A/35/PV.56 General Assembly
THIRTY-FIFTH SESSION
OffICial Records
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Puge
28. Policiesofapartheid of the Government of South Africa: (a) Report of the Special Committee against Apartheid; (b) Report of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Drafting of an International Convention against Apartheid in Sports; (c) Reports of the Secretary-General
This morning the Assembly will begin its consideration of agenda item 28. Before calling upon the Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid, I should like to propose that the list of speakers in the debate on this item should be closed tomorrow, Wednesday, 12 November, at 12 noon. If I hear no objection it will be so decided. It was so decided.
I now invite the Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid, Mr. B. Ak- porode Clark, of Nigeria, to present the reports of the Special Committee which appear in documents A/35/22 and A/35/22/Add.I-3.
3. Mr. CLARK (Nigeria) Chairman, Special Com- mittee against Apartheid: Today is Remembrance Day. As we solemnly remember the fallen in the poppy fields of Flanders, our minds must also turn to the tragedy that is apartheid South Africa, In that unhappy but flourishing country, extreme inequality and injustice continue to brutalize the .lives of 21 mil- lion black Africans. It is against that sombre back- ground that I introduce the annual report of the Special Committee against Apartheid [A/35/22].
4. The report reviews the activities undertaken by the Special Committee against Apartheid during the past year. Those activities included the constant follow-up of developments in p!l aspects of apartheid, including military, economic, nuclear, cultural and all other types of collaboration with that regime. As the report points out, the Special Committee has organized a number of important seminars, held special hearings, and eo-sponsored several conte-
11. The first special report also notes that loans to and investment in South Africa have assisted the apartheid regime in the development of its military and nuclear capabilities. The Assembly must there- fore declare that such assistance to the apartheid regime is a hostile act under the terms of the resolu- tions of the United Nations and, in fact, counter to the purposes and ideals of this Organization..
12. The report, further, emphasizes that the situa- tion in South Africa constitutes a grave threat to international peace and security and that, accord- ingly, the response of the United Nations must be forceful and effective enough to deal with that regime.
13. The second special report, entitled "Recent developments concerning relations between Israel and South Africa" , is contained in document A/35/22/ Add.2. Members may recall that the General Assem- bly, in its resolution 34/93 P of 12 December 1979, strongly condemned Israel's continuing and in- creasing collaboration with the racist regime of South Africa, and requested the Special Committee "to keep the matter under constant review and to report to the General Assembly and the Security Council as appropriate". This report, which was prepared in pursuance of that request, reflects the increasing col- laboration between Israel and South Africa in the military and nuclear fields, as well as in the economic, cultural and other fields, since last year. I need not elaborate on the contents of the report since mem- bers have it before them and since it is based on published sources of information.
14. The third special report, entitled "International Conference on Sanctions against South Africa", is contained in document A/35/22/Add.3. It may also be recalled that, in its resolution 34/93 C, adopted on 12 December 1979, the General Assembly decided to organize in 1980, in co-operation with the OAU, an International Conference on Sanctions against South Africa and authorized the Special Committee against Apartheid to take all necessary steps for the organi- zation of the Conference and preparatory meetings. As the report points out, the Special Committee held a series of consultations with the OAU, numerous Governments and non-governmental organizations,
34. Following the historic victories of Mozambique and Angola, that victory has dealt the final blow to' the strategy of the racist regime of South Africa to maintain buffer States around the borders of our country in order to perpetuate apartheid. The com- plete failure of that strategy, which sought to quaran- tine South Africa from the process of decolonization, has also meant that the additional element in the strategy of the apartheid regime, namely, to stretch that buffer zone deeper into the African continent, has also been reduced to nought.
35. In pursuit of the success of those strategic objectives, the South African regime committed its economic and military might, the potentialities of the apartheid State as a whole, to the defence of the colo- nial status quo in the then Rhodesia. The defeat of the Smith regime and its puppets, therefore, represents in a direct and immediate sense a defeat also of the same forces on which the apartheid regime relies for the perpetuation of white minority domination in South Africa itself.
