YouSaid · the spoken record

Aklilou

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS AKLILOU

lines on the record: 48
first: 1949-09-24
most recent: 1955-09-24
sittings or episodes: 3
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

“Ethiopia expresses its sincere hope that the period of relaxed tension now opening will mark still further progress, not only in this field, but, in the fine language of the Charter, in the establishment of conditions under which “justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained””
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“It is doubtless owing to those difficulties that the Secretary-General, speaking on 15 September 1955 at the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, said: “We must bear in mind the importance of respecting the proper boundaries between international and national jurisdiction, and of avoiding needless tasks and prohibitions imposed in the interests of uniformity”. 24. I think that the present welcome relaxation of tension in international relations affords us the opportunity to impart, in an atmosphere of calm and cooperation, a more useful and specific form to the instrument by which all our debates must be guided. 25. By reason of its many achievements, particularly in the realm of the maintenance of international peace and security, the United Nations has cause to be proud of the first stage of its existence.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“Unless the Charter is amended on that important point, we fear that the Organization will always be deadlocked and its efficiency gravely reduced through the absence of many important countries. 23. I now come to the second question. There is no question which is discussed more regularly and with more bitterness than that raised by Article 2, paragraph 7, of the Charter. I do not intend to start a debate on the substance of the problem, or to embark on a discussion of the question of the relationship between Article 2, paragraph 7, and Articles 55 and 56. What I do want to say is that the scope and the gravity of our debates on that supremely important question are such that the problem will call for detailed study from the future conference.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“With regard to the admission of new Members, my delegation thinks it inadmissible that, ten years after the establishment of the Organization, there should still be one-third of the States of the world, most of them smaller States, outside the United Nations. It is inadmissible, for instance, that countries like Italy, Austria, Libya, Jordan, Japan, Ceylon and Finland should still not be Members. I am in no way trying to contest the strength of the political motives which have led any of the great Powers to oppose the admission of certain small States. But I would like to point out that, for the small States, the only question which arises is whether or not a given State fulfils the requirements laid down in the Charter.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“I know that convincing arguments can be pat forward both for and against the convening of a conference for such a review at this time. My delegation thinks that such a conference would be valuable. Further, the mere fact that the conference is convened does not necessarily mean that any given points in the Charter will be revised. Any decision on the problems of revision, or even on the very question of whether the Charter should be revised, might be discussed and taken by the conference itself. My delegation will, however, confine itself to drawing attention to two points, which have in the past given us all trouble and call for special consideration by the conference, i.e., the question of the admission of new Members and the definition of national jurisdiction. 22.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“So the Ethiopian delegation would support the observations made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Egypt [518th meeting] concerning the implementation of the provisions of Article 43 of the Charter. 19. Another subject of future concern should be assistance to the refugees driven from their homes by the unfortunate events in Palestine. They have suffered too long. Following on its intervention in the Palestine question, it is the duty of our Organization to take active steps to solve this heart-rending human problem. 20. Future co-operation between Member States with a view to the maximum development of the Organization’s activities inevitably raises the question of the review of the Charter, provided for in Article 109. 21.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“The eloquent and moving appeal of the representative of Ecuador [519th meeting] for the development of the programme of technical assistance, an appeal which found an echo in the hearts of many other representatives here present, will also be remembered. 18. Another field where co-operation between States should be further increased is that of measures of enforcement. If we, the smaller States, are entitled to ask for technical assistance from the Organization, it is only fair that we should be prepared to accept all the responsibilities imposed on us by the Charter. From that point of view, Ethiopia is conscious of having discharged its responsibilities, despite considerable obstacles and difficulties.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“The General Assembly, which, under the Treaty of Peace with Italy, was competent to make recommendations concerning that Territory, reaffirmed that principle by declaring that any solution must first of all be approved by the two populations concerned, the Ethiopian and the Eritrean. 17. In conformity with this policy, which consists in the promotion throughout the world of independence and the right of peoples to self-determination, our Organization must in future redouble its efforts to furnish assistance to the under-developed countries. It is known that many of the countries represented here stand in need of such assistance, and that, only a few days ago, the representative of one of the countries considered as one of the most socially advanced stated here that in some ways his country was under-developed.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“So the history of the first ten years of this Organization gives us many causes for satisfaction, together with useful guidance in the fields where closer and more effective co-operation should be promoted during the stage upon which we are now entering. 