YouSaid · the spoken record

WANG Shih-chieh

lines on the record: 29
first: 1947-09-24
most recent: 1948-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“The events of the past twelve months had done little to allay anxiety. The situation seemed in fact even more serious than a year ago. The Assembly was meeting in circumstances no better than those of 1939 and the Organization’s responsibility in the matter of universal peace was therefore heavier and of greater urgency. In conclusion, Mr. Wang Shih-chieh said: « It is only through greater tolerance towards each other and a fuller awareness of responsibilities under the Charter, that there can be hope for the dawn of the day of true unity among the nations. China will dedicate Herself to that noble task with a determination second to none. »”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“All the Members should indeed subscribe to the fundamental ideas of the United Nations Charter, in which all should have faith, but the Charter also laid down that tolerance ought to be practiced. If world peace was to be preserved, the present ideological warfare would have to give way to tolerance and every effort would have to be made to strengthen the authority of the United Nations, whose Charter had been solemnly accepted and signed by all. If any Member State, and particularly a permanent member of the Security Council, were content with a weak United Nations, that State could not be sincere in declaring its desire for world peace. Mr. Wang Shih-chieh recalled that he had already pointed out, during the second session of the Assembly, that the United Nations had reached a point where its existence hung in the balance.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“The imposition of any ideology, on any people, by whatever means, was both impossible and dangerous. People would have to learn again, in the middle of the twentieth century, what the European peoples had learned in the middle of the seventeenth century: tolerance. Differences between churches naturally continued to exist and there were real differences of opinion which peoples could evaluate according to their own lights. But civilized society had learned that it was possible to worship God in different ways, and, just as it was everybody’s duty to respect the religious practices of others, so also should it be possible to admit different economic and social systems. That did not mean that the world should have no common faith.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“China had always left other peoples free to practice their own religion and to follow economic and political systems of their own choice. The problem of peace today was a problem of ideological conflict. With the possible exception of the period of the Thirty Years War, relations between States had never been so seriously complicated by ideological considerations as they were at the present time. The conflict arose from the false assumption that the peoples of the world must choose between communism and capitalism. There were, in fact, other possibilities. China, for example, believed in a principle called by the founder of the Chinese Republic the principle of the people’s livelihood; and that principle could not be identified with either communism or capitalism.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“Nevertheless the abuse of that right would reduce the most important organ of the United Nations to a state of paralysis. The permanent members should therefore exercise restraint in its use and respect any limitations on its application which a rational interpretation of the terms of the Charter might impose. The maintenance of peace could not be achieved by one single effort or one single organization. The problem was as old as history and had been greatly influenced by politics, economics and strategy. In the course of three thousand years of its history, China had known the problems of war and peace in all their aspects. Sometimes victorious, at other times conquered, China had never committed the crime of attempting to impose an ideology.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“It had also mentioned certain decisions which, in its opinion, were less likely to involve political considerations and might therefore be taken without applying the unanimity rule. It had also suggested rules for the exercise of the veto, rules which it considered the permanent members of the Security Council ought normally to have followed. It seemed that the adoption of some of the Interim Committee’s recommendations would help to eliminate some abuses. In the opinion of the Chinese Government, the right of veto had been laid down in the Charter in order to ensure that important decisions taken by the Security Council should have the maximum authority. That was to have raised, not lowered, the prestige of the United Nations.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“China had given its heartfelt support to those constructive efforts of the United Nations. The Chinese delegation thought that, in order to promote the work of the Economic and Social Council, Member States ought always to be ready, so far as possible, to subordinate national interests to the needs of international co-operation. The report submitted by the Interim Committee, which had been asked by the previous session of the General Assembly to study the question of the veto showed that conscientious work had been done. The Interim Committee’s recommendations on that subject deserved the Assembly’s attention. The Committee had singled out a number of possible Security Council decisions which it considered to be procedural in character and therefore not subject to the veto.