288.	At the outset, I wish to reaffirm the faith of the Government and people of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the principles and ideals of the United Nations. The political and economic relevance of this Organization in the world situation of today stands beyond doubt.
289.	The thirty-third session of the General Assembly must give further strength and impetus to the role of the United Nations in an interdependent world. This session has
the good fortune to be working under the able guidance of the Foreign Minister of Colombia, and I would ask you, Sir, to convey to him my warmest congratulations on his unanimous election as President. Much will depend on his wisdom and inspiration; much will also depend on the Secretary-General, whose untiring activities deserve deep appreciation. I wish both of them strength and courage.
290.	On behalf of the Kingdom of the Netherlands I welcome the admission of Solomon Islands to the United Nations.
291.	Speaking for the first time in my capacity as Foreign Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the general debate I am deeply conscious of the continuity and tradition of Netherlands foreign policy through the centuries. Freedom, individual responsibility, tolerance, respect for minorities, and international co-operation have been characteristic of my country and its people. Freedom, prosperity and democracy were not achieved without struggle. Like many of the younger nations of today, we, too, had to go through difficult stages of slow and sometimes painful progress.
292.	Foreign policy in the Netherlands is not a matter of Parliament and Government alone; it is a matter of the people in their daily lives. Questions of human rights, disarmament and development are questions of conscience, often hotly debated in broad layers of our society. Nothing is taken for granted; everything, every issue, is scrutinized in a spirit of global solidarity.
293.	Netherlands foreign policy is aimed at peace, security, the promotion of human rights and the eradication of poverty and inequality. In carrying out its foreign policy, the Netherlands Government is and will be guided by reliability, and will stand by its given word.
294.	Foreign policy is a matter of international solidarity and conscience, but it cannot be divorced from national interest and power. Power, however, must be limited and guided by the human conscience and concern for human rights and individual freedoms. It must be channelled through international agreements and obligations. For the Netherlands., membership in the European Economic Community and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and co-operation in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] is the corner-stone of our foreign policy. We attach great importance to our relations with the third world, the countries of Eastern Europe and the great nations of the Far East. Ultimately, all nations and alliances are bound by the Charter of the United Nations.
295.	My friend and colleague, Mr. Genscher, has addressed this Assembly [8th meeting] on behalf of the countries of the European Community. He has spoken of global interdependence as another and new reality as opposed to the reality of power politics. Indeed, global interdependence might well be the main theme and inspiration of this session of the General Assembly. The world has never before been so conscious of this reality of interdependence both in the political and in the economic sense, but also—and this is new—in the sense of the interdependence of human beings. In matters of peace and security all
nations are affected by strife and conflict elsewhere. Every conflict can become a global conflict. East and West, North and South, are increasingly interwoven. In international economic relations and in matters of development the world has come to realize that growth and prosperity in the industrialized countries are no longer possible without growth and prosperity in the third world. Global economic interdependence has created an additional motive for development co-operation.
296.	But renewed and acute awareness of political and economic interdependence must not distract attention and concern from those who are weak and defenceless, nations as well as people within nations. Awareness of political interdependence must go hand in hand with concern for human rights and basic human needs. Policies of economic co-operation and development based on interdependence must at the same time provide for assistance to the poorest nations, which as yet fall outside the scope of economic interdependence, and for meeting basic human needs.
297.	It is in the context of the theme of interdependence and man that I wish to speak about detente, security and disarmament, the Middle East, human rights and international development. It is against that background that I wish to speak about the role of the United Nations system as an instrument for the management of global interdependence and the rights of man.
298.	The Netherlands Government will continue to strive for detente in Europe on the basis of interdependence and respect for the dignity of man. I am convinced that interdependence will compel us in Europe to search for areas of common interest, and will eventually create a situation in which, despite ideological differences, mutual trust will prevail.
299.	In historical perspective, I consider the Helsinki Final Act to be an instrument of major importance in international co-operation the effects of which will be of lasting significance. The Belgrade review Conference may have failed to produce significant concrete results, yet the process of detente must go on. The participating countries must continue to strive for a peaceful and durable world order.

300.	I consider the Helsinki Final Act to be the comer-stone for a future charter or common constitution for Europe. The Netherlands must insist on the equality and interrelationship of all the elements of the Final Act. In the process of detente and peace, we, as mature nations, must be able to discuss respect for human rights as defined in the Final Act. This is not a return to the cold war. Respect for human rights is an essential element in the process leading towards detente and mutual trust. In an interdependent world, concern for human rights does not stop at national borders. Detente is not a matter for Governments alone; interdependence in Europe is ultimately a matter for every woman and every man.
301.	Interdependence, security and disarmament are closely linked. In the face of the undiminished build-up of conventional and nuclear arms and of the interdependence of the political fate of nations, disarmament is a matter of compelling necessity. But there is also the question of
security, and here lies the dilemma in the quest for disarmament.
302.	The tenth special session of the General Assembly was a step towards disarmament. My assessment of the session is positive. Although some basic problems, in particular the issues of nuclear proliferation and conventional arms control, remained unsolved, the significance of that special session is clear: it created new machinery ensuring a fair balance between deliberation and negotiation. It generated a process of understanding of mutual security concerns. For the first time a comprehensive exchange of views and ideas on disarmament, security and survival has taken place in the General Assembly. The dialogue which began with the tenth special session must continue.
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303.	Much remains to be done to make the world a safer place to live in. Nuclear disarmament is of primary and vital importance. Our concern about the lack of progress in this field is real: we are still waiting for agreement to emerge from a new series of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks; the discussions on the conclusion of a comprehensive test ban are stalling; the negotiations in Geneva on a convention prohibiting chemical weapons have not yet produced tangible results. We have been assured time and again that progress is being made, yet I say with regret that we have been waiting too long for substantive steps to curb the arms race, and in particular the nuclear arms race.
304.	Increased political commitments from all Member States, and especially from the nuclear-weapon States, are essential and urgent if we are to achieve the ultimate goal, which is, in the words of the Final Document, the complete elimination of nuclear weapons. In that respect the Final Document is unambiguous; it is, however, regretfully vague where it deals with the subject of horizontal non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. All efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate existing nuclear arsenals would be in vain and world peace would be in jeopardy if such proliferation were to take place. It is a matter of deep concern to the Netherlands Government that an over-all and meaningful consensus in this vital area could not be achieved.
305.	In forthcoming discussions and negotiations in the new Disarmament Commission, the General Assembly, IAEA and other forums and in bilateral talks, priority must be given to the issue of non-proliferation. I recognize the right of all countries to develop nuclear energy for economic and social development, but the exercise of this right without restraint might lead to nuclear anarchy. Restraints, however, should be freely accepted. A fair balance is needed between the uncontrolled dissemination of nuclear technology and the necessity for restrictions and safeguards. This is a vital issue. A new consensus on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and on non-proliferation of nuclear weapons among all concerned, nuclear and non-nuclear Powers, exporters and importers of nuclear materials and equipment, is urgently called for. The International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Evaluation is one of the instruments to achieve such a consensus. It can contribute to the success of the second Review Conference of-the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, scheduled for 1980.1 urge adequate preparation . and a serious political approach to that conference.
306.	The conflict in the Middle East is still the most dangerous problem in the world today. No other conflict so directly affects world peace and security. No other conflict is so complex, so involved in contradictory claims and rights, so overshadowed by mutual fears and suspicions. My German colleague has stated the position of the nine countries members of the European Community and has thus fully reflected the position of my country.
307.	The Netherlands has strong ties of friendship with the Jewish people which go back to the early days of our nationhood. Let me assure you, Mr. President, and my colleagues of the Arab countries here in this hall, of our equally close ties of friendship with and respect for the peoples of the Arab world. The relations between the Netherlands and the Arab nations and peoples go back many centuries. We want to maintain and develop those relations and that friendship.
308.	The Netherlands eagerly wishes Israel and the Arab nations to live in peace with each other. This will only happen when there is lasting peace between all concerned, including the Palestinian people, and when security is guaranteed to all, Including Israel. The Netherlands is convinced that the participants in the Camp David meetings, to whom Mr. Genscher has already paid the tribute of the members of the Community, were inspired by a sincere desire for such a peace. In that perspective, the results of the Camp David meetings should be regarded as an important step towards that goal.