15. In the future, as in the past, one of the most important of these fields for co-operation will be the right of peoples to self-determination. In that connexion, we must continually bear in mind the very pertinent comment made some days ago by the representative of India [530th meeting, para. 137], to the effect that on that question only the wishes of the people concerned count 16. Ethiopia, which has fought in defence of that principle, has had practical experience of its application in the case of Eritrea.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“If countries of different races, religions and traditions were able to meet at Bandung and to show the world their unity of opinion and purpose, it was in part due to their common labours in this Assembly, labours which had already laid enduring foundations for co-operation. 13. Today, the expression “Middle East” has taken on its true meaning — the link between the Eastern and Western worlds. For instance, Ethiopia, which belongs at once to Africa and the Middle East, is bound to Yugoslavia, a European Power, by ties of friendship and mutual understanding, upon which continued cooperation in this Assembly has set the seal. 14.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“All this movement towards independence has been assisted by the united opinion of the smaller States of the world, represented in this Assembly. 11. Similarly, the movement on behalf of the right of peoples to self-determination has been largely promoted by those States. It should be remembered that for some years now the General Assembly has been showing ever greater concern for the implementation of this principle. As has often been stated here, it is only natural that the small States, which have suffered so much in order to preserve their independence, should be concerned with the need to enforce world-wide respect for this exalted principle, set forth in Article 1 Of the Charter. 12. This collaboration in the achievement of liberal purposes and principles has in the course of years created close ties between many Members.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“During these first ten years, the Organization has acted less often through the Security Council, which is the organ of the great Powers, than through the General Assembly itself, where the united will of the smaller States is law. The fact that our Organization was able to adopt measures to restore peace in Korea, for example, was due to a decision of the General Assembly [resolution 711 (VII)], not of the Security Council. 10. Since the establishment of the United Nations, the world has seen the birth of a large number of new States which have become respected Members of our Organization, and the emergence of other new States, such as Libya and Jordan, which ought also to be Members, but which are not yet so because their admission depends not on the smaller States but on the Security Council.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“Without this Organization, it might well be wondered what part the smaller States had to play. 8. I think that the first ten years of the United Nations has clearly shown not only its importance to these States, but also the importance of the contribution of these States to the Organization. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Yugoslavia gave fitting expression to that idea the other day [522nd meeting], when he said that those nations did not fit into any of the old and rigid patterns and for that reason were all the better adapted for membership in a universal body like the United Nations. Moreover, he said, they were directly interested in respect for the democratic principles set forth in the Charter, disregard of which would make their participation in international life infinitely more difficult. 9.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“President Eisenhower has been and still is one of those primarily responsible for bringing it about. We listen daily to the reports on his progress. On behalf of my delegation, I wish him a speedy recovery. 6. The smaller States have certainly also contributed to this result by their work in the United Nations. As the representative of a small State, I shall venture to give some account of the contribution made by the small States to the achievements of the Organization — not with any intention of self-praise, but rather in order to draw from it lessons for the future. 7. There is no denying the fact that we are living in an age when major questions are in the last resort settled by the great Powers. That is the precise reason for the importance of the United Nations to the smaller countries.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“Its primary responsibility is undeniably the maintenance of international peace and security, but how often has it found itself in difficult situations as it has tried to discharge that function! We need only recall some of the items on the agenda of previous sessions, for instance, item 72 on the agenda of the seventh session, and item 73 on the agenda of the eighth session, on measures to avert the threat of a new world war. 4. The very atmosphere in which our debates are proceeding today is evidence of the extent to which it has been possible to realize that hope of the eighth session. So we can be proud of the work which the Organization has done in its early years. All the small States should be thankful to the great Powers to which we owe this fortunate relaxation of tension. 5.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“1. On behalf of the Ethiopian delegation, I should like to offer congratulations to Mr. Maza, representative of Chile, on his unanimous election as President of this Assembly. Chile has long enjoyed a great reputation in the United Nations. It has always done its utmost to bring about the realization of the highest aims of the peoples represented in this body. 2. The United Nations has just celebrated its tenth anniversary. Experience has always shown that the early years of life, either in a human being or an organization, are the most difficult. Furthermore, it is during that period that the course is set for later years. 3. No one could maintain that the early years of our Organization have not been extremely difficult.”
1955-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 10 (1955)
“The time has come to face the problems on the agenda squarely and, for the first time in the history of the United Nations, to find a solution for each and all of them.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Before us lies opportunity for action which can save the hope of peace, of security, of well-being and of justice for generations to come. Before us also lies opportunity for drift, for irresolution, for effort feebly made. In this direction is disaster ... If [the United Nations] does not move forward it will move back.” