S/PV.1046 Security Council

In accordance with the decision previously taken by the Council. l shall invite the l'epresentatives of Tunisia. Liberia. Portugal. Sierra Leone and Madagascar to participate in the consideration of this question andto take places at the Council table. At the invitation of the President. Mr. Mongi Slim (Tunisia). Mr. Rudolph Grimes (Liberia). Mr. Alberto Franco Nogueira (Portugal). Mr. John Karefa-Smart (Sierra Leone).;mdMr. LouisRakotomalala (Madagascar)took places at the Council table. 2. The PRESIDENT {translated from French): The Council will Continue its discussion of item 2 on its agenda and of thedraft resolution submittedbyGhana. Morocco ·and the Philippines [S/5372]. l call upon the first speàker on the list. the Minister for External Affairs of Sierra Leone. S. Mr. KAREFA-SMART (Sierra Leone): In a brief statement which l made to the Security Councilduring its last meeting on 26 July 1963. l undertoqk to substantiate the references which my colleagues and I. representating the African Member States. made to the continuation by the Portuguese Government of the colonial war which led the GeneralAssemblytodecide [resolution 1819 (XVII)] that these acts of the Portuguese Government "constitute a sôurc,e of international conflict and tension as well as a serious threat to world peace and security". 4. 'On the very day, 26 July. on which my colleagues and l were being accused of seeking to mislead the Council into believing that there was abreachof peace when Portugal had stated that infact everywhere in the Portuguese territories in Africa peace and order reigned, the French news agency Agence France- Presse. in its dispatchNc.111 from Conakry, reported as follows: '- "Twenty-one persons were killed and thirty-five others were woundedwhen Portuguese planes bombed \ 1 the village, of Bacar Conte in Portuguese Guineaon 1 the left bank of the River Corubal. •.. The bombing which lasted five hours was alsodirectedagalnstthe -villages of Bodjol, Incassol. and Ndjasane, all of which are under the control of the PAIGC (The African Party for the Independence of Guinea" and \ Cape Verde) •••• several otthe wQundedweretaken te,:> the Republic of Guinea for medical treatment." &. In addition. during themonths of June and July. the following inoidents in Angola were reported in the world ]?ress. (g) At Bembe agroupofAngolans fleeing tothe çongo (Leopoldville) to take refuge there'were surprised by the portuguese Armed Forces. Fifty- (~ On 14 July, four airplanes bombed the village of Quimbunde killing seven women and four children; (Ï) The village of Mutamba was bombed, with fliteen persons being killed; <ID On 26 June, four portuguese airplanes repeatedly bombed the village of Veve, burning down aU the houses. Fivechildrenand.twenty-eight adi.llts, mostly women and old people, were killed; @ Alarge groupofAngolans running away to the Congo was attacked byPortuguese aircraft and bombed. The number of victims was thirty-eight.. 6. And now, only this morning, there has come to hand another dîspatch from Luanda, quoting a portuguesej military communiqué whichindicates that, in the Bessa Monteiro .and Dembos regions, Portuguese military units attacked Angolan nationalists.i\bout 1000fthese, nationalists were taken prisoner during the course of\ the action, said the communiqué. Twenty-three rebe~ towns, according to the Portuguese, were destroyeq and important bo'oty taken. The Air Force intervened and attacked objectives situated particularly in this region. Eleven Portuguese soldiers were admitted wounded in the course of the battle. 7. AU these episodes, the Foreign Minister of Portugal would have us believe, constitute a state of peace and order. Or perhaps we are to takeit that bombings of villages and the ruthless killing of women and children is the normal practice of portuguese colonial policy. Furthermore, these normalpractices of Portu,.. guese colonial policy may,accordingto the representative of Portugd and his friends of the United Kingdom and the United States, continue indefinitely untilevery last village in Angola, Mozambique and Guinea has béen burnt down and everyAfrican who dares hope to see his country independent has been. killed. without calling for any measure whatsoever apart from conciliatory procedures aimed at the peaceful settlement of disputes. 8. Finally, 1 deem it necessaryto draw attention to the seriousness of the inferences which weare left to draw from. the insistence that nothing serious has happened in the Portuguese colonies which caUs for action in what, aCCOrdi!lg ta Portugal and its friends, is merely a dispute between portugal and the African States over the principle of self:"determination. As long as it ls only African villagers that are being kiUed aild Illaimed,bombings by planes and shootings by' soldiers do notconstitute abreach ofthe peaceand do not eventhreaten to do so. The framers of the Charter did not have such inconsequential matters intheir minds.A new guiding principle ininterpreting the Chart«;lr of the United Nations is beingintroduced. The previous . findingsof the General Assembly and the Secu:J:'Ïty Côuncilcannot bé v.alid and may be diSre" garded whèmElver such findings are dïsputed by one'8 tnilita:ry alliés. We are bEling taught that the ~anctity

