S/PV.1052 Security Council

In accordance with the decision taken at the 1050th meeting of the Securîty Council, Ishall invite the representatives of Tunisia, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Madagascar to take their seats at the Coùncil table. At the invitation of the President, Mr. Mongi Slim (Tunisia), Mr. Rudolph Grimes (Liberia), Mr. John Karefa-Smart (Sierra Leone) and Mr. Louis Rakotoma1~a (Madagascar) took places at tb,e Security COUDciI table.

The problem of the apartheid policies of the Government of South Africa, to which the Counci! is now addressing itself, is one of the greatest human tragedies of our day. In "The Special Committee considersïth~ghlydesi'rable that the Security Council should consider this report as soon as possible andtake the measures called for by the grave situation at present prevailing in the Republicof South Africa. whiph'presents a serious threat to international peace and seeurity." 3. The Chairman of the Special Committee further submitted. on 17 July 1963 [8/5353]. ,a second interim report. 1I At thisjuncture 1 wish to draw the attention of, the Council to paragraph16. wherein the Committee states clearly that: IlAIi~l conflict ih South Africa.precipitated by the racial policies of the present Government, cannot but have the most serious internation!Ûrepercussions threatening the peace in Africaand the world." '4. i have made references to these two interim reports of the Special Committee because. in the view of my delegation. they constitute the basis of the Counoil's discussion of this vital question. Furthermore. 'the Heads of African States and Governments àt the Conference held at Addis Ababa from 22 to 2l> May J963. decided.in their. ~esblution onapartheid and ra,:;ial discrimihation. Il ; •• to support the recommandations. prese~ted to the. SecurityCouncil' and the General Assembly by the Special Comrnittee on the apartheid polîcies of the South African Government"; 5. My delegation would lîke to pay,a warm i:dbute to the Chairman. Vice-Chairman and member,s of the SpeOial Committee for theexceIlentand well-documented interim ,reports ,submitted to the Security Councn in accordance with operative paragrap}l5 (Q) ofresolution 1761 (XVTI), adopted by the Géneral Assembly on 6 November 1962. Uridaunted by the bct that certain Member States, for. one reason or another, refused to participate in the work of the Special Committee. the members have carried 'out their mandate with thoroùghn'ess, restraintand objectivity. 6. The Interim reports we havebeforeusgivefurther evidence of the persistent efforts of this ürganization since its inception to find a workabie solutionto these obnoxious and distressing racial polîcies andpractices of the Government of South Africa. In any case, the United Nations cannot be accused of ipdifference to the sufferiI'l..gof millions of Africans and non-Europeans in South Africa. Twenty-seven resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council, as 'weIl as the reports of the Sub-Committee and the Special Committee on apartheid constitute an eloquenttestimony to this long, patient and laborious process of trying to Cdnvince the Government of South Afrioa to abandon its intolerable racial policies. It Ts sig- 7. After these persuasive resolutions hadfailed to produce ar.;)' tangible results, the General Assembly, in operative paragraph 3 of resolution 1598 (XV) of 13 Apri!1961, requested "aIl States toconsidertaking such separate and collective action as is open to them, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations, to bring about the abandonment of these policies", that is, apartheid policies. At Us sixteenth session, the General Assembly again, in operative paragraph 5- of resolution 1663 (XVI) of 28 November 1961, urged "aIl States to take such separate and collective action as is open to them in conformity with the Charter to bring about an abandonment of those policies". It will be seen from the excerpts 1 have just quo·~ed that the General Assembly did not specify the kind of action which Member States were expected to take "tobring about an abandonment of those policies". 8. It was the continued disregard of the pleas of the United Nations and the failure of the Government of South Africa to co-operate that moved the General Assenibly to adopt resolution 1761 (XVII) of 6November 1962. This resolution in operative paragraph 4 prescribed certain measures to be taken by Member States against the Republic of South AfTica. 9. Meanwhile, matters were reaching the point where Member States strongly feIt that the Security Council should be involved in the solution of tIlis difficuIt and seemingly intractible and grave question. Thus, operative paragraph 4 of resolution 1663 (XVI) called "the attention of the Security Counci! to the provision of Article 11, paragraph 3, of the Charter". The final operative paragraph of résolution 1761 (XVII) requested "the Security Counci! to take appropriate measures, including sanctions, to secure South Africa's compliance with the resolutions of the General Assembly and of the Security Council on this subject and, if necessary, to consider action under Article 6 of the Charter". Therefore, the responsibility for taking action has now devolved upon the Counci!. 10. It is imperative for the members of this Counci! to comprehend the nature of the issue before them. The question of apartheid is one which goes far beyond the problem of racial discrimination. It is pertinent here to mention that there is racial discrimination in most countries. It is ?