A/38/PV.29 General Assembly

I should like first of all, Sir, to offer you on behalfofmy delegation our warmest congratulations on your election as President of the thirty-eighth session of the General Assembly. We are convinced that your long experience in the important posts that you have held, in particular as Permanent Representative to the United Nations and as Minister for Foreign Affairs of Panama, ensures the smooth functioning of our work as our Assembly once again tackles the serious problems threat- ening the equilibrium of our planet. 2. I wish also, Mr. President, to congratulate your predecessor, Mr. Imre Hollai of Hungary, whose dedi- cation and competence led to the smooth functioning of the work of the Assembly at the preceding session. 3. I should also like to pay a particular tribute to the Secretary-General for his constant efforts in the defence of the sacred principles of the Organization and to safe- guard world peace. 4. My delegation is pleased to see in our midst Saint Christopher and Nevis as the IS8th Member ofthe Organ- ization. We offer our friendship to that country and wish it full success in its independence. 5. As in past years we are meeting here in this Assembly to carry out an exhaustive assessment of the political and economic situation in the world. Unfortunately, we must face the facts: far from improving, the international situation, both politically and economically, has only worsened. How can we come to any other conclusion when we see that at the present time there is no continent in which there are not one or more sources of tension. The sacred principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations have been flouted, and even at times deliberately violated. Force and domination have taken precedence over law and justice. Dialogue and co-c~r­ ation have y2elded to hatred and violence. 6. The tragic incident of the aircraft of the South Korean Air Lines which was shot down by a Soviet fighter, with the loss of more than 260 lives, is a vivid example ofthe serious consequences which can stem from the rivalry between the two super-Powers. It is obvious that whatever may be the cause and origin ofthe diversion of the aircraft from its itinerary, nothing can justify the destruction of the aircraft and the consequent loss of so many human lives. 7. A few weeks ago we observed the sad anniversary of the massacres in the Palestinian camps or Sabra and Shatila. The direct responsibility of Israel in this collective assassination has been demonstrated unequivocally by various inquiries in the field. Today we must acknowledge that the situation in the Middle East has hardly changed. NEW YORK Israel has refused to evacuate occupied Arab territories, notwithstanding the relevant resolutions of the Organ- ization. Even more serious, Jewish settlements have increased in number in these territories, and this has been accompanied by a ferocious repression of the AraQ>- Palestinian populations, whose only fault is to want to continue to live on their own land. We realize that the Zionist entity would not have committed these acts had it not had the material and diplomatic support ofits allies. 8. We shall never cease to repeat that there can be no just and lasting peace in the Middle East until the inalien- able rights of the Palestinian people are recognized, guaranteed and effectively exercised. Moreover, this is the spirit of the Declaration and Programme of Action adopted at the International Conference on the Question of Palestine, held at Geneva last August.1 On the basis of this principle, it goes without saying that any negoti- ations aimed at settling the problem of the Middle East must necessarily involve the Pal~tineLiberation Organ- ization [PLO] as the legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. I should like to take this opportunity to reaffirm once again the unstinting support of my country for the Palestinian people in its tireless struggle to regain its dignity. 9. The situation today in Lebanon, formerly a land of peace, is more than alarming. We are greatly disturbed by the presence of the foreign forces which continue to occupy the country illegally, thus flouting its absolute right to exercise its sovereignty. It is high time that the Lebanese people, who wish only to live in peace and security, regained their dignity. 10. The recent cease-fire in Lebanon, thanks to the mediation of Saudi Arabia, whose efforts we salute, has given rise to certain hopes. That is why we support any initiative to reconcile the children of that country so that its legitimate Government can exercise its authority over the whole ofthe national territory. This obviously implies the cessation of the rivalry among foreign Governments in Lebanon. 11. The fratricidal war between Iran and Iraq continues to cause the loss of many human lives in both camps. In spite ofefforts ofthe United Nations, the Organization ofthe Islamil.': Conference, the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries and the Gulf Co-operation Council to bring the two belligerents to the negotiating table, the war continues amid intransigence and hatred. 12. My country, which has already sent a mission of persuasion to Teheran and Baghdad, remains concerned about this situation, especially since this confrontation endangers two Moslem countries which are both members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Non-Aligned Movement. We welcome the offers of a cease-fire which have frequently been made by the Iraqi Government, but which so far unfortunately have not met with a favourable response from the Iranian Government. Vle reiterate our appeal to these two countries to cease hostilities immediately in conformity with the sacred principles of solidarity and Islamic fraternity taught us by the Holy Koran. wii~ enjo¥' a calmer climate in which relations among natIOns will be based on mutual confidence and reciprocal interest, and no longer on distrust and discord, or even hatred and contempt. 