S/PV.2058 Security Council

At last Thursday’s meeting, on 26 January (2056th meeting/, I had the pleasure of offering the tribute of my admiration of the great co&try represented by the Commissioner for External Affairs of Nigeria, Mr. Garba, who presided over the first Security Council meeting in 1978. However, I should be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to convey to you, Mr. President, my pleasure at seeing you presiding over these Council meetings. Provisional agenda (S/Agenda/2058) 1. Adoption of the agenda 4. For those of us who have for many years been involved in the United Nations, albeit in modest and inconspicuous positions in the groups that adopt major decisions, your merits could not go unnoticed, Indeed, we know you to be a talented and indefatigable tighter for the causes of human liberty and dignity and this makes you an archetype of the new Africa and truly a man of our time. You are an exponent of the humanitarian trends of which the United Nations has become the focal point. You are promoting a I’ revitalized philosophy based on equality and universahsm without any odious distinctions as to race, creed, language or colour. That is the reality on which we are building the only kind of world that can be accepted by the large majority of mankind represented by the developing countries. This large majority of those who have been cast out and humiliated, those who have been silenced and rendered defenceless has contributed to building the civilization of our time, although their only reward has been to gather up the crumbs from the banqueting table of the powerful. 2. The question of South Africa: (a) Letter dated 25 January 1978 from the Permanent Representatives of Gabon, Mauritius and Nigeria to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Security Council (S/12538); (b) Note by the Secretary-General (S/12536) The meeting was called to order at 4.05 p.m. Adoption of the agenda 7Ee agenda was adopted. The question of South Africa: (a) Letter dated 25 January 1978 from the Permanent Representatives of Gabon, Mauritius and Nigeria to the United Nations addressed to the President of the Sexxrity Council (S/l 2538); (b) Note by the Secretary-General (S/12536) 5. Bearing in mind your valuable contribution in enhancing the effectiveness of the tenets of the Charter of the United Nations, and also in your position as Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid, my delegation believes that it is a good sign that the Council should have this year begun its work under your presidency. With the same consistency and vigour with which any Bolivian would act in any forum with regard to the historical injustice inherent in Bolivia’s position as a geographical enclave, you, as a true and loyal son of Africa, are determined that the Council should put an end to rhetorical declarations that are as innocuous as they are ineffective, in order to adopt concrete measures and assume full responsibility as the chief guardian and executor of the Charter and its own decisions.

I should like to inform the members of the Council that I have received letters from the representatives of Sweden and Uganda in which they request to be invited to participate in the discussion. In accordance with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite those representatives to participate in the discussion, without the right to vote, in conformity with the provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the provisional rules of procedure. 2. In view of the limited number of places available at the Council table, I invite the representatives of Sweden and Uganda to take the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber, on the usual understanding that they will be invited to take a place at the Council table whenever they wish to speak. 6. As the Commissioner for External Affairs of Nigeria said in his statement here last Thursday: In support of that statement, on 8 November 1977, the same Bolivian statesman sent a telegram to the Secretary. General [S/12449] announcing that the Government of Bolivia was studying very carefully the implementation of resolution 418 (1977), and he repeated: 7. My Government shares the just concerns of the African peoples. We view with growing concern the escalation of the violence that has been unleashed by the Government of South Africa in its desire to perpetuate a form of government and a system of apartheid that turns out to be a sort of medieval obscurantism inconceivable in our times. “ 4 . . Bolivia has traditionally condemned all forms of discrimination and deplores the escalation of violence in South Africa, hoping [at the same time] that a peaceful solution is found for that situation in the interest of world coexistence and respect for human dignity.” 8. The letter you, Mr. President, sent to the Secretary- General on 19 January /see S/12536] contains a report that is surprising-indeed, overwhelming, It is an offence to the most stoic conscience to see that such flagrant violations of human dignity can continue. And that dignity is degraded not only by unpremeditated acts but also methodically by actions that form part of a system that is in itself a crime and an offence to the rest of the world. 11. My Government, as is clear from this text, joins with all free countries in a wish to see an early settlement of the racial problem in South Africa, a settlement that would be entirely satisfactory to the African majority. As is natural, we are also concerned that the means used to resolve the problem should be peaceful. 9. My country has also suffered from the trials of conquest and colonialism, but with the advent of freedom we were able to affirm and consolidate our historical position more and more surely. We know that colonial regimes, intoxicated by their conquests and by the resultant economic prosperity, have on many occasions tried to eliminate all vestiges of the local ancestral culture. They have systematically denied the past, without in exchange giving the subjugated peoples access to new knowledge. In this way they produced a state of lethargy and created a subhuman type, the slave or “the tool that speaks”, as Cicero called it, that is to say a pariah doomed by his ignorance to be only a tool for work. This is the philosophy underlying apartheid. This is the policy on which are based racist regimes such as that of Prime Minister Vorster when he holds elections earlier than planned and has his position confirmed by the minority that constitutes the beneficiaries of the system in complete disregard of the African population that forms the majority in that country. That is the law that he invokes in order to ban the organizations opposed to apartheid and even the white citizens opposing the regime. Under that law he sentences men, women, old people and children without trial or hope of appeal; they sre arrested and thrown into prison and also subjected to refined methods of psychological torture, and at times they are assassinated, as was the case with Steve Biko, Bonaventura Sipho Malaza and Patricia Esther Mnisi. 