Mr. President, on behalf of the delegation of the Yemen Arab Republic and on my own behalf, I should like to express to you our satisfaction at your unanimous election to the presidency of this important session. I wish you every success in the conduct of the proceedings of the General Assembly, so that our efforts uphold the principles and help to achieve the objectives of the Charter of the United Nations. I have no doubt that you will place your long diplomatic experience at the service of just causes, so that we may find solutions to urgent problems on the agenda of this session. The delegation of the Yemen Arab Republic will do everything in its power to co-operate with you so that this objective may be achieved and our task successfully carried out.
123.	I should also like to congratulate your predecessor, Mr. Salim, on his successful conduct of the work of the thirty-fourth session and to express my appreciation of his tireless efforts in guiding the work not only of that session but of the special sessions towards important and positive resolutions.
124.	I must not forget to pay a tribute here to the Secretary-General through whose efforts the Organization has become more effective. I wish to express my appreciation of his efforts in serving the cause of international peace and eliminating sources of tension in so many parts of the world in accordance with the objectives of our noble Organization. I should also like to express my gratitude for his report on the work of the Organization and the international situation over the past year, in which he evaluates with understanding and objectivity the existing crisis and conflicts in the world.
125.	It also gives me great pleasure to extend my warmest congratulations to the Governments and delegations of Zimbabwe and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines on their entry into the United Nations now that their peoples have won their independence and recovered their liberty. I am happy to welcome their delegations. Their membership in the Organization is a victory for all the peoples, which like the peoples of Namibia and Palestine, are fighting to establish their right to self-determination. I have no doubt that those two new Members, through their participation, will enhance the effectiveness of the Organization and play a larger part in the maintenance of international peace and security and world stability.
126.	The thirty-fifth session of the General Assembly is being held in a tense and unstable international situation in which rivalries are affecting peace and detente. We had hoped that detente would be well established by the end of the last decade and would be spreading so as to benefit not only the major Powers which took the initiative in creating it—this being one of the characteristics of international relations—but the whole world, and in particular the peoples suffering under the yoke of imperialism and colonialism, from exploitation of their natural resources and international rivalries and polarization. We had hoped that they might enjoy the peace and stability which are so necessary for a new order of international relations, marked by democracy and equality, free from exploitation, tension, the arms race and instability.
127.	The present international situation is having an adverse effect not only on international relations but also on stability, development and progress throughout the world, and in particular the third world.
128.	I wish to recall here that it is the duty of the international community to make major and intensive efforts to ameliorate that situation. For this international community, the United Nations, was created to put an end to everything of which the causes and effects might constitute impediments to peace and security anywhere in the world, as peace is one and indivisible and represents the aspirations of all States and peoples of the world, particularly those peoples which have not been able to enjoy its full benefits since achieving independence and liberty. These are the peoples of the third world, in particular the peoples of the Middle East and the Palestinians, who have suffered from imperialist plots from the beginning of this century right up to the present day.
129.	Having struggled in all the Arab countries against colonialism in all its forms, the Arab people has been compelled to continue this struggle against the intruding Zionist, racist and colonialist entity, which was created and has been fostered and strengthened by colonialist and imperialist countries so that that region should continue to suffer from chronic instability, division and warfare. Moreover, the State of Israel was created by a decision of the Organization, which Israel today rejects and whose resolutions it scorns. Israel continues its actions against the Palestinian Arab people, including expulsion, the confiscation of goods and the promulgation of racist laws.
130.	Israel expanded through aggression against certain Arab countries in 1967, following which it occupied the whole of Palestine and some Arab territories. Through that aggression the Zionist racist State won new positions of strength and has been able to impose the law of the jungle and of piracy, with the assistance, support and blessing of a super-Power which continues to this day to maintain its unjust attitude on the side of that aggression and against the Palestinian people, its right to self-determination, to return to its country and to establish an independent and sovereign State under the leadership of its militant vanguard, the PLO, which is its sole authentic representative. We supported that organization, just as we supported the rule of law and justice, and the rights of the Palestinian people during the seventh special emergency session of the Assembly, devoted to the Palestinian question.
131.	The stronger international support becomes for the cause of the Palestinians and the greater the sympathy for their struggle under the leadership of the PLO and for the struggle of the Arab peoples to free their occupied territories, the more the arrogance and aggressiveness of Israel increases and, at the same time, the more imperialist military, economic and diplomatic support is demonstrated for this shameful conduct. We are witnessing here a struggle between good and evil, between justice and injustice. The United Nations, which was created after the world had suffered from the scourge of war and conflicts, must put an end to such conduct in order to safeguard its very existence, its objectives and international peace in the interests of all the peoples of the world.
132.	Israel's arrogance and its unabashed and irresponsible defiance of United Nations resolutions do not give cause for optimism to our generation or, for that matter, future generations. Israel is intoxicated by the temporary victory it has won thanks to the treacherous bargain struck at Camp David, which has not served the cause of peace in the region but, on the contrary, the cause of the Israeli aggressive and expansionist strategy and the aims of the super-Power that supports it. That deal is contrary to the national aspiration of the Palestinian people and its struggle and to the right of the Arab people to free their territories occupied since 1967. Since that deal was concluded, Israel has continued to establish settlements throughout the occupied Arab lands, particularly op Palestinian land, and even in the very heart of Palestine, the Holy City of Jerusalem. Israel plotted to assassinate the mayors of towns in the occupied West Bank who had refused, as had their people, to accept the "autonomy" conspiracy and the oppression and terrorism, which increased after the Camp David deal, which was condemned by all the Arab peoples and Governments, including the people and the Government of the Arab Republic of Yemen.
133.	Israel was not content with committing those acts, which have been condemned as repugnant to the conscience of mankind, all religious and human rights; that illegal entity persisted in that attitude and decided to annex Jerusalem and proclaim it its permanent and unified capital. I should like to take this opportunity, on behalf of my Government, to express appreciation and gratitude to the States Members of this international Organization which have supported Arab rights and refused to recognize that Zionist decision, which demonstrates its expansionist policy and is contrary to the fundamental principles of international law. We are also gratified by the fact that certain States have responded positively to resolution 478 (1980), in which the Security Council decided that that Israeli action was illegal, by withdrawing their diplomatic missions from Jerusalem in order to demonstrate their disapproval of such action and rejection of the policy of annexation, exploitation and occupation.