42. Mr. OULD MINNIH (Mauritania.) (interpretation !rl!m French): 1\;Ir. President, your presidency of the thlrty-elghth sessIon ofthe General Assembly is a matter of the greatest satisfaction to the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. You are an enlightened states- man and an experienced diplomat, but it is also the unswerving stand taken by your country, Panama, which constitutes for Mauritania and its delegation a source of encouragement and gives it the assurance that you will conduct the proceedings of this session in an exemplary way. 43. I should like to take this same opportunity to address to your predecessor, Mr. Imre Hollai of Hungary, our gratitude for the excellent manner in which he con- ducted the proceedings of our preceding session. 44. I should also like to repeat to the Secretary-General the great esteem in which the delegation of Mauritania holds him and our confidence in him. We were particu- larly struck by the bold comments he included in his report on the work of the Organization. 45. Finally, I should like to bid welcome to the 158th and latest Member of the United Nations family Saint Christopher and Nevis. ' 46. At this thirty-eighth session, the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania hardly feels able to 00- p.lay an? optimism in the face of the increasingly aggres- sIve .attltudes of the various hegemonisms, the increasing declme of economies, the profound crisis which appears to affect, and will do so for a long time, international econo~c ~elations, further aggravating the present plight of the mdlgent masses of three quarters of mankind. 47. In the economic field, any constructive dialogue between the North and the South seems to be blocked for .the foreseeable; future. The particularly marked decbn~ of the economies of the developing countries is becommg more acute as a result of a sudden and simul- taneous combination of negative factors: the burden of debt is becoming heavier, loans are becoming harder to ~btain, c,?mmodity prices are declining and protectionism IS spreading. 48. Since 1980 our countries have suffered a net loss ofearnings amounting to about $200 billion. Even worse their indebtedness for 1982 has risen to about $630 billion: Commodity prices, that is to say the prices of the-bulk of the exports of the developing countries, have today fallen to the lowest level in real terms, that of 1945. 49. In addition to these phenomena, engendered by the structural fragility within our countries and the extreme under the leadership of their sole, authentic and legiti- mate representative, the PLO, of their inalienable and imprescriptible rights, and in particular their sacred ~gain deplores the senseless continuation ofa conflict that if,; so cruel, so pmnful and so terribly costly in human losses and material damage, namely, the conflict between Ir~n and Iraq, which share a rich and age-old cultural and spiritual heritage and a long common history of coexistence ~!I!d fruitful and fraternal co-operation. 74. Our country associates itself with the; Ummah of Islam, the Movement ofNon-Aligned Countries and the United Nations in calling for the immediate cessation of hostilities between these two fraternal countries and 10r 94. The restructuring and increase of development aid, the more general availability of the advances of science and technology, the easing of protectionist systems are all factors that could bring this world closer to equity through prosperity for all. 95. To be effective, economic justice must be accom- panied by an improvement in international political relations. 96. Too many peoples are the victims of the usurpation oftheir countries; too many others-in theory sovereign -have been stripped of their sacred rights to self-fulfil- ment in accordance with their own choices, philosophical, political, economic and social. 97. Who can doubt that the stripping of entire peoples of their right to sovereignty, of which this Organization has been a passive witness, and the stifling of the funda- mental liberties and social rights ofhundreds of millions of human beings, pose an ethical problem which goes to the very heart ofthe Organization and the spirit and letter of the Charter? 98. This is also the true challenge of the end of the twentieth century, a century which will have brought men, both in terms of their social and political rights and in terms of their scientific and technological advances and the tolerant and mutual acceptance of their respective moral legacy, the most radical and decisive changes. 99. With faith in humanity, the delegation of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ventures to hope that our human race will reverse its course towards self-destruction ofour species and succeed in harnessing its ingenui~y and its sometimes magnificent results achieved through the sacri- fices and the laborious efforts of so many generations of people, to bring about a world where prosperity is equitably shared,a world of peace. 