A/32/PV.69 General Assembly

I should like to remind represen- tatives that the General Assembly decided, at its 5th plenary meeting on 23 September 1977, that organizations having a special interest in the question ofapartheid should be permitted to be heard by the Special Political Com- mittee. In this conn~xion, I should like to inform the Assembly that the following organiz~tions have requested to be heard on agenda item 27: Cons.~il quehecois de la paix; Continuation Committe~ of the World Conference against Apartheid, Racism nnd Colonialism in Southern Africa; National Alliance agJinst Racist and Political Re- pression; National Conference of Black Lawyers; Panafrican Youth Movement; and World Peace Council. Accordingly, I will request the Chairman of the Special Political Com- mittee to arrange his CClmmittee's workin such a way as to enable those organizations to speak on agenda item 27 in the Committee tomorrow, Wednesday, 16 November, in the morning. There will be no plenary meeting tomorrow morning. 2. I should also like to inform the Assembly that, following a decision taken by the Special Committee against Apartheid at its 358th meeting on 1 November 1977, two fIlms dealing with the situation in South Africa will be shown during the debate on the question of apartheid. Th£ fIrst fIlm, entitled "Law Breakers", will last 30 minutes and will be shown in this hall tomorrow at 10 a.m. The Special Political Committee will meet imIne- NEW YORK diately thereafter in this hall to hear the organizations having a special interest in this item. The second film, entitled "The Rising Tide", will last 43 minutes and will be shown in this hall on Thursday, 17 November, at 9.45 am. before the plenary meeting. 3. The iust speaker for this morning is the representative of the African National Congress of South Africa. I give him the floor in accordance with the decision taken by the General Assembly at its 5th plenary meeting.

Mr. President, allow me to extend, on behalfof our President, Oliver Tambo, warm greetings and sincere apologies to you and to all the representatives gathered in this Assembly. He apologizes fOf his fallure to be with you today owing to pressing obligations dictated by the rapidly unfolding situation in our i:ountry. 5. Mr. President, the task assigned to mp. by our National Executive Committee, to congrntuIate you on your election to this eminent post, gi~res me great pleasure. Your experience ·md dedication to the cauSe of human progress in general and African liberation, in parUcular, is well known. You represent a country which, in the str.~.ggle against nazism, produced unsurpassed heroes and paid tremendous sacrifice in defer-ce ofthe universally cherish.ed goal of freedom. Our people and our movement, the Afric2l1 National Congress, takes great pride in Yugoslavia's example. The indefatigable role of your great leader in the non-aligned movement is long and distinguished. It is for these reasons that we are confident that, under your presidency, the deliberations of this important debate will be crowned with success commensurate to the expectations ofourpeople and progressive mankind. 6. It is the second time in the history of the United Nations that the African National Congress ofSouth Mrlca is accorded the opportunity to address the General As- sembly. To us this further testifies to the importance that the United Nations attaches to the proJlem ofapartheid, which it has declared its special responsibility. And it is of historic significance that this year 1977 marks the twenty- fifth anniversary of the nebate on apartheid by the United Nations-an event which followed the arrest of 8,500 African National Congress leaders and activists dUring the defiance campaign launched on 26 June 1952 and as a result of the request by the African National Congress to the late Pandit Nehru, whose birthday, 14 November, coincides with the beginning of this debate. It is equally significant that 7 November, the date initially set aside for the opening of this debate, also marked an important occasion, the ilfteenth anniversary of the sentencing to life imprisonment of Nelson Mandela, later joined by Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki, Ahmed Katltrada, A'rthur Goldberg 8. The African National Congress would like to seize this opportunity to. salute the representatives of Viet ~am, the Lao People's Democratic Republic and DemocratIc Kam- puchea, whose glorious struggle was a beacon and examplar and proved, once again, the old troth that just struggles are mutually self-supportive. We also cannot overemphasize the historic importance of the successful struggles waged by our comrades-in-arms, the brotherly peoples of Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and Angola. This victory changed the geo- politics of the region and exposed the inherent vulnerability of the white supremacist redoubt. The imperialist stmtegy, which was based on the continued existence ofPortuguese coIonial domination, of the lan Smith illegal regime and of racist South Africa's vaunted impregnable military and economic power, was decbively smashed.· Smce ~~n, the imperialist Powers, detennined to preserve theIr mono- polistic interesis ID the region, are now scrambling for new positions, using new methods and flying new banners. 9. The events of 16 June last year, which started as the rejection of slave education, have escalated to a general revolt against the entire system of apartheid and have plunged the country into a general crisis. Daily, parents, workers and peasants .have, through individual and collec- tive efforts demonstrated an unequolled zeal and deter- , . . mination to win their freedom. Schools, Bantustan mstitu- tions, police stations, police informers and agents have all been ta'iets for destru~ion. With the soaring inflation and deepening economic crisis, the country is, for the first time in its history, facing the problem of unemployment within the white working class. The colossal expenditure on anns has exacerbated the regime's balance-of-payments problem. The colonial war the r~gime is waging in the illegally occupied Namibia is draining its manpower and causing a haemorrhage of its shaky fmancial and manpower re- sources. This is further aggravated by its full-scale military and economic support of the lan Smith illegal regime. Added to this is the extremely costly invasion of Angola and continued military and fmancial backing of Uniio Nacional para a Independencia Total de Angola against the People's Republic of Angola. IQ. We highlight these developments in order to show the momentous nature of the recent decision taken by the South African regime~ which has called for the all-white general elections a year before they were due in order to ride the wave of panic and repression that has reached an unprecedented height in the country. 11. Faced with the growing and daring activity of our underground militants at a time when its informer infra- structure is in shamblp~, the regime no longer stops at 12. The continuing upsurge is not accidental, as our President, Oliver Tambo, stated in Lagos: "They are born of hush realities of the pernicious system and mark a new and decisive chapter in the long and bitter struggle led by the African National Congress. No people who are prepared to sacrifice their lives for their inalienable right to self-determination can ever be suppressed and subdued even by the most powerful military monster." 13. It was Victor Hugo, the eminent French philosopher, who stated that the on ,} thing that was stronger than all the armies of the world was an idea whose time had come. The workers' upsurge which pre9E'ded the student uprising confmns this old truth. 14. There has been a fallacious assumption about the recent and ongoing development in South Africa. It was suggested that this represented the break with and rejection of the traditional leadership and a new and alternative force. But today we are happy to note that there is a general awareness and acceptance of the fact that these are but ccrrents in the broad mainstream whose vanguard is the African Natior..aI Congress and its allies. In South Africa, since the advent of the white invader and settler, every generation has fimnd itself in duty bound to raise the sacred and historic struggle to ever higher levels. Chiel Albert Luthuli, our late beloved President, told our people that our struggle would always demand "courage that rises with danger". The youth of Soweto, Queenstown, Cape Town, Port Elizabath and other parts of our country, joined by their coloured and Asian compatriots, are only responding to Luthuli's call. When the annals ofthis era are written, it will be said that this was indeed a glorious hour. 15. After the Vorster regime had murdered Steven Biko and summarily outlawed 18 organizations and proscribed the publishing of The World and arrested its editor, Percy Qoboza, and banned Donald Woods, editor of the East London Daily Dispatch, the Security Council convened an emergency meeting. After more than a week of delibera- tion, the United States, the United Kingdom and France vetoed three of the four draft resolutions introduced by the African group on 29 March this year.1 They were joined in that hostile act by Canada and the Federal Republic of Germany. That diplomatic defence of the Pretoria regime, whose system of apartheid has been condemned by the international community through the United Nations as a crime against humanity, is taken very seriously by the African National Congress, the oppressed and struggling people ofSouth Africa and progressive mankind. 