134.	Israel's actions have not been confined to acts of piracy against its principal victims, the Palestinian people on its own territory and in its own homeland even; it has also extended its acts of aggression to within the borders of an independent State, a State Member of the United Nations, Lebanon. Its attacks against Lebanon and its people and against the Palestine refugee camps, whether by air, land or sea, have become a matter of routine and meet no obstacle, as is known by the international forces responsible for maintaining peace in southern Lebanon and containing Israeli violations. That aggression applies the Zionist and imperialist plot by armed intermediary groups chosen to facilitate the Israeli conspiracy by exporting war and tension to Lebanon.
135.	I should like to reaffirm before the General Assembly that there can be no peace in the Middle East on the basis of exploitation, oppression, terror, the denial of rights and occupation. Peace must be based on recognition of the national rights of the Palestinan people and their aspiration to the liberation of their country, return to their homeland and the creation of an independent and sovereign State, without any conditions or restrictions that would infringe those rights, or the rights of the PLO, their sole authentic representative. The settlements policy and all actions aimed at changing the demographic composition of the Palestinian territory must also be ended. Israel must withdraw from all Arab lands occupied after the 1967 aggression.
136.	We must also recognize that the Camp David approach is not one which will lead to peace and stability in the area; rather, it is a continuation of the plot against the Palestinian people. All the Arab peoples support General Assembly resolution 33/75 and the resolutions adopted at the seventh emergency special session, which was devoted to the rights of the Palestinian people.
137.	Yemen supports its brother Arab countries with regard to all positions and policies affecting peace and stability in our region. That is why we are following with a great deal of distress what is happening between Iraq and Iran. We support all efforts on the part of the United Nations and the Islamic Conference to halt hostilities so that peace and stability may be restored to the area.
138.	We are pleased by the positive role played by the Government of Iraq in responding favourably to Security Council resolution 479 (1980) calling for a cease-fire, and we consider it to be a step forward towards a just solution.
139.	We support all the good offices undertaken by a large number of State Members of the United Nations and we call upon all States, particularly the great Powers, not to interfere in this conflict, so that international peace may be safeguarded.
140.	The Arab Republic of Yemen is following the situation with great interest and concern, because we are close to the theatre of these events, whether it is the Arabian Gulf, the Red Sea or the Indian Ocean and are thus directly affected by what happens there. We denounce any attempt to make this region a focal point of conflict and tension and we demand that the region of the Red Sea be declared a zone of peace, with neither foreign bases nor a foreign presence; the responsibility for protecting the region of the Arabian Gulf rests solely with its people, who are capable of preventing any outside interference in the region.
141.	Since regional and international peace are intimately linked, Yemen reiterates its position that the Indian Ocean should be declared a zone of peace, free from foreign presence in any form whatsoever.
142.	I believe that the present situation is such that General Assembly resolution 2832 (XXVI) on the Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace should be applied in the interest of all the peoples of the region, and in the interest of international peace and security.
143.	The struggle against racism and colonialism has just won a new victory with the independence of Zimbabwe, which has succeeded in throwing off the yoke of imperialism and racism. But the United Nations and all peace-loving and justice-loving forces in the world must continue the struggle, for the events in Zimbabwe augur well for the future of Namibia, which is now oppressed by South Africa. We are sure that the peoples of that region will succeed in winning their right to total independence.
144.	The racist regime of South Africa continues to occupy and oppress the peoples of South West Africa— Namibia. This constitutes defiance not only of the logic of our times, during which numerous imperialist colonies have been eliminated, but also of the Organization, the Charter, and United Nations resolutions. The colonialist, racist nature of that occupation means that the responsibility of the people of Namibia, under the leadership of the South West Africa People's Organization [SWAPO], its sole legitimate representative, is a very special one; the national struggle will continue until the racist, imperialist occupation is eliminated; that occupation is, unfortunately, encouraged and sustained by certain States in the service of their strategic aims and ambitions and at the expense of the justice and stability sought by this struggling people who seek to rid the African continent of this last vestige of colonialism and racism.
145.	Yemen calls for the implementation of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) and other resolutions adopted 20 years ago. After the adoption of that resolution on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, dozens of third world countries attained their independence.
146.	The peoples of the third world understand that, in their struggle for liberty and political independence, the attainment of that independence is not the end of the road. Political independence must be accompanied by economic independence. Thus, since the 1960s, these peoples have held conferences in the United Nations so as to put into concrete form their demand for the establishment of a new international economic order.
147.	All statistical and scientific indicators point to the importance of this, not only in the interest of the developing countries, but also in the interest of progress and economic development throughout the world. The system now prevailing in international economic relations does not prevent increasing imbalances in the balance of payments, a factor of great influence on the development of the third world. The balance-of-payments deficit of non-oil-exporting developing countries has amounted this year to $70 billion. This means that the developing countries face a catastrophic situation.
148.	In this connection we should like to express our regret at the failure of the Assembly at the eleventh special session devoted to international economic co-operation for development.
149.	Several years have gone by since the General Assembly, at its sixth special session, adopted the Declaration and Programme of Action on the Establishment of a New Inter-national Economic Order. Efforts have been made in the course of the North- South dialogue, at various levels and both within the United Nations framework and outside it, in order to arrive at an agreement on a basis for the new international economic order, but it has become clear that the hard and unjust line taken by the majority of developed countries has caused these efforts to fail.
150.	Today the non-aligned movement is the expression of the awakening of the third world and its determination not to follow the course charted by the great Powers. It is also the expression of the conviction that the third world countries have a role to play in international affairs, which are no longer the exclusive province of the great Powers.
151.	My country, a founder-member and participant in the activities of the non-aligned movement, is optimistic about the movement's future. We believe that a better future is in store for it and that its effectiveness will increase as long as its expresses the aspirations and interests of the developing countries and peoples, which continue to be victims of the great Power rivalry and of imperialist exploitation.
152.	This international movement, very limited at the beginning, has expanded and continues to expand. This demonstrates the importance of the movement as a link between countries which, although geographically distant, have a common will and common interests: above all, that peace should prevail throughout the world, that the causes of tension and war be eliminated and that international relations be marked by stability, understanding and mutual co-operation.
153.	My country has committed itself to these policies and supports the decisions of the movement, particularly those concerning the right of peoples to self-determination and expressing opposition to imperialism, colonialism and Zionist racism. My country shows this commitment in the sixth principle of its revolution of 26 September 1962.
154.	In connection with hotbeds of tension in the world, we should like to say that solutions to outstanding problems which are a threat to international peace and security must be found. The problem of Afghanistan is one of the most important. We support all efforts to find a solution to this problem through all appropriate means, so as to enable the Afghan people to progress and to develop in accordance with their own will, in their own way, and without any outside influence or interference.
