A/43/PV.66 General Assembly

Before taking up the items on our agenda this morning, may I, on behalf of the nlembers of the General Assenbly and on my own behalf, extend to the Governments and peoples of Bangladesh and India, which have recently been struck by a disastrous cyclone, our deepest sympathy at this major disaster that has caused tragic loss of lives and extensive material damage. May I also express the solidarity of the international colIIIRJnity with the peoples of Bangladesh and India in these particularly difficult circ~mstances. Mr. CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh): Mr. President, my delegation is profoundly touched by your kind words of solace and expression of solidarity on behalf of the Assembly. Yet another natural calamity has struck my country, Bangladesh. Its impact has been all the greater, as the cyclone hit us just as we were recovering from the worst floods in living mellOry. There is perhaps a nndicum of truth in the saying that "the unhappy hour does not come alone". However, thanks to the state of preparedness, precautions taken in time have pre'vented the toll in human life from being as heaV'l as might have been expected. Reports 9f death and devastation are still coming in. Hundreds oE thousands of families have been rendered shelterless by the force of the winds that whipped up waves that were over eight feet high. The coastal areas along the Bay of Bengal have been the worst hit. The extent of the damage is still being computed. The Government of Bangladesh is doing all it can to bring succour to the affected. This is yet another example of the helplessnoss of man against the forces of nature. We draw comfort from the fact that we have with us the sympathy, support and understanding of the global community. This is what gives us strength and fortitude at this hour of our deep distress. Mr. ANSARI (India): Mr. President, my delegation expresses its deep appreciation for the sympathy yoe have expressed regarding the cyclone that has hit my country. My Government is doing its utmost to assure relief to the people and areas affected. The solidarity of the international community, which you have extended, will be cherished and valued at this difficult time.

Having concluded our 3tatements on this subject, which ls very close to the deep feelings of the Memers of the Assembly, the disasters which have struck Bangladesh and India, and having heard statements by the representatives of both of these countries, we shall now continue with this morning's agenda.

I call on the representati",ye of Nigeria, who wishes to introduce four draft: resolutions, namely: draft resolution A/43/L.30/Rev.l, entitled -International solidarity with the liberation stcuggle in South Africa-, draft resolution A/43/L.33 and Corr.l, entitled -Imposition, CO-ordination and strict monitoring of measures against racist South Africa-, draft resolution A/43/L.35 and Corr.l, entitled IIProgralflllle of wark of the Special Committee against Apmrtheid-, and draft resolution A/43/L.36 and Corr.l, entitled -Special session of the General Assembly on apartheid and its destructive consequences In southern Africa-. Mr. OBAZE (Nigeria): On behalf of the sponsors, which include my own delegation, I have the honour t..o introduce draft resolutions A/43/L.30/Rev.l, entitled "International solidarity with the liberation struggle in South Africa", A/43/t.33 and Corr.l, entitled "Imposition, co-ordination and strict monitoring of measures against racist South Africa", A/43/L.35 and Corr.l, entitled "Programme of work of the Special Committee against Apartheid"J and draft resolution A/43/L.36 and Corr.l, entitled "Special session of the General Assembly on apartheid and its destructive consequences in southern Africa". I should l'ike at the outset, to bring to the General Assembly's attention the efforts of the sponsors of draft resolutions A/43/L.30 to L.36 in introducing seven draft resolutions this year under agenda item 36. Each of them focuses on a particular subject in a very clear, succinct and direct manner. The length of the draft resolutions has been deliberately kept short and unnecessary duplications and overlapping have been virtually eliminated and condemnations avoided. This reflects the deep concern of the sponsors not to offend the sensibilities of those Memb~t: States that have often been irritated by condemnatiQns. We hope that they will recognize this gesture and reciprocate accordingly, by voting positively for these draft resolutions. Having listened to so many statements made in the course of the debate on agenda item 36, my delegation and the other sponsors are mst hopeful that these efforts of the sponsors will be appreciated by the memers of this body. We sincerely hope that the voting on these draft resolutions will demonstrate an overwhelming, positive response to our efforts and, of course, to the overall struggle against apartheid. Permit me to introduce first draft resolution ~/43/L.30/Rev.l and Corr.l on international solidarity with the liberation struggle in SOUth Africa. This is a similar draft resolution to that which the General Assembly adopted last year under the same heading. By expp:essing in two preambular pareqraphs its concern about South Africa's internal situation, its acts of aggression and destabilization against independent African states and its illegal occupation of Namibia, the General J\ssembly would reaffirm its fuU support for the majority of the SOuth African people in their struggle to eradicate !partheid totally. It would reaffirm further that, under the leadership of their national liberation movements, the people of South Africa have the right to choose the necessary means to attain this objective in order to establish a free, democratic, unfr&qmented and non-racial south Africa. In operative paragraphs 3, 4 and 5, the General Assembly woo/ld list a catalogue of demands, the implementation of which it regards as creating appropriate conditions for free consultations among the people of South Africa with a view to negotiating a just and lasting solution to the conflict in that country. Such ~egotiations, as many speakers from this rostrum have emphasized, are urgently needed to establish the necessary conditiono for building a free, democratic and non-racial South Africa. I may, perhaps, add that inherent in the demands to create appropriate conditions for free consultations is the need to guarantee freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right of the people to assemle peaceably and to petition the Government for a redress of gri~ances. As part of a concrete demonstration of international solidarity with the liberation struggle in SOuth Africa, the General Assembly, in operative paragraphs 7 to 9, would appeal to all States, intergovernnental and non-governmental organizations, the mass nedia, city and other 'local authorities, and individuals, to increase urgently political, economic, educational, legal, humanitarian ana all other forms of necessary material, financial &nd other assi8tance to the people of South Africa and their liberation IIOvements and to the front-line and other neighbouring in<lependent states of Africa. In par\:.lcular, they would be called upon to contributa generously to the Action for Resisting Invasion, ColonialislI and ApartheM (AFRICA) Fund. All these paragraphs, I have no doubt, are in tune with the views of the delegations which participated in the debate on agenda item 36. This is true in regard to draft resolution A/4J!L.33 and Corr.l an imposition, co.-.ordination and strict monitoring of measures against racist SOUth Africa, which I Should also like to introduce on behalf of the sponsors. Against the background of the Special COlllmittee's annual report (A/43/22), in particular its paragraphs 191 to 194, and the Secretary-General's report CA/43/786) on fJIlaplement:&tion of national measures adopted agair.st South Africa-, the dr~ft resolution in its preambular paragraphs expresses the General Assembly's views on measures by States, taken individually or collectively, against racist South Africa. While many of these measures are very commendable, we see that they vary widely in coverage, effect and degree of enforcement, and that allows for the exploitation of existing gaps and loopholes by an increasing number of States. Taking that into account, the draft resolution urges all States that have not yet acne 80, to adopt, pending the imposition of comprehensive and mandatory sanctions(f legislative and/or comparable measures to impose effective sanctions against South \ Africa and, in particular, to take appropriate action in favour of measures listed in operative paragraph 1 (a) to (9). In operative paragraph 2, the Gener~l Assembly would urge all States to lDClnitor strictly the implementation of those measures. It regards as necessary the adoption of appropriate legislation providing for penalties on individuals and enterprises violating the measures. (Mr. Obaze, Nigeria) I also express the sincere hope of the sponacxs of this draftre.o1ution t."lat th084!J Meumer States which fe.l t.ioaat they cannot slJpport our call for the iJlPOeition of OOIIp:ehensive aandatory sanctions, fex whatever reason, can at least support the second-best option, which i8 selective sanctions in critical areas - unilateral sanctions seriously t.ple-.nted and co-ordinated. Next, I wish to introduce draft resolution A/43/L.35 and Corr.l, on the progra.. of work of the Special CoMittee against Apartheid. In the draft resolution, the ~neral As8e~ly co...nds the Special Committee against Apartheid fee its work in the discharge of its responsibiU ties, in particular in prollOting international action against apartheid. 1n taking note of the annual report of the S~cial CollU'llittee it end«ses the recoll!llendations contained in its paragraph 194, relating to the Special C01llIIittee's programme of work for 1989. The JIll)dest financial request in operative paragraph 3 is the minimuM amount that will allow the Special Committee to carry out its 1989 prograllllles effectively. This year again the Special Committee recognizes the need for continued austerity measures by our Organization and therefore reque~ts an anDunt of '400,000 enly, which Is almost the saate sum as was voted last year. The mini_l increase of less thlm 3 per cent does not even take account of inflationary factors. ~t .e state clearly that this mdeet amount for 1989 should In no way be construed as indicating a tendency towards diminishing our activities. On the contrary, it is an exallple of prudent fiscal respons",iUty by the Special CoIl1Iittee against Apartheid. In 1989 we plan further to execute our prograMes with effectiveness, selecting our priorities with a view to IIIlxlJ1izing the uee of our resources, increasing pressure and JIObilizing the world against apartheid. In the draft resolution the General bselllbly requests Gov'ern1lentll and organizations to provide financial and other for_ of assistance for the special p&'ojects of t.lle $pecla1 Committee and to make generous contributions to the Trust Fund Eorpubl1city against Apartheid. Pin.lly, it appeals lA) Governments, intergovernJlental organizatiQ'1s, infcx_tion media, non-gCNernmenta1 organizations and individuals to co-operate with the Centre against Ilpartheid and the Departlllent of Public Inforlllltia'l of the thited Nations Becretar iat in their activities against apartheid and, in particular, in dissellinating information on the deter iarating situatial in South Africa, in order to mitigate the effects of the restraints cm the press in SOuth Africa and effectively counteract racist South African propaganda. In conclusion, I also wish to introduce draft resolution Al43/L.36 and Corr .1, on a special session of the General Assembly on ap!rtheid and its destructive consequences in southern Africa. The thrust of this draft resolution emanates from the Pina1 Document of the Conference of Forei~ Ministers of the fbvement of Non....Aligned Countries, held in Nicosia, Cyp&'us, from 5 to 10 septemer 1988, as well as from lile finding,. in the Special COJllllittee's annual report, in ~rticular ..