1 call on the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tunisia. 10. Mr. Mongi SLIM (Tunisia) (translated from French): The debate on the situation in the territories under Portuguese administration is nearing its end. 1 should like to make a statement in order to answer certain questions that have been put and toclear up some misunderstandings which.· it seems. unfortunately persist. 11. In his reply on the subject of article 25 of the Charter, at the 1044th meeting of thé SecurityCouncil on 26 July. the Ministerfor ForeignAffairs of Portugal saw fit to ask me whether the 1'unisian Government granted to the Portuguese Government, in mattèrs pertaining to respect for the Charter.té sameright as it granted to. the Indian GovernIDel.'J.:. My reply. without the· slightest hesitation. is.a clear and categorical affirmative. 12. However. 1 should like to be even more explicit on this point. Ever since the day in 1956 when Tunisia fully recovered the exercise of its·sovereignty. it has striven without the slightest ambiguity to adopt a like attitude towards like situations. regardless of the Member 8tate involved. In these seven years we have givenadequate proof-as Portugal. like other Member States. ls fully aware-of the consistency of mir policy in this respect. be it in the United Nations or elsewhere. COilsequently. for us there cannot be twa standards. one for our friends and another for· our ad'versaries. We believe that thecloser one feels ta a friend and the more disposedone is to support him. the more'essential it is to abide by this principle. We have always feIt that one's Jirst dutYtowards a friend is to help him to rectify his er.rors and. ifneed be, to refuse hilli the means of persisting in his errors. 13. 1 do not think thatIneedlabourth") point concerning the consistency of Tunisia's ·policy on the·. basis of this principle. However•it is qlearfrom the reply given by the';Idinister for ForeignAffairs of Portugal in connexion'with Article 25 of the Charter thathis GOvernment considers itselfbound by the obligation laiq down in thatArticle only to the extent that it coincides with itsownoutlook. . 14. This we regret ::most grievously. becaUse Arti.... cIe 25 of the ,Charter carries with it an undertaking by .aH ,to accèpt and. carry out the decisions.of the SecurityCouncil inaccordance with the Charter. The fulfilment of.this unconditional undertakingis essential if this organ ls·· to·. shoulder its responsibilities with respect to the maintenance of international peace and security. There is an old maxim of Frenchlaw which says:"Togive and yet to witb.hold is without merit". 15. , •MoI'eover. the obligatic'n upon MemberStates with regard to the decisions of the Security COuncil would.appear to derive logically from Article 24 (1) 16. Thus the Council serves as trustee at large for aU the United Nations in matters relatingto the maintenance of international peace and security. The Council, recognizing the importance of this responsibility and this trust, has never evaded its dutY, particularly when called upon by tt'" General Assembly voicingthe considered viewof the majority of Member States; so much so that when, in certain precise circumstances, the Council cannot reach decisions, the General Assembly, convoked on special terms under the Charter or the resolution 377 (V) ,known as "Unitingfor Peace", may itself assuma the responsibilities conferredon the Seüurity Council. 17. Apart from this, l should like to make one last observation concerning Portugal's attitude duringthis debate. 18. We have noted with'greatregrettheobstinacywith which the portuguese GovF.f,l.'nment takes refuge in the legal fiction that the colonial tei'ritories under its administration are provinces, notwithstanding aU the pertinent resolutions of the General Assembly, and particularly resolution 1542 (XV), which states that these territories are Non-Self-Governing Territories within the meaning of Chapter XI of the Charter. 19. We sought in vain in the statements ofthe Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal during this debate some hint of a change in. attitude, ofa better approach to realities andto Charter obligations. He not only still refuses to accept the principle of self-determination and its a.pplicability to·the peoples ofthese territories, but stubbornly refuses even·tocease regarding these colonies as provinces. Itis true that he continues ta refer, in this context,to administrative, economic, social and cultural reforms; yet he knows that this anachronistic . policy is out of style today. The nationalists in Angola and in "portuguese". Guinea bave UllÎortunately been compeUed to fight simply inorder that their peoples may exercise thèir inalienableright freely to decide their own future. . 20. This isthe main reason. for our hesitation cOÎl... cerning the op~ning.of a.serious dialogq.ebetween the Port4guese Government aîld the African n~tionl:!.listà of th,e •qolonial territories for. which.ttis. responsible. Such a dialogue. seems t.o us neitherfeasiplenor useful until sllch a. time as the Portuguese Government uneqUivocally renounces the fiction of territorial extension of the metropolitan country andclearly recognizes theright of thepeoples of those territories to determine their future freely and to regain their sovereigntyand independenc,e. Self-deternlination simply must bestated and accept.edas a'prior condition. before any political talks can ha.ve àny prospect'of success. 