A/32/PV.32 General Assembly

Mr. President, it is a signal honour and a most singular pleasure for me to extend to you my delegation's congratulations on your election to the presidency of this session of the General Assembly. Your qualifications for this high office need no testimony. In the performance of your duties on behalf of your country and of this Organization you have displaye~ such sterling qualities that I am confident that under your leadership tht' deliberations of this Assembly will produce concrete results. 42. Yugoslavia and my own country enjoy the most fraternal and cordial relations and I should like to pledge my delegation's support to you and to the officers of the Assembly in the discharge of your heavy responsibilities. I should also like to express from this podium my Govern- ment's appreciation to Mr. Kurt Waldheim for the effi- ciency which has become the hallmark of his performrnce of his duties as Secretary-General. His years at the head of the United Nations have been characterized by dedication, competence and an unremitting sensitivity to the urgent need to solve pressing international problems. 43. My delegation is not unmindful of the contribution that your predecessor, Mr. Amerasinghe of Sri Lanka, made to the deliberations of the thirty-first session of the General Assembly. The manner in which Mr. Amerasinghe con- ducted the work of that session deserves a word of thanks from all of us. We are confident that he will continue to discharge his duties skilfully as President of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. 44. We should also like to express our congratulations to the new Members of our Organization, Djibouti and Viet Nam. We are confident that this Organization will benefit from their membership. 45. The agenda of this Assembly reflects a simple but horrifyh1g truth. That truth is that every step towards the end of the twentieth century is accompanied by the emergence of new problems that threaten the security and peace of mankind, problems that confront humanity with new and frightful challenges. 46. Technology has opened fresh vistas for the develop- ment of civilization. It has also presented unprecedented threats to the existence of that civilization. Thanks to advances in technology and humanity's weaknesses peace today hangs on the delicate and precarious thread of a balance of terror. The resources of States Members of this Organization still continue to be devoted, not to the interests and the betterment of the human conditions, but to a threat to human existence. Billions of dollars are being expended, not on the promise of eradicating poverty, disease and ignorance, but on making the bare survival of the human species more uncertain. 47. Even more alarming is the fact that States which have demonstrated their contempt of every principle of interna- tional morality and international law are ushering in a nightmare era of nuclear-weapon proliferation. The acquisi- 48. Once more the problems of southern Africa, of the disparities in the wealth of the rich and the poor and of the Middle East feature prominently <?n the agenda of this session of the Assembly. There is a no more serious indictment of this Organization than the continued denial of legitimate rights to the people of Palestine and of the livelihood of the vast majority of humanity in conditions that the President of the World Bank has described as "defying any rational defmition of human decency". The urgency of solving these problems has never become more imperative. We owe it to humanity to do something meaningful. We need to take action that is more effective than adopting resolutions which gather dust on the shelves of history. At stake is the fabric of an orderly international climate. That climate cannot be bequeathed to posterity on a platter. States Members of this Organization must display a willingness to make political sacrifices and to demonstrate meaningful political will. 49. My Government has always deplored any action to change the social, economic or political topography of the Arab lands conquered by Israel. The recent actions of the Government of Israel in encouraging Jewish settlements on conquered Arab territory have once more underlined the critical urgency of the need for a Middle East settlement. 50. My Government deplores these actions by the Govern- ment of Israel as unhelpful and unnecessarily provocative. We do not accept the fait accompli of conquered lands. The Government of Lesotho has on numerous occasions made clear its commitment to the right of Israel to existence. We shall not depart from that commitment. And yet we cannot agree to the proposition that that right constitutes a carte blanche for the illegal occupation of conquered territory. The right to perceive security interests is no basis for the denial of the rights of the people of Palestine nor the refusal to return lands acquired in battle. I should like to appeal to Israel and all other parties involved to implement Se~urity Council resolutions 242 ( 1967) and 338 (1973) and all other resolutions of tI1is Organization in their entirety. The right to existence of the State of Israel does not cancel the rights of the other peoples in the Middle East. In this connexion my Government urges the Govern- ment of Israel to recognize the imperative need for the representation of the people of Palestine at the Geneva talks. I am hopeful that the Government of Israel will go further and agree to the direct involvement in the Geneva talks of the Palestine Liberation Organization. Conquest of territory cannot, under any circumstances, confer any right of permanency. 