100. Mr. MANGWENDE (Zimbabwe): My first and most pleasant duty is to congratulate you, Mr. President, your Government and the people of Panama on the honour which this session of the General Assembly has bestowed upon you by electing you as its President. The General Assembly is also to be commended for its very good choice of a steward. Your now very well-known qualities ofleadership and statesmanship, so amply tested and demonstrated during the period you served your Government and country in various capacities, including int~rveneeffectively in South Africa. The racist regime's archaic apartheid philosophy and policies are not only decidedly against the entire march of human history but are increasingly threatening stability, peace and security in our region. We must warn that such a threat to the stability of this vit&.1 region will produce vibrations and 135. I wish now to comment on the current world economic situation, which is characterized by inequitable relations and a crisis unprecedented in modem times. There is a very serious decline in economic activity, which has had a particularly debilitating effect upon developing countries. The world economy's rate of growth has also seen and continues to experience a marked contraction, although we hear that there are signs of recovery. For instance, whereas the 1980-1981 output increased by 1 per cent, in 1981-1982 it tumbled even below that level. Similarly, for the first time in almost half a century, world trade declined by 6 per cent in 1982. 136. This unprecedented malaise in the world economy has also been accompanied by very disturbing stagnation. In response to this, some industrialized countries made the combating ofinflation a primary objective of macro- economic policy. In most cases, however, this produced no satisfactory results or, where relative success was achieved, it was at the risk of a downward movement of aggregate economic activity and unemployment. This, therefore, largely contributed to the staggering number of 30 million unemployed people in the countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Devel- opment. The upward movement of commodity prices, symptomatic of this accelerated inflation, has also had a devastatingly adverse effect on developing countries. In particular it has limited imports of food and capi- tal goods which are vital to programmes of economic development. 137. Also, for the first time in 35 years, prices of com- modity exports from developing countries have plum- meted, and have now reached their lowest levels. Added to that, developing countries find it increasingly difficult to gain access to markets in the developed countries, largely on account of protectionism. There is, therefore, a serious decline tn the foreign exchange earnings of developing countries, causing a corresponding contrac- tion in their import capacity, amounting to $85 billion during the past two years. This has also led to a decline in their exports to industrialized countries, which in turn threatens the world with the disruption and cumulative decline of global economic activity. The liquidity prob- lems of the developed countries have been further aggra- vated by the unprecedented increase in interest rates, which makes external borrowing very difficult. Added to that are difficulties in gaining access to international capital m~kets. 182. On the broader front, we are well aware that the violation of human rights continues to take place with increasing frequency in many parts of the world. We are all too often confronted with reports of summary and arbitrary executions, torture, involuntary disappearances and denial of basic political and civil rights. This is a situation which cannot be tolerated by the international community. The realization of the intrinsic dignity and innate equality of all human beings is an indispensable precondition to the strengthening of international peace and security. 183. The major responsibility for promoting and pro- tecting human rights clearly rests within the national jurisdiction of sovereign States. But the international community cannot always accept the principle of non- interference in internal affairs as a justification for inaction and must act resolutely to oppose human rights violations wherever they occur. 184. Against that background, my delegation continues to believe that some organ should be created within the United Nations system to investigate human rights abuses and deal promptly with serious cases of such violations. The establishment of a post of high commissioner for human rights, which my Government fully supports, could be an important instrument to combat future human rights abuses. 185. Sober reflection and enlightened self-interest point to closer international co-operation and more imaginative collective effort. We who are ready to place our faith in prudent management and sound policies, in the courage and ingenuity of our peoples, need not be transfIXed by history. The responsibility for human suffering, for poverty, for insecurity is now ours. We must act to eliminate them now. The meeting rose at 1.15 p.m. NOTES 1Report ofthe International Conference on the Question ofPales- tine, Geneva, 29August-7September 1983 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.83.I.21), chap. I. ZProceedings ofthe UnitedNations Coriference on Trade andDevel- opment, Sixth Session, vot. I, Report and Annexes (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.83.II.D.6), annex VI. 3Lagos Plan of Action for the Implementation of the Monrovia Strategy for the Economic Development of Africa and Final Act of Lagos; ~ A/S-ll/14, annexes I and 11. 4Fr~nte Popular para la Liberaci6n de saguia el-Hamra y de Rio de Oro. 8Ibid•• Supplement for October. November and Deambs" 19&3, document S/I6041.