22. It will therefore be easily understood why my colleagues .and l have declined the personal invitation whichthe Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal extended to us here, for reasons adequately explained by my. colleagues from Liberia and Sierraüione. In our opinion. this invitation cannot be regarded as a sigh of encouraging intentions onthe partofthe Portuguese Governrnent. or as impiying any new political approach. We would certainly have liked to hear the Minister for Foreign Affairs of portugal tell us that bis GOvernment had decided at tast to recognize the right to self-determination and' independence of the Mrican peoples under its administration. andto undertàke ta implement the pertinent recommendations of the General Assembly and the Security Councilwithout delay. Unfortunately. such is not the case. The Portuguese Government stl.lbbornly refuses tocomply with the '.Provisions of the Charter and continues its policy Qf,represSion. thereby creating a dangerous situation which threatens international peace and security. 23. The gravity of t'he situation obtaining in the colonial territoriesl,lllderPortuguese domination allows no furJ,her equivocation.It was a source of very grave c.oncern toour Heads of State who met at the Addis i\.baba Conference•.!! and it was of such concernto the Genel'al Assembly at Us last sessionthatthe Assembly aqopted, by a. vl;lry large majority. resolutions 1807 (XVII) and1819 (XVII) , requesting actionby the Council; t4egravityof the situation wasbroughttothe notice of the SecUl'i~y COlmcil by the Special Qommittee 011 decolonization,.Y which transmitted an important report <,la,ted 19July 1963 in document S/5356•.Y 24.. We. have described this situation ta the,Council withalldueabjectivity, without allowing ourseIves to becarriedaway by an excessive moderationorby the legitimate feelings .which are stirring the African péoplesof these territoriesat this Ume. 25•. .As a res\Ùt ofthis debate, and in view af the re- ,grettable .position w1)ich portugal has'.once again asserted,.the members ofthe Council.l hope.will'tlIldel'.- S~doursceptiqismwith regard. to ary 'res,olution that theSectirity'council might adopt in the.form of récommendations 'addressed to the Portuguese Gov- . '-.. ' " - . ,.~:., , ,:v.;~mit(Jonfel"ence of IndependentAfrica~States, held at Addis Alla.ba.May2HS•.1963. ,·:USPeciâlÇomm.itteeonthe.Si.t\latiOnWith regard to the Implementa=- ti;on of the Declaration ontheGrantingoflndependence toColonial Countr"ies lIl1d Peoples. ,.b'0ffictaiRecordflof the General AllsemblY;<EighteenthSession, Artilèxes; aCidendiun to agenda itèin23'. ' ' . 26. Appeals for direct negotiation'betweenthe Portu.. guese Government and the nationalist leaders of the territories under its administratiOn are prompted,we belleve, by feelings which are 'most laudable but unrealistic in present circumstances. Such an approach will only prolong, and perhaps aggravate, the present situation in order to temÎlOrize on the decision which the E'ituation really demands here andnow. Experience and recent instances confirm mybeliefthatsuchnegotiationsare not feasible unti! Portugal renounces its absurd fiction and sets out resolutely to apply the principle of self-deteimination. It mi.gAt be out of order, in our view, ta designate any intermediary for the purpose of facilitating such discussions before thére had been a radical change in the :portuguese Government!s thinking on this question., 27. Inthese circùmstances, we believe thattherecan be only one realistic solution-ta prevent the Portuguese Government by peacefulmeans from intensifying its armed repression,whichhas âssumedsuJhprçportions that it constitutes a dangerous threatto peace, and security in l.:frica, and to ensure that Member States de not find·themselves ,indirectly involvedinthe situation through furnishing assistance which would enable Portugal to continue its armedrepression. 28. For these reasons, we believethatthedraftresolution contained in document S/5372, suhmi.tted by the delegations of Ghana, Morocco and the Philippines, represents'honestly and realistically the mi.nimum ciecision which the ,Council can take in the present circumstances. Under this draft resolution, the Council merely reiterates and endOI'z.es the provisions of paragraphs 4 and 7 (lf resolution1807 (XVII)" adopted by the lastGeneral Assembly on 14December 1962 by a majorityof 82 votes to 7, which requests action by the Security Councilto securethe complianceof Portugal with'the previous resolutions of the General Assembly and of the Security Counci!. 29. It will have been noted that the ideaof calling for the application of Article'5of the Charter, under which a Member State may be suspended, has been omi.tted from the draft resolutioninorder to take aècount of the observations made by some members of the Council. 30. Some ctoubt has bean e~pressedduring the debate 'rega:rding,.