51. The establishment of a ski resort on the territory of Lesotho at Khoptjoane is clearly intended to alienate more of our land, an,J the refusal of South Africa to negotiate with the Government of Lesotho on the question of our joint boundaries is both unjust and a source of tension. Worse still is the fact that South Africa is complicating this whole' issue by the establishment of bantustans on our borders. The creation of these bantustans on land that 52. One hundred and fifty years ago the founder of the Basotho nation, King Moshoeshoe I, said in reference to the unjust and illegal boundary arrangements that were imposed on Lesotho by the former British colonial admin- stration that, in his opinion, nothing had contributed more to racial disharmony in the past years than this single factor-the Warden Line. He considered it unfair, entirely impracticable and an affront to the Basotho. The persistent refusal by South Africa to deal in a spirit of neighbourliness with the question of our lands is bound to sour the relations between the people of Lesotho and South Africa for the foreseeable future; for no generation of Basotho is going to forget my country's just claims. What, after all, is Pretoria afraid of? Is it the risk of arbitration'? Is its case so patently weak that it cannot stand up to proposals for a joint boundary commission to settle the question of these lands'? We, for our part, are prepared to abide by a decision based on law. We are prepared to assist in shortening the agenda of southern Africa problems. We are prepared to avoid confrontation and to seek peaceful solutions to our problems. But we are not prepared to become orphans of colonialism and unequal treaties and a victim ofapartheid. 53. In his report the Secretary-General has rightly recog- nized that "the unresolved problems of southern Africa have this year commanded as much, or more, attention than any others" [see A/32/1, sect. Ill/. The Maputo and Lagos Declarations3 are ample testimony to that fact. The fact that the Smith rebellion continues to exist; the fact of South Africa's continued illegal occupation of Namibia; the fact of the continuation ofapartheid in South Africa--these are so only because some Member States are stiII putting a higher priority and a greater premium on their narrow sectional interests than on the interests of the majority of the people of southern Africa. 54. My Government has taken note of the joint United States and United Kingdom initiatives on Rhodesia. We have studied the proposals that have been submitted to the 3 For the Maputo Declaration in Support of the Peoples of Zimbabwe and Namibia, see document A/32/I09/Rev.I-S/12344/ Rev.I, annex V. For the Lagos Declaration for Action against Apartheid, se\.' Report of the World Conference for Action against Apartheid (lInitcd Nations pu blication, Salt~s No. E.77.XIV.2), chap. X. 55. My Government has also followed with interest the initiatives of the five Western Powers on the question. of Namibia. I have previously made clear my Governmenfs rejections of the Turnhalle solution which the Goverriment of South Africa was trying to impose on Namibia. In our view, SWAPO remains the authentic and legitimate repre- sentative of the people of Namibia. 56. The initiatives of the five Western Powers, members of the Security Council, are nevertheless not far-reaching enough. In particular they have put a gloss of legality on South Africa's illegal occupation of that Territory in disregard of the resolutions of this Organization. The authority of the United' Nations over Namibia is com- promised in these proposals, and the authority of South Africa is conceded. The role of the Administrator-General appointed by Pretoria should be clearly limited ~ and the role of the representative of the United Nations Secretary- General should be-clearly defined. The army of the Pretoria regime will continue to pose a threat to the liberation struggle in Namibia. It is clear, too, that the Pretoria regime hopes to limit the ability of SWAPO to participate fully in the electoral process. Despite these serious limitations, my Government is confident that the machinations of the Government of South Africa will fail and that the struggle of the people of Namibia will succeed. 57. The dismemberment of Namibian territory -by the amputation of Walvis Bay is unacceptable to my Govern- ment. Any previous arraQgements incorporating the area into South Africa should not constitute the legal basis for South Africa's refusal to include the area in the indepen- dent Namibia which is now imminent. This would con- stitute a violation of the territorial integrity of Namibia and forever remain a source of tension in the area. If Mr. Vorster were serious on the Namibia issue, he would not have any previous arrangements incorporating the area into South Africa should not constitute the legal basis for South Africa's refusal to include the area in the indepen- 4 See OfficiJll Records of the Security Council, Thirty-second Ye.ar, Supplement for July, August and September /977. document S/12393. 58. In the security debates on the question of South Africa at the International COliference in Support of the Peoples of Zimbabwe and Namibia, held in Maputo, and the World Conference for Action against Apartheid, held in Lagos. my delegation made it clear that in our view the main cause of the problems ot 2<)uthern Africa in the apartheid policies of that Government· which resulted in the closure of the south-eastern borders with my country. It is the same obnoxious policies which envisage the creation of Bophu- thatswana and Qwaqwa bantustans around Lesotho. It is apartheid that denies basic freedoms to over 20 million Africans in South Africa. It is apartheid that catapults thousands of -black South Africans into fleeing their country for political refuge in Lesotho. The Government and people of Lesotho have maintained a flexible policy of purposefully absorbing the fleeing refugees and integrating them into the fabric of our society rather than treating them as conventional refugees. It is the same apartheid policies that permit detentions without trial in South Africa. In pursuit of this policy, several Basotho people are either held hostage or detained in South Africa without access to judicial due process. 