S/PV.2042 Security Council

I should like to inform members of the Council that I have received a letter dated 26 October from the Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid, Mr, Leslie 0. Harriman, which reads as follows: The meeting was called to order at Il. 20 a.m. Adoption of the agenda “I have the honour as Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid to request the opportunity to participate in the meeting of the Security Council devoted to the question of South Africa under the terms of rule 39 of the provisional rules of procedure of the Council.” The agenda was adopted. The question of South Africa: Letter dated 20 October 1977 from the Permanent Representative of Tunisia to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Councit (S/12420) 5. On previous occasions, the Council has extended invitations to representatives of other appropriate United Nations bodies in connexion with the consideration of matters on its agenda. It seems appropriate for me, therefore, if there is no objection, to extend an invitation, under rule 39 of the provisional rules of procedure, to the Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid.

In accordance with decisions taken by the Council at its earlier meetings, I invite the representatives of Algeria, Botswana, Guinea, Guyana, Lesotho, the Niger, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Togo, Tunisia, the United Republic of Cameroon and Viet Nam to take the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber. At the invitation of the President, Mr. Harriman (Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid) took the place reserved for him at the side of the Council chamber. At the invitation of the President, Mr. Bedjaoui (Algeria), Mr. Tlou (Botswana), Mr. Camara (Guinea), Mr. Jackson (Guyana), Mr. Molapo (Lesotho), Mr. Poisson (Niger), Mr. Garba (Nigeria), Mr. Baroody (Saudi Arabia), Mr. Kamara (Senegal), Mr. Kodjov f (Togo), Mr. Mestiri (Tunisia), Mr. Oyono (United Republic of Cameroon) and Mr. Dinh Ba Thi (Viet Nam) took the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber

I wish to draw the attention of members to document S/l 2427, which contains the text of a letter dated 27 October from the Permanent Represcntative of China to the Secretary-General. 7. The first speaker is the representative of the United Republic of Cameroon. I invite him to take a seat at the Council table and to make his statement.

Letters have been received from the representatives of Ghana, Mauritania, Somalia and the Sudan, requesting that they should be invited to participate in the discussion of the question on the agenda. In accordance with usual practice, I propose, with the consent 8. Mr. OYONO [United Republic of Cameroon) (inferpretation from flench): As other speakers have stressed 9. I need not recall all the fact here: the world press has mentioned them in recent days and they amply justify the request by the Chairman of the Group of African States, the representative of Tunisia, for an urgent resumption of the consideration of this problem. Suffice it only for me to recall the moving and detailed statement delivered by our brother, David Sibeko, Director for Foreign Affairs of the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania, on 24 October last in this roam/2036th meeting]. 10. Mr. President, 1 thank you most sincerely, as well as other members of the Council, for having allowed me to take the floor in these circumstances for the purpose 01 expressing once again the serious concern felt by the United Republic of Cameroon over the tragic deterioration of the situation in southern Africa, and particularly in Azania. 11. For centuries, a group of white adventurers at Pretoria. having installed themselves by force of arms and devised, for the purpose of establishing and maintaining their domination, a system of government and a political philosophy which advocates the denial of all human dignity to the millions upon millions of men whom they have subjugated. 12. Need I recall that 17 long years have passed since the Sharpeville massacres, which revealed to the world in all its horrors the evil effects of that atrocious policy which has nothing to learn from Hitler’s nazism? For 17 years the Security Council has been considering this question without having been able to compel the racist leaders of Pretoria to abandon their degrading policy oTaparfheid. 13. It would obviously be unfair not to recognise the value of the anti-ujzzrtlzeid measures and campaign undertaken by the international communityby States, by specialised agencies and by the General Assembly We riced only cite as proof of this the last two conferences held, respectively, at Maputo and Lagos, with a view to awakcning international opinion as much as possible to the evils of that terrorist rCgime and which resulted in the adoption of a plan of action that will undoubtedly be effective if it is resolutely applied. 14. But the wave of repressive measures that has just engulfed the people of South Africa clearly shows that the time for condemnations and the expression of pious hopes has passed and that if the Security Council truly wishes to play the role assigned to it by the Charter it must finally envisage the adoption of more decisive action. 15. There is no longer any form of violence or abuse which the Pretoria minority racist rCgime does not use, not only because this crushes any possibility of opposition but also, and simply, because it is comnletely in accord with its 16. That is why a people-regarded as crushed by centuries of repression-which in the past had limited itself to grumbling and complaining has now turned to desperate revolt. The name of Soweto will from now on resound as a cry of anger from a people that is determined to reconquer its dignity and freedom and to face, even empty handed, an army of hangmen abundantly equipped with the most sophisticated weapons. 17. Need one be a prophet to predict that such a situation can lead only to a blood-bath? Can anyone really believe that such an explosion of violence can continue without endangering peace and security in that part of the world? That is why, in its resolution 31/6 D of 9 November 1976, the General Assembly requested the Security Council to take urgent action under Chapter VII of the Charter and to call for the application of military and economic sanctions against South Africa. 18. We deeply deplore the Council’s inability to endorse unanimously a resolution that could have ensured the implementation of vigorous measures. The negative vote 0f three permanent members can be interpreted only as encouraging Pretoria not to change its attitude of arrogance and systematic non-co-operation. 19. It is obvious that Vorster’s contempt for the unanimous condemnations of the international community can be explained only by his complete assurance that he call always count on being able to act with total impunity. Indeed, does he not regard himself as the indispensable bulwark in the southern part of our continent against the socalled cncmies of the Western world, and does he not believe that, for that reason, and since South Africa is il Power belonging to that same Western world, he can be sure of its solidarity or, more correctly, of its complicity, 110 matter what happens? 20. The survival of the Pretoria rkgime and the cynical persistence of racist Vorster in his ignoble policy 0f aparfhcid are entirely the result of the close political, economic, military and other ties that certain States Members of the Organization have with him. 21, South Africa prides itself on being a military Power because, in the first place, it is so regarded by ~~OSC who, disregarding the reiterated appeals of the General Assembly, have equipped it with tnassive amounts of the most sophisticated weapons, to the point of elevating it t0 the rank of a nuclear Power. 