309.	In addressing myself to the issue of human rights, I am conscious of the complexity of the problem, of its changing, and at the same time expanding, scope in a changing and interdependent world and of the need for constant reappraisal. Respect for and the promotion of human rights are deeply engraved on the conscience of the Netherlands people. Since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, deep changes have taken place. We have witnessed the political emancipation of the third world and the coming to independence of new nations with their own cultural and philosophical backgrounds, new nations still suffering under poverty and economic inequality. There is an increased and encouraging world-wide interest in the issue of human rights. It cannot be denied, however, that there is an undertone of mistrust in the position of many developing countries with regard to the position of others on human rights. The adoption, last year, of resolution 32/130 clearly posed the problem of economic and social rights as distinct from and, at least in the view of some, opposed to political rights. The issue is serious. The Netherlands is ready to face this challenge of new thinking on human rights. I recognize the interdependence of political, economic and social rights. Indeed, the preambles to the two International Covenants on Human Rights are identical. I recognize that the social and economic emancipation of developing countries is an indispensable element of the promotion of human rights. One cannot urge respect for political rights if one is not prepared to work for the realization of economic and social rights. The Netherlands will, therefore, pursue its active development co-operation policy. At the same time we shall continue to advocate respect for the essential rights of the individual, not only because of their intrinsic value but also because we believe that, ultimately and in accordance with
article 28 of the Universal Declaration, political freedom is indispensable for human development in all other fields.
310	The United Nations can be proud of its achievements in setting norms and standards concerning human rights, starting with the adoption of the Universal Declaration nearly 30 years ago. With the entry into force of the two International Covenants on Human Rights and the Optional Protocol to one of them, the international bill of rights that was envisaged by the founders of the United Nations has become operational. There is, however, still work to be done. In particular the General Assembly ought, during this session, to complete the work on the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. Promotion of the equality of man and woman in society still remains, three years after the Mexico Conference,23 a matter of high priority.
311	Promoting actual observance of human rights has proved to be even more difficult for the United Nations than the drawing up of norms and rules. It is frustrating to see the United Nations powerless in the face of gross and persistent violations of human rights and cases of massive cruelty bordering on genocide. It is no less frustrating to see that in some cases the United Nations is reluctant even to discuss such situations. But, as pointed out by the Secretary-General /see A/33/1, sect. VIII], some progress was made over the past year, as witnessed by the visit to Chile of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Situation of Human Rights in Chile, the first instance of on-the-spot investigation, and by the fact that the human rights situation in several countries is being actively considered by the Commission on Human Rights.
312.	Thirty years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration, the United Nations should now further develop this potential for the actual promotion and protection of human rights. I remain convinced that a United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights would add significantly to this potential. The fight against racism and racial discrimination is a major objective of the United Nations. I regret that the recent world conference against racism took a course with which my country, along with several others, was unable to associate itself. However, this outcome will not deflect my country from its determination to fight racism and racial discrimination.
313.	The position of the nine States members of the European Community on the issue of apartheid—one of the most serious cases of gross violation of human rights—has been clearly stated by the Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany. He declared that the nine members are using their influence to bring about a change so that the State guarantees the enjoyment of human rights to all and ensures that they can all live together as equal citizens.
314.	Influence can be exerted by persuasion and by pressure. We have seriously and honestly tried to engage in a meaningful dialogue with South Africa, but it takes two to hold a true dialogue.
315.	I had hoped that a peaceful solution of the question of Namibia reached in co-operation with the South African Government might have generated confidence and opened the way to developments in South Africa itself. However, the decision taken last week by the South African Government, in incomprehensible blindness to political reality, seems to indicate that South Africa wishes to pursue a collision course. I emphatically endorse what Mr. Genscher said about Namibia. The South African decision must be rejected as irresponsible and dangerous to peace and security.
316.	If South Africa chooses to isolate itself from the world community, the only possible course of action will be to exert pressure on it. Quite apart from compliance with the mandatory arms embargo, the Netherlands Government has already demonstrated by a series of voluntary measures taken either unilaterally or in co-operation with its partners in the European Community that it is ready to apply pressure on the Government of South Africa. Up till now those measures have fallen short of economic sanctions. I realize that such sanctions can be effective only under Chapter VII of the Charter or, in the case of voluntary measures, if applied by a sufficient number of those countries which have the potential to exert effective pressure.
317.	Time is running out. South Africa will have to change its policy of racial discrimination. If it does not do so, there will be no choice but to increase pressure through economic sanctions. In that case, the Netherlands will promote and support such a policy.
318.	It is in particular with regard to international development co-operation that the world is becoming acutely aware of the interdependence between the developing countries and the industrialized nations of both the West and the East.
319.	In the Netherlands development co-operation and development aid continue to receive priority in government policy. Last week my Government announced in Parliament cut-backs in public expenditure in all sectors except development aid. In conformity with the agreed target of the International Development Strategy for the Second United Nations Development Decade [resolution 2626 (XXV)], our development budget in 1979 will remain at the high level of approximately 0.85 per cent of the gross national product in terms of official development assistance.
320.	A major contribution, to co-operation for international development in the framework of growing interdependence was made by the OECD countries in their ministerial session of June last, when they decided on a programme of concerted action to promote growth and prosperity in the whole world economy, directed at growth stimulation in the North as well as in the South, among other things, by an increased transfer of resources. The recovery of the economy of the OECD countries is obviously of vital importance for the management of the world economy. The Netherlands will actively contribute to this recovery.
321.	I see no contradiction between the concept of growth and global interdependence and the strategy to
eradicate poverty and provide for basic human needs. The development policy of the Netherlands will in fact be guided by both these concepts. We shall strive for selective growth and positive readjustment measures in developed countries, for structural changes in the world economy and, thus, for the realization of the new international economic order. At the same time, the Netherlands policy will be directed at the eradication of mass poverty and unemployment.
322.	The Netherlands Government is deeply concerned at the lack of progress in the dialogue and at the failure of the Committee Established under General Assembly Resolution 32/174 to agree on its mandate and procedure. The General Assembly should without delay resolve the remaining differences of opinion, so that we can proceed with our urgent work on the substance.
323.	The Netherlands Government welcomes the positive outcome of the United Nations Conference on Technical Co-operation among Developing Countries, held at Buenos Aires. In the building of "bridges across the South" a new dimension will be given to the attainment of collective Self-reliance by the developing countries.
324.	The North-South dialogue ought not to deflect attention from creeping protectionism and other negative developments which directly affect the position of developing countries. Timely corrective and preventive measures in this field are at least as important as an increased transfer of resources. Here lies an urgent task for Governments and international organizations and their executive officers, in particular GATT, IMF, UNCTAD, OECD and the United Nations itself.
325.	What is the role of the United Nations in the management of global interdependence—political and economic—and in enhancing the dignity of man in an interdependent world? Has the United Nations the capacity and the strength to deal with the burning issues of today? These questions must be posed in all honesty and sincerity.
326.	The record of the United Nations over the past year shows both positive and negative points. The thirty-second regular session of the General Assembly can be assessed positively. It showed, in the words of its President, "a spirit of co-operation and mutual accommodation".
327.	I see six areas for reflection, reconsideration and, possibly, further action for the United Nations.
328.	First and foremost, it is the duty of all Member States to reassess their own attitude towards the United Nations. If in the past the United Nations has often failed to act effectively in accordance with the objectives of the Charter, Member States themselves must be blamed for their failure to carry out the recommendations which they themselves sometimes solemnly had approved. Members should have more frequent and earlier recourse to the United Nations and, in particular, to the Security Council and the International Court of Justice.
329.	The second area is that of peace-keeping operations. There is, in my view, a new consensus emerging on
peace-keeping operations. The record of the last few years is positive. The United Nations has shown itself capable of setting up in various circumstances effective peace-keeping forces, and satisfactory procedures for cost-sharing have been agreed upon. On behalf of the European Community, my German colleague announced an initiative of its nine members on peace-keeping [AISPC/33/L.19]. The time is ripe for further action.
330.	The third is the area of human rights. The recognition of interdependence will lead us nowhere without a recognition of human rights. The capacity of the United Nations to deal with human rights issues must be strengthened. The potential is there. It must be used and strengthened.
331.	The Fourth area concerns the role and functions of the Secretary-General and the executive heads of the United Nations system. I firmly believe in the scope and possibilities for leadership and action by a strong and devoted international civil service. There is a close interaction between Member States on the one hand and the organizations and their executives on the other. Executive leadership can and must influence and guide action by member Governments. I urge the Secretary-General to continue to search for new initiatives. The Charter has given him the necessary power and authority. I urge him to use that power. Governments should be ready to support and follow him.
332.	The Fifth is co-ordination and co-operation within the United Nations system. It is an anomaly that, while in numerous resolutions Member States are called upon to co-operate, the organizations of the United Nations system seem to attach too much importance to guarding their autonomy. Rivalry between international organizations belonging to the same system must come to an end. I call upon the Administrative Committee on Co-ordination urgently to tackle the problem of co-ordination and the cohesion of the United Nations system.
333.	Sixthly, the uncontrolled proliferation of international organizations is creating problems of overlap and co-ordination. There is a lack of co-operation between United Nations organizations and organizations outside the system, including the non-governmental organizations, which I consider very important. The time has come to take stock of the situation and to start working for the consolidation of the family of international organizations.