12. We know that there have been many who have warned the regime at Pretoria not to continue stubbornly to perpetuate a situation that is untenable from any point of view. Regrettably, nothing has been achieved thus far and the escalation of violence over the last few months, together with the creation of puppet States, is a clear demonstration of the diabolical arrogance with which that regime disregards the threat of a bloody civil war that hangs over the country and that would entail incalculable risks for world peace, 13. My delegation is in a position to express Bolivia’s full support for resolution 418 (1977), whose provisions and considerations are, we believe, the logical consequence of the flagrant rebellion of the rebel regime at Pretoria against the international community. 14. There is no excuse for the position adopted by the Government of South Africa, since it has been given every opportunity to adopt a reasonable attitude and not to increase resentment and hatred between the white and native populations in that country. 15. However, my delegation does not wish to end its statement on this gloomy note without expressing a glimmer of hope. We believe that the system of apartheid, precisely because of its selfishness and cruelty, cannot be supported by the entire white population of South Africa. It is the portion that is left, a portion which may be small or numerous, but whose numbers are difficult to establish because of the tremendous psychological pressure being brought to bear by the State police, that could be won over to our cause. There is evidence that that minority exists, There are the white friends of Mrs. Mandela who would 10. My Government has given its fullest support to all resolutions of the General Assembly condemning apartheid. The Minister for External Relations of Bolivia, Mr. Oscar Adririzola Valda, in his statement in the General Assembly on 26 September 1977, called the system one of the problems afflicting the world, adding: “The policy of racial discrimination and apartkeid is an offence against Our sense of justice. Its continuation makes it difficult for us to consider that the international 16. The reluctance of the Government of Pretoria to comply with the provisions of the Charter and to implement the resolutions of the Security Council places the Council and the Organization in a delicate situation. It is not a question of mere differences of opinion or of a position that is in dispute by reason of different interpretations. What we are faced with is an attitude of out-and-out rebellion, and the situation is aggravated by the creation of faits accomplis and the production of sham solutions such as the bantustans that are aimed only at maintaining the system. And meanwhile in everyday life the press, the radio, the theatre and the television poke fun at international condemnations, and everything is done to lull consciences and to dissipate fear, 17. It seems that the time for persuasion has come to an end. Faced with the arrogance of a government that clings to its erroneous ways, we are compelled to seek new methods that are not merely persuasive, since the arrogance that underlies the power of that government is leading it to provoke the anger of the gods and to dig its own grave. 18. But those measures must be based on prudence and wisdom, so that at the same time as we correct a grave injustice we do not open the way for a conflict of hegemonic interests in the area. If the responsibility assumed by the Security Council is to be discharged effectively, it must be based not only on the express consent of each and every member but also on a sincere determination not to take advantage of a cause on which the international community is united for the dishonest promotion of political and economic interests; for that might only lead South Africa into a civil war, fomented abroad, and in the long term might lead to outside intervention and perhaps also to a world conflagration with unpredictable results.

Permit me first of all to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the important post of President of the Security Council. We should like to express our profound satisfaction at the fact that the work of the Council for this month is being presided over by the representative of a major African State, fighting for the cause of peace and justice, for the freedom and independence of the peoples of the world, and for the final liberation of Africa from the colonial yoke. 20. It is a pleasure to note that relations of mutual understanding and co-operation exist between our countries. As a result of the recent visit of the Commissioner for External Affairs of Nigeria, Mr. Garba, to the Soviet Union those relations have been developing ever more fruitfully. As was pointed out by Andrei Gromyko, Foreign Minister of the USSR in his speech at the luncheon in honour of Mr. Garba on 28 November of last year: “There exist between the Soviet Union and Nigeria possibilities for a further intensification of co-operation, It is our firm conviction that those favourable trends in the development of our relations will also have a positive effect on co-operation between our two countries in the Security Council. 21. Furthermore, I should like to point to the valuable contribution to the work of the CounciI made by your predecessors, the Minister for External Affairs of Mauritius and Ambassador Ramphul, who presided over the Council last December. 22. Speaking for the first time this year in the Council, I should like to address words of welcome to the other new members: the representatives of Czechoslovakia, Gabon, Kuwait and Bolivia. 23. We esteem and value most highly our relations of cordial friendship and fraternal solidarity with socialist Czechoslovakia, and we are pleased that our view of those relations is constantly shared by Czechoslovakia. There is no doubt that relations between our two countries guarantee the possibility of further joint efforts and accomplishments on the part of the socialist countries in the United Nations in general, and here in the Council in particular,in the cause of strengthening international peace and security. 24. We welcome independent Gabon-which is, as we know, the current President of the Organization of African Unity-Kuwait and Bolivia, which, I have no doubt, have great potential for constructive and useful participation in the Council’s work. 25. This year we shall no longer be able to profit from the experience and co-operation of the outgoing members of the Council: Romania, Benin, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Panama and Pakistan. Their. work in the Council has been a worthy contribution to the struggle for international peace and security and for the affirmation of progressive principles in international relations. 