22. The reaction of the world to the most recent violent actions by Vorster seem to confirm that there has been a change of attitude on the part of the countries that hitherto had maintained that a dialogue with Pretoria was still possible. Only 15 days later, events have proved how right he was. 24. It seems, then, that the Council has no recourse but to adopt the draft resolutions which have been submitted by the African members and which include a truly minimum number of measures likely to make Vorster understand that all those who have the task of safeguarding international peace and security are genuinely determined to prevent the explosion of a crisis whose violence will be in proportion to the great bitterness that has been accumulating for tenturies. Moreover, these draft resolutions meet the expectations of the international community, as expressed in resolution 3 l/6 D, to which I referred a moment ago. 25. My delegation is convinced that the Council is duty bound to take a decision going beyond a simple arms embargo-which would be a waste of time---since South Africa is now manufacturing, under licence, all kinds of weapons, aircraft, military helicopters, armoured vehicles, spare parts, light weapons, logistical equipment, and so forth, which it needs. The Council’s decision must provide for strict economic sanctions against the Pretoria regime. Any recommendation, any threat, any platonic condemnation will only be ridiculed by and offer encouragement to the supporters of apartheid. 26. My delegation is also aware that an econotnic embargo strictly observed by all Member States would entail sonic real sacrifice for some of them. But we must remind them that, if their procrastination continues and leads to the explosion of a violent crisis, the risks they will run will most probably be much greater. Finally, we are convinced that the preservation of peace, the defence of freedom and the struggle to safeguard human dignity--and all these purposes are inscribed in letters of gold in the Charter-are more important than any material considerations. That is why millions laid down their lives sonic 30 years ago. Indeed, it was this noble cause that led to the birth of the Organization.

The next speaker is the reprcsendative of the Niger. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

Mr. President, I should first of all like to congratulate you on the onerous task that you have been performing for almost a month now as President of the Security Council. Your country is a living symbol of democracy and of respect for life. In your capacity as President YOU are, with your long and universally recognized tradition of wisdom, a living example of democracy which we all much admire. 1 should also like to thank the members of the Council for agreeing to give me their attention for the brief statement that I shall make on behalf of my delegation. 1 Ofjkial Recojyfs of’ the C;enetxl Assenrhl)!, Thir1.Psecond SW sion, Plenary Meetings, 33rd meeting, para. 230. 30. The nearly universal alarm over these developments comes rather late in the day. We saw the birth of the system; we saw it grow up; it was given all the nourishment needed to hasten its growth to maturity and power; today, people are becoming alarmed. This is strangely reminiscent of the history of nazism. Perhaps in the near future we shall see the world, all illusions finally lost, taking up arms and fighting as it had to do 40 years ago. But how is the world to bc stripped of its illusions. thus saving not only precious time but also the many human lives that are sacrificed and the humiliations inflicted on a whole race? How arc we to break the chain of hatred and death which has ,been elevated into an institutional system? Africa and the world can brook no further delay. We have the proof that dyed-in-the-wool racism is totally immoral. It bows to no convention and, secreting its own venom, feeding on its own crazed rush to destruction, it will be incapable of stopping until the day when the whole world, at last understanding the true intentions of the monster, resolves to cut off its head. 31. The measures for which Vorster proudly assumes responsibility are not new. They are dictated by a devious policy, which robes itself now in the principles of anticommunism, now in hypocritical hues of democracy, but which deceives only those who wish to be deceived. For, after alI, how can one possibly believe that the Pretoria crew are capable for an instant of democratic feeling? Social democracy also had the same coloration and in Germany at the time did not fail to trumpet its admiration for everything that meant justice and peace. At that time no one was concerned with examining the real meaning of that justice and of the peace wanted by Hitler. Perhaps that was ‘the tactic that made it possible for nazism to ripen it1 the sun of cowardice. Many leaders, by inadvertence as it were, accepted the good faith of the Nazi leaders. Meeting followed meeting, always along the line of retreat. until the final consummation came at Munich. Today, history seems to be repeating itself with minor variations. 32. Is it not cause for astonishment that these same nations, yesterday the victims of nazism, should today 33. The tragedy being enacted today by the black people of Azania would not have reached its climax if the great and medium-sized Powers had displayed the necessary firmness that they should have shown towards the racist minority. The international community has nevertheless made endless appeals to that effect since 1946, the year when, for the first time, the racial policy of South Africa was considered by the United Nations. Did not a resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 6 November 1962 even then call on Member States to break off diplomatic relations with the Government of South Africa, to close their ports to all vessels flying the South African flag, to enact legislation forbidding their ships to enter South African ports, to boycott all South African products, to refrain from exporting products, including arms and munitions, to South Africa, and to refuse landing and passage facilities to all aircraft belonging to the South African Government or companies registered under South African laws (resolution 1761 (XVII)]? 34. Fifteen years later, we are obliged to note that that resolution has been forgotten or deliberately ignored by precisely those whom we expect to exercise decisive influence on the situation in South Africa. Since that time, they have so greatly tightened their links of economic and military co-operation with the executioners of the Azanian people that the racist bastion is today well on the way to becoming a nuclear Power. They act as if Vorster’s terrorism was less harmful to international security than the aerial piracy that is currently agitating the capitals and foreign ministries of the West. It is true that aerial piracy is an attack on the society of civilized people, whereas Vorster is crushing unknown and defenceless populations! 35. Everyone is careful not to be too optimistic, Will the latest initiatives taken to sow the seeds of reason be successful’? Tomorrow it will need only certain ship movements to ignite once again the flames of anticommunism and thus to jeopardize the defence of these populations, which for 20 years have been asking the Council that justice should be rendered them, 36. Walvis Bay is the sentinel of the West! We have not heard the last of the subject, It will surely return to block the way and hinder other attempts to establish peace in that part of Africa. Vorster’s crew are old hands at this game and, unfortunately, in the future too, many countries will, in the name of certain sordid interests, offer them the understanding they need, and so the cycle will go on indefinitely.