- the part reNiewing develoPllents in South Africa, and the conclusions and reco_ndations in the report. In this draft resolution the General Assembly eXPl'eep-es not only its grave concern at the escalating rePl'8ssion against the opponents of apar theid, an~ the regime's continued aggression against front-line States and its destructive consequences, ~ut also its indignation at the continued non-illPlementatioo ttjf' South ~frica of United Nations resolutions. The Assembly takes cognizance of the need to discuss the critical and det.ericxating situation in SOuth Africa, and indeed the southern African subregion, with a view to bringing about a peaceful end to apartheid, ~ich is the root cause of the prob1e_ in that subregion. .Against that backgroWld, the General Assellb1y, in operative paragrasn 1, decides to hold a special session on apartheid and its destructive consequences in southern Africa befexe its forty-fourth session, on a date to be determined by the Secretary-General in consultation with the Special Coaaittee against Ij?utheid. These paragraphs, I have no doubt, are in tune wi th the views of the overwhelming nWlbc of de1ega tiQ'la which PI!Irtici~ted in the debate, and I believe that they exrress the consensus in this Hall. Pina11y, on behalf of the sponsors, I exp:'ess their hope not only that the four draft resolutions just introduced will be adopted unaninously, but that meliber states, in uu1y following up the Pl'ovis1ons of loie draft reso1utiQ'ls, will contributft with initiative and vigour to ensuring the fulfilment of the Special COIiIIittee's IIIlndate. As the Chairun of the "1'8cia1 Committee against !par theid, Mr. Joseph Garba, said in his address to the Asaellbly, "Let UB remember that the fa te of millions of black anJ wh ite South Afr icans is bound to our ac tions and our votes." (AI" 3/PV. 60, p. 17) I therefore eaU on Member States to vote positively on these draft resolutions. The PRmmENT (interPl't!tation from Spanish): I now caU on the representative of Ghana, who wishes to introduce draft resolution A/43/L.3l and COrt .1, entitl.ed "Milit~ry col1abcxation with South Africa", and draft resolution A/43/L.32 and Corr.l, entitled "Comprehensive and mandatory sanctiQ'ls against the racist regillle of South Africa". Mr. GaEII) (Ghanah I hwe tbehonour and privilege of introducing to the Asseably, two of the 10 draft resolutions pertaining to agenda item 36, entitled "Policies of aP!lrtheid of the Governnent of South Africa". The two dratt reaolutions are A/43/L.31 ana Corr.l and A/43/L.32 and Corr.l and are entitled, rHpect!vely, -Military c:ollabocatiQ'l with South Africa", and "COIIlprehensive and aandatory sanctions against the racist regime of South Africa". tn A/43/L.31/Corr.1 there la en up-to-date 1iat of the co-sponaCl'.'s of that draft reliio1utiClft, and the co-apon.ors of draft ruo1utiCln A/43/L.32 can be found in A/43/L.32/Corr.1. In adcUticn, I IIhcu1d like to announce that the following countr ies hwe joined the CO-8ponscxe of draft resolution A/43/L.31 _d Corr .1\ the Philippines, SO.l18 and Trinidad and '!bbago. All far as drftft resolution A/43iL.32 and CCI'.'r.1 la concerned, the fo11cNing countries hll'le joined the co-.ponscxa\ Solllll18 and the UniCln of Soviet SCciaUs t Republics. In draft reso1utionA/43/L. 31 and Ccxrc1, which is a new dr.aft resolution, the Asselb1y strongly urges States which directly cx indirectly inlr inge the ar. ellbargo and continue to collaborate with South Afl' ica in the .Uitary, nuclear, and .iUtary intelligence and technology fie1c111 to terlllnato such acts forthwith. Tbe As8e.bly also urges the Security Council to consider i_diate steps to ensure the acruPJloUII and full illlp1ellentation of the er. emarge lIIP08ed by the ComcU In resolution 418 (1977) and its effective mnitor ing~ and requeste the Special eo..ittee to keep the aatt« under constant r..,i., and report thes:eon to the Gener a1 Asse.b1y and the Secur ity Council as apprap: late. The two draft re:;;olutiol1& ar~ considered necessary because of the wacs0lllng situation in South Africa. Despit8 the many appeals addressed tD South Africa ln (lE_lous years, the racist r49i•• hea re.lned lntr!lnsigent and defiant. In the paat year, the r4gi_ has, rather, incrused its reP!'ession of ant!-aeertheicJ organiBatione and individuals, has engaged in strict censonhip of inf«_tion, ha. ~etained, i~ iscoed and ev __1 exec'Jted political opponents and ha generally. taken ....ures to bolster the Systell of apartheid. Crucial to these lII!asures has been South Afr ica 's lIili~ry Pl'OIIetJS, whieb is fully ellployed in cruahing and silencing internal opposition all well as oollllitting acts of aggression against neighbouring States. Of course, South Africa'S military might would not have reached its p=esent peak and arrogance had it not been f« the collaboration that it has enjoyed and continues to enjoy froll abroad, in spite of the er. emarga instituted against it by the security Council. There is thUD a need to deal urgently with this unacceptable and threatening situaticn. Purtherll«e, the cwerwhelming .jCX'ity of the international oollllunity llaintains its conviction that the racist r49i_ should be isolated politically, econoiUcally and socially as the best peacaful means of exerting _x1raull tr.essure on SOuth Afr ica for 11 quick end to the system of apartheid. Dur ing the current debate this s6ntlllent has been reiterated by several delegations and therefCX'e . needs to be addressed in whatever decision the Assembly taketl. Older draft resolution &/43/1,.32 and Corr.l, entitled wCoIaP!'ehenlllive and Ibnc2atory sanctions against the racist: r4gi_ of South Africa-, the Generftl Asaelblywould reaffirll that apartheid is a crille against humanity and.a threat to internaticrull peace and secur ity, and that it is a pc iaary responsibility of the United NatlOI1l!l to a..lst in ita iMedLlte eUlIlinlllUon. P:ncouraging Stat~.. that have not yet done 80 to accede to the Int:Qrnational Convention against Apartheid in Sportsv d12 Assellbly would call upon all States to support the work of t.."te Conmission aga inst Apartheid in Sports. The Assembly would ~lso call upon those Sutes that ha,;e !!'\creased their trade ~.i.th SOuth Africa to sever trade relations with the r~cist regime. The crux of th~ draft resolution is that, under it, the Assembly would decide once again that the imposition of oompcehensive and mandatory sanctions by the Secur ity Council under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United NatialS would be the most app:op: late, effective and peaceful means to end apartheid, and therefore would urgently requrast the Seour ity Council to consider immediate action under th.Jt Chapter, while calling upen those G<:wernments opposing the application of comprehensive and mandatory sanctions to reassess their policies. In this connection, the AssE'D'bly would also appeal to the Gcwernments of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of Ilmerica to co-operate in the imposition of compcehensive, mandatory sanctions by ehe international co_unity against SOuth Africa as a means for actlieving peaceful change in that country. Finally, the Assennly would urge the security Council to ':strengthen the mandatory arms embargo imposed by its resolutions 418 (1977) of 4 Ncweuber 1977 and 558 (1984) of 13 Decenber 1984 in order to end the cootinued violations of the arms ennargo. As alreaCJy pointed out, draft resolution A/43/L.3l and Corr.l, entitled -Military collaboration with SOuth Africa·, is a new draft resolution being intr odu~d th is year under agenda item 36. The intr ociuction of th is draft resolution is deemed expedient by the Special Committee against Apartheid because of the Committee's growing apprehension cwer the increasing collaboratial by certain countries with the racist regime of South Africa in the l1liUtary field. Considering the importance of the question of apartheid, which has been labelled a crime against humanity, and the j'rogressively deterio:ating situation in SOUth Africa' itself and the southern African subregion in general liS a result of this abominable political system, I wish, on behalf of the sponsors of these two draft resolutions, t.') take this opportunity to appe~l to all delegations to give them and the other draft resolutions pertaining to agenda item 36 their maximum support. It is nece~8ary at this time that the General AsseDbly indicate in no uncertain terms to the racist regime in South Africa that it will no longer tolerate its unacceptable system of apartheid, Indeed, thE: system of apartheid eannot be reformed., it must be complet~ly uprooted. Delegations should not allow themse];"es to be hoocifinked by the sham, piecemeal reforms of the racist regime of Pretoria, whose purpose is only further to entrendl that evil system of apartheid so bl'1at its elimination by the international co_unity will be all the JIlOre difficult. The PRBSmlNT (interpt'etatim from Spanish): I now call on the repreS\l!ntative Cif Qadan, who wishes to introduce draft resolutiQ1 A/43/L.34 and Corr .1, entitled ·RelatioM between South Afcica md Im:ael·. Hr. m..!.!! (Sudan) (interp:etation from Arabic) ':. My delegation is pleased to be among those introducing the draft resolutiona designed to eonbat the policies of apartheid of the Government of South Afr ica. These draft resolutiQ1s were endorsed by the African Group when they were p:epared in the Special Committee against Apartheid, following broad and intensive oonslJltatiQ1s aJllOng various regimal groups. The draft resolution I am now introducing is contained in cbcument A/43/L.34 and Corr.l and is entitled ·Relations between SOuth Africa and Isra(!l". The relations between SOuth Africa and Israel are significant and, 'indeed, very dangerous because they constitute a IDllIjor ,'ehicle by whidl the Pretcx la regime attempts to continue disregarding the international political wUl and resolutions adopted by the General Assemly and the Securl~l Council, in order to circuwent the aa_urea fer an eabargo and blockade iapceed against it and in order to deflect international tressure designed to intlloe it to abandon its policies of apartheid. The broad reliltions batween Israel and South Africa cOller ~A!\Y ll1port6nt are~s in, for instance, the llilitary, security and intelliC}4nce fields, in additicn to econo.io, Q:)aercial and cultural relations. All the African liberaticm mVlllenta - Elspecially tha PM Afrlcanist Cangrus of A.anu, the African Hational Congteu and the South West Africa People es (kganuaticm - hW.e e.@ssed repeatedly and in various forUIIB thair concern at the growing relations between South Africa and ItXael. Although the Special Committee against Apartheid welcomed the Israeli Govern_nt's decision to curtail its relations with South Africa, it neverthelees axpreased certain reservations on that decision concerning such elaments as its loose language and its many obvioue loopholes, not to mention the fact thmt when the decisiQ'l was taken it was intended for certain American quarters and not as !! response to the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly, especially those ~egardlng the struggle against apartheid. According to the report of the Special Committee against ApaE:thei!! and its annexes, submitted to the current session of the General Assenbly in document A/43/22 of 27 OCtober 1988, despite Isrl:el's cbcision, and the tight secrecy surrounding relations between SOuth Africa and Israel, the information available last year suggests that their relations have not only continued but actually developed further. The report of the Special Committee against Apartheid underlines that fact, citing, in paragraph 4 of annex I, statelllente by the Israeli GoITernment itself to the effect that relations ",ould not really change. The report goes on to state that military contracts between the two countr ies wUl not expire until the 1990s, and that the GoIIernment of SOuth Africa recruited all the workers and engineers of Israel's Lavi jet-fighter project following its cancellation, in addition to a team of Israeli engineers who had been "orking on the Cheetah upgrade programme in Johannesburg since Deoellt»er 1987. Reliable sources have emphasized the intensive co-operatiQ'l involving military advisors in the recent war against Angola, as the numer of Israelis involved alllOunted to some 600 technicians. SUch co-operation was hiCjhlighted by the visit of the Israeli Defence Minister Sharon to occupied Namibia in 1976. The report of the Special Commi ttee against Apartheid also indicates that Israel's annual arms s51es to South Africa amount to sa. 10 per cent of its total military exports. -- On the basis of all those facts, draft resolution A/43/L.34 and Corr.l calls upon Israel to abide by ths relevant resolutions of the General ABse..,ly and the security Council by terminating forthwi th all forlllS of milltary, nuclear, intelligence and economic collaboration with South Africa, particularly its long-te~ contracts. The draft resolution also requests the Special Committee against Apartheid to continue tc, monitor rel&tions between SOUth Africa and Israel and to submit a report on th~ subject. The following States are the sponsors of draft resolution A/43/L.34 and Corr .1: Albania, Algeria, Angola, Benin, 9:)tswana, Burkina Faso, Bur1D1di, the Byelorussian Soviet socialist Republic, Congo, Cuba, Ethiopia, the German DellOcratic Republic, Ghana, India, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Kenya, Liberia, the Libyan Arab J amahi1' iya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mali, fbngol ia , MOZanbique, Niger, Nigeria, SOmalia, Tunisia, uganda, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, the Union of &lviet Socialist Republics, the United Rf4public of Tanzania, u~uguay, zaJlbia, Zimbabwe and &ldan. The CHAIRMAth I now call on the representative of zaire who wishes to int~oduoe draft resolution A/43/L.37 and Corr.l, entitled -Dissemination of information against the policies of apartheid of the regime of ·:acist South Africa w• Mr. BAGS.I