- matter of history that wherever the Anglo-Saxon settled, colour prejudice and its bedfeIlow, racial discrimination, has reared its ugly head. Thus, in Australia, in Southern and Eastern Africa and in North America there is no question at aIl about the presence of racial discrimination. But the difference between racial discrimination here in the United States and the apartheid policies of South Africa is that aIthough the underlying factors are the same in both countries, yet in the United States racial discrimination has not been elevated and hardened into law. The Federal Government of !he United States has come out openly against it and lS combatting it by law and, when necessary, by forcé. But in South Africa the whole apparatus of govern- 12. By a series of obnoxious laws, every effort has been made by the South AfricanGovernment to destroy the African, physically and psychologically. Like the Hitler régime, the Nationalist Party of the Afrikaaner in South Africa treats world opinion with contempt and. fortüied with its elaborate machinery of State. its police; its armed forces and all the instruments of suppression, massacre and destruction such as the "Saracen" armoured cars and jet planes which were used against unarmed South Africàns in Sharpeville. 3 million Whites in South Africaare holding12 million Africans to ransom. and for what price? 13. My delegation would not wish to go on reciting the gruesome details of the apartheid policies as practised in the Republic of South Africa. Both white and non-white victims oftheseinhumanandrepressive measures have exposed the iniquities of the system. and the previous speakers before me. including the Foreign Ministers of Tunisia, Liberia and Sierra Leone and the representative of Madagascar. have drawn the attention of the members of the Council to the dangerous doctrine of race superiority, which is the bedrock of the whole policy of apartheid. The delegation of Ghana agrees with the finding of the Special Committee, contained in paragraph 22 of its fiI'St Interim report, that: Il ••• the problem is not one of colour or race. or an aspect of the cold war. but the consequence of a racialist. ideology, enshrined as State policy and implemented by force against the majority of the people of the country, despite the obligations of the Government of the Republic of South Africa under the United Nations Charter." 14. The facts are clear. A careful analysis of the interim reports of the Special Committee reveals the 15. In support of these conclusions, may 1 quote the first operative paragraph of the Security Council resolution adopted on 1 April 1960: 2J "Recognizes that the situation in the Union of South Africa is one that has led to international friction and if continued might endanger international peace and security". And this resolution was adopted after the Sharpevil1e massacre. to which 1 have already referred. 16. The world Organization has gone a long way sinoe it adopted its first anti-apartheid resolution. Member states col1ectively and individuallyendeavoured to apply what President Nyerere of Tang'anyika described as "peaceful pressures". We have tried patient negotiation and persuasion, hoping thereby to see a graduaI improvement of the situation and the eventual disappearance of racial oppression. 17. As an evidence of our desire to co-operate. South Africa was invited to the first Conference of Independent African States held in Accra in April 1958, but it refused to attend unless other colonial Powers were also invited. Ghana attempted to exchange High Commissioners. but our oyertures met with no response. As my President. recently said in Accra: "1 think it is now clear to everyone that the South African situation cannot be dealt with by attempts to maintain the normal channels of diplomatie and commercial association, or by appeals to morality and religion. justice and codes of ethics." '18. But what has been the reaction ofthe Government of South Africa to al1 these conciliatory andpersuasive efforts? It has rather intensified the implementation of the Group Areas Act, and the Group Areas Development Board continues to iliflict untold sufferings on Africans and ether non-whites. Stricter controls on the movement of Africans into the u:r.ban areas are being ensured by the Bantu Laws Amendment Act. 19. The Government of SouthAfri<lahas systematically ~uilt up its repertoryofobnoxious legislation, the most infamous o~ which are the Suppression of Communism Act. the Riotous Assemblies. Act. the Public Safety Act. the Criminal Law Amendment Act and the Unlawfu1 Organizations Act, under which the "This Bill, to my mind, is tqe immoral offspring of an illicit union between racial superstition and biological ignorance. Unfortunat'ely for the Minister of the Interior, who is SouthAfrica's leadingpolitical 'misanthropologist', humanity has beeninthe melting pot for unknown millenia, and it is far too late for any section of mankind now to seekto give the sanction of law to the pseudo-biologicalphantasies about race purity which are incorporated in the Billbefore the House." 20. Of the notorious General Law Amendment Act of 1962, the Special Committee has this to say in paragraph 61 of its first interim report: " ••• thaf the new legislation reflects the explosive situation which has developed in the Republic of South Africa as a result of increasingdiscriminatory and repressive policies pursued by its Government. It regards the recent repressive measures, particularly the mass arrests and the new legislation, as an open challenge to the United Nations." 