PM'S SPEECH AT THE PRESENTATION OF THE INDIRA GANDHI PRIZE TO
PROFESSOR SADAKO OGATA
The
following is the text of the speech of the Prime Minister, Shri
Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the presentation ceremony of the Indira
Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development to Professor
Sadako Ogata here today:
"I extend my warmest
greetings to Professor Sadako Ogata on this happy occasion. Through
this award of the Indira Gandhi Peace Prize, we express our appreciation
for an outstanding humanist, who has devoted many decades of her
life to the promotion of human rights, peace and development.
Professor Ogata guided,
with sensitivity and dedication, the United Nations activities
for the welfare, return and rehabilitation of refugees during
a troubled decade. That decade saw massive human displacements
in former Yugoslavia, in the Central African Great Lakes, and
also in neighbouring Afghanistan – when brutal religious extremists
took control of that country. It tested the generosity and burdened
the economies of countries, which received the thousands of innocent
people fleeing from violence and conflict.
We in India have
a long tradition of welcoming in our fold all those who knock
at our doors, while fleeing from persecution. Care for a ‘Sharanarthi’
– one who seeks shelter in our home – is a sacred duty enjoined
by our spiritual heritage. Twice in the history of Independent
India, we have had a large influx of refugees. We accepted them
as part of our universal family. Thousands of them, now including
the second and third generations, enrich our cultural diversity
even today.
We also recognize
our moral responsibility to work for the harmonious return of
all refugees to their rightful homeland with peace, honour and
security.
This is what Palestinian
refugees have been looking forward to for over half a century.
The strains and tensions in West Asia today are a direct consequence
of the failure of the international community in sustaining a
political process to ensure this.
Nearer home, the
four million Afghan refugees, who fled their country over the
past two decades, are gradually returning. This is only the beginning.
The international community has to redeem its pledges of assistance
for institution building and human resource development, so that
Afghans from outside can return to a climate of political stability
and economic recovery.
India has pledged
100 million dollars towards this objective, and is working closely
with President Karzai’s Government to achieve it. But the magnitude
of the task demands the participation of other countries, of non-governmental
agencies, and of UN agencies in this effort. As Japan’s Special
Envoy for Afghanistan, Professor Ogata has been playing an important
role in mobilizing such an international participation.
Distinguished guests,
Human rights encompass
many dimensions. To millions of the poor people in our world,
freedom from want is the most fundamental human right. Destitution
and deprivation deny human dignity. While those with resources
and skills are in the mainstream, a special effort is required
to draw in the distressed and disadvantaged. We need more international
civil servants like Professor Ogata with the vision, compassion
and commitment to pursue these humanitarian objectives.
Thank you".
