The Philippines offers its warmest congratulations to Mr. Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the Foreign Minister of Algeria, on his election as President of the twenty-ninth session of the General Assembly. President Bouteflika's background is that of a revolutionary, and that is what the world needs right now a dedicated revolutionary.
74.	In the session just past, we depended on the ripe wisdom of Mr. Leopoldo Benites to guide us through a series of crises more formidable than many we have faced in previous years. Having succeeded in drawing up the firm guidelines for coping with crises, we must now lean upon the vitality, the energy and the strong convictions of this youthful new President of the Assembly to see us through the next, and even more difficult, stages of implementing agreements reached in principle.
75.	We wish to congratulate at this time and to welcome into our midst the latest members of the United Nations, the new sovereign States of Grenada, Bangladesh, and Guinea-Bissau. Their presence here is another affirmation of the powerful tides of self-determination which began sweeping the world shortly after the end of the Second World War. It is to the credit of Portugal, and a stern warning to the remaining colonial Powers in Africa, that it has recognized and accepted the fact that the course of decolonization is irreversible.
76.	We listened this morning [2242nd meeting] to the moving statement of the representative of Honduras. I hasten to assure him, on behalf of the Philip pine Government, of our deepest sympathies for the tragic calamity which has befallen his people. I come from a country which is periodically buffeted by typhoons and often devastated by floods, and we in the Philippines understand the suffering of the Honduran people. We feel for them deeply.
77.	The accession to the presidency of Mr. Abdel aziz Bouteflika is appropriate and timely in a very important sense. The world is in the midst of an economic dislocation so grave that its repercussions are bound to be felt far into the future. While all nations are in the grip of these dangerous economic trends, it is the developing nations which today feel its effects most strongly. Indeed, many of them are on the brink of economic collapse.
78.	As a recognized leader among the developing countries, our new President can be expected to provide profound insights into their difficulties. At the same time, he is in a position to moderate what we most wish to avoid, namely, the degeneration of the understandable conflicts of interest between the rich and the poor countries conflicts inherent in the present economic system into bitter and frustrating confrontation. The future of mankind, both of its affluent and of its disadvantaged segments, lies not in confrontation but in co-operation based on equity and justice.
79.	Addressing the Governing Council of UNDP at its eighteenth session held in Manila earlier this year, the President of the Philippines called strongly for the immediate implementation of the Declaration on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order and of its accompanying Program of Action. He was the first Head of State to do so in an international forum. Recalling the debates during the sixth special session of the General Assembly an historic special session he said:
"[The] concern [of the sixth special session] was not with the past but rather with the present and future. Historical injustices were recalled, not to be exacerbated but to be redressed and transcended. The challenge presented to the rich, industrialized countries was not to irreconcilable conflict but to a massive joint commitment to fashion together a more rational and equitable relationship."
80.	The grim prospects confronting the developing countries emphasize the importance of institutionalizing this new type of relationship as promptly as possible. Time has made their economic problems more acute, with further deterioration in sight in the coming year. Nor can we overlook the possibility of political and social upheavals in the wake of irresistible inflationary pressures coupled with worsening shortages.
81.	The encouraging rise in commodity prices has now reached a peak and will soon decline. Only a quarter of the considerable gain in commodity prices went to the developing regions, and of this gain the bulk was negated by the steep increases in the prices of food grains and fertilizers.
82.	Furthermore, the developing countries experienced sharp deficits in trade in 1973, with every prospect that the deficits will increase this year.
83.	Few aspects of the world-wide economic up heaval cut closer to the bone than the food crisis. What was once viewed as an unfortunate but temporary state of affairs is now correctly regarded as a chronic condition which will grow worse in time unless concerted international action is taken promptly.
84.	As long as their vast food resources remain untapped, because of understandable deficiencies in capital and in technology, the developing countries will continue to be the victims of hunger and malnutrition. On humanitarian grounds alone they deserve assistance from the more fortunate industrialized countries, for the toll in human lives now and in the years ahead can well exceed our most pessimistic calculations. And its effects on world stability, on peace and security should be obvious to all.
85.	Solving the problem, of course, is not easy. A rising population, competition for sources of food, the ever-present possibility that food assistance will be subject to narrow political ends rather than broad humanitarian objectives, the growing food requirements of the affluent societies themselves  these admittedly complex factors should not' deter us from confronting the very real dangers posed by hunger and famine.
86.	The Philippines would therefore favor the establishment of a world food reserve in order to ensure assistance to countries suffering from food shortage regardless of the amount of surplus among donor countries. To this most basic of human problems the principle of special preferences for needy regions should be applied.
87.	In the long run, expanding the world's food supply is a fundamental consideration. But in order to do this, greater assistance to the agricultural sec tors of developing nations would be required. Dwindling food stocks, even in many industrialized countries, make this step even more urgent. Beyond the immediate needs of food, improving the level of agriculture is a fundamental contributory factor to the national development of countries in the developing regions.
88.	The Philippines attaches great importance to the forthcoming World Food Conference, with the strong hope that it will be able to evolve a concrete plan of action without too much delay.
89.	An integral part of the food problem is the hap less plight of an estimated 400 million children in the developing countries. At its fifty-seventh session, in its resolution 1880 (LVII), the Economic and Social Council endorsed the decision of the Executive Board entitled "Declaration of an emergency for children in developing countries as a result of the current economic crisis", and made an urgent appeal to all Governments for increased contributions to UNICEF. It is, indeed, a sad commentary on the world's conscience that UNICEF, after almost three decades of quiet and dedicated service, has not received the adequate financial support it has always deserved. It is our hope that the 1974 United Nations Special Pledging Conference on UNICEF scheduled for November will elicit a generous response and demonstrate the anxieties and concerns of the international community over the world's suffering children.
90.	It should be evident that the foregoing problems I have mentioned, being global in character, are susceptible only to collective measures on the part of the international community. The Declaration on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order, the World Population Conference, the World Food Conference, and the projected seventh special session of the General Assembly constitute historic efforts to tighten the web of world wide interdependence in order to solve the problems which impede development and endanger the world economy. They are important in still another sense, for they will be a test of whether we have developed in the United Nations the requisite political will to override narrow particularist concerns for the sake of the world community as a whole.
91.	In this connexion, the Philippines hopes that the remaining difficulties with regard to the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States could be resolved to permit the adoption of the Charter at this session of the Assembly. We feel that adoption of the Charter would be an indispensable step towards the establishment of the new international economic order.
92.	I have spoken of the profound interest of the President of the Philippines in a new international economic order. Committed as we are to expanded development and focusing all resources on the achievement of this objective, the Philippines under the New Society has been inevitably affected by the world-wide economic upheavals. Only through the most strenuous efforts has it been able to approximate the dramatic improvements achieved through drastic economic restructuring in the first year of our New Society. Our stake in the improvement of the world economic climate is therefore great, for it can be of decisive importance in our pursuit of the accelerated time-table for national development.
93.	Like most developing countries, the Philippines has been affected by the sharp increases in import prices, raising the probability of a deficit in our balance-of-payments position. Inflation, though our rate is among the most moderate in South-East Asia, has prevented further improvement in living standards without, however, causing a real decline.
94.	Despite the expected difficulties, however, the gross national product of the Philippines increased by 5.8 per cent in the first eight months of 1974, a figure which is higher than in previous years, with the exception of 1973. Last year the Philippines was in the upper third in the roll of developing countries which exceeded the target growth rate set by the Inter-national Development Strategy for the Second United Nations Development Decade [resolution 2626 (XXV)\ in the field of manufactures,
95.	As a result of measures taken to prevent massive rice shortages caused by typhoons, the Philip pines increased its grain production by 12 per cent, short of self-sufficiency, but enough to avert wide spread shortages in the event of expected natural calamities.
