A/32/PV.54 General Assembly

The delegation of the R(~publk of Equatorial Guinea has asked to speak on the que:tion of the Comorian island of Mayotte, -vhich appears in the agenda of the thirty-second session of the General As- sembly as item 125, in order to reiterate the constant and unchanging policy of the People's Revolutionary Govern- ment of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea of the fullest possible co-operation and assistance, in keeping with the spirit a..d letter of the Charters of the United Nations and of the Organization of African Unity [OAUj, and also with the tenns of the Constitution of our republic. Article 8 of that Constitution reads as follows: "The Republic of Equatorial Guinea is a de facto and de jure Member of the United Nations and of the Organization of African Unity, and bases its international relations with all States on the principles proclaimed by thp Charters of the two organizations. . "Bearing these p,jnciples in mind: "fa) It condemns colonialism, neo-colonialism and racism, as well as imperialism, a3 the main source of ~ggressionand wars and the worst enemy of th~ -: .?les who aspire to live in peace, with indepen- c! ;llce and dignity; "(h) It resolutely supports the movements of national liberation; "(c) It condemns wars of aggression and conquest; "(d) It bases its foreigli ~Ucy on principles of equal rights, natio:tal sovereignty and independence, non-interference in the internal affairs of other States, and co-operation and mutual benefit; "(e) It advocates the peaceful settlement of all inter- national conflicts." . 2. In the light of all the foregoing and bearing in mind the fact that the General Assembly, on the recommendation of the Security Council and by acclamation, unanimously adopted resolution 3385 (XXX) of 12 November 1975, which admitted the State of Comoros as a de facto and de N~W YORK jure Member of the United Nations and as a politically united entity composed of the islands of Grande-Comore, Anjouan, Mayotte and Moheli, and also considering the commitments assumed by this world Organization in General Assembly resolutions 3291 (XXIX), 3385 (XXX) and 31/4, we urge that the utmost efforts be made to fmd a just and equitable formula for reuniting the island of Mayotte with the rest of the Comorian State. 3. The People's Revolutionary Government of the Re- public of Equatorial Guinea is sorry to note that France, which earned the approval of the intern~lionalcommunity by ending its colonial presence in Africa with the recent independence achieved by the siste~ Republic of Djibouti, thus fulfilling the historic Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countri~s and Pecples, is turning a deaf ear to extensive internation.al pressure and to the individual and collective efforts being made by a number of African States by taking over the island of Mayotte, which is an integral and insepar~ble part of a small African State and to which Fr~nce, the .:ormer Administering Authority, is supposed to give assistance in all fields in order to consolidate that nation's ;..1ependence and promote its social and economic natjr ~lal reconstruction. 4. Th~t being the rtate of affairs, the Government of Equatmial Guinea C.ltegoricaUy. repudiates the French presence in the Comorian island of Mayotte as a flagrant violation of the sovel~ignty of the Comoros. We also condemn the militarization of that islar-d. 5. In conclusion, my delegation hopes that draft reso- lution A/32/L.12 and Add.1 and 2, of which my country is a sponsor, will be supported by the General Assembly. 6. Mr. lHIEMELE (Ivory Coast) (interpretation from French): f should like to begin my statement on the question of the Comorian island of Mayotte by quoting the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Ivory Coast, ",ho stated on 7 October from this rostrum that: "The independence and admission of the Republic of Djibouti to the United Nations marks the end of French colonization in Africa. This affords us an opportunity again to pay a sincere tribute to France on its decolo- nization endeavours, which have s'labled almost 20 African States, today masters of their destiny, to make their modest contributions to building that peace to which the whole of mankind aspires. But we would not be sincere if we did not say that that remarkable task will remain incomplete so J""ng as France, together with the Republic of the Comoros, has not found a solution allowing for the peaceful reintegration of Mayotte island into the Comorian group, thus enabling the Republic of 7. Thus, the head of the }vory Coast diplomatic corps made clear the importance of this problem not only for our Organization but also for tbe African CGuntries. The Ivory Coast, which is a member of the OAU, as is the Republic of !Comoros, could not remain in.different to the just claim to respect for its rlational sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity made by the Comoros \'is-a-vis the former colo- nizing Power, France, which in afew years on the same African continent has been able to carry out the task of decolonization in such an admirable and exemplnry way. 8. Why did France, whose innovative genius and demo- cratIc traditions are recognized and appreciated thliOughout the entir~ world, stop short in the case of an island which throughout the 130 years of its presence in the Territory it considered an integral part of the Comoro archipelago? 