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“Though it had to hold conferences and adopt resolutions, those resolutions ought not to remain a dead letter. At its last session in India, the Commission had recommended the establishment of a Bureau of Flood Control and that recommendation had been approved by the Economic and Social Council. The problem affected the lives of millions of human beings living in the basin of the great rivers in Asia and the Far East, and it was greatly to be hoped that the work would be started as soon as possible and would show what could be done by( constructive co-operation under the auspices of the United Nations. In its manifold activities the Economic and Social Council had made bold efforts in two fields: in the removal of trade barriers and the promotion of freedom of information. That work had resulted in agreements or draft conventions.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“While hoping that the economic development of Asia would be hastened by international cooperation, Mr. Wang Shih-chieh thought that other countries should not interfere with the social and economic systems, which the peoples themselves wished to adopt and develop. There was nowhere a ready-made social system suitable for export to Asia, which deserved and would struggle to maintain the right to develop a social system in accordance with its own needs and its own ideas of justice. The Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East had held three sessions. Its chief task seemed to be to promote economic development. It would have to begin by collecting information but it was to be hoped that its activities would not become purely academic in character.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“The Economic and Social Council’s Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East had an unique place among the numerous subsidiary organs of the United Nations, for to it was entrusted the task of promoting the economic progress of the peoples of Asia and the Far East, numbering one half of the human race. China and her neighbours were crying for the benefits of modern science and technology. Indonesia and the Far East poverty was the primary problem. If there was one war that was worth fighting by the entire world, it was the war against want. The main responsibility for economic advancement in Asia and the Far East naturally lay with the peoples and Governments of that region, but the industrially more advanced countries could do much to help.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“While it should be acknowledged that all peoples had the right of self-determination, it was to be hoped that nationalism would not take abnormal, exaggerated or anti-international aspects. He added that China was glad that Indonesia was about to achieve political freedom,, It was to be hoped that that freedom would be followed by orderly progress, actuated by a spirit of co-operation with Indonesia’s close neighbours as well as with distant friends, and especially with the Netherlands, to which it would inevitably remain attached by many common bonds.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“Serious difficulties had arisen in the implementation of the «Renville» Agreement, principally in connexion with procedural questions, and those difficulties had been more aggravated because the Committee of Good Offices had bound itself with non-elastic rules. Without minimising the difficulties ahead it was not permissible for the leaders of the two parties to let questions of procedure Mock the way towards the establishment of peace and democracy. In that connexion, Mr. Wang Shih-chieh pointed out that, a year ago, Her Majesty Queen Wilhelmina had proclaimed to the world that colonialism was dead. That statement was a perfect expression of the spirit of the age, and he would like to recall the essence of it. National aspirations towards freedom must be recognized by all.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“The more Korea became independent and prosperous, the better it was for China. So far as Indonesia was concerned, the Security Council and its Committee of Good Offices deserved the thanks of the United Nations. War had been stopped and a truce had been maintained without any serious incidents. The way had thus been cleared for a settlement between the Netherlands Government and the Government of the Indonesian Republic. Both parties were agreed that there should be a United States of Indonesia and that the Netherlands and Indonesia should negotiate on an equal basis and be associated. Both parties wert to be congratulated for having conformed to those worthy principles.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“Northern Korea had not been allowed to benefit from the efforts of the Commission, which had not been able to send observers north of the 38th parallel. Korea remained cut in two. The future of Korea was linked with the peace and prosperity of the Far East and of the whole world. The Korean people, hard-working and peace-loving and with a legacy of ancient culture, deserved a recognition of its independence and unity which would enable it to contribute to the stability of the Far East. Mr. Wang Shih-chieh asked the General Assembly not to relax its efforts with regard to the Korean problem, so that Korea might be enabled to achieve full unity and total independence. The Chinese Government was doing its best to co-operate with other Member States to that end. It had no designs whatever on Korea.