16. The pompous virtue displayed after the adoption of the symbolic mandatory anns embargo should not be 17. In the past 20 years investments from those countries and members of the European Economic Community made them full partners of and accomplices in apartheid, and they enjoy all the economic super-profits drawn from the sweat and blood of our people. Today the Vorster regime has-rightly or wrongly-openly dared those countries to impose economic sanctions. "Pik" Botha, the regime's Foreign Minister, is reported by The St31' of 15 October to have said that if economic sanctions were imposad on South Africa, Pretoria would fmally say to the world: "Go to hell". In the meantime the regime has invoked sweeping measures to compel and control t)le production ofstrategic goods on a war-time basis by the multinational corporations operating in South Africa. The question that we now pose to the United States, the United Kingdom and France, taking into account their veto record and their usual claim of being in possession of powerful economic leverage, is this, Are they going to let the multinational corporations under their jurisdiction comply with Vorster's repressive and aggressive program.lle? Was that part of the plan that they consciously pursued in violating the United Nations resolutions calling for the withdrawal ofinvestments? 18. We mention these developments to underline the weakness of the "mandatory arms embargo" recently adopted by the Security Council in its resolution 418 (1977). Th;} triple veto exercised on the three draft resolutions calling for mandatory economic sanctions and the withdrawal of investments reveals not only the moral obtuseness of those Powers but also their hostility to the aspirations of the African cause. The battle lines are clearly drawn in southern Africa and in South Africa itself and the situation demands immediate and decisive action and cannot be mitigated by sanctimonious virtue and meaning- less gestures. 19. The position of the African National Congress since 1959, when, through its late President Albert Luthuli, it called for economic sanctions, revealed its consciousness of the fact that these measures could only complement our struggling people's own efforts. The success of our revolu- tion, as our President, Oliver FTambo, has stated on numerous occasions, can only be the product of our own 20. There is also some talk in certain circles to the effect that the isolation and ostracism of the apartheid regime only serves to push the so-called Afrikaner back into the laager. The analogy of the laager episode is used to confuse international opinion and to justify CC!ntinued economic, military and nuclear collaboration. The battle of the so-called Blood River from which this amlogy is taken was but an episode in the expansionist wars ofcolonization and European settlement. Since then, and thanks to imperialist collaboration, the successive minority regimes have con- solidated the most anachronistic racist ~stem the world has ever known. And the analogy of 't!le laager is used to conceal this fact. - ".~.. 21. The relevant and appropriate analogy is in fact the Great Trek and not the laager. The Great Trek of 1835 and 1836 was the Boer reaction to the abolition of the slave trade in 1807 and, ultimately, the abolition of slavery in South Africa in 1834. fu his manifesto the trek leader, Piet Retief, in giving reasons why his party was leaVing the Cape to wage wars of colonial conquest and expropriation, declared: "We shall establish such relations as will .• _ preserve proper relations between master and servant". This was the raison d'Stre for the Great Trek expansionist campaign later articulated by the then President of the Transvaal, Paul Kruger, when he said: The black man had to be taught that ha belonged to the inferior class, which must obey and learn." 22. There is no difference whatsoever between these outrageous policy utterances and what Vorster and his henchmen are saying and planning today. The acts of aggression against the neighbouring African States, and particularly the invasion of the People's Republic of Angola, are proof of expansionism and not the withdrawal into the laager. The same can be said ofVorster's statement that "Nothing is going to prevent us from becoming the leaders of Africa in. every field". This in fact seems to be part of the global imperialist strategy based on arming the apartheid regime in order that it can play the role of gendarme in the subcontinent and bulwark against African freedom-which is called communism in Pretoria and some European capitals. This point is well understood by President Kaunda, who in 1967 declared: "Apartheid is on the offensive. The old commando s!'irit in South Africa is being implemented to extend the boundaries of the influence ofapartheid. The Boer trek is still on and is now instrumental to the v'ider concept~of neo-colonialism, the pillar on which the minority r6gimes fmd their livelihood and derive their confidence." .. "According to their belief it was more"than their arms that made them prevail over the natives and their superiority depended on more than their intelligence or their institu!ions. Their superiority was born of race and faith, a quality divinely given which could not be transmitted to other races or acquired by them. 'The black stinking dogs' as Van Riebeck called them, suffered from an inferiority predestined and irreparable, which flXed their place in society of white man." 24. This has remained the fundamental tenet of the white supremacists from that day to this, and the Dutch Reformed Church, wlrjch with its Calvinistic fundamen- talism and its emphasis on predestination and the writin~3 of the Old Testament, was and rem?.ins the spiritual reek on which apartheid is founded. It was this Church and the Bible which nourished the Trekboer and today provides the spiritual justification ofapartheid and assures its flocks that the laws of the State derive from God and are therefore beyond question. 25. Vorster is invoking this spiritual justification when he dismisses as irrelevant Mr. Jimmy Carter, the President of the United States, presumably together with the leaders of the other Western Powers who tell us they can as his friends persuade Vorster to accept majority rule. The same spiritual justification continuesto nourish the regime in its campaign to engag~ in wanton killing of unarmed demonstrators, including children, as well as the torture and murder of political detainees. 26. When the time comes for it to use genocidal weapons, including the apartheid nuclear bomb-arms the Western countries have supplied and helped to produce internally in order to unleash open aggression beyond its borders-it will still claim this spiritual justification. 27. The Western countries have fooled us for decades now. Th~y cannot fool us for ever. To them we say, there is only one way to cleanse thek indefensible record, and that is immediately to put an end to their deception and duplicity. They must stop blocking the implementation of economic sanctions and a mandatory arms embargo under Chapter VII. They must support the African National Congress, the sole authentic liberation movement in South Africa that spearheads the broad alliance of black patriots and white democrats coinmitted to the creation of a democratic State that will secure the birthright of all the South African people irrespective ofcolour, race, sex or belief. 29. The Western countries and all Member States must resign themselves to the reality that obtains today. They must accept the fact that there can be no peaceful solution to the apartheid problem. They must support the position adopted by the Assembly at its thirty-fIrst session and recognize the legitimacy of the armed struggle for the seizure of power by the people in South Africa. They must all follow the example of the Netherlands and join the NorcUc countries in their progressive move toward aligning themselves with the forces which love justice and peace and whose opposition to apartheid~is translated into concrete action such as political, fmancial and material support to the African National Congress. 30. Finally, it is necessary at this stage to spell out once again what the real issues are in South Africa. There is a tendency in some circles to draw false parallels and analogies regarding our struggle. Our struggle is for the armed overthrow of the apartheid regime, the seizure of power by the people, and for the reconstruction of our society. The Mrican National Congress has always been conscious of the fact that racism is not its own justifIcation but is an instrument to maintain super-exploitation of the black people over the last 500 years. Though racism as a doctrine has assumed a life of its own, it is fIrst and foremost an instrument for an exploitative purpose. The victims, their land and their natural resources are system- atically plundered, exploited and expropriated. The strug- gling people of South Africa, whose status is that of a colonized people, are not only striving for the elimination of excesses of the present system. Those who persistently insist on reformism or peaceful solution are obviously bent on perpetuating the status quo in a disguised and neo- colonialist form. 31. Mr. N'DONG (Gabon) (interpretation from French): The stat~ments that have been made by many delegations since the start of the Assembly's consideration of the question of South Africa have emphasized the international community's impatience at the continuation of a situation which is today becoming more and more vexing. In this debate my delegation-which also represents the current Chairman of the Organization of African Unity [OAUj- could not, of course, remain silent. Because what is at stake is our conception of man, whatever and wherever he may be, Gabon has many reasons to take part, in its turn, in a debate of such importance. 32. Indeed, that special importance of the subject leads me to address myself frrst of all and basically to the ideals which we are defending and which, unfortunately, we see constantly flouted in South Africa. I should like to state here and stress that the Gabonese and all other Africans are implacably opposed to the policy of apartheid. Discrimi- nation, segregation, the separation of human beings are 33. There really remains very little that one can add to what has already been said about apartheid and South Mrica. Nevertheless, I should like to stress some very general considerations. 