334.	To conclude, all nations and peoples are bound by the Charter of the United Nations. Peace, development and the dignity of man are interdependent. The recognition of this interdependence should guide us daily and be an inspiration for the General Assembly.


112.	I should like at the outset to convey to Mr. Lievano through you, Sir, the warm congratulations of the delegation of Burma on his election as President of the thirty-third session of the General Assembly, and to assure him of our full co-operation in the discharge of the responsibilities of his high office. We are confident that under his able guidance we can look forward to a successful conclusion to our deliberations.
113.	We owe a special debt of. thanks to our outgoing President, Mr. Lazar Mojsov, for the outstanding skill with which he presided over the deliberations of the last regular session, as well as the three very important special sessions of the General Assembly held during the year.
114.	We are also happy to take this opportunity to offer our felicitations and friendly greetings to the delegation of Solomon Islands, whose members have taken their place among us for the first time. The addition of each new Member State is an advance along the path to the universality of this Organization.
115.	The United Nations was founded a little over three decades ago with 51 Member States. Today it is nearly three times larger in size and symbolizes the conscious
theme of the universal brotherhood of man. To come to the General Assembly each year is to sense the growth of the world community and the continuity of the process towards the betterment of human relationships. The importance of the United Nations is thus underlined as a focus and framework within which the conflicting interests of States may find a degree of order and harmony.
116.	This optimism becomes somewhat dimmed when we reflect on the current course of international developments. Much has happened in the period since we met in the Assembly last year and we cannot fail to notice some very disquieting features that dominate the international scene today.
117.	As everyone knows, there have been major shifts in world political alignments, and international relationships have reached a disturbing degree of complexity. These relationships are markedly worsening in the highly important area of relations among major Powers. As a consequence, the struggle for strategic strongholds and spheres of influence has once again come to the fore, with a growing tendency towards extraregional intervention, notably in the regions of Africa and Asia. This imperils the national independence and peaceful development of smaller and lesser nations. It is also evident that long-standing areas of crisis have become aggravated, and dormant disputes and enmities have surfaced into local armed conflicts.
118.	These adverse trends in the international setting do not augur well for peace and security. So long as no effective solution can yet be devised for the major contentious issues which are besetting nations, they will continue to place a heavy strain on our present-day world.
119.	The principal problems to which the General Assembly will be directing its mind are not new, but are nearly as old as the United Nations itself. We refer here to the situation in the Middle East, the problems of southern Africa, the question of disarmament and the problems of world economic relations. For the first time in several years, we note that there is some visible indication that more headway is being made on these questions.
120.	The Middle East continues to command world attention. Some unexpected impulses have brought about a new tempo in peace initiatives, which have the merit of breaching for the first time the emotional barriers set up in the region. On the other hand, the needs and interests of many nations within and around the Middle East are greatly compounded. It appears, therefore, that a viable solution would be difficult to attain, unless it be the result of a collective approach and be comprehensive in nature.
121.	The delegation of Burma supports the view that the United Nations provides the most acceptable framework within which all parties should seek a solution to the Middle East problem. Clear guidelines have already been formulated in relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security Council. A sound basis exists in Security Council resolution 242 (1967), which rightly calls for the withdrawal of Israeli aimed forces from Arab territories occupied in 1967. It also calls for the termination of the state of belligerency and the recognition of the right of Israel to exist as a State.
122.	The delegation of Burma considers that a just and lasting settlement of the Middle East problem does not depend on the principles of the above resolution alone. Such a settlement also requires a solution of the Palestine question, which in turn means recognition of the right of the Palestinian people to an independent State.
123.	Africa today constitutes the focus of international action. The area is one of crisis in which local conflicts tend to become prone to extraregional intervention, with all the elements of power-bloc rivalry. Such exercise of political pressure can only increase the range and level of tension in Africa and obstruct the United Nations ideal of international peace and security.
124.	In southern Africa the process of decolonization has entered a new phase. In Namibia the continuing struggle of the liberation movements and the active support of the United Nations have led to the point where the illegal minority racist regime in power can no longer deny the Territory's right to become free and independent.
125.	For Namibia the year 1978 marks a historic point in its march to independent statehood. In pursuance of its resolution 385 (1976), the Security Council has recently decided to take practical measures for the independence of Namibia at the earliest possible date. However, even at this last stage, the South African regime in power continues to hamper the process by trying to impose conditions on United Nations efforts.
126.	The delegation of Burma stands by the United Nations position that South Africa's occupation of Namibia is illegal and that SWAPO is the authentic liberation movement of the Namibian people. We fully support the Security Council's call in its resolution 431 (1978) for free elections in Namibia under the supervision and control of the United Nations, and we agree that Namibia's territorial integrity and unity should be assured through the reintegration of Walvis Bay within its territory.
127.	The present situation in Zimbabwe is one of mounting unrest and violence. Considerable efforts have been invested both inside and outside the United Nations to bring about a negotiated internationally acceptable settlement based on the transfer of power to the majority which would rule. But the illegal racist regime in power has ignored world public opinion in its unilateral action of imposing a deceptive internal settlement.
128 The delegation of Burma considers that there can be no lasting solution unless all nationalist leaders, including the leaders of the Patriotic Front, are involved in the transition to majority rule. Burma has associated itself with all, Security Council decisions concerning the complete severance of all political and economic relations with the illegal racist minority regime.
129. Burma has also faithfully implemented all United Nations decisions on South Africa, where there is as yet no sign of turning away from the basic policy of apartheid, which is institutionalized racial discrimination. Instead, massive reprisals have been taken against those who oppose apartheid. Burma severed all trade relations with South Africa in 1962. This year the necessary official action has
been taken in application of the Security Council's mandatory arms embargo against that country.
130.	The delegation of Burma firmly reiterates its support for the struggle of the people of Namibia and Zimbabwe for independence under majority rule as well as the struggle of the people of South Africa against apartheid and the policy of racism
131.	There are two sets of comments which the delegation of Burma would like to make as we reflect on the problems of disarmament.
132.	The world's major problem today is the urgency of halting the arms race and initiating the process of disarmament. Since the end of the Second World War the central issue of world concern has been the possibility of general nuclear war and the vital importance to human survival of avoiding such a tragedy. But this world-wide anxiety has been heightened over more than three decades by an unabated nuclear-arms race. The tremendous cost of the arms race and the range and destructive power of the weapons systems that have been devised are bewildering to the human mind. The futility and wastefulness of this becomes even clearer when we consider the fact that the opponents already have the capacity to destroy each other and even an over-kill capacity. Moreover, with every advance in the scientific and technological development of strategic weapons the process of negotiation on arms control and disarmament becomes increasingly complex and difficult. The fact is that the armaments race has become one of the greatest scourges of humanity and constitutes an obstacle to the improvement of the world's political relations and its economic development. Unless we can achieve some early steps to halt and reverse the arms race, fire ultimate objective of ensuring general and complete disarmament may recede further and prove elusive for ever Today the overriding imperative is to explore every avenue and method to bring the principal nuclear Powers into a binding agreement and a solemn undertaking to assure the international community that a nuclear confrontation will not take place.
133.	This year's tenth special session of the General Assembly, on disarmament, provided a forum for the world community to demonstrate Its awareness of and concern at the unprecedented level and intensity of the arms race and the potential danger it poses for the security of mankind. The Final Document [resolution S-10J2/ provides an integrated and universal strategy for disarmament that enjoys the widest international acceptance known to date. Although it is the product of compromise and accommodation, the Final Document is a positive step forward. The United Nations, as the most representative and universal forum of today, has been brought into closer association with world disarmament processes. This marks a new departure in disarmament negotiations.
134.	The task before the international community now is to translate into reality the principles and objectives embodied in the Final Document. The highest priority has been given to nuclear disarmament, and the principal nuclear Powers have a special responsibility to lead the way. If those Powers could take positive steps to halt and reverse the nuclear-arms race, that would imply a change in their
attitudes and policies and would significantly affect future developments in the field of disarmament. Progress or the lack of progress in disarmament measures depends very much on the international behaviour of the principal nuclear Powers.
135.	As everyone knows, the world economy is in a state of flux and remains unpredictable. Economists the world over seem to be in a dilemma over what steps should be taken to overcome the immediate pressures of world-wide inflation and monetary instability, declining growth rates, the increasing burden of debt on many countries, growing protectionism and the deteriorating balance in international trade and payments. No one has yet come forward with a viable solution to these problems.
136.	The latent instability and the frequent recurrent crises in the world economy more than ever indicate that the present international economic system no longer serves the compelling demands of the times. In view of the reality of the existence of fundamental and structural defects in the present system, it is imperative to restructure the world economy in order to resolve the inequalities and imbalances in international economic relations.