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“In his report to the General Assembly, the Secretary-General had concluded the chapter dealing with Korea by the following paragraph: «On 25 June 1948, the Commission resolved to record as its opinion that the results of the ballot of 10 May 1948 were a valid expression of the free will of the electorate in those parts of Korea accessible to the Commission, parts in which the inhabitants constituted approximately two-thirds of the population of all Korea.'» After the elections of 10 May, the Korean people had constituted its provisional Government. The Chinese Government had considered it right to grant that Government de facto recognition. The speaker was glad that the United States Government and the Government of the Philippines had done the same. The work of the Temporary Commission on Korea had not, however, been completed.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“The general elections held last spring in Southern Korea had given the Korean people its first opportunity to express its wishes with regard to the country’s future. The Korean population had shown unmistakable eagerness for an independent government. More than 90 per cent of the registered electors had gone to the polls on 10 May 1948.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“India and Pakistan, both important Members of the United Nations, were friends and neighbours of China, who hoped to see their difficulties resolved with the help of the Organization, in a conciliatory spirit and in such a way as to strengthen their mutual friendship. The problem of Korean independence deserved the continued attention of the General Assembly. The Temporary Commission on Korea had performed an arduous task. That task had been made more difficult by non-co-operation of the USSR army of occupation in Northern Korea. Nevertheless, in spite of that lack of co-operation, the Commission had been able to contribute towards the success of free democratic elections in Southern Korea. The former Japanese colonial administration had done nothing to prepare Korea for independence and democracy.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“In those two organs China’s was the only voice coming from the areas east of Suez. The representative of China was pleased to note that, in the course of the past year, the problems of that part of the world had received attention from the organs of the United Nations; he mentioned, in particular, the question of the independence of Korea, the dispute between Indonesia and the Netherlands, and the work of the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East. China, was satisfied with the work accomplished. As the Commission which was to help settle the dispute between India and Pakistan was only just beginning its important work, nothing could yet be said on that subject.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“Mr. WANG Shih-chieh began by expressing his delegation’s gratitude to France for its hospitality. It would have been difficult to find a more suitable place than Paris for the Assembly’s deliberations. France had played an important part in human progress and the world was still in need of all the help which the national genius of France had to offer. In his capacity as representative of an Asiatic nation, Mr. Wang Shih-chieh conceded that the United Nations Organization had improved on the former League of Nations both with regard to the representation of the nations of Asia and the Far East, and also with regard to the active interest it had shown towards the problems of those vast areas. Asia and the Far East were still, however, insufficiently represented on the Security Council and on the Economic and Social Council.”
1948-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 3 (1948)
“Our task is arduous and our responsibility is great. They call for determined efforts and a renewed spirit of co-operation on the part of all of us to make this session a real success. As the representative of a nation that has known the devastation of war in the fullest measure and is still bleeding from the wounds of battle two years after victory, I am firmly convinced that the United Nations, as the guardian of peace, must not and cannot fail.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“In the view of the Chinese delegation, the inauguration of the trusteeship system marks the beginning of a great movement towards the building of a wholly free world. It is to be noted that under the provisions of the Charter three categories of territories are to be placed under the International Trusteeship System. Up to the present, however, not all the territories under League mandate which have not yet achieved independence have been placed under the trusteeship system. No territories detached from former enemy States have been placed under that trusteeship system, and no Non-Self-Governing Territories have been voluntarily placed under that system. Therefore, although the trusteeship system has been inaugurated, it has yet to become a comprehensive and effective instrument as envisaged by the Charter.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“It seems to the Chinese delegation that during the coming year this Council should give due attention to promoting orderliness and co-ordination in the extended activities of its many Commissions and Sub-Commissions. While the Constant challenge before the Security Council is conflict, the constant threat before the Economic and Social Council may well be confusion. This emphasis on clarification and evaluation of purposes and procedure, in respect of the activities of its individual organs, should become the constant preoccupation of the Economic and Social Council in the coming year. Finally we should like to speak about the Trusteeship Council. The Chinese Government is happy to observe that the International Trusteeship System has been inaugurated and that the Trusteeship Council is in operation.