36. Rebel Rhodesia, furthermore, acted as the proving ground for the anti-liberation and counter- insurgency strategy and tactics of the Pretoria regime. There that regime had sought to test its own ability to defeat popular armed struggle, its possibility of surviving mandatory economic sanctions, saving colonialism by the imposition of a puppet regime, winning by diplomatic and political manoeuvres a war which it had lost on the battlefield.
37. At the end of the day, the people of Zimbabwe, under the leadership of the Zimbabwe African Natio- nal Union(ZANU)and the ZimbabweAfricanPeople's Union (ZAPU) in the Patriotic Front and supported by the front-line States and the rest of progressive mankind, proved the bankruptcy of that total strategy and the inevitability of the victory of the democratic revolution. The frontiers of freedom were extended to the very doorstep of the apartheid regime.
38. Little wonder, therefore, that the racist Prime Minister P.W. Botha, who had threatened military intervention in the event of a Patriotic Front victory, felt himself compelled to state publicly that the birth of Zimbabwe has altered the strategic position of apartheid South Africa. And, naturally, whereas the apartheid regime read danger signals in the inde- pendence of Zimbabwe, the masses of our people responded to that historic event, as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Secretary-General of the South African Coun- cil of Churches put it, "with joy and thankfulness". For its part, commenting on this changed strategic balance as perceived by the oppressed, the national office of the Congress of South African Students welcomed the independence of Zimbabwe with these words:
"Africa is in a process of revolution. And now that Zimbabwe, so near to us, is undergoing revo- lution, we hope and trust that it will serve to oil the process of change in our country."
58. Pretoria continues to occupy Namibia and to conduct a reign of terror against the patriotic forces of Namibia, which are led by SWAPO. It continues to commit aggression against the People's Republic of Angola. As President Kaunda of Zambia recently disclosed, 'the apartheid regime was involved only recently in an attempt to overthrow the democrat- ically elected Government of Zambia. Pretoria con- tinues to train, arm and deploy mercenaries to desta- bilize the countries of southern Africa, including Lesotho,Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Angola and Zambia. Thisdeliberate programme for destabilizing neighbouring countries is a threat not only to the region but to the entire continent. In brief, for all its deceitful manoeuvres, the apartheid system continues today to be what it was yesterday: an enemy of hu- manity and a threat to international peace and secu- rity,
59. The fact that the collapse of the colonial system in Africa, in particular, and the militant struggles of the people of Namibia and South Africa have shifted
60. The draft resolution adopted a few days ago by the Fourth Committee in connexion with agenda item 86, calling on Western countries to cease their collaboration with apartheid South Africa, was indeed very timely.
61.' The representatives present here now know that, contrary to the express wishes of the General As- sembly, the Western countries continue to aid, abet and bolster the apartheid regime. In many ways those countries are subverting and circumventing the man- datory arms embargo. In other fields, such as trade, investment, the transfer of technology and political and diplomatic relations, the position of the Western Powers is that business continues as usual and even with greater intensity. 62. The people of South Africa have demonstrated unequivocally what it is they want for their country. The "free Mandela" campaign, which the people themselves launched, constituted a public demonstra- tion of the mass commitment to the installation of a genuine government of the people. Equally, the public affirmation by the people of South Africa, both. black and white, of their support for the Freedom Charter is sufficient indication that those masses in their millions aspire to a genuinely democratic South Africa and not to the amendment of the apartheid system.
63. The call from the African National Congress to the international community to isolate the aparth~id regime and, in other words, to join us in the struggle for the destruction of that regime, is therefore a call
made by the overwhelming majority of the people of South Mrica. Certain Governments and countries that never tire of asserting the claim that they repre- sent the epitome of democracy need to bear in mind 'the fact that, for all their democratic protestations, they have allied themselves with anti-democratic' forces in South Africa in the face of the most openly expressed wishes of the majority, a majority whose vision is that of a democratic South Africa.
