United Nations: UN General Assembly President Csaba Korosi has stressed on the importance of bringing hope to Palestinians, especially the young generation.
“We know from experience that nothing drives insecurity and violence more than bleakness and despair. We must find a way to restore hope among Palestinians, especially the young generation,” Korosi told a General Assembly special meeting on Tuesday in observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, which falls on November 29.
He called for efforts to restore hope that all human beings are born equal and entitled to enjoy the same human rights; hope that prosperity cannot be a result of a zero-sum game, but rather an outcome of a strategic endeavor based on historic compromise; hope that this conflict will not go on forever; hope that the right to development belongs to all; hope that the political leaderships will be able to cater for them; and hope that there are solutions.
A fundamental element of solidarity is understanding the plight of others, walking a mile in their shoes, Korosi told the delegates, Xinhua news agency reported. “I ask you today to walk a mile in the shoes of Palestinians. I ask you to not only stand in solidarity,” he said.
“We must reaffirm our solidarity for their right to self-determination. We are still living with some preliminary structures designed to ease the difficulties of the first couple of years after the partition. For the time being, we still need them — not as a solution, but arrangements before the solution is shaped, negotiated and implemented,” he said.
He called on the international community to demonstrate solidarity with concrete steps — by providing the UN relief agency for Palestine refugees with the necessary means to do its life-saving work.
He called on the delegates to use the leverage of their governments to seek compromise, direct dialogue and good-faith negotiations in the Middle East.
“These are the only tools at our disposal to end this conflict with a just and sustainable solution that takes into consideration the legitimate aspirations of all sides to it,” said Korosi. “Our aim is ultimately to no longer need this call for solidarity. Our aim is to have a Middle East free of conflict, and able to fully use the enormous potentials of its peoples.”