96.	Overall food production, however, is at a record level, the Philippines being one of only four Asian countries to show this remarkable performance in a year of falling production in most developing regions.
97.	In another field, the Philippines is among the fortunate few to exceed the amount of $200 million in gains in international reserves.
98.	But the Philippines is under no illusion that its present generally favorable situation will persist if the world-wide economic situation continues to deteriorate. Nor can it dissociate itself from the plight of other, poorer countries which are now rapidly approaching the point of irreversible descent into anarchy and chaos caused by extreme poverty. Whether we wish it or not, their fate instills an awful sense of foreboding in the entire human community.
99.	It is in this context that we view the arms race and the ever-increasing amounts wasted in its pursuit as a terrible comment on our sense of human values. It bespeaks a deadening of the finer impulses of man that he should place the development of weapons of destruction on a far higher scale of priority than the fulfillment of his most basic requirements.
100. Nor is this race for weapons confined to the great Powers, for the supply of arms to the smaller Powers has increased at an unprecedented rate thereby increasing the danger of conventional wars which nevertheless always carry the risk of involving the great Powers.
101.	An equally disturbing development is the dangerous proliferation of nuclear weapons. The capability for manufacturing them is no longer the exclusive monopoly of the rich, industrialized countries. This suggests that the threshold of nuclear danger has been lowered to a degree that may in the near future prove dangerous to world peace and security. That there should be nations whose populations are starving and afflicted by famine but that are producing nuclear arms is indeed a sad commentary on the world today.
102.	In the light of the foregoing developments, the United Nations should begin seriously to con sider fresh initiatives to moderate the runaway arms race, halt nuclear proliferation and ban test explosions completely.
103.	These matters acquire particular significance at a time when the Middle East problem still carries the potential for renewed conflict and at a time when agreement has yet to be reached on the tragic war in Cyprus. On the Middle East question, we of the Philippine delegation reiterate our view that a just solution should be based on the relevant United Nations resolutions calling on Israel to withdraw ; from all occupied territories.
104.	Another important aspect of the Middle East problem, which is basic to its solution, is the question of the Palestinian people. Having no wish at this time to reopen a generation-old debate, I shall confine myself to quoting my original intervention in the Assembly on the same subject in 1947, when the sessions were being held at Flushing Meadows.
I said then:
"We have assessed the legal arguments and found that they are not the decisive factors in shaping a just and practical solution. Whatever the weight we might choose to assign to the arguments of the one side or the other, it is clear to the Philippine Government that the rights conferred by mandatory power, even if subsequently con firmed by an international agreement, do not vitiate the primordial right of a people to deter mine the political future and to preserve the territorial integrity of its native land."
105.	Continuing, I said that the issue was primarily moral and that the enforcement of the partition policy was and I quote again "repugnant to the valid nationalist aspirations of the people of Palestine".2
106.	Because the shape of the problem has been modified in the intervening years, the Philippines shall, against this background, speak on this subject j again at an appropriate time in this Assembly.
107.	Turning to our part of the world, the spirit of the Shanghai communique is alive in Asia, and a rearrangement in the balance of forces on its basis has ensued quietly and without fanfare. The apparent stability in the region has encouraged diplomatic activity, tending further to cement existing relation ships. Prime Minister Tanaka of Japan visited South-
East Asia, and Prime Minister Whitlam of Australia made a similar tour earlier this year.
108.	The pursuit of normalized relations between (he People's Republic of China and South-East Asian countries continues. In mid-1974, Malaysia established full diplomatic relations with the People's
- Republic, and trade and cultural missions from Peking and various South-East Asian capitals have exchanged visits visible evidences of a more relaxed relationship between them. At this very moment, Mrs. Imelda Marcos, wife of the President of the Philippines and his designated envoy, is in Peking on a goodwill mission and has been very well received there.
109.	Behind these activities lies the hope that the new balance of power will be a force for constructive changes on the basis of complementary interests, not alone among the big Powers with interests in the region, but also between them and the smaller Asian Powers.
110. However, the problem of stability and security in the region remains the principal responsibility of the nations of the region. Among the six member countries of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the first large step in enhanced economic co-operation was taken this year when active negotiations began on the implementation of industrial complementation projects and on the establishment of a free-trade zone in the region. An expanding web of relationships has also begun to develop between the ASEAN member countries and other countries and organizations, with, among others, Australia and New Zealand, and with the European Economic Community.
111.	Much, of course, remains to be done to ensure the security of the region. As long as the Paris agreement remains unenforced and apparently unenforceable the situation in IndoChina will continue to be a threat to the general security of South-East Asia.
112.	In the Khmer Republic, an unprecedented situation has emerged, raising political, legal and moral questions of great complexity. Last year the Philippines opposed the "back-door" grant of recognition to the rival Sihanouk "Government", which would give it the right to represent Khmer in the United Nations. We will continue to oppose this move, in the belief that the people of Khmer should be free to decide their own political future and to adopt the economic and social system of their choice without interference from any outside sources.
113.	On the question of Korea, the peaceful reunification of the divided halves remains our objective, and we are prepared to lend our support to mutually acceptable means of reaching this goal. Provided it is acceptable to both the Republic of Korea and the People's Republic of Korea, we shall support the admission to the United Nations of both those States in the hope that this would provide an additional avenue for reaching agreement on reunification.
114.	Let me touch on other items on the agenda that are of particular interest to us. My delegation feels that the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea is one of the most significant endeavors of the world Organization. The objective of developing a progressive international law based on equity and social justice in order to bring about peace and stability in the oceans and to permit the full utilization of the vast resources of the sea for the benefit of all. mankind cannot be long deferred. Moreover, we cannot ignore the possibility that an area comprising two thirds of our planet will, unless agreement is reached, become yet another focus of intense rivalries dangerous to the peace of the world.
115.	From the particular point of view of an archipelagic State like the Philippines, the Conference has given us and similar States an opportunity never before provided us to secure recognition of the unique problems arising from our geographical configuration.
116.	Although we cannot, in complete candor, say that we were entirely satisfied with the result of the session held at Caracas, we feel that it has generated a momentum which should be maintained. It is our view, therefore, that no time should be wasted in permitting the Conference to continue its work. For this reason, the Philippines will support the recommendation that another session be convoked in Geneva from March to May 1975.
117.	Our traditional respect for human rights and the fundamental freedoms remains undiminished. Indeed, our recent experience has given us a deeper insight into the nature and meaning of human rights. We realize today with special force the truth of the observation that the achievement of economic and social rights through accelerated national development is an indispensable requirement for the exercise of civil and political rights. Without the effective enforcement of law and order and without a sound economic base, respect for human rights remains at best theoretical. In this connexion, I am pleased to inform this Assembly that the Government of the Philippines deposited with the Secretary-General on 7 June 1974 its instruments of ratification of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights [resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex].
118.	At this session we shall support all measures which assist in advancing the cause of human rights throughout the world. And we shall continue to give the most vigorous support to the struggle against racist policies of all varieties and against all efforts to segregate peoples on the basis of color and race from the mainstream of their national life.
119.	As a nation which by tradition has held women in high esteem, the Philippines favors the prompt elimination of discrimination on the basis of sex. Women in my country are the full and equal partners of men in national development; we look forward to the day when this practice is made universal. The observance of International Women's Year in 1975, for which the Philippines has already made preparations, is a timely reminder of the need to integrate women, who, after all, constitute half of the world's population, into the total human resources available for national development.