155.	Among the obligations and responsibilities of the Organization and the whole of mankind, is the need to put an end to the arms race and to bring about full disarmament to enable humanity to live in peace.
156.	Disarmament, in our view, means the eradication of poverty, underdevelopment, inequality and international tension in order to hasten the advent of an era of prosperity for the whole of mankind.
157.	It is a scandal that arms expenditures should amount to tens of billions of dollars while millions of human beings are suffering from hunger in various parts of the world because of natural calamities and also from man-made catastrophes.
158.	The arms race has not merely created an atmosphere of despair as to a better future for mankind, which is nowhere near being realized. The arms race is an obstacle in the path of international relations marked by detente and co-operation and its ill effects transcend the frontiers of the great Powers and reach the developing countries which have recently become independent; it cannot but add to the burden caused by the already grave economic and financial situation.
159.	All this reflects the climate of mistrust which prevails in international relations and the effects of the rivalries among great Powers on small countries which must perforce rely on the great Powers in one way or another in the arming, organization and training of their armies, not to mention the impact on their own capacity to take economic and political decisions free from foreign influence and pressure.
160.	My country supports efforts to achieve disarmament and to put an end to armaments and to nuclear tests. We hope the great Powers will succeed in the near future in reaching an agreement on ratifying the SALT II Treaty as a demonstration of their attachment to peace, their aversion to war, respect for man and their desire not to destroy mankind.
161.	Like the majority of the international community, my country has adopted a position as to the need to put an end to sources of tension which persist between the two parts of Korea. We should find the necessary and logical elements which would make possible negotiations between the two Governments as a first stage towards the reunification of this divided people.
162.	My country affirms its position that action leading to the reunification of Korea should be based on democratic means, free from any foreign intervention or influence, whatever form it may take and from whatever source. This action must also be peaceful and all democratic and nationalist forces of both sides must participate.
163.	We have no doubt that by putting an end to the division of Korea we shall bring about a climate favourable to peace and security not only on the Korean peninsula, but also in the South-East Asian region and throughout the world.
164.	We also repeat our position with regard to the question of Cyprus, a position reflected in our support for the following points: the responsibility of the United Nations with regard to the maintenance of peace and security in that divided country; the importance of the fact that Cyprus should remain a neutral and united State; the need through negotiations, under the aegis of the United Nations, to succeed in putting an end to the abnormal situation which now prevails in Cyprus.
165. The proliferation of hotbeds of tension throughout the world demands that we exert a great deal of effort to support the Organization, which has undertaken positive action in the past. We hope that at this session, responding to the international situation, the Assembly will succeed in adopting positive resolutions, particularly against those countries which flout the decisions of the Organization. In this connection, we are thinking particularly of Israel. We must prevent it from continuing its activities in international organizations so as to prevail upon it to respect the Charter and United Nations resolutions, and we will spare no effort to support the United Nations within the framework of respect for the principles of the Charter.


126.	I am happy to extend to you. Sir, on behalf of my delegation and in my own name, our congratulations and those of the Somali Government on your election to the presidency of this thirty-fifth session of the General Assembly. Your election is a fitting tribute to your country, the Federal Republic of Germany, and to your personal attributes of wisdom, scholarship and expertise. My delegation assures you of its support and cooperation as you guide the deliberations of this session to fruition.
127.	We also wish to express our appreciation of the hard work and outstanding accomplishments of your predecessor. Ambassador Salim, during his presidency of the thirty-fourth session and of the three special sessions over which he presided during 1980.
128.	I cannot fail to mention here the tireless efforts of the Secretary-General. Mr. Kurt Waldheim. In strengthening the role of the United Nations and promoting world peace and progress. His personal dedication to the principles of the Charter and to the task of carrying out the mandates of the General Assembly and the Security Council continue to earn him the respect and gratitude of the international community.
129.	It is always a pleasant duty to congratulate a valiant people on securing its independence and to welcome the accession of more States to membership of the United Nations. In the case of Zimbabwe we fully associate ourselves with the sentiments of other Member States which have preceded us in welcoming the assumption by Zimbabwe of its rightful place among the international community of nations,
130.	My delegation also extends its most cordial good wishes to the Government and people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines on their accession to independent nationhood and membership of the United Nations; together with Zimbabwe they have brought the world Organization a further step closer to the goal of universality.
131.	As Member States assess the progress made over the past year towards the peaceful solution of international problems and the realization of the objectives of the Charter, it can hardly be denied that the overall state of international affairs gives little cause for optimism. Once again we find ourselves seized of issues that have preoccupied the international community before and continue to do so with little hope of progress towards their resolution by way of the promotion of the aims and objectives of the Charter. Some of those problems have even been aggravated, which has resulted in situations adding further to our concern and preoccupation. Meanwhile, totally new crises have been created by the actions of certain Member States, in violation of the basic and fundamental principles enshrined in the Charter, thus bringing about heightened international tension and serious threats to world peace and stability.
132.	At present a grave and truly disturbing situation obtains in the Horn of Africa. Although that region has known little peace and stability over the past century, developments during the last six years have greatly exacerbated the prevailing crisis.
133.	In Somalia we continue to face the problem of dealing with the largest refugee population in the world. The number of refugees currently being cared for in and outside camps has passed the one and a half million mark and continues to increase steadily, with a daily influx of well over 1,000 refugees arriving at camps. Since we were already experiencing the difficulties of underdevelopment, world inflation and natural disasters, it can be readily understood that this refugee problem has placed a quite intolerable burden on our country.
134.	We are profoundly grateful for the assistance received directly and through the intermediary of the United Nations. However, unless the international response to the worsening refugee crisis is more forthcoming, thousands of women and children, who make up the bulk of the refugees in Somalia, may well die of starvation and disease in the near future. We have therefore to appeal for continued and more generous humanitarian assistance so that the serious plight of the refugees can be alleviated. Even so, it must be stressed that the refugees are themselves a symptom of deeper problems.
135.	It is particularly important that the international community should understand and insist upon just solutions of the underlying political problems which are the basic cause of the refugee situation in the Horn of Africa. In the case of Western Somalia the refugees are fleeing from their homes because of the oppression and persecution to which they are subjected and because of the ravages of the unjust war which has been waged against the people by the ruling cliques in Addis Ababa ever since their attempts at colonization at the end of the last and during the present century.