ADEI'JD NZ!NGEYA (zaire) (interpretation from French): Draft resolution A/43/37 and Corr.l, entitled -Dissemination of information against the ~licies of apartheid of the regime of racist SOUth Africa", is sponsored by 33 countries, including the Philippines, Trinidad and Tobago, and zaire, whose names should be added to the list of sPOnsors. It is in. keeping with the spirit of the ~rll8 of reference contained in pa:&agraph 4 of General ABsemly resolution 32/105 B, of 14 Decenber 1977, and in General Assenibly resolution 33/183 I of 24 January 1979, requesting the Secretary-General to undertake, in co-<)peration with HeJli)er States, a regular progfa11lJlle of radio brQldcasts directed at SOuth Africa. It is indeed p'l1suant to the fundamental role of the United Nations and its specialized agencies to disseminate lnforlll!ltion against apartheid, and to expand and intensify their activities in order to IIObl1ize world public opinion against the heinous system of apartheid in SOUth Africa that draft resolution A/43/L.37 and Corr.1 seeks to f']blicize the acts of barbarous repression and the iniquitous hangings, violating the law and denying respect for human values, co_itted by the r acist minor i ty regime in South Afr iea • Since 1983, the racist minority regime in South Africa has executed 638 prisoners, the majodty of whom were Blacks. Last Thursday, 24 November 1988, five prisoners were hanged, bringing the number of prisoners executed this year to 115, of whom 79 were Blacks, 33 of mixed-race and only 33 white. Such atrocities show the murderous style of the racist minority regime, which is earrying out with impunity the progressive elimination of the black race in SOuth Afr ica. The er ims of the minor ity racist regime extend from arbitrary arrests to hangings and the torture, physical abuse and inhuman treatment inflicted constantly upon the black population of South Africa. With a view to preventing international public opinion from closely following its repressive practices, the regime has set u~ a police machinery called a state of emergency, together with press censorship, so that the outside world should be prel1ented from learning of the crimes it commits inside the country. Carrying the internal conflict raging there outside its own boundaries, the regime perpetrates numerous acts of military aggression and destabilization against front-line States and other States in the area. The internatiCXlal community is alarmed at the planned reduction in the Bstablishment of the Anti-Aparthei!! Programmes Section of the Department of Public Ir,forMtion of the Secretariat e It is concerned at the continuous reduction ewer the years in prograllllle output aimed at sti9illatizing the practice of apartheid. It is distressed at the prospect of the Department of Public Information's proposal further to reduce radio progralllllles directed at the people of South Africa and Namibia at this crucial period when the racist regime has escalated its Clisinformation campaign and mass-media black-out. According to draft resolution A/43/L.37 and Corr.l, the General Assemly, bearing in mind the efforts made by the secretary-General in initiating radio prograJll1leB in cc~peration wi th Hemer States whose broadcasts can be heard in southern Africa in the main la.'lguages spoken in South Africa - English, Afrikaans, Sesotho, setswana, Xhosa and Zulu - would urge the Secretary-General to intensify, increase and expand those radio broadcasts, as well as the production of audio-visual material, and to lMintain the unique linguistic features and '-. characteristics of those programmes. It would appeal to all Governments, non-governmental organizations and the specialized agencies to co~perate with the secretary-General in order to ensure the widest possible dissemination of information against !2artheid, in particular those radio programmes. That is the aim of draft resolution A/43/t.37 and Corr.l, which I hope the General Asselllbly "ill adopt unanimously, thereby expressing the solidarity of all Hemer States with tht! oppressed black people of South Africa, a solidarity that will thereby acqu ire its true human! tarian significance. The PRBSmBNT (interpretation from Spanish); I now call upon the representative of Sweden to introduce draft resolution A/43/L.3a, -thited Nations TrWllt Pund for South Africa-, and draft resolution A/43/L.42, -Concerted international action for the elilllination of apartheid-. Hr. BLIASSOH (Swedenh I hwe the halour first to introduce draft resolution A/43/L.38 ccmcerning the thited Nations Trust Pund for SOuth Africa, sponllOred by 40 He1llb. States. The Trust Pund was set up more than 20 years ago. Its purpose 18 basieally huaanitar ian\ to ~cwide legal assistance to persons persecuted for their 0w08ition. to apertheid. The Pund is a concrete testidDny to the fact thllt the O1ited Nations and ita meDbers are supporting the suuggle against !IE!arthei!, not only in ~rds, but also in deeds. Since 1965 the Pund has contributed a total of IDClCe than '30 mlllim to sweral thousand persons persecuted mder the apartheid legislatiCln in South Africa and Namibia. The debate this week in the General Assembly has clearly demonstrated our OOIl!lOft and grave concern at the unSEecedented re~esslon in South Africa and Na.ibia of opponents of apartheid, including leaders of dellOcratic and non-racial political lUSS organizations, trade unionists, coamunity .and cburr.:h leaders and students. In the Secretary-General's repo~t on the Pund (A/43/682) we find ample indications of the extent and depth of that repreesion. Despite the severe limitations imposed on the courts, lawyers have baen able to render significant relief to political detainees in Namibia and SOuth Africa. In _ny cases th is year deta inees hlll7e been relellsed, sentences reduced and dopendants allowed access .,ith legal a8sistMlce ~O'Iided through the 011ted Nations Trust Pund. The support from the Pund for civil action challenging apartheid laws and the humanitarian assi8tan~ .In those cases halle been of crucial importance. QJch action is vital for defending fundamental hUllUln ric#lts. It allJO serves the cause of abolbhing apartheid and the establi8hJlent of a deD)cratlc and non-neial society in South Afr iea. During the past few mooths the 'I'ruet Fund has received several reports of the dire needs for ROre funds. The agencies involved in this work cannot lIeet the soaring costs of supporting the drastically increasing nuntler of cases. Therefore, we strongly appeal in the draft resolution fer increased contributions to the Trust Fund and the voluntary agencies. we express our appreciation to the Governments and organizations that have contr ibuted to those ends. As Chairman of the Committee of Trustees, I appreciate that a large nul'iOer of Governments contribute to the Fund, and I appeal to those that have not contr ibuted so far to join in these worthy efforts. I cannot fail to note that four GoITernments contribute more than 7S per cent of the Fund's budget. It is indeed my hope that the industrialized countries in particular will find it possible to contribute or to increase their support for the Fund. I would hope that the many eloquent statements made from this rostrum against apt'lrtheid and in favour of solidarity with the detained and imprisoned victims of apartheid made here and elsewhere will be reflected in increased contributions. Q\ behalf of the sponsors of draft resolution A/43/L.38, I wish to express th~ hope that this year, as last year, the General Assenbly will adopt the draft resolution without a vote. I now turn to draft resolution A/43/L.42, ·Concerted international action for the elim!nation of apartheid". For the past five years a similar text has been submitted as the result of a joint effort by a nunber of countries, including the Nordic and several African countries, with the aim of rallying as broad as possible support of the international oonmunity on ways and means finally to persuade South Africa of the necessity to abolish apartheid. The draft resolution emrbasizes the responsibility of the United Nations and the international coJlllunity to co-ordinate and strengthen its pressure against South Africa as a .y of achie'ling the {mediate abolition of apartheid by peaoeful _Gns. It urges the seoul'ity Council to consider without delay the adopticn of effective mandatory sanctions ~gainut SOuth Africa. 8ill1larly, the draft resolution reco~ize6 the urgant need for assistance both to the opp:e8sed people of SOuth Africa and to neigb:>our ing States. This is reflected in appeals to increase hwaanitar ian, legal and educational assistance to the victims of apartheid as well as aSi5istmC8 to the front-line States and to the SOuthern Afr lean Developaent Co-ordinatioo Conference (SIDCC). ltIile continuing to f8'lour: effective mandatory sanctions by the security Council, the draft resolution, pending BUch actions, contains appeals to increase the p:essm:e on the apartheid regime by implementing a large nunber of voluntary _asures listed in operative Plragraph 7 of the draft resolution. The p:esent text is sponsexed by a wide group of COWl tr: ies: Angola; Australia, Austria, ~nmark, Egypt, Finland, Ghana, Greece, Iceland, India, Ireland, Ml!lldagascar, New zealaond, Nigeria, Norwy, SWeden, the Olited Republic of Tanzania, Zallbia and Zillbabwe. In addition, the following States hlWe today joined us es 8ponsors~ the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, senegal, Somalia, Trinidad and Tobago and the Philippines. It is in the light of the manifest noed for joint international action that tie now urge all Hemel' States to support the just aspiratiQ'ls of the SOuth African people by casting a positive vote on this draft resoluticm now befexe the ADeemly. !he PR!!SIDBNT (interpt'eUtion from Spanish) \ I call now on the represenutive of KuWl!llit to introduce draft resolution A/43/L.41, ·Oil embargo aga inst South Afr ica-. Miss AL-MULLA (Kuwait) \ Kuwait is honoured to join preY iou8 speaker s in the introduction of draft resolutions on agenda item 36, ·Policies of apartheid of the Government of South Africa·. It is my delegation's pleasure to introduce draft resolution A/43/L.41~ ·Oil emargo against SOuth Africa·, now befexe the Asselllbly. The draft resolution is splnsored by all the meJlbers of the Intergovernmental Group to Monitor the SJpply and Shipping of 011 and Petr~leum Products to South Africa\ Algeria, Cuba, the German Democratic Rep,ablic, 1I'.OOnosia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, NouJBY, the Ukrainian SSR, the th1ted RepUblic of Tanzania and Kuwait. The fDllafing states have also joined the Group as splnsOfS\ Albania, Angola" Antigua and Barbuda, the Islamic RepUblic of Iran, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Mongclia, senegal, lbmaUa, the Byr ian Arab Rep.tblic, Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela. It will be recalled that the Intergovernmental Group was astablished following the adoption of resolution 41/35 po in Ncwemer 1986. In accordance with that resolution, the Group presented its first replrt to the General A.,sembly at its forty-second sesoion) the Assellbly subseguently adopted resolution 42/23 '11' on an oil embargo against South Africa, on 20 Novellber ~87, by a vote of 138 in favour to 4 against, with 12 abstentions. This year too we hope to retain such overwhelming support, if not to increase it. Thel draft resolution befcxe tone Asseably is basically similar to resolution 4'123 Fe There are SOIllll llino1' editorial dumges and, as a result of the Group's two years of experience, some important addltione. In resolution 42/23 P, the secur ity Council was urged to take action without further delay to 1JIpose a undatory eabargo on the SL!Pply and shipping of 011 and petroleum products to South Atrica as well as the supply of equiPMnt and technology to its oil industry and coal liqUIfaction projects. P.