·~he time...limit of 'two months within which the secretary-General,uilder the lastparagraphofthe <ir#t.resolution, isto report to the CoUIicil. l should like to state in t~s,connexion thal, in:our opinion,.this time"-liI'nit; .issuffièient for the Sectirity·Counci! ta ascertain whether the Portuguese Government has changed its policy and whether it. has at least begun ta carry out,the provisions contained in·the draftresolutioniwhich, as l have said,areonly recommendations previously adopted,by the General Assemblyon 14De- 'cember 1962r.ormore than seven months ago. 31. "It now lleswith the sec~ityCouncil andits members, in'fullaW;a.reness:oÎ their respOnsil>ilitie~i:to take 33. But among the three co-sponsors, it is the Philippine delegation which by reason of location and geography is the most detached from the area and the peoples involved in the dispute before the Security Council. We trust, therefore, that the position of detachment in which we find ourselves has helped us to acquire the requisite objectivity with which ta pIead our case. Moreover, we hope that our own experience and history in the peaceful and hateless and bloodless achievement of an independent nationhood and sovereign personality would fortify this objectivity; and we a.re e:rp.boldened by the attitude of the Foreign Minister of Liberia who said: "Our desire is not to pay back or to seek revenge. We are seeking justice for a cause in accordance with the principles of the United Nations Charter to which we are all dedicated." [1040th meeting, para. 84.] 34. It is then withmalice towards none but with understanding for aU, that we have co-sponsored the draft resolution now before the Council. 35. From what has been said thus far, it would seem to be clear that in respect offundamentals the members of the Counoil are in agreement; and there does not seem to be any dispute as to the facts. The division in the Council reveals itself in the conclusions to be derived from the facts; and in the measures proposed in the light of those conclusions. 36. In the Philippine statement delivered at the 1043rd meeting, we took the position that since the adoption of the Council resolution on 9 .rune 1961,.iI peace has not been restored in Angola; and since the approval on December 14, 1962 of General Assembly resolution 1807 (XVII) the situation in the other Portuguese territories in Africa has deteriorated. This position is reflected in operative paragraph 4 of the draft resolution. 37. We are not prepared to leave the uneasy not to say explosive situation simply to the march of time, much less to the unbridled currents of human passions and anxieties. For this reason, we have asked definitive actions to be taken in accordance withoperativeparagraphs 5 and 6. These two operative paragraphs are indeed restatements of the provisions of General Assembly resolution 1807 (XVII). In operative paragraph 7 of the draft resolution before the Council we have set the optimum of our goal, namely, the implementation of the terms of this draft resolution. in particulaI' operative paragraphs 5 ·and 6. We again stress the 38. We reiterate the positionthatnothinghas happelled since the adoption of General Assembly resolution1807 which would in any way nullify any of the conclusions reached therein. On the other hand. events subsequent to resolution 1807 (XVII). like those submitted to the Council by the thirty-two African states. supplemented by the statements of the Foreign MinistersfromAfrica. can only strengthen the case against Portugal. 39. While the optimum goal has been enunciated in operative paragraph 7 of the draft resolution now before us. it would be impractical, at least. for the Philippine delegation, not to appreciate even just a single definite and concrete step forward taken by Portugal as a proof of its compliance with its obligations under the Charter as weIl as the various resolutions of the General Assembly and of the Council. If Portugal would not in this very chamber formally and officially recognize the right of the peoples in its African territories to self-determination and independence, l feel most confidentthat such recognition alone would suffice to set in motion t~e machinery of adjustment and conciliation, of understanding and co-operation; in accordance withthe aims andpurposes of the United Nations as enshrined in the Charter. 40. As indicated in the Philippine statement made last week. we hold that in weighing the pros and cons in this controversy, the paramount and overriding consideration is and must be the right of the peoples of the Portuguese territories to self-determination and independence. This is to us the starting point of Portugal's dialogue with the United Nations. adherence to the Charter. and compliance with the resolutions of the Assembly and of the Council. This is to us the starting point of the long overdue collaborationbetween Portugal and Africa even as it should be the cornerstone of the future relations between Portugal and the peoples of its territories in Africa. 41. Tt has been urged that indealing withthis problem. we in this Council should "bridge the differences of view". This we have attempted ta do by selecting as the foulldation stone of that bridge the provisions of the Charter and of resolutions adopted by the Council and the Assembly. 42. We have been forewarned that we should avoid anything to drive Portugal into isolation; rather we should contil)ue the dialogue with Portugal and keep ~t within theambit of the United Nations. To this no one can objecte With respectto the dialogue, the UniteQ Nations has long wanted to have a dialogue with Portugal; but the language used by Portugal has in no way helped us to bring it into the frameworkof the Charter and of the various resolutions by the Council and by the Assembly. It is regrettable that while we have had several dialogues .on Portugal, we have not infact ·had anyenlightened dialogue with·Portugal. 