21. The Government of South Africa has also resorted to an unprecedented arms build-up which not only increases its capacity for repression and brutality, but also threatens the peace and security of Africa and, in fact, of the whole world. This vital subject of the arms build-up, which the ForeignMinister of Liberia dealt with at Jength in his brilliant exposition [1051st meeting], should engage the attentiQn of the Council, especially as there is deep concern about this aspect of the situation in South Africa. Chief Albert Luthuli, the Nobel Prizewinner, poignantly described the situation when he said: "The Government has insanely committed itself to rule by the machine-gun and armoured car; has elected to go down in a messy welter of blood and destruction rather than work eut a clear and honourable solution. The police vote of 1962 sl)ared to 40 million rand; the prisons vote to 10.5 million rand; the defence vote-greater than that in wartime -to 120 million rand. Helicopters, paratroopers, white women's pistol clubs, armouredcars, strafing planes, automatic weapons, the Integration of the police force with the Army-the whole ferocious panoply of war is being marshalled-in peacetime and with the frank avowal that it is not for any outside enemy but to put down the people of the land. This is the pitiful state of my country today." 23. The African National Congress of South Africa, in a memorandum to the Special Committee, states: "In the impending civil strife in our country, certain Western Powers are deeply involved. They have already taken sides by shamelessly giving support and aid to the white racist Government in the form of finance, arms, military training and technicians. In our view, these Western Powers have delibeI'ately entered the arena of violent conflict in South Africa on the side of those who are trying to bludgeon our people into submission and to drown thè country in blood." 24. My President, Osagyefo, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, also raised this point in his address to the Ghana Parliament on 21 June 1963, and 1 quote: "Unfortunately, the great Powers. and some of the smaller ones, still continue to export arms to South Africa. Have those who have authorized the export of such arms made any enquiry as to the real purpose for which they are required by South Africa? Have they asked why so many small arms should be needed for the protection of South African whites? For what purpose do these States consider that apartheid South Africa requires aircraft capable of, and designed for, carrying nuclear rockets and weapons? The 'Buccaneer' aircraft, with its limited range, and about which there has recently been controversy in Britain, is not such as could be employed against. say. the Soviet Union or the United states of America. Against whom on the African continent, then, are they intended to be employed? These are questions aIl the independent African States are asking and would like to have answered." 25. One need not be a military strategist to see the threat that this huge milita:ry build-up in South Africa is posing to the African States. One aspect of this is the likelihood that this will generate an arms race in Africa which will certainly be a most unfortunate development, because, as we aIl know, African States today need aIl their resources for their economic and social development to l'aise the standard of living of their peoples. 26. It is quite evident that the arms and other military equipment South Africa is amassing are far above normal reqUirements for internaI security and defence purposes. Happily, voices outside Africa are being raised cIgainst this ominous development. On 17 March 27. In a statement made in Geneva on 18 June 1963. the Secretary-General of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions stated that his organization gave Wlreserved support to the decisions taken by the Conference of Independent Afl'ican States at Addis Ababa. particularly with regard toeconomic sanctions 'and the embargo on arms deliveries to South Africa. 28. In Paris. an Anti-Apartheid Committee has been formed under tüe Presidency of Ml'. Jean-Paul Sartre. who has said: "The Committee proposes to exert pressure to prevent the French Government from selling arms to white people who are oppressing the negroes of South Africa." 29. Sweden. Denmark. Italy and Canada. amongother nations. are reported in The Observer of London of 9 June 19"63 to have prohibited the export of smaU arms to South Africa. 30. It is comforting to note that. while some Western powers are providing the SOUtll African Government with the sinews of war. protests are being raised everywhere against this dangerous development. We on this side of the table impeach such powers before the bar of their own consciences and caU upon them to harken to the voice of reason. 31. The policy of persuasion has failed. The Government of South Africa is not only hurling defiance at world opinion. but is also flouting the General Assembly and the Security COlmcil. thelatestexample being its refusaI to accept the invitation of the Council to participate in the current debates. In Us letter to the President of the Security Council. dated 31 July 1963 [S/5381]. the Government of South Africa: "has decided that no useful purpose would be served by restating its case at the Security Councilin order to defend itself against what the Council must no doubt find to be an ill-judgedand unjust attack on an orderly peace-loving founder Member of the United Nations which has never in the history of its membership of the Organization sought in any way to interfere in the affairs of another Member State". How can South Africa be peace-loving if it goes on massacring 12 million people? 