S/PV.2601 Security Council

(interpretation’ from Russian): In accordance with the decisions -&ken at the 2600th meeting, I invite the representative of Mali to take a place at the Council table; I invite the representatives of Cuba, Kenya and South Africa to take the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber. At the invitation of the President, Mr. Niare’ (Mali) took a pIace at the Council tabIe; Mr. Oramas OIiva (Cuba), Mr. Mudho (Kenya) and Mr. von Schirnding (South Africa) took the places reserved for them at the side of the Council chamber.

I should like to inform the Council that I have received letters from the representatives of the Central African Republic, Ethiopia, the German Democratic Republic, Senegal, the Syrian Arab Republic and Zaire in which they request to be invited to participate in the discussion of the item on the agenda. In conformity 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 accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the provisional rules of procedure. At the invitation of the President, Mr. Gbezera-Bria (CentraI African Republic), Mr. Worku (Ethiopia), Mr. Hucke (German Democratic Republic), Mr. Ba (Senegal), Mr. EI- Fattal (Syrian Arab Republic) and Mr. Bagbeni Adeito Nzengeya (Zaire) took the places reservedfor them at the side of the Council chamber.

It is a pleasure for me to congratulate you, Sir, on your assumption of the presidency for this month. I am fully convinced that your well-known experience and skill will bring success to the deliberations of the Council. 4. Last year the racist regime in South Africa introduced a new constitution which continued the disenfranchisement of the black majority, thereby perpetuating the heinous system of apartheid. Subsequently my delegation warned that that action would provide the impetus for an escalation of violence and the intensification of repression in South Africa, and that is precisely what is happening. Since then, more than 500 people have been killed, and violence has become endemic. 5. The racist regime has resorted to every instrument of the State apparatus as a tool for repression and State violence, and the declaration of a state of emergency on 20 July 1985 is but the latest manifestation to enable that minority regime to pursue unbridled repression. The system of apartheid is the root cause of violence in South Africa. By means of that pernicious system, the majority of the people of South Africa-over 80 per cent of the population-are terrorized, brutalized, “marginalized”, tortured and murdered with increasing ferocity and savagery. 6. In order to ensure the preservation of apartheid within its own borders, the racist regime of South Africa pursues a concomitant policy of regional aggression and destabilization of the Governments of neighbouring countries, and it has continued its illegal occupation of Namibia, where it 7. We have gone through a gamut of resolutions and decisions in the Security Council and in the General Assembly. It was only four weeks ago that the Council deliberated the question of southern Africa; first we dealt with the illegal occupation of Namibia, and then we followed that with consideration of the naked aggression perpetrated against Angola and Botswana. In each case, a stem warning was given to the South African rkgime that the continuation of its policy of apartheid would result in more stringent action being taken against it by the intemational community. We have issued warnings, condemnations, affirmations and reaffirmations, but all of them have been to no avail. To the contrary, we have been treated with utter contempt and disdain by the r&me in South Africa, and we are witnessing an escalation of unmitigated and callous violence by it. 8. For how long must the international community allow the racist r&ime in South Africa to continue its institutional repression and violence? For how long must we allow one country to flout the decisions of the United Nations? This state of affairs has been allowed to continue for far too long. The Council must now act decisively to ease the suffering of some 22 million South Africans living under the heel of South African racism and oppression. 9. It is the view of my delegation that the regime in South Africa would not have been able to show such brazen defiance of the international community without the open and tacit support of some countries. We feel that the international community has been tolerant of the situation in South Africa for far too long. We have given more than adequate time for the sceptics to discover through bitter experience that policies of constructive dialogue have not worked and will not work. In fact, those policies have not only produced contemptuous intransigence by South Africa, but have given the racist regime moral support for its policy and practice of violence. 10. I reiterate that the repressive system of apartheid, the noncompliance by South Africa with United Nations resolutions and decisions and the acts of aggression committed by the racist regime constitute a threat to intemational peace and security. Appeals, warnings, condemnations and policies of constructive dialogue have all failed. We must take more effective action, and the time for that action is now. The procedure and mechanism formulated by the drafters of the Charter of the United Nations for ensuring the maintenance of peace and security must be invoked against the recalcitrant minority rtgime. We call on the Council to adopt immediately’ effective measures against the racist r&me of South Africa, as provided for under the Charter, including the imposition of sanctions under Chapter VII. Il. Mr. RAKOTONDRAMBOA (Madagascar) (interpretation from French): I wish first of all, on behalf of my 12. I take this opportunity also to pay a deserved tribute to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and to the representative of Trinidad and Tobago for the way in which they led the work of the Council in June. 13. For the fourth time in seven months, the Council must consider the situation in South Africa. This reflects the seriousness of the situation and the need to take effective action to put an end to the chronic violence in that country. After studying the tragic events which have shaken South Africa in recent months, we wish to make the following cibservations. 14. First of ail, the racist authorities of Pretoria, notwithstanding repeated condemnations by the international community, are not prepared .to abandon the repulsive system of apartheid and will shrink from. nothing to preserve the white minority’s position of domination and privilege. Moreover, the majority of the South African population, notwithstanding the massacres and arrests, is more than ever determined to persist in their liberation struggle. 15. The Pretoria r$ime’s proclamation on 20 July of this year of a state of emergency in 36 magisterial districts in South Africa was intended only to legalize the terror perpetrated by South Africa’s forces of repression. Indeed, since the entry into force of the socalled Internal Security Act, the South African police have had at their disposal a host of repressive measures, including the ability to carry out arbitrary arrests, to engage in torture and to eliminate hostile witnesses. The fact is that the establishment of this state of emergency reflects the disarray of the South African regime in the face of the increasing turbulance and the growing fervour of the demonstrators. 16. The scope of the resistance of the oppressed people of South Africa, supported by the international condemnation of the apartheid system, wdrries the South African racist r&me, which has become increasingly aggressive. It is high time that the Council shouldered its responsibilities and took concrete steps to compel the Pretoria authorities to dismantle the. apartheid system and to renounce violence. 17. It is encouraging to note that some countries considered to be allies of the South African racist rPgime are beginning to put pressure on the supporters of apartheid, but the recommended-measures are unilateral and vohmtary, and are not enough to weaken that bastion of racism. Only concerted international action to impose comprehensive mandatory sanctions against So&th Africa can bring about peaceful change in that country. 18. For its part, the Democratic Republic of Madagascar unreservedly condemns the blind repression carried out by 19. We wish to thank the sponsors of the draft resolution before the Council in document S/17354 for their initiative. We should have preferred a stronger text which would have sent an unequivocal message to South Africa. We hope that the consultations.now under way will lead to a consensus text. 20. Finally, my delegation wishes to pay a tribute to the heroic resistance of the oppressed people of South Africa against the apartheid regime. We reaffnm the legitimacy of its struggle for the elimination of the system of apartheidso that a united, non-racial, democratic South Africa may become a reality, not merely a mirage.