Mr. President, while thanking you and, through you, the other members of the Council for inviting 37. The Niger would sincerely like to be unblushingly optimistic. When the American Government expresses its 38. The fight being waged by our brothers in Azania can only culminate in the complete liberation of that last bastion of colonialism. It would seem that other initiatives, even African initiatives, we are told, indicate that the time has come to shake to its foundations the world’s only bastion where apartheid is tolerated and allowed to develop, Thus certain nations historically responsible for the past, which have become powerless in the face of the cont.radictions of our time, are looking the other way and leaving Africa to its fate, behaving like the fly on the carriage wheel and encouraging a little salutary bloodletting as in the days of colonial wars. Every African ~110 dies for the good cause represents a step forward for Africa. Every African who dies to serve the needs of a plan to ensure a smooth passage from a past of humiliation and exploitation is an insult to our future generations, particularly those of Azania. 39. As we see it, we must wage our fight by respect for and comprehensive implementation of the relevant United Nations resolutions, in particular on the part of those Members which still maintain relations with the apartheid regime, by the strict application of a serious and effective embargo-not only on weapons, since the factories and war arsenals are already in piace and little has to be imported, but on everything that can be used to fuel and oil the machine of racist domination-by the adoption of a wide variety of new measures that are needed to meet the present situation at Pretoria. 40. It is nevertheless curious, nothwithstanding the awareness of what are commonly called human rights, that the stifling of the freedom of the press and of association in South Africa should be the only measure capable of unleashing a salutary wave of feeling in the world. 41. My delegation, for its part, reaffirms its determination to fight the abject apartheid regime and to associate itself with all action undertaken to that end, In line with our position, we give our full support to the four draft resolutions fSj12309JRev.1, S/12310/Rev.l, S/12311/ Rev.1 and S/l2312/Rev.l] submitted by the delegations of Benin, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and Mauritius. In the name of equity we call on all the other members of the Council to do the same, This would be no more than a just reply to the executioners of Azania.

The next speaker is the Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement. 52. Fifteen years ago, on 6 November 1962, the General Assembly, in its resolution 1761 (XVII), Sponsored by Nigeria among others, called for sanctions against South Africa and requested the Security Council to take action. The next year, the Council itself recognized, unanimously, that the situation in South Africa was “seriously disturbing” international peace and security. There is little doubt that this expression was coined by British diplomats. 45. In the wake of the early resistance to apartheid, the leaders of the oppressed people of South Africa embraced the ideas of Mahatma Gandhi. But soon the); were to learn that apartheid spelled violence. They learned that peaceful protestations generated nothing but escalating brutality and forceful reactions from the racists, They learned over the years that passive resistance spelled detention, torture and cold-blooded murder in racist gaols and massive killings of children and women in the streets’ of their motherland. Recent events in South Africa have indicated that the option of peaceful resistance is closed. 53. In the many years which have since passed, the racists have maintained the status quo and we have continued to utilize the euphemism “seriously disturbing”. They have intensified their brutality, they have further entrenched their reign of terror, they have committed other new crimes against the millions of black people and their leaders in South Africa. Many more people have been murdered in gaol. We have had Soweto. The terrorists at Pretoria have gone on armed rampage beyond the borders of the country. While the United Nations has adopted scores of resolutions which yield little positive action, business goes on as usua1 in South Africa. Trade and investments flow in and out of South Africa. Friends of the racists continue to reap huge profits from neo-slavery in South Africa. With help from their friends, the racists are on the verge of acquiring nuclear weaponry. All these things have, in no small measure, gone a long way towards undermining the credibility and the authority of the Organization which tends to remain unresponsive to the urgent problenls of South Africa. 46. The second significant aspect is that the Security Council resumed its discussion of the question of South Africa on 24 October, United Nations Day. The outcome of this debate will be a test of all Member States, especially those which by their privileged status have special responsibilitles under the Charter, The outcome of this debate will indicate to the whole world, and especially the suffering masses in South Africa, how our bcl,ief in the aims and objectives enshrined in the Charter is translated into meaningful action. The outcome of this debate will show how far we as Members are willing to go, as stated in the Preamble of the Charter, “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind”. 47. Whether or not a racial conflagration breaks out in southern Africa will depend largely on the actions initiated in the Council. In this connexion, I direct this statement and the message it contains to some of the permanent members of the Council, 48. For too long, too little action has been undertaken by the Council on the resolution of the problem of South Africa, It is not that we are oblivious of the issues, it is not that we are unaware of the measures to be taken, nor are we unappreciative of the peaceful efforts of the oppressed in South Africa or the consistent brutality of the racists. 5 1. In 1960 there was Sharpeville. Peaceful protest against pass laws was countered with force so strong that it left 67 people dead and hundreds injured, Again the Security Council discussed the situation and recognized that it might, if continued, endanger international peace and security. 54. The United Nations has an inescapable duty and obligation to eradicate apartheid in South Africa as it is a serious hindrance and a menace to international peace and genuine international co-operation. All Member States Wal to the principles of the United Nations must join in all necessary action under ali the relevant provisions of the Charter for the elimination ofapartheid. 55. In March of this year /198&h meeting], 1 Ilad the occasion in this chamber to express the concern. the commitment and the considered views of the Special Committee on the situation in South Africa. At that time* some delegations requested time and the support of the African Group to undertake measures with a view to dchieving a peaceful solution to the problem of South Africa. They felt that the racists at Pretoria might listen to their words of wisdom. 57. The apartheid r&gime has gone utterly mad and is calling a so-called general election of “whites only” on 30 November to get a mandate to defy the world and increase repression. It plans to establish a second bantustan on 6 December on the borders of the Republic of Botswana. It is frantically expanding its armed forces and has doubled the period of service for its national servicemen from 12 to 24 months. In its budget for 1976/77, it has allocated $US 2 billion for the armed forces alone. Yet both this mobilization and the invasions of neighbouring African States have been described as no threat to international peace and security. 58. After the series of deaths of patriots in detention in the past year, culminating in the brutal murder of Steve Bike. there is every reason to fear for the safety and the lives of the people imprisoned by the apartheid rkgime. 59. After all the threats and acts of aggression by the apartizcicl rCgime against independent African Slates, there is certainly grave danger of a wider threat to the peace in southern Africa. 60. The Security Council must act now with determination and without any further equivocation of euphemisms, Every day that meaningful action is delayed will mean more killings and graver dangers to peace. 61. It seems clear that the terrorists at Pretoria--.and 1 am using these words very advisedly--who are holding 20 million oppressed people in that country as hostages-again I choose my words advisedly--are prepared for war. I a111 llappy that other ad /ZOL’ committees of the United Nations are seized of these cIuestions of terrorism and the taking of hostages. 62. To approach an unnatural and irrational situation like the one in South Africa with idealism will not take us far. We have noted recent protests and condemnation by the Western Powers, hut there has so far been little action. There has been an effervescence of protestations, words and declarations which are only the superficial crust around a weak core. Such statements offer little mileage. 63 Since it came to power in 1948. the apartheid r&$lne has been coddled by the Western Powers. and spoiled with generous supplies of arms, investments and loans, The spoilt child of the West has now dared t.o fling a challenge and to 65. Two months ago, Nigeria had the honour and privilege of acting as host to the World Conference for Action against Apartheid, with the participation of Governments, organizations and leaders from all over the world. All the participants pledged separate and collective efforts to bring about the elimination of apartheid. The Conference adopted, by consensus, the Lagos Declaration for Action against Apartheid,2 which laid down guidelines for the following action: the application of a mandatory and comprehensive arms embargo against South Africa under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations; the ending of all assistance or co-operation enabling South Africa to obtain nuclear capability; the taking of economic and other measures, such as the cessation of loans to and investments in South Africa; a dismantling of existing investments; the provision of greater assistance to the oppressed people of South Africa and their liberation movement. 66. The Special Committee against Apartheid considers it necessary to emphasize that nothing less than full imple. mentation of the Lagos Declaration and nothing less than mandatory measures in accordance with Chapter VII of the Charter would meet the requirements of the present grave situation in South Africa. WC hope that all members of the Council will rise to the occasion and accept the challenge flung down by the Vorster rCgime. 67. We recall with appreciation the consistent support of the non-aligned and socialist States, of the Soviet Union and China, for the struggles for liberation in Africa. We call on the Wcstcrn countries to live up to their professions So that there can he universal and decisive action, which is indispensable if WC are to avert a holocaust, to eliminate racist oppression in South Africa and to free Africa at hSb 68. The Western members of the Council, especially the permanent members, must show in no uncertain terms that Vorster, in his paranoia, is not defending Western civilization or upholding the sacred principles of Christianity, as he claims. Vorster must be told in no uncertain terms, in the clear language of international action, that the threat of communism, the duty of protecting the Cape route and his so-called custody of Western capitalism are all figments of his wild imagination. 69. The Special Committee against Apartheid helicves that the narrow road to a peaceful solution to apartheid has long been closed. To Member States that were left behind we offer no apologies. All WC ask of them now is to take action under the provisions of Chapter VII of the Charter. We believe that the Lagos Declaration, as I said earlier, 2 United Mtions publication, fhlcs No. E.77.XIV.2, sect. X. 71. We propose that the Security Council should, as a first step, condemn the South African rCgime and give it a serious warning, endorse the Lagos Declaration for Action against Apartheid, invoke Chapter VII of the Charter, impose a mandatory embargo on all supplies of military equipment, spare parts and licences for the manufacture of such equipment for South Africa, stop all transfers of fissionable material or nuclear technology to South Africa, prohibit all loans to and investments in South Africa and set up a watchdog committee to supervise the implementation of these measures. 72. We should like to emphasize further, in this connexion, that an arms embargo would not be effective at this time unless it covered existing contracts for the supply of mililary equipment to and for the manufacture of such equipment in South Africa. 73. We know that some countries have recently entered into contracts for the supply of large quantities of military aircraft, submarines and corvettes, and have offered licences for the assembly and manulrrcture of such cquipmcnt. Imposing an embargo limited to future contracts would be like closing the gate after the horse has escaped; it would be deceiving ourselves and public opinion. 74. Furthermore, in this same context. 1 wish to cmphasize that the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has a catalogue of the licences issued recently by one Western country which now claims that it wants to join in an arms embargo and which I hope will be dragged into accepting a mandatory arms embargo. 75. Moreover, I wish to emphasizc that economic sanctions and an arms embargo are closely related, as we have often pointed out, to an embargo on foreign loans and investments which have enabled South Africa to increase its military expenditures. Those who have argued that more investments in South Africa would lead to greater and more effective control and to the dismantling of apartheid should now understand what we have been talking about for years: that the more investments there have been in South Africa over the years, the more its military expenditures bavc increased and the greater have become South Africa’s repressive measures and the development of the machinery for carrying out such measures. 76. 1 wish to refer to the proposals made in Western countries for the adoption of codes of conduct for business companies in order to improve the working conditions of Africans. While we welcome any amelioration of the conditions of African workers, we cannot accept any proposal that condones investment in apartheid society and 77. As Chairman of the Special Committee against Apart- Izeiu’, I could not but speak as emotionally as I have done. I thank you, and I hope my statement did not transgress the code of behaviour of the Council, 78. The I’RESIDENT: I thank the Chairman of the Special Committee against Apurthcid for the kind words he has addressed to me and for the kind references hc made about my country and about Mahatma Gandhi. 79. The next speaker is the representative of Mauritania, whom I invite to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

The year 1977 will. without any doubt. go down in the history of Africa as one of the most alarming and most decisive turning points and as the year which held particularly cruel surprises in store for our people, with irrepdrable losses and terrible human suffering. This year will also surely be remembered as one in which the entire world was witness to a frenetic intensification of the Calvary which has been imposed in various parts of the continent of Africa on populations whose only sin was to wish to live in freedom like all the other peoples of our planet. 8 1. While in every respect the conditions to which the African peoples were subjected during the colonial period-- conditions contrary to morality. law and justice-have little by little been eased in certain parts of the continent thanks to the advent of independence in some of our countries, the particularly cruel fate still visited on millions of human beings, particularly in the southern part of Africa, is testimony which daily casts a darker shadow on our pride and brings discredit on all the principle which represent the very foundation of the Organization. 81. The Security Council’s meeting today to consider the explosive situation in South Africa has been preceded by many others since the beginning of the United Nations. IT the Council, for over a quarter of a century, has been unwilling to take the ultilnatc decision incumbent on it by virtue of the powers vested in it by the Charter, and above all because of the wishes expressed by the near totality of the membership of the Organixation, the South African rCginie, t’or its part, abcttcd by that implicit support, has created situations which are a challenge to the Organization and a grave affront to morality, justice and law. X3. Thus, once again the Council has bclbre it this situation that has been a matter of constant concern to the international community and that is an affront to African dignity and pride. And it is particularly fortunate that, at the moment the Council is seized of this situation, fate has decided that it should be a son of the third world, the representative of India, who is presiding over its proceedings. I therefore venture to avail myself of this opportunity 84. A few moments ago I talked about the many series of meetings held by the Security Council on the situation in southern Africa. The most recent series was that held from 21 to 31 March following the particularly explosive events that took place in Azania and of which the whole world was witness. The gravity of those events, after the massacres of Sharpevillc and Soweto, should have prompted the Council to consider firm and unequivocal measures to constrain South Africa to put an end to its policy of genocide. 85. The States of the non-aligned countries put forward several draft resolutions at that time containing various practical proposals which, if they had been accepted, would unquestionably have helped to avert the unprecedented acts of violence which we have recently witnessed in South Africa and the indiscriminate massacres in which the South African Government has indulged and is still indulging. If those measures were not taken by the Council, it was because of certain considerations, the most important of which are the following: first, because certain permanent members of the Council had indicated their disagreement and felt that it was necessary to continue being cautious and that the measures requested should be adopted only after all chances of a peaceful solution had been exhausted; next, because those same countries had given firm promises to the non-aligned countries regarding their determination to do everything in their power to induce South Africa to return to the path of justice and law, Certain statements to that effect were even made here with a view to dispelling the legitimate pessimism of the non-aligned countries and the liberation movements, The South African Government’s willingness to change was eloquently maintained. 86. Approaches were made to the Vorster Government after those meetings by the five Western Powers. Despite our pessimism regarding the possible success of those de’marches, we followed the course of the negotiations with sustained interest, in the conviction that five Powers would spare no efforts to bring the South African Government to reason. But once again the mountain has laboured and brought forth a mouse. Contrary to all expectations, whereas the five Western Powers had created all the conditions for an honourable way out for the South African Government, that Government, in violation of the most elementary rules of courtesy and decency, was in May already engaged in acts of violence whose cruelty and cynicism fiIled the entire international community with indignation. 87. Among the odious acts committed in May, at least one deserves to be highlighted. I refer to the arrest on 27 May of a black 59-year-old former trade unionist arrested under the Internal Security Act. He died in a Cape prison after being tortured in captivity. On 6 July, another South 88. Such, then, is the regime which for more than a generation has been the subject of Security Council meetings and which today still flaunts before the world an evil philosophy that has been rejected and condemned by the whole international community. 