effective as we make it.

“Indeed, to be ready for the new global normal, it cannot be business as usual for the UN. Let us empower UN – reform it – to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow.” aniya pa rin. (CHRISTIAN DALE)