9. Why did it not put the crowning touch to the splendid wor~{ beg-.:n iJy General de Gaulle which has made it possible for France to maintain everywhere friendly reia- tions with its former COlOnial Territories, whereas decolo- nization in some cases was a matter of grief and suffering? 10. The Ivo17; Coast, a former French colony, has always been a friend of France, linked to it by fruitful relations of confidence and co-operation, cannot understand why the French Government has not been able to overcome local conditions and institutional difficulties in order to respond to the appeal of its' friends and of the international community by making it possible for the Repu~lic of the Comoros, which is made up of the islands of Anjouan, the Grande-Comore!, Mayotte and Moheli, to recover its unity and territorial integrity, for that is the only way for it to achieve genuine independence, with the support of the former colonizing Power, in accordance with the guidelines already laid down by the Franco-Comorian Joint Decla- ration on the Accession to Independence of the Comoro Archipelago of 15 June 19731 and by the popular referendum of 22 December 1974. 11. Until that decisive referendum, all those in authority in France had reaffirmed frequently and in unambiguous terms the desire of France to lead the Comoro archipelago to independence while respecting its political unity and its territorial integrity and helping it properly to assume the responsibilities connected with independence. France even agreed, in order to maintain the ~;nity of the archipelago, to implement a policy of regiona1ization which would make it possible to preserve the rights and interests of the regional entities which make it up. As far as we know, there has never been a question of allowing each island to choose its own path in isolation and still less of reversing the decision of the Chamber of Deputies of thl~ Comoros to lead the Territory to independence in friendship and co-operation with France.. Would it not be calling in question the 12. The appeal made to Fran~e by a number of friendly c(Juntries as well as by our Organization in resolution 31/4 of the thirty-fi~t session of the General Assembly, was an attempt to ensure that the prestige of France would not be tarnished by an affair whose damagirg consequences for the former colonizing: 'Power we can cleariy see while, at the same time, we fail to perceive how that Power would derive the least advantage from it as regards its essential interests as a State. 13. In these circumstances, we can only welcome the statement made here by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of France: "France will not stand in the way of any course of action, provided it is followed with mutual regard for the rights of the parties." [10th meeting, para. 188/. The Ivory Coast ardently hopes that the return of Mayotte to the motherland will De carried out in a peaceful way and as quickly as possible because, while we recognize the essential role played by the United Nations in liberating countries under foreign domination and in maintaining international peace and security, it is by no means the desire of my country to have the question of the Comorian island of Mayotte bogged down in the ritual of the United Nations with its usual series of resolutions whose wording grows . crescendo while their effects go diminuendo. Nor do we want people to be suggesting shortly that armed struggle is the only way to liberate Mayotte. 14. The Republic of the Comoros was not born for that, whatever the aims of those who fish in troubled waters and who welcome gratuitous violence. That young African nation of 300,000 inhabitants, with limited material and human resources, which has had to facy and continues to face enormous difficulties since its accession to inae- pendence, does not yearn for heroism. . 15. It needs, rather, the assistance of the countries Members of our Organization to help to educate its children, to feed and care for its inhabitants, to establish the minimum of infrastructure necessary for national life and to exploit its re:;ources for tHe well-being of its population. All that cannot be done unless it is with the participation of the former administering Power, that is to say, France, which alone is capable of intervening in sectors which the Comorians regard as of priority importance without any worry as to whether it is seeking for itself a new zone of influence. 16. President All Soilih of the Republic of the Comoros recently declared, in confIrming the irreversible peaceful commitment of his country, that: 17. Those are the reasons why the delegation of the Ivory Coast became a sponsor of the draft resolution, to be introduced by the !-1,frican group, which calls upon the French and Comorian Governments to work towards a just and equitable settlement of the problem of the Comorian island of Mayotte, respecting the political unity and territorial integrity of the Comoros. For our part, we would urge the two parties concerned to refrain from any action which would lead to irreparable consequences. 18. On the basis both of the oft-repeated desire of the French Government to seek any solution designed to safeguard the historical links and the friendship between the Cornorian State and France, and of the Comorian Government's readiness for dialogue to bring about the unity of the archipelago, the Ivory Coast sincerely hopes that a favourable and definitive solution will be found to this problem ·before the thirty-third regular session of the General Assembly. We rely on the participation of the OAU and the United Nations, and on the goodwill of all concerned to see that this hope soon becomes a reality.