89. For more than 30 years, South Africa has played on certain peoples’ sympathy by posing as the defender of Western civilization. In the seven months since the Council’s meetings in March, we have noted the positions of countries which felt that the time had not yet come for mandatory sanctions. Perhaps those countries-and we have no reason to doubt their sincerity-felt that their responsibilities under the Charter required them to show more caution and moderation. But today more than ever it is fitting to remind those countries that time is passing and that in South Africa women, children and old people are being murdered every day and South African prisons are bursting with detainees who are freed only by death. We say to them also that 30 years is the life of an entire generation and that the children of Sharpeville and Soweto and the Azanian people will never forgive silence on the part of the United Nations, for it would represent veritable complicity and support for the Vorster regime. Lastly, we say to them it is high time that words were backed by deeds and, while the Azanian people have been given many promises, they nevertheless continue to suffer the dictatorship of the South African regime, for want of a decision by the United Nations and especially the Security Council. 90. Today the situation in South Africa has reached the point of no return. The Vorster regime which has been caught in a thousand and one contradictions will never make honourable amends. It is for that reason that world opinion is increasingly demanding concerted and effective action against the proponents of apartheid. This development, wh.ich has had a certain impact on the policies of Governments, can be perceived through the media, which have, to their credit, accurately described the tragedies that have been visited upon the peoples of southern Africa throughout this year. 91. I have taken certain excerpts from the newspaper Le Mmde which, in its editorial of 21 October last entitled “Vorster avoids the issue”, made the following comments: “The wave of repressions, on a scale unprecedented since the banning in 1960 of the African National Congress, unleashed on 19 October by the Pretoria authorities is felt as a double challenge. Domestically, the brutal hardening of the regime has aroused the anger and bewilderment of all those who were still looking for a movement towards reform. Abroad, the escalation Of Pretoria’s authoritarianism. is a direct affront to the “The strong and immediate American reaction seems fraught with menace for the South African Government. In deploring an unfortunate action which is ‘bound to affect relations between Washington and Pretoria’, the State Department, already irritated by Vorster’s inflexibility, has given to understand that it is contemplating retaliatory measures against a too-stubborn ally. In choosing strong measures, the Vorster Government makes even less likely the ‘initiation of a process’ that could lead to the ‘progressive transformation of South African society’ so desired by the Carter Administration. Government which holds its black majority in terror and in subjugation. But the shocking events in South Africa in the last week are so fundamental to human rights anywhere and also constitute such a subversion of some of the principles of the Charter, that my Govcmment deems it necessary that we should also add our voice to those who have condemned unequivocally the dehumanizing acts of the South African Government. 97. As members of the Council are aware, Ghana has, since its birth in 1957, been totally opposed Lo qxutheid. Since becoming a Member of the United Nations, we have participated actively in the struggle against czpurtheid and its practitioners. Indeed, our opposition to this racially discriminatory system is so basic to our own historical and philosophical experience, that our determination to fight for its eradication is one of the cardinal points of OUT foreign policy. We would therefore not be true to the world around us nor to ourselves if we allowed this opportunity to slip without contributing to the common effort against apartheid. l‘ . . . “By choosing to avoid the issue, Mr. Vorster is in danger of forcing Washington and its Western allies”--and I do mean “its Western allies”-“to have recourse more rapidly than previously intended to the economic pressures they dislike, since it is the only way to bring to its knees an increasingly isolated regime whose remaining support comes mainly from military dictatorships . . .” 92. This is an admission which indicates eloquently the changes which have taken place since the beginning of the year, changes which, if followed by specific action, will not only restore the prestige of the Security Council but also strengthen the respect and esteem enjoyed by the various States that make up the Organization. However, this change can be given practical effect only by the adoption and implementation of the draft resolutions placed before the Council by the non-aligned countries. An embargo on arms shipments to South Africa and, above all, economic sanctions are, without any doubt, the essential prerequisite to any successful action by the Council against the hateful regime of South Africa. But if, unhappily, the hopes that the people of Azania place in the Council should be once again disappointed, then we must expect a dark future for southern Africa and a serious threat to international peace and security. 98. Our distrust of Vorster and his colleagues is so complete that we have often wondered why others have persisted in their reluctance to give the necessary support to the United Nations to deal effectively with the South African rCgime. We have on several occasions participated in debates in the Security Council, as well as in the General Assembly, which have all addressed appeals to South Africa to desist from its crimes against the black majority. As we all know, those appeals have had no significant effect on the thinking and policies of the South African leadership. So, gradually, the excesses of the racist regime against the black majority have multiplied; from Sharpeville to Soweto, it has been a horrifying catalogue of atrocities against the defenceless majority, only because they demand to exercise their inalienable rights. 93. I am convinced that the Council will have the wisdom this time to learn a lesson from the past and at last act in justice and equity. The people of Azania can rest assured that their victory is certain, because subjection, domination and exploitation can never be the final destiny of any people. 99. Although we are convinced that the South African rdgime has never intended and does not intend to uphold the lofty principles enshrined in the Charter, we have been tolerant enough to give those Member States who had hopes of Vorster and his Government a chance to induce a change in the South African situation, as they thought they could, But the recent banning of the black nationalist organizations in that country, the closing down of nationalist newspapers and the imprisonment of blacks and other persons have proved beyond reasonable doubt that the hopes expressed by some members of the Council during earlier debates on the same question have been grossly misplaced, The international community, therefore, has an inescapable duty to halt the serious degeneration in the political and social situation of that country.