-agraph 2 df draft resolution A/43/L.41 contains two additional el_entB for the embargo, na_ly finance and investment. Last YQar 's resolution laid 60itn a set of measures to broaden the scope of the ellbargo. These el_enm h.we been retai~ed in draft resoluti~ A/43/L.4l. For exaaple, in paragraph 3 (1) W3 request, as we did last year, that, pending a decision by the security CourIlCU to adopt effective _asures, all States lIIpose penal action againut ooap~nies and individuals that hwe been involved in violating the oil ellbargo, to wich we h.e this year added the follow1ng~ lIIand to publicize cases of successful proeecutlons in confor:aity witn their natiCXlal laws". In sub-paragraph (j) of the same paragraph, we request, aB we did last year, that, again pending a decision by the Becurity eomcll, all states gather, egcbange and diss_inate inforllat1on regarding violations of the 011 eJlbargo, to which we have this year added the following, "including ways and means to prevent such "'iolations and to take concerted aellSures a.jainst violateeu". Paragraph 4 reads that the General Asseably "Decidea to hold hearings in April 1989 on the str_gthening of the oil e!lbl.lrgo 'against South Africa, to be organized by the Intergovern_nt81 Group in co-opcation with the Special CoII.Ht.. against Ap.rthei4". (pua. 4) (Miss M-Mu na, IIIwait) We are confident tha~ a hearing with the participation c.,f experts and eminent persCl'ls in this fielC! will pave the way for further meaningful action by the international collllunity against SOuth Africa. In addition to organizing the hearing, the Intergovernmental Group is requested .. as was the case last year, to subflit to the General Asselrbly at its forty-fourth session a rep"tt on the implementation of the resolution p including proposals for strengthening the mechaniB1ll to mani tor th0 supply and shipment of oil and petroleum products to South Africa. The draft resolution before the Assellbly is a significant mmponent of the international efforts to assist in the dismantling of the abhorrent apartheid system by peaceful means. Increased international pressure, particularly through meaningful COIIlprehensive mandatory sanctions, is the only peaceful means available to the international colIIIIJnity to assist the just struggle of the national _jority of South Africa. The sponsors of the draft resolutiorn believe that an effective 011 emargo would have a significant potential for sUCCc!ss. Let us bear in mind ....... that 011 is alll108t the only strategic ooll1lOdity in which SOUth Africa is not self-sufficient. SUch an emerge would also convey the message of the international co_unity to Pretoria that it will not tolerate apartheid. Pretoria has to decide soon either to join the international colIIIIJnity by peacefully abolishing apartheid or to remain an international outcast and face further international sanctions. One way of conveying our message to Pretoria is to adopt the draft resolutions tmder agenda item 36 by an O'Ierwtlelming major!ty, if not unanimously. (Miss ~l-Mulla, KUwait) Ms. TlDRm (Trinidad and Tobago), May I begin by again QJd:endinq, on behalf af the Government and the people of Trinidad and '1'cbago, our SYl8k11lthy to the Governments and the peoples of Bangladesh and India on the ]3S of life and severe damage just suffered by those countries. The General Assenoly is meeting yet again to consider the deteriorating situation in South AfriCB and the formidible, but ~ot insurmountable, challenges facing both the oppcessed majority in that country and the international colllllllnity at large in their coJll1llOn struggle against ,ae,artheid. * In the past year, we have borne witness to the continued escalation by the Pretoria regime of draconian and arbitrary measurea r measures aimed at eliminating all opposi tion to the abhorrent system of apartheid and at further subjugating the black majority population. Towards this end, South Africa has accorded wide-ranging repressive powers to its security forces. Under the rubric of the extended state of emergency, various forms of legitimate political activity have been designated criminal acts) killings, detentions without trial of men, women and children, and the torture of prisoners and detainees persist) rigid control and censorship of the local snd foreign media have continued to be imposed and enforced, thus hampering the media's ability to reveal, in an unfettered manner, the repugnant and inhuman acts perpetrated against thf' nOD-\1hite majority. The Pretoria regime also continues to vent its frustrations on the leading anti-apartheid organizations and individuals who actively and peacefully deroonstrate their opp:»sition to the vile system. This year severe restr ictions amounting to virtual bans were imposed 00 17 prominent anti-apartheid organizations, on 18 individuals and on the Congress of South Afr iean Trade Unions, the largest trade union federation in South Africa. Also of serious concern is the imp:»sition in september of this year of the harsh Labour Relations Amendment, which seeks, among other things, to curtail black labour's ability to strike and to stage solidarity boycotts, and allows for the imposition of punitive damages for production losses during walk-outs. It should be abundantly clear to all that in its undeclared war against the majority popUlation of South Africa, both devious and cwertly terrorist means will be employeu by the regime to ensure the continued survival of that reprehensible system, a system which the international community has declared to be a crime against humanity. That harsh reality was forcefully confirmed earlier this year, with the assMsinatim and maiming withiii anu outside southern Afril:a of prominent mellibers of the Afr ican National Catgre:ss of South Afr iea and anti-apartheid organizatione. TrinidGd and TObago resolutely condemns those unmitigated acts of State terrorism, which constitute III threat to international peace and security. It is certainly irade that in the face of the racist zegime's unrelenting onslaught on the inalienable rights and fundamental freedoms of the II'l8jority p:>pulation of south Africa, Pretoria persists in its vain efforts to portray itself as reformist and even bQnevolent~ Had t..'ie attempt to canouflage its er iminal deeds been any less tragic and dangerous, and had the cost of the propaganda machinery been any less significant, those machifiCiltions oould have been dismissed as the desperate; but futile att~mpts of an internaUatal pariah to secure national and international legitimacy. But the reality is that genuine supporters of the anti-M!.artheid struggle face the all~too-frequentreadiness of South Africa's ool1aborators, both governmental and pr ivate, to use those so-called signs of reform as justification for their; continued or increasing links wi th apartheid. It is for this reason that Trinidad and Tobago welcomed the Organization's swift and unequivocal rejection of the sham "municipal elections." conducted in South Africa in OCtober of this year. The Assembly recognized the racial "municipal elections" for wha t they were: "••• insidious manoeuvres by the racist minority regime of South Africa fut'ther to entrench white minority rule and apartheid"o (resolution 43/13, para. 2) It is only regrettable that a resolution of that nature was not adopted by consensus, thereby avoiding sending mixed signals to the apartheid regime. In spite of Pretoria's efforts to hoodwink the international comnunity into believing that substantive changes are under way in South Africa, it Is very evident M that the pillars of the aparthe.!!! system remain entrenched and caltinue to gO'lern the daily existence of millions of South Africans. According to the current report of the Special Committee against Apattheid, ale such pillar, the Group Areas Act, which provides for the forced rellOval of the black population to so~alled homelands and deprives them of their citizenship, has been enforced with greater frequency in recent times and also with nuch severity. Concerted and sustained international pressure must be brought to bear on Pretoria to end this loathsome practice, for the oppressed people of South Africa and the international comnunity cannot rest until South Africa attains a united, non-racial dellOcratic society free from mrtheid and based on majority rule. Trinidad and 'lbbago welcomed the release on 26 Noverrber of the President of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania, Mr. zeP'tania f.bthopeng, and Mr. Harry Gt.fala of the African National Congress as well as the recent comnutation of the death sentences imposed on the "Sharpeville Six·. Trinidad and Tobago ha.tever joins other Menber States in calling for the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners in South Africa, inclUding that stalwart of justice, freedom and equality, Nelson Mandela, for my delegation cannot but suspect that the long overdue release of these ailing freedom fighters and the decision concerning the ·Sharpeville Six· included an element of propaganda and attempted manipulation, especially in the Ught of the recent executions of four prominent leaders of the mass-based United DellOcratic Front on a charge of treason and the subsequent execution only last week of five black south Africans. Various reports and studies, inclUding the report of the Secretary-General (A/43/786), the report of the Special Committee against Apartheid (A/43/22), now under consideration, and studies commissioned by the Comrront:'~!l.th Secretariat, have all concluded that some aspects of the Umi ted restrictions and sanctions imposed on SOUth Africa thus far are having significant impact. It is felt that the impact would be increased with the adoption of comprehensive mandatory sanctions. As the Commonwealth secretary-General, Mr. Shridath RamPtal, observed in a recent address in Australia: -It is now obvious from South Africa's propaganda outside and press reaction within the country that Pretoria is troubled by sanctions. Most telling of all, Pres ident Botha has made ita cr iminal offence for any South Afr iean to express sll~port for sanctions.- Unhappily, some of the reports under consideration also acknowledge that there are loopholes even in existing measures and sancUons. Those loopholes ensue in part from imprecision in the language of legislation, from the voluntary nature of some measures and from the fact that violations of sanctions are sometimes not deemed punishable. Also of utmost importance in this regard is the fact that sanctions are not universally applied, thus opening the way for the undermining of sanctions by States and entities not fully restricted by those measures. There is clearly then an urgent need for the international community to devise means to eliminate those loopholes and to establish appropriate lIDnitoring mechanisms, which are indispensable to the process. Trinidad and 'l'obago stands ready to contribute -toWards that end. We will also continue to seek the adoption of comprehens ive mandatory sanctions under Chapter VII of the Uni ted HaHons Charter, for Trinidad and 'lbbago is resolved to continue its commitment to a free, non-racial, demc:ratic SOuth Africa. delegation's app:eciaticn to the ~a!rman, Allbassador J068ph Garba, and all the melllbers of the Special Coraittee against !Earthe~ for the i'ep:)rts they have sW3l1itted to the Genual Assembly. OV'er the 25 years of the Special Committee's existence it has registered considerable pcogress in mbUizing international opinion in support of the struggle to comet the evU policy of apartheid. Its reports and reooumendations have been valuable in keeping the dangerous and critical situation in SOuth Africa hicjl <Xl the internati<Xlal agenda. My appreciation goes equally to the Chairman and other members of the IntergOl7ernmental Group to Monitor the &lpply and S'lipping of Oil and Petroleum Products to South Africa. The Group has been helpful in ensuring that the pcessure of the oil el\i)argo is put on South Africa and that the cUlprits violating it are eKp)sad. This year we mark the fortieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of HUllan Rights, which spells out the fundamental human righte of individuals and all peoples. It spells out the right of every individual to enjoy all the rights and fteedoms set forth in the tl'liversal Declaration, without distinction of any kind as to race, colour, sex, language, religion or ethnic or Dl!IIt1onal or igin. The adoption of the Declaration 40 years ago by the General AsseDbly was a milestone. It marked the recognition that the maintenance of international peace and secur ity was inextricably linked with full respect for human rights. It ushered in the age in whiCh the emancipation of all peoples and the affirmation of human rights and fundamental fteedome are viewed as sacrosanct objectives. The anachronistic aparthetd regime in SOUth Africa stands out as a sad IIOnument of & byqone slave era, defying the spirit of our age. The actions and policies of that regime are predicated on enauring the perpetuation of apartheid. That such a system, similar to the one practised by Nazi Germany, can be allowed to flourish in our midst is a sad coJillllentary on our times. We mll agree that the system of apartheid is evil and immoral and must be ended. This Organization has adopted numerous resolutions calling for the dismantling of apartheid and an end to the institutionalized racism and oppression practised by Pretoria. Indeed, !.