My delegation is deeply con- cerned that the territorial integrity and unity of the Comoros, a sovereign State Member of this Organization, remains unresolved. The position of the United Nations on this matter, however, is unambiguous. General Assembly resolution 3385 (XXX) of 12 November 1975, which admitted the Comoros to membership in this Organization, underlines the necessity for respecting the unity and territorial integrity of the Comoro archipelago consisting of all the four island groups, including Mayotte. The inde- pendence of the Comoros as one political entity was based on a popular referendum held in December 1975, in which 95 per cent of the voters opted in favour of independence based on the political unity and territorial integrity of the Comoros. Even the French colonial laws had maintained the unity of the Comoro archipelago since 1912. It is therefore natural to expect that in Comoros, too, as in the case of other former colonial Territories in Asia and Africa, territorial integrity based on the geographical limits of former colonial Territories would have been respected. Instead, we find that the independent State ofthe Comoros has been confronted with a violation of its territorial integrity and unity at its very birth. 20. My delegation has on previous occasions categorically rejected the legitimacy of the two referendums in Mayotte in February and April 1976 after the accession to inde- pendence of the Comoros. The principle of self-determi- nation and independence cannot be applied indiscrimi- nately to parts of the territory of a Member State. Such wrongful application of this principle would have grave consequences for the United Nations. That is why General Assembly n~solution 1514: (XV), containing the Declaration on decolonization, stresses the concept of national unity and territorial integrity for c'olonies evolving towards independence.

When ',he State of the Comoros was admitted to membership in the United Nations, the General Assembly adopted resolution 3385 (XXX), which did not omit to reaffirm ''the necessity of respecting the unity and terri- torial integrity of the Comoro archipelago, composed of the islands of Anjouan, Grande-Comore, Mayotte and Moheli". 23. We regret to say that the action taken by France designed to detach the island of Mlilyotte from the State of the Comoros is in flagrant contradiction with that pro- vision. The common destiny of these four islands has been demonstrated for thirteen centuries and more, and it was as a single group that they were subjected to foreign domi- nation and exploitation. However, after having considered the Comoro archipelago as a single unit of its colonial empire, the French Government, whose thinking is not in keeping with the new requirements of history, refuses to recognize that same unity in the newly independent State of the Comoros. Thus today France is retrogressing aild yielding to nostalgia for the past. By refusing to the Comorians what it has, nevertheless, granted to the popu- lation of Djibouti, France is inconsistent with' its own commitments. It~is violating the principles of the United Nations Charter, which are reaffirmed in resolution 1514 (XV) of December 1960 and which specifically stipulate that any attempt aimed at the partial or total destruction of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a Territory is incompatible with the Charter. 24. Therefore, we are extremely disappointed at the attitude adopted by the French Government which, in a process of decolonization carried out thus far without any regrets, now considers the island of Mayotte to be French territory. This attempt to dismember a small country is lacking in generosity, and we cannot believe that France wishes to continue this policy of separating four islands that are so close to one another and that are joined by geographical, natural and cultural links and needs, as is the case in any other part of the world. In disrupting the unity 25. We must ~ '1gize to the Assembly if we reiterate once again what ,Ae President of the French Republic said on 24 October 1974. He said: "The Comoros are a single unit, they have always been a single unit, and it is natural-that their fate should be a common fate, even ifsome of them ... may have wanted a different solution. . "On the occasion of the attainment of independence by a territory, it is not for us to propose to shatter the unity of what has always >been the single Comoro archipelago." The principle of the integrity of the State ef the Comoros and its indivisible sovereignty over the fOUl islands could not be more.clearly defended. 26. The French Government must recognize that today there exists an independent Comorian State whose territory extends over the entire Comora archipelago. But France refuses to recognize that the island of MayoUe is part of the independent Comorian State. Its attempt to isolate Mayotte from the rest of the archipelago is a flagrant contradiction of the General Assembly decision which conferred full membership in our Organization -on the Comoro archi- pelago, comprising the four islands named in the resolution. The French Government has also ignored the appeal of the OAU through its resolutions 421 2 and 5553 of the Council of Ministers, and the appeal of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the non-aligned countries in Lima urging France to withdraw from the island of Mayotte, which is an integral part of the Republic of the Comoros.4 27. In addition to adopting that negative attitude the former administering Power is carrying out retaliatory measures which have paralyzed the technical administrative services of the fledgling Republic and created diffi~ulties of all kinds over and above the numerous problems resulting from a lengthy colonial domination and the shameless exploitation ofthe resources of that Republic. 28. That is no way of keeping alive the principles which, in the past, made the grandeur of France and guaranteed its influence throughout the world. For that reason, we appeal to the French Government not only to lift immediately and once and for all the restrictions imposed on the freedom of movement and goods between the Comorian island of Mayotte and the rest of the Comoro archipelago, but also and particularly to create conditions that will lead to the peaceful reunification of the Comorian homeland. We are cQnvinced that the dispute in which France wishes to involve the young State of the Comoros is not worthy of the France that we know.