32. To my delegation the implications of the statement 1 have quoted are unmistakable. It confirms the contention long held by the Governmentof South Africa that its racial policies are entir~ly its domestic affair and that the United Nations has no competence to discuss them. much less to pass resolutions on them. My delegation and the overwhelming majority oftp.e United Nations do not agree with South Africa 33. On tlùs matter. l should like to quote a short excerpt from Ml'. Harold Macmillan's famous address to both Houses of the South African Parliament on 3 February 1960: nIt is the basic principle of our modern Commonwealth that we respect each other's sovereignty in matters of internaI policy. At the same time we must recognize that. in tlùs shrinking world in which we live today. the internal policies of one nation may have effects outside it. We may sometimes be tempted to say to each other. 'Mind your own business'. But in these days l would myself expand the old saying 50 that it l'uns. 'Mind your own business. but mind how it affects my business too'." 34•. The Sp!3cial Committee. in its second interim report. quite rightly highlighted tlùs point when It said: "Any conflict in South Africa. precipitated by the racial policies of the present Government. cannot but have the most serious international repercussions threatening the peace in Africa and the world." Therefore. the SouthAfricanGovernment's reliance on Article 2. paragraph 7. of the Charter is not tenable. 35. The African States. through their Heads of State and Government. have unequivocally demanded the full implementation of General Assembly resolution 1761 (XVII). My delegation is aware that this will certainly embarrass the friends of South Africa. 36. The Economist of 27 July 1963 carries a revealing article entitled "If Persuasion Fails". and. Ml'. President. with your permission l shall quote some extracts from it: "The western powers' embarrassments in the face of the mounting African campaign are painfully familiar. familiarly painful. Portugal is a NATO ally. and can and does use the Azores bases as a bargaining counter with the United States. South Africa. non-allied but far from non-aligned. has a wide array ofcounters: the Simonstown Agreement. air trooping rights. El.OOO million worth of British investment. 4 pel' cent of Britiain's foreign trade and. not least. the three 'hostage' protectorates." -and l think he is referring here to Basutoland. Bechuanaland and Swaziland. The writer then goes on to predict: "The West-and particularly Britain. the major State that is deepest involved in the 'deepest South' Conflict-have to face the stark fact that ifeconomic and other non-violent pressures are not to be used. "••• And we must beware ofthe comfortingillusion that there is still plenty of time. The pace of African events should have shown already that trying to put off the evil hour merely ensures that, when it arrives, it is truly evil. Il 37. That is why my delegation is demandingvigorous and precise action by the Council. Peacefulpersuasion has not succeeded in getting the SouthAfrican authorities to give up their nefarious practices. The situation now demands P.Jsitive action, for, as Dr. Martin Luther King, the apostle of freedom in this country, has pointed out in a letter published in the New York Herald Tribune of 28 July 1963: "Lamentably, it is a historical fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily ... we know through painful experience thatfreedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressoI", it must be demanded by the oppressed. Il 38. It is towards the achievement of freedom for the oppressed peoples of South Africa that theSummit Conference of Independent African States, meeting in Addis Ababa, adopted unanimously the resolution on apartheid and racial discrimination, in which it was decided "to co-ordinate concerted measures of sanctions against the Government of South Africa; and to "Appeal to all States, and more particularly to those which have traditional· relations and eooperate with the Government of South Africa, to apply strictly United Nations resolution 1761 (XVII) of 6th November, 1962, concerning apartheid; andto "Appeal to all Governments who still have diplomatic, consular and econornic relations with the Government of South Africa to break off those relations and to cease any other form of encouragement for the poHcy of apartheid". 39. The delegation of Ghana, therefore, submits that the Council should take action to call uponaU Member States to cease forthwith the supply of arrns to South Africa. The Council should call upon all Mem::Jer States to act to isolate South Africafrom the comity of nations until it changes its hateful policy of apartheid. As for South Africa's contin'.led membership of our world Organization, l would l.i.k.