-eartheid has been characterized by the uni ted Nations as a crime ag8inst '-. hu_nityo Regrettably, a number of powerful countries have not displayed the necessary political will to bring the regime to an end. In spi te of our condemnation the regime has not relented and shOlls no sign of doing so. It has instead embarked on a policy of intensified oppression at home on the one hand, and a campaign of aggression and destabilization against the frent-line states on the other. The economic infrastructures of all these countries have been targeted for destruction. The economic costs to the Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference (SN>CC) countries arising from the war against apartheid tlas estimated to have totalled 810 billion in the per iod 1980 to 1984. The aim of south Africa is tc; make the front-line states more economically dependent on SOuth Africa. We call on the international CX»JIIJ'lUnity to increase its assistance to SADCC. In the meantime, while pretending to work for the implementation of resolution 435 (1978), South Africa is attempting to manipUlate events in Namibia in such a way that the GoverntMnt of independent Namibia is either directed from Pretoria or, alternat!vely, held economic hostage through the illegal occupstion of Walvis Bay. we maintain that Walvis Bay and the Penguin Islands are integral parts of Namibia. In any settlement South Africa appears intent on clinging to Walvis Bay in order to compromise Namibia IS independence and use its terri tory as a base for subvers ive and aggressive action against the front-line States. The General Assembly should send the unmistakable message that this is unacceptable. We should give unflinching support to the South West Afr iea Peoplels Organization (SWAPO) in its efforts to ensu~e that Namibia becomes a truly independent country. The report of the Special Committee has amply chronicled the gr im picture in SOuth Africa resulting from the 'oppressive policies and practices of apartheid. In response to the growing outcry from both within and outside the country, SOuth Afdc/! has adopted a host of Draconian measures. The state of emergency, under which the regime is 6£"med with arbitrary powers of arrest, has become ;l permanent feature of life in SOuth Africa. In February this year the regime clamj?ed a ban on the political activities of 17 anti-apartheid organizations, including the United Democratic Front (UDF). Itn ominous recent development has been the conviction on charges of treason of prominent black leaders of the UDF and seven others. Their mly crime was to engage in peaceful oppeai Hon to the apartheid regime. Clearly their conviction is bound to increase unrest. It is a demonstration that in South Africa all avenues for peaceful opposi Hon -to the regime are foreclosed ~ In addition to arbitrary arrests under Draconian laws, the Pretoria regime is using vigilantes and other surrogate forces to ,liquidate black leaders. This practice of State terrorism is not: confined within the borders of South Africa) the policy extends to abduction and assassination of exiles and representatives of liberation movements living abroad. A case in point is the assassination of an African National Congress of South Africa (ARC) rePi'esentative in Paris in March this ~ar. Besides extrajudicial physical elillination, South Africa has the undignified honour of having one of the highest execution rates in the "<rId. Almst aU of the victims aro blade leaders. Equally, South Africa has one of the hi~est ~ison populatiOftS p!r capiu. The whole country can be described as a vast concentration camp. In an atte_pt to deceive the world and placate its apologists, the 1'e911118 has instituted sO-called refocme, whic:b as we know are devoid of any substance. T'be objective was partly to co-opt aections of the oppressed whila leaving the whole s:t8tem of oPIXession and domination intact. This wiU deceive no one. The General A8se"ly in resolution 38/11 and the security Council in its resolution 554 (1984) ex~e88ed the unanillDull view of the international comnunity by pronouncing theee shall refor_ null and void. Another ploy. to give leg1 timacy and the appearanca of reform WaB the election of black representatives in the so-called Co_unity CO!Jl'lc!ls, held in october this year. The General Assemly, in resolution 43/13 adoptad at this session, unaniDDusly denounced them as having the object of entrenching minority rule and being caluary to the principles of the Charter. The people of South Africa _ssively rejected these she elections. It is a measure of the regime's insensitivity that it continued tc carry out its obnoxiOl.is sche.. M!artheid cannot be reformed, it must be dismantled • . Uganda welcomes the release from prison of Mr. zephania Mothopel19, President of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (1lAC), and Mr. Harry Gwala of the African National Congress of South Aftica (ANC). We wish, however, to caution that we should not be deluded into believing that this marks a change of heart on the part of Mr. Botha. Their incarceration was unwarranted in the first place. The release of these patr iota is partly intended to blunt the international outcry over the Draconian measures the regime is iIlplementing 1nternlllly. He also wants t:o create a feeling that there is a dialogue going on. Rather than engaging 1n meaningful dialogue with the authentic leaders inside south Africa, Botha has been shuttling to cap! tals abroad, lIallquerading as a peacellaker. We should all be wary of being unwitting accomplices to Botha's sinister designs by offering him a platfo~ from which to act. If Botha is set Iou. in seeking a peaceful abolition of apartheid, he J1Ust show genuine willingness to negotiate with the authentic leaders of the majority. Be should uneonditionally release Nelson Mandela and other black leader:s, 1 ift the ban cm all political organizations, allow exiles to return, repeal the Internal security Act and end the state of e_rgency. Uganda welCOlles the Geneva quadripartite agreement negotiated between Angola, Cuba, South Africa and the United States. We hope that this time South Africa is serious and that it will implement security Council resolution 435 (1978). In view of SOuth AfricaGs ~evious con&1ct, hOllleYer, it ia our considered view that the international co_unity should remain vigilant. Sollle have attempted to use the developments in Namibia as a sign of an iaprcwing cliIDlllte in the region and as 8! colWenient cOler for pE'otecting South Africa from overdue compcehensive mandatory sanctions. SOuth Africa IS withdrawal from Angola and its being forct!ld into negotiations C'Ner Namibia are not charitable acts. They are a consequence of its disastrous defeat at Cuito-Cuanavale at the hands of the Angolan and Cuban internationalist forces. We salute Cuba and Angola for their statesmanship· and the courage to saer 1£ice and fight for the ideals we all share, repelling apartheid aggression £roln Angola and the illegal occupation ef Namibia. we salute those countries that have imposed sanctions. Regrettably, the actions of a few Western Gcwernments in bloeking the imposition of comprehensive undatory sanctions by the Security Council can only give comfort to the apactheid regime and encourage its intransigence. We note with reg'let that the United Kingdom and the Federal RePJblic of Geruny stood in the -.yof the imposition by the Buropean Bconomic Community (EEC) et stricter Ili!lilSUreS against the regime. Uganda also finds it depl«able that, while some States have mwed to impose sBnctions, others have stepped in t'D fish in troubled waters by flllingthe gap left by others. we are not imp:essed by statistics showing that trade 18 declining beween certain countries and the pariah State.. What we desire is determined acticn to make the apartheid enterp: ise a ccetly ~etlenture. we also find the argument that sanctions will not work and that th~ can cmly harll the victiu of apertheid _rely aelt-serving and paternalistic. The countries advancing this line have not hesitated to impose sanctions in instances that were less deserving. Their posture can be aimed only at maintaining their political, economic and military cOllaboration with South Africa. History will not judge them very kindly. U,Janda maintains that the conduct of South Afr iea clearly falls within the purview of Article 39 of the United Nations Charter. It therefore follows that the imposition of comprehensive mandatory sanctions under Chapter VII of the Charter is imperative • W0 in Uganda will continue to give full support and assistance to the people of South Africa and the l.iberatioo movements in their struggle. we equally support the work of the Special Committee against Apartheid. We are aware that there are some who wish to take advantage of the present retrenchment in the United Nations budget to limit unduly the United Nations programmes concerning apartheid. This is unfortunate. More than ever before, the Special Committee's work needs to be strengthened. Its contribution to the isolation of the racist regime and mobilization of the international community is commendable. It deserves the full support of all those who champion freedom. In conclusioo, I wish to rei terate Uganda's view that the issue is not whether apartheid will end, but rather when and how. We can hasten its demise by concerted action. The African Heads of State 20 years ago, in the Luse.., 3 Manifesto, clearly indicated their readiness to live up to both the challenge of negotiations and the challenge of armed struggle. As all peaceful means continue to be blocked, our duty is to assist the liberation I'IDvelDlmts in their struggle. By imposing comprehensive economic sanctions we can make their task easier. Mr. WRIA (Papua New Guinea); Once again the General Assenbly is consider ing the item, ·Policies of apartheid of the Government of South Aftr iea ". OIler 40 years have lapsed, and yet there is no apparent change of attitude in raciot South Afr.iea. In that regard my Government expresses concern that the racist regime of South Africa CQ'ltinues to suppress and exp~.oit the majority of the people of SOuth Africa who are Africans. As a comuy and a people enjoying freedom, peece md harmooy in a diversity of IIOre than 750 different langoagas, dialects and ethnic groups, the people and the GcYtKnllent of Papua New Guinea are cooce:ned and must candenn the policies and ~act1oes of !partbeid in South Africa, for racism is, alOGg with the arlllS race, ene of the most 8817ere threet:s to peece and stabUity in the world today. It is apt?arent that the Government of South Afr iea consider s the oppressed black African _jority to be inferiex and, accordingly, the IIBjority have beC!l'l denied the wealth and comfort of their land and the ri91ts and privileges that have been earned" DIOre often tIlen not, through the sweet and toil of those oppressed blade South Afr ieans. The cjlettos of Soweto are an affront to the di~1t~'1 of humankind. They are a visible sign of de gra cia tion and of the inhuman policies of the racist SOU th African Goyer ntMnt. Persistent failure to deal effectively with this abhexrent offence to hUll8nkind 1& likely to have a serious negative ootcome foe all the people of 8)uth Africa. Racism and ,apartheid impose a serious threat to human societies all over the woeld. The first PrilM Minieter and nar Foreign Minister of Papua New Guinea, Hr:. Midlael Somare, sald in hits addreRS to the Assenbly on 13 OCtClber 1983\ -Racism 2nd apartheid are by their very nature inconsistent with any concept of lastingintcnaticnal order. They offend the principles Oil which societies like mine are founded. (ThfJir) practitioner s ••• deservo not only ccnde-.ation but isolatien. The oppcmet'!ts of racism deser'/e our suOO9, continual support-. (A/38/PV.3l, p. 17) <he of the many obstacles to the resolution of the problem has been the suppor t - direct and indirect - given to the South Afr iean Government by some memers of the Assembly. This has given the racist regime grmt cmfidence in its ability to continue its ap!E'theid policies and practices degpi te wor ld-wide suppor t for sanctions. My delega tion is concerned at the contradictory pOsitions taken by many Merlbets of the (hited Nations Q1 this important 1I8tter. SOme naticns, both developed and developing, endor se the view that ap!!r theid is bar bar:lc and has no pIa ce in the civ U !zed world, and yet those same na tions lend considerable suppCJr t. to the Government of South Africa through active sceio-economic, cultural and polltical co-opera tia1. If the international community is ser iously opposed to apartheid, it should teke posi tive s tepa desi~ed to br ing JIIIximum pressure to bear Q1 the GoITernment of Bouth ,.rr ica to abolish aptrtheid immedia telyo As stated by our Foreign Minister during the general debate in OCtcher of this year: -My delega tion believes that the option of manda tDry sanctions aga mst South Africa holds some prospects for success. We acknowledge that such a course of action .. if adopted, could create eCDnomic hardship. But what other options lire there? Economic hardship can be corrected €Ner time • eo -. (A/43/PV.27, p. 33) Papua New Guinea for its pert has severed all relations with the racist regime of SOuth Africa. we therefore maintain no trade, diplollBtlC, consular or even sporting links with that country. Recently, a South African company tried to buy shares in a multinatialal canpany, Remison Goldfields, which has interests in two of Papua New Guinea's huge gold mines. The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea publicly stated that the Papua New Guinea Government will not - I repeat, will not - allow the apartheid regime to benefit from our resources. The inter national mmmun ity 's effor ts are fr ustr ated by the follOW"i!'