137.	The establishment of the New International Economic Order cannot be delayed any longer. If we indulge too much in the luxury of elaborating details and means of achieving that goal, there is the danger that we may lose sight of the objective itself. Above all, what is required in the initial stage is political will on the part of those who can contribute much to the realization of the New International Economic Order.
138.	We are all aware of the growing interdependence of the international economy. The economies of both the developed and the developing world are becoming highly interdependent. Yet the world economy lacks an effective mechanism for mutual co-operation and benefit. The North-South dialogue, conducted with the main objective of setting up a just and equitable economic order, has resulted in a stalemate. The concerted action and strategy of the industrially developed countries to solve the world's basic economic issues have thus far produced few significant results. The Second United Nations Development Decade is coming to a close, but the objectives of the International Development Strategy for the 1970s have hardly been fulfilled.
139.	We welcome the General Assembly's decision to convene a special session in 1980 to assess the progress made in the various-forums of the United Nations system, to realize the establishment of the New International Economic Order and to take appropriate action for the promotion of development and international economic co-operation, including the adoption of a new international development strategy for the 1980s.
140.	There can be no doubt that the transformation of the world economic system is already well on the way towards a greater measure of equality in the life of nations in an interdependent world. Although at present it would seem that nothing of particular importance has happened that might be conducive to the solution of the major problems that confront the developing countries and the entire
international community, the most cogent fact is the growth of an awareness of the need for concerted action in all sectors of economic life. This, we believe, opens up a hopeful prospect that the international community may be able to come up with negotiable answers, new attitudes and new decisions leading towards the establishment of the New International Economic Order which we all seek to create.
141.	The delegation of Burma believes that the deliberations we shall have during this session of the General Assembly will lead to a better appreciation of the problems which confront the international community and the measures required to solve them. We very much hope that our efforts and deliberations will be fruitful and of benefit to all Members of the United Nations.


290.	for 30 years the nations have been sending their representatives to meet in this palatial building, which has, as a rest' , become a place for dialogue and discussion among men of goodwill in the quest for peace in political affairs, unity in the struggle against hunger and malnutrition, solidarity in the distribution of the wealth of the world which has, alas, become the close field of war, egotism and division.
291.	The international community, today as yesterday, is unfortunately confronted with tests of every kind, and the purpose of our gathering is to search for solutions to crises dangerously threatening peace and security in the world.
292.	The thirty-third session of the General Assembly of our Organization opens at a time when the representatives gathered here in full solemnity focus the thoughts they voice on the vital issues disrupting the world today.
293.	The Togolese delegation has come, as in the past, to make a positive contribution to those ideas.
294.	Before proceeding further, I should like, however, to avail myself of the opportunity afforded by this lofty rostrum to congratulate Mr. Li6vano most warmly on his election to the presidency of the thirty-third session of the General Assembly. By entrusting to him the burdens and responsibility of conducting its work, the General Assembly has sought to pay a tribute both to his abilities as a consummate diplomat and, through him, to his country and his distinguished President, who has succeeded in a short time in forging the destiny of his people and in transforming man's creative freedom into continued incitement to integration of the country's productive forces, and who continues to play a positive and important role in the international arena m the constant search for peace, unity and solidarity among the peoples of the world and in the relations among States.
295.	Therefore, we are proud to affirm our conviction that the General Assembly's present deliberations will have a happy outcome. The Togolese delegation will collaborate in the accomplishment of this exalting but difficult task.
296.	The outgoing President, Mr. Lazar Mojsov, imparted a high decorum to the debates of the thirty-second regular session and the three special sessions that followed. He showed in full measure his competence as the accomplished diplomat that we all know him to be. That is why I wish to take this opportunity to convey to him our most heartfelt congratulations.
297.	Allow me also to tender to Mr. Kurt Waldheim the congratulations of the Togolese Government on his unremitting efforts and ceaseless endeavours for peace in the world, where, regrettably, dangerous hotbeds of tension still exist. We pay to the Secretary-General our sincere tribute for his highly commendable action.
298.	May I also be permitted to salute, on behalf of the Government and people of Togo, Solomon Islands, which we welcome in our midst as the one hundred and fiftieth Member of our Organization.
299.	This year again the world views with anxiety the recrudescence of the points of crisis in the world. Security, peace and co-operation are again threatened, and the international community stands helpless before the evils that beset it. In its disarray it turns its eyes towards our Organization.
300.	The United Nations must rediscover the necessary resources, the indispensable impetus, that will help it remember the causes of the many convulsions tearing our contemporary world asunder. It must first persuade all Member States fully to assume their responsibilities and to give proof of a political will powerful enough to transcend their differences, in order to concentrate all the required attention on the grave issues afflicting the world today, which are capable of affecting international peace and security unless appropriate solutions are found.
301.	The world today is an interdependent world, and it urgently needs peace, unity and solidarity in order to devote its energies to the international co-operation that is becoming each day more indispensable.
302.	In this connexion, it is regrettable to note that the world, far from having understood the need for that co-operation, stands complacently by while useless hotbeds of tension grow in numbers, thus creating a flagrant contradiction between the desire of the peoples of the world for peace, unity and solidarity and the permanent state of belligerence which hangs over our world.
303.	The problems of southern Africa, the Western Sahara, the Middle East and Korea are involved in that contradiction.
304.	In southern Africa the paralysing indecision of the principal Powers involved in the settlement of the crisis there and their obvious inability to assume their responsibilities vis-à-vis the peoples of Zimbabwe and Namibia, who still languish under the abject yoke of colonialism, have engendered the suffering and rebellion of millions of human beings who ask only to live in freedom, peace and unity with all the other peoples of the region.
305.	The delaying tactics of Ian Smith, at bay in Zimbabwe, undoubtedly reflect the insolence of a man accustomed never to look truth in the face. The negative attitude of the leaders of the white minority in that country cannot but strengthen the international community's support for the national movement'; which struggle to regain their freedom. The increasingly deceitful tactics used by Ian Smith should lead us to impose a stricter application and more consistent implementation of the
sanctions against his regime. They are an additional reason why we should call on the Patriotic Front to be more vigilant in ensuring its ranks a greater unity, transcending internal differences, in order to face the common enemy-namely, the racist minority regime in Salisbury.
306.	In Namibia, Pretoria stubbornly endeavours by successive twists and turns to delay the accession of that country to full sovereignty, and tries, by rearguard actions, to take Walvis Bay away from Namibia, thus seeking to deal a serious blow at the territorial integrity of that country. The international community should no longer remain powerless but should do everything in its power to ensure the application in its entirety of the Declaration and Programme of Action adopted at the ninth special session on Namibia. By so doing, it will renew its support for the freedom lighters of SWAPO, the sole representative of the Namibian people, which is struggling for freedom and the integrity and independence of that country.
307.	The situation in South Africa has scarcely changed since our last regular session. It is obvious to the international community that the inhuman apartheid regime continues to hold sway with all its shameless cynicism and barbarity.
308.	How long must the international community endure the affronts of the heinous Pretoria regime, which persists in defying the whole world by its retrograde racist policy and in multiplying its acts of provocation and aggression against the peaceful population of the neighbouring States?
309.	The Togolese Government has never failed to uphold the view that apartheid will not die a natural death and that, as long as the economic and political sanctions adopted by our Organization and many international conferences are not fully applied by all States, the racist minority will continue to subject the black majority to oppression and inhuman torture.
310.	In this connexion, we note with regret that certain Member States have expressed their refusal to give the recent Geneva World Conference to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination the full weight that it deserves.
311.	While the large majority of the peoples of the world suffer from malnutrition, disease and other scourges, we see certain Powers involved in an unbridled armaments race involving ever more sophisticated weapons.
312.	This race has led them to perfect devices capable of killing man and sparing die environment.
313.	What does this diabolical refinement mean if it is to preserve an environment without a soul? This is the problem posed by the discovery of the neutron bomb. The fact that mankind has had to start a debate on its own survival, as threatened by its own discoveries, reflects the anguish in which millions of human beings live. It is more indicative of a state of decadence than of a necessary stage in the progress of mankind.
314.	The neutron bomb raises a problem of conscience for the whole of mankind. Thus human life is relegated to the lowest level in the scale of values.
315.	It is in this context that South Africa, of whose bellicose attitude based on racial hatred everyone is aware, is also trying to acquire nuclear weapons.
316.	The height of absurdity is that in this Satanic undertaking South Africa, the kingdom of apartheid, enjoys the goodwill and co-operation of countries which are well placed to draw the lessons of history and to measure the dreadful consequences of war.
317.	Our Organization is now at a crossroads and its responsibility has increased tenfold. It must ensure scrupulous respect for the territorial integrity of States. It must defend all countries, large and small. That is why the Togolese Government is profoundly convinced that France, in agreement with the international community, will assume its responsibility to ensure, in regard to the Comorian island of Mayotte, respect for the principle of the territorial integrity of States Members o- our Organization, and will enable the young Republic of Comoros resolutely to tackle its urgent development problems.
