President of the General Assembly,
Secretary-General of the United Nations,
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Twenty-five years ago, the world converged on our shores in Durban, South Africa, for the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance.
At the opening of that Conference, the then President of the Republic of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, said the gathering heralded a new internationalism.
It was an internationalism marked by a determination to “unite in action to repair the gross damage that was caused in the past.”
From that Conference came a landmark framework and roadmap with a clear commitment: to confront the legacies of slavery, colonialism, apartheid and racial discrimination.
The Durban Declaration and Programme of Action marked a pivotal moment in the international community’s commitment to build a world rooted in equality, dignity and justice.
It also recognised that racism and related intolerance would not be defeated through state action alone. Laws to combat discrimination and policies to uplift those on the receiving end of discrimination are critical. But civil society, communities and ordinary people have a vital role in changing reality.
Durban was a major success! It set the norms and gave the world a Programme to address one of the historical and perennial scourges facing the world.
This Declaration and Programme of Action was adopted in a challenging global context.
The Conference was marked by fierce debate, courage and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths about the past and its stubborn effects.
Twenty-five years later, the global environment is no less challenging.
Racism persists.
Xenophobia and related intolerance are finding renewed expression, worsened by online hate messages.
Gains in gender equality are under threat.
Measures aimed at redress and anti-racism are facing a backlash and are sometimes portrayed as discriminatory in themselves.
This fraught context makes our renewed commitment to the Durban Declaration even more pressing.
Contemporary racism against Africans and people of African descent is still embedded in the institutions, systems and practices that govern human affairs.
This is why we must strengthen our collective efforts.
Excellencies,
Inequality and insecurity provide fertile ground for resentment and polarisation.
The global hardening of attitudes towards migrants – who are often scapegoated for socio-economic hardship – is all the more reason for us to push for more cooperative ways of addressing migration pressures.
States must retain the responsibility for the management of irregular migration.
Failure to cooperate leaves the door wide open for actors whose conduct runs counter to the principles of equality, dignity and human solidarity that we stand for. In fact, such actors see an opportunity to return to the past and fragment societies along racial and ethnic lines.
But even in this challenging moment, there is reason for hope.
With Ghana’s leadership and the support of the African Union, this General Assembly recently adopted a Declaration of the Trafficking of Enslaved Africans and the Racialized Chattel Enslavement of Africans as the Gravest Crime Against Humanity.
This gives renewed force to the demand for reparative justice.
With Togo’s stewardship and the backing of the African Union, the UN General Assembly recently adopted a resolution to Correct the Map: rebalancing global cartographic representation and promoting a more equitable representation of the world’s regions.
This will go a long way in correcting distortions which have long depicted our continent as smaller than it is.
These advances remind us that past wrongs will not right themselves.
Historical distortions do not correct themselves.
And progress is always a product of struggle.
And that we must be resilient to move forward in building societies free of racism, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Today we renew our call on States to address the legacies of the past, including through formal apologies, truth-telling processes, reparations and the return of cultural artifacts to countries of origin.
We welcome progress towards a UN Declaration on the Human Rights of People of African Descent. This anniversary should mark a turning point in protecting human rights, reducing inequality and advancing inclusive development.
The envisaged UN Declaration must give practical effect to the Second International Decade and serve as a framework for redressing past injustices.
As we mark 25 years of the Declaration, we should redouble our efforts to bridge the gulf between the promise of laws and international commitments and the reality citizens and non-citizens experience in their daily lives.
Your Excellencies,
South Africa acknowledges and welcomes the Political Declaration marking the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the DDPA. We hope that all States will establish or strengthen independent national human rights institutions. These institutions should play a vital role in monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the commitments made in Durban.
The Declaration calls upon us to marshal political will at every level and to build momentum that cannot be turned back. At home, in our regions and across the world, we will take concrete and measurable steps to fight racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Twenty-five years ago, we recognised that Durban marked the beginning, not the end.
The task of building a world free of racism, righting the wrongs of the past and restoring the human dignity of all is as much ours today as it was for the generation that converged in Durban a quarter century ago.
Thank you.
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