120.	Let me reiterate that this Assembly is faced with global problems which demand global solutions. Those solutions can be achieved only through greatly enhanced international co-operation. In turn, co-operation of such scope and depth requires the full use of the United Nations in the entire range of human concerns.
121.	As the problems become progressively more acute, the need for effective solutions becomes more urgent. Some of the sense of urgency and the strong feeling of interdependence assured by the sixth special session of the General Assembly last April still remain. Our task is to maintain the momentum generated by the special session and to continue to foster the spirit of interdependence arising out of the very seriousness of the problems which confront us.
122.	But a fundamental element seems to be missing. In a rare note of pessimism, the Secretary-General predicted that perhaps the twenty-ninth session of the General Assembly will be in the grip of a crisis of helplessness. A deficiency in determination, a lack of political will, delays the Assembly from taking the required courses of action that could lead to firm decisions. I suggest that this deficiency may also arise from the shortcomings of the Charter itself a Charter which, as I shall presently explain, contributes to a sense of division rather than of harmony in the context of today's realities. My delegation therefore welcomes the recommendation of the General Committee that item 95 entitled "Need to consider suggestions regarding the review of the Charter of the United Nations: report of the Secretary-General" should be retained on this year's agenda.
123.	Over the past 30 years, events and long-term developments have imposed the conclusion that the structure and processes adopted at the end of the last world war by the victorious allies very quickly lost their relevance and validity. I speak as one of the original signatories of the Charter in 1945 at the San Francisco Conference. The ideological confrontation destroyed the possibility of unanimity among the five permanent members of the Security Council, and their veto power was transformed from a guarantee of international unity into an instrument for the protection of national interests.
124.	It is needless to review, for all of us remember, the various conflicts, large and small, brief or protracted, for which the Organization, under its present Charter, was unable to find a solution, much less to enforce one. More and more often, solutions have been sought, and sometimes found, outside the framework of what was originally conceived to be the unchallengeable arbiter of the world's disputes.
125.	Perhaps the original ideal was impractical, beyond the possibility of realization in a world of sovereign States. All the more reason, then, to under take a serious and continuing review and revision of the structure and procedures of the Organization. The last of the Western colonial empires is now in liquidation; the emancipated nations have almost tripled the membership of the United Nations, while the former metropolitan Powers, which could formerly presume to represent their millions of subjects, can now speak only for themselves. On the other hand, it is perhaps understandable that they should seek protection against what may appear to them to be the tyranny of numbers at a time of a proliferation of States in various stages of development but all equally jealous of their equality in the vote.
126.	Few will deny that the United Nations has devised ingenious procedures to overcome the inherent limitations of the present Charter. It has broadened the scope of its activities to cover a wide spectrum of issues which the founders of the Organization never anticipated. Still, for our time, the Charter fails to reach the heart of the matter, which is the disturbing division between the developing and developed countries, or, to put it more bluntly, the few rich and the many poor. Never in the history of the United Nations has that division been more apparent that it is today.
127.	The paramount need of the United Nations is a Charter which provides the institutional means for reconciling the two sides, for bridging the gap between them, and for inducing them to co-operate, instead of deepening the distrust in which they hold one another. On these terms alone, if no other, there is, I submit, little to be lost if we place the provisions of the Charter under continuing review, to study how they work and have worked in the past and, above all, to explore the possibilities of bringing them more in accord with present realities.
128.	It is disheartening to see the United Nations unable for all these long years to put an end to the Palestinian problem, to the apartheid regime in South Africa, to the illegitimate occupation of Namibia, to so many other situations that haunt session after session of the General Assembly like ghosts that can neither be buried nor forgotten.
129.	It is disillusioning to see the United Nations playing no direct part in reshaping the international monetary system,
130.	It is deeply dismaying to realize that the United Nations, for all the bright promises of its Charter and declarations and proclamations, is unable to do more to protect the human rights of millions of human beings. No doubt, there are serious legal and political difficulties to be faced in any study or revision of the Charter. Such a revision might even entail its renegotiation. Any fundamental change is painful and calls for much thought and heart-searching; but when change is needed for survival, it is inevitable.
131.	Allow me to illustrate this with any example from our own national experience in the Philippines. Two years ago, almost to this very date, the President of our country placed it under martial law. It was within his constitutional powers to do so, as the Supreme Court of the Republic decided only last week; but it was also a very drastic, even revolutionary measure, for it meant a fundamental change, a radical revision of our political and social structure and institutions which had been part of our way of life since the proclamation of our independence in 1946 almost the same length of time as the United Nations has existed and, indeed, for about 40 years before that.
132.	The change was a shock; it was agonizingly painful to many; but it worked, and it is working- It forestalled a revolution that, after all, sought only the same goals; it staved off financial ruin; it restored peace and promised social order. Above all, it worked because it brought the constitutional and govern mental structure and processes into line with the political, economic and social realities in a nation that had been groping for the true balance between them for more than a quarter-century.
133.	We in the United Nations, I dare to suggest, have also been trying to strike that true balance for almost the same measure of time. To find it now, when it is so needed, if not for survival, at least for significance and effectiveness, we must, I suggest, be equally bold after long patience; we must be persistent with long deliberation and unafraid of radical departures when confident of our ultimate destination. For that reason my delegation will sup-port, and indeed sponsor, any initiative to establish a continuing or permanent group to study the revision of the Charter and submit recommendations thereon.
134.	Two years ago, at this same forum, I made the observation that radical changes had overtaken the world. How profound these changes were we now fully realize. The detente begun in Asia and subsequently followed in Europe has, for all practical purposes, revised the structure of international relations. The beginning of concord and harmony in the political field, despite temporary set-backs, has be come visible, amid our hopes are buoyed by the rich possibilities of peace and security for all mankind. We fully expect it to create the environment in which we can pursue with greater vigor the progress and development of nations.
135.	Today, we are at the painful beginning of that search for progress. Because we view the problems at such close range, we tend to be traumatized by their immense difficulties. The danger is that this should lead to a fatal paralysis of will, leaving the problems unsolved and worse than they were be fore. I venture to say that in the midst of difficulties we have learned the lesson that today, more than ever, we must shed parochialism, discard selfishness, and dismiss the narrower demands of sheer self-interest. Never before has this thought emerged with greater clarity and force: if our society is to survive, we must accept collective responsibility for its well-being. Interdependence has ceased to be a mere pious wish. Inevitable, indeed inescapable, it is the very basis for the continuation of the society of man in the twentieth century.


Rarely, if ever, in the history of the United Nations has a President of the General Assembly been elected unanimously and without the whimsical aberration of a vote cast .in support of an imaginary candidate. Mr. Bouteflika has also perhaps achieved the record of being the youngest incumbent of this exalted and responsible office.
53.	Through the delegation of Sri Lanka I offer to the President, on behalf of the Government and people of Sri Lanka, our warm felicitations and our best wishes for his success in the office which he has assumed. We salute him, not only as a true representative of the continent of Africa and one who personifies the spirit of a people that fought valiantly to free itself from the bondage of political subjection and still carries on with indomitable perseverance the struggle to erase the last vestiges of external economic exploitation, but also as the Foreign Minister of the country which happens to be at the moment the Chairman of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries.
54.	Founded on the principle of detachment from great-Power rivalries, the Non-Aligned Movement is pledged to the principles of peaceful coexistence and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations; to the assertion protection of fundamental human rights; to recognition of the equality of all races and of all nations, large and small; to abstention from intervention or interference in the internal affairs of another country; and to the settlement of all international disputes by peaceful means. Through fidelity to these principles and policies, the Non- Aligned Movement has consistently sought to provide that element of moderation in international affairs which could be the most vital contribution to relieving international tensions and thereby promoting peace and harmony throughout the world.
