UN General Assembly
1959

164. We believe that in the matter of colonialism the United Nations has made a valuable contribution. We are now witnessing the peaceful collapse of the colonial empires, and it gives us great satisfaction to see in this Assembly, playing a full and important role in our proceedings, representatives of many free and independent countries which less than fifteen years ago, when the United Nations was established, were suffering under the old colonial rule. We know that many of them had to make great sacrifices and to overcome incalculable difficulties in order to come to the United Nations and express their longing for liberty, and we have witnessed the wonderful process of the emergence of a number of nations and of the transformation of these former subjects of imperial rule into the citizens of a free country. It is Inspiring to see that the number of these new independent countries continues to increase. We rejoice to hear that Somaliland, Nigeria and the Cameroons will all become independent in a few months’ time. Nevertheless there are millions of human beings who are still denied the right of self-government, the right to be masters of their own fate.