44. The three co-sponsors of the' draft resolution have at one time or another, though in different and differing degrees, had experiences similar to the yearnings of the peoples in the Portuguese territo~ies in Africa-a yearning for freedom and independence. With anguish and at times anxieties, also in differing degrees, we have aIl striven and struggled for selfdetermination and independence. It is therefore with supreme satisfaction that we now sit aroundthis table, unaffected by complexes of inferiority or superiority, with our former opposite numbers to helpusherin the day when both Portugal and its territories in Africa will also find themselves side by sidewith one another, as co-equals and partners, in the common endeavour for peace, progress and prosperity. 45. In this context, we recommend for the Council's approval the text contained in document S/5372.

As l have no more speakers on my list, l shall now venture to take the floor in my capacity as the representative of. MOROCCO. 47. My delegation would like to begin by expressing its satisfaction at the agreement reached in Moscow on the cessation of nuclear tests. Althoughthis agreement constitutes an important advance on the road which should lead to a more general agreement, our satisfaction will nevertheless be mingled withanxious hope lmtil all the Powers concerned, by dint :if still greater perseverance, reach the goal sought by all in the'United Nations-a genuine treaty on general and complete disarmament. 48~. My delegation takes particular pleasure in addressing its sincere congratulations to the signatories of the Moscow agreement. It may be remembered that ip August, 1959 the Moroccan Government took the initi!'_tiv~ of su~mitting to the fourteenth sessionoHhe General A~seIl1bly.the question of the ,nuclear tests which it was thep. intended te carry outin the continent of .Afl'icac. During the debate on.that question, too, we emphasi.zed the.fragility of the mora.torium.which had just been. signedatGenevaowingto itspartial and pro- . visional character and also to its not havingbeen subcribed to by other Powers which held and continue tè hold different viewS·oIi the problem. "It was broken because men declined to surrender to despair, because men worked patiently and imaginatively to break that deadlock." [1045thmeeting, para. 75.] This remark strikes us as profoundly true, not only in this specifie case, but with regard to every endeavour of men alive to their i'esponsibilities within tneir own Governments or internationally, to attain certain other objectives which are just as urgently necessary if total peace is to be restored throughout the world. 50. Even if we readily agree that international situations which jeopardize or threaten world peace must be classified according to their gravity to the international community as a whole and must be given priority accordingly, it is none the less true that the peoples of certain reg-:ons of the world where apparently limited conflicts take place may consider with equal objectivity that the situations directly affecting their immediate destiny should have as large a claim on the worid's attention. 51. It is incontestable that, in such situations too, there are men who-and 1 take the liberty of using Mr. Stevenson's words-decline to surrender to despair, men who continue to work patientlyandimaginatively to find a way out. 52. The thil'ty-two African Heacts of State and Governments who met at Addis Ababa last May tried, through the decisions they took on certain specific problems, to express the profound conviction oftheir peoples that the situation in the territories still subjectedtoforeign domination or racial supremacy constituteda threatto international peace and security. 53. When they instructedtheir respective representatives to the United Nations to submit this situation to the Security Counoil for consideration and delegated four Ministers fer Foreign Affairs to come before the Council in order to express the concern of aIl the peoples of Africa, they never imagi:iledthat such a stepcould be interpreted as anything but a gesture of confidence on the part of a whole continent in our Organization, and more particularly in the Security Council. 54. It is therefore most regrettable that this action, which is morally justified and lega11y correct, should have led som.e> mémbers of the Councilto contestits procedural· validity and to treat· it as pointless,and that itshould have been tel'med an admirable opportunitY--Iquote-"to make resounding statements about pnnciples; of ·government, about self-determination a,nd th~· rights of man". 55. Ourpresentdeb~l.te on the situation in the .terri.,. tories underPortuguese,administrationis'notthefirst. 56. When the Security Council met in June 1961. it did not hesitate to adopt a resolution on Angola deploring the large-scale killings and the severely repressive measures inflicted on the Angolan people. 