136.	By a combination of mass extermination, forcible expulsion and the total destruction of all means of livelihood, the present Ethiopian regime seeks to depopulate Western Somalia completely. The aim behind that Fascist scheme is to bring about a total transformation of the ethnic and demographic composition of the territory in question and to achieve a final solution by transplanting other nationalities to take their place, all under the guise of resettling so-called displaced persons. The international community has already condemned the barbarous and inhuman policies of those in power in the Ethiopian empire, who have fully earned the abysmal human rights record for which they are notorious. Such diabolical plans must be opposed not only by virtue of our humanity and sense of morality but also in view of the dire consequences which similar attempts have evoked in the past.
137.	The refugee tragedy throughout the entire north-east of Africa is an outward manifestation of the aggressive and truculent stand on the part of the Addis Ababa regime in its vain efforts to confront its internal and external problems with naked force. Unable to suppress the intensifying liberation struggles, they have in desperation facilitated direct military intervention by the Soviet Union, a Power which has particularly recently, achieved notoriety for its exploitation of such situations. By arming its client State on a massive scale and by using surrogate forces, the Soviet Union has succeeded in gaining strong bases of operation for the advancement of its over-all political, economic and strategic ambitions in a sensitive area, which commands the commercial lanes of the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Gulf.
138. That unwarranted intervention has been at the expense of those still struggling to assert their rights to self-determination and independence: it has encouraged intransigence and persistent colonialism on the part of the cruel regime in Addis Ababa and has totally frustrated every avenue which might otherwise have led to a just resolution of the problems of the Horn of Africa through negotiation. Indeed, the peace, stability and security of States and peoples throughout the region arc in jeopardy. No State is capable of lacing such a challenge alone. Governments must play the role expected of them by their people and by the international community by virtue of their commitment under the Charter to safeguard international peace and security. They are obliged to take all the necessary precautions.
139.	It is surely most surprising that the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union should be the one to accuse any nation of endangering peace in this context, as he did in his statement on 23 September. For the record, I can assure this Assembly that no agreements, recent or otherwise, made by my Government have ever permitted foreign military bases to come into being in our country. Moreover, it ill behoves the Soviet Government to sit in moral judgement on Somalia where the question of bases is concerned,
140.	It is a well-known fact that the Soviet Government is for ever striving to establish a network of military bases in the Horn of Africa, the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean and elsewhere. No less than three Soviet naval bases have been established, in agreement with the colonialists in Addis Ababa, at the Eritrean ports of Massuwa and Assab and on the Dahlak Islands in the Red Sea. All this is in addition to the unfettered use of military and civil airports in Ethiopia for the furtherance of Soviet hegemonism.
141.	Soviet-led intervention apart, I must re-emphasize that the problems of the Horn of Africa have one root cause and one alone; I refer of course to persistent colonialism on the part of Abyssinia. Despite its so-called socialist revolution. The regime in Addis Ababa has never abandoned its attempts to enslave the peoples of Western Somalia, Eritrea, Tigre, Oromia and Abbo. Abyssinian colonial activity in these territories is historically unquestionable, just as it is illegal and immoral. In this age of emancipation, when the wind of freedom has swept across almost the length and breadth of the African continent, the rise to arms by subject peoples is historically inevitable and demands the understanding, encouragement and support of all who cherish freedom and liberty in this world.
142.	The dangerous combination of militarism, foreign intervention, confrontation and instability is but a consequence of the forcible denial of the inalienable rights of these peoples to self-determination and to shape their own destiny. While such a situation continues, international peace and security remain in grave danger. My Government, of course, continues to be ready and willing to discuss the problems of the Horn of Africa with the parties directly concerned and fully supports the principle of the right of all peoples to self-determination and emancipation.
143.	Most unfortunately, as the Chairman of the OAU pointed out in his statement to the Assembly on 24 September, the ministerial meeting of the Good Offices Committee on the Ethiopia-Somalia dispute has not "been successful and if anything, tension appears to have increased of late." The reasons for this failure are only loo clear. In its deliberations, the Committee failed to take into account the legitimate rights of the people of Western Somalia themselves, which, after all, constitute the crux of the matter. Surprisingly, they also failed to reiterate the well-known OAU position that foreign Ibices should refrain from intervention in Africa's internal problems.
144.	The alarming truth is that the colonial clique in Addis Ababa has no interest in taking such constructive steps as would reduce tension but has embarked instead on a path of increasing escalation which is currently involving not only the oppressed peoples of Western Somalia but the Somali Democratic Republic itself. No longer content with poisoning wells, bombing and burning settlements and strafing herds, since the beginning of this year Ethiopian ground and air forces and their alliances have repeatedly launched attacks against towns, villages and refugee camps well inside Somalia. A most blatant and recent example was on 27 August, when a fully motorized force supported by tanks, artillery and tighter planes invaded my country. The encroaching columns penetrated into our territory at points along the de facto border in the north-eastern part of the country, causing in the process much wanton destruction of life and property. However, the Somali armed forces compelled them to retreat. It is quite clear, however, that the Ethiopian warmongering leadership has failed to learn from this experience, a further act of aggression by their land forces took place even more recently near the town of Dolo, and the town of let has been bombed and strafed from the air.
145.	Similar acts of military barbarity are committed daily against other colonized peoples currently struggling under the Abyssinian yoke. To cite one pertinent example, the people of Eritrea, whose national status has been recognized by the United Nations and whose right to self-determination was the very basis of the federation with Ethiopia recommended by this Assembly and established in 1952, only to be contemptuously cast aside by that same colonialist regime, have been compelled, like the Western Somalis, to take up arms in defence of their rights. The world cannot afford to ignore such liberation struggles, not only because they are just and legitimate but also because the conflicts in the Horn of Africa, like those in South-East Asia and the Middle East, provide an opportunity for the spreading of new imperialism and hegemony.
146.	Indeed, liberation struggles arc the natural response of the peoples of Africa wherever vestiges of the colonial past linger on. This is as true in southern Africa as it is in the north-east. It is the duty of us all to support and encourage emancipation in Africa and elsewhere until it is achieved totally, and the few surviving colonial and oppressive regimes, irrespective of their colour or creed, are dumped into the dustbin of history. I have referred to the joyous celebration by the Government and people of Somalia of the resounding victory of the people of Zimbabwe. In the meantime we reflect not only on the problems of the Western Somalis and the Eritreans but on the circumstances which keep the people of Namibia under illegal, racist and persistent colonial domination and which also subject the majority of the people of South Africa to the indignity and the inhumanity of apartheid.