34. The world has undergone deep and far-reaching transformations since the Second World War. As we all know, that war ended in the defeat of the camp which had found its philosophy on racial segregation, on the aberrant principle of the superiority of certain races over others. The defeat of that camp, while it was and will remain for ever a striking victory of all mankind, a victory for human rights, mould be considered also as an important stage in the irreversible march of the peoples of the whole world towards progress and complete freedom. The end of that conflict revealed to the oppressed peoples the mon3trosity, the horror, the anachronism of their own situation and prompted them vigorOl~31yto resume:.eir own struggle to regain their freedom and dignity and. lO recover control of their destiny. 35. A number of the dominant Powers of that time understood, more or less rapidily, these facts of the contemporary world; some took account of the deep·seated and legitimate aspirations of the oppressed peoples. All were forced, under the pressure of the liberation struggles and international opinion, to bow to the requirements of the time and formally to recognize the inalienable rights of the peoples. Our Organization, founded in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War, greatly contributed to the acceleration of that process.. This is, as no one can doubt, one of its most brilliant claims to glory and also one ofits most outstanding successes. 36. In fact, the choice was and remains clear for the partisans of racial discrimination and colonialism: either they must bring their conduct into line with th;; universal . principles of justice, equality and the rights of men and peoples, or they must deliberately place themselves beyond the pale of mankind by basing their philosophy on injustice, racial discrimination and contempt for the inalien- able rights of individuals and peoples. 37. For its part, the minority racist regime ofSouth Africa has chosen the philosophy of apartheid, politically institu- tionalizing racial discrimination, which is the pure and simple negation offundamental human rights. 38. I need not expatiate on tt ~ foundations of this philosophy of the racist regim~ of South Africa nor on its pernicious day-ta-day manifestations; the speakers who have preceded me have already referred to this in detail and with great clarity, and all those who are familiar with the work of the Special Committee against AparthEid are only ~or this people of peasants and cattle-farmers. 39. Thus, the Africans and the non-whites ofSouth Africa not only are deprived of their rights but also are subjected to blind and merciless repression. It has been said that apartheid is the slavery of the twentieth century. In South Mric:! that system has drawn a "colour demarcation line" which strictly separates 4 million whites from 20 million non-whites, whose political and socio·economic rights are extremely limited and who are- excluded from the conduct of the country~saffairs. 40. Mricans have been assigned 13 per cent of the territory-the so-called tribal lands, Which are the home- lands or bantustans-and they are not rWowed to enter the "white areas", coustituting 87 per cent of tlle country, except in order to meet the needs of the whites, who draw upon this reservoir of cheap labour for their domestic staff, their laoourers, their miners and their agricultural workers. 41. South Africa's proclamation in October 1976 of the bogus independence of the Transkei bantustan marked the hateful triumph of an institutionalized apartheid whose only purpose was to divide the Africans and unilaterally to deprive them of their civil rights-a device that has been denounced by the United Nations. Gabon strongly con- demns all these disgraceful practices. We feel keenly the tragedy visited upon our slighted brothers in South Africa and we wish to testify to our solidarity with them. 42. The Fifth Conference of Heads of State or Govern- ment of Non-Aligned Countries, held in Colombo from 16 to· 19 August 1976, in its resolution on South Africa,2 expressed its total support for the people of South Africa and thP-ir liberation movements in their legitimate cam- paign, waged by every means necessary, including anned struggle, to destroy apartheid and to exercise their inalien- able right to self-determination. It is hardly necessary to repeat that that support was reaff"mned by the twenty- ninth regular session of the Council of Mittisters of the 43. Thus my delegation once again expresses its support for the liberation movements, namely, the African National Congress of South Africa and the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania, whose outstanding role in the fight against racial discrimination, economic exploitation and political oppres- sion is already part of the legendary history of the world's liberation movements. 44. Desperately seeking to destroy the domestic opposi- tion to apartheid, South Africa has resorted more than ever before to abusive measures of oppression, ranging from , political trials and detention-often in secret and without trial-to torture, banishment and, now, to the massacre of schoolchildren and detainees. Notwithstanding that brutal repression, the resistance and the growing awareness ofthe blacks are growing continually. 45. The ruthless massacre of Africans in Sharpeville and other places in South Africa on 21 March 1960 was of crucial importance in the struggle against apartheid. Without doubt, Sharpeville marked a decisive tunrlng-point in the history of the struggle for liberation in South Africa. The painful memory of the Sharpeville, Langa and Van- dervijl Park massacres will remain for ever fresh throughout the world as bloody examples of the barbarism character- isti~ ofapartheid. 46. Today, South Africa is in the grip of the worst political crisis that it has ever known since that date when there was a collective reactic)lt to the political campaign mounted by the blac~ leaders ofthe South African people. Since 16 June 1976,.when the anger of the young blacks exploded after the cold-blooded murder by the police ofa Sowetc schoolboy, all the indications have shown clearly that the masses in South Africa are banding together in a final battle against the hated white racist rule. The continuous demonstrations, in defiance of the gratuitous murder of thousands of schoolchildren and other demon- strators, are sufficient proof that this struggle will continue until colonial domination and apartheid have been over- thrown. 47. Today there can no longer be any doubt that the whites in South Africa are feeling ever more beleaguered. Since the collapse of the colonial r6gimes in Angola and Mozambique and the inevitable prospect of black rule in Rhodesia and Namibia, many of the whites, faced with the black insurrection, are envisaging the moment when they will have to fight for survival with their backs to the sea. While my country has not been opposed in principle to the settlement of whites in South Africa, nevertheless it remains convinced that if that struggle ever reaches that final phase, the chances for the peaceful coexistence of blacks and whites will become minimal. 48. The economic power of the white racists of Pretoria rests upon apartheid. In a country rich in natural resources of all kind~ and equipped with flourishing industry, the majority of black workers and their families live in abject poverty. The institution of reserved labour allows them 50. Large mineral deposits of gold, diamonds, copper, chrome, uranium and so on, ip addition to a cheap labour force, have attracted to South Africa a growing volume of foreign capital, in particular capital from the principal transnational corporations, which have been able to make exceptional profits through the system of exploitation established by apartheid. For example, we know that in 1975 more than 1,500 Western and Japanese companies were active in South Africa in the extractive, and manufac- turing industries; tIl banking and in fmance, and that in the fmancial year 1974.1975, foreign investments in the coun- try amounted to $2.11 billion. 51. Just as'Gabon condemnsapartheid it condemns no less fmnly the countries which, for various reasons, and without the least regard for the pertinent resolutions ofthe Security Council of our Organization, are helping that regime to maintain itself as a result of their co-operation on the economic, cultural, sporting, diplomatic and military levels. 52. All the indications of recent years show that com- panies operating in South Africa continue not only to aid and abet the system of apartheid but also to strengthen it. As a result, for example, of the taxes paid to the South African racist regime, these investments provide th~ white authorities with the means to maintain vast \:oercive machinery, enabling it to keep the black population under its thumb. Once capital has been i.flvested in South Africa, it begins also to encourage trade, which consequently increases its influence. Finally, there is the important questipn oftechnology, and the fact that capital invested in South Africa brings with it the latest technology, which helps to develop the apartheid economy. This transfer of technology, which is not confmed to civilian goods alone, is becoming very substantial in the rapidly growing arms industry in South Africa. In this connexion, the latest resolution of the Security Council, imposing a mandatory arms embargo, is nothing to boast about. The real impact of that resolution on the situation now existing in the country of apaTtheid is insignificant, and will deceive only those who wish to be deceived. The fact is that South Africa has enough licences, patents and contracts to be able to continue confidently its escalation in the field of arma- ments. It is no secret that the white racists of South Africa have already acquired nuclear capacity. 53. Thus the capital invested in South Africa engenders a whole complex of relations, all ofwhich help to strengthen the odious system ofapartheid. 