In mid-September, the island of Margarita was held in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela XVII Conference of heads of state and government of Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, group composed of 120 States (plus other 17 "observers"), which consider themselves not aligned with the main world powers.
Representing over two thirds of all the states in the world, their general secretary is Nicolás Maduro. Among the 120 Countries we remember some: Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Colombia, Cuba, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Pakistan, Qatar, Peru, Morocco and Iran, very involved in this last occasion.
The theme of the conference was "Peace, sovereignty and solidarity for development", thus celebrating the 55 anniversary of the Movement, still determined to defend the right to peace, sovereignty and solidarity for the development of peoples. 20 are the points addressed, the same indicated in Final declaration of the Summit: international peace and security, the right of self-determination of peoples, disarmament and international security, human rights, terrorism, the situation in the Middle East (including the question of Palestine), the reform of the United Nations, the selection and appointment of the UN Secretary-General, Peacekeeping operations, the objectives of sustainable development, refugees and migrants, and finally to that of New World Information and Communication Order.
We will analyze the Declaration in detail, starting with international peace and security. According to these countries the overcoming of conflicts and the achievement of a stable and lasting peace would require an approach that would address the structural causes of armed confrontations, in order to realize the pillars of the United Nations: peace and security, development and human rights, including the right to self-determination, the inalienable right of all peoples, including those of non-autonomous territories, and those of territories under foreign occupation or under colonial or foreign domination.
Under the face of disarmament and international security, the Movement reiterates its firm intention to double the efforts to eliminate the threat of the existence of weapons of mass destruction, establishing a zone free from nuclear weapons in the Middle East, in accordance with the
commitments reached during the Conference of Nuclear Weapons Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), held in the 1995, and its subsequent meetings.
On the hot topic of recent years of terrorism, countries consider it one of the most serious threats to international peace and security. Stop is the condemnation of terrorist acts, in all their forms and manifestations, whatever their motivations, wherever and by whomever they are committed. Equally condemned is the destruction of cultural heritage and religious sites, as well as the commission of crimes against humanity by terrorist groups, among others, based on their religion or beliefs.
Finally, the Declaration recognizes the threat currently represented by the activities carried out by terrorist groups such as: Taliban, Al-Qaida, ISIS (Da'esh) and its affiliates, Jabhat Al Nusra, Boko Haram and Al Shabbaab and other groups designated by the Nations United. Finally, it highlights with concern the phenomenon of foreign terrorist fighters and the spread of violent extremism which may be favorable to terrorism, the financing and illicit transfer of weapons. In this regard, the Declaration believes that the adoption of a future "global convention to fight international terrorism" could complement the set of existing international legal instruments, including the implementation of global counter-terrorism strategy of the United Nations.
As regards the situation in the Middle East, including the question of Palestine, according to the countries of the Movement, the Israeli occupation of the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem, constitutes a destabilizing factor in the region, therefore the declaration requires Israel's withdrawal from those territories, occupied since June of the 1967.
The countries of the Movement condemn all the measures adopted by Israel "occupying power", such as that of changing the legal, physical and demographic status of the occupied Syrian Golan. In this regard, they once again demand compliance with the 497 resolution (1981), and the withdrawal from the Syrian Golan occupied the borders of 4 June 1967, implementing resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973).
The points dedicated to the United Nations Organization are interesting from a political point of view. According to the group, there is a need to recover and strengthen the authority of the General Assembly as a more democratic, responsible, universal body and representative of the Organization. The operations for the maintenance of peace, the Declaration clarifies, must be carried out with the utmost adherence to the principles and purposes set out in the UN Charter, respect for the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of States, so such as non-intervention in home affairs, they are considered key elements in joint efforts to promote international peace and security.
Regarding the issue of refugees and migrants, mainly due to the conflicts created precisely in the territories of the same member states of the Movement, the group further underlined the importance of translating political statements into tangible support for the countries affected by this phenomenon. as the need to help host countries, reaffirming the responsibility of their governments.
Finally, concludes the Declaration, the media of the most developed countries should respect developing nations, formulating correct opinions, models and perspectives in order to strengthen the dialogue between civilizations. Concern has been raised by these states over the use of the media as an instrument of "hostile propaganda". In the opinion of the Non-Aligned Countriestherefore, alternative media, free and responsible, would be increasingly necessary.
(photo: MNOAL / Israel Defense Forces - In the map: member countries in dark blue, observer countries in light blue)