64. In that respect, we should like to take this, op'- portunity to reaffirm our support and unity'of purpose with our brothers and sisters, our comrades' in arms of SWAPO, the sole and legitimate representative ot the people of Namibia. Current attempts to reduce SWAPO to the status of one among many grQupinss which have a claim to represent the people ofNamit>ia constitute a betrayal of the most fundamental pur- poses of this Organization. Accordingly, we appeal to all those who are committ~d to the defence of the principles of the United Nations to continue and increase their support,for SWAPO and to' fight for the adoption. of puniti,ve measures by the United Nations to compel the apartheid regime to withdraw .from Namibia and to enable the United Nations to . carry out its task of granting the Namibian ,people its inalienable right to freedom and national indepen- dence.
an~.rreedom but also .from our.deep concern at the supporters', which provide assistance and show it how
pr,v~ling'conditions ,in certain ,countries of the to evade international pressure and resist national w()r14, wbich ottend, the dignity of man. liberation movements. That racist regime is living in comfort because it is convinced that the States that 69. ' )The. General Assembly has adopted several have the means to exert pressure are not ready to' resolutions fcondemningapartheid and calling for the abandon their economic interests, which are the main endina of ,that system. There is also a consensus that reason for that regime's existence. Also, it is quite the, practice of apartheid is a serious crime against natural -that that regime should receive support· and the human conscience and' a serious violation of the h.uman,principles and values on which civilization is assistance from another racist regime, namely, the Zionist entity, which has uprooted a whole people - ba~~.. from its land. The second special report of the Special
70~ It is very strange that that abhorrent regime Committee [A/35/22/Add.2]" is self-explanatory and should persistat a time when the historic trend is to I need not go into it in detail. There is nuclear and streng(hen"the foundation of justice and endeavour military collaboration between the two racist regimes to elilpinat~allaspects Qfinjustice and ~ronts to the and Israel is contributing to the development of the di'nitYOf man; Ol,lr,primary,objective in this Organi- military industry in South Africa, as is shown in that zatio,. 'is to li~rate .r;nanfrom repression, persecution second special report. ari<l: .exploitation, because we are convinced that 75. The international community is entitled to seek PQlitical freedom, economic and social justice and answers to the following questions. Why have some natJon~ independence are the basic elements of inter- States followed such a policy in spite of the world- nitionalire.lations, in our world, wide condemnation of such pratices? Why are they 71., The United Nations has, not only condemned continuing their economic, political and nuclear col-
th~ barbaric 'regime'ofapartheid and characterized it laboration with South Africa? as 'a crime against-mankind'but also repeatedly re- 76. In our view, the situation can be changed only quested the South African regime to eliminate apart- . .f he . d i h heid'and,to allow the m.aiority' to 'enioy their basic by the application 0 t e measures contame ID t e lJ III various Security Council and General Assembly re- human' rights. Nevertheless, the' racist Pretoria re- solutions on this subject. gime;has' continued to ignore the United Nations resolutions. The events which have occurred since 77. The United Arab Emirates also supports the the last session of the General Assembly prove, once just demands of the African States for the adoption
I See Preliminary Peace Conference, Commission on the League of Nations, Minutes of 10th meeting, p. 63.
Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples:
(a) Report of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Decla- ration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples; (b) Report of the Secretary-General
Information from Non-Self-Governing Territories transmitted under Article 73 e of the Charter of the United Nations:
(a) Report of the Secretary-General; (b) Report of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declara- tion on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples
Question of East Timor:
(a) Report of the Special Committee on the Situation with re,ard to the Implementation of the Declara- tion on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples; (b) Report of the Secretary-General
90. The Japanese people have consistently sup- ported movements in South Africa for the abolition of apartheid. My Government has provided what- ever humanitarian assistance it could to the oppressed people of South Africa through annual contributions to the relevant funds of the United Nations. We shall continue to do our best to accomplish our tasks on behalf of the oppressed people in that part of the world.