26. The last year has been replete with extremely important events for the national liberation movements of the African continent. The countries which have freed themselves from colonial dependence are continuing to wage a hard struggle for the elimination of the consequences of foreign domination, the consolidation of independence and the development of their economies. In the Soviet Union and the other States of the socialist community, those countries have trusty and reliable friends ready to afford them support of all kinds in their further advance along the road towards progressive reforms. That solidarity, which has stood the test of time and has been consolidated by genuine accomplishments, is a guarantee of further victories for the national liberation movements and further social and economic progress for the independent countries of Africa. 28. Those general principles have found concrete ex. pression in alI the foreign-policy actions of the Soviet State, including the signature by the Soviet Union of bilateral agreements with a number of African countries. The joint Soviet-Algerian communique issue on 1.5 January last on the outcome of the visit to our country of the Chairman of the Revolutionary Council of the Algerian People’s Democratic Republic, Mr. Boumediene, states that: “The Soviet Union and the Algerian People’s Demo. cratic Republic confirm their firm and unswerving support for the struggle of the peoples of Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa for their freedom and national independence. The parties condemn all manoeuvres aimed at bringing about a pseudo-settlement of the problems in that part of the world for the purpose of preserving the interests of neo-colonialism and of racist regimes.” Speaking on 12 January at a dinner in the Kremlin in honour of President Boumediene, the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, Mr. Kosygin, stated: “The Soviet Union is behind all the peoples of Africa which are fighting for their national liberation, against colonialism, racism and apartheid. We are bound by ties of solidarity with the oppressed African peoples of Namibia, Zimbabwe and the Republic of South Africa which are waging a just struggle for their liberation, and we are convinced that the day of final freedom is not far off now.” 29. The policy of the enslavement of peoples stands convicted before the bar of history. If now in southern Africa the last hotbeds of colonialism, racism and apartheid continue to be preserved, if the racists continue flagrantly to defy the entire international community, then. it becomes even more imperative to take urgent and effective measures to put an end to a situation which is intolerable in the world today. 30. Last year, the Security Council repeatedly expressed support for measures which, in one way or another, would lead to the attainment of these goals. In its resolution 417 (1977) it demanded that the racist regime of South Africa end violence and repression against the black people and other opponents of apartheid, abolish the policy of bantustanization and all other measures of apartheid and racial discrimination, abandon the policy of apartheid and ensure majority rule based on justice and equality. 31. However, the Pretoria r6gime not only refused to comply with that resolution but even increased the severity of its. repressive measures. As has been shown by recent events at New Brighton, Soweto and other places in South Africa, the racist rulers have practically unleashed racial war 32. We share the deep concern evinced in regard to the events in South Africa. These events demonstrate a further dangerous exacerbation of the situation. As has been repeatedly pointed out in resolutions and decisions of international bodies, this situation creates a serious threat to peace and security in southern Africa and beyond. It is natural, therefore, that the Soviet delegation should support the initiative of the African countries which requested the convening of the Security Council for urgent consideration of ways and means of bringing international action to bear on the apartheid regime and of taking urgent measures leading to the total isolation and boycotting of that regime. 33. We support the demands of the African countries contained in the decisions of the twenty-ninth session of the Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity, held last summer at Libreville, Gabon. In those decisions, as we know, it is proposed that States should intensify the international isolation of the Pretoria regime and take the necessary measures in accordance with Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations. 34. The Soviet Union has repeatedly warned that continued inaction on the part of international bodies and their failure to take genuinely effective measures against the apartheid regime, and, in particular, the direct connivance of certain circles with that regime, are fraught with serious dangers for the cause of peace. We should not forget another thing: that such inaction, such connivancesometimes camouflaged by trumped-up arguments about “dialogue” and various kinds of “settlements’‘-leads to an increase in the severity of the mass repressions, to loss of human life and to intensification of the most barbarous manifestations of social ostracism, under the uncontrolled domination of the racists within the country. 35. We cannot close our eyes to another factor: If economic and military co-operation with the Pretoria regime has so far not been halted, if all initiatives aimed at putting a halt to such co-operation are still being sabotaged and blocked, that is to be explained by a desire on the part of certain circles to preserve their positions in southern Africa. It is precisely for that reason that the representatives of a number of Western countries have attempted to prevent the taking of effective economic sanctions against the Vorster regime. 36. It suffices to recall that, according to data in the world press, the total capital investment of Western countries in South Africa amounts to no less than $20 billion. More than 500 British companies and more than 400 American companies are operating in that country, and they are responsible for, respectively, $7 billion and $2 billion of capital investment. Active business relations with the 37. There is another factor which should alert us. In recent years, in order to finance the South African economy, wider and wider use has been made of international organizations, including those that have connexions with the United Nations system. In the past two years alone, the Pretoria rigime, with the support of the Western countries, has received from the International Monetary Fund the vast sum of $463 million. All the other African countries combined-and there are about 50 of them-have received far less from the Fund. 38. To justify the refusal to cut off economic links with the racist rdgimes, the argument is often used that there exist in various countries all kinds of constitutional and legislative restrictions which, it is alleged, make it impossible for the Governments of those countries effectively to control the subsidiaries of their companies operating in southern Africa. However, the practice and experience of international relations make it quite clear that such restrictions disappear as soon as it comes to a question of economic blockading of progressive or revolutionary rdgimes. 