59. The international community has recently been served with a painful reminder of the. callous inhumanity of apartheid when the spokesman of the apartheid regime scoffed at the deaths of detainees and gloated with dispassionate insensitivity at the death of Steven Bantu Biko. These are the words of the South African Minister of Police when confronted on Biko's death: "I am not glad and I am not sorry ~ he leaves me cold. I can say nothing to you". Such is the inhuman coldness ofapartheid towards the black majority of Africans. Such is the unbelievable system of justice in South Africa. To the blacks in South Africa the death of Steven Biko is a great loss. In this mysterious death my Government sees a continuing selective process aimed at eliminating opponents of apartheid. Nothing, however, will deter the struggle; success is guaranteed. 60. It is racism that sanctions the deaths of schoolchildren in Soweto, Langa and Mamelodi. The quality of life has so deteriorated in Soweto that it is no longer a place to live in, but has become a prison without walls; it is a place permanently patrolled by police troops-a case, in fact, of policy versus the people. Thousands of Soweto high-school children are out of school while more than 400 teachers have resigned since Soweto high schools were placed under direct jurisdiction of the white administration. 61. The arbitrary detentions of students continue and their harassment by the apartheid police is becoming a pattern of life. As of 16 August this year, 11 more members of the Soweto Students Representative Council have joined. hundreds of other students in South African goals. And yet the students are not daunted. They continue to express their profound objection to apartheid and to Bantu education. I should like to take this opportunity to commend the students of Soweto, and indeed of all other 62. As 1 stated before, to be black in South Africa is to live in a twiligh t of terror; to be dehumanized; to live in perpetual fear of loss of liberty and life; to live in endless danger of unemployment; to live in fear of being sent to gaol-in short, to live without rights, for even in gaol there is no safety. Since 1963 over 37 detainees held in South African gaols have lost their lives under mysterious circum- stances. In only two instances has the South African Government admitted culpability. The other deaths have simply been dismissed as unavoidable. The death toll over the past 17 mon ths alone stands at 16. And yet all demands for explanations of the deaths of the detainees are continuing to meet with deafening silence. A few months ago Mr. Mzizi was found hanged from a cell window. Before him on 3 August, it was Dr. Haffejee who met a similar fate. With each death our concern for detainees must deepen and the urgency of action must increase. 63. Pretoria pretends that its security police are gentle souls who would not dream of hurting a fly, let alone a political detainee. And yet even a South African judge was compelled to observe, with regard to the death on 19 March 1976 of detainee Mr. Mdluli: "The most probable explana- tion is that all or most of the wounds were inflicted by the security police." The United Nations has already responded generously to the plight of students who fled South Africa. It must now pronounce itself most dearly and in terms of action on those who are in detention. Month in and month out news of arrests under the detention laws reaches the outside world. There are no announcements and no explanations from Pretoria; Pretoria does not regard itself as obliged to give any. People simply disappear inside the gaols of South Africa, in solitary confinement. Some are lucky to reappear after 200 days. Others are less fortunate. Mr. Phantsi was held for 513 days in solitary confiilement and then inexplicably released with no apology, no explana- tion. No one knows how many more are sharing a similar fate. Comfort has long dulled the sense of outrage of most whites in South Africa about their brutal injustice. The only hope for the detainees is action by the international community. It is no surprise to us that every effort by the Government of Lesotho to obtain the release of Lesotho nationals in South African gaols has met with suggestions that we should hand over South African refugees in exchange for the release of our nationals. Our reply has always been the same: "Never". And our record in getting back refugees kidnapped by South Africa speaks for itself. 64. The catalogue of outrageous acts against the African population does not end in the shadows of South African gaols or on Robben Island. In a non-racial service in Cape Town on 14 August 1977, the congregation was moved, in response to the evictions of persons and the demolition of their buildings, to observe: "... we urgently cal) upon the Government to stop forthwith the demolition of homes of people without providIng them with alternative and adequate accom· modations. We dedicate ourselves to work with our fellow South Africans for a society in which the rights of an "The bulldozers began at the height of an exceptionally cold, wet, windy winter. It would have been a humiliating eviction in ideal weather. In the bitter winter it was downright inhuman. In exchange for their homes, the squatters were offered temporary canvas shelter and rail tickets to the Bantustans of C'iskei and Transkei-tickets to broken family lives and the prospects of no homes and no jobs." 65. In yet another article, a South African newspaper described the agony of Africans from Hoek-fontein near Pretoria in these terms: "Thousands of people in the squatter camps, about 60 kilometres north of Pretoria, have become orphans of the Government apartheid system. They are living in appall- ing conditions and nobody wants to help them. The callousness of the Government in refusing to alleviate their plight is extraordinary. It is, after all, Government laws and policies which helped to create the whole mess in the first place." 