55.	The non-aligned group is today more united, numerically Stronger and better placed than it ever was to exert its influence on the course of international relations in the political, economic and social spheres and thereby to fortify the United Nations in all efforts directed towards the application and enforcement of the principles and purposes of the Charter. If we are to fulfill this high mission, we must be wary of besmirching our credentials by the least manifestation of partisanship. The non-aligned group must treat all nations as friends while dissociating itself from, and striving united to secure the abolition of, policies and practices repugnant to the ideals and objectives of non-alignment.
56.	My delegation takes this opportunity of expressing its great admiration for the skill and ability with which Mr. Leopoldo Benites of Ecuador presided over the twenty-eighth session of the General Assembly. His reputation as an eminent jurist, his vast experience as a diplomat and his penetrating knowledge of all aspects of United Nations activities, combined with his human qualities of courtesy, tact and patience, were fully manifested in his conduct of the twenty-eighth session.
57.	The delegation of Sri Lanka extends a fervent welcome to the three new Members which have been admitted to the United Nations during this session: the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Grenada and the Republic of Guinea-Bissau. We offer them our cordial congratulations and best wishes. We have the utmost confidence in their capacity and willingness to make an effective and constructive contribution towards the attainment of the aims and objectives of the Charter of the United Nations.
58.	The admission of Grenada and Guinea-Bissau marks yet another milestone in the progress towards self-determination of subject peoples and their liberation from foreign rule, as well as the attainment of universality of representation of the peoples of the world in the Organization.
59.	The admission of the People's Republic of Bangladesh brings to a close a poignant episode in the history of the subcontinent to which that country belongs. The malevolence of nature has inflicted on it the severest tribulations at the very moment when it was making a desperate effort to revive its shattered economy. We sincerely hope that the nations of the world will help it generously to recover speedily from the indescribable devastation and suffering which it has experienced.
60.	As in the case of Bangladesh, natural disaster has wrought widespread havoc in the territory of another Member nation—Honduras. My delegation extends to the Government and people of Honduras our profound sympathy over the loss of life and the destruction resulting from the hurricane that recently struck it and trusts that it too will receive from the international community all the help that it needs to repair the damage to its economy.
61.	The year that has elapsed since the twenty-eighth session of the General Assembly has been marked by several momentous developments, each of a distinctive character, whether it be epoch-making, or pregnant with promise for the future, or even deeply disquieting.
62.	The change of government in Portugal has happily resulted in a final renunciation of the former Government's anachronistic policy of colonial repression. The new Government's recognition of the right of its colonies to self-determination, beginning with Guinea-Bissau, and to be extended before long, we hope, to Mozambique and Angola, is a supreme act of redemption which merits universal approbation.
63.	There remain only two racist regimes which have yet to abandon their obnoxious and inhuman policy of apartheid and to accord to the black African majorities, whom they dominate and persecute, their birth-right of self-determination and freedom in their homeland. The United Nations cannot tolerate any longer the pursuit of these policies which are an affront and a disgrace to modern civilization. Portugal's example is the light at the end of the tunnel. It will not be long before reason, humanity and self-interest prevail over perversity and racial arrogance and a peaceful settlement is found which results in the total emancipation of the black majorities and the colored communities of South Africa and Rhodesia and in the establishment of democratic rule on the principle of the equality of all races in those regions, thereby enabling them to live and work together in peace and good will in their mutual interest and for the greater good of all Africa.
64.	When I spoke of developments that offered some hope for the future, I had in mind the changes in the Middle East situation after the October 1973 war, and particularly the disengagement agreements relating to the Sinai-Suez front and the Golan Heights. The Secretary of State of the United States wrought a miraculous change through his whirlwind diplomacy and his imaginative statesmanship. We should neither exaggerate nor belittle his achievement. But the future of the Middle East does not depend on one single individual, however talented, resourceful and indefatigable he may be.
65.	The changed situation provides a slight impetus to peace, but it must be sustained by a display of self-restraint and moderation on all sides. The only answer to the indiscriminate violence that erupts from time to time is the elimination of the factors and circumstances that drive individuals and organizations, out of frustration, despair and disillusionment, into a state of dementia in which intimidation proves more alluring than negotiation.
66.	The agreements on the disengagement of forces in the Sinai-Suez front and the Golan Heights must not be regarded as anything more than a brief respite. Disengagement could be a mirage, unless it is accepted by all sides as only the first stage of a complex and difficult process leading ultimately to the full implementation of Security Council resolution 242 (1967) of 22 November 1967. This resolution presents the best hope of a fair settlement, despite some of the ambiguities that have conveniently been detected in it and exploited to prevent and defer a final settlement while lands and territories conquered in war are being systematically incorporated into the territory of the occupying Power in contempt of the United Nations and the principles of its Charter.
67.	The essential elements in the proposed settlement must be recognized and accepted without equivocation by one and all. Chief among them is the principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war. In accordance with this principle, Israel must withdraw its armed forces from the territories occupied by it as a result of war. If this principle is rejected, the Charter becomes a dead letter. The second element is the acknowledgment, not merely in words but in policy and practice as well, of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area, including Israel, and of the right of every State in the Middle East, including the State of Israel, to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or use of force. The third element is the guarantee of freedom of navigation through international waters in the area. Finally, and most important of all, there is the need for a just settlement of the refugee problem, which is a piece of circumlocution and a euphemistic synonym for the restoration of the right to self-determination of the peoples of Palestine which would give them a separate Arab Palestinian State as provided for and endorsed by the United Nations in the Partition Plan of 1947 [resolution 18/ (II)]. It is only by ensuring for the Palestinians the exercise of their right of self-determination that the United Nations can terminate the grim ordeal of a people who have for more than 25 years been compelled to lead a life bereft of hope, dependent on the charity of the international community, betrayed, as no other people in the world has been betrayed, by the very Organization that helped create the State of Israel. It is not by raining death and destruction on the defenseless women and children in the Palestinian Arab refugee camps and by enveloping them in a constant nightmare of fear and terror that a solution can be found. This derelict mass of displaced humanity must be given a home and a State in which they can live in honor and dignity without being left to languish and decay in humiliation and desolation.
68.	The principle of a separate Palestine State was an integral feature of the partition. The United Nations must accept it and make it a reality. It is an impudent challenge to the authority of the United Nations, the creator of Israel, and miserable travesty of the very principle of justice which the United Nations sought to apply, even if under intimidation and pressure, by creating the State of Israel, for Israeli leaders to have the temerity to state that "they" -meaning the Palestinians- "did not exist", or to proclaim slogans of intransigence such as "Jerusalem Never". These slogans and these tendentious distortions of history do not provide the material out of which the edifice of peace can be built. They are irresponsible, inflammatory, uncompromising and unacceptable. By the same token, the United Nations cannot, even by implication, acquiesce in the proposition or offer any support to the idea that Israel does not exist or that its social and political structure should be so radically altered as to obliterate the separate identity which it seeks.
69.	Likewise, Security Council resolution 242 (1967), in which the Council affirmed that every State in the Middle East has a right to live within secure and recognized boundaries, cannot be interpreted as conferring on the State of Israel the unique prerogative, totally incompatible with international law and the principles of the Charter, of determining for itself and by itself where its boundaries should run in order to ensure its security. If that right were extended to all and sundry, the outcome would be universal anarchy. The question of safe and secure boundaries is a matter for negotiation, but it cannot be divorced from the recognition of the right of Israel to exist as a State and from the repudiation of belligerency. The time has come for all parties to eschew intemperance and extremism and to display restraint and moderation. Peace alone makes boundaries secure.