Activities of foreign economic and other, interests which are impeding the implementation of the De- claration on the Granting of Independence to Colo-
~I. Opposition to the seemingly ubiquitous practice of racial discrimination and particularly to the insti- ,utionalized racism practised in South Africa is the consensus position of the international community. It. has tried for decades to persuade South Africa to eradicate its apartheid policies. The United Nations, by its resolutions, particularly those of the Security Council, has provided a.reasonable basis for the peaceful settlemertt of this complex problem in southern Africa. Those international efforts must not be permitted to fail. However, if the Government of South Africa continues to defy such efforts, the
88. United Nations Educational and Training Programme for Southem Africa: report of the Secretary-("~neral REPORT OF THE FOURTH COMMITTEE (A/35/60l) AGENDA'ITEM 89 Offers by Member States of study and training facilities for inhabitants of Non-Self-Goveming Territories: report of the Secretary-General REPORT OF THE FOURTH COMMITTEE (A/35/602) 93. Mr. LAL (Fiji) Rapporteur of the Fourth Com- mittee: I have the honour to present to the General Assembly for its consideration seven reports of the Fourth Committee relating to items 18, 84, 85, 86, 87 and 12, 88 and 89 of the agenda. As these reports are :.elf-explanatory I shall simply point out the key ele- ments that are included in some of these recommen- dations. 94. The first report, consisting of two parts, con- tained in documents A/35/596 and Add. 1, relates to those Territories that were not covered by other items of the agenda and that the Committee took up under agenda item 18. Set out in the report are seven draft resolutions and four draft consensuses which the Committee, in paragraphs 28 and 29 of part I of the report [A/35/596] and in paragraphs 22 and 23 of part 11 of the report [A/35/596/Add.J], recommends for adoption by the General Assembly. Those draft resolutions and consensuses, in the order of their adoption in the Committee, relate to the following Territories: Gibraltar, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Western Sahara, Belize, Tokelau, Saint Helena, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands and Montserrat, American Samoa, Guam, United states Virgin Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands. 95. As regards those Territories it was the consi- dered opinion of the m~ority of the members of the Fourth Committee that, notwithstanding the specific problems they face as a result of their small size and population, geographical isolation and frequently limited resources, the General Asse".,"Iy should reaffirm the full applicability of the [. ...lara~ion of the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries graph 9 of its report, that the Assembly should adopt a draft resolution which states, among other things, that in the absence of a decision by the General As- sembly itself, the administering Powers should con- tinue to transmit information with respect to the: Ter- ritories concerned. ' 98. The third report of the Committee relates to the question of East Timor [A/35/598], which the Com- mittee took up under item 85 of the agenda. The draft resolution on the question was adopted by a recorded vote of 58 to 35, with 42 abstentions, and the recom- mendation of the Fourth Committee is contained in paragraph 12 of its report. 99. The fourth report of the Committee relates to the activities of foreign economic and other interests which are impeding the implementation of the Decla- ration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples in Namibia and in all other Territories under colonial domination and efforts to eliminate colonialism, apartheid and racial discrimi- nation in southern Africa [A/35/599], a question which the Fourth Committee took up under item 86 of the agenda. Among other provisions of the draft resolu- tion recommended for adoption by the Committee in paragraph 7 of its report, it is provided that the Gen- eral Assembly, in condemning the intensified acti- vities of those foreign economic, financial and other interests which continue to exploit the natural and human resources of the colonial Territories, would call once again upon all Governments to take the necessary steps to put an end to su.ch activities, which run counter to the interests of the inhabitants of those Territories. 100. The fifth report of the Committee relates to items 87 and 12 of the agenda concerning, respec- tively, the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples by the specialized agencies and the interna- tional institutions associated with the United Nations, and the report of the Economic and Social Council [A/35/600]. The General Assembly is asked, among other things, in the draft resolution whose adoption is recommended by the Committee in paragraph 8 of its report, to request the organizations concerned to J09~. i Mr. CASTILLO-ARRIOLA-(Guatemala) (inter- pretation from Spanish): The delegation of Guate- mala:i<i compelled to make this statement before the vote on draft resolution 11 recommended by the Fourth Committee in paragraph 28of its report [A/35/ 596], in order to record its position on the "Question of Belize" clearly and unequivocally. 