318.	With respect to the Western Sahara, we hope that reason will prevail, that the initiatives to be taken on the basis of the principle - of the right of peoples to self-determination will lead to positive results and that peace will return to that region.
319.	The Togolese Government, which has always supported the principle of self-determination of peoples, again proclaims its resolute opposition to the unlawful occupation of foreign territories by other States.
320.	Israel's obstinacy in occupying by force the territories of other States in the Middle East represents inadmissible contempt for the sacred principles of our Organization's Charter. The situation of latent war that results is an almost permanent threat to international peace and security. As long as the Arab and Palestinian territories remain occupied, the imperialist expansionist policy pursued by Israel as it tramples underfoot the principles of our Organization will be rejected by the large majority of States. The Togolese Government subscribes to the idea of there being a resumption of the dialogue between all the parties concerned, with the effective participation of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the legitimate representative of-the Palestinian people, which must recover its national inalienable rights, and first and foremost its right to a homeland.
321.	That is why the international community must bring Israel to reason in order that it may weigh the seriousness of the situation prevailing in the Middle East and work in all good faith for a return to peace in that part of the world in conformity with the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and other United Nations bodies.
322.	Similarly, the search for a peaceful solution to the Cyprus question necessarily involves the implementation of Security Council resolution 365 (1974) and General Assembly resolution 3212 (XXIX) by the two communities living in that State. But the implementation of those decisions can be effective only if there is an immediate withdrawal of all foreign forces from Cyprus followed by the adoption of specific measures to facilitate the return to the island of all refugees.
323.	Thus it is obvious that the Togolese Government encourages the resumption of negotiations between the Greek and Turkish communities under the aegis of the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
324.	With respect to the problem of the Far East, we reaffirm our firm opposition to manoeuvres designed to impose recognition of the fait accompli of the fictitious' creation of two Korean entities. We again express our total support for the Korean people as a whole in their just struggle for the peaceful reunification and independence of their country.
325.	It is also in conformity with its credo "Peace, union and solidarity" that Togo supports the Indian Ocean being a zone of peace outside the military rivalry of the great Powers.
326.	We have the impression that certain Powers take pleasure in setting mankind on the road to self-destruction. We fail to understand their vicious tendency to play with the fire of war and the arms race.
327.	The international community must bring the armaments merchants to reason. It was with every justification that, at its tenth special session devoted to disarmament, the General Assembly insisted that to be lasting peace must necessarily be based on full disarmament in order to halt the unbridled, senseless arms race that would lead to a holocaust, and relieve mankind from the terrible threat of a calamity that has long been hanging over our heads.
328.	This need to halt the arms race is all the more urgent because the world economic situation has languished since the oil crisis of 1973.
329.	Mr. President, in your remarkable inaugural address  you made an especially brilliant, realistic and edifying analysis of the international economic situation.
330.	The situation of the developing countries continues to deteriorate. While in all international forums there is unanimity on the need to replace the old economic order with a spectrum of more coherent and better organized relations that effectively reflect the concerns of the large majority of mankind, the solutions advocated thus far remain inoperative because the wealthy countries continue at all costs to endeavour to safeguard their selfish interests by putting a brake on any attempt to speed up the establishment of a new, more equitable and hence more just international economic order.
331.	It is true that goodwill has been shown throughout the world. There has been intensive activity, and research has been undertaken in many areas, making it possible to identify possible areas for the development of the world in the next few years. The majority of the conclusions arrived at in those studies show an accentuation of the imbalances between the "haves" and the "have-nots". The frustrations resulting from such a development may well compromise the possibility of a dialogue and will certainly lead the rich and the poor countries into a confrontation the consequences of which cannot be foreseen. International economic relations, the transfer of technology, financial
flows and the terms of trade may, unless we are careful, be aggravated and may disrupt the world even further.
332.	It is more than urgent to find a rapid solution to the crisis in the international monetary system, which was seriously shaken in 1971. This state of affairs is of particular concern to the countries of the third world because of the serious harm it causes their development. In
' fact, the monetary instability with which the world appears to live complacently is detrimental to the developing countries and causes losses in hard currency that are accentuated through unchecked speculative movements.
333.	The serious deterioration in their balance of payments has considerably minimized, some drastically, their possibilities of development. That is why they have become aware of the need to abandon the obsolete mechanisms that have thus far governed international economic relations. They are now seeking solutions likely to put an end to disorder and the confusion that has characterized world economic relations, in order to prepare together the course to be followed in the future within a more balanced economic order. That is why the countries of the third world have undertaken intensive activities of concentration in order to affirm, more adequately than in the past, the interdependent nature of their development, so as to reduce their dependency on the developed world. Their solidarity and determination have been underscored on a number of occasions, especially at the three most recent meetings of UNCTAD and in other international forums.
334.	This solidarity has already, following the oil crisis of 1973, at the sixth special session of the United Nations General Assembly in April and May 1974 and at the seventh special session in September 1975, led to the adoption of the historic resolutions on the establishment of a new international economic order [resolutions 3201 (S-VI), 3202 (S-VI) and 3362(S-VII)], creating the framework for the application of the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States [resolution 3281 (XXIX)].
335.	Equity, equality, sovereignty, interdependence and co-operation among all States—the slogan of the new international economic order—remain deadlocked within the attempts to give them effect because of the stubborn insistence of rich countries on tinkering with the situation.
336.	So long an the imbalance between the "haves" and the "have-nots" continues peace, unity and solidarity among peoples will not exist.
337.	Peoples want progress and not an obstinate race towards the destruction of mankind. The peoples of the world aspire to serenity, quiet and peace in order to construct a better world. They do not want the world to be destroyed by these deadly weapons. The peoples of the world want to safeguard the human community, not to reduce it to chaos through Satanic discoveries. Yes, men want peace to ensure their full development. Yes, men want to live in unity to combat the scourges, calamities and disasters that beset mankind. They do not want to destroy human life and not, scattered and isolated, to confront the innumerable difficulties and obstacles to human life.
338.	Yes, men aspire to a common approach to the resources of the world and condemn the obsolete selfishness shamelessly advocated by some to the detriment of the interests of the majority of the peoples of the world.
Peace, union, solidarity: this is the moving appeal of the people of Togo and of its leader. General Gnassinge Eyadema, to all the peoples of the earth, so that together we may build the world of tomorrow, a world in which there is no spectre of war, division or selfishness.


1.	On behalf of the delegation of Uganda, I should like to congratulate you, Sir, most sincerely on your well-deserved election as President of the thirty-third regular session of the United Nations General Assembly. Your election is a fitting tribute not only to your country but also significantly to your eminent qualities as a statesman, diplomat and academician.
2.	We should also like to congratulate your predecessor, Deputy Federal Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Yugoslavia, Mr. Lazar Mojsov, on the excellent manner in which he presided over the thirty-second regular session and the special sessions of the General Assembly this year.
3.	We pay a tribute to our Secretary-General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, for the dedication and efficiency with which he continues to lead our Organization. The personal commitment of the Secretary-General to the solution of problems of decolonization, international economic co-operation and international peace and security, among others, convinces us that, given the political will necessary for the implementation of United Nations decisions on the part of ail of us, success is not out of sight.
4.	At this session we are pleased to welcome Solomon Islands, which has joined the world Organization as its one hundred and fiftieth Member, and we look forward to fruitful co-operation with it.
5.	The question of self-determination and independence in southern Africa and elsewhere is a prime factor in the formulation and execution of Uganda's foreign policy. That is why in an international forum of this nature it is essential that we reaffirm our total commitment to and support for the struggle for self-determination and majority rule in Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. There is no need to stress our conviction that our brothers and sisters in southern Africa must attain the freedom and liberties which are the legitimate right of all peoples.
6.	The ordeals suffered by the peoples of Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa under the racist and rebel regimes are too well known to this Assembly and do not need to be reiterated. Equally well known are various declarations and resolutions arrived at in various international forums. Of common knowledge, too, are decisions emanating from such declaration's and resolutions.
7.	Uganda pledges itself, just as it has always done, to extend total support to any such decisions which are geared towards the goal of total independence for the people of Namibia and Zimbabwe and the end of apartheid in South Africa within the shortest possible time.
8.	It may be recalled that in 1966, by General Assembly resolution 2145 (XXI), South Africa's Mandate over the Territory of Namibia was supposed to be terminated. In the following year a special session of the General Assembly set up the United Nations Council for Namibia to take on full responsibility for the Territory until independence [resolution 2248(S-V)J. Both the Security Council and the International Court of Justice endorsed those decisions.