~~ considerations':. the cmHnued lack of effective economic sanctions by SOuth Africa's major trade Pl!Irtners~ difficulties and emnomic hardships faced by the developing cowatries in taking effective sanctions against south Africa~ SOuth Africa, with its enOl'iDOUS raserves of mineral resources, especially gold, has lured investOl's from developed countries to invest in SOuth Africa~ and South Africa's calculated and continued harassD'ent of neicj1bour ing front-line Afr ican countr ies. Numerous resolutions have been adopted by the General Assembly Q'l the questial. of South Aft'iea 's apar theid policies. However, none of those resolutioos has had any real imlJl!tct 00 South Africa, mainly because the. Organization has no enforcement capability to ensure their effective implementa tion. Furthermore, perhaps a more serious hincrance is the veto power vested in the hands of the permanent menber s of the SeQIr ity Council. Some have consistently d>jected to and vetoed comprehensive and mandatory sanctions against SOUth Africa. My Gaver nJII!nt is convinced that if there is any sense of moral mnvictioo by states Mellbers of the Assenbly" then Gcwernments both individually and collectively can take positive measures to end th(! inhUl'llane pt'actices of aparthe~ perpetrated by the racist regime in Pretoria. we are left with some hope, in that the international mlllllunity agrees' that apartheid is evil and is the worst crime against hUllUlnity. In solidar ity' with the black South Afr ieans and other like-minded countr ies, Papua New Guinea will cootinue to support thited Nations efforts totally to eradicate racism and aJ?!rtheid from the face of the earth. Mr. MESSMER (Bolivia) (interpreta tion from Spanishh Once agai.'l Bolivia deems it necessary to express its vigor:ous .p.!:)test and indignation over the unbeorllble suffering being inflicted on the peoples of South Africa and Namibia. It is hard to imagine that with only a few y(!ar:s left in this millenium, there can sUll exist a regime with primitive motivations of alleged racial supremacy. In keeping with humanitarian feeli.'l9S and international solidarity, I!olivia wishes to exp:ess its full support for those peoples fi9tHng for freedom and reoogni Hon of the ir inalienable and le9itine te d ghts • In this spirit, we wish to send a message of supper t and hope to the oourageous people of South Africa and to their liberation movement in their just and h(!roic strugg~e against apartheid and for full reCX)gnition of and respect for their rights to self-de.term.f.natia'l and to the creation of a new South African State within the frcmawork of democratic principles, unity, non-racism and peaceful coexis tenoe. The regime of injustice in SOuth Africa remains unchanged because of the dominance of a white minority tlhich is cbing nothing to change its inadmissible attitude and heed the fervent appeals of the community of civilized nations. In that country, people continue to live in a world in which repression, torture, arbitrary detenticm and crimes have virtually become institutions. The inter national community has not perceived any signs of real change in the system of apartheid. Indeed, that regime has become more intransigent with eNery psssing year. We must redouble our effor"ts to reverse this trend towards confrcmtation, which hasbeoome more and more explosive and the culmination of whim is quite un~edictable. In the opinicm of my delegation, therefore, it is essential to establish serious, responsible dialogue with the true representatives of the black people of South Africa. The aim of this dialogue should not be to reform the apartheid regime but to elimina te it aloe and for all and to build a new Sou th African sta te free from the present anachronistic character istic:s. As long as the system of apartheidccmtinues, the possibilities of oo-operatioo among the countries of the region art) quite remote. The continued existence of apartheid is a cause of violence, destruction and destabilization in the neicjlbouring countries. It is undeniable that the efforts at negotiation that are being carried out in South Africa might help alleviate tension and bring peace to the subccntinent, but it is illusory to believe that a lasting solutioo will be found if we avoid the ~oblem that lies at the root of the calflict, namely !E.artheid. In conclusion, the delegation of Iblivia wishes to reiterate its raspect for and rem9l'lition of the work being dcme by the institutions and individuals that are fi~ting against this terrible system. we wish also to pay a tribute to the long-suffer ing people of Sou th Africa. Mr. LEQiAILA (Botswanah The report of the Special COlllllittee against Apartheid (A/43/22) of 27 ~tober 1988, shoWs that, unlike the rest of the world, where IIIOmentous and constructive developnents have taken place in the past year, and are indeed taking place elTerl as we meet here, South Africa remains the O)untry it was last year W1en we debated this perennial and vexing item in this Assf!lllbly. The re~rt of the Special Committee against Apartheid is an anthology of woes. CCX1trary to the inexplicably optimistic picture of South Afr iea which some meliber s of the Assembly inexplicably seek to paint, the report cmtains harrowing details of massive abuses, not simply of human d(jlts in South Africa but, most important, of the oppments of apartheid themselves, abuses ranging from the usual cases of banning and detention without: tr ial to tr ials for political treason, assass !nations and disappear ances • It is difficult to describe South Africa today. The so-called reforms, now almost totally abandmed for their unworkability, have prodtced a South Africa of another kind. In adcUtion to the fact that is is an archipelago of pr isons to wich oppments of apartheid routinely disappear, rarely to be seen 8ga in, a vigilante {henomenon has beoome estab1ish~ in tha~ country. In the service of the State and the regime, vigilante groups roam the streets of South Africa's teeming townsh ipa to mete ou t instan t pun ishrnen t on opponents of afar thet~. The distinction between Y'iat would in a normal, civilized society pass for regular forces of law and order, and gangs of political parastatal Rfovoc:ateurs has become so blurred as to be virtually non~xistent. There is a fact concerning SOuth Afr iea which we must never tire of harping on if we are to be trUly faithful to our obligations and to our debt of honour to the people of SOuth Afr iea. The truth is that the determination by the Gover nment of South Africa to preserve apartheid remains unchanged. This will cmt1i1ue to be the case as long as Pretor ia is continually commended for shUffling its feet backwards •• and forwards in the name of reform. South Africa's State President has repeatedly rejected majority rule, arguing that he has not been elected President of South Africa to preside ewer the downfall of 1llhite power. Now what does the rejection of majority rule imply? In what way can apartheid be abolished and majority rule denied? Is the abolition of apartheid not supposed to open the flood-ga tea of freedom in South Afr iea? Is it not supposed to facilitate the creation of a non-racial, demexatic society in a non-fragmented South Afr iea? Bow can we have ncr.-racialism, democracy, justice and freedom in South Africa wi thout majority rule? These are pertinent and crucial questions, which only the leaders of the white community in South Africa can answer and must answer. we, for our part, consider that the rejection of majority rule can maan one thing and one thing only, and it is that the so-called reforms were never intended to lead to the abolition of apar theid. They were never intended to lead to the establishment, in lJ united, non-racial and non-fragmented South Africa, of a governnent of the people, by the people and for the people. The intention of the reforms have always been to nibble away at apartheid sufficiently to cattort its appearance, to moderate its application and to legitimize its perceived necessity in the forlor:n hope that in the full'f,ess of time its victims would accept and bear its str ictures - the whole idea being to leave control of the Governnent in South Africa for ever in the hands of the whites. Wlat is happening in South Africa today frightens us lllll - to say the least. The spectacle of Aft ik aner s waging wer aga inst each other because they do not know ~ether their tribe should accept its rendezvous with the twenty-first century or go on a trek back to the nineteenth, or even the seventeenth, century to find caufort and security in racism and bigotry is no joke at all·, at least, for those who live in SOuth Africa it is no joke. The offshoots of the civil war within Afrikanerdom are a plethora of 'Ilbite tribal -liberation or resistance MCNements-, such as the so"'(:alled ltlite iblves and others whcse mission is to fi~t to the death for the preservation of \Ilhite suprellllSCy in South Africa. Typically, the reaction to this dangerous cEvelopment in that oountry on the part of the white Government in Pretoria is to bend <:Ner backwards to accommdate or give vent to the wild and destructive aspirations of the lunatic fr inge of the Nlite community, as if accomJIDdation of such a vicious and racist fringe were possible without the regime itself running the risk of join 1ng the fr inge in a final blow to any pretensions of intent to abolish apQrtheid. If the regime in Pretor ia is ser ious, as it suggests it is, about the type of change that the people of South Africa and the inter:na tional coramunity seek in tha t coun try, it should give no quarter to those on the white side of the colour line who, so late in the fNolution of human history, stUI belielle racism has a place in human existence. The so-ca Ued tilite Wolves as a whole, not s imply the little cell that has recently been proscribed, must not be allowed to see the light of day. The counterbalancing of the repr: ieve of the Sharpeville Six, who had been convicted for purely political crimes, by the extension of clemency to brutal tliihito police murderers caMot help Pretoria's vaunted good intentions. Yet the fact is that there are those amng us here and els~here who see light were we see darkness iu SOuth Africa. It is said that South Africa, like the rest of the w«ld, 18 wanging for the better - 80 say the apologists. It is argued that the language of resolutions we adopt hera !lUst be tempered by appreciation of the positive changes that ara talc ing place in South Africa. It is suggested that even before Namibia's long-denied independence is attained we flUSt kneel dawn and thank Q)uth Africa in anticipetian for oo~peratin9 in the quadr:ipartite talks, and that we should be for ever so grateful to South Africa for its .gnanimity regarding Namibia as to be sympathetic to Pretoria's plight waftn it .... CODeS to the fi91t for the abolition of apartheid. First, we do not know tlhat change people see in SOu th Africa that the rest of us cannot see. Olless we can be told and convinced that trying and convicting innocent thited Democratic P'ralt (OOi') activists en tr\lllped-up ueaSal charges amount to constructive change aimed at the abolition of apartheid, we wUl It:emain W\im~essed by the sO-e!llled change people see in Q)uth Africa, .11d1 we cannot see. On the other hmd, there may be those who are want to regard the rep: ieve of the Sharpeville Six as constructive change consistent with the struggle for the abolition of apar: theid. we see th~ re.,;c iwo as a neither-here-ncx-there issue, even though we are, as human be ings, reUcwed that the 1 Ives of our brothcs and sister of the Shm:peville Six h8'le been saved. The fect is, hOllever, that the Six, in our view, were guUty only of wanting to be free. That is the only common purpose we have associated with their ric#lt to struggle tor the freedom of their people, and they share that 'co_m purpose with 28 mUlion of their coll'ltrylllen. Secondly, we frankly do not Set! any reason why the Unitad Natioos, which h_ for 80 long been frustrated by SOuth Africa's defiance of its resolutions on Namibia, should be asked with such indecent haste to thank South Afr lea for its co-operation, if co-operaticn indeed it is, in the quadripartite talks. No thanks are due tor South Africa's involuntary coapl.iance with tl'aited Nations resolaticns which it has defiantly sccxned for so 1009. In any casca, there pcobably would hpe been no South Alr iean par tit:ipe tion in the quadr iper tite talks had thee been no Cuito Cuanll'lale. Thirdly, the long-awaited deperture of South Atrial frOll Nallibia, when and If it ca. about, would hll'1e no rel.anc. .atBOtWer to our attitude towards SOuth Alr iea on the ques tion of IIPlr tbeid. There should be no IIOr eel of grat!tude Gor SOuth Africa's doing tihat it has to do either in fulfilling its abl1gatim to get rid of ap!rtheid 01' in ending th~ illegality of its pcesence in Na.ibia. So far as we are cCIlcerned, the beat appcoach to the South African questim, the question of apertheid, is not to telax pressure through too .uch willingness and readiness to r evard SOuth Afd all for doing 80 11t tle, if any th ing. 9>u th Afr iea should not be made to feel that it is all ri91t