147.	Over the past five years the numerous ultimatums directed to South Africa by the Security Council on the question of Namibia have so far been flouted with impunity by the minority regime. South Africa has been able to buy time for its machinations. My Government shares the frustration of the vast majority of Member States as negotiations on the Western proposals are held up on one pretext or another, while at the same time the Botha regime persists in its plans to establish its puppets in Namibia and to launch large-scale military aggression against SWAPO, the legitimate representative of the Namibian people, and against the Republic of Angola. We call again on the Security Council to fulfil its responsibilities to the Namibian people,
148.	Within South Africa itself the so-called guardians of Western civilization steadily descend to new and more barbarous depths. The recent clubbing, tear-gassing, imprisonment and even massacre of school children protesting at sub-standard education surpass in horror the callous murder of hundreds of men and women at Sharpeville. My Government is convinced that the last bastions of racism and persistent colonialism in southern Africa will be eliminated. Somalia strongly supports the international consensus that mandatory sanctions against South Africa under Chapter VII of the Charter are eminently justified and constitute an essential weapon in the struggle against colonialism and racism in southern Africa.
149.	I shall now address myself to a problem of particular concern to us all in terms of its relevance to the enduring validity of basic rights and freedoms enshrined in the Charter and its even graver implications for international peace and security—namely, the Palestinian question. It is quite clear that on the core issues of Palestinian nationhood and self-determination, Israel continues in arrogant defiance to thwart all international effort. Its contempt for the norms of international law and morality is illustrated by the acceleration of its expansionist and annexationist policies in the occupied territories and its frequent acts of aggression against Lebanon.
150.	The extent to which Israel is prepared to go in its quest for the realization of its expansionist dreams is evidenced by its recent attempt at formalizing the illegal annexation of the Holy City of Jerusalem and declaring it to be the capital if Israel. We are convinced that strict adherence to the letter and spirit of cardinal principles guaranteeing basic and fundamental rights enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, as well as to the relevant decisions of the General Assembly and of the Security Council, is the only basis for a just, equitable and durable peace. In practical terms, this calls for appropriate action by the international community to compel Israel to withdraw from all occupied Arab lands and to ensure Palestinian self-determination and statehood.
151.	My delegation takes this opportunity to reaffirm its support for the implementation of the declaration of the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace. As a member of the Ad Hoc Committee which is currently seized of this important matter, we are in favour of the holding of the projected conference on the Indian Ocean, to be held in Sri Lanka in 1981. It must be pointed out, however, that the laudable objectives of the conference can be achieved only when the forces of the great Powers—and. I would stress, those of all their surrogates—return to their own countries and cease obstructing the legitimate desires and, in some instances, struggles, of the inhabitants of the region to live in peace and freedom and to determine their own destiny.
152.	Indeed, in several areas of the world, disputes of long-standing duration remain unsettled and new ones become entrenched also, in part because of the presence of foreign forces. This is the case in Democratic Cambodia and Afghanistan, where outside intervention prevents the people of those countries from deciding upon their own future and destiny. In our view, the immediate withdrawal of all foreign forces from Afghanistan and Cambodia is an essential prerequisite for the creation of a climate of peace and international security in Indo-China and West Asia.
153.	There can only be alarm and despondency over the failure of the nuclear Powers to make any real progress towards disarmament. Untold wealth and vast and valuable— but nevertheless finite—resources are being squandered annually in the name of defence, but actually on the refinement of the concepts of "over-kill", the further development of sophisticated armaments and nuclear weapons and ever larger stockpiles. The arms race is undoubtedly one of the links in the chain of cause and effect which involves confusion in the international monetary system, spiralling inflation, protectionism on the part of the major industrial Powers, the decline of world trade and adverse terms and sharp increases in trade deficits for the developing countries— not to mention a steady reduction in development aid.
154.	It remains a fact, however, that the only real defence against utter chaos must be the bridging—not the widening— of the dangerous abyss now yawning between developed and developing nations—between North and South. Alarming predictions already current on levels of world hunger in the year 2,000 are a grim reminder, if one were needed. My Government therefore urges wealthy and industrialized countries to pledge resources and energies that have to date been devoted to the destructive arms race to the promotion of development, in the conviction that thus only can a new chain of events be set in motion which will be beneficial to all nations and which will ensure world peace and progress.
155.	For these and other reasons, progress on the world economic scene has been very modest indeed over the past decade, Meanwhile, the population of our planet continues to increase, Beset as we in the developing world are by the adverse economic trends 1 have described, and by the effects of the ever increasing price of oil. We recognize most clearly the urgent need for the adoption of new and wider measures. This has been suggested by the Secretary-General on IS September'" at the conclusion of the eleventh special session of the Assembly which discussed our critical economic situation and agreed in consensus on a text for an International Development Strategy for the Third United Nations Development Decade. We also consider it very significant that the special session agreed on the adoption of resolutions on assistance to the least developed countries.
156.	Moreover, particularly in view of the fact that the goals and objectives of the Second United Nations Development Decade remain largely unfulfilled, it is imperative that we lose no time in commencing the restructuring of the international economic order. We cannot conceal our extreme disappointment over the failure of the fifth session of UNCTAD and the launching of global negotiations relating to international co-operation for development. It must be admitted that the group of countries that has the advantage in the current system is still dangerously declining to recognize the interdependence that exists in our world today. This attitude is in need of fundamental change. The fifth session of UNCTAD has drawn up a sound and urgent programme of action and has outlined the steps needed to help developing countries over the next few years. Its basic programme of action for the 1980s can provide the less favoured among the international community with at least a minimum in the fields of nutrition, health, housing, communications, education and employment.
157.	Such issues are particularly urgent for countries which like my own, from time to time suffer from natural disasters and longer term problems such as desertification, yet must also face all the problems of inflation and rising prices. It is still not too late for the steps recommended to be put into effect, in order that the Strategy for the new International Development Decade be implemented to the ultimate benefit—and indeed the very survival—of all mankind.


Let me begin, Sir, by expressing, on behalf of my delegation, our warmest congratulations to Mr. von Wechmar on his election to the presidency of the thirty-fifth session of the General Assembly. This honour is well deserved by both him and his great country. It is a tribute to his own stature as a diplomat and his qualities of leadership, and to the role being played by the Federal Republic of Germany in the international arena.
132.	We also wish to pay a warm tribute to his predecessor, Ambassador Salim Ahmed Salim of the United Republic of Tanzania, a close and esteemed friend of Jamaica, who so ably guided the affairs of the General Assembly during the last regular session, as well as during two emergency special sessions and the recently concluded special session. We are proud of and greatly indebted to him, particularly for his contribution to improving the working procedures of the General Assembly. His patience, skill and forbearance were noteworthy and were appreciated by all of us.
133.	To the Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, my Government expresses its gratitude for yet another year of devoted and able service to the cause of international peace in these difficult times.