9.	We are convinced that, in spite of the difficulties that have faced the United Nations Council for Namibia since its establishment and despite the atrocities committed daily against the Namibian people by the racist Pretoria regime, victory is round the corner, thanks to the unswerving determination of the people of Namibia under the leadership of the South West Africa People's Organization [SWAPOJ. Indeed, the increased armed struggle by SWAPO, the only authentic representative of the people of Namibia, has demonstrated to the world that the people of Namibia will achieve true and genuine independence. SWAPO's efforts for the cause of independence must therefore be commended.
10.	On behalf of my delegation I wish to restate that my country will continue, within its means, to render unwavering support, both material and otherwise, to SWAPO in this noble struggle. We believe that it is essential for SWAPO to continue the armed struggle despite, and even alongside, the diplomatic offensive.
11.	Whereas we note with appreciation the concern that this Organization has expressed by holding the ninth special session of the General Assembly, on Namibia, as well as Security Council meetings on the Territory, we are seriously concerned at the way racist South Africa is left with liberty to continue its repression of the Namibian people.
12.	In our opinion, the Security Council at its last meeting on Namibia should have come out with a definite stand on racist South Africa rather than merely requesting it to
co-operate in the implementation of Security Council resolution 435 (1978). Should South Africa not take heed of the Security Council decision, we support the stand that the United Nations should take punitive measures, including the invocation of Chapter VII of the Charter. We hope that when that stand is taken those Powers and their transnational corporations which have always opposed the invocation of Chapter VII, because they are leading trading partners of the South African regime, will put the interests of mankind before material advantages.
13.	We support those measures, notwithstanding the fact that it is taboo to advocate such steps in some quarters, which see Namibia and Rhodesia as the cushion or periphery of the Pretoria regime, a regime which must be protected as the custodian of the legacy of imperialist, colonialist and neo-colonialist domination. We oppose that stand. We reject the proposition that nobody should touch the nerve-centre of imperialism and racial hatred, the stage on which the active domination by the Western transnational activities of the continent of Africa, the south Atlantic and the Indian Ocean is enacted.
14.	In spite of all this, is Africa still gullible? Do all believe that those who created the southern African situation, the very ones who are behind the status quo and of whose values South Africa is a legendary example, will turn around to destroy it? This does not appear to be very logical. Of course a change of heart there can be, but if there is such a change it should be manifested in concrete action: action that should involve the ending of support, military, economic and moral, to Pretoria.
15.	It is within the framework of the foregoing thoughts that my country views with scepticism some of the overtures that we have heard of in recent months. Needless to say, we should be very happy if the problem could be solved diplomatically.
16.	We fully support the armed struggle in Zimbabwe and hope that there will be more and more unity emerging within the liberation movement in order to accelerate the freedom and independence of that Territory.
17.	In order to arrest the situation in South Africa, we call upon the international community, through this Assembly, to step up concrete measures that will reinstate social justice in the Territory and peace and security in the entire region.
18.	The situation in the Middle East constitutes a serious threat to international peace and security, and we support the declaration of the non-aligned countries that Palestine is the core of this question [see A/33/279, para. 5J. We believe that no durable peace can be achieved in that part of the globe until Israel withdraws from all occupied Arab territories and the inalienable national and legal rights of the Palestinian people are restored, with freedom to exercise those rights, including the right to return to their homeland, to self-determination and to establish an independent Palestine, with the participation of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole representative of the Palestinian people. We hope that every effort will be exerted by all concerned to avoid further divisions among the Arab peoples during this crucial period.
19.	The world is no nearer to peace and global tranquillity than it has been in the past. Despite attempts to achieve an agreement at the second series of Strategic Arms Limitation Talks between the Soviet Union and the United States of America, we continue at the same time to witness the release of more funds for the further development of even more sophisticated weaponry by those concerned.
20.	My delegation welcomes the Declaration and Programme of Action adopted by the tenth special session of the United Nations General Assembly, devoted to disarmament. We hope that, given the political will, headway towards the achievement of the desired end will be made. We believe that, instead of astronomical amounts of technical and financial resources being diverted to armaments, such resources should be utilized for the socio-economic betterment of poor nations.
21 My delegation views with serious concern trends in the world economic situation whereby the rich developed nations continue to get richer while the poor developing countries are getting poorer. The old international economic system that was designed by the exploiters to serve their own interests, without any regard for the interests of the developing countries, continues to flourish in spite of the landmark consensus decisions of the sixth special session which launched the New International Economic Order.
22.	My delegation is concerned by the intransigence of some developed countries in negotiations regarding the implementation of United Nations decisions concerning the establishment of the New International Economic Order. Our concern is all the greater in view of the worsening economic situation prevailing in most developing countries. The restructuring of the world economic system is not only necessary but also inevitable. Therefore any attempts on the part of some developed countries to frustrate the North-South dialogue and maintain the status quo are doomed to failure.
23.	The developing countries cannot accept the perpetuation of the relationship of dependence which has for long characterized international economic relations. We demand
a system based on equality, fairness and justice in which all countries must participate fully in the decision-making process. The continuation of the existing disparities and inequalities poses a serious threat to international peace and security, without which development efforts cannot succeed.
24.	The stalemate obtaining in the Committee Established under General Assembly Resolution 32/174, sometimes called the Committee of the Whole, over the mandate and functions of that Committee is living testimony to the lack of political will on the part of some developed countries, particularly the major industrialized countries, to engage in the genuine and meaningful negotiations required for the establishment of the New International Economic Order.
25.	The recent break-down in the work of the Committee of the Whole and the failure to agree on the manner in which the Committee should fulfil its mandate are a clear reflection of the reluctance of some developed countries to come to grips with the structural and other changes in international economic relations which are vital not only to the interests of the developing countries but also to the future of the world community.
26.	In this regard we share fully the views of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Group of 77, who in their joint declaration issued on 29 September 1978 (A/33J278} strongly reaffirmed that the United Nations system is the only framework within which all negotiations of a global nature relating to the establishment of the New International Economic Order should take place.
27.	It is against this background of deterioration in the international economic situation and its inherent dangers that Uganda has seen fit actively to encourage and engage in co-operation with other developing countries in the economic, technical and other fields. We firmly believe that the worsening economic conditions of the developing countries can be alleviated through collective self-reliance on the part of the developing countries. Co-operation among developing countries, in our view, offers the most promising way out of the economic plight of those countries. In this regard we fully support and endorse the Plan of Action adopted by the United Nations Conference on Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries.'
28.	We welcome the appointment of one of Africa's outstanding sons, Mr. Kenneth Dadzie, as Director-General for Development and International Economic Co-operation, and it is our earnest hope that he will receive the necessary support from all concerned and that adequate resources will be made available to the Director-General in order to enable him to discharge effectively the heavy responsibilities that have been entrusted to him.
29.	Regarding the law of the sea, Uganda is very much concerned about the slow progress of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. It has almost become an annual jamboree and a heavy drain on the meagre resources of the poor developing countries. Certain developed countries have deliberately obstructed speedy progress in the negotiations while at the same time threatening to "go it alone" and exploit the resources of the deep sea-bed area with total disregard for the principle of the common heritage of mankind. To my delegation, this unilateral action of "going it alone" reminds us of the period of grabbing colonies when some of those same Powers were making such declarations to each other as: "From this mountain to the sea is my colony", and the partitioning of Africa at the Berlin Conference of 1884 and 1885. We earnestly hope that during this period, when we are putting the last nail in the coffin of colonialism, its attributes will not be shifted from the land to the deep sea-bed area. Let us expedite the conclusion of negotiations, which should be carried on by all parties as equal partners in development on behalf of mankind as a whole.
30.	In the social sphere, with regard to the status of women, my Government continues to give top priority to projects and programmes concerning women. We do recognize the United Nations Decade for Women and the
principles laid down in the World Plan of Action for the Implementation of the Objectives of the International Women's Year, adopted by the World Conference of the International Women's Year; held at Mexico City in 1975. To implement that programme, my Government has established a National Council for-Women with a permanent secretariat to provide a single machinery through which the full integration and participation of women in national, regional and international development can be intensified during the Decade for Women. The secretariat is also to facilitate the establishment of, and to work with, the ECA African Training and Research Centre for Women, which will be responsible for research and surveying to identify women's aspirations, needs and problems and to advise Governments on ways and means of solving them.
31.	Equal importance and high priority is given to the over-all integrated services for children within our development programme. It is in this spirit that we welcome the International Year of the Child. During this period, countries will review their programmes for the well-being of children, mobilize support for national and local programmes, heighten awareness among decision-makers and the public of children's special needs and promote the vital link between programmes for children and economic and social progress.
32.	In conclusion, I should like co inform the Assembly that at the beginning of this year my President declared 1978 a year of peace, love, unity and reconciliation. To this end, the Government has been pursuing a policy geared towards the realization of those ideals, both domestically and internationally.
