UN General Assembly
1980

218. I have mentioned here the struggles of peoples throughout the world to obtain or safeguard their political independence. But, as we all know, colonialism was a means of political domination essentially aimed at economic exploitation. Thus, if our political independence is to be genuine it must be allowed to put down deep roots in economic independence; otherwise neo-colonialism will rise to the surface and the same structures of exploitation will persist. 219. But we also know how difficult it is to rid ourselves of the structures of economic dependence. Most of the countries of the developed world which were formerly directly or indirectly our colonizers continue to see their relations with our countries in terms of relations of exploitation. Recently they have transformed our countries into suppliers of raw materials and of cheap labour, as well as consumers of their manufactured products which are sold at prices out of all proportion to the prices they pay us for our raw materials. And this is continuing.