UN General Assembly
1983

239. Let me now refer particularly to the situation in southern Africa, which also continues to be a matter of utmost concern to my Government. For nearly four decades now, the racist policies of the South African white minority regime have been roundly condemned in this Hall as well as in the Security Council. Our concern is not merely that racial discrimination exists in South Africa, but that it has been institutionalized, enshrined in law and made all-pervasive. All attempts at a peaceful change through necessary reforms have failed. Frustration among the blacks has made them resort to armed struggle to eradicate the apartheid system. Unless there is a fundamental change in South Africa through recognition of the inherent right of the 20 million blacks to participate fully and equally with the whites in South Africa's political and economic processes, there is a grave danger of a catastrophic racial conflict that will have serious ramifications throughout the world.