33.	We are confident that with the goodwill and cooperation of the international community we shall be able to succeed.


212.	The opportunity we have at this time to address this illustrious Assembly of the United Nations—the symbol for all the peoples represented here of hope for a future marked by harmony, respect, equality and co-operation among nations—enables us to express cur satisfaction at noting that some progress has been made towards such a future despite the fact that these objectives are still far from being embodied in international practice.
213.	We wish to share in the responsibility, incumbent upon us all, of debating in this forum the topics that we
believe to be fundamental for the progress of mankind. Collective security, peace and development are topics which concern all peoples in this world in which interdependence is becoming an increasingly clear reality. It is with pleasure that we note the consolidation of the principles for which we have always fought and the increasing acceptance of the

aspirations and legitimate demands of the countries of the third world for a greater and more equal participation in the resolution of the problems that trouble us all.
214.	It is in this framework of a progressive and salutary democratization of international relations that we greet the admission of Solomon Islands as the one hundred and fiftieth Member of the United Nations and at the same time we wish its people and Government, as they begin to enjoy the natural euphoria of freedom and the responsibility of an independent life, great success on the long road of progress and development.
215.	Mr. President, your recognized qualities as a statesman and a diplomat experienced in international affairs convince us that the work of this session will be directed with all the skill required by the complexities of the problems we are going to discuss.
216.	We should also like to pay a tribute to the outgoing President, the representative of a country which for many decades has given an example of a consistent policy in defence of international legality. We must recognize that Mr. Mojsov guaranteed the success of the thirty-second session of this Assembly.
217.	It would be no more than simple justice to take advantage of our presence in this Assembly to draw attention to the tireless and skilful work of the Secretary- General, Mr. Kurt Waldheim, who, by his consistent activity in the service of international peace and security and healthy co-operation among nations, has contributed undeniably to the strengthening of the credibility and effectiveness of our world Organization. Therefore we wish to offer to Mr. Waldheim all our support in his efforts to give concrete form to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and we reiterate our constant readiness to take part in joint action by nations in favour of the freedom, independence, development and the well- being of peoples.
218.	We have just left a world in which a fierce struggle was necessary to gain recognition of the rights of peoples to be independent and to choose the ways they consider most suitable for their development.
219.	We are the beneficiaries of this new legality which allows us to believe in the possibility of increasingly peaceful coexistence among countries at different levels of development and with different social structures. We are the beneficiaries of this struggle, which has been our struggle too for a very long time, since it can be asserted that our diplomatic history began, like that of Guinea- Bissau, at the moment when the PAIGC  began the struggle for the independence of our peoples. However, our struggle in fact was merely a concrete expression of the principles which have been reiterated year after year in this Assembly and which are embodied in all the fundamental documents of this Organization.
220.	We believe that we have contributed by our efforts to the effective recognition of these principles, which constitute the basis of the international law of our time.
221.	The geographical situation of my country, at the crossroad? of peoples and continents, constitutes one of its advantages. This position has always enabled Cape Verde to play an important role in bringing peoples together, which is perfectly in keeping with the guiding principles of our policy of non-alignment.
222.	Thus we reaffirm that the Republic of Cape Verde will never shelter foreign military bases or serve as a liaison or support centre for aggressive operations against sovereign peoples and States.
223.	We believe that peace, the necessary condition for development, will become a reality only when the rules established by all are implemented by all and guide the daily relations among nations. That is how we view our participation in the international community.
224.	This Assembly, as in the past, continues to be a forum for repeated condemnation of attempts to perpetuate in Africa anachronistic situations marked by colonial and racist domination and apartheid. The praiseworthy and patient efforts of the international community, an echo of the liberation struggle of the peoples of Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa, which are reflected in the many resolutions of the United Nations condemning the minority regimes of southern Africa, have merely prompted the intensification of the terror inflicted on defenceless populations, the aggression against independent African States, the absolute lack of respect for and permanent defiance of the international community and the desire of the peoples of southern Africa for a life of dignity and peace. The indisputable evidence of this defiance of our world Organization is the recent decision of the South African Government to proceed unilaterally with a process leading to elections in Namibia which will inevitably be falsified, deliberately and dangerously disregarding the legitimate claims of the people of Namibia and its authentic representative, SWAPO, and flouting with barefaced arrogance every initiative aiming at a peaceful transition to independence.
225.	We have always been convinced that the racist and apartheid regimes, since they are working against the tide of history, have never been ready to accept dialogue or to abandon the savage methods by which they trample underfoot the most fundamental human rights and resort systematically to violence against sovereign peoples and States, and this conviction has been reiterated year after year in this Assembly. Recent events persuade us that it is necessary and urgent that the international community multiply, diversify and centralize its efforts to assist SWAPO, the liberation movement fighting for the national independence and the territorial integrity of Namibia.
226.	The people of Zimbabwe today are compelled to try to deal with a new farce: those who practise colonial oppression and defend apartheid have now taken up the banner of majority power and are claiming to lead the process for the transfer of power to the majority, oblivious of the freedom fighters united in the Patriotic Front. The kind of solution that neglects the profound aspirations of the people of Zimbabwe to genuine independence amounts to nothing but ad hoc concessions to the pressure brought to bear by the liberation struggle, which, we solemnly reaffirm, deserves our complete solidarity.
227.	In 1975, when welcoming the independence of Mozambique and Angola, we welcomed at the same time the emergence of a different stage in the struggle of the people of southern Africa. The buffer States disappeared and were replaced by two independent countries, strengthened by the example they gave to others and determined not to accept the situation prevailing south of their borders.
228.	The growing isolation of that bastion of colonialism—to which the efforts made in the United Nations have contributed significantly and were certainly consolidated by the decisions of the recent World Conference to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination and the heroic resistance of the people of South Africa, led by their liberation movements, are driving the regime to exasperation, and, becoming even more defiant, it is systematically committing aggression with impunity against neighbouring countries.
229.	We pay a tribute to those true interpreters of noble objectives who presided over the creation of the highest international body. It is the duty of the international community throughout the International Anti-Apartheid Year and the' Decade for Action to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination to try to find effective ways of further isolating the anachronistic Pretoria regime and wiping out the historic shame of apartheid. Experience shows that this requires the strengthening of the capacity for action of the liberation movements.
230.	In keeping with our experience of the national liberation struggle and as a country recently liberated from colonial oppression after two long decades of political and armed struggle, we understand the true dimensions of the immeasurable suffering imposed on the people of the Western Sahara in its struggle for the liberation of that Territory, which is illegally occupied and divided. Our solidarity with the peoples struggling against all kinds of oppression and opposition to the exercise of their right to self-determination and independence in accordance with General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) reinforces our conviction that the dispute between the Saharan people and those who occupy its national territory can be peacefully and justly resolved only by the effective exercise by that people of their right to determine their own destiny in sovereignty and freedom.
231.	In the same way, we stand shoulder to shoulder with the peoples of East Timor who are fighting for the total realization of their desire for freedom and independence.
232.	In the Middle East, a situation persists which defies the general feeling of the international community, which has been clearly, repeatedly and unambiguously expressed in this Assembly and in other bodies of our Organization. The persistence in a policy of aggression, occupation and expansion, accompanied by attempts to transform demographic, economic, cultural and religious structures of regions conquered by force, represents a flagrant violation of the principles of the United Nations and furthermore constitutes a serious threat to international peace and security.
233.	Since our country is one of the youngest Members of this great family of sovereign and independent nations, and since we received from the United Nations considerable support during our national liberation struggle and even after independence, we are accustomed to viewing the Organization as the main guarantor or' international legality and the defender of the just claims of peoples for a life of peace, justice and progress.
234.	As stubborn defenders of the ideals of the United Nations, of the movements of the non-aligned countries and of the OAU, we note with great concern the acts of aggression committed against Lebanon and the frequent violations of its territorial integrity and sovereignty. All States of the region are entitled to live in peace, independence and security. But a just and lasting peace will never be achieved until Israel decides to withdraw completely from all the Arab territory which it has occupied since 1967 and until it recognizes the legitimate, permanent and inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people and agrees to the effective exercise of those rights, including the right to establish a national and independent State.
235.	We should like to reaffirm our unstinting support of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole legitimate representative of that martyred people, and our conviction that a definitive solution of the problem of the Middle East cannot be found without the active participation of the freedom fighters of the Palestine Liberation Organization on a footing of equality with all other parties directly involved in the conflict. Meanwhile we are following with keen interest the continuing efforts that are being made to try to establish suitable conditions for negotiations which, while respecting the basic and inalienable claims of the Palestinian people, would point the way to a peaceful and just solution.