54. My country advocates the total isolation of South Africa in every field-economic, commercial, cultural, sporting, diplomatic and military, because it is widely known that a mandatory arms embargo, coupled with mandatory economic sanctions, would be the mos.t direct and effective means of bringing the apartheid regime to reason. Therefore, to all countries which thus collaborate SS. Racial discrimination in South Africa began with the very Constitution of the Union in 1910 and took institu- tional form in 1948 under the name of apartheid. That racial policy has been denounced and condemned mthe United Nations since the very fust session of the General Assembly in 1946. At successive sessions the General Assembly has adopted clear and categorical resolutions aimed at persuading South Africa to put ~'1. end to its racist practices. The Security Council, for its part, has been considering the policy of apartheid since 1960 and has adopted resolutions recognizin6 that such a policy repre- sents a threat t·~ international peace and security. 56. Nevertheless, throughout this whole period there has been no sign of any real willingness to give up the SO:Jth African policies ofapartheid. 57. In view of this situation Gabon's position must be quite unequivocal. A policy of principle, unt.ainted by self-interest, this Gabonese position remains constant and faithful to decisions long-since taken and incessantly reaffirmed in resolutions of the OAU, the non-aligned countries and the General Assembly ofour Organization. 58. The tragic situation of the black populations ofSouth Africa cannot leave my country indifferent, and Gabon has taken the only road possible-namely, that which permits ofno compromise and no dialogue with that minority racist regime so long as the black populations continue to be ignored and slighted in the name of an alleged racial superiority. While it is true that dialogue is to be recom- mended in relations between States, it is nevertheless necessary to specify its exact aim and purpose where South Africa is concerned. To be credible, dialogue in South Africa must fust of all take place between the Government of the white mmority and the representatives of the nationalist movements ofthe black majority. 59. Be that as it may, given the growing intensity of the struggle of the black South African patriots in response to the massacres which, like Soweto, clearly indicate the fate that Vorster and his clique have in store for the martyred black children of the South African people, all means must be brought into play so that the last bastion ofdomination and humiliation of the African people may be swept away once and for all. 60. In this regard, I would venture to quote a passage from a speech by His Excellency El Hadj Omar Bongo, President 61. In conclusion we should like to express our satisfac- tion at the success of the World Conference for Action againSt Apartheid, held in Lagos, Nigeria, in August 1977. That Conference clearly indicated the modes of, future action to be adopted by the international community in its struggle against apartheid, which our Organization has described as a crime against humanity. That is why my delegation fully and completely endorses, and exhorts the members of the international community to implement, the Programme of Action and the Lagos Declaration for Action against Apartheid. 3

The question ofthe liqUida- tion of the system of apartheid of the Government of South Africa-and of the complex problems of southern Mrica as a whole-is increasingly becoming one of the key issues of international relations. The policies practised by racist regimes, particularly apartheid, constitut~ a grave threat to peace and security not only in that part of the African continent but also more widely. Therefore this debate should encourage further action by the Umted Nations and the international community against apartheid and in favour of a rapid and just solution of the acute problems ofsouthern Africa. 63. The struggle of the oppressed people and the libera- tion movements of South Mrica has entered a new phase. The racist regim~ is trying to crush the resistance of the people by resorting to use of the most brutal methods. Developments since Soweto conf"mn that the people of South Africa are resolutely opposed to the system of apartheid and racial discrimination imposed on them by the racist minority regime. 64. The growing support of the international community and the United Nations for the peoples of southern Africa is becoming an important factor in the struggle for the elimination of apartheid. The International Conference in Support of the Peoples of Zimbabwe and Namibia, held in Maputo in May, and the World Conference for Action against Apartheid, held in Lagos in August-two important gatherings held within the United Nations system-have given fresh impetus' to the struggle for the liberation of southern Africa. 65. The South African racists are today confronted by a serious crisis that has endangered the very foundations of the system of apartheid. However, it is also true that we should not labour under the illusion that, in the absence of genuine will and adequate action on the part of the main 3 See Report of the World Conference f07 Action against Apartheid (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.77.XIV.2), chap. X. 67. In order to maintain the system ofapartheid, Vorster'b regime has stepped up its policy of terror, mass murder, imprisonment and detention of innocent. inhabitants throughout South Xfrica. The most recent acts of brutal repression in South Africa clearly show that one cannot expect that the apartheid regime will abandon its Fascist and racist ideology and practices without being compelled to do so under the concerted action and pressure of all internal and external factors. 68. The international community as a whole has con- demned the policy of bantustanization and the procla- mation of the so-called independence of Transkei. This act of the South African racist regime has not been recognized by a ~gle State in the world. None the less, Vorster is going ahead with his plans and intends to establish a new bantustan in December this yepr against the will of the black population of South Africa and the will of tribal chiefs. The aim pursued by this policy is clear, namely, to fragment the territory of South Africa and to retain wealth and power in the hands of the white racist minority. 69. In contravention of the numerous resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council, South Mrica has extended its system of apartheid to Namibia as well, continuing its illegal occupation of this Territory, which is under the responsibility of the United Nations. Vorster is also violating the sanctions imposed on the illegal racist minority regime ofIan Smith, thus prolonging its existence. This policy of South Africa has been condemned most emphatically by the international community as a whole. 70. The Yugoslav Government has welcomed the una- nimous decision taken by the Security Council on 4 November this year, imposing a mandatory arms embargo on South Africa under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations. We consider it necessary to create an appropriate machinery for following closely the implemen- tation ofthe decision on the arms embargo. 71. The Security Council resolutions on the mandatory arms embargo and on the situation in South Africa represent a concrete step towards the implementation of the provisions of the. declaration adopted at the Maputo Conference4 and the'Lagos Declaration for Action against Apartheid. It is significant that Security Council resolution 417 (I977j branded the Government in Pretoria as a racist regime and called for the eradication of the whole system Y~r, Supplement for JUly, Augustand September 1977, document .5 Fust Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non- S/12344/Rev.l, annex V. Aligned Countrie$. held in Belgrade from 1 to 6 September 1961. 72. At its thirty-fust session, the General Assembly adopted resolution 31/6 K "calling for the cessation of further investments in South Africa. My delegation was one of the sponsors of that resolution, together with other non-aligned and Scandinavian countries. Unfortunately, we must note that very little has been done so far-especially by the main economic partners of the racist regime-to implement the provisions of this resolution. The already existing investlllents in various spheres in South Mrica have become a part of the system of apartheid and decisive efforts should be made to secure withdraw91 ofthis foreign capital. ~ 73. The acquisition by South Africa of nuclear technology for the production of nuclear weapons constitutes a threat to international peace and security. The transfer ofnuclear technology Jo the r apartheid regime places a great respon- sibility on South Africa's partners in this field. 74. Ever since their fust Conference, held in Belgrade in 1961,S the non-aligned countries have strongly condemned the policy of apartheid and racism, and have given their all-out support and their assistance to the peoples of southern Africa in their struggle for self-determination and national independence, as well as for the eradication of all forms of oppression and racism. 75. Dedit.:ated to the policy of peace, YugosJavia has always felt that it was its duty to lend assistance to peoples fIghting for freedom and independence and against colonial- . ism, racism and apartheid. For this reason, Yugoslavia maintains close relations with the liberation movements belonging to the OAU and is lending assistance to theirjust struggle. 76. The adoption of a declaration against apartheid in sports at this session of the Assembly, in the spirit of the decision taken by the Non-Aligned Conference in Colombo, will be an important step towards the isolation of South Africa in international life. The proclamation of 1978 as the International Anti-apartheid Year, in the spirit of the decision taken by the OAU in Libreville, will contribute towards further mobilizing world public opinion for supporting the struggle of the pyoples and liberation movements of South Africa for freedom and self-determi- nation. 77. We are confident that, acting in the interest of peace and security, the world Organization will continue to act resolutely and help the peoples of southern Africa to eradicate the system of..Jpa7fheid and liquidate colonialism.