66. It is Pretoria that bolsters the Smith rebellion and that perpetuates the illegal occupation of Namibia. The solution of the problem of South Africa is the key to peace, stability ami· racial harmony in southern Africa. To ignore this fact and to attempt to isolate the problems of southern Africa is to turn one's back on reality and to raise false hopes. 67. Apartheid constitutes the single most flagrant viola- tion of human lights and the most direct threat to the peace of southern Africa, and concrete action must be taken to rid southern Africa of it. The morality of such action is no longer in doubt. This Assembly has itself classified apartheid as a crime against humanity and a threat to in ternational peace. What is now required is not further declarations and resolutions, but concrete action. 68. Lesotho views with great concern another developing travesty of political justice which the minority racist regime is proposing in its so-called "new constitution" for South Africa. The Pretoria administration, with gloating insen- sitivity, is goading the South African Coloured and Indian population to join its nationallaager ritual of excluding the majority black Africans from exercising their inalienable political, economic, social and cultural rights in the land of their fathers and forefathers. 69. It is important to remember that this so-called constitutional dispensation is still part of the strategy of the evil philosophy of apartheid The proposed dispensation violates civilized political morality. It emasculates the human spirit as it brutalizes the psyche of the Africans. It violates as it vitiates the life expectations and aspirations of the black majority. Given this continued insensitivity of the 70. It has often been alleged that the majority of the people of southern Africa will be the major victims of any international action against the Pretoria regime. The experi- ences of my own country are a clear demonstration that there are no upper limits to the suffering that the racist regime is prepared to inflict on the people of South Africa. Citizens of Lesotho are detained in- solitary confinement in South Africa. Throughout all the border posts connecting my country with South Africa, the people of my country suffer constant harassment and humiliation. With its plans to grant bogus independence to its Bophuthatswana Bantustan in December, the Pretoria regime is continuing with its designs to encircle my country with these bogus states in an effort to coerce my Government to grant recognition to its bantustans. My delegation will elucidate fully in '(he deliberations of the Special Political Committee on incidents that show that there is no limit to the suffering of the black man. In the view of my Government, action by the United Nations to assist the people of southern Africa is long overdue. That action we owe to the people of southern Africa. We owe it to ourselves, too, in the name of morality and the conscience of mankind. 71. The Government of Lesotho firmly believes that t~e United Nations provides the most appropriate forum for the negotiation of concrete modalities for the establishment of a new international economic order. lt is because of this that we attach so much importance to the ongoing process of restructuring the economic a.nd social sectors of the United Nations system to enhance their capacity to respond effectively to the problems and most urgent need!1, of the developing countries. 72. The record of the United Nations in th~ field of international economic relations has not been very encour- aging. The targets~ of the Second United Nations Develop- ment Decade have not been met. The re' lutions of the sixth and seventh special sessions of the Gelieral Assembly still remain to be implemented. The recent Paris Conference on International Economic Co-operation seems to have reached limited results. The Third United Nations Con- ference on the Law of the Sea has not produced conclusive results. As a result of the aforesaid developments, the rich countries are becoming richer and the poor ones are becoming poorer. There is no doubt in our minds that a solution to these problems would greatly facilitate social transformation, modernization and economic growth in all sectors of the economies of the developing countries, particularly of the least developed and of the land-locked countries among them. 73. Despite the short-comings of the United Nations system in responding effectively to the economic problems of the developing world and in ensuring a balanced international economic order, it would be less than just if I did not, from this podium, record the appreciation of my country for the prompt action that the United Nations took in response to the closure of the south-eastern borders of my country by the racist Government of South Africa. I 74. The attitude of the United Nations system in response to our problems has given added hope to the peoples of southern Africa in their struggle against white minority rule and racism. It has also served as a clear warning to Pretoria and Salisbury that the international community has not lost its capacity to respond to threats to the peace and security of southern Africa. 75. Let me conclude by reassuring this Assembly that my Government will never give any comfort to the white minority regimes and that we shall continue, whatever difficulties are placed in our path, to respect and abide fully by the resolutions of the United Nations.