The obligations which are borne by each State Member of 2 See document A/I0297, annex I. 3 See docunlent A/32/310, annex I. 4 See document A/I0217 and Corr.l, annex~para. 41. 30. It is in that spirit that the delegation of the People's Republic of the Congo would like to remind the French delegation that, had it not been for the intransigent refusal of the French. Government to respect the territorial integrity of the Comoros, this year the General Assembly of the United Nations could have been spared this debate. It is a deb~te which reflects the identity crisis that in these days affects certain Powers, founding Members of the United Nations, that are bound by a conservatism which prevents them from following the qualitative transformations that are changing the face of the world of today. 31. Turning a deaf ear to the pertinent resolutions of the United Nations, of the non-aligned movement and of the League of Arab States and heedless of the unequivocal- support which the OAU has given to the just cause of the Comorian people, the French Government, on the contrary, is attempting to exploit for its own advantage any dissension that may exist within that nation in order to freeze, with a cynicism unworthy of this great country, the antagonisms existing among groups of Comorians, to disorganize that young State economically and to make it politically unstable-all these manoeuvres having the sole objective of maintaining the French presence in the Indian Ocean. 32. My delegation had the occasion to refute, once and for all, last year during the debate on the question of the Comorian island of Mayotte,~ the legally invalid argument put forward by the French representative, who at that time stated that the inhabitants of Mayot~e were full-fledged Frenchmen, and that the Government of his country was considering a special process of gradual evolution for this colony: We repeat that no one at the end of this century can thwart the process of decolonization and, even by the most skilful rhetoric, impose a colonial status quo on a people. In this instance we are confronted by a case of annexation pure and simple of part of the territory of a former colony by the colonial Power. Therefore it is not necessary to make any superhuman effort to elucidate a situation which in our eyes is a major scandal. The armed occupation by France of the Comorian island of Mayotte, which is an integral part of a sovereign State and, furthermore, of a Member of the United Nations, was judged severely by the OAU as an act of flagrant aggression on the part of the French Government against the Comorian people. For us, the African States, born out of decolonization, the various referendums organized in 34. For our part, we consider it is not valid for the destiny of a people aspiring to liberty and independence in unity to depend up0!l electoral machinery of the former metro- politan country. All the friends of France should therefore try to make the French Government see the imminent danger involved in its uncertainties and hesitations re- garding the Comonan problem. 35. That is why we do not wish to turn this debate into a fracas. In spite of the spiteful stubborness of France, it is our hope that that country will fmally open its eyes to reason and grasp the life-line offered by the Comorian people, who remain firm in their just claims and in the support of their friends.