134.	Jamaica takes great pleasure in welcoming another newly independent sister Caribbean country, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, to membership in this Organization. The continued evolution of the decolonization process in the Caribbean region is a matter of profound pleasure and satisfaction to us.
135.	We are forced by events, since we last met in this forum, to reflect even more profoundly on the current world situation. It gives no satisfaction to observe that the first year of the new decade has differed from the last of the old decade only in so far as the international system has slipped even deeper into crisis, as vision and creative action have been even more clearly shown to be absent.
136.	But even that assessment, accurate as it is, does not fully convey the gravity of the current situation, for it fails to reveal that not only a quantitative but indeed a qualitative retrogression is occurring in the international system. That is the measure of our condition today.
137.	Year after year, during the past decade, a recurring theme in this very hall has been the need to complement political independence with economic independence, and to complement political decolonization with economic liberation.
138.	But what do we find? Meeting as we are in the shadow of the eleventh special session—and I say "shadow" deliberately—we can only say with profound dismay and regret that little has changed. The establishment of new and equitable economic relations among States appears destined to remain for a long time a task deferred by an international community insensitive to its own enlightened self-interest. At the same time, other profoundly disturbing developments are occurring in the international system, developments which indicate that basic and fundamental political gains made by the developing countries in the post-colonial era are now also under assault.
139.	Jamaica firmly believes that it is neither an accident nor sheer coincidence that the international political climate is undergoing its most significant deterioration at precisely the time when international economic conditions are at their worst and when the need to restructure the international economic system is most compelling.
140.	The effects of this grave situation are now being felt with increasing force and are having deleterious consequences through the entire international system.
141.	The countries of the Caribbean greatly prize their political independence. This is so not only because we recognize political independence as a fundamental and basic right, but because of our harsh experience. The yoke of colonialism rested heavily and for a long time on the shoulders of our peoples. The vestiges still remain.
142.	Today our region stands at a critical juncture in its political and economic history. Our primary task is the economic reconstruction of post-colonial society. But, as our people seek to channel their energies and their skills in that direction, we find that that difficult task must be attempted in the context of outmoded international economic relations and institutions and increasingly under the heavy shadow of political and military developments which threaten our sovereignty and our freedom of action and choice, and seek to promote political dependency in new forms.
143.	It must be recognized by those who would seek to assert definitive influence on and to be the final arbiters of events in our region that this can ultimately only be the responsibility of the Caribbean peoples themselves. The Caribbean must become a zone of peace and tranquillity. That is why Jamaica once again calls upon all countries, particularly the super-Powers, to respect and accept the ideological plurality of the Caribbean region. That is not now the case. Consequently the task of the Governments and peoples of the region to build more just societies and to carry out social and economic reforms in the interest of the majority is made immeasurably more difficult.
144.	My Government is profoundly encouraged by the efforts to promote economic co-operation among the countries of Latin America. In June of this year the Government of Trinidad and Tobago established a facility for the countries of the Caribbean Community [CARICOM] on the basis of their purchases from that country of petroleum and petroleum products, fertilizer and asphalt. More recently the major oil exporters of our region, Venezuela and Mexico, have also established a programme to assist some oil- importing countries in Central America and the Caribbean. My Government warmly appreciates those actions by the Governments of Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela and Mexico, and commends them as steps to be considered by other regions and institutions.
145.	The call for the establishment of the New International Economic Order was given full and formal expression at the historic Fourth Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, held at Algiers from 5 to 9 September 1973 and at the sixth special session of the General Assembly, held in May 1974. At that time most of the developed countries adopted an attitude of either indifference or hostility to our proposals for change. They ignored the prognostications from our side about the dangers we would all face if the developed countries failed to take seriously the imperative need for change in the world economic order.
146.	A remarkable feature of the present time is the growing convergence of perceptions expressed by both the developed and the developing world when we discuss the global economic situation. We all agree that the prospects for our collective future are bleak indeed. But although we both tend to use the same vocabulary, the actions of the developed countries contradict their language and bear testimony to their continued resistance to changing the structure of the world economic system.
147.	Today all of us must accept the simple reality that survival has truly become a collective need. It is the concern of us all. The economic circumstances and problems of the North cannot be isolated from those of the South. However, some developed countries appear to believe that the developing world can be flattered by their willingness to engage us in a dialogue on co-operation for global survival while international economic affairs continue to be fashioned and managed as though they were the preserve of the rich world. If we had any doubts about that, the recently concluded eleventh special session of the Assembly has brought us face to face with the painful reality.
148.	At the current session of the General Assembly it is not sufficient merely to review the state of the North-South dialogue. What we need to do is to commit ourselves to action to take us out of the present impasse. Above all we must take steps to manage the process of change which is necessary if we are to achieve peace, equity and stability in the international order. We of the developing world here and now invite the industrialized countries to step forward with us.
149.	Jamaica remains convinced that the approach and the principles upon which the Group of 77 insisted at the special session are fundamental to the requirements of the global community and must not be compromised. The interrelationships between money and finance, commodity trade, energy, raw materials and food determine the global economic condition.
150.	We ought therefore, as sovereign Governments acting within the framework of a universal body, to ensure that, in the context of global negotiations, we fulfil our responsibility to deal with those problems, problems in respect of which specialized agencies and institutions have neither the universal status nor the global focus to formulate a coherent programme of policies and measures required at this time. Such a process, however much it may respect the functions and competence of various international institutions and forums, must overcome the separation and insulation of issues such as money and finance.
151.	Those issues, along with energy, represent the centre-piece of international concern today. They are in fact the life-blood of national and international economic activity and they must be placed at the centre of global negotiations.
152.	We are painfully aware of the sensitivities which surround the issues of money and finance. What is most striking is the degree to which the interests and institutions involved in this sphere are subjected to powerful and protective forces and the extent to which these have been insulated from the broad global dialogue and the emerging understanding of development and international economic relations.
153.	My Government does not believe that the international community can treat as sacrosanct an international monetary system and its institutions which adhere to diagnoses and prescriptions relevant to the time and circumstances of their establishment over three decades ago. The truth is that we need to demystify these matters.
154.	The international monetary system must be urgently brought into line with the complex realities of today's inter-national economic concerns and with the clearly evident needs and conditions of the developing countries. The call for such changes becomes more urgent every day, and developing countries are by no means alone in making it. That was most recently demonstrated at the South-North Conference on the International Monetary System and the New International Order, held at Arusha from 30 June to 3 July 1980.