~ ta refer Members to action recently taken by sorne of the specialized agencies, especially the International Labour Organisation. After taking steps to exclude South Africa from its meetings, it sent a delegation of the Governing Body to meet the Secretary-General of the United Nations, to convey to him the grave concern 40. The Chairman of the Governing Body is reported to have asked the Secretary-General to convey to the appropriate United Nations bodies "our fervent hope that the United Nations will take effective action to protect the inborn equality and dignity of man". That. to my delegation. can only be achieved through exclusion of South Africa from the United Nations. and we call upon the Council to weigh this. 41. By its actions the Governm~nt of South Africa has proved itself unworthy of membership of this worId Organization. South Africa. by' its intransigence and callous indifference to the pleas of the millions of Africans and non-Europeans for fair and humane treatment, has isolated itself. It has been outlawed morally. It is not we who are isolating South Africa. It is not we who are out of step. I,t is for South Arrica to fall in step with the other 110 Member States of the Organization. The Governmentof SouthAfrica does not appear to value its membership of the Organization, if the·statement made by the Minister of Foreign Affairs to the South African Senate can be regarded as an indication. In June 1963 Mr. Louw is reported to have told the Senate: "There is something else which l regard as an encouragement. Our main enemy is the United Nations. It is clear that the United Nations is insolvent. ll 42. Perhaps, as itdid in the case ofits Commonwealth membership. South Africa will quit the Organization before it is thrown out. This would not result in the fragmentation of our· Organization. It should not be forgotten that South Africa withdrew its delegation from the eleventh session of the General Assembly in protest against a discussion of its racial policies. 43. As far as the African States are concerned. we ,shall continue to press and fight for the total elimination from the continent of Africa of this inhuman and degrading doctrine of apartheid and all its attendant evils. The suppression of human rights affects peace. May l here quote President Kcmedy, speaking at the commencement exercises at the American University in June 1963: "Is not peace basically a matter of human rights?" And Harlan Cleveland, Assistant Secretary of State for International Organizations Affairs, said at St. Xavier's College, Chicago: "Any nation which struggles and negotiates and relates itself to others under the banner of peace and human rights will prevail, for its goals have gone beyond nations to the nature of man himself." 44. Sometimes we are accused of being too emotional. But it is difficult to discuss the plight of our South

AlI of us sitting t.:re today· know the melancholy truth about the racial policies of' the GovernDient of South Africa. Our task now is to coIisiderwhat further· steps we· can take to induce that Government to remove the evil business of apartheid, not only·from our agenda. but. from $e continent of Africa. The policy of·apartheid denies the worth and the dignity of the lluman person, and for ~s very reason we must try to expresl? our feelings with as much restraint as we can muster. Self-righteousness iS no substitute for practical results. 46. It. is aIl too tl.'ue that there ls·scarcely a society in the world that is not tOllched by some form of diScrimination. wp.o ~mong us can·cast the first stone or· .boast that we are free of any s~mblanqe of discriIniila.tion by colouror religion or in some other form? 1 takethe liberty of quoting to you afew lines from . a speech 1 made in Geneva a couple of weeks aga. ~ said; "In my country too many of our negro citizens still do not enjoy their full civil rights because ancient attitudes stubbornly resist change, in spite. of thevigorous official policy of the Government. But. such .indignities are an anachronism that no progressive society cantolerate andthe lastvestiges must be abolisl}eq with aIl possible speed. Actually, in the last few years we have made more progress in achieving full equality of rights and 9Pportunities for all of our citizens than during any comparable ; period since . Abraham Lincoln's :proôla.mation of Emancipation freedour Republic and 'our national conscience from a heavy burden. The vel'y struggles which now call world-wide attention to our shame are themselves signs of a progress that will be increasingly visible in the months ·ahead. The sound and the fury about racial equality thatfills our Press.and airwaves are the signs of the great thaw. The long jam of the past is breaking up." 47. 1 wanted to repeat what 1 said in Geneva so as to leave no doubt that the United States position is not one of self-righteousness or self-satisfaction. The question before us, however, is how and when the log-jam of racial discrimination will be loosened and brought into the mainstream of the UnitedNations Charter. 48. Weall suffer from the disease of discrimination in various forms, but at least most of us recognize thedisease for what it is: a disfiguring blight. The whole point is that, in many countries, governmental 'policies arè dedicated to rooting out this dread syndrome of prejudice and discrimination, while in South Africa We See the anachronistic spectacle of the Government .of agreat people which persists in seeing the disease as the remedy, prescribing for the malady of racism the bitter toxic of apartheid. 50. The past two decades have seen an explosion of. nationhood unequalled in history. Certainly. the pace of decolonization in Africa has been nothing less than phenomenal. and it offers a record of progress far beyond what the most optimistic among us could have explected in 1945. The new States of Africa are gaining strength. resolutely fighting to build properous. dynamic societies. and to do this in co-operation with other African States. j 51. But. as this meeting of the Security Council so graphically emphasizes. the full potential of this new era cannot be realized because of South Africa's self-chosen isolation. Worse yet. progressin Africa is overshadowed by the racial bitterness and resentment causi".j by the policies of the South African Governmentjand it is the dutY of this Council to do what it can to ensure that this situation does not deteriorate further. and that the injustice of apartheid comes to an end. not in blood and bondage. but in peace and freedom. 