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Mr. Chairman,
Venerable monks,
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,
Good Evening,
Mr. Chairman, Ambassador Sinhaseni, we thank you and the mission of Thailand for organizing this event.
Pakistan wishes a Happy Vesak Day to all nations, all people all around the world.
Today is a day for peace and happiness. This is a day for practicing morality, simplicity and humility. This is a day to affirm that people will live in harmony with followers of different faiths and religions.
Today is the day to think of the poor, the sick and the marginalized and, in fact, all those from amongst us who are suffering.
This day gives us an opportune moment to solemnly vow to live in consonance with nature and strive to prevent the degradation of our planet and its finite biodiverse resources.
The incense, the lights, the flowers and the food that go with the Vesak Day are so beautiful. This day is also celebrated by the people around the world to recommit themselves to lead a noble life, to refine their minds, and show love, kindness and tolerance to others.
It is so fitting that the Vesak Day is being celebrated here at the United Nations which epitomizes the world's collective aspirations for peace, security and prosperity.
Our globe is suffering riven as it is with conflict and strife. It needs its own redemption and an end to suffering. The United Nations promises to fulfill that dream.
Today let us remember all those - men, women and children - who are caught in conflicts or those who are fleeing their homes or those who are living in temporary shelters away from their homes or those who do not have food to food or water to drink. And let's pray for them all.
The land of Pakistan many centuries ago was a cradle of Buddhist civilization. Buddhism flourished in Taxila, Peshawar, Mardan, Swat and Lahore, to name a few of cities of modern day Pakistan. Buddhism stands for purity, peace and amity.
Mr. Chairman,
Those who incite hatred and terror in the name of religion commit grave crimes against humanity. Islam teaches peace, love and kindness; and enjoins tolerance and harmony; and respect for other faiths.
We should try to restrain the hand that kills because a person or a community follows a particular religion. We need a global spiritual ethos to lure misguided people off violence and and foster the unison of humanity.
Today we reaffirm our unshakable faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter. We all stand for the fundamental human rights, and the dignity and the worth of the human person.
This is a good year for these invocations and affirmations as we embark on the tasks to define the sustainable development goals and elaborate a post-2015 development agenda.
Let's all resolve that by 2030 we would leave nobody behind.