110. This year, as at previous sessions, the Fourth Committee and the General Assembly have been dealing Improperly with the problem of Belize; this is not an ordinary case of decolonization, but rather one which involves territorial claims by Guatemala over Belize, which is and has been historically and legally an integral part of the Republic of Guatemala. Guate- mala has nonetheless been unable to exercise its sovereign rights over the territory, because England has occupied it for more than 100 years on the basis of force alone, in spite of Guatemala's repeated attempts and full readiness to negotiate a peaceful solution-one that would be honourable and just for all parties and would meet the most heartfelt interests of the people of Belize. Ill. We have explained many times and have proved in this and other forums that England first recognized the full sovereignty of Spain and then that of Guatemala over the territory of Belize, but that subsequently Guatemala was compelled to sign the ill-termed "border" Convention of 1859,2 under which it yielded an important part of its territory to England in exchange for compensation as set forth in clause VII of that instrument. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland never paid the minimum price contained in the clause on compensa- tion and therefore voluntarily rendered the entire Convention inoperative, thereby making the cession of the Territory null and void. Guatemala tirelessly requested that the Convention be implemented, until finally it legally declared the Convention obsolete and put the territory of Belize back into the Constitution of the Republic as an integral part of its own terri- torial heritage. We have repeated that there is no longer any legal way of remedying the invalidity of the Convention of 1859. Because of that invalidity, the ceding of the Territory was nullified, causing a de facto situation which could only be resolved through peaceful settlement measures for interna- tional disputes. 112. Guatemala has repeatedly stated that it has sought in a conciliatory and fI~xible spirit a peaceful solution to the dispute with Great Britain, in accor- dance with Article 33, paragraph I of the Charter, which states: "The parties to any dispute, the continuance of which is likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and security, shall, first of all, iOS'be PRESIDENT: The positions of delega- tions regarding the various recommendations of the Fourth Committee have been made clear in ~he Com- mittee and are reflected in the relevant official records. 106. May I remind members that under decision 34/401 the General Assembly agreed that: "When the same draft resolution is considered in a Main Committee and in plenary meeting, a delegation should, as far as possible, explain its vote only once, i.e., either in the Committeeor in plenary meeting, unless that delegation's vote in plenary meeting is different from its vote in the Committee." May I also remind members that, in accordance ('It'' that same decision 34/401, explanations of vote should not exceed 10 minutes and should be made by delegations from their seats. 107. We shall first consider the report of the Fourth Committee under agenda item 18, concerning chap- ters of the report of the Sp:cial Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples relating to specific Territones not covered by other agenda items [A/35/ 596 and Add.li. Z Convention between Great Britain and Guatemala, relative to the Boundary of British Honduras, signed at Guatemala City on 30 April 1859. See British and Foreign State Papers, 1858-1859. vol. XLIX (London, William Ridgway, 1867), pp. 7-13. "9. Calls upon Guatemala and independent Belize to work out arrangements for post-indepen- dence co-operation on matters of mutual concern" . 117. This draft resolution endeavours to hasten independence in the territory of Belize without its c~nOict, has now found, through dialogue and persua- sion, a better approach to the problem in the creation of an Ad hoc Committee made up of five -African heads of State. The work of that Committee, at its meeting at. ~reetown from 9 to 12 September 1980, led to positive and very encouraging results. Those results are an important step forward in the quest for a just and lasting solution in Western Sahara. The conejuslons reached by the Committee will be submit- ted to the approval of the African heads of State at their next summit meeting, scheduled for July 1981 at Nairobi. For the time being, then, we should simply express appreciation for the favourable welcome given by the interested parties to the work of the Ad Hoc Committee. 125. For all these reasons, my delegation feels that fundamentally the United Nations should, at this staae, express appreciation for the work of that Com- mittee, and encourage the OAU to continue its efforts at mediation and conciliation. Such a move would be in keeping with the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations. 