70.	As one who has during the last four years been deeply involved in the Middle East problem in the unenviable capacity of Chairman of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Population of the Occupied Territories, and as the representative of a country that recognized the State of Israel at an early stage and maintained diplomatic relations with it until 1970 when we decided that the only means open to us of recording our disapproval of a Member State's defiance of the Charter was the suspension of relations with Israel until it relinquished its conquests of 1967 or until a solution acceptable to the Arab people of the Middle East was reached I can claim that our credentials and our impartiality cannot be impugned by anyone with the least pretension to objectivity or detachment.
71.	We earnestly wish to see an end to the conflict between Israel and its Arab neighbors, as we are convinced that the talents and technology of the people of Israel in partnership with the human and material resources of the Arab peoples of the Middle East could transform that entire area from a battlefield into a domain of concord, peaceful co-operation and prosperity. We hope the debate on the question of Palestine will not be used as an occasion for an exchange of acrimonious charges and counter-charges, but for a sober analysis of the causes of the present situation in the search for a compact that, by securing justice for all, will offer a guarantee of enduring peace for all.
72.	The crisis in Cyprus has exposed once more the tragic shortcomings of the United Nations. Despite numerous resolutions of the Security Council calling for the withdrawal from the Republic of Cyprus of foreign military personnel present otherwise than under the authority of international agreements, recording its formal disapproval of the unilateral military actions undertaken against the Republic of Cyprus, and subscribing to the principle of respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the island, little or no progress has been made towards the full restoration of constitutional government in Cyprus.
73.	There is much more involved in Cyprus than a bitter internecine conflict between two ethnic communities. We are all involved in Cyprus and not least of all the members of the non-aligned movement. The Government of Cyprus was one of the first to declare its policy of non-alignment. The agony of Cyprus is the agony of the non-aligned movement; the deliverance of Cyprus is the deliverance of non-alignment; the betrayal and abandonment of Cyprus is the betrayal and abandonment of the principles of the Charter. It is for this reason that, on the commendable initiative of the President of Yugoslavia, the non-aligned group has sought, through the appointment of a Good Offices Committee, to intervene in order to achieve a peaceful composition of the differences between the parties involved, Governments and communities alike, the withdrawal of all foreign military forces, and the complete restoration of constitutional government in Cyprus as the only means by which its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity can be preserved free from external influence and machination. There can be no partition, no enosis, no foreign occupation, but there can be a large measure of local autonomy for the two communities which would not be open to exploitation in a manner prejudicial to the survival of Cyprus as a sovereign, united and independent State.
74.	This is the justification for the inclusion of the item "The question of Cyprus" in the agenda of the General Assembly as an urgent matter despite the fact that the situation created by the ouster of Archbishop Makarios, whom we recognize as the President of the Republic of Cyprus, and the subsequent events came within the purview of the Security Council's responsibility. This is not a matter that concerns only the five "bishops" of the Security Council and their 10 temporary "coadjutors". It is the responsibility of the entire "synod" because the issues involved are ecumenical in their reach and implications. The moving words of John Donne have been quoted here. To adapt them, I would say that we should not seek to ask for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for us all, nations great and small, powerful and weak, but chiefly for small defenseless countries and particularly those who, reposing their faith in non-alignment and in the principles of the Charter of the United Nations, disavow military alliances. But the bell tolls loudest of all for the only institution that can bring us together in the pursuit of peace, justice and fraternity within the international community, the United Nations.
75.	My delegation takes this opportunity of paying homage to those members of UNFICYP who volunteered to serve the cause of international peace and humanity and gave their lives to that cause, and also to those who have been wounded in the line of duty. To the families of those who were killed and to the Governments that dispatched them on their sublime mission, my delegation offers its heartfelt sympathy. At the same time we express the hope that those who have been injured may soon recover from their wounds and be restored to active life.
76.	Permit me at this stage to pay a well-deserved tribute to our Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, for the zeal and speed with which he has acted, both in the Middle East and in Cyprus, in the cause of peace and humanity. He has not spared himself in the process and has set a shining example of conspicuous devotion to duty.
77.	In the general debate now coming to a close, almost all participants have voiced loudly and clearly their anxiety over the future of our world in all its manifold preoccupations economic, social, political and legal. We have heard many references to detente, inflation, energy, population, food and the international law of the sea. There have been feverish negotiations and intense United Nations activity over many of these problems.
78.	In the economic sphere, the historic sixth special session on raw materials and development occupies a position of preeminent importance along with the forthcoming World Food Conference shortly to be held at Rome.
79.	In the social sphere, the World Population Conference held at Bucharest first brought together the nations of the world into open discussion of one of the most baffling problems of our time.
80.	As regards the political sphere, I have already referred to the developments in the Middle East and in Cyprus.
81.	In the legal sphere, the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea at its second session, held at Caracas from 20 June to 29 August 1974, completed its general discussion of the issues before it and decided to meet again in March and April of next year to begin the process of negotiation. This decision awaits approval by the General Assembly during the present session.
82.	All those problems -economic, social, political and legal- imperiously demand our attention.
83.	The threatened recession and the instability of the international monetary system, which have been linked with the energy crisis and the pricing policies of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries [OPEC], have figured prominently in many statements, chiefly in those of representatives of certain developed countries. Many of the speakers who sought to condemn the members of OPEC and their pricing policies and indict them for precipitating a world-wide recession and wrecking the international monetary system have short memories and elastic economic theories doctored to suit their particular predicament and to absolve themselves. The OPEC members have been made to appear the villains of the piece. Even the problem of inflation has been laid at their door. It would be much closer to the truth to admit that a reduction in the astronomical expenditures on armaments, which create incomes without a corresponding increase in goods on which those incomes could be spent, could significantly ease the problem of inflation. The arguments advanced in criticism of the OPEC members are founded on the premise that the international trading system and the international monetary system must depend for their durability on the industrialized nations controlling the overwhelming proportion of the world's monetary reserves.
84.	The increase in the price of oil has been condemned as arbitrary and totally unrelated to the economic determinants of pricing. The world has been asked to forget that, long before the oil-exporting countries realized, even belatedly, the value of their product and the fact that for years they had been denied anything resembling the market value or the strategic value of their product, the international monetary system had been placed in grave peril by the soaring price bf gold and the nervous breakdown which the dollar had suffered.
85.	According to these economic theorists, it is a law of nature, unquestionable and sacrosanct, that the prices paid for the products of the developing world should be determined by the importing developed industrialized countries without regard to the conditions of poverty and privation under which the producers live, while the manufactured goods sold to the impoverished world make full provision to satisfy the limitless and insatiable demands of the peoples of the developed world for the material things of life.
86.	The policy of curtailing crude-oil production in order to ensure fair prices has been criticized as almost a form of economic aggression by those who justify the curtailment of acreages under food grains for the purpose of maintaining fair prices for their farmers. What sort of economic theory or moral philosophy is it that could justify the curtailment in food production at a time when many millions throughout the world are undernourished and millions die of starvation because of a lack of food or the inability to afford the soaring prices while at the same time, in regard to another essential commodity, condemning a price increase that does not threaten human survival?
87.	Lest we be accused of ingratitude, my delegation would like to acknowledge, with thanks and appreciation, the economic aid given by the developed world to the developing nations, and especially the handsome contributions made by the developed world to humanitarian programs for the relief of famine and other forms of distress whenever the occasion demanded. But aid must not be regarded as an act of altruism. It is an investment that "blessed him that gives and him that takes", like the quality of mercy.