Mr. President, I wish to express my sincere congratulations on your unanimous election to the presidency of this historic session of the United Nations General Assembly. I bring with me to you, Mr. President, cordial greetings from my Head of State, His Majesty, King Sobhuza 11 and the Government and people of Swaziland. Your election symbolizes the recognition of your stature as a statesman, and we have complete confidence that a man of your wide experience and calibre will successfully guide our deliberations. 77. In congratulating you, Mr. President, we wish to express our heartfelt gratitude to the outgoing President, Ambassador Amerasinghe, the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka and able President of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, for the efficient and wise leadership which he demonstrated during the thirty- first session of this Assembly. 78. My delegation warmly welcomes the admission of the Republic of Djibouti and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to all Organization founded to harmonize the actions of nations in maintaining international peace and security, and in encouraging respect for human rights and funda- mental freedoms for all. 79. My delegation has confidence, hope and faith that in such an august gathering substantial and significant progress towards removing the obstacles that lie in the way of freedom. peace. justice, and the pursuit of happiness and international understanding can be achieved at this, our thirty-second, session. 80. Our experience over the last nine years since we re'gained our independence, has been that social and economic growth, social justice and democracy are legiti- mate aspirations on this planet if the international com- 82. We should spare no effort to accelerate the transfer of resources from the developed to the developing world. At present, world trade and development are controlled and dominated by a small group of privileged countries. The economic fortunes of those nations determined the fortunes of the rest of the world. Growth prospects for the non-oil-producing developing world have worsened, their per capita incomes have fallen and the gap between rich and poor has widened. 83. It is for those reasons that my Government appreciates the efforts made by all the participants in the Conference on International Economic Co-operation towards the estab- lishment of more equitable relations between the developed and the developing countries. The dialogue process itself did in some degree contribute to an understanding of the complex problems of international economic co-operation and to the need for bold decisions to effect structural adjustments in the present system. 84. My Government regrets that the Conference failed to reach decisions on a wide number of issues of importance to us developing countries and that it did not achieve the expected break-through. That Conference fell too far short of its objective, and no meaningful progress was made towards the restructuring of the new international eco- nomic order. 85. In spite of the differences over the assessment of the Paris Conference which were manifested during the 108th and 109th meetings of the Assembly's thirty-first session, my delegation was none the less encouraged to detect a spirit of determination on both sides to continue the dialogue in a purposeful manner with a view to arriving at tangible and meaningful results. 86. On the brighter side of the North-South dialogue, my delegation was pleased to note that the concept of promoting economic co-operation among developing coun- tries was given' attention. Due to our need for larger markets to overcome the constraints of critical minimum- size op~rations and to make economies of scale, my country attaches great imrortance to efforts to strengthen regional co-operation and integration. 87. The promotion of economic co-operation among developing countries is based on the realization of the heed to rely first on ourselves fQr achieving social and economic development. It emphasizes the importance of depending on our own efforts to develop ourselves. The spirit of self-reliance and the determination needed to advance ourselves is a necessary and decisive factor in overcoming the heavy odds that we face as developing nations. 88. Concrete results have yet to be achieved in the North-South dialogue, and until such time as the developing world can be united in common action to achieve a common 'goal conference and talks will have little effect. Until such time as it is possible for the developing world to confront the developed world on more equal terms, the 89. Swaziland believes that if people have no stake in the community of man they become a threat to that com- munity. Peace and stability are threatened by a divided community; yet all of us are very much aware that the division continues to introduce into the modern world unnecessary disharmony and conflicts of interest which disastrously divide mankind at a time when unity of purpose and action is so vital for peace, order and progress in the service of mankind. 90. Swaziland's policy remains strongly that of a non- racial democracy based on non-interference in the internal affairs of other States, good neighbourliness, non-alignment and respect for peace, justice and equality. We practise and cherish those concepts as principles enshrined in both the Charter of the United Nations and in the Charter of the OAU. Swaziland is most decidedly against any fonn of denial of human rights or fundamental freedoms which results in the degradation of the human person. In this regard, my country is greatly distressed and perturbed by the situation across our borders in the Republic of South Africa, where the tragic death of innocent people, including defenceless children, and a total contempt and disregard for the rule of law have become a way of life. 91. As representatives may know, in the recent past Swaziland has given material assistance to some of the students who had fled from South Af.rica because of the Soweto tragedy. 92. We remain more strongly convinced than ever before . . that the racially discriminatory apartheid policies of the Government of South Africa militate against the ess~ntial dignity and equality of all human beings, and hope' that efforts to arrive at a peaceful solution to the grave problems of that beleaguered country will be found. 93. Namibia is an international Territory under illegal occupation, ~n defiance of General Assembly and Security Council resolutions and decisions of the International Court of Justice. Its people, like all other peoples, have the right to self-detennination to enable them freely to exercise their right to complete freedom and national independence so that they can, with speed, take their rightful place in this Assembly. 