The discussion by the General Assembly of 80. Racial discrimination and its repulsive offspring, apart- hei1, which has been raised to the rank of State policy in the Republic of South Africa, represents a challenge not only to Africa but to the cause of peace, freedom and progress of all peoples and to the purposes and principles of the United Nations. 81. The existence of the inhuman system of apartheid poisons the entire international atmosphere and creates a dangerous hotbed of tension fraught with danger of explosion. 82. That is why, i& my delegation's view, it is now essential to take the most decisive and effective interna- tional action to help to extirpate apartheid, which has been condemned by the United Nations as a ~rime against humanity. 8~. The collapse ofthe Portuguese colonial empire and the emergence of new progressive States in the south of Africa, the defeat of racist intervention m Angola and the rise c'- the national liberation movements in Namibia and Zim- babwe have considerably weakened the position of the apartheid regime. 84. The struggle against apartheid in South Africa itselfis more and more taking on a mass pan-national character with the participation of representatives of the white population as well. 85. The process· of detente now going on in the world is creating auspicious conditions for the triumph of the just cause of the oppressed people of South Africa. That people's struggle tr: bring down the last remaining bastions of coloniaiism on African soil, to extirpateapartheid and to create a society based on the equality ofpeople irrespective of skin cO~uur is unquestionably ofenormous international significance, and it is no accident that the liberatio!l struggle of the people of South Africa enjoys the ever- growing moral and material support of a number of different States and ofworld opinion. 86. Judging from everything, the struggle for the elimina- tion of apartheid and the emancipation of the South African people from the racist yoke is entering a decisive phase. It is perfectly obvious that the apartheid regime has no future and can have no future. 87. However, contrary to logic and common sense, the racists are making desperate efforts to drag out the existence of the shameful system ofapartheid and to turn back the wheel ofhistory. 89. On 12 Sepi~mber of this year a courageous fighter for the freedom of the people of South Africa,. Steven Biko, died in a Pretoria'gaol at the hands of the racist butchers. But the cause to which he devot'3d his life cannot be destroyed. 90. The racists initiated a new wave ofrepression towards the end nf October. Many hundreds of participants in peaceful protest demonstrations have been thrown into the racist, Fascist dungeons. Organizations and newspapers that have dared to speak out against apartheid have been banned. 91. One cannot help seeing that the terrorist measure. of the racist regime are closing the way to peaceful negotia- tions, leaving to South African patriots and democrats no alternative but to take up 8IDlS. 92. The Pre~~.:iaregime, in order to strengthen and extend the system ofapartheid and to divide the African peopl~s, is continuing its treacherous policy of bantustanization which has been condemned by the international com- munity. Persisting in spite of the collapse of th~ notorious plot in connexion with the proclamation of the "indepen- dence" of the Transkci, Pretoria hes now declared its int~ntion to grant pseudo-independence to two further bantustans-Bophuthatswana and Vendal~!ild. 93. My delegation considers that the problem ofapartheid cannot be reduced solely to the qu~stionofhuman rights in the Republic of South Africa. The Pretoria regime's policy of rnilitarization and ofwhipping up tension is fraught with real danger to peace and security on the African continent as a whole. 94. The apartheid regime is in essence conducting feverish preparations for war, building up its armed forces and its military and industrial potential, which are used to suppress the liberation movement of the oppressed people ofSouth Africa, to continue the unlawful occupation of Namibia and to mount aggression against neighbouring States.It is characteristic that in· the past 10 years alone Pretoria's military expenditures have increased fIfteenfold. 95. A matter of particular alarm to the international community is the efforts ofthe racists once again, with the co-operation of a number of Western Powers, to create a nuclear industry and to secure nuclear weapons. A nuclear arsenal in the hands of the racist regime would of course represent a direct threat and not only to Africa. 96. The international community must not allow the atomic bomb to fall into the hands of bestial racists. Unquestionably there must be an end to all co-operation with the Republic ofSouth Africa in the nuclear field. 98. 'The ruling circles of those Powers, while continuing to condemn apartheid in words, in fact contL"1ue to give it political, economic and military support. The transnational corporations and banking syndicates ofthe Western Powers, prompted by their own Selfish motives and the wish to secure fabulous profits from the exploitation of the local population, ate conducting broad economic ca.operation with the awtheid regime by"making loans and investments, expanding tr~;de and so forth. 99. It is no seere" that a number of Western Powers see Sot.:th Africa through the prism of their own military strategic purposes. . . 100. Imperialism has an interest in preserving the apart- heid regime as a force to be used against the national liberation movements and the revolutionary struggle of the Mricm peoples. 101. That is why we consider that one of the pre-condi- tions for the early elimination of apartheid is the cessation ofany complicity with the racists. 102. The United Nations is called upon to play a major role in the extirpation of apartheid and it has in f~ct been engaged with the problem for over three decades. 103. While we consider as a positive step the recent decision of the Security Council for the immediate intra. duttion of a mUldatory embargo on amlS shipments to the Republic of South Africa, we must at the same time note that that measure by itself alone is not sufficient, in view of the already substantial military potential of the racist regime. 104. We aLo wish to express our regret that the Security Counc~ having discussed the situation in the south of Africa, was unable, because ofthe veto cast by the Western Powers, to adopt the draft resolution introduced by the group of African countries, which envis:ged measures for enOing economic co-operation with the apartheid regime. 10S. My delegation s):l.3!~~the view th~t the time has come to apply against the apahtletd regime economic and other mandatory sanctions in accordance with the provisions of Chapter VII ~fthe United Nations Charter. 106. It is of the utmost importance that the United - Nations resolutions onapartheid, and flISt and foremost the programme of action against apartheid adopted by the General Assembly at its thirty-first: session{resolution 31{6, annexl, should be strictly implemented. We hope that at the present session the General Assembly will express its full support for the Lagos Declaration on action against apartheid and will take appropriate ,easures to imple- ment it. 107. My delegation would like to take note of the energetic activity of the Special Committee against Apart- --- 108. We have carefully studied the report of the Special Committee submitted to this session [A{32{22 and Add.1-31 and express our approval of its main conclusions and recommendations. 109. It is gratifying to note that international solidarity with the national liberation movement in South Africa is entering a new phase, as is indicated by, among other things, the results of the International Conference in Support of the Peoples of Zimbabwe and Namibia, held in Maputo, and the World Conference for Action against Apartheid, held in Lagos. 110. In conditions in which the racist and Fascist terror is rife in South Africa, it is the duty of the international community to step up its material and moral support for the struggle of the oppress~dpeople ofSouth Africa against apartheid. 111. We must work for an ending ofth.e illegal occupation of Namibia by the South African racists, so that the people of that country may fulm their aspirations to freedom and independence. 112. At the same time we cannot pass over in silence the neo.-colonialist manoeuvres of the racists and their protec- tors that m-e trying through cosmetic corrections to the hideQus face of apartheid to preserve the essentially rotten existence of the regime. 113. The position of my country on this question was clearly set forth in the message from Coprade Y. Tseden- bal, the F~t Secretary of the Central Committee of the Mongolian r~ople's Revolutionary Pa~· and Chairman of the Presidium of the Great People's Khural of the Mongo- lian People's Republic sent to the World Conference for Action against Apartheid which took place in Lagos in August of 'this year. The message stated: "The Mongolian People's Republic has consistently advocated speediest elimination of the shameful system of apartheid and expresses its full solidarity with the peoples of southern Africa fighting to do away with the last hotbeds of colonialism and racism."6 114. On the basis of this policy of principle, my country strongly condemns the repression and terror unleashed by the South African racists against' the opponents of apart- heid. My country unswervingly supports tI-l:: liberation struggle of the oppressed peoples of South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe. 115. We are convinced that the hour is not far offwhen in the south of Africa the last vestiges of colonialism and racism will be completely eIiminat.ad. That will be an event of great importance in international life and will contribute to the strengthening of peace throughout the world. 6 See Report of the World Conference for A'ction against Apartheid (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.77.XIV.3), p.39. 