It is with calm, objectivity and trust in the future of the sister Republic of the Comoros and with confidence in the wisdom of France, home of the rights of man, that I am speaking here on behalf o£ my delegation on the item before the Assembly and on what I trust is merely a temporary trial for the Republic of the Comoras. 37. Since this item was frrst placed on our agenda, Morocco has always given its full support and unconditional backing to the legitimate claims of the Comorian people, both in this Organization and in the OAU. Thus we supported the decisions the OAU took in Libreville {see A/32/310/, and we endorse the action being taken by the Ad Hoc Committee ofSeven it had set up. 38. In other words, as far as we are concerned this is a matter of particular importance, first, because it concerns a sister Republic to which we have givefi' our unreserved support; secondly, because there is no doubt that the position of the Comoros is well-founded; and, thirdly, because the substance of the problem involves a principle we have always, in this Assembly and elsewhere, proclaimed as' one of capital importance: the territorial integrity of States and respect for their national sovereignty. 40. The Kingdom of Morocco has always denounced such attempts at the dismemberment of States and at the geographical partitioning of their territories. Wherever the territorial integrity of States was threatened we have supported the States under attack, and we have made the necessary sacrifices to ensure respect for the principle of territorial integrity. 41. We are deeply attached to this principle, which has been proclaimed by the General Assembly in its resolutions 1514 (XV)" and 1541 (XV), particularly since some others, wishing to forget or even reject it, have long been exposing our own territorial integrity to all the dangers familiar to this Assembly. 42. My country has in fact learned the full importance of~ the principle of the territorial integrity of States and has passionately defended that principle because we ourselves underwent an occupation that might have led to the creation af a number of pseudo-States on our territory. 43. But thanks to the determination of the Moroccan people and to the vigilance of our King, His Majesty Hassan lI, the Kingdom of Morocco, like other countries facing the same difficulties, is reunifying its territory and recovering its territorial integrity. 44. With regard specifically to the question of the Comoros, the Moroccan delegation would recall that after 1960, in the light of the aspirations to freedom and independence of the Comorian people, France recognized the internal autonomy of the archipelago as a whole. Moreover, the Joint Declaration on the Accession to Independence of the Comoro archipelago, signed on 15 June 1973 in Paris, referred to the archipelago of the Comoros without mentioning any exception whatever as applying to any part of the territory. The intention to respect the territorial integrity of the Comoros was, furthermore, confmned by France's highest authority. The Pre';ident of the French Republic, Mr. Giscard d'Estaing, stated on 24 October 1974: "The population [of the Comoros] is homogeneous ... was it reasonable to imagine that a part of the archipelago should become independent and that one island, whatever sympathy one might have for its inhabitants, should retain a different status? "... The Comoros are a single unit, they have always been a single unit, and it is natural that their fate should be a common fate, even if some of them ... may have wanted a different solution. "On the occasion ofthe attainment ofindependence by a territory, it is not for us to propose to shatter the unity of what has always been the sin,gle Comoro archipela.so." This further underlines the gra\tity of any disregard of this principle. 46. But in fact the resolution does not limit itself to issuing a warning against this possible' error; it solemnly proclaims that such an act woula undermine the very foundations of the Organization. 47. The Government 6f the Comoros, which seems to be going through the same process as we in Morocco did, will be able, through the determination of its people and the far-sightedpess of its leaders, to emerge triumphant from the trials through which the archipelago is now passing. We look to the future with confidence, and we hope that FraJ;lce, whose responsibility and duty is to help the fledgung Comorian State to develop and grow, v/ill strive through dialogue to fmd the solution that will guarantee to the'Comoros its political unity and territorial integrity. 48. France can only appear greater in the eyes of Africa and of the Comorian people if, remaining true to itself, it reaches an agreement with a State whose role is to co-operate with France in friendship and mutual esteem. 49. May I make an appeal to France that the leaders of today should remain true to the spirit of their predecessors, to the principles with which those predecessors enriched the heritage of mankind, and to the virtues which have consolidated the dignity of man and his sense of honour and duty. 50. There have been certain references to a dialogue now taking place between the Government of France and that of the Comoros. We hope that dialogue will lead to a solution that will meet the just claim of the Government in Moroni.

The Chinese delegation has listened to the statements by the representatives of the Comoros and of the other countries on the question of the Comorian island of Mayotte. We would like to avail ourselves of this oppor- tunity to present some ofour views. 52. To attain independence and national liberation, the people of the Comoros waged a protracted struggle against the colonialists. On 6 July 1975 the Comoros emerged as an independent nation and becam~ a member of the OAU, as wen as a Member of the United Nations. This is an important victory won by the people of Comoros and all the peoples of Africa in their struggle against imperialism and colonialism. 53. However, today, more than two years after its independence, the island of Mayotte, an inalienable part of the territory.of the Comoros, has not yet been returned to the Comoros. As is well known, the Comoros is made up of the four islands of Anjouan, MayoUe, Moheli and Grande- 55. Tl].e Chinese Government and people have always sympathized with and supported the just struggle of the Government and people of the Comoros for the restoration of the island ofMayotte. In our view, the state sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the Comoros must be safeguarded and respected. The relevant resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly must be implemented in earnest. The island ofMayotte, as an inalienable part of the territory of the Comoros, must be returned to the Comoros. .