1iJ 1 1 52. What we see and hear. however. offers us at present little hope. Indeed. the situation is worse than it was three years ago. when the Council first met on the question of apartheid. Speakers before me have reviewed the record of previous discussions of apartheid by this CouncilandtheGeneralAssembly. As they have pointed out. we have called repeateclly upon the Government of South Africatoconsiderworld opinion. to co-operate with the United Nations. and to set in motion some meaningful steps toward ending discrimination and the policies and practices that would offend the whole world. wherever they were pursued. 1 1 . 53. Outside this Organization. many Members-not the least of which is my own Government-have at~ tempted repeatedly to persuade the South African Government to begin moving along the linesof these resolutions. 1 myself have had something emphatic to sayon this score. on twooccasions.in the Republic of South Africa-things that it grieved me to say after enjoying so much courtesy and hospitality from. the friendly and gracious people of the lovely land. But it is only stating a fact of life to say that the visible result of ail these discussions and resolutions here in the United Nations. and all the diplomatie activities so far. is zero. It is only stating the obvious to say that. up until this time. our efforts have yielded no tangible results. It is only calling' things by their right name to say that we are confronted for the moment with a deadlock between the overwhelming majority of mankind and the Republic of South Africa. There has been no forward motionj indeed. there has been retrogression-calculated retrogression. i 1 1à 55. Weare all agreed. and we have proclaimedagain and again. in this body and in the General Assembly. and in many other forums of the United Nations. certain basi~ views about the issue before us. However. we must restate them again and again so that we can sum up where we stand. and deliberate with clarity and with candour on how to move forward. 56. First. we have affirmed and reaffirmed that apartheid is abhorrent. Our belief in the self-evident t~uths about human equality is enshrined in the Charter. Apartheid and racism. despite allof the tortùl'ed rationalizations that we have heard from the apologists. are incompatible with the moral. social. and constitutional foundations of our societies. 57. A second basic principle on which we are agreed is that aIl Members of the Organization have pledged themselves to take action. in co-operation with the Organization. to promote observance of humanrights. without distinction as to race. 58. Thirdly. we continue to believe that this matter is of proper and legitimate concern to the United Nations. We have often stated. in the General Assembly. our belief that the Assembly can propèrly consider questions of racial discrimination and other violations of human rights where they are a Member's official policy and are inconsistent with the obligations of that Member. Wlder Articles 55 and 56 of the Charter. to promote obsèrvance of human rights. without distinction as to race. 59. Moreover. the apartheid policy of South Africa has clearly led to a situation the continuance of which is likely to endanger international peace andsecurity. We also believe that all Members. in the words of the resolutton passed almost Wlanimously by the sD'<teenth General Assembly. shouldtake suchseparate and collective action as is open to them in conformity with the Charter to bring about an abandonment of those policies. The United States supported thatresolution and has complied with it. 61. We have utilized our diplomatie and our consular establishments in South Africa to demonstrate by words and by deeds our official disapproval of apartheid and, as the United States representative informed the Special Political Committee of the General Assembly on 19 October last, ~ the United States has adopted and is enforcing the policy of forbidding the sale ta the South Mrican Government of arms ànd milital'y equipment whether from Government or commercial sources, which could be used "by that Government to enforce apartheid eUher in South Mrica or in the Administration of South West Mrica. We have carefully screened both government and commercial shipments of milital'y equipment to make sure that this policy is rigorously enforced. 62. But 1 am now authorized to inform the Security Council of still another important step which my Government is prepared to take. We expect to bring to an end the sale of aIl military equipment to the Government of South Mrica by the endofthis calendar year, in order further to contribute to a peaceful solution and to avoid any steps which might at this point directly contribute to international friction in the area. There are existing contracts which provide for limited quantities of strategie equipment for defence againstexternal threats, such as air-t0-air missiles and torpedoes for submarines. We must honour these contracts. The Council should be aware that in "announcing this policy the United States, as a nation with many responsibilities in many parts oÏ the world, naturally reserves the right in the future to interpret this policy in the light of requirements for assuring the maintenance of international peace and security. 