1 make particular reference to this resolution in order to emphasize sorne considerations which were clearly recognized by the Council at thattime and to show that nothing has happened since to make them invalide 57•. In one of the preambular paragraphs of the resolution. reference is made to "••• the grave concern and strong reactions to such occurrences throughout the continent of Africaandinotherpartsof the world". Another preambular paragraph reads: "Convincedthat the continuaIl:ce of the situation in Angola is an actual and potentialcause ofinternationalfrictionandis likely toendanger the maintenance ofinternationalpeace and securityli. Lastly, operative paragraph 1 reads: "Reaffirms General Assembly resolution 1603 (XV) of April 20, 1961 ••• and calls upon Portugal to act in accordance with the terms of that resolution". 58. The passages 1 have evoked establish beyond doubt that the situation in Angola. at a time which was regarded as only the beginning of the crisis, was such that theCouncil feIt obliged to conclude that its repercussions .aJready went beyond the confines of the African continent and were provoking reactions in other parts of the world. At the same time. the Council judged that the continuance of such a situation was already a causeoffriction apt to endanger international peace and security. Finally, the Council recognized thatPortugal should be called upon to comply with an earlier General Assembly resolutlon. 59. Do the reservations now expressed with regard to the advisability of these meetings mean to suggest that the situation in this territory has undergone such changes that the international repercussions have ceased,that internationalpeace is no longerthreatened, or that Portugal has in fact complied with the recommendations of the General Assembly and the Council? 60. We ll.re compelled tO'notethatPortugal'smilitary efforthas been constantly on the increase for the past two years, at first in Angola and late!· in Guinea; we are compelled to note also, that the repression in both territori~s has reached such a point that the.p.umber of refugees in the Congo. in Guinea, in Senegal, and now in Tanganyika, has increasedconsiderably. When Portugal complains of the military assistance givento the nationalists in those territories. ft is admitting that the resistance ofthepeople continues tomountand that theallegedstructural reforms which a~e announced 62. In his masterly statement, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal once again made plain to us that his Government reaffirmed its argument that these territories were considered to be provinces linked to the metropolitan country under a unitary sovereignty and that the people living there were Portuguese in the same way as the people of Oporto or Sintra. 63. Now. not one member of the Council has conceded the sUghtest merit in any such claim. By adhering to this position. Portugal rules out any prospects ofprogress towards self-determination by the peoples of those territories. in either the short or the long term. Thus it finds itself again fundamentally at odds. and this time not only with the Council. but with the principles of the Charter itself. which recognizes the right of aIl peoples to self-determination. andwith resolution 1514 (XV) of the General Assembly. that important resolution which confirms the principle of the terminationof any state of subjugation and the replacement of foreign domination. wherever it·still exists. by E lfdetermination of the peoples. J 1, 64. While we are scarcely gratified by intentions tardily expressed and likely to befulfilled very slowly. the real divergence between Portugal's position and i that of the majority in the United Nations is on a point \ which we feel can no longer be allowed to becloud this ' issue. The Portuguese Government tells us. inessence. that it is occupied in improving the living conditions and well-being of thoseit regards as its compatriots. what we expect of it is thatit should tak.!'l the course of recognizing the personality of peoples whom we regard as quite distinct from thePortuguese people and who are no longer willing to accept the fate that the sophistry of Lisbon's argument continues to impose on them. The doctrine that fragments of empire. however large they maybe. should retnain subject territories long ago died the same death as the concept of empire itself. 1 1 65. This failure to keep pace with history cannot be explained by any inability. on the part of Portugal. to follow the evolutionary transformations which have taken place in the structures of empires and States. Portugal has a history sufficiently long and rich to enable it, by contemplating a past constantly in flux. to plan dynamically for the futu:re. The explanation of such a!l attitude should perhaps be sought in the inexplicable persistence in seeking to preserve sociological concepts which are now wrong and a legal doctrine which did not long withstand the values that motivate present-day society. 66. To refer only to sorne of the more recent experiences. 1 might recall, for instance. the progress made by the French schoo1 of what has been called colonial law since the declaration of Brazzaville in 1943. The idea of empire has been progressivelytrans- . 