155.	When we speak of questions such as the adjustment process and conditionality attached to drawings from IMF, we are not merely dealing with broad international and national factors. The practices and policies in those areas have an immediate and direct impact on the lives and prospects of individual human beings. We are urged by a number of international institutions and by many others, especially from industrialized countries, that we should attend to the interest of the less privileged in our countries. Yet, the policies and practices related to the adjustment process and to conditionality extract great sacrifices from the very same sectors of our populations.
156.	Jamaica believes that reforms would be in the interest of all countries, and would address one of the main problems now affecting the international economic system.
157.	Energy is perhaps the most important physical input for the productive and service sectors of the world economy. Two basic facts are evident in this context.
158.	First, hydrocarbons provide the main source of usable energy in today's world, and secondly, supplies of this non-renewable source will be exhausted in the foreseeable future. While the relative emphasis attached to either of these may vary from country to country, we are all greatly affected by both in the long run.
159.	The world community therefore has an obligation to deploy adequate financial and technological resources to tap potential sources of new and renewable energy. We must ensure that the United Nations Conference on New and Renewable Sources of Energy, scheduled for 1981, takes concrete action in this regard.
160.	The other major concern in energy relates to the availability of supplies to the oil-importing developing countries. Inflation in the global economy sustains the pressure on the price of oil and the capacities of those countries to achieve economic growth and development. It has been shown, for example, that a 4.5 per cent growth in the gross domestic product of a country in the industrialized world requires a corresponding proportionate increase in the demand for energy. However, in the case of the developing countries, the increase implied in the demand for energy, given the same percentage growth in gross domestic product, is nearer 6 per cent.
161.	It is clear, therefore, that on all counts the oil- importing developing countries require special assistance to enable them to meet the energy requirements consistent with their growth and development objectives.
162.	My delegation notes with special pleasure the efforts within the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to transform the Special Fund into a bank to assist the developing countries. We note also the initiatives in the World Bank to strengthen its facilities for assisting developing countries with the exploration and development of their indigenous energy resources.
163.	But we must face squarely the question whether these efforts by themselves, commendable as they are, really address the fundamental issues of energy and development. The answer is clear and the prospects are not reassuring. Surely it must be the classic contradiction of our time that over $500 billion of the world's resources are annually devoted to the manufacture of arms, while the central banks in the oil-importing developing countries struggle to survive the economic dislocations caused by their accumulated balance-of-payments^ deficit, now running at $50 billion. And, while this situation persists, our countries are forced to reduce imports of food, fertilizer, drugs and vital raw materials to well below minimum required levels.
164.	The eleventh special session was intended to launch the global round of negotiations next year and to approve the International Development Strategy for the Third United Nations Development Decade. We reached consensus on the Strategy, but the text that emerged bears the harsh marks of resistance on the part of many industrialized countries to a really effective global effort. We failed to persuade the industrialized countries to join in what could have been a consensus on a text on the mechanisms for the global round of negotiations—a text which some developing countries, including Jamaica, found inadequate in expression of the vital role of the central conference. At the current session, the General Assembly must find a way to overcome these obstacles and begin to tackle with real purpose the social and economic problems which confront us all.
165.	Earlier this year, the international community took a step towards addressing the problem of price fluctuations and development issues in world commodity trade. My Government welcomes the Agreement establishing the Common Fund for Commodities, inadequate though it is. But, as we have stated before, this achievement merely provides a foundation upon which we should seek to build enduring structures to deal with the outstanding issues in world commodity trade.
166.	The predictions of serious economic difficulties, which some developed countries found convenient to ignore a few years ago, have become the reality of today.
167.	This General Assembly must now take full cognizance of the fact that the economic and financial crises facing the world and affecting in particular the developing countries can only be corrected by immediate and drastic action. Some are confronted with the problems now. The forecasts tell us that others will face them in turn tomorrow.
168.	The Independent Commission on International Development Issues—the Brandt Commission—presented the world with an analysis and a set of recommendations and proposals for the alleviation of poverty and the promotion of international peace and equity and stability. These do not represent the full measure of the call for the New International Economic Order. Nevertheless, they confirm the basic thesis of the developing countries that change is imperative: time is not on our side.
169.	The general lack of progress on international economic issues is paralleled by a serious worsening of the political climate.
170.	We note with profound concern that a particularly unwelcome development in the past year or so has been that, as tension in the international system has increased, the focus of concern among the major Powers has shifted decisively towards preoccupation with issues of ideological competition and great-Power rivalry. This has occurred at the expense of issues vital to the economic survival and development of the majority of nations.
171.	The super-Powers and major blocs must end now their dangerous journey into the past before they become mired so deeply that history will repeat itself as tragedy.
172.	The arms race continues unabated. The stalemate which marked last month the review of the non- proliferation Treaty,  the renewed calls for more sophisticated weapons and weapon systems, reflect the collapse of sanity and moderation and the bellicose spirit of our day.
173.	Jamaica believes that detente, which appears to be increasingly in jeopardy, must now be placed firmly and securely back on track if the best interests of the international community are to be served. In this respect, we welcome the imminent resumption of discussions between the Soviet Union and the United States on the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Europe and the reconvening of the Vienna Talks on Mutual Reduction of Forces, Armaments and Associated Measures in Central Europe. Above all, the early ratification of SALT II is essential.
174.	The defusing of the current international hostility is a matter of immediate concern to all the countries of the third world. Our respective regions continue to be the theatres in which great-Power rivalry and ideological competition take on their most concrete and destructive form as incendiary elements in regional conflicts and disputes.
175.	In this context, Jamaica notes with great concern the resurgence of the view that entire regions and areas of the globe—in Africa, in Asia and in Latin America—are considered fair game for the application of outmoded spheres of influence policies by great Powers as part of their arbitrary attempts to fit such areas into the confines of their perceived interests.
176.	It will be recalled that in an earlier era precisely such assumptions and policies so seriously threatened the independence, sovereignty and freedom of action of small and less powerful States that the non-aligned movement was founded as a countervailing force in the international system. Now, two decades later, despite the growth and dynamism of that great movement and despite its historic role as a vanguard in the democratization of international relations, policies and practices hostile to the principles and spirit of non-alignment appear to be on the ascendancy once again.
177.	We remain convinced that the policy of non- alignment offers the best hope for the preservation of the independence of developing countries and for peace in the international community. Jamaica stands firm in its commitment to the non-aligned movement and its policies.
178.	We have expressed in this and other forums our views on recent events in South-West Asia. It remains our concern that there should be an early return to normality, in the interest of stability in the region and the wider interest of international peace.
179.	In South-East Asia, the collective effort of States in that region is required in order to reduce tension and conflict and to establish a zone of peace.
