Redevoeringen

Remarks of the President of the Republic of Suriname, H.E. Runaldo Ronald Venetiaan on the occasion of the opening of the Caricom Regional Youth Ambassador workshop 19-26 july 2003 - Paramaribo (Hotel Krasnapolsky)

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Youth Ambassadors of CARICOM,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

When you get yourself involved in the ongoing discussion and debate on sustainable development, you should be aware of the fact that you are entering an arena where there is an unavoidable confrontation between our need to develop and the necessity to conserve.

Development means moving toward a higher level of quality of life. This can only be achieved by changing the environment in which we live today.

So, development always has an impact on the environment, and to put it simple: you will always destroy something to produce that which is seen as a prerequisite for a better life; you will have to destroy part of nature, you will have to destroy something of your culture.

In the decades behind us we slowly started to become aware of the serious side effects which we suffer because of the technology we apply in our development efforts, side effects on both local and global level.

Two of the most important side effects are:
1. The fading away of the potential of nature to further serve our development and the development of the coming generations of mankind. This gives us a clear picture of the importance of sustainability in our strategies for development.

2. The collapse of the natural powers in the environment to protect our health and the health of all other living creatures as well. You have learned about the catastrophe caused by the depletion of the ozone layer,
the catastrophe of climate change, the rising of the sea level, pollution, and the invasion of our systems by hazardous waste.

Side effects like these bring in the open that there is not only the confrontation that has to do with every one’s own dilemma between development and conservation. There is also the conflict between the interests of the rich and the interests of the poor.

The rich have destroyed and continue on to destroy nature to serve their needs, and now look to poor countries to get them to do the conservation.

The World Summits on Sustainable Development in Rio 1992 and Johannesburg 2002 showed efforts to deal with these dilemmas and this confrontation. So far the developing world does not feel we have reached a solution.

It is very important to CARICOM, to the Caribbean, that the peoples of our countries become fully aware that in our development efforts, sustainability is of the essence.

We must develop ourselves, but we have to do it in a sustainable way, which means we have to make choices based on the optimization of the harmony between development, conservation and restauration.

You have come to Suriname to learn from what you will see, to hear about the Suriname case, and to learn from one another.

You will understand that:

  • you can generate clean energy by hydropower but it means destroying the rich biodiversity of the forest you are inundating;

  • you can lay the basis for monetary and budgetary stability through intensive goldmining but it means you will have to deal with the dangers of the mercury pollution of the water of our beautiful creeks and rivers;

  • you can work towards alleviating poverty through the jobs and earnings in the forestry and timber business, but it will affect the so called lungs of the earth;

  • you can expand your bauxite and alumina production and re-establish an aluminium smelter but it will cause tons of hazardous waste;
    and so we can go on with the production of oil, of rice, of vegetables or
    the fishing of shrimps in the Atlantic Ocean.

Those of you who come from the islands may know that your fish are scared away by tourists, that your corals are being destroyed by divers, that your waters are being polluted by oil spills.

So, many are the pitfalls that we find on our road toward what we think to be a better life.

But mind you:
We have to be cautious, but we must develop ourselves.

Young citizens of CARICOM,

I call on you to take this message with you into the workshop and into your Caribbean life.

Today I am pleased to say that I can once more congratulate the CARICOM Youth Ambassadors for the dynamic and creative way in which they fulfil their mission.

I am confident that this workshop also will demonstrate this spirit because of the full and successful participation of you, CARICOM Youth Ambassadors and other Caribbean Youth present here.

I now declare this workshop on Sustainable Development open.

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