88.	It was exhilarating to hear the statements of the Foreign Ministers of France [2238th meeting], the Netherlands [2252nd meeting] and the United Kingdom [2240th meeting], and of the Prime Minister of Australia [2249th meeting], who did not succumb to emotionalism in their analysis of the world economic situation but showed a readiness to deal with it in a realistic manner. The shift of approximately $75,000 million of reserves from the industrialized countries to the oil-exporting countries cannot be regarded, as a global calamity. One solution that has been suggested, that the oil producers should lend these amounts back to the industrialized countries so that the latter could have effective control over them and keep their industries in full production, took no heed of the consequences of such a course of action for those developing countries that do not produce oil. The only equitable solution lies in the joint association of the revenues of the oil-exporting countries with the technology of the industrialized nations and the human resources of the developing world. There is no denying that, if a world-wide recession is to be avoided, the revenues of the oil-exporting countries must be invested in a judicious manner, but they must be so invested as to sustain the productive capacity of the industrialized world and to increase progressively the purchasing power of the developing world. This requires a policy of planned and co-ordinated investment of those revenues in a manner which will wrest from the small coterie of industrialized countries their industrial oligopoly and create in the developing continents of the world—Africa, Asia and Latin America a pattern of industrialization which would complement the productive capacity of the industrialized nations, thereby ensuring a rational division of labor and a more equitable distribution of world income.
89.	At the sixth special session on raw materials and development the Assembly adopted the Declaration on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order [resolution 3201 (S-Vi)] and the related Pro-gramme of Action [resolution 3202 (S- VI)], section of which contained the Special Program of emergency measures to mitigate the difficulties of the developing countries most seriously affected by the economic crisis.
90.	The most unexceptionable declarations are, however, by themselves, not sufficient, and emergency measures are only a palliative. What we need is a new international economic order which would ensure an effective international scheme for the regulation of primary products and the stabilization of the prices of raw materials and primary products at reasonable levels, coupled with an assurance of steady supplies. There should be a permanent mechanism to ensure a proper equilibrium and balance between the prices received by developing countries for their exports and the prices paid by them for their imports from the developed world, so as to enable the developing countries to maintain their balance of payments and their terms of trade in conditions of stability which would permit the steady and orderly execution of their economic development programs. The economic growth process of developing countries must not be hampered by uncertainties, sharp price fluctuations and the vagaries of the market. There is yet no clear evidence that the will to produce the results contemplated in resolutions 3201 (S-VI) and 3202 (S-VI) exists where it has most to be demonstrated. Although Sri Lanka is one of the countries most seriously affected by the present economic crisis, we are not prepared to join the chorus of denunciation of the OPEC members or lean against the wailing wall.
91.	The creation of the new international economic order would require patient negotiation and unremitting effort. It cannot materialize overnight. Meanwhile we would appeal to those who have at their disposal wealth beyond the dreams of Croesus to spare a thought for the developing countries which are faced with ruin and disaster and to help them in their predicament and to grant this help on terms which they can afford. If I may borrow a thought from Thucydides taken from the funeral oration of Pericles: "Wealth is not just material for vainglory but an opportunity for achievement". The Latin maxim "Bis ilat qui cito dot"—"He gives twice as much who gives promptly" is most apposite in this context. The social and political fabric of the most seriously affected developing countries could be rent apart in the absence of immediate relief. It certainly cannot be kept intact with the promise and distant vision of a new economic order.
92.	The second session of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea did not and could not secure final agreement on a treaty but it did, through an exhaustive examination of the principal issues, lay the foundation for the international covenant that we all so fervently desire. As I stated in Caracas, we must not let historians say, in the words of Simon Bolivar, that "we ploughed the seas"; let us rather by our joint efforts and through the display of mutual understanding, co-operation, tolerance and good will permit history to record that we helped future generations to garner the wealth of the oceans for the benefit of all mankind, with special regard to the interests and needs of developing nations, and that we bequeathed to them to be held in trust for all time the common heritage of mankind to be shared and enjoyed in a spirit of fraternity and in complete peace and tranquility. This is the task that confronts us when we next meet.
93.	I should like to take this opportunity of suggesting that when the item is taken up in plenary meeting we avoid general statements and confine our attention to matters of procedure, not the least of which should be a realistic appraisal of the possibility of completing our work in one more session, or of the need for providing for the contingency of yet another session to be held in 1975 at which we should conclude our deliberations and reach agreement.
94.	I must not let this occasion pass without expressing in the Assembly my most sincere thanks to the Government of Venezuela for the excellent arrangements and facilities provided by it for the Conference and for the courtesy, kindness and gracious hospitality of the people of Venezuela, who emulated the example set by their President, Mr. Andres Perez, and their Foreign Minister, Efrain Schacht Aristeguicta.
95.	The report of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean IA19629 and Add.l[ has to be presented to the present session of the General Assembly in accordance with resolution 3080 (XXVIII). We have no illusions as to the prospects for giving practical shape and form to what might appear to be an ideal concept. The great Powers, excluding China which is a member of the Ad Hoc Committee, have not shown the amount of interest that we might have expected of them. We hope that the much-talked-of detente is not just idle chatter and that its attainment will help them exclude the Indian Ocean from their policy of competitive expansion of armaments in that area in the not-too- distant future. I refer to the Powers involved in that talked of detente,
96.	The realization of the concept of the Indian Ocean as a zone of peace is not the responsibility, however, of the great Powers alone. We of the littoral and hinterland States have the primary responsibility of composing our own differences, settling our disputes by peaceful means and resisting the temptation of repeating the mistakes which we impute to the great Powers. The major maritime Powers and all those who depend on the unrestricted passage of commercial traffic through the Indian Ocean may be assured that such passage will be granted to them in any arrangements to give effect to the Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace [resolution 2832 (XXVI)]. The lines of communication across the Indian Ocean must be kept open for vessels and aircraft of all kinds and of all nations subject only to the condition that their passage across and over the Indian Ocean does not constitute a threat to the peace, good order, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the littoral and hinterland States.
97.	In the general debate hardly any mention is made of the heart and soul of the Organization, the Secretariat, on which we have to rely so heavily for the smooth conduct of our work and our activities and the execution of our policies. We have been fortunate all these years in having a staff of men and women of marked competence and devotion who have served us with steadfast loyalty. On rare occasions sections of the staff have reacted adversely. The blame rests not with them but with us. If we are to count on their loyalty and their zeal in the performance of their work and if we are to expect discipline of them, we have a duty first to discipline ourselves and to avoid making impossible demands of them and of straining that loyalty beyond all reasonable limits. Civil service must not be construed as civil servitude. Too many of us too often pay too little regard to the value of a proper employer-staff relationship. Mutual respect, mutual tolerance and mutual trust are the foundation of a sound relationship between any organization and its staff. The delegation of Sri Lanka takes this op-portunity of extending its warmest thanks to all ranks of the Secretariat for the high quality and standard of the service they continue to render us.
98.	As we approach the last quarter of the twentieth century and look back on nearly 30 years of effort within the framework of the United Nations, we will realize that, although there are many political issues that still pose a deadly threat to international peace and stability, the portents should not discourage or perturb us. In the future, while the inner circle of powerful nations grapples with the dilemmas of disarmament, it is economic problems and economic relationships that will be our principal preoccupation, as they rightly should be.
99.	It is incumbent on us to fashion in the new law of the sea and the proposed Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States acceptable, viable and effective instruments of international social justice which would set the tone and standard of a more enlightened international economic order and serve as an inspiring code of international morality.