94. With respect to Zimbabwe, speaking from this very podium, my delegation has expressed the view that so long as the privileged white minority in Rhodesia was allowed to exercise the monopoly. of political power, the illegal regime of lall Smith would not voluntarily relinquish that power. Today, however, the very efficacy of the freedom move- ment has forced upon Smith the realization that Zimbabwe is on the threshold of freedom and independence. We believe that it is the indigenous people of Zimbabwe themselves who must together work out their salvation and 95. In the Middle East, the attainment of ajust and lasting peace remains a matter of major concern to the interna- tional community. A viable peace settlement of the Middle East conflict is of vital importance to the world as a whole. A just and lasting peace settlement must, taking Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) as starting- points, take account of the following principles: first, the right of all States in the region must be respected, including Israel's right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries; secondly, Israel should withdraw from all the territories it has occupied since 1967; thirdly, the legitimate right of the Palestinian people must be reaffirmed; ~md fourthly, the Palestinian people must have a right to a secure homeland. 96. It is the earnest hope of my delegation that the renewed peace efforts now under way will lead to a durable and lasting peace settlement and that all the parties concerned will refrain from any action that would con- stitute an obstacle to the pursuit of peace. 97. The past history of Africa reveals that it has been a continent of drama and tragedy. The scars of slavery and the wounds of imperialism and exploitation are all too fresh to have been forgotten. But the future is different. It is a future of hope, a future of a socio-political evolution towards the larger community of a united Africa, a future ultimately to banish any patronizing by big Powers in a continent that is being rebuilt from the ashes of colonial- ism, a future without racial discrimination and, indeed, a future of inspiration that we shall for certain triumph and regain our glory as a free continent. 98. It is for those reasons of hope that my country, together with the non-aligned countries of the third world, has consistently demanded the withdrawal of any naval and military presence from the Indian Ocean by great Powers, because we who rightly regard the Indian Ocean as being on our doorstep also regard it as a zone of peace. 99. I turn now to the establishment of a new international economic order over the oceans, which encompass two- thirds of our planet. Swaziland as a land-locked, developing country, has a vital stake in the successful outcome of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. 100. It is indeed regrettable that a lack of political will has so far prevented the making of hard negotiating choices. There must be a recognition that the future law of the sea must be comprehensive and acceptable to all segments of the international community. 101. Such recognition would necessarily imply that the concept of the common heritage of mankind must be so interpreted as to result in preferential treatment being accorded to geographically disadvantaged developing States. Likewise, the acceptance by' land-locked and geographically disadvantaged States of the "economic zone concept" must be necessarily dependent on their guaranteed right of participation in the exploitation of the resources of such zones. 103. Swaziland has served as a model of racial tolerance, where black and white live in peace and harmony. We have continued to set an example and to demonstrate that national peace and harmony can be achieved by showing respect for human dignity and equality, and by giving every individual an opportunity to play a positive role in shaping the destiny of his country. 104. Before I conclude my statement I should like to pay, on behalf of my delegation, a special tribute to our Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, and the dedicated members of his. staff, to whom we convey our deeply felt gratitude and appreciation for their ceaseless energy and dedication to the cause of peace and to the promotion of international co-operation. 105. In conclusion, may I once again pledge my country's commitment to uphold the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and to abide by all United Nations resolutions.

The Assembly will now hear a statement by the Head of State of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. On behalf of the General Assembly, I have the honour to welcome to the United Nations the Head of State of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency lieutenant General Olusegun Obasanjo, and to invite him to address the Assembly. 107. Lt. Gen. OBASANJO (Nigeria): It is a great ,honour and privilege for me to be here today to address this assembly of world nations. As numerous representatives and other well-wishers have already done before me, I wish, in the name of the Nigerian Government and people, to convey our heartfelt congratulations to you, Mr. President, on your election to the presidency of the thirty-second session of the United Nations General Assembly. In view of the length of the agenda, as well as the complexity of the issues before us at this session, we have no doubt that you will have to <haw generously upon all those qualities of statesmanship which have marked you out for this unique recognition. In considering also the universally acknow- ledged position of Yugoslavia as a bastion of ,the non- aligned concept and your personal calibre as a statesman, we are confident that you will acquit yourself most creditably in the discharge of your onerous duties. 108. I should like to convey the greetings of the Nigerian Government and people to this Assembly and, in particular, their best wishes for a successful session. This is not simply one more routine annual session of the United Nations General Assembly, but rather one that must rededicate 109. It might perhaps be pertinent to recall here that the world of 1977 is a far cry from those eventful days of the immediate post-war period of 1945, when the world, freshly emerged from the nightmare of a carnage unpre- cedented in human history, ardently desired and sought ways and means to prevent a recurrence of global war. On two occasions within this century mankind indulged in colossal and barbaric destruction of human life and property, only to discover at the end that the interrela- tionships of peoples must be based on justice, and that any other approach to the interaction of men and nations will sooner or later result in violence and tragedy for mankind. 110. A substantial part of what has now come to be known as the "third world" was then completely uncon- cerned with the ideological issues or the historical events that led to the two wars. In the process of the evolution of colonial history after 1945, a different type of struggle op a globaCscale ensued. During that period only a minority of the nations now represented here today were considered capable of exercising the sovereign attributes that deter- mined the course of human history over the next decade- and-a-half, until the irrepressible cause of human freedom eventually triumphed in the early 1960s, and the erstwhile colonial peoples took their rightful place within this august assembly of nations. 