63. If the interests of the world community require the provision of equipment for use in the common defence effort, we would naturally feel ~ble to do so without violating the spirit and the intent of this resolution. We are taking this further step to indicate the deep concern which the Government of the United States feels at the failure of the Republic of South Mrica to abandon its policy of apartheid. In pursuing this policy the Republic of South Mrica, as we have so often said, is failing to discharge its obligations under Articles 55 and 56 of the Charter whereby Members pledge themselves to take joint andseparate 64. Stopping the sale of arms to South Africa emphasizes our hope that the Republic will now reassess its attitude towards apartheid in the light of the constantly growing international concern at its failure to heed.the numerous appeals made to it by various . rgans of the United Nations, as well as appeals of MemberStates such as my Government. 65. As to the action of the Councilinthis proceeding, we are prepared to counsult with other members and with the African Foreign Ministers present at the table and we will have some suggestions to make. It is clear to my delegation that the application of sanctions under Chapter VII in.the situation now before us would he both bad law and bad policy. It would be bad law because the extreme measures provided in Chapter VII were never intended and cannot reasonably be interpreted to apply to situations of this kind. The founders of the United Nations were very careful to reserve the right of the Organization to employ mandatory coercive measures in situations where there was .an actuality of international violence or f;luch a clear and present threat to the peace as to leave no reasonable alternative but resort to coercion. 66. We do not have that kind of a situation here. Fortunately for all of us, there is still some time to work out a solution through measures of pacific settlement, andany solution adopted by this Council must bereasonably calculated to promote such set~ tlement. It is bad policy because the application of sanctions in this situl;l.tion is not likely to bring about the practical result that we seek,that is, the abandonment of apartheid. Far from encouraging the beginning of a dialogue between the Government of South Mricaand its Mrican population, punitive measures would only provoke intransigence and harden the existing situation. Furthermore, the result of the adoption of such measures, particularly ifcompliance is not widespread and sincere,would create doubts about the validityof, and diminish respect, for the authority of the United Nations and the efficacy of the sanctionprocess envisioned in the Charter. 67. Also, views on this matter differ so widely that vve cannot· hope to agree On the necessary consensus to malte such action effective evenifit were legitimate and approptiate. And as for suggestions of diplomatie isolation, 'persUasion ca:nnot he exercised in a vacuum. Conflicting viewscannôt be reconciled in .absentia. Instead,we believe that still further attempts should he made to build a bridge of communication, of disc~sionandof-Wrsuasion.If the human race is going to,arvive on this earth wisdqm, reason and right tlîUSt· prevail•. Let ·usnot forget that there are many wise and influential people hi that great country who 68. We cannot accept the proposition that the only alternative to apartheid is bloodshed. We cannot accept the conclusion that there is no way out, no direction in which to go except the present collision course towards ultimate disaster in South Africa. Certainly tliere are alternatives and they must be identified and they must be explored beiore it is too late. 69. It is a matter of considerable regret to my delegation that the Government of South Africa has chosen to absent itself from these proceedings. But aside from regrets, it is exceedingly difficult in this shrunken interdependent world to live in self-ostracism from international society. In this world of instant communication, it is progressively more hazardous to fly in the face of world opinion. And certainly the obligation to talk about dangerous disputes is too solemn ta be ignored by even the most stubbom of leaders today. 70. There is nothing inherently immutable in any impasse in human affairs. Many a seemingly hopeless cause has prevailed in the course of history 0 1 had occasion just last week ta recall here that negotiations over the testing of nuclear weapons looked hopeless for five long, dreary, frustrating years, until the impasse was broken suddenly, to the vast relief of an anxious world. And, as 1 said, the stalemate was broken because menrefused ta give up hope, because men dec~ined. to give in to despair, because men worked consistently and doggedly to break the dead- . locko Manifestly this treaty does not solve aU aï the problems in connexion with nuclear armaments. But every long joumey begins witha single step, and this is a beginning. 71. So 1 should like to suggest very emphatically that we approach the problem of apartheid in South Africa aSa similar challenge to ingenuity, ta the instinct for survival for humankilld•. As President Kennedy Sàid. with reference to the atomic treaty, "We must not be afraid ta test our hopes". It isin the spirit of testing our hopes that this sad episode will end in reason and not in flame thet l, on behalf of my Government, solemnly and earnestly appeal ta the Government. of South Africa to change course and to embarkon apolicy of national reconciliation and emancipation.