Mr. President, it is my privilege and pleasure to convey from our Sovereign, His Majesty King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, and the Government and people of Bhutan their warm greetings to you, Sir, and distinguished representatives. May I take this opportunity to offer our heartiest congratulations on your unanimous election to the high office of President of the twenty-ninth session of the General Assembly. My delegation is conscious of the fact that you bring to this important post years of rich experience in the field of international relations in your capacity as Foreign Minister of Algeria. We are particularly pleased about your election, since it was in Algiers that Bhutan was admitted to the non-aligned group of countries. We pledge our support to your endeavors in tackling the difficult and sometimes controversial items with confidence and diligence.
60.	I should be failing in my duty if I did not refer to the valuable leadership provided by your predecessor, Mr. Leopoldo Benites, during the twenty-eighth session as well as the sixth special session of the General Assembly.
61.	Let me also place on record our deep appreciation of the tireless efforts made by Mr. Kurt Waldheim, the Secretary-General, for implementing the lofty objectives enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. He has faced a difficult year, trying his utmost not only to implement the various resolutions of the United Nations but also to apply the principles and purposes of the Charter in order that situations of conflict, wherever they occurred, might be mollified by his vigilance and energetic action.
62.	We are very happy to welcome the three new Members of the Organization, the People's Republic of Bangladesh, the Republic of Guinea-Bissau and Grenada into this family of nations. With the admission of these three countries to membership of the United Nations, we are closer to the principle of universality. We hope that the remaining countries will soon find their way on the road towards this great Organization. My Government is particularly delighted that Bangladesh, a close neighbor, has now taken its rightful seat in this Assembly. It is pertinent for me to recall what my Minister for Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Mr. Dawa Tsering, said at the twenty- seventh session of the General Assembly:
"Bhutan welcomes the emergence of Bangladesh as an independent sovereign nation. We extended our sympathy and support to the people of Bangladesh during their struggle for national liberation and we are happy today that we were one of the first to recognize the reality of Bangladesh .
63.	My delegation also had an opportunity to participate in the 1776th meeting of the Security Council, held on June 10 this year, when the Council adopted the decision to recommend to the General Assembly that it should admit the People's Republic of Bangladesh into the family of the United Nations, and we warmly welcomed that decision. With its ancient culture and heritage, we are confident that Bangladesh will make useful contributions in this Assembly and other forums with a view to strengthening this universal Organization.
64.	Bhutan is fully conscious of the changes that are taking place in our part of the world, and we are taking the necessary steps to adopt our attitudes and policies in the context of these changes. We indeed compliment the leaders of the subcontinent for their courage and vision, and it is our sincere hope that this will continue to prevail in the interest of a durable peace in the region. Pakistan, displaying a sense of realism, recognized Bangladesh as a sovereign independent Republic, and Bangladesh, for its part, adopted an accommodating attitude towards Pakistan. We welcomed the New Delhi Agreement, under which this important event took place. We also hope that the spirit of the Simla Agreement of 2 July 1972, and the mood generated by it, will prevail between India and Pakistan, resulting in the achievement of a durable peace in the subcontinent. In this regard we are happy to note that direct talks between India and Pakistan have recently been held to restore communications and travel facilities.
65.	Happily, Bhutan continues to enjoy close friendly relations with all the neighboring States, these friendly ties were more recently strengthened at the time of the Coronation of His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, which took place on 2 June at Thimphu. The occasion was graced by the presence of the Heads of State from the neighboring countries, representatives of the five permanent members of the Security Council and representatives from other friendly countries.
66.	Our Monarch, young as he is, shoulders heavy responsibility with a great sense of maturity and wisdom. Under his direction and guidance, Bhutan continues to progress steadily and to forge friendly relations with all countries, based on the principles of peaceful coexistence and sovereign equality. Bhutan is wedded to the principle of non-alignment and adheres to the principles and purposes of the Charter of the United Nations. It is gratifying to note that our relations with India continue to be most cordial and friendly, with mutual trust and co-operation. We look forward to an era of still greater co-operation and friendship with India in the years to come.
67.	My delegation also extends a warm welcome to Grenada on the occasion of its admission to the United Nations. Grenada's emergence as a sovereign independent nation was part of the evolutionary process set in motion by the administering Power, namely the United Kingdom, and the transfer of power by peaceful means is yet another landmark in the process of decolonization.
68.	Another happy event for all of us is the admission of Guinea-Bissau to the United Rations. We welcome this nation from Africa whose people waged an unrelenting struggle lasting over a decade in order to attain their birthright of freedom and independence. The presence of the representatives of Guinea-Bissau in this Assembly represents a fitting monument to all their martyrs.
69.	The dramatic change in Portugal, with the acces-sion of progressive forces to the helm of affairs, has caused a new wind of change to blow in the Portuguese colonies in Africa. What Portugal has done and is definitely determined to do in Africa is, of course, of great moment in history. We welcome the recent transfer of power to an interim Government in Mozambique with the avowed purpose of granting independence to that country by June 1975, We hope that a satisfactory solution will be found for the Cape Verde Islands and that power will be transferred to the liberation movements in Angola with the least possible delay and without any local complications, either as to ethnic differences or the rights of the minority settlers. We note with pleasure and satisfaction Portugal's far-sighted vision and acceptance of the reality of the situation, and also congratulate the Secretary-General for his initiative in facilitating the pace of change.
70.	We hope that the Portuguese example will enlighten the illegal regime in Zimbabwe and the racist regime in South Africa. The flood-gates of change cannot be closed by any imaginary dam, that of apartheid or any other. We applaud the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal for his condemnation of racism and apartheid from this forum [2239th meeting]. If any lesson is to be derived from the current movement, it is that South Africa would be well-advised to surrender the administration of Namibia to the United Nations in order to demonstrate that it will also change its heart. Simultaneously, South Africa should take steps to repeal all the obnoxious, repressive and dehumanizing laws, abandon apartheid, which has been declared by the Assembly to be a crime against humanity [see resolution 3068 (XXVIII), annex], and heed the incessant calls of this Assembly. Such a change would contribute to world peace and stability. Those who oppose change will be the architects of their own decay.
71.	Bhutan is a peace-loving nation. We should be happy to see a relaxation of tense situations wherever these exist. In the opinion of our delegation, detente at the present moment has held its ground, although it is fragile. With the best will in the world we have still to work hard to strengthen and make it lasting. We feel that the trends towards detente are encouraging, but that is only one aspect of the Declaration on the Strengthening of International Security [resolution 2734 (XXV)], and the Declaration on Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations [resolution 2625 (XXV), annex]. My delegation attaches great importance to the implementation of these declarations. Many steps have been taken towards strengthening international security. For example, the limited agreement achieved by SALT is already in existence. We hope that the resumed SALT talks will make further significant progress, The Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe is well under way. Certain important principles have been thoroughly thrashed out by the European countries which, we hope, will soon lead to worthwhile results.
72.	While the major Powers are determined to securely anchor detente, the results of the Disarmament Conference are not very encouraging. We believe that the goal should be universal and complete disarmament. In the recent past, various proposals on disarmament have been made to the Assembly. Progress is painfully slow. My delegation last year also supported the resolution calling for a reduction of the military budgets of States permanent members of the Security Council [resolution 3093 (XXVIII)] in the hope that the production of destructive armaments could be minimized and that the developing countries to that extent might benefit. In spite of these efforts, unfortunately, certain nuclear-weapon Powers are proceeding to accumulate deadly nuclear weapons. In view of this, a comprehensive disarmament conference has become more urgent than ever. My delegation would welcome the holding of a world disarmament conference to create conditions under which real progress could be made. Such a conference, in our opinion, might strengthen the foundations for a lasting peace, which is the highest aspiration of mankind.