180.	Differences between Iran and Iraq, two non-aligned States, have regrettably erupted into open conflict. The outbreak of fighting between those two neighbouring Islamic countries is a cause of great human suffering and has world-wide repercussions. Jamaica takes this opportunity to appeal to these two States to bring an end to hostilities and to resolve their dispute peacefully, in keeping with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of the non-aligned movement.
181.	In the Middle East the crisis has deepened. The past year has seen developments which place further obstacles in the path of peace. We have seen Israel's continued promotion of illegal settlements; its measures intended to annex the eastern part of Jerusalem, and the continuation of its attacks on Lebanon, all in contravention of relevant resolutions of the Security Council.
182.	At the same time, the denial of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people remains a painful reality. It is well established that at the core of the conflict is the tragedy of the Palestinian people. No peace can be effective or permanent which does not enable the Palestinian people to exercise its right to self-determination, independence and sovereignty, and which does not ensure the security of all States in the region.
183.	At this session we celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the historic Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples. The positive achievements of the United Nations in decolonization in those 20 years need no elaboration.
184.	The right of the people of Belize to self-determination and independence with territorial integrity has been re-affirmed by the United Nations on many occasions. The administering Power acknowledges that right. The people of Belize are ready and anxious to exercise it. Jamaica supports the proposal to be put forward at this session of the General Assembly so that we can act to ensure that the exercise of the right to independence by the people of Belize is no longer delayed, and that they may with confidence and the support of the world community enjoy that right. Guatemala should no longer be allowed to exercise a de facto veto and thus prolong the colonial status of a neighbouring State.
185.	It is a source of great joy to us that Zimbabwe has at long last been liberated and has already joined this Organization. The long years of suffering and sacrifice for justice and freedom were not in vain. The triumph of their cause appears to augur well for the struggle of the people of Namibia against the illegal and oppressive occupation of their country by racist South Africa. However, the chances of success by negotiated settlement are receding. Continued prevarication and refusal to co-operate on the part of South Africa must be firmly dealt with by the application of sanctions, as provided for in Chapter VII of the Charter.
186.	The continued refusal of influential members of the international community to support the application of sanctions against the racist minority regime in Pretoria reveals even more clearly the hypocrisy which informs their position on this question. Gross violations of international norms and conduct are punishable by sanctions. Some members of the international community appear to recognize this only when their immediate interests are directly threatened.
187.	No country has more consistently defied the decisions of the United Nations and the International Court of Justice than South Africa. We note with bitterness the behaviour of those States which are only too willing to avoid the application of sanctions here, despite the most flagrant and continued abuse.
188.	The widespread resistance of the oppressed people of South Africa to the abhorrent system of apartheid has assumed new dimensions. The brutality and savagery of police repression of protesters earlier this year are signs of the increasing desperation of the authorities. It is an affront to people of conscience that the apartheid regime continues to be sustained and strengthened by contacts with the outside world. Even worse is the fear aroused by the events of late last year that South Africa had become a nuclear Power. Those who have constantly disregarded the many warnings issued and the calls for terminating nuclear collaboration must face severe indictment for placing the nuclear weapon in the hands of a criminal regime.
189.	Despite the prevailing gloom there have been a few encouraging developments. Jamaica welcomes the reopening of dialogue between the two communities in Cyprus. We encourage the parties to approach the negotiations in a constructive spirit, to lay aside the grievances and antagonisms of the past, and to work together towards building a united and harmonious existence for all Cypriots.
190.	At the World Conference of the United Nations Decade for Women, held at Copenhagen from 4 to 30 July 1980, we reviewed and evaluated at the midpoint of the United Nations Decade for Women the progress made in implementing the recommendations of the World Conference of the International Women's Year, which was held at Mexico City from 19 June to 2 July 1975. In that sphere, much has been achieved during the first half of the decade. On the international front, there is the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, of which Jamaica is a signatory. The Voluntary Fund for the United Nations Decade for Women has been functioning since 1977 to the benefit of women and children in a number of countries.
191.	At the national level, we in Jamaica have implemented or are in the process of implementing most of the mandates which were adopted at the Conference through the World Plan of Action.  This we have done through legislative provisions and educational and social programmes, as well as the establishment of national machinery to deal with matters of specific concern to women and children.
192.	The Programme of Action adopted at Copenhagen, with its emphasis on equality, development and peace and on such issues as employment, health and education, is important in the continuing quest for the full recognition of the rights of women.
193.	A development of major significance is the progress achieved by the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea at its resumed ninth session at Geneva. From that meeting there has emerged a package on all the outstanding matters relating to the exploration and exploitation of the common heritage area. That package represents a compromise by all sides. It holds out the possibility that the adoption of a universal convention on the law of the sea is close at hand and that the tenth session of the Conference will be its last. We hope that nothing will occur to disturb that momentum.
194.	Jamaica reiterates its readiness to host the international sea-bed authority.
195.	In all our endeavours we should not fail to give attention to the interpersonal aspect of human affairs, which in the final analysis is the most fundamental. The way in which communities and nations regard each other is often quite different from the way in which individuals react to each other when they meet.
196.	Few areas of human activity are more charged with possibilities than travel and tourism, which is a rapidly growing international industry. No development is more spectacular than the growth of the technology, and its applications, in the field of communications.
197.	As we seek here and elsewhere to find ways of establishing peace and equity in relations between States and regions, we must equally search for ways of encouraging greater contact among peoples. That must be achieved on the basis of appreciation for different cultures and in a manner that facilitates the eradication of those notions of superiority, suspicion and hatred which still unduly influence so much of the relations among countries.
198.	My delegation calls on the United Nations system to give greater attention to tourism as a means of providing an impetus to global economic activity and to recognize it as a means for promoting better human understanding.
199.	It is a long-standing truism among historians that chronological devices such as decades are in many ways but artificial contrivances to which history and events often pay little heed. That has been amply demonstrated during the past year. The problems of the past have remained stubbornly with us, in many cases compounded and seeming even jess to admit of early solutions.
200.	As we have met in forum after forum to address the major political and economic problems of our time, the cascade of words has brought forth but a trickle of deeds. A verbal avalanche has yielded a veritable mound of inaction. Success continues to elude our grasp.
201.	But we must persevere. We must remain undaunted. We must stand firm for peace. We must stand firm against the exploitation of nation by nation, of man by man. From our achievements, though few, we must recognize the measure of the possible.
202.	Our obligation to history and to succeeding generations must be to redouble our efforts now to effect meaningful political and economic change new, even as the obstacles increase.
203.	The United Nations is the corner-stone of all our hope. It is here we must lay foundations for the future.