39. In the circumstances of the profound political crisis which has gripped the whole country and of the exacerbation of racial and national class and all other kinds of contradictions, at a time when the shameful system of Upmfheid is beginning to crack in various places, the rulers at Pretoria have been obliged to have recourse to manoeuvring. By means of empty promises, they attempt to create the appearance of a readiness to come to an agreement on the problem of Namibia. But it should be obvious to everyone that the racist rggime is simply looking for ways to preserve its domination in that Territory, 40. Another feature of the present policy of the racists is the creation of tribal reservations or bantustans. This policy continues to be pursued in spite of protests, nonrecognition and condemnation throughout the world. Its purpose is clear to everyone: to divide up Africans according to their tribal origins, to deprive them of the rights of citizenship in their own country and thus to raise a barrier against the growing tide of national liberation movements. It is no exaggeration to say that the policy of bantustanization will go down in history as one of the most evil inventions of the system of apartheid in its last and desperate attempts somehow or other to perpetuate its existence. 41. That is an outline of some of the fundamental aspects of the situation in southern Africa now under consideration in the Security Council. 42. We support any effective decisions of the Council that are likely to bring nearer the day of the total liberation of 43. We consider that the time for executing this programme of action pursuant to Chapter VII of the Charter has long been ripe, The current situation in southern Africa makes it absolutely clear that the embargo on the delivery of arms to the Pretoria regime is by itself insufficient, and that the decision of the Council in that regard can be viewed only as a first step towards the full international isolation of the South African racists. We continue to believe and to be convinced that only new effective measures, the first steps towards which have been taken in a number of previous decisions of the Council, will in the fmal analysis lead to the elimination from among mankind of the shameful vestiges of the past.

Mr. President, I wish, first of all, to express the pleasure of my delegation in serving under your presidency and that of Mr. Garba, the Commissioner for External Affairs of Nigeria. If I recollect correctly, when I was President of the Council in June last, I had the privilege of presiding when statements were made by both you and him and I am glad that the shoe is now on the other foot. 45. I should like also to welcome the new members of the Council: Bolivia, Czechoslovakia, Gabon, Kuwait and, of course, your own country, Nigeria. We look forward to working with them and getting to know them better and to profitable and effective co-operation in the months to come. 46. Finally, I would just say a word of appreciation to the representative of Mauritius for the good work done by him and his Minister for External Affairs in December. 47. We listened with attention and respect on Thursday [2056th meeting/ to the words of Mr. Donald Woods, a man who has devoted much of his time and energy in recent years to the struggle to convince his fellow countrymen of the need for a fair and just reorganization of human relationships within South Africa. We greatly appreciated his contribution to our proceedings and the wisdom of many of the thoughts and recommendations he presented to us for consideration. It is our hope that the efforts of men and women of all races within South Africa combined with the moral authority of support from abroad will result in the rapid and peaceful evolution of South African society which he seeks and which we all seek. We wish for Mr. Woods an early end to his exile from his African fatherland, which for him as well as for countless other South Africans must be a matter of great personal sorrow. 48. Today we are continuing our debate on the policies of South Africa. Over the past 12 months, the Council has embarked upon two major debates on this subject, the most recent of which was concluded only in Noveniber. It is not 49. 1 should like, at this time, to draw the attention of the Council to recent developments in Canadian policy regarding its relations with South Africa. On 19 Debmber, the Secretary of State for External Affairs, speaking in the foreign-affairs debate in the Canadian House of Commons, drew attention to Canada’s new policy towards South Africa, This policy emerged as a result of an in-depth examination of the status of our relationship with South Africa in connexion with developments in that troubled country. For many years, the Canadian Government has sought, primarily through dialogue and normal contacts, to convince the Government of South Africa and those who elect it that the policy of aparfheid is a self-defeating anachronism the inevitable result of which will be chaos and racial violence in that country. 50. Since the elimination of racial discrimination thxoughout the world is an objective to which all Member States subscribe, it seemed to us inevitable that the South Africans would also realize the necessity of change if their country were not to be bypassed by history. 51. Mr. Woods spoke of the level of anger among blacks which exists in South Africa and of the increasing retrenchment of white South Africans towards the laager. We can see this road leading only to a dead end. Fundamental change must take place in South Africa, and the time span for effecting such change without continuing and increasing violence and bloodshed is becoming dangerously short. 