UN General Assembly
1958

36. May I make a brief reference to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide which is a great achievement of the United Nations and which I am glad to say has been ratified by no fewer than fifty-eight nations, including Ceylon. It is a pleasure to refer to it as this year marks its tenth anniversary. The Convention safeguards human beings against the danger of being wiped out of existence, as has happened in the past. The adoption by the United Nations of this Convention has helped to increase the Organization's stature in the world because of its great moral significance. My delegation hopes that those who have still failed to ratify it will delay their ratification no longer.