The next speaker is the reprcsentative of Ghana. I invite him to take a place at the Council table and to make his statement.

Mr. President, 1 Wish, first of all, to express to you the gratitude of my Government and my delegation for affording me the opportunity to address the Security Council today on the question of South Africa. It is significant that the debate in the Council on the current South African situation is taking pkICe under Your presidency, for your personal diplomatic qualities, coupled with the well-known uncompromising stand of Your counfO0. It would be pointless, at this stage, to recall all the numerous resolutions on apartheid adopted by the Council. Similarly, it would constitute a waste of the valuable time 101. It is the view of the Ghana Government that, tragic though the cvcnts or the last week have been, the international situation is now excellent for an inlroduction of those measures that our political and morid ConscietlCe has dictated all along If we let this moment slip, posterity will forever condemn us for the pusillanimous manner in which we have handled the destinies of millions of our brothers and sisters in South Africa. We further believe that Ihe time has come when we should together search out collective conscience to determine whether it is wiser to bargain the political future of South Africans for the doubtful economic gains that now identify us with the gross violations of the rights and aspirations of millions of South Africans whose remaining hope is our Organization. 102. In this regard, the Ghana tiovernment would like to note with appreciation the encouraging words of I’rcsident Carter and other distinguished leaders around the world who have expressed. in unequivocal terms, the inadmissibility of Vorster’s recent actions and who have agreed that the present situation calls for tougher action against those responsible for such massive lratnpling down of the rights of Azanians. 103. What action, therefore, do we envisage in expressing our condemnation of the acts perpetrated by the South African rkgirne? My delegation recommencls, in this regard, that the Council should introduce, as a matter of extreme urgency, the following measures, irltc’r aZifz, under Chapter VII of the Charter: first. ii mandatory embargo on all salt of arms, including spare parts and machinery, to South Africa; secondly. a suspension of all economic and cultural tics with South Africa, including the recruitment of immigrant labour for that country; thirdly, an effective application of the oil em bargo; fourthly, a suspension of any further help in the nuclear programme of South Africa. 104. The Ghana Government has deemed it ativis;jble to recommend such actions under Chapter VII of tile Chaflel because it considers the latest acts of the Vorster rbgime a threat to international peace and security. No doubt that rCgime is emboldened to act in the manner that we all witnessed last week because of its increasing military and nuclear strength, of which various South African leaders have openly boasted in the past months. WC dread, thcreforc, what the politics of South Africa wor~ltl become if that republic should join the nuclear club, as al] in Sout]lertl Africa aS a Whole. However, WU CtK Of he fit’111 opinion that, unless Vorster is brought tu feel the full weight of the Organization’s authority, IlO ~~leillliQ?fill &;mge call be hoped for in the entire ro#Jn. I;or, Vdlethr our efforts are direcled at the situation in Namibia, Zimbabwe or Azania itself, we must :IIWZ~YS remember that Vorster is the key to whatever solution iS fUI’ttld~l~Cd I:1111 sure that the Western members of the Council would confirm this. TJierefore, we must be prepared to tackle Vorster and his Fascist rdgime in order to expect meaning ful change throughout southern Africa. 106. Finally, my delegation would like to remind the Council that, under Article 14 of the Charter, it is charged with the duty to ensure prompt and cfl‘cctivc action by the United Nations for the maintenance of internationa] ~C~ICC and security and that it cannot afford lo ,jettison this sacred responsibility for narrow economic atld treaty 3dV3tltages. Human rights are one and indivisible in all parts o(‘ tile world and Lhcy should be upheld even in the case of the cxploitcd and politically starved people of hznni:l. In the discharge of this sacred duty, the Western Powers l’ace :I test of the vatidity of their civilization. That is, whcthcr it sl~ould be ,judgcd by its own enligh~cncd values. or hy its tolerance (ltf fumcwrkz of a vicious doclrinc of racial superiority which it had decisively rejected through an unprecedented war only 37 years ago. 107. The choice is clear, the time is ripe and millions ol people arc watching the exercise of our nudiurity with kcenncss and with hope. We cannot afford Lo fail yet again. For our part, we renew the assurance of the Ghana Government to the Council, to the entire United Nations membership and indeed Lo the whole world 1ha1 we will extend our fullest support and co-operation in introducitlg mandatory sanctions and other ilppNlp~iiltC nicasurcs against South Africa under Chapter VII of the (‘hartcr, in order to meet our commitment not only to the ,i\L~ttliil~t peoples but to the ideals of our sacred Charter.