52. It was with these thoughts that the Canadian Government determined that it must take further steps beyond its arms embargo of 1963 and its policies of discouraging sporting contacts with South Africa and of speaking out against apartheid to demonstrate to South Africans the intensity of our concern and our disapproval of apartheid. It was for these reasons that, on 19 December last, the Government announced that henceforth it would, take measures to reduce the level of its commercial contacts with South Africa and that, in particular, it would undertake a process of phasing out Government-supported activities. For example, the decision was taken to withdraw all Canadian Trade Commissioners from South Africa, and that action will result in the closing of the Consulate- General at Johannesburg. The Canadian Government will also withdraw all export-development-corporation Government account support from any transactions relating to South Africa, and this affects, for example, export credit insurance and loan insurance as well as foreign investment insurance. The Government is examining the implications and the possibility of other such actions. Furthermore, after consulting the Canadian companies concerned, it will be publishing a code of conduct and ethics for Canadian 54. More than once I have emphasized in this chamber that it is an essential element of Canadian foreign policy to trade in peaceful goods with all countries, even those with whose policies we are in profound disagreement, subject, of course, to our obligations under Chapter VII of the Charter. Action of the kind I have just outlined is, therefore, for Canada, exceptional. In taking that action, he were also greatly influenced by the tremendous swell of international concern, evidenced by the results of the Lagos Conference* and by the Security Council’s implementation of an arms embargo against South Africa under Chapter VII. 55. 1 believe that the Canadian Government’s decision indicates that there are a number of ways of attempting to influence and shape public opinion in South Africa in the directions which we all seek. Each country has a different relationship with South Africa, and the type of relationship will determine the kind of action which can be considered by each and the impact which that action will have on South African public opinion, There is, we believe, a time for unilateral action and a time for multilateral action under the Charter. We believe that each step must be considered in the light of developments and taken only after the most serious consideration. Mr. Woods has sug gested that we should adopt a pragmatic but substantive approach and identify at each stage the objectives which we seek to achieve within a given time-frame. We believe this is a wise course of action and one which we might begin to examine. Above all, we believe that the Council should continue, as it has through the past 12 months, to seek unanimity of opinion in order that we may continue to speak with one voice to South Africa.

As the New Year begins, in the name of the Chinese delegation, I should like to extend our warm welcome to the representatives of the five new members of the Security Council, and I wish cordially to congratulate Mr. Garba, Commissioner for External Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, who came here personally to preside over the first meeting of the Council of 1978. 57. When the Security Council considered the question of South Africa at its meetings on 25 October and 9 December 1977 [2037th and 2052nd meetings], and when the 2 World Conference for Action against Apartheid, held at Lagos from 22 to 26 August 1977. 58. The South African racist regime has long been strongly condemned by numerous African countries and by justice-upholding countries and peoples throughout the world for its reactionary activities in its pursuit of the brutal system of racial oppression and in its ruthless suppression of the people of Azania. Thus the South African racist regime has found itself increasingly isolated. It has met with the heavy blows of the valiant Azanian people who are fighting a just struggle against the racist regime and for national liberation, and it is finding the going tougher and tougher, However, like all the other reactionary forces, these few racists are becoming more desperate in their last-ditch struggle as they draw nearer to their doom. Recently, having brutally murdered the black nationalist leader Steve Biko and unscrupulously banned 18 anti-apartheid organizations, the Vorster racist regime frenziedly searched for and arrested black students, killed black youths and a white university lecturer, carried out bloody suppression of the blacks attending the funeral of the victims, illegally tried and persecuted nationalist fighters and demolished large numbers of shanties that were the only shelter of the black people, thus leaving them destitute and homeless. Meanwhile, it continued to step up the bantustan plan and concocted the sham independence of Bophuthatswana in an attempt to fool the black people and world public opinion. In order to strengthen the privileged status of the minority whites and further intensify its Fascist rule, it stage-managed an election farce which was attended by whites only. 63. Today the just struggle of the Azanian people is developing in tandem with the armed struggle of the people of Namibia and Zimbabwe. Surging forward in close co-ordination, these struggles have converged into an irresistible revolutionary torrent forcefully pounding away at the last bastions of colonialism and racism in southern Africa. One can predict that the day is not far off when the racist rule will meet its doom, 64. The development in depth of the just struggle of the Azanian people constitutes a powerful blow to the two superPowers that are intensifying their rivalry in southern Africa. One super-Power is trying hard to protect its vested interests and maintain the reactionary rule there. Over a period of time, in close collaboration with the racist regimes, it has been playing the tricks of “reconciliation” and “peace talks” in an attempt to paralyse and undermine the revolutionary fighting will of the people in southern Africa. The other super-Power, motivated by its global strategic needs of seeking hegemony in Africa and encircling Europe, is frenziedly stepping up its aggression and expansion in Africa. The tense situation in the Horn of Africa, that people have been following recently with concern, is one created singlehandedly by none other than this super-Power. In order to contend with the other super- Power for this important strategic spot which can secure a stranglehold on the Red Sea area, it is resorting to blatant retaliation against the Somali Government, which has taken the just action of abrogating the “friendship and co-operation treaty” with it in order to safeguard Somalia’s independence and sovereignty. Not long ago, it sent large amounts of war materials by air and sea to this area in an attempt to provoke greater conflicts for its own gain. However, those who play with fire are bound to get burnt. This super-Power’s aggression and expansion is being strongly condemned by more and more African countries. The voices protesting super-Power interference in African internal affairs are resounding throughout the African continent. A new upsurge to combat super-Power hegemonism is emerging in Africa. h-r southern Africa, this super-Power has decked itself out as the “natural ally” of the African people, declaring that it “supports the national liberation struggle”, in an attempt to bring the national liberation movement in Azania and other areas within its orbit of contending for hegemony so as to squeeze its way into southern Africa and control the area. However, the awakened southern African people will not be taken in, Through their own experience in struggle they have become aware that, like the peoples in many other 59. All this has further shown that the so-called “racial reconciliation”, “ improvement of racist relations”, “greater power to the urban blacks” etc., profusely talked about by Vorster and his like is sheer nonsense. They are merely attempts at deluding the Azanian and other African people and the people of the rest of the world, 60. Facing the atrocious rule of the South African racist tigime, the courageous and indomitable Aza&n people have been advancing wave upon wave and carrying on unremitting and persistent struggles for their national liberation. No outrageous actions of the racists can intimidate or deceive them. On the contrary, these actions have served as negative examples that have accelerated the new awakening of the Azanian people. 61. Since the Soweto massacre of June 1976, the mass struggles of the Azanian people against the racist rule have been developing vigorously without let-up. Their struggles have markedly developed in depth and scale. Not long ago, as many as 200,000 black students joined the demonstrations in protest against the murder of Steve Biko. People from other circles including the whites have also joined the protest rallies and demonstrations. 62. The black students’ struggle against the upavtheid system of “Bantu education” is developing on a larger sion, Plenary Meetings, 70th meeting. 65. The just struggle of the peoples in southern Africa is an important component of the struggle of the numerous third-world countries and peoples against imperialism, colonialism and hegemonism. Today the numerous thirdworld countries and peoples constitute the main force in the struggle against imperialism, colonialism and hegemonism. They are fighting in unity and have won great victories on various fronts. This favourable situation will unquestionably give impetus to the further development of the southern African peoples’ struggle for national independence and liberation. 66. The Chinese Government and people have always supported the just struggle of the Azanian people, and we strongly condemn the South African racist regime for its pursuit of the reactionary policy of barbarous racial discrimination, apartheid and racial oppression and for its crimes of ruthless suppression of the Azanian people. The Chinese delegation supports the just proposals of the African countries for applying economic sanctions against the South African racist regime. 67. At the beginning of the year 1978, we are looking at the situation in southern Africa with full confidence. We are deeply convinced that, so long as the Azanian people continue eliminating super-Power interference and sabotage, carrying on extensive mass struggles and persevering in unremitting armed struggle, they will certainly be able to overthrow the Fascist rule of the racist regime and bring about a bright future of national liberation with the support of the African people and the people of the world over.

I wish first of all to extend our hearty welcome to the new Council members-Bolivia, Czechoslovakia, Gabon, Kuwait and Nigeria-and assure them of my delegation’s full co-operation. 69. Mr. President, my delegation would also like to place on record its appreciation to you and your country for taking the initiative in bringing up for consideration once again the question of South Africa and for making it possible for the Council to hear Mr. Donald Woods, a white South African dissident. May I say that we share the view expressed by Mr. Garba that the Council should take action this year, “since to postpone effective steps would be tantamount to missing the last train to peace and stability in the region” [2056th meering, para 5/. We agree with him that the Council should bear in mind the supreme necessity of placing in clear perspective at all times the moral principles of natural justice, equality, freedom and human dignity. The obligation of the Council to prevent a racial conflict in South Africa is clear enough, for apartheid has been rightly condemned as a monstrous crime against humanity. Some members--notably the so-called Western members-are clearly in a better position to stop the present dangerous drift towards a race war. 71. What is sad about apartheid, which everyone here condemns, is that it has been left to the African members alone to put forward measures for its abolition. We should like the Western members to come up with their own ideas and proposals, because they have assumed, together with others, the common obligation to do away withapartheid, They have the greater opportunity for inducing peaceful social change in South Africa in the direction of racial equality, and above all they have the means to do so. If we are critical of them for not doing enough in an increasingly Intolerable situation, it is not without reason. 72. In saying this, I am aware of certain Western initiatives in regard to Southern Rhodesia and Namibia which we have, in fact, welcomed in principle. But, in regard to apartheid, we have heard from them strong words of denunciation, None of them defends apartheid or is an apologist for it. And yet, when effective action is called for there is a curious paralysis of political will. Mr. Garba has wisely said that Western interests could be preserved if the West were to come over “to the side of natural justice, equality and freedom in its dealings with South Africa” [ibid., para. 261. Will the West do so and how soon? War and peace depend on the answers to these questions. 73. But let us see what Mr. Donald Woods has to say as a white South African dissident. It is extraordinary the amount of interest there is in the Western press about political dissidents. Let us hope that the Western press’s interest in Mr. Woods will be sustained and matched by its interest in other types of dissidents. I must say that I was deeply impressed by the sincerity, conviction and modem tion displayed by Mr. Woods. He has naturally expressed concern for his white countrymen, whose psychological enslavement to apartheid, he says, “threatens . . . to unleash upon them . . . the violent consequences of such enslavement” [ibid., para. 471. Are these white people not entitled to be liberated from their “psychological enslavement” ? 74. Mr. Woods has called for non-violent United Nations action, practical and effective action that depends, he says quite rightly, on the nations of the West. I think we are bound to wait for the Western response to his plea for practical and effective non-violent action which the West alone can deliver. He reminds us that, if the West fails in this, tragedy will certainly overtake the people of South Africa. 