The General Assembly is now resuming at this session its con'sideration of the question of the island of Mayotte, which is part of the Comoro archipelago. This is item 125 of the agenda. A large number of representatives have spoken from this rostrum to affirm their support for the reintegration of that island, which was lost between the Territory's dependence and its independence. All have spoken in favour of its sovereignty and the fact that it should be returned to the motherland. 57. In the course of this discussion regarding what the international community will determine is going to happen to the island in the future, it is a matter of some gratification to my delegation to think' back a bit, to the thirtieth session of the General Assembly, when in 197'5 the General Assembly adopted a historic resolution, 3385 (Xxx), which stated "that the Comoros should be admittt;d to membership in the United Nations". Let us cast our minds back to the month of February 1976, when the President of that young Arab State submitted a complaint to the Security Council' against the French Government,7 which at that time was organizing a separate referendum for MayoUe, one of the four islands whic~ make up the Comoro archipelago. That referendum was considered at the time a flagrant interference in the affairs of the country because in 1974 a general referendum had been organized covering the four islands of the archipelago and at that time an overwhelming majority of the Comorian 59. Nevertheless, the draft resolution,S prepared and sponsored by a number of friendly and non-aligned countriesinthe Se(.~urityCouncil, never saw the light of day. Although we live in an enlightened age, a fact which has made it possible for national liberation movements to score a number of victories, and although in the last quarter of this century we have seen that people's struggles for liberation have been crowned with success, a veto prevented that draft resolution from being adopted. 60. We do not want to review here all the irrefutable arguments-very valid ones-which have been put forward by the representatives who have preceded me. My dele- gation does not wish to go into the background of the question of Mayotte; nor do we wish to review how this problem came into being or how it has evolved. We shall limit ourselves to the results of this affair, which, within the Fren~h Government, represents a simple conflict between the executive and legislative branches; which in the Comorian Government represents interference in the in- ternal affairs of the country; and which, for the inter- national community, is a question of the destiny of a country. This is a problem which can only be discussed in accordance with the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter. 61. Last year the General Assembly adopted, by a majority of 102 votes to I-that of France-resolution 31/4 denouncing both of the referendums which held in Mayotte were organized by the French forces in the archipelago in February and April 1976, and that resolution states that both of these referendums are null and void. Furthermore, that resolution, adopted on 21 October 1976, requested France to withdraw immediately from the island of Mayotte and to initiate negotiations with the Comorian Government in order to implement that resolution. 62. A year has elapsed since then and these negotiations have made no progress. As yet, the French have not withdrawn. 63. In contributing to this discussion on Mayotte, my delegation is doing so in accordance with principles which we have had occasion frequently to advert to in inter- national meetings and political bodies. These principles are as follows. 64. First, the people of the Comoros is indivisible and represents an integral and complete unity from the polit- ical, geographical and human points of view. This is a point which was made, furthermore, in the referendum of 8 Ibid., document 8/11967. 65. Secondly, any constitutional or jUridical argument advanced by France on the basis of these two referendums organized in 1976 cannot convince us, because these arguments do not square with the political and human evolution of the present-day world. Furthermore, those arguments were rebutted by the resolution which was adopted by the Fifth Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Co~tries, which recently met in Colombo. My country, I would remind you, is a member of this movement. The resolution adopted by the non- aligned countries held that the steps taken by France were in fact tantamount to aggression against the Comorian people, and against their national unity and their inde- pendence. 66. Thirdly, this attitude was also taken by the majority of the States members of the international community. Proof of this is the support expressed for the Comorian cause and the efforts and good offices which have been offered these last two years by the Arab League and the Islamic Conference, the OAU and the group of non-aligned countries. I hardly need to reiterate what our African and Arab brothers have already stated in their speeches when describing the efforts which have been made by these political, regional and continental organizations to ensure that the dialogue between France and the Comoros proceeds on a sound basis in accordance with the principles of justice and the principles contained in all international instruments. 67. Fourthly, my delegation wishes, at the same time, to voice our sincere desire to see France, which in contem- porary history has been considered as the cradle ofhuman freedoms, human rights and political freedoms since the advent of the great French revolution, act in harmony with these principles which have been enunciated. In fact, France has taken very positive attitudes in Asia and Africa in the last half of the twentieth century, and we hope that it will continue to respect these principle~ and values. 68. We would urge our friend, the French Government, to respect these principles in any dialogue between France and the Comoros aimed at settling the problem of the island of Mayotte on the basis of respect for the sovereignty of the Comorian islands and the human and geographical integrity of this territory. We would urge it to withdraw its forces from Mayotte, and thus to make a further contribution to what it has already done for human and cultural affairs and for human civilization. All this would be very praiseworthy. 69. My country wishes to become a sponsor of draft resolution A/32/L.12, which was distributed yesterday morning. We would request the Secretary-General and the General Assembly to take note of this wish of ours in due form [see A/32/L.12/Add.2].