67. WhY"then, does the oldest of empires-and not the least glorious-lingerover sorne old parchment .from the Middle Ages which decreed that conquered territories ·would remain for ever an Integral part of Uttle metropolitan Portugal? Thus the Portuguese leaders give'the sad impression of drowsing over the end of the first chapter of a book while others have mastered aIl its contents. ,~8., Yet one might think that the revolution brought about in,. Portugal during the first decades ofthis centuioyunderSalazar's leadershipwas such as would make ~e,PortugtJ.ese people proud tobelongto these historie times, when theburdens of State and the destiny of mEmare. in the bands of one whose prime qualification consists in invoking the enviable virtues of ahumanism which claimed to be, above aIl, of the Christianfaith. SUch a conjunction of circumstances might have suggested that, Portugal was indeed about to fulfil the great promise, which had been made, to restorepeace both at home and abroad. 69. While ft is for thePortuguese alone to pass judgement on the course pursued by their rêgime for thirty yearS and more. while it is,forethem alone to rest content with their domestictranquillity, there are anumber of facts which nevertheless make itthe dutY of my delegation ta ponder andto evaluate the new order in Portugal in terms of freedom and justice for the peoples whose destinies it has wished to shape. 70. Portugal, whichhas keptpaceneitherwithhistory nor with theprofound change in the legal field, seems unable now to reset its compass and rediscover the direction in .which the international community has decided to move. 71. ,1 had occasion during another debate, to' refer ta aIl the centuries-old ties between Morocco and Portugal. 1 aIse> had occasion to state that the friendship and the excellent relationsexisting between our two countries. would not be vitiated by any serious misunderstanding if we agreed that our intercourseshouldnot exclude the franknesl3 whichis the markoftrue friendship. and that in our dialogue we should not fail to express the profound (}ivergence between a country with co19~es and a country totally committed to those pe()ples who are fighting for their freedom and independence. 7'2. 'Moreover•.thedepate on Portugues;e.domination in .,.Mrica i8 .no longer. confinedto .~ dialogue petw~en PortugaJ.. and' the .anti~colQnialjst countries. of the African-'Asian and Latin American groups. Othercountries from which, as friends or allies, Portugal may appè,rentlyderive a êoIIiforting peace of mind and a raassuring sense of ,protection, nevertheless no longer hesitate ta condemn Portugal's attitude, although at tirnes"some of them do sa with subtle qualifications which,g.etractfrom the liberality of their attitude. 74. We wereextremely surprised to be told. for the first 'time in this Organization, that the decisiontaken at Addis Ababa to submit thisquestionto the Security Council might have unforttmateconsequences, Elven constitutiilga threat to internationalpeace and security. This would mean thatto complain of a situationin... volving repression and war. to caU upon a Member State to respect the Charter of an Organization wh1ch it has joined of its own free will. toremind it of its dutY to comply with recommendations previously made to it,was an act which might disturb international peace and whose perpetrators were more deserving of censure than was the act by wbich international peace and security had really been disturbed for several years pasto 75. In bis speech the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugalreferred with particular force to what he called the fact of foreign interference in the affairs of the Portuguese territories. This Interference, he said, took the forIn of assistance granted by independent countries, in their own national territories, to the nationalist movements of Angola, Guinea and Mozambique. The training of patriots, thedispatch of volunteers and the furnishing of arms to assist these peoples who want their freedom led him to raise, as he says,a very serious problem: "During the past few years, a new legality has been created, a new conception of law has been brought to international affairs, a new legal structure has been ruling the llie, or'at lea~,t sorne aspects of the life of the futernational community." [1042nd meeting, para. 39]. The remarks of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal clearly refer to the notion of assistanceby independent countries to peoplesfighting for their freedom. Itis true that, depending on the circumstances, the accusationapplies equally totheAfrican- Asiân countries and to thecountries of Western Europe, 'except when it is aimed at Moscow, Peking and international communisni. In bis latest statement [1044th rneeting].hOwever, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal was, refêrring essentially to the countries of Africa. Tbis statèment clarifies andto sorne extent expands, previous, press conference statements or :i'emarks which were made after the United Nàtions .b.ad taken sorne decision. 76. My distinguished colleague, AmbassadorQüaison- Sackey, made sorne rioteworthy comments on Portugal' s unconscionable dilatationoEts right, whichisofcburse legitimate,tobelong toan allianceofitschoice.lf the terms of the treaty of allia.n:cé specify its geagraphical 77. 