75. Now here is a white South African pleading with Western nations for economic sanctions against his own misguided racist regime, in the name of Western values and ideals, in the name of the enlightened self-interest of the Western world, and even in the name of moral duty and Mahatma Gandhi. My own appeal to the West, in the name of the Charter of the United Nations, is unavoidably tinged with my colour. Mr. Woods has made eloquent appeals 76. We were informed that Mr. Vorster regarded the United Nations as a joke, and that he had told the rest of the world to do its damnedest. I wonder who these jokers are in the United Nations: those who condemn apartheid and are powerless to act, OY those who condemn when they have the power to act. 77. Thirty years ago, apartheid became law in South Africa. Thirty years ago today, Mahatma Gandhi died at the hands of an Indian assassin whose country he had freed through non-violent means. If Mahatma Gandhi were alive today, he would surely call upon the United Nations to take collective non-violent action against the apartheid rbgime. He would not doom the black people of South Africa to fight alone against apartheid. Those among us who want them to use only non-violent methods should support the full scope of economic sanctions available to the Security Council under Chapter VII of the Charter. The time has come for the West to face up to the challenge of Vorster, which is really a challenge to the credibility of the West and all that it stands for. How can one justify the stopping of economic assistance to countries that violate human rights and at the same time continue to collaborate politically and economically with a white rtSgime that is the only one in the world to have elevated racism to official State policy? The West would be well advised to review once again its over-all policies towards the apartheid rkgime. 78. Miss LOPEZ (Venezuela) (interpretation from Spanish): Mr. President, I should like to congratulate you on your assumption of the presidency of the Council for the month of January. We admire your devotion to the struggle against apartheid not only in this forum but in all those forums in which the aim is to combat racism and racial discrimination. 79. We are also grateful to the representative of Mauritius for the excellent way he presided over the Council last month. 80. We have supported the appeal of the African delegations in the Security Council that a study should be made once again of the question of South Africa and of the problem of apurrheid. Until there are signs of a solution of the problem, we must assume the responsibility of continuing the debate on its various aspects and of promoting ways and means finally to eradicate the rbgime. 81. It is difficult to add anything new to our deliberations. Other speakers have amply described the situation in South Africa and the policy of apartheid. They have spoken about the increasingly repressive measures that have been used by the Pretoria Government to curtail the fundamental freedoms of the people of South Africa and to suppress any action aimed at promoting a change favourable to the majority population of the territory. 83. The injustice in South Africa and the suffering of the majority population of the territory require us to redouble our efforts to find a solution, and forthat reason we believe that it is important to maintain the momentum begun in the Security Council with the adoption of resolution 418 (1977). 84. Those who have the primary obligation to resolve the problem of the people of South Africa have committed themselves here to carry out the necessary measures in the search for solutions. Only decisive action on the part of those countries, in other words the cessation of any co-operation with the racist regimes in southern Africa, will bring us closer to our goals. 8.5. My delegation hopes that very soon it will see the results of the implementation of resolution 418 (1977) and we shall follow closely the work of the Committee created to supervise the observance of the arms embargo against South Africa. We are anxiously awaiting a positive response on the part of those countries which bear a major responsibility for the implementation of that resolution. 86, Decisive action in the struggle against upurrheid has been taken in other forums of the Organization. One such action has been the dissemination of information to create and develop a universal awareness, at all levels, of the need to repudiate and condemn the apartheid rhgime. To the extent that world public opinion fully understands the gravity of the problem, it will be in a position to influence Governments and prompt them to give more v@,orous support to action against the South African rdgime. A well-informed international public opinion can be a valuable ally in the struggle against apartheid. 87. We cannot fail to repeat that, as everybody knows, the survival of the racist regimes is directly connected with the economic and other ties which they have with certain Powers. Those relations hinder the effectiveness of the action against upurrheid taken by the Organization and by most of the Member States. The loosening of those ties would greatly facilitate the task of putting an end to apartheid. Accordingly, we are determined to support all efforts that the Council may advocate. We hope that those efforts will not only receive verbal or symbolic support but will also be given concrete support by those States which really have the power and ability to implement the kind of measures stipulated in Chapter VII of the Ch.arter. 88. I should not like to conclude my brief statement without bidding welcome to the new delegations which have joined the Council to reinforce our mission: Bolivia, Czechoslovakia, Gabon, Kuwait and Nigeria. I also wish to express our appreciation to those delegations which have recently completed their term: Benin, Libya, Pakistan, Panama and Romania. 91. In March of last year /199&h meeting/, Sweden participated in a similar way in the debate on South Africa in the Council. We did so against the background of the initiative taken by us and other delegations during the thirty-first session of the General Assembly to urge the Council to take steps to achieve the cessation of further foreign investments in South Africa. That Assembly resolution-31/6K of 9 November 1976-was adopted by 124 votes to none, with 16 abstentions. A similar recommendation was made to the Council in General Assembly resolution 32/105 0 of 16 December 1977. That resolution was adopted by 120 votes to none, with only 5 abstentions that time. 92. That development shows an increasing support among United Nations Members for the idea that this kind of united action against South Africa is a necessary means of pressure upon South Africa to change its apartheid system. The categorical rejection and condemnation of that system by Sweden have been stated and explained on many occasions in the past, and I need not go into any lengthy elaboration of that here today. 