111. The entire continent of Africa was represented at the historic United Nations Conference on International Organ- ization at San Francisco by three independent States; and that was, moreover, the total African participation in the ceremony of signing the original United Nations Charter by the founding nations, three out of a grand total of 51 Member States. 112. But the world has changed since then, and African States now constitute nearly one third of this prestigious Organization. Besides, if one considers the inhere.nt imper- fection of all human institutions, and the self-evIdent fact that all man-made institutions are subject to chan~e, it seems quite clear that the newly independent nations of the third world in general, and of Africa in particular, are now grossly under-represented in practically all the major organs of the United Nations. Our struggles for a review of the relevant provisions of the Charter that would lead to a more equitable representation of nations on the basis of present- day realities will continue unabated, and we are confident that, given the necessary political will on all sides, t,his object.ive can be,achieved. 113. But Africa's struggles, and the struggles of the entire third world, go far beyond the cause of equitable repee- 114. At this point I should like to refer to the cause of decolonization and the eradication of racism from those parts of Africa that are still labouring under the oppressive rule of colonialism and of intransigent minority regimes. 115. In Zimbabwe alone we have witnessed with dismay the strange phenomenon, unprecedented in recent colonial history, of a minority white regime in rebellion against the colonizing Power, and getting away with it for 12 years despite all the efforts to persuade the administering Power to acknowledge and discharge its obligations to the 6 million indigenous people, who continue to be denied their basic human rights in defiance of the Charter of our Organization. All our appeals have been met with half- hearted measures, and the invention of superficial economic sanctions that are full of loop-holes. Today, therefore, the racist regime in rebellion can still boast that the white minority has a more viable economy and enjoys a higher standard of living. But it still has to contend with the unwavering dedication, patriotism and grim determination of the nationalist liberation movements. The nationalists and freedom fighters will continue to stand ready to pay the supreme sacrifice rather than live ignominiously in perpetual bondage. Their cause is just, and their struggles sacred. Their sacrifices will not be in vain, because time is on their side and Africa stands by them, and they enjoy the full solidarity of all freedom-loving peoples throughout the world. In this regard it is necessary to emphasize once again that the Nigerian Government and people are totally committed to the cause of freedom and justice in that part of our continent. This we consider as a duty that must be perfonned, and we are determined to restore the honour and dignity that belong to that continent and to all its inhabitants, at whatever cost. 116. I must also place on record here once again the appreciation of the Nigerian Government and people for the laudable role which the United Nations has played in the past, and has continued to play, so that even in southern Africa the basic right of man to freedom may be quickly restored. The United Nations archives are rich and overflowing with resolutions about ending the illegal regime in Rhodesia so that a free Zimbabwe may be born. The good intentions behind most of these resolutions have never been in doubt, and we would probably have achieved a positive result by now but for the combination of open support of the illegal regime by their fellow racists of South Africa and the clandestine support or tacit sabotage by those who profess to believe in democracy at home but prefer to espouse the cause of fascism in Africa. 117. It is equally important that we mention in this regard the current proposals jointly made by the United Kingdom and the United States of America for a peaceful settlement in Rhodesia, otherwise known as the Anglo-American 118. Having said this, however. I consider it imperative to sound a note of warning that 'Nigeria will never be party to any solution in Zimbabwe that could be remotely inter- preted as a sell-out of the 6 million people of that land. Our objective is, unequivocally, a surrender of power by the minority to the majority of the population. We have, therefore, naturally condemned all manoeuvres, such as the frantic search by the rebel regime for a so-called interna- tional settlement, as totally unacceptable. 119. And finally on this point, we should like to record warm tributes to the constructive role that the independent States adjacent to Rhodesia, otherwise known as the front-line States, have continued to play in the search for a solution there, by peaceful negotiations if possible, and through the barrels of guns if necessary. 120. The former League of Nations Trust Territory of South West Africa, now Namibia under United Nations administration but still illegally occupied by the Vorster regime of South Africa, is one qther area of our continent with which we are profoundly preoccupied. We believe,·too, that the United Nations is equally preoccupied with events within the Territory on account of the special responsibility imposed on us for the suffering people of Namibia by the termination of South Africa's Mandate over the Territory, which has been so grossly abused. We are greatly encour- aged by the enfhusiasm which the Secretary-General has shown in his efforts to reassert United Nations control over the Territory and we can only hope that these efforts, in combination with the current dialogue by some Member States with the Vorster regime, will persuade the racists of South Africa of the utter futility of trying to stem the tide of freedom in southern Africa. We salute the leaders of SWAPO and -pay warm tributes to the devotion of that Organization and its determination to free Namibia from illegal occupation. We wish to assure this Assembly that we in Nigeria will not relax our efforts to see Namibia free. We look forward therefore to welcoming Namibia here next year to the comity of sovereign and independent nations. 