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“Now let us consider the work of the Economic and Social Council, Everywhere in the world today peoples are yearning for economic betterment and social progress, China is gratified to see that the United Nations has made great strides in initiating a comprehensive international mechanism for the handling of economic and social problems. During the year, the Economic and Social Council has practically completed the organization of its main structure. A glance at the names of its various Commissions — Human Rights, Economic and Employment, Social, Transport and Communications, Status of Women, Fiscal, Statistical, Population and Narcotics — is sufficient to indicate the wide range of questions covered in its courageous endeavour.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“The United Nations can be an effective organization for maintaining peace only if its Members are willing and ready to subordinate the interests of individual nations to the nobler and greater interests of humanity. Time was when the individual was a law unto himself. Time was when a national State was an absolute sovereignty. The time now has come when all individuals and all nations are so interdependent that they have to think of the common interest of the human race, lest they sink and perish together. Today, inside the United Nations as well as outside it, internationalism remains' a weak voice in the midst of clamorous exhibitions of national pride and prejudice. Unless the Members of this Assembly think in terms of internationalism rather than nationalism, no peace can be assured.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“However, the existence of the veto power, or rather its immoderate use, is only one of the factors which contributed to the difficulties in the Security Council Even if the Charter of the United Nations were so amended as to modify or abolish the veto powers there would still remain the basic threat to the Organization, namely, the tendency of the world to split into blocks of nations who consider their differences to be irreconcilable. It cannot be denied that the recent trend has been for the world to split into opposing camps instead of growing into a united and integrated community, the “one world” envisaged and fervently hoped for by the authors of the Charter at San Francisco, If that trend is allowed to continue unchecked, the United Nations will inevitably become a mere forum of public debate.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“This power imposes an extraordinary responsibility upon the permanent members to try at all times to reach unanimous agreement on all matters of substance. During the past two years China, although it holds that power, has never exercised the veto power in the Security Council. Moreover, at the last regular session of the General Assembly, the Chinese Government made certain concrete proposals calculated to prevent immoderate use of the veto power. China believes in the collective wisdom of the majority of the members of the Council, and considers that, unless it is a matter of vital concern, no single member should, by one negative vote, paralyse the work of the Council. Every effort should be made by this Assembly to bring about agreement as to the proper application of the provisions of the Charter concerning the veto power.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“This, I submit, is the noble and arduous task of this Assembly. The carefully prepared reports of the various organs of the United Nations give a clear picture of the work and achievements of the Organization and indicate the nature of the problems with which this Assembly will have to deal. The Security Council, which is entrusted with the great responsibility for maintaining international peace and security, has laboured strenuously, though not always successfully. The failings of the Council have generally been attributed by its friends, as well as by its critics, to the existence of the veto. The Chinese Government considers the so-called veto power, which the permanent members of the Security Council possess, not so much a special privilege as a special obligation.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“The imperfections of the United Nations are really the imperfections of its Members. We have on our provisional agenda a wide range of problems, some of which are of extreme urgency, such as the Palestine question and the Greek situation. There are other momentous questions which have not hitherto been brought before our Organization but which now call for the serious attention of this Assembly, for example, the question of Korean independence, which General Marshall mentioned yesterday. If, by our collective wisdom and good will, we are able to find just and satisfactory solutions to these problems, it will instantly enhance the authority of the United Nations and will give fresh hope to the peoples of the world and inspire them in their desperate struggle to bring order out of chaos.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)
“We are gathered from the four comers of the earth for the second session of the General Assembly of the United Nations to discuss and solve a number of difficult problems. This session is particularly momentous because the United Nations has reached a point where its future development and possibly its very existence hang in the balance. People everywhere are deeply disturbed by the general political and economic situation in the world today, and have expressed a sense of disappointment and disillusionment in the United Nations as an organization capable of meeting a global emergency. However, let us not overlook the fact that the United Nations is not a sovereign body or a super State; it cannot be stronger than the total strength that its Members are willing and able to give it.”
1947-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 2 (1947)