May 1 be allowed from .theoutset· to assure the representatives of the 74. In the seventeen years during which this question has been under deliberation, aU resources available to the General Assembly within the purview of Chapter IV of .the Charter have been exhausted. 75. Among the many attempts made by the General Assembly to deal with the problem, Brazil was once caUed upon to mediate between South Africa, on the one hand, and India and Pakistan, on the other. The only tangible result of this frustrating experience was a feeling of utter futility at anyeffortto break through the layers of intransigence with whichthe Government of South Mrica surrounds itself. Mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial solutions and the other peaceful methods for settling international disputes were employed·at one time or another-or were at least considered or suggested-but with the same invariably negative results. 76. Now that the issue has bl;len brought to the attention of the Security Council, the problem we face is to determine whether we should persevere in proposing méasures that rely on persuasion alone, or advocate more energetic and coercive methods of action. 77. This poses a serious option indeed: it is an option that must take account of ethical values, among other factors. For this reason, there can be some vacillation, since. no nation in the world is entirely free from some vestiges, more or less latent, of racial discrimination. But what is greatly encouraging in today's world is to witness theoverwhelmingmajority of mankind, with the support and incentive of aIl moderD_ St9.tes, striving to overcome these vestiges and to eraclicate them gradually from the national and international communities. 78. It is in t.he light of this mounting tide of human feeling tha.t the racial policies of South Mrica-officially sanctioned by a body of legislation that claims scientific and ethical foundations-as a principle upon which the philosophy of a Government can be based, become intolerable. This policy, by its nature, is so fraught with dangers that it necessarily ceases to 79. The second point 1 would like to make has more immediate implications. The members of the Secv.rity Council cannot remain indtfferentto the anxiety caused the African nations by the establishment of a vast military arsenal in the Republic of South Africa, out of aIl proportion to the defence requirements of that country. 80. In this' connexion, my delegation believes thatthe Security Council would be acting wisely if it adopted, without further delay, measures to bar the supply of arms to South Afric2., RS weIl as other measures which would persuade tha South African Government of the imperative necessity of abandoning its policy of obstinate and blatant disregard for the international community, through its persistent and systematic violation of the commitments it assumedonjoiningthe United Nations. The sooner the minority of European background of South Africa realizes the impossibility of maintaining its policy of domination, the easier it will be for the country to traverse the necessary period of transition toward social and international peace and order. 81. AState cannot prosper and grow divided against itself, antagonized by the overwhelming majority of its population, wounded and offended in what is noblest in man-his sense of human dignity and worth-surrounded by the justified hostility and resentment of its neighbours, and aware of the reprobation and even condemnation of world public opinion. 82. 1 would like to believe that, faced withthe gravity of this moment, the outstanding qualities of political wisdom which once fiourished in South Africa will reassert themselves in time ta prevent the stormnow gathering over that country from breaking over its people, sweeping in its wake not only the evils that South Africa failed to correct, but .also those undeniable qualities with which South Africans, whatever their ethnie origins, are endowed. The guarantees .that armed might can give are but short-lived. A political society can survive and grow and prosper only by virtue of the respect it commands, both internally and internationally. 83. My delegation will give its support to any draft resol\ltion that reflects the views 1 have just expressed.

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