to re~rll aper theid inc:rellentDlli instead of abolil!lhing it. It 18 not all right to reforll ap!rtheid incrementally 01' to reform it in any way. The solution to Ilpartheid can be t!ound only in its total abolition, certainly not in repdwing ene group of cClldemad political pc Isoner s, whose place on dea th rtN, In any case, is t.Mdis tely tak en by another group of cClldenned freedom fl91ters. Pressure !IUSt be continued on Pretor ia to aoc:ept the fact that .par theid, 1f it 1& to be ended peacefully, can be ended only by the collbined effor:ts of the two coBlunities in SOuth Africa m'llinq together to negotiate a constitutional dispensation acceptable to both. '!'he alternative 18 blooddled and clear and in_iuble en&lngerMnt of the very future of 'the whits .inority in SOuth Africa. In past weeks we h8l1e h",ard people say that ee.e elections have taken place in South Afr iea and therefore SOuth Afr iea IlUst be congratulated. I wUl now turn to those elections, the recent .unicipal elections, ...ich ea-e in the outside w«ld hlW. tended to regard as credible evidence of the evolution of constructive •• mange in South Africa. The question we have to ask men we look at those elections le how they were organized. It is a known fact that the elections wer __ ccg.,ized on racial lines, in accordance with the ideological strictures of apartheid, and were meant to perpetuate racial segregation, aputheid. we are at a loss as to why anyone could find anything constructive ana encouraging in such elections. Why should we ever imagine it to be possible that a true democracy in South Africa can be achieved by the Wlite minority single-handed and using blatantly racist methods? Why should we accept tha devilish perception that the only path to dellDcracy and peace in South Africa must bea racist one? le it not clear that the segrega ted municipal elections were an Obvious extension of the racialist sdlizophrenia so typical of the South African society, with its tribal ho_lands, tr !bal par liaments, tr ibal schools, tr tbal restaur ants, tr ibal toilets and tr ibal cemeteries? 1I1y should the internatimal community accept such undeno«atic, mjust and dangerous elections, the effect of which, if they had succeeded, would certainly h8l78 been it witting extension of legitill8cy to racial segregation and tyranny in South Afr lea? The South African regime knows with whom it must negotiate the future (')f South Africa if such a future is to be assured. It does not need racially polarized municipel ~lec~ions to identify the true and authentic leaders of black South Africans. Mlmiclpal elections such as those on 26 OCtober were meant to circulft'lent those leaders by supplanting them with black interlocuters of the Governnent's choice. That is a dangerous game "Ihich we can ill afford in Sou th Africa. we must insist, therefore, that ~. Mandela and his compa tr iots, nal wasting away in prisons or clinics, be released to participate in shaping the future of 9:>uth Afr iea. Mandela, in a elin ic or "IhereYer else he mi~t be transferred on oompletionofhis reccwery, remains a prisoner of Pretoria, as his family and the world contei'ld. He will remain a pt"isoner of Pretoria until he is free. Thus he is unablff to negotiate the freedom of his people and the future destiny of his country. He is unable to work for the peace and stability of South Afr iea. In this epoch, the year 1988 has been not only lit year of caltinued transformations in the character of relations between the super-Powers and a year of qualitative and cRclsive ameU«ation of tensicns in most regions of the wor:ld, but also the year in which mC8 again the leaders of South Africa, with the gen«al relaxation of wodd tensions 8S a backdrop, have tried to break oot of the isola tion in which their Ber theid policies hfie for so long impr isoned their OOW'ltry. Forgetting that merity begins at home, the President of Ebuth Africa has visited melllbet:s of the OI!ganizatia'l of African Olity in southern, central and west Africa C1Stensibly to talk peace, in addition perhaps to asserting South Africa's self-appointed role as the regional Power of southern Africa. The visits attracted a lot of attention as if they wer:e in some sense historic or ground-breaking. It has bem said that the visits are a demonstration of 9)uth Africa's readiness to engaC)9 in a dialogue on peace in our region. The lOoutward locking" policy and travels of the 13te John Vcrster, the Prime Min ister of the white minor ity of South Afr ica in the 1970s, were also ascr ibed to some readiness by 8)uth Africa to talk peace, some kind of readiness genuinely to extend the hand of friendship to Africa. There was the p:esent State president's celetlnted diplo..Uc safari of 1984, the year of regional peace accords, which failed. What did the people of southern Africa and Africa as a whole gain from all those safaris, frcm all the travels by SOuth African Presidents outside Africa? I can tell representatives that thOllJe of us who come from South Africa have seen intensified South African State terroriSDl against our independent states. 'l't1at is all that we gained froll those safaris. The destabUlzation that has been wreaked on the region since 1984 has become legendary. The peace accords have been rendered wor thless by the very same people who went aromd peddling them. lbt only have they been rendered wor th less but they have bec::aae very dangerous as the bandits have escalated their murderous attacks on innoeent un, wo.n and childt'en all over the region. In my own country, every year since 1984 has been a year ot me trauma after another~ for we cannot forget the brutal attacks on our cap1 tal by South Afr ican co188ndos in June 19185, July 1986 and March lS38,cr ignore those attacks .aich are still to come. It is the sa_ story all ewe( the regime What dialogue, we 88k? We insist that charity begins at home. The best and _t logical place for Pr_idmt Bothe's dialogue i8 inside 8)uth Africa, .aere allDlt 30 llillion of hia black countr:yaen are yearning to be r-ee fro. _par theid. 1I\y mould he 00-. IIld talk to the PresidMt of Botswana 1lhen he can talk to Handela? It is with Mandela, fbthopeng and their compa triots tha t President Bathe's dialogue must begin, for no leader or country in southern Africa or elsetlhere outside SOuth Africa can speak fOl black SOuth Africans or has the right to do 80. Only the peop!'e of South Africa can best expcess their aspirations. OIly they know the searing agony and pain of racial tyranny and oppression in SOUth Africa. Only they have a direct and immediate stake in the future of SOuth Africa. I should not be misunderstood in sugg,esting that we in South Africa are opposed to anybody outside South Afr ica talking to President Botha about their own concerns. That.is not the point. we in the frmt-line States are saying that we are not prepared to talk to Botha, simply because we want to be fair to ourselves and to the people of South Africa. we are called refuseniks, but we are not refuseniks becauSe all we are trying to do is to respect the laws of logic and good sense. we are talking here about countries whose centuries-old economic dialogue with South Afr,ica remains intact despite commando raids and rampant destabilizatial. So our refusal to usurp the place of black South Afr icans on the other side of President Botha's table is not to suggest that those of us in southern Afric~ have absolutely nothing to do with South Afr ica. we ha'le a lot to do with it, but not to the extent that we can arrogate to ourselves the prerogative of deciding the future of SOuth Africa with the leaders of! the white minority aver the heads of black South Africans. Hence our insistence - and we are «ping to continue to insist - that Presidel,t Botha lJeet Mandela, It>thopeng and their canpa triots to negatta te once and for all the end of ap!rtheid and the beginning of a new era in South Africa. There is no other _y out. Nothing will save the ttlites in South Africa if they do not talk to their brethren on the black side of the colour line. There is no way out for South Africa. The tihites can nwer rule South Africa alone and enjoy peace and prosperity at the sallle time. I think they have realized that. The £buth Africa in which they live today ls good neither £'01' . them nor for the blacks or any other community in that country. How can the whites mjoy peace if to do that they have constantly to treat their black brethren brutally, to suppress their aspirations to freedom and justice? How can they enjoy t;J1e power they have so ruthlessly clung to for eo long'if to do so they have constantly to send their chUcken into black townshiPl to attack black children and to die in the proceas~ to suppress their aspirations to freedom and justice? A different kind of South Africa is feasible and achievable, a kinder and gentler South Africa free of the brutalities of apartheid and racism, prO'lided only that White South Afr ieans ean see the folly of their ways and conform to and change with the rest of the wodd, for their own sake. The ball is in their court. (Hr. Le2'aila, Botswana) . Mr. MBNDIBTA (ColoJlbia) (inter~etation from Spanishh The world il3 new experiencing an important period of detente, resulting from the ccntinuing imp:O'Iement in relations between the great Powers and the understanding betr...een them. Like ar4Y other process, this one has had clear ripple effects tha t have been DlO9ing us alowly towards a final settlement of a large nunber of regional confl icts and p:d>leJl8. The Afr iean continent: has not been untouched by that process. On the ccntrary, thanks to detente and active coaQperation and determination in the region, Africa, under the leadership of the Organization of African tmity, has made some very si~lfican t strides foe ward. This ps:ocess, which m1~t be called external pacification, is without any doubt one of the basic prerequisites for a just and lasting peace in regions 'ti1ere there is tension. But it is not the only prerequisite. History proves that any process of regional consolidation and stabil.1zation is possible only if, in addition to external peace, the countries or peoples within regions involved in such conflicts enjoy ccnditions of freedcm and justice. For it is precisely intClrnally that there exists today the major threat to the peace ptocesses that hAVe begun, some of them under the auspices of our Organ iza tion. Nowhere is tha t more obviClls than in souther n Afr iea. The existence of a racist minority regime in South Africa, which stubbor:nly maintains an institutional system violat....g the most fundamental human ri9hts, will continue to make a just and lasting peace impossible in that region. The progress being made in the CClltext of the four-party talks which are aimed at finding a final solution to the problem of Namibia and hl!l7e entered a crucial stage with the si91in9 of the Bl:azzaville agreement, is a positive but not a final step towards stability in southern Africa. As raenbers of the international ool'll'llunity, we cannot be satisfied wi th a partial solutiQ1. Still less can we rely at such a solutial to justify economic or col11llercia1 interests or needs. So long as the system of apartheid persists in I:buth Africa, not only will the chances of lasting peace in the region rerc::d.n remote, but a system will be perpetuated whose very essence is disregard for the most elemental human rights. We cannot remain mdtfferent to such a situation. Colonbia has always ad'loca ted and still advoca tes the use of all kin&, of p:essure against the Pretoria GO'Iernment, not only at the political level by ratifying international oonventions against apartheid, but also at the eoonomic 1EMe1 by imposing canprehensive, mandatory sanctions against South Africa, in keeping with the rea>lIIIlenda tion of the ~ecia1 Committee aga inst Apar theid. Mcrecwer, we must not stop supporting the SOuth African people, particularly their leaders and representa tives of the var: ious movements struggling for freedom and justice. The Government of Colonbia has always valued the example of those great leaders. That is why, on 15 July last, in Decree No. 1433, President VirgUio Barco awarded the National Order of Me~it, with the Grand Cross, to Mr. Nelson Mande1a, the leader of the African National Congress of SOuth Africa. The award was aocepted by Ml'. Neo fobumzana, the head of that movement's United Nations mission, on 26 August last in lbgota. Our ing the award ceremony, President Baroo oaid~ -Mr. Mandela Is an example of wisdom, courage and cOl'IIDitment. He is a world synbol of the defence of human dghts, dignity and equality-. President Barco also descr ibed Hr. Mandela as -a leader with excepti'Ol1al human qualities, \lDose comrietions have not been weakened by unjust impr isonuent, by suffer ing or by solitary confinement. He is a man mcm the vexl"! admires and respects, \Gose sole weapons are his peaeeful ideals and his moral force-. The sacrifices of e.mplary leaders like Nelson f-1andela must not be in vain. With th~t award, my Government wished to reex>gnize him as a worthy example not only to hie paop!e but to the peoples of the world. The stal:wart f1~re of NelsCX\ Mandela must guide us 10 our efforts to achieve the total and immediate elimination of apar theid. The slow rate of progress to that end has led - contrary to many expectations - to a radicalizatior. of forces 10 the GcN~nment and among the minority that it represents, which h8'1e e1llerted pressure against any possibility of dljjnge. In those circumstances, the only viable alternative is for all St~ tes to resolve to use the means 8'1ailable to our Organization, and particularly the security Council, in order to exert greater pressure on the GovernJreni: of Pretoria to 1otrodlce real reforms, including the lifting of the state of emerCJency, t.