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

At the outset, Sir, I should like, on behalf of Mr. Abdou Diouf, President of the Republic of Senegal and current Chairman of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), to congratulate you on your assumption of the presidency of the Council for this month. I am certain, Sir, that given your talents as a seasoned diplomat, the work of the Security Council will be crowned with success. I wish also to thank you and the members of the Council for permitting me to read out a declaration issued on 24 July at Dakar by President Diouf on the state of emergency declared in South Africa. 23. My whole-hearted congratulations go as well to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the representative of Trinidad and Tobago on the very successful way in which they led the Council’s debate last month. 24. My country is very pleased by the initiative of the French Government, first, to call for these emergency meetings of the Council and, secondly, to impose national sanctions against the racist regime of South Africa. We are pleased too by the efforts of the Group of African States, 25. Senegal has denounced and will continue to denounce all forms of oppression and discrimination which hinder individual liberty. This is why, as soon as the emergency measures decreed by South Africa were announced, President Abdou Diouf, as current Chairman of the OAU, made the following statement: “The segregationist South African Government, increasingly unabie to cope with the resistance opposed by our black brothers to its policy of apartheid, has just decreed a state of emergency. Thus, the security forces, left to themselves, are acting in the most complete arbitrariness, oppressing, arresting and assassinating people who are simply claiming their most elementary rights as human beings. Africa unanimously summons the international community to bear witness and to assume its responsibilities. It demands in particular those who have experienced and so courageously fought nazism in the interests of mankind as a whole to recollect, to react, and above all, to adopt the necessary sanctions-in particular, economic sanctions-to ensure that apartheid meets the same fate as its sinister ancestor. I appeal to world public opinion and above all to the Governments of countries to which the Charter of the United Nations confers prime responsibility for the maintenance of peace throughout the world. The South African Government and its accomplices must realize that as long as apartheid is not totally eliminated, that country, and beyond that, our world will never know true peace. Africa, through me, reaffirms its active solidarity with our colleagues from the ANC (African National Congress of South Africa] and PAC [Pan Africankt Congress of Azaniu] in their just struggle and reiterates its determination to implement the measures that they have just drawn up in Addis Ababa in order to bring about the total elimination of this blot on our century, apartheid.:’ 26. Mv countrv. Senegal. and its head of State would have likkd to givea rno; detailed viewpoint on the odious situation which still continues to prevail in that part of our continent. However, in the light of the urgency of the situation and out of courtesy to the members of the Council, who, we hope, will unequivocally condemn these acts and will take appropriate measures, we have refrained from amplifying further on this matter. The meeting rose at 1.0.5 p.m. HOW TO OBTAIN UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATIONS United Nations pubIications may be obtained from bookstores and distributors throughout the world. Consult your bookstore or write to: United Nations, Sales seaion, New York or Geneva. coMMENTsEPBocuRER LES PUBLICATIONS DES NATIONS UNIES Les publications des Nations Unies sent en vente dam les librairies et les agences d&o&ins du monde entier. Informez-vous au de votre lib&e ou ad~ssez-vous B : Nations Unies, Section des ventes. New York ou 8Ztve. KAIC l-loJlYmrl% zi3AAIiml oplxHH3* OE%WIx W M3muim Opra~m3aum1 O~%XXE~EE~~ HanM MOJK?IO -TIJ B zmimcttbtx hmra%t~ax ~areaTCTBF+XBOBCCX~OHZUHapa. i-bOJIETCClIpZIBEIiC6U3JIZtHS!IUBaaureM-OM mramue mu rntmrre uo clllpccy:. Oprtuni3amia 06auwrernrarx HaWt. C~KIWI no uponaxce H~JI~EE&, Hbto-fiopx mu Eeue9a. COMO CONSEGUIR PL7BLICACiONES DE LAS NACZONES UNWAS Las publicaciones de las Naciones Unidas estan en venta en lib&as y casas distriidoras en todas pates &l mundo. Consulte a su lhero o dir&w a: Naciones U&as, Seccidn de Ventas. Nueva York o Giibra. Litho in United Nations, New York 00300. 90-61439-Jammty 1995-1.925