73.	My country does not favor nuclear proliferation. However, it seems essential that there should be a distinction between the military and the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. The military use of nuclear energy would be catastrophic, while its peaceful use could accelerate much needed development activities. Under existing conditions it is understandable that a developing country must search for solutions to the complex problems of development, even including the development of peaceful nuclear energy potential. It is in this spirit and context that Bhutan confidently appreciated the assurances given by India that it would . use nuclear energy only for peaceful purposes.
74.	We are happy to note that the truce in the Middle East is in force together with the disengagement of forces, and that UNEF is playing a valuable part in maintaining the truce conditions. The situation is still marked by uncertainty. My delegation believes that Security Council resolution 242 (1967) is still a good basis for settling the problem in the area peacefully. We hope that the parties concerned will show great understanding, and a spirit of accommodation and com-promise in abandoning all claims to territories occupied by force, and in taking into account the legitimate rights of all the parties concerned, including the Palestinians.
75.	My delegation viewed with deep concern the re-cent events in Cyprus. It is gratifying to note that the two communities in Cyprus have started exchanging prisoners of war, and we hope they will engage in a fruitful dialog. We are of the conviction that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Cyprus must be restored without the use of any outside force. That will be the only way in which to demonstrate that small States, specially the non-aligned ones, can enjoy the protection of the Charter as well as fulfilling its principles and purposes.
76.	Bhutan also favors the creation of areas of peace in all regions. It is in this spirit that my Government supported the principle that the Indian Ocean should be declared a zone of peace. This question has been engaging the attention of the Assembly since 1971. The Secretary-General's factual statement of the effect of the great Powers' military presence in the Indian Ocean is well known [AI9629 and Add.I, annex), and we hope that the work of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean will be fruitful. My delegation fully recognizes that the Indian Ocean should be maintained as a zone of peace. If great-Power rivalry is allowed free rein, it will affect the vital interests of all the littoral States, and could also help bring about political in-stability and social and economic difficulties, which will also be felt by the hinterland States.
77.	The situation in IndoChina is a good example. Although the war has officially ended, the countries concerned are stilTfavaged by the after-effects of war. We earnestly hope that the various parties concerned in those countries will soon find a peaceful solution with a view to ending all tensions and building a lasting edifice of peace in that region. In this spirit my delegation would support any move that could ensure stability and peace in the area.
78.	We noted with satisfaction the consensus on the question of Korea that was reached at the twenty- eighth session of the General Assembly. Unfortunately, the circumstances have not been propitious for translating the consensus into positive action. We hope that the authorities of both North and South Korea will start a dialog in pursuance of the consensus so as to achieve peaceful reunification without outside interference.
79.	The international economic situation is gloomy. A perusal of some of the statements made earlier in this Assembly indicates that an economic catastrophe of a global nature is just around the corner. At the sixth special session held in April to consider the item " Study of the problems of raw materials and development", my delegation stated our case for international compensation to those countries that could not with-stand the pressure of the inflation brought about by the general increase in prices of the key inputs required for development. May I be permitted to quote some observations from the statement I made at the special session. I said:
"Owing to their reserves and their vast resources backed by modern technology, the rich nations have been able to cushion the shock of the crisis. On the other hand, the worst victims are the developing countries, in particular the land-locked least developed countries, which find themselves in a situation in which their survival is imperiled unless immediate remedial measures are set in motion."
80.	My delegation also made the suggestion that the United Nations should seriously consider the creation of a special fund for the payment of international compensation to all the severely affected countries to tide them over the present crisis.
81.	The special session of the General Assembly also indicated the countries which have been most seriously affected as being those which are at the greatest disadvantage in the world economy: the least developed, the landlocked and other low-income developing countries, and so on. But the provisional list of countries to benefit from the Special Fund of the Special Program excluded a number of land-locked and least developed countries. We hope the Ad Hoc Committee on the Special Program set up within the framework of the Program of Action on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order will not fail to recommend the States which are in need of immediate assistance to mitigate their difficulties.
82.	Although the process of socio-economic development was initiated in Bhutan only in 1961 we have achieved good progress within a short span of time. In spite of this progress, we are at present confronted with difficulties in implementing the projects envisaged in the Five-Year Plans. These problems have been caused by runaway inflation, the increasing cost of transportation and the present rise in the cost of key materials and commodities. These difficulties tend to retard the progress of our development efforts towards self-reliance. Bhutan has no key materials to export which could alleviate the burden.
83.	Bearing all these factors in mind, my delegation will watch with interest the shape of things to come and the framework of the global economic order which emerges, including the reforms of the world monetary system.
84.	Countries which are producers of a single commodity have become fabulously rich overnight. The transfer of monetary reserves, not only from the rich countries but also from the poor countries, to the few producers of that commodity does not appear to conform to any generally accepted economic or moral principles as understood in this decade. If the world economy is not to collapse although signs of its collapse are not wanting bringing in its wake untold sufferings for the millions of people in the third world, drastic remedies on an international scale are called for.
85.	Bhutan was unable to attend the United Nations World Population Conference held at Bucharest in August. Nevertheless, we have made a preliminary examination of the report on the world Program of Action finally adopted by the Conference.5 While some of the principles of the world Program of Action are generally acceptable to us, we require more time to scrutinize the implications of the report. It is realized that a land-locked State like Bhutan should view the problem of a population explosion with due caution. In the view of my delegation the population question is linked with the problem of world food, and we look upon the inter connexion as an inevitable corollary to the increasing population and gradual decline in resources. We are happy that the World Food Conference will be IWd in Rome next month. Our delegation will be participating in the deliberations with keen interest to find solutions to the grave problems facing such a large portion of mankind.
86.	My delegation has been taking a keen interest in the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. The sea-bed and ocean floor and the subsoil thereof beyond the limits of national jurisdiction have been declared by this General Assembly to be the common heritage of mankind [resolution 2749 (XXV)]. There is no doubt that this should be the key concept of any legal order that is to govern the sea and the ocean floor. Indeed, any efforts to deviate from this principle would jeopardize the hopes and the fulfillment of the needs of the developing countries, particularly the landlocked States and other States at a disadvantage geographically. The session of the Conference held at Caracas has contributed a great deal towards bringing about a comprehensive legal order. It is the hope of my delegation that during the next session, which will take place at Geneva, the needs of the various interest groups will be taken fully into account irrespective of their size and geographical position. The urgency of the situation demands that international agreement be arrived at as early as possible. However, this should not be taken to mean compromising unduly the legitimate aspirations of the developing countries. We must bring into existence a strong international regime on rational and equitable lines for the benefit of all nations. My delegation would like to stress with all emphasis that we must not make the heritage of mankind the subject of unilateral acts by either coastal States or major maritime Powers. My delegation would be willing to contribute towards bringing about a just and equitable law of the sea.
87.	My delegation maintains that the United Nations is doing the best it can with the contributions of the
Member States. Its achievements, whether in the political, economic or social sphere, are many and varied. For the economic and social development of the third world it is imperative that conflict situations, local wars and violations of human rights be eliminated. On the question of eliminating them, and ensuring human survival in reasonable conditions, the Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, in the introduction to his report on the work of the Organization, has stated:
"The basic question for the United Nations and its Members, therefore, continues to be whether the necessary effort and political will can be mustered in time to make the Organization effective in meeting the overwhelming problems of our time." [A I9601J Add. I, sect. /.]
88.	I earnestly hope that the necessary efforts and the political will be forthcoming, and I would like to conclude my statement on this note of cautious optimism.