Mbeki warns rich of 'fire next time'

Mbeki: The poor look to the UN to reverse inequalities

South African President Thabo Mbeki has warned Western nations not to ignore the demands of the poor and weak for too long.

In an impassioned speech to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the South African leader warned that the poor "will not accept the maintenance of the status quo, which perpetuates their poverty".

Echoing a line from an African American slave song, which was used during US civil rights protests in the 1960s in the United States, he said there would be consequences if nothing changed.

"What we have said today may not be heard because we do not have the strength to have our voice heard. Tomorrow we may be obliged to say 'No more water, the fire next time!' As the fire burns, the United Nations will die," he added.

UN divide

Black author James Baldwin adopted "The Fire Next Time" as the title for an influential 1963 book on black identity warning that if American whites did not respond to black aspirations for justice then violence could ensue.

Mr Mbeki said the disempowered relied on the UN to advance their interests and ensure resources are transferred from rich to poor.

The challenge for the powerful, he said, was to ensure peace and prosperity for themselves without relying on the poverty and disempowerment of billions of others.

During the general assembly, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has led renewed calls for reform of the UN, and the UN Security Council in particular, which is weighted heavily in favour of the industrialised world.