93. The apartheid system is used to suppress and exploit the majority of the South African population in brutal and degrading ways. It is maintained by means of a strong police and military apparatus. The white regime has also used its rapidly expanding military power to consolidate its illegitimate occupation of Namibia and to perpetrate acts of aggression against neighbouring countries. 94. The increasing threat to international peace and security caused by South Africa’s military build-up spurred the Security Council to ad,opt resolution 418 (1977), by which a mandatory arms embargo against South Africa was unanimously decided upon. That was an important breakthrough. It was the first time that all the members of the Council had accepted the principle that sanctions under Chapter VII of the Charter should be applied to the situation in South Africa. Although not as comprehensive as we would have liked it to be, that step constitutes a major political setback for the leaders of South Africa and should be a clear sign to them that all countries are prepared to go from verbal condemnation and harsh criticism to effective action, 95. However, we believe it is important not only to secure the full implementation of resolution 418 (1977) but also to complement it with other measures. The regime in South Africa continues its disgraceful racial segregation policy and 96. First, the decision by the Security Council on a mandatory arms embargo against South Africa was an important step; but it was not enough. South Africa is making great efforts to achieve a high degree of selfsufficiency in its arms production. The aim is to make the local production, based to quite an extent upon licences, adequate to fulfi immediate needs and keep the South African military forces reasonably well stocked. However, that capacity for domestic military production is very much dependent on and enhanced by the inflow of foreign capital into South Africa in the form of new investments-be they channelled directly to defence-related industries or used to prop up the South African economy in general. The cessation of further foreign investment would therefore be a necessary complement to the arms embargo and would forestall some of South Africa’s efforts to evade that embargo and erode its impact by increasing its own military production. 97. Secondly, such measures to curb the flow of capital to South Africa would also have an impact on the South African economy in general. It would, in other words, hit the most sensitive nerve in the South African society. Since the South African economy is heavily dependent upon access to new capital from the Western world for development and expansion, for instance in the energy field, such a step is likely to have quite a noticeable effect on that economy. The decrease of investments in the various economic sectors of the country that would follow must therefore be taken seriously by those who are responsible for the economic stability and welfare of the country. 98. Thirdly, the psychological impact of such a cut-off of new investments would probably be as important. So far the white establishment in South Africa has felt that it is part and parcel of the Western political and economic world and linked to it through heavy flows of trade, investments and loans and all kinds of business contacts. This economic interdependence has always convinced the leaders at Pretoria that they could continue as before, since the important Western countries were not supposed to endanger their economic interests in South Africa. The lack of effective action by the Western world so far has therefore no doubt helped the South African regime in its efforts to sustain an aura of respectability and legitimacy. That unjustified complacency would most likely be shaken if the Western countries were to demonstrate that they would be prepared to sacrifice some of these short-term economic interests. Such a determination by the Western world would be m tne long-term interest not only of the oppressed people in South Africa but also of the industrialized Western countries from a political as well as an economic point of view. We note that certain important African countries have adopted a policy of non-co-operation with firms which have heavy investments in South Africa. 100. In that context let me also refute the argument sometimes advanced that economic development in South Africa, particularly if managed by international firms pursuing progressive employment policies, will erode the apartheid system. This is an illusion, because all commercial and economic enterprises will have to work within the apartheid framework decided upon by the political leadership in South Africa. A change of this policy will come as a result of pressure, not of appeals to goodwill. 102. Finally, the action we now propose is in fact quite modest. It would, however, present a clear warning to the South African Government that the outside world WAS determined and prepared to go further in its efforts to put pressure on and isolate South Africa. It should leave South Africa in no doubt that a stubborn continuation of the apartheid policy can only result in even stronger decisions and recommendations by the Council. 103. The lesson that has to be brought home to the South African regime should be clear: the pressure will continue inexorably and increasingly until the apartheid system is eradicated. 101. Fifthly, a Security Council resolution on investments would undoubtedly also give great encouragement to those people from all strata of the South African society who are now bearing the brunt of the oppressive system. They would know that their struggle for a just and humane South Africa was not being carried out in isolation and that their The meeting rose at 5.40 p.m. HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATIONS Unite4 Nations publications may be obtained from bookstores and distributors throughout the world. Consult your bookstore or write to: United Nations, Sales Section. New York or Geneva. COMMENT SE PROCURER IX3 PUBLICATIONS DES NATIONS UNIES Les publications des Nations Unies sont en vento dans les librairies et les agences depositnires du mondc entier. Informez-vous aup& de votre libraire ou adressez-vous A : Nations Unies, Section des ventes, New York ou Gen&ve. COMO CONSEGUfR PUBLICACIONES DE LAS NACIONES UNIDAS Las public&ones #de las Naciones Unidas es&m en vcnta en librerias y casss distribuidoras en todari pa&es de1 mundo. Consulte a su librero o dirfjase a: Naciones Unidas. Section de Ventas, Nueva York o Ginebra. 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