117. An answer to these queries is probably as disquieting as the reasons which have led to the present situation. For, even while we are deliberating here today, the perpetrators of apartheid in Pretoria seem to be embarking on new ventures to consolidate the reign of their shameful policies. The recent police raids against the opponents ofapartheid, new mass arrests, drastic curbs and the banning of a score of South African organizations and publications show only too well how little heed they are ready to pay to the voice of the world's indignation. They act as ifthey realized that in the fmal resort what they can expect for their crimes.will at the most be some new "warning signals" or "pres~ure with understanding". 118. The last 30 years have provided ample evidence of what apartheid is and what it is not. It is certainly neither a policy of separate development nor one of plural demo- cracy, terms which already in th~mselvesimply an outright contempt for a society's sacred right to develop into one, equally treated entity. It is, though, a policy of domination of race by race in its most abhorrent and degenerate form. As- an officially and legally recognized crime against humanity, it therefore violates and tramples underfoot all United Nations conventions, covenants and declarations concerning human rights in their broadest sense. It is an open challenge to the world, an affront to the conscience of mankind, and will remain so until the legitimate interests of the indigenous population of South Africa are fully respected. 119. The far-reaching causes of the situation in and around South Africa continue to be both internal and external. 120. On the domestic front, they derive from th~ policies of the Pretoria regime, which keeps three quarters of the country's population totally excluded from the mainstream of its national life and.its rich resources, by regarding the oppressed as mere subhumans. Sharpeville, C \)weto, Steve Biko and the many who died in jail without leing charged, are only a few of the many symbols of massacres, imprisonments, detentions and prosecutions in South Africa. They give unequivocal testimony of the magnitude of racial terror in South Africa that should never be lost sight of among trivial aspects of petty apartheid as segregation alone. 122. The sum total of those underlying internal and external causes accounts for the fact that the policies of apartheid continue to be a serious trIeat to international peace, especially in Africa. The Pretoria regime keeps it deliberately smouldering. 123. Th~t regime violates the territorial integrity ofSouth Africa by Nazi-like methods of bantustanization. It builds up its military potential and reaches for nuclear weapons, thus intensifying the direct threat to the independence of African States. Its well-known aggression against the People's Republic of Angola and the constant peril it represents vis-a-vis the other front-line States are only some of the cases in point. Similar dangers to the peace and security of the peoples of Africa are inherent in the illegal occupation of Namibia as well as in .the Pretoria regime's open collusion with its self-styled opposite number in Salisbury, which hampers the long overdue transfer of all power in Zimbabwe to the genuine forces of the country, led by its Patriotic Front. Last but not least, come the well-established links and co-operation between South Africa and Israel. 124. There is only one road for effecting a real change in the policies of apartheid short of bloodshed and despera- tion. It is that of faithful implementation of relevant United Nations resolutions and concerted action by the world community. That road has always been unswervingly followed by the socialist States which were, are and will remain the most ~onsistent and determined allies of the African peoples in their efforts to eradicate apartheid. The numerous initiatives of the socialist States and their share in the working out of such documents as the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights [resolution 2200 A (XXIJI, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination[resolution 2106 A (XX)] and the International Convention on the Suppression and Punish- ment of the Crime of Apartheid [resolution 3068 (XXVIII)], represent only a part oftheir over-all and continued contribution to the cause of combating apartheid. 7 Adopted on 26 June 1955 by the Congress of the People of South Africa at Klipton. See Objective: Justice, vot. 2, No. 1 (January 1970), pp. 44 and 45. • 126. Faithful to the letter and spirit ofall United Nations resolutions on the policies of apartheid. Poland sees the Lagos Declaration for Action Against Apartheid as a significant contribution to the Decade for Action to Combat Racism and Racial Discdmination. Its important provisions. will enrich our over-all efforts to provide assistance to the victims of oppression and lend support to their national liberation movements in their legitimate struggle to eliminate apartheid and to obtain the inalienable right to self-determination of the South African people as a whole; they will guide our extensive programme of public information on a national and mtemational level. 127. It is on such premises that the Polish delegation supports the relevant recommendations ofthe report of the Special Committee against Apartheid [A/32/22 and Add.1-3j before us and will vote in favour of draft resolutions which will give effect to their prompt imple- mentation and fully sanction the legitimate struggle of the South African people for its freedom and human equality.

The question of the policy of apartheid of the racist Government of South Africa has been on the agenda of our Organization for many years now. Notwithstanding the best efforts of the United Nations, of the peoples of Africa and of progressive forces throughout the world, this policy, which is the most flagrant violation offundamental human rights and of the main principles of the United Nations Charter, continue to be a blot on the escutcheon of mankind. 129. As was recently once again stressed from this rostrum [19th meetingj by the Foreign Minister of my country, Bohuslav Chiioupek, the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic decisively condemns the policies of apartheid of South Africa and fully supports the decisions taken by the World Conference for Action Against Apartheid. recently held in Lagos. J30. That Conference eloquently demonstrated that all anti-imperialist and progre~e forces in the world strongly favour the speedy elimination of the shameful system of racist oppression and the criminal policy of apartheid pursued by the racist Vorster regime. The Conference also unmasked all those that 'are giving support to the hateful racist regimes. At the Conference, they were sharply criticized, condemned and warned by a whole series of States and genuine representatives of national liberation movements in southem Africa. It is time to put an end to a situation in which, contrary to the decisions of our 131. It must also be said that that criminal regime would. long since have ceased to exist had all States Members of the United Nations acted in accordance with the decisions taken by our Organization and ceased giving th~ regime any support. The wealth of evidence available to our Organiza- tion indicates that the imperialist States and monopolies are continuing thE;ir co-operation with the Vorster Govern- ment, thus preventing the adoption of effective measures against the apartheid regime. Another manifestation of this was _the recent veto cast by Western members of the Security Council of the draft resolutions of the African countries calling for the imposition of the necessary sanctions against the South African racists. 132. I should also like to draw attention to the United Nations document on co-operation between South Africa and Israel [A/32/22/Add.3/. 133. The present situation in South Africa, where murders, terror and police lawlessness are continuing, and also the situation in southern Africa as a whole, which is a danger to independent African States and to world peace, require the adoption of the most decisive and urgent measures by the United Nations and its appropriate organs. Our Organization must embark on the adoption of effective enforcement measures as provided in Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter and thus show the racist Vorster regime that the international community and the States Members of the United Nations will no longer condone the policies ofapartheid. 134. The recent decision by the Security Council on a mandatory embargo on arms shipments to South Africa, adopted in accordance with Chapter VII of the Charter, is unquestionably an important step in that direction. How- ever, it has been rightly noted that that decision was taken too late, if we bear in mind the military, industrial and economic potential that South Africa already has. The decision must therefore be regarded as a starting·point for further mtensification of the struggle for comprehensive and energetic measures against the ap,artheid regime. 135. My delegation attaches great importance to the demand for an end to all nuclear co-operation with the racist regime of Pretoria. The existing capacity to develop nuclear weapons and the preparations for their manufacture in South Africa represent, as was stressed in the majority of statements made at the Lagos Conference too, a threat to peace and security not only in southern Africa but throughout the world. Those statements were no exaggera- tion in view of the aggressive nature of the Vorster Government's foreign policy. 137. In the report of the Lagos Conference it is rightly noted that the struggle of the people of South Africa and Namibia for freedom and independence has reached a historic stage where the main role must be played by the oppressed people under the leadership of the appropriate national liberation movements. The African population of South Africa and Namibia can never compromise or give away their basic rights. Neither can they ever agree to the policy of apartheid, no matter how cleverly disguised. Last year's farce involved in the proclamation of the so-called independent Transkei showed that the Vorster regime is desperately seeking new ways and means of defending and perpetuating its inhuman policies-thus both the member- ship of the United Nations and the international com- munity have categorically rejected the transparent plans of Pretoria, and we must now press for the complete isolation of the racist regime of South Africa and for the ccmplete elimination of the shameful policies of racial discrim- ination. 