236.	As we commemorate this year the thirtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, we should like to take this opportunity to express our satisfaction at the positive role which the United Nations has played in the field of human rights. Indeed, the establishment of norms of international law in this connexion, the consecration of the right of peoples to self-determination and independence, and the initiatives taken in the field of the struggle against discrimination, racism, apartheid, torture and crimes against peace and humanity, as well as the special attention accorded to cases of the flagrant violation of human rights, are results of unquestionable importance to the credit of United Nations activity in this field, and it is a pleasure for me to emphasize them here.
237.	The Republic of Cape Verde, the fruit of a genuine battle for human rights consisting in the long and hard political and armed struggle successfully carried out by PAIGC against Portuguese colonialism, can only rejoice at the visibly positive balance-sheet of the activities of our world Organization on behalf of human rights and freedoms.
238.	After independence a new administration was set up in our country based on broad popular participation, which is being restructured and consolidated and which is dedicated to guaranteeing to all citizens fundamental political and civil rights and freedoms. However, we feel that the struggle is continuing beyond the time of national independence, because the question of human rights cannot be dissociated from the economic, social and cultural context. Indeed, the effective, total and conscious exercise of civil and political rights is practically impossible without the establishment of certain basic economic, social and cultural conditions. There is consequently an essential interdependence of fundamental human rights which cannot be ignored.
239.	The struggle for human rights is therefore in our country a process that is still continuing. Internally we are establishing the basis for economic development without which it would be impossible to free man from the spectre of hunger, poverty, disease, ignorance and illiteracy.
240.	On the other hand, the question of human rights goes beyond the purely national sphere and is closely tied to certain questions of an international nature which are among the most important of our time. The effective exercise of human rights is not possible while the present international order persists and while colonialism, racism, apartheid and foreign domination and occupation prevail. However, the extension to the international level of problems of human rights must not make legitimate their use as a means of pressure, which might give rise to a climate of tension in relations between States.
241.	We think that the United Nations should continue to play an important role in the promotion and safeguarding of human rights through the organs that it has set up, whose possibilities have not yet been exhausted and whose effectiveness has already been demonstrated on several occasions.
242.	We should also like to express' our solidarity with those who deplore the incongruity of the fact that in a world where the spectre of hunger afflicts millions of human beings, nations continue year after year to spend enormous sums of money on the manufacture and stockpiling of arms. It is also to be deplored that an increasing part of the trade between nations is made up of the buying and selling of military equipment, while a large part of the population of the world remains without support in its struggle for the protection of the environment and the production of food and against ignorance, disease and natural disasters.
243.	The continuance of a system where peace is merely the result of the permanent fear of reciprocal destruction cannot but contribute to increase tension in international relations and to divert States from their main task, which is to guarantee the well-being of their peoples. The need to put an end to the arms race and to initiate a procedure that will lead to real disarmament is felt very deeply by the whole of the international community. In this process at different regional levels great progress has been made, and laudable initiatives have been taken for the conclusion of agreements on the limitation of strategic weapons and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction. In this process the United Nations, as the sole body capable of giving a universal dimension to the struggle for peace, security and development, should play an important role.
244.	The fruitful results of this kind of thinking have already been confirmed by the tenth special session of the
General. Assembly devoted to disarmament, convened in accordance with an initiative of the non-aligned countries.
245.	We hope that the United Nations Disarmament Commission will be in a position to ensure the implementation of the decisions taken at that special session and to provide elements for a global programme of disarmament . At the same time we welcome the creation of the Committee on Disarmament, a body in which the nuclear Powers and a number of countries including many non-aligned countries will participate on an equal footing.
246.	It is a fact that the existence of large stocks of weapons, particularly of non-conventional weapons, is a constant threat to the survival of all mankind.
247.	In such conditions we think that through the United Nations all countries will be able to participate actively in
the creation of a lasting policy for international security.

248.	International economic relations are still hampered by the contradictions that arise from the imbalance that exists today between the rich and industrialized countries on the one hand and the poor underdeveloped countries on the other.
249.	It is that system of international economic relations, the mechanisms of which contribute to the accentuation of this imbalance and hinder efforts towards development, which has been and continues to be the subject of debate in the United Nations, particularly, in the sixth and seventh special sessions of this Assembly.
250.	In this context we are witnessing a growing awareness of the need to create a new order with values that will govern international economic relations. The various sessions of UNCTAD, the United Nations Conference on Technical Co-operation among Developing Countries, held at Buenos Aires, and the agreements between the African, Caribbean and Pacific group and the European Economic Community, among others, are examples of such concern.
251.	The pursuit of this objective, we must admit, has met with obstacles which give rise to doubts and questionings and might make a really constructive dialogue more difficult to achieve. The existing monetary disturbances, the growing monetary erosion, in particular in countries with relatively weak economies, the deterioration in the terms of trade between countries supplying raw materials and industrialized countries, together with the protectionism practised by certain countries, justify our concern.

252.	We are at a stage in the history of mankind when the existing basis of the international economic order is being questioned and it is our great responsibility to reflect on and consider the principles which should govern future international economic relations.
253.	In our opinion the creation of a new international economic order should comprise: first, the recognition of the objective needed to alter the existing economic order and to achieve the participation of all countries on an equal footing in the solution of the problems which afflict mankind, and, with that recognition, the political will to give it effect; secondly, an increase in the technical and technological capacity of the developing countries, to enable them thus to benefit from the achievements of science and technology; thirdly, financial assistance in order . attain at least the objective of 0.7 per cent of the gross national product as established by the United Nations; fourthly, special assistance to the least developed among the developing countries, which, besides suffering the injustice of the present system have to confront naturally unfavourable conditions; and fifthly, effective support for the Buenos Aires Programme of Action on technical co-operation among developing countries.
254.	We are convinced that the United Nations has a considerable role to play in the realization of the objectives that we have mentioned.
255.	We "expect, moreover, the constructive co-operation of members of the Committee of the Whole so that that Committee may fully exercise the functions which we consider to be extremely important in defining the new international economic order.
256.	We are an island country, a small territory with limited natural resources, and consequently we attach particular importance to questions concerning the appropriation and distribution of maritime resources and, generally, to all problems relating to the law of the sea. When in December 1970 General Assembly resolution 2749 (XXV) was adopted, it was welcomed as an invaluable instrument for the definition of a new international economic order and as a legitimate expression of the hope of countries which, like our own, do not have the necessary technological means successfully to exploit the resources of the sea-bed on their own.
257.	However, the results of the latest session of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea have cast a shadow on the promising prospects that had opened in the course of continuing negotiations towards a definition of international law in that field. Indeed, at that session we heard talk of unilateral legislation, an idea which, if maintained, would run counter to the positions previously adopted by the international community.
258.	We are certain that an understanding of the importance of a successful conclusion of the work of that Conference will ensure that our efforts will not end in a failure which would seriously affect international relations.
259.	In Cape Verde we are now totally involved in the struggle for national reconstruction, a struggle that is particularly difficult if one considers the chaotic situation which we inherited.
260.	We are reduced to constituting, almost inch by inch, the land that we shall have to work, to creating out of nothing the conditions for the survival of our people and to building the structures of a democratic State on what was left us by the ruinous inertia of a colonial Power.
261.	We have to waste a great deal of energy and effort to reverse the situation of impoverishment created in our country by centuries of neglect. Desertification, emigration and social imbalance are still the deep-rooted signs of the system which we fought and abolished.
262.	The United Nations, which has always supported and been able to channel and stimulate international solidarity with our people, will evaluate during this session the report prepared by the United Nations mission which, in pursuance of resolution 32/99 [A/331167 and Corr. l], recently visited our country.
263.	We should like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to all those who have given our country timely and much-needed assistance. We are certain that, duly enlightened by this document, the United Nations and the donor countries will then be in a position to increase their co-operation with our country. That co-operation continues to be an invaluable aid in the solution of the many very urgent problems which we face and is a significant contribution to the establishment of suitable infrastructures for the economic and social development of Cape Verde.
264.	Before concluding, we wish to express our ever growing confidence in the activities and the future of the United Nations which, while consolidating year by year both its prestige and its representativeness with the admission of a growing number of States, is also making praiseworthy efforts to improve its structure and inculcate new dynamism into its bodies in order to be able to resolve the many serious and complex problems that afflict mankind.
265.	We are convinced that the United Nations provides the appropriate and privileged forum in which to find solutions which will meet the fundamental concerns of our time, and in which the nations which emerge in future from the struggle legitimized by the noble purposes which inspire this Organization will be heard.
266.	As the head of the Government of the Republic of . Cape Verde, I wish to reaffirm our support for the principles which have always guided our actions, in particular those of the non-alignment, self-determination and independence of peoples, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-aggression and non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, mutual respect, reciprocal advantage and peaceful coexistence among all the peoples of the world.
267.	We sincerely hope that the work of this session will constitute a step towards the consolidation of the progress already made in the building of a future which promises freedom and happiness for all people, and will lead to the progress that we all so earnestly desire.