This is the secotld time Lhis year that wc have met to consider devclopnicnts ill South Africa. On this occasion, we mccl iI1 lhc shadow that has been cast by Mr. Bike’s death. He is not the first black South African detainee to die in prison. Isut he W;IS one Of LllC most proniincnt of that IIC‘W gorleratiorl of Soulll African who demand an early dismantling ofapar’thcid and who are ready to suffer for their beliefs. Press reports indicate that Mr. Biko may have died of brain tl;lmage otld internal injuries. We await the results 01‘ the official autopsy and of the inquest begun yesterday, and we expect them to revcal, without ec~uivocation, precisely how Mr, ljiko died. Nor is it enough for the Government of South Africa LO reject world interest as a flagrant interference in its internal affairs It can hardly be sllrpriscd if t]ic inLcrnntioCll community detnands public assurances on this point, wltc11 approximately 70 prisoners have, so the (;overnment says, died “by accident” while in cuslody in the last I8 months. 114. Many Members of the Organization would argue - indeed, some do and have-- [hat South Africa should bc totally ostracized. The problem, however, that all of us have to face is that a sizeable part of the white population of South Africa positively invites-1 would almost say, welcomes-such ostracism. For historical reasons with which everyone here is familiar, my own country is more aware than most of the attitudes of the South African white population. We do not want white South Africans to drive themselves into a mental fortress from which they will be unable to escape. Isolation breeds further isolation and a mindless contempt for outside opinion. We remain of the belief that we should be ready to speak and listen to the South African Govcrnmcnt and to all South Africans. Only in that way can we hope Co impress ~lpvil the white community the imperative need for quick, early and far-reaching change. 110. What must surely alarm us all, irrespective of our Government’s policies, is the growing polarization of opinion in South Africa. The South African Government is withdrawing behind the barricades. In doing so, it is deliberately, almost capriciously, cutting itself off from the majority of its own population. Extremism is growing on both sides and those in the middle who advocate at least a start to the dismantling of present barriers speak now with a lonely and muted voice. 111. Our objective is, I hope, well known. We want to see a society in South Africa in which all the inhabitants. irrespective of their race, colour or creed, can freely participate in the country’s institutions and in the creation of a non-racial society. We want a peaceful and democratic transformation, rather than a disintegration into violence. I believe that conflict can still be averted, but only if the South African Government begins to change its present policies. We are therefore ready to LISC the political and economic influence at our disposal to urge and encourage change within South Africa, but not to use it merely as a punitive measure. It follows from this that our response will in each instance be carefully judged. f:or many years, Britain has observed a voluntary arms embargo against South Africa. WC do not co-operate in the nuclear field. Three years ago, we sought Ihe agreement of British companies operating in South Africa to observe a cudc of business conduct. The European Economic Community has now published its own code, one of the main purposes oi which is to encourage the growth of free, non-discriminatory trade unionism and the equal trea\tmcnt of workers, irrcspcctive of their mce. I 15. The least that the Sourh African Government can now do is to rescind the recent closures and arrests; but it must do more than that. t 1 must now begin to take serious steps to dismantle apzrrkid. Cosmetic changes are not enough, and Britain will not accept that they are enough. White South Africans sometimes accuse us 01‘condoning or encouraging violence in southern Africa. This is not SO. We are opposed to all forms of violence, but it really should not surprise white South Africa if the humiliation cngendered by inslitutioIinlizet1 racism-for such it is---drives people in increasing numbers to desperate aclion. Those of 11s who believe in contact and a graduated response to the situation in South Africa rather than in isolation and revenge have a niajul responsibility for seeking those changes which alone can avert a terrible tragedy in southern Africa, This rcspunsibility is one which Britain dUCS not seek to avoid and in which we arc prepared to piap 0~11 part, Our response, as I have indicated in this statement. to tile sittlatioll as it is toclay and the sort of resolution that WC s]lould like (o see the Security Council adopt is, I hqx, a11 indication of our acceptance of‘ that responsibility. 1 12. We have, tliereforc. carefully considered our responsibilities in tlic light of recent events. WC have come to the conclusion that the acquisition by South Africa of arms and related material in the current situation does constitute a threat to the maintenance of inlernational pcacc and security. The United Kingdom will therefore accept and 1 16. The t’l<I-{SILENT: The good oxample set by the representative of the United Kingdom in making his statement this morning will, I hope, be cmulatcd by the remaining members of the Council this afternoon. and I am referring in particular to the representatives of Canada, France. the Fcdcral liepublic of (;ermany, the Uiiitcd vote in favour of a mandatory arms embargo under Chapter VII of Ihe Charter. We expect. also. that States not Members of the Organi/.ation will take immediate and Similar action. SLnfes atId Indi:l HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS PUBI,ICATIONS Unite 1 Nations publications may he obtained from bookstores and distributors throu;hout the world. Consult your bookstore or write to: IJnited Nations. Sales Sertion. New York or Geneva. COMMENT SE PROCURER LE.5 PUBLICATIONS DES NATIONS UNIES Los publications des Nations Units sent cn vcnte dans les librairies et les agenres dc5positnires du mondc cntier. Informer-vow aupr&s de votre libraire ou ndressez-vow h : Nations Unies. 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