-'e imediate release of all political pr isoner s and the intrOduction of a broad system of participl!lltory demoa:acy. If such reforlllB are not made, the desired peace and stabUity in southern Africa wUl remain in jeoperdy. Finally, our delegllltiCX\ calls on all the Menbers of the Organb:aticn to vote in favour of the draft resolutions now before the ADeemly. Mr. 'KUDENGB (ZintJabweh Ql~ again the Assembly haa before it 8g81da item 36, entitled "Policies of apartheid of the Government of South Africa-. One would have wanted by this time to be able to think of apartheid as a nightmare of the pest, only to be read aboot 10 textbex>ics as a tragic aberration 10 the history of menkind "Ihich could never be allowed V- occur again, 11 dark pl!llge in the: stcxy of time to which human hearts should be forever closed. Unfortunately, apartheid is still very much with us today, and the indica tiats are that it wUl continue to be for some time to come, despite the efforts of the international community to purge the wex ld of th is malignan t perver sity • Last week South Afr i~ indica t:ed its favourable, if somewhat cagey and delayed, response to the Geneva proposals for a settlement in southwestern Africa. ZiDt»abwe welcomed the results of the Geneva talks and has urged all the par ties il'lV'olved to implement the agreement faithfully. It is my Government's conviction that if the agreement were to be hatestly implemented it would make a sic;J1ificant cCi1tributicn to the lessening of tensiat in OUIi:' region. Blt we have yet to see if Pretoria wUl honoor its side of the bargain. (Mr. fo11denge, Zinbabwe) In the mean time, Pretoria is taking every advantage of the Ge.H~va agreement in order to IX)lish its international image. It is trying to ~oject itself as a responsible interlocutor and regional Power working to reduce tension in southern Africa. At home, the regime talks of reform and power-sharing. It has released a few African leaders from its ja11s, includirag Zephania fobthopeng. And on the African continent, it is involved in its own brand of pan-Africanism. Are we seeing the apartheid Gordian knot beginning to loosen, or are we again merely the victims of the fantasies created by those past masters of illusion and dissimulation? That question is being asked in the press and even among some serious observers of the South African scene. History has taught those of us in southern Africa not to read the lips of apartheid but to watch its actions. It is by its actions that it shall be judged. The practitioners of apartheid have a track record by which we can measure them. And it is a record without ha'lour - only a grim tale of broken promises. And even as they talk peace and preach reform they cootinue to support and supply armed bandits against their neighbours and tc act toughly and brutally against the majority of their citizens. Such contradictions are nothing new from Pretoria. They are inherent in the ideolo.9Y of apartheid. And they will continue to be part and parcel ef the SOuth African political landscape until apartheid is destroyed. Apartheid io and w..I.d always be a brutal and inhuman system. Because of its very nature, it cannot be otherwise. It is a menace to its neighbours, a threat to international peace and security and a scourge to its citizens. !2artheid South Afr ica is still a nasty and brutish society. Even today, whole communities can find of amoz:ning that their homes have been bulldozed to the ground. Individuals can suddenly discover that at the stroke of a pen they been reclassified wi thout regard to their race, no longer ble\ck but coloured, no longer Indian but Chinese, no longer Ma1ay but black, no lon~er white but coloured and vice versa. Botha still playa Cl little Afr ikeaner god. Men and women are incarcerated indefinately without benefit of a trial, and groups of children are taken to reorientation camps to be brainwashed into becoming what are called "good, law-abiding" apartheid-eontrolled secmd-elaas citizens. In the townships, the state of emergency allows the military to kill and maim with impunity. And in the courts of law, strange hangman cencepts of justice are introduced. According to a recent Amnesty International report, South Africa "has one of the highest rates of jUdicial executions in the world". Last year, South Africa hanged more people than it has in its history since its independence from Britain in 1910. The report states that "During the last la years, an increasing nunber of defendants have been sentenced to death after political trials or trials for politically motivated killings during the nation-wide protests in the urban townships". This year alme, according to the regime's Minister of Justice, 83 such politically motivated prisoners were awaiting execution in Septemer. kcording to the AnI1esty report, a black persm is more likely to be sentenced to death on capital charges than a 8.Jropean. That differentiation en the basis of race is both "conscious and deliberate". That is the reality of South Africa today. And it is what we are fighting against. Pretor ia is involved in a mass ive Goebbels-esque propaganda and public-relations extravaganza throughout the ",odd. MOSt Namer States of the Organization are aware of Pretoria's ubiquitous functionaries popping up all OI7er the globe as businessmen, cultural officers, information officers, seminar organizers, experts, tourists - you name it, they have th& category. Many of us recall with pride the firm and decisive action taken by the President at the current session of the General l\8semly when, in his capacity as Foreign Minist.er -------- of friendly Argentina, he flushed out and exposed the activities of those operatives in his counu·y. 1'01' those of us who live in southern Africa, Pretoria has special radio stations Ol:' prograllllles directed against eacb of our oomtdes. zhbabwe is targeted by a notorious station in the northern Transvaal lIisilalW)d -Radio Truth-. It is a veritable cQ'luaption of air-waYe pollution in fIIJ ccumtry. In aclUtion to its aggressive camPl!li~s of external disinfol'utiQ'l, the regime has a perverse and massive internal propeganda pcograDllle to tranquilize the .mite South Afr iean co_un ity into accepting the 1IIlIlIora11ty of apar theid. It is a well-ordlestrated information offensive to put tilite SOuth Africa into a lIClG:al co., a t peace with its conscience aild the ill-gotten comforts of apartheid. Reinforcing that .propaganda macbinet:y is a battery of ckacCl1ian ptess laws backed by a state of emergency, imposing a virtual information black-out on the countryltJ media. Q.ach l.,s df!l\Y informat1<1\ to all South Africans and attempt to hide the reality within the country from the outside world. Behind the thick cloud of obfuscation, repressiQ'l and murdM' are oomaitted for the preservation of aparth~~. Valiant efforts haYe been and are being made to eHpOse the true story unfolding in SOUth 1•..:rica. Foe example, the Commcnwealth secretariat In London organized a very successful conference on that 13ubject and lilOre recently the CoIIJIonwealth Committee of Foeelgn Ministers Ql southern Africa met in TorQ'lto, Canada In order, inter alia, to review the question of lnformatiClft on and to South Africa. 9:HIe useful ideas emerged at that meeting and I reOOllJllend the. to the lIellbera of the Assembly. Also, here In the United States, public televisiCln Channel 13 has in traduced a weekly p:ogrttl..e called ·SOuth Africa Now~, ..id1 i8 WOE'thy of our attentiCll. (Hr. ltldenge! ZiDbabve) The tbited Ha~ions system, throu€jl its Department of Plblic InforlUtion, has over the years tried to p:'OV'ide ac:curate news and inforuticn to the people inside South Africa hy means of its anti-a..2artheid radio section, 1Ilhid1 has been a valuable service to the people of South Africa. ltf delegation is particularly pleased that the AsseDbly has before it a draft resolutiCll that takes note of and supports the importal"t. service being rendered by that section. If the section did not exist g we would today have called for its immediate crstioo. It is therefore with a sense of singular satisfaction that frOlll this rostrum we render richly deserved ~aise to the eftortG of the Anti-!Parthetd Programmes Section and plead fex its cOhtinued and strengthened existence as a unique and separate entity symbolizing in a polgnan"t and fitting maMer humsnity'e revulsion and outrage at the abhorrent policies of apartheid. we the international collUWnity have the means to pressure Pretoria to change, and we have seen in recent days that Pretoria does respond to preesure and sanctions. Those who say that Boers do not respond to pressure are either ignorant of history or have blinded themselves to facts. From the history of the Anglo-DOer war we recall. that not only did the Beers invent and perfect commando raiding as a miU tary tactic and in9pire the Br!ti Bb army to use khal; i uni forms instead of the traditional British red <Nats in the savannah grasslands) more importantly, faced with the might of the British Inlperial Army and its ingenious invention of the concentration camp as a weapon of tlarin which it detained Hoer women and children in what Doer nationalists describe as appalling incarceration centres of death and starvation, the Boers, instead of co_itting national hare-kirl, surrendered and sued for peace. ThClSe who argue th&t today's Boers would ra1:her commi t national suicide than negotiate for a peaceful existence '11th the black IMjority do not appreciate the Afrikaner's instinct for survival. A few mnths ago the South African army was whipped and bloodied at Cuito Cuaftavale, in southern Angola. The decision of the Afrikm1er generals was not to call foE' a Custer-Uke last stand. No. They nf!90tiated and obtained terms to beat a quiet retreat. Now, under pressure frOll the' present: liMited international sanctions snd major economic dislocation at home, and threatened by massive debt repayments and lack of foceign capital, Botha is hopping all O'Ier Afdca and Burope, hippity-hoppity, high and low, like SCft!l desert grasshopper trying to lower the political body teJlperature by hi. hopping aromdy Years of the so-called policy of dialogue, of "constructive engagement·, of option "Tar-Baby" did not yield any significant result. It was all carrot and no stick. Now, if Namibia does gain its independence, let not those who advocated a policy of all carrot and no stick delude themelves that it was their prescription that mewed Pretoria in the end. Recently the white rugby authorities, frustrated by the effectiveness of the Uni ted Nations-sponsored international sports boycott, decided to sue for peace by negotiating with the African National Con9res~ of South Africa (ANC) and promising to introduce non-racial rugby in SOUth Africa. Pressure and boycott did that, not so~alled dialogue and persuasion. We therefore appeal to the international community, and especially to the friends of SOUth Africa, to maintain and support the policy of pressure and sanctions, which is now beginning to show some results. This is not the time to relent or to change a policy that is at last bearing fruit. It is important to maintain it and make it more effective. Botha's recent initiatives are prompted by his fear of increased international sanctions and aimed at blunting or remving existing ones. It would be a tragic error were we to let him off the hook so cheaply. Pretoria must take certain .. irreversible steps for change before we can believe in its bona fides. Zimbabwe I ' r 'remains convinced that the international community should increase the pressure until Pretor ia is ready to dismantle ap:artheld and to negotiate with the true leaders of the majority of its people. SO long as the ANC and the Pan Africanist / " Congress of Azania (MC) temain banned and leaders like Nelson Mandela incarcerated, ~tha is not serious about solving the prClblems of his country, and we should r.emain steadfast in our resolve to apply pressure, through sanctions, in order to convince him to change. My delegation wishes to thank the Special Committee against Apartheid for all the good werk it has been doing under the leadership of our Ixother Amassador Garba of Niger ia. The PRESIDENT, We have heard the last speaker in the debate on this agenda item. The Assellbly will consider draft resolutions submitted under the item at its meeting this afternoon.