126. In the view of my delegation, the draft resolu- tion before the Assembly tends rather to commit the intert1ational community to a path which might lead us away from a just and lasting solution. 127. The other reason that has determined my dele- aation'G position is that Seneaal does not approve of preferential treatment being given to POLISARIO." We have always maintained that POLISARIO is one of the parties concerned, but only one among many others which, we regret to note, are barely mentioned in the draft resolution now before us. The delegation of Senegal. has serious grounds on which to reproach that movement, as it has often done in other circum- stances in other international bodies. 128. What is the subject of these reproaches? It is the iniquitous treatment meted out by POLISARIO to black prisoners. According to realiable informa- tion available to my Government, black prisoners are often systematically massacred, although they should be treated as prisoners of war. This is proved by the small·number of black prisoners of war released by POLISARIO as compared to prisoners of another race, whereas the contrary should be the case because black ("ters have always been more numerous in that conflict. . 129. Senegal denounces and condemns such racist actions. 130. For all these reasons, my delegation will vote against the draft resolution now before us. However, my country will continue to make its contribution, as it has in the past, to the search for a just and lasting -4 Frente Popular para la LiberaciOn de Squia el-Hamra y de Rfo de Oro. 140. My delegation rejects anything designed to infringe our legitimate rights, which would, further- more, be a flagrant violation of the provisions of the Charter and the relevant resolutions of the United Nations. 147. Accordingly, we feel that any resolution of this 'nature would be null and void and would in no way serve the interests of reconciliation and peace in our region.
The Assembly will now proceed to take decisions on the various recommen- dations of the Fourth Committee. We turn first to the draft resolutions recommended by the Fourth Com- mittee in paragraph 28 of part I of its report [A/35/ 596]. Draft resolution I is entitled "Question of Western Sahara". A recorded vote has been re- quested. A recorded vote was taken.
My delegation voted against the draft reso- lution, but my delegation's vote shows in green on the board.
My delega- tion voted in favour of the draft resolution but our vote is shown in red on the board.
The result of the vote is as follows: 88 votes in favour, 8 against, and 43 absten- tions. Draft resolution I is adopted (resolution 35/19).
153. Draft resolution 11 is entitled "Question of Belize". A recorded vote has been requested, and we shall now proceed to the vote.
My delegation would like to vote in favour of tt.;,,; draft resolution, but the voting machine is not helping us. It records neither "no" nor "yes", I would like to have my delegation's vote recorded.
The vote of Jordan will be recorded in the verbatim record and the appro- priate correction will be made in the total.
My delegation voted for the draft resolution, but the board shows us as abstaining.
I note that a number of delegations wish to speak. Obviously the voting machine is not recording votes correctly. We are in the process of voting and I shall not interrupt this process. I would rather take statements from the floor on the way in which representatives would like their votes to be recorded. If we cannot repair the voting machine during the lunch period, I shall try to find another room with a voting machine where we shall continue our voting.
I am sorry, I thought we were voting on the question of Belize. Ifthis is the vote on the Sahara draft, then our vote is correctly recorded. 159. The PRESIDENT: I would inform the repre- sentative of Somalia that the vote on Western Sahara was taken a little while ago. We are now voting on the question of Belize. I am sorry. Representatives' laughter is justifled. I cannot see what is up on the voting board. I have just been informed that the dis- playisthe same as in the vote on Westel'l!.Sahara.
IbU. Mr. MISHKA (India): The slate has not been wiped clean on the voting machine and we cannot have a vote on draft resolution 11 until the slate is wiped clean. 161. Mr. MRANI ZENTAR (Morocco) (interpre- tation from French): I also wish to speak about this mechanical failure. I wanted to ask you, Mr. Presi- dent, to dispel any doubts in regard to the questions just raised by some delegations which thought they were correcting votes on the Belize draft. I want to be sure that those corrections are not made to apply to the vote on the Sahara draft t which apparently was concluded. So I should like you, Mr. President to make a clarification about the verbal corrections made by some representatives. 162. Mr. DE PINIES (Spain) (interpretation from Spanish): I think the simplest thing would be to erase this vote from the board. Whether or not the machine is working is another problem. But if the system is shut down now, then we shall be erasing all this, which
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