Realization of self-determination is the foundation for the enjoyment of all other rights. Mr. Chairman, There is no contradiction between the right of self-determination and the principles of the territorial integrity of states. The two principles are mutually reinforcing.
States come into being on the basis of the exercise of self-determination by their peoples.
A democracy that is shy of allowing a people to exercise the right of self-determination is a contradiction in terms. Democracy in words and autocracy in action equals hypocrisy in reality. Mr. Chairman, In 1947, two new nations, Pakistan and India emerged in South Asia. But having realized its own liberation, India chose to deny self-determination to the people of Kashmir. Contravening the principles of the partition of British India, New Delhi coerced the Hindu Maharaja of Kashmir, to lay claim to Kashmir.