1 shall 9ite sorne examples from long ago, and sorne more recent, to show that, no matter what international law may have said on this subject at a given period, Elvery cause which has been defended by force ofarmshashad, inadditionto the antagonists, volunteers to support it. The Crusades were inspired and mounted on such a basis, and the Portuguese fleet, like that of Genoa, scoured the shores ofthe Mediter- . ranean in those days in a frenzy of mutual help and support. To cite only cases of collectively organized volunteers, the Spanish Civil War, theKoreanWarand the war in Palestine prove that even where a state of war has not been declared against either ofthe parties directly concerned, various collective groups, or even States, may find themselves involved in the conflict. \ 78. As for individual volunteers, 1 would recall in particular the example ofan illustriousBritishcitizen, whose gesture in devotinghis life tothe cause of Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire did asmuchto make him great as did his genius. As everyone knows, this British citizen was Lord Byron. 79. 1 must say, however, that it is scarcely the intention of.J\frica to invoke any of the examples 1 have cited. 80. Africa's .road to freedom has not always been of its own choosing. Sorne countries had to suffer the hardships of the narrow path and to pay, for generations, with the lives of thousands of their people for their laboriously conceded right to independence. Others, happily in the majority, went through a process which spared them the sacrifices offered bytheir precursors. Bath the colonizers and thecolonizednow seem to appreciate the advantages of. progress by stages; such stages are sometimes necessary but their endis perfectly clear both to thosewho lead and to those who are led. 82. After covering a route which has, perhaps, included pail1ful moments for aIl, the thirty-two independent countries of Africa retain that same original faith in the meaning and purposeofthe Ùnited Nations. At every one of the stages represented by the many African or African-Asian meetings-whether those stages are named Accra. Monrovia, Bandung, Lagos, Casablanca, or Addis Ababa-the growing number of States which gathered there reaffirmed, along with their will to eradicate colonialist domination or racial domination from their contL.'lent, their profession of faith inpeaceful methods but their determination, nevertheless, to see the matter through to a speedy conclusion. 83. It is quite clear, however, that the Africans are not alone in pursuing this goal and inwishing to attain it by these methods. Our Asian brethren bc.ve consistently and with untiring courage contributed their experience and their efforts. The liberal coootries of Latin America, where the tradition of anti-colonialism is firmly estabUshed, also lent their support to this cause at an early stage. The "western" coootries also have undeniably brought pressure to bear against the resistance ofsome metropolitan coootries, defIecting colonialist policy and guiding it into the course of recognizing the principle of self-determination. Since they agree with us concerning the legitimacy of this principle and the validity of the right to seek its effective application, aIl groups in the United Nations, without exception, should now help wholeheartedly to bring Portugal to aclearerunderstanding of our position and to a more fayourable attitude towards the peoples still ooder its authority. 84. Clearly noting this wide support, Ghana, the Philippines and Morocco have submitted to the Cooocil a draft resolution [S/5372J which recalls the vital nature of this principle and sets out what, in our opinion, are now after several attempts the measures that must be taken to bring a~)out its practical implementation. 85. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Tooisia asked his colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal, the otherday whether the Portuguese Government would consider itself boood by the Council's recommendations. No answer has ever been given. We recall with some regret a press conference given by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal at Lisbon on 4 January 1963 at which, commenting on the work of the seventeenth session of the General Assembly and the decisions taken concerning the territories ooder Portuguese domination, he spoke somewhat ironically of those decisions and of the United Nations itself. 86. President Salazar, in a new 'year's messag~ to the nation, made sorne comments-rather in the spirit of his old speech on the subjec.t ofthe United Nationsregarding Portugal' s achievements and the values it defends, and he solemnly declared that in Africa Portu- 88. Europe has already openly turned its back on the colonialism to which Portugal continues to cling. The Church declares its solidarity withthe United Nations and gives it!? blessing to the liberation of the peoples. Portugal, which claims to be one of the oldest champions of European civilization and an eIder son of the Church, cannot continue for much longer to proclaim with sincerity that it belongs to either family. Ooly respect for the right and for the obligations it has assumed as a Member of the United Nations can now save this countryfrom the position-a delicate one, to say the least-ofhavingto appear onthe agenda df aIl international agencies in the company ·Jf South Africa, with which we honestly decline te class Portugal. The meeting rose at 12.45 p.m.