121. African liberation efforts will, of course, never be complete until the 18 million non-white people inside South Africa itself are free from the clutches of the minority racist regime. This case of man's inhumanity to man that continues to be perpettiated in South Africa is unparalleled within any other civilized society of modern times. In the context' of apartheid the black man is considered subhuman, and he has been subjected to all forms of indignity in his own land-in order, we are told par.adoxically, to defend Christendom and Western civiliza- tion. While the events in Sharpeville remain fresh in our 122. The South African regime, of course, has been turned into a military power in Africa by those who would rather secure the economic and so-called strategic advantages of the Cape than consider the more legitimate yearnings of an oppressed people for justice and human dignity. At the recent World Conference for Action against Apartheid, which Nigeria had the honour and privilege of arranging in collaboration with the United Nations, we served notice to all such double-dealers, and in particular to the multina· tional companies, that they would have to decide to choose between our hospitality and their adventurism by which they prop up the oppressive regime in South Africa. This is a solemn undertaking of the Nigerian Government and I should like to repeat here that we have established an economic intelligence unit which will provide necessary information and recommend action against such collabora- tors with the racist regimes, who at the same time avail themselves of the hospitality and magnanimity of our people and the benefits of our economy. 123. If I have dwelt at such length in my statement on the question of freedom and human dignity in southern Africa it is because this issue occupies a central and unique position in the Nigerian Government's policies. But" this is not to say that we are not concerned with such other .pressing international issues as disarmament, the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, the creation of a new and more equitable world economic order, the so-called North·South dialogue and the interplay of great Power rivalries in Africa and the Middle East. 124. We have noted with satisfaction that steps are being taken to convene some time in the coming year a special session of this Assembly on the vexed and seemingly intractable problem of disarmament, a solution to which, although urgent, has proved so elusive for us all these many years past. I note with particular satisfaction in this regard that Nigeria has the honour of participating in the preparatory work, and we look forward anxiously to a positive outcome at both the special session and the world conference that might eventually follow. 125. The reasons for our anxiety over the question of disarmament and our serious concern in this regard derive, of course, from the recognition that if the unbridled race in the production of weapons of mass destruction and mutual annihilation between the super·Powers were to continue at the present pace we should be faced with the near certainty of a third world war, with all the attendant tragedy and human suffering that it would imply. In the eventuality of a nuclear holocaust there would probably be no victors, and the quman race a~ a whole woUld be the loser since the 126. In this regard I am encouraged by the growing detente among the super-Powers. Such co-operation in technological, economic and other fields is the surest way to develop mutual confidence through interdependence, to lead to less tension, and to encourage disarmament. 127. The same remarks are equally applicable to the noble intentions that inspired the signatories to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Iresolution 2373 (XXII)]. It is also essential to add here a note of caution: while we of the third world fully appreciate the wise objectives behind this Treaty we shall not sit down as helpless onlookers while the means of nuclear technology are being tacitly transferred to delinquent and racist enemies in South Africa. We condemn such collaboration with the apartheid regime, from whatever quarter, as strongly as We are determined that the rest of Africa shall not be found a sitting duck for racist aggression if and when such an eventuality should ever arise. 128. It is our ardent hope and desire that Africa shall remain a nuclear-free zone, provided of course that thi.s hope is not rendered naive by the merchants of horror and the enemies of humanity. 129. I believe it is hardly necessary to repeat here again that the vast majority of our nations in the third world have chosen the path of non·alignment as a philosophy in the conduct of our foreign policy. This means, in essence, that we welcome the friendship and co-operation of all the nations on the basis of mutual respect and complete sovereign equality. We therefore have the greatest pleasure to welcome the assumption by the heroic Republic of Viet Nam of its rightful place in this assembly of nations. 130. I commenced this J<Wress by referring to the ~jective of our Organization, as enshrined in the Charter, to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war. In our view, this must be interpreted to include also the urgent need for peace, human rights and human dignity, all of which are inextricably tied up to the restoration of economic justice and the establishment of a more equita~'l'e world economic order. Here again, it is our view that the fortunes of all nations in the modern world are totally interdependent; that, were the present economic inequal. ities between the rich and poor nations to contin~ unchecked, we would be facing ·a bleak future; and that ultimate prospects under these conditions could hardly be less menacing than those of a nuclear war. It is for this reason that we welcome the apparent commitment of the North-South dialogue to find a more equitable order that would end, once and for all, our present division into "haves'~ and "have-nots". We should all hope and pray that the United Nations will continue its present admirable role in this regard, particularly with regard to raising the living standards of those millions of people in the under· 131. We in Africa are profoundly concerned about the tussle for areas of political and military influence by the great Powers on our continent, which have tended to deny us the right and ability to settle purely internal African problems in the African way. Examples of foreign interven- tion at present exist in large numbers in that ~asily destabilized continent, and I need not mention any specific cases here. 132. I do wish to mention, however, the case of the equally uncertain prospects for peace in the Middle East where the State of Israel has doggedly held on to Arab lands conquered by force of arms. Nigeria is unequivocally opposed to any expansionist policy by anyone State against the territory of another, and we have therefore given full support to the deprived Arabs in their efforts to • 133. In conclusion, may I say once again how greatly I value and appreciate this unique opportunity to participate in the work of the current thirty-second session of the General Assembly of our great Organization, and to share with you our thoughts on some of the various burning issues on your agenda.

On behalf of the General Assembly, I wish to thank His Excellency the Head of State of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for the important statement he has just made. The meeting rose at 12.55 p.m. •