138. The Czechoslovak Government, together with other socialist States, takes an un\ hanging position of principle on the policy of apartheid. The monstrous system of racial segregation is something we not only condemn in words but struggle against actively. My country consistently complies with all the resolutions of the United Nations calling for the boycott of the racist regime of South Africa. On the basis of the United Nations appeal, Czechoslovakia, as long ago as 1963, broke off all relations with that country. In 1975 Czechoslovakia signed and ratified the International Con- vention on the Suppression and Punishment ofthe Crime of Apartheid, adopted by the General Assembly on 30 November 1973 [resolution 3068 (XXVIII)J. The Czecho- slovak Government has for many years now been giving concrete assistance and support to the national liberation movements in the southern part of Africa. As well as the material and humanitarian support being given by the Government of Czechoslovakia, help is also being given by Czechoslovak public institutions and organizations. The mass media in Czechoslovakia are giving wide publicity to the shameful policies of the racist regimes and giving moral support to the national liberation struggle of the oppressed peoples. ..t 139. Next year, which has been proclaimed by our Organization as International Anti-Apartheid Year, my country intends to do everything possible in all spheres to increase its assistance and support to the oppressed people of South Africa and their national liberation movement. 140. In conclusion, I should. like, on behalf of my Government, to express our sincere admiration and recogni-

The oppression in South Africa ofthe black majority has not ceased; on the contrary it has increased. The recent actions taken by the South Mrican Government and police are tragic reminders ofthe intransigence and foolishness of the ·South African racist regime. It is tragic because through its measures the apartheid regime is trying to silence many of those black leaders who are cormmmding respect and influence within the majority in South Africa. If the South African Government wanted to embark on a road of peaceful negotiations, thereby shaping the future ofSouth Africa, its action could not have been worse. By imprisoning, banning and punishing those who could talk for the majority, the South Mrican Government has deprived itself of a chance to fmd somebody to negotiate with. The white regime has also deprived the country of many of those who could be the leaders of future peaceful transition into majority rule. 142. Through its deeds, the regime is making a peaceful process infmitely more difficult and distant. Instead it is bringing a situation ofinescapable violence closer than ever. The South African regime does not seem to understand that, by depriving the majority of the South African people of its voice and its means of expression, the urge for democracy and a decent human life will instead be forced to fmd an outlet in action. With every r~pressive act, the apartheid regime is breeding violence·and hatred that in the end may turn against it and explode into a racial war. 143. We have also witnessed during the last few years how the new generation of the non-white population has taken the lead in protesting against the racist policy ofapartheid. The schoolchildren in the black townships and the black students are the future of South Africa. They are living proof tllat there is no future for white oppression and that the apartheid system is doomed. 144. Reports from South Africa also convey the disturb- ing infonnation that the white liberals, especially the white students who could have been the voice of reason among the white minority, have been silenced almost completely in resignation and despair. With the disappearance also of that moderating influence, the gulf between the whites and the non-whites is further widening. 145. The policies of apartheid will lead to'increasing polarization and to conflicts within the country. The tragic effect of that is that the prospects diminish for the inevitable disappearance of apartheid through peaceful transition. From an international point of view, and especially in an African perspective, that means that South Africa will remain a hotbed of tension and crisis for years to come. 146. The policy of apartheid has also a direct relationship with the problems in Namibia and Zimbabwe. Well aware of 147. The Swedish Government certainly supports the efforts under way by the five Western members of the Security Council to assist the South West Africa People's Organization and South Mrica to come to an agreement with regard to the implementation of Security Council resolution 385 (1976). My Government supports also the efforts to bring about a peaceful process towards indepen- dence under majority rule in Rhodesia. 148. It is the view of my Government that the concessions so far made by South Africa have been made because of moun.ting internal and external pressure, not in spite of that pressure. We therefo~e consider it important to keep up the pressure on South Africa. It is pointless to talk to the Pretoria Government unless pressure is applied to give weight to the words. 149. The apartheid policy, which fIrst and foremost is a policy of racial oppression in South Africa itself, has, as I have just pointed out, direct repercussions with regard to Namibia and Zimbabwe. The policy also generates interna- tional aggression; we have seen this happen against Angola, Zambia and Botswana. 150. The situation in South Africa is of great concern to the international community. As has been eloquently stated during this debate, the systematic violations of basic human rights in South Africa have taken on such dimensions that they must be considered a matter of prime international concern. The international aggression and violence that the situation in South Africa generates for the purpose of its own survival supports the conclusion that it is a threat to international peace and security. 151. As the tension in southern Africa has its roots in the policy of South Africa, it is important that no solution to the problems of Zimbabwe and Namibia should ever contain any elements designed to ensure the survival of apartheid. The Pretoria Government should never be allowed to. buy international acceptance of the apartheid system with concessions in regard to Zimbabwe and Namibia. We must be aware that the Pretoria Government 152. What steps should the United Nations now take in order to assist a positive development in southern Africa? Let us take the military elements fust. South Africa is by far the strongest military Power in Africa. Over the years it has been able to built up a comparatively strong military force, heavily eqUipped with weapons and materiel which are superior in quantity and quality to anything the neighbOUring States may have. Peculiarly and sadly enough, that strength has been developed during the years since 1963, the year ofthe voluntary arms embargo. It is obvious that some Me:rpber States have systematically ignored the recommendation of the Security Council and that some others have neglected to exercise control to ensure that expqrted arms have not been re-exported to South Africa. Historically those States Cart¥ a heavy responsibility for the tension in the area and for the serious lack of military balance there. It is therefore gratifying that the Security Council, at .long last and after long hestiation on the part of some members, has been able to decide to establish a mandatory arms embargo. Though the new embargo is not as comprehensive as we would have liked it to be, it constitutes a very important step. Sweden now urges all Governments to co-operate fully with the United Nations and provide the Organization with all relevant information concerning the implementation of the measure decided upon by the Council. 153. A decision by the Security Council in accordance with Chapter VII of the Charter is in itself a great step forward and constitutes a major political setback for South Africa. It should serve as a serious warning to that Government. The fust reaction of the South African regime is in itself proof that it has been shaken. However, report~ from Pretoria indicate that the Government fmds itself at 'present sufficiently well prepared to withstand a mandatory arms embargo. The local production, based to quite a large extent upon licenses, may be adequate to fulftl immediate needs and keep the South Mrican militaryforces reasonably well stocked. However, as we have seen from recent reports, it may become necessary for the South African authorities to direct certain foreign-owned companies in South Africa to transform parts of their production from civilian to military purposes. This fact' underlines what the Swedish Government has stressed on many occasions. It is necessary to look into the effects of foreign investments with regard to the South African economic structure generally and its pursuit of its apartheid policy specifically. As I stated for my Government in the Security Council debate in March this year,8 South Africa has during recent years launched long-term programmes for the expansion of the military and the energy sectors with the aim of reaching a much higher degree of self-sufficiency. This economic strategy has contributed to serious balance-of-payment problems for the South African economy. South Africa has been trying to cope with the difficulties by borrowing heavily abroad and by inviting foreign investments into South Africa. ·8 See Official. Records of the Security Council. Thirty-second Year. 1996th meeting. paras. 5-18. 155. Sweden would welcome measures by the Security Council against foreign investments in South Africa. We have suggested a more limited approach which could constitute a step in the right direction. It is our hope that such an approach will get the broadest possible support among the States of the potential investors. 156. To sum up the minimum requirements in the field of the military and economic development in South Africa itself, I would state that two steps would be natural in the present situation. First, the arms embargo should be followed up. Secondly, we must actively promote initiatives in the Security Council with a view to achieving a cessation of new foreign investments. While we thus formulate a policy of steps directed against South Africa itself, it is important that we not forget the needs of the victims ofthe apartheid policy and of South African international aggres- sion and political economic pressure. 157. Therefore we must intensify our co-operation with the front-line States, on which heavy burdens have been laid as a result of the situation in southern Africa. Those States have assumed responsibility for many of those who have been forced to flee their own country. The front-line States suffer economically from loyally observing the sanctions against Southern Rhodesia and from economic domination by South Africa. 158. The liberation movements are playing an important role in the struggle against apartheid. Governments should support them with humanitarian and educational assistance. We should also try to fmd other ways and means of supporting different groups and non-governmental organiza- tions that are working in South Africa against apartheid. 159. In conclusion, the elimination of apartheid must remain one of th~ central aims of the United Nations. Itis the responsibility of our Organization to maintain interna- tional peace and security. It is the duty of the United Nations to protect human rights. Therefore we are all obliged, as Members of the United Nations, to be active in support of the struggle againstapartheid, against racism and oppression and against aggressive actions by South Africa. 160. We must increase our suppo,rt for the direct victims of the apartheid system. Those detained under the apart- heid laws, their families, and youths deprived of educa- 161. We may now be faced with a unique opportunity. The situation may at the same time be more promising and more serious than ever. This is a challenge on which the international community now has a duty to act in full unity. . 162. Mr. mOMAS (Liberia): The policies ofapartheid of the Government of South Africa are before us as the subject ofitem 27 of the agenda. 163. My delegation considers apartheid an ugly word- ugly in all its connotations..The World Conference for Action Against Apartheid, which was organized in Lagos, Nigeria, on 17 August 1977, afforded an opportunity for many prominent Africans and otherinternational leaders to express themselves strongly on the question ofapartheid. 164. On 29 September 1976, in his address to the United Nations GenemI Assembly, the President of :(..iberia, Mr. William R. Tolbert, Jr. said, interalia: ":.. the sinister policy of apartheid seem[s] deter- mined to stem the .inevitable tide of total African emancipation. But that unjust and cruel effort must not be permitted to prevail over the dogged determination of the African peoples ofthe subregion to release themselves from the shackles of oppression and ofjustice denied".9 165. At the convening of the recent World Conference in Lagos, President Tolbert said in a message to the Con- ference: "On the significant occasion of the World Conference for Action Against Apartheid convening in Lagos, I take this opportunity on behalfofthe Government and people of Liberia and in my own name to send you fraternal greetings and sentiments of good wishes so that success will attend·the significant deliberations and that conse- quently we will all be taking a giant step forward in the efforts to eliminate the scourge ofapartheid from Africa and the society ofman".1 0 166. The problem 'of apartheid is serious and must be resolved urgently, without further delay. The Secretary- General of the United Nations, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, in his address delivered at the opening of the World Conference on 22 August 1977,11 pointed out that the racial policies of South Africa were among the first subjects to command the attention of the United Nations at the inaugural session of the General Assembly in 1946, and that in 1952 the whole question of South Africa's racial policy was raised 9 See Officitzl Records of the General Assembly. Thirty-fint Session. Plenary Meetings, 9th meeting, para. 22. 10 See Report of the World Conference for Action aglinn Apartheid (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.77.XrV.3), p.38. H For a summary of this address, see Report of the World Conference for Action against Apartheid (United Nationspubli- cation, Sales No. E.77.XIV.2), paras. 8-20. 167. Th~ thesis of the inequality ofpeople on the grounds of race and colour is unreservedly, unequivocally and unconditionally tejected and condemned by my Govern- ment. The Government of Liberia has never countenanced segregation, discrimination or prejudice of any kind. There- fore, there can never by any compromise with the policy of aparthe{d. Apartheid denies man the privilege and God- given right to exercise and enjoy fundamental human rights, and also robs him of those qualities that adorn and dignify him. 168. For more than three decades the South African Government has been decried and condemned because of its policy of apartheid. Time after time, even from this rostrum, invective and diatribes, one after another, have been directed against the Government of South Africa because of its diabolical police of apartheid. Also, many resolutions have been adopted by the General Assembly denouncing the South African Government and urging it to abandon and eliminate its apartheid policy, but, unfor- tunately, during the past 30 years there has hardly been any positive response and world public opinion has been ignored. The people of the world who appreciate decency have grown impatient with this state of affairs in South Mrica. The largest segment of the population, the black and coloured, are met with a flagrant denial by the South African Government of rights and privileges equal to those enjoyed by the white population. 169. This inhumane system has already resulted in the tragic loss of many lives and in property damage. Ifthis sad situation continues much longer, it is predictable that there could be precipitated incalculable tragedies from which none in that region would be exempt. As we further contemplate this vexing problem my delegation is prone to wonder whether there is need of any more resolutions or condemnations against South Africa, since, indeed, all those already adopted seem to be of no avail because they have fallen short ofimplementation. 170. As much as we are inclined to applaud and express jubiliation over the unanimous adoption in the Security .. Council a few days ago of the resolution on a total arms embargo against South Africa, some are wondering whether that act will amount to much more than symbolism, since it could be compared with the closing ofthe stable door after the horse has escaped. 171. It seems there now loom some serious questions which merit consideration. Will more resolutions condemn- ing the Government of South Africa, or the intensification of the action of freedom-fighters, or further attempts to 172. There has already been enough bloodshed in South Africa. No one should .wish for more. We deplore and deprecate the needless suffering and the tragic conditions suffered by the underprivileged people of that part of the African continent, The time is ripe for this unhappy state of affairs to end. 173. My delegation solemnly appeals to all people of the world who believe in human decency, dignity, liberty and justice for ap to call upon the Vorster Government to give a listening ear and to heed the earnest pleas and cries of the non-white population of that region and allow them to e?,ercise their inherent legitimate God-given rights by totally eradicating, abolishing and eliminating apartheid in order that complete freedom, liberty and peace may reign and be enjoyed equally by all without molestation or hindrance. 174. As dismal and bleak as the outlook for an eventual peaceful solution of the apartheid policy in South Africa might appear, I believe that there might yet be some cause for optimism. I have read that Prime Minister John Vorster of South Africa is a professed Christian and that every night before retiring he reads a chapter of the Holy Bible. Assuming this is true, and he is disposed to comply with the principles of Christianity-whose tenets are love, mercy, justice, truth and strict observance of the golden rule-then I believe that he may somehow be persuaded to yield to what is right and just. 175. Finally, it is the view of my delegation that the great responsibility for the effectuation and consummation of the solution of Jte problem of apartheid may rest with some of the big Powers friendly to South Africa, those with vested interests in that country. Perhaps, by applying a suitable formula, through their good offices and influence they could serve as a catalyst, utilizing their best powers of persuasion on the Government of South Africa in lieu of resort to violence and needless bloodshed. 176. When the South Mrican Government decides to elirnmate the policy ofapartheid and to grant independence to Namibia, it is conceivable that then, in a spirit of reconciliation, it may be welcomed among the international family of nations and, with its rich and vast resources, as well as its advanced scientific technology and skills, make invaluable contributions to the progress, development and complete redemption of Mrica and concertedly join in working for the supreme cause of world peace. May God grant this so to be. 177. Finally, I leave with the Assembly these lines. The world wants men, large-hearted manly men. The age wants heroes, heroes who shall dare to struggle in the solid r-c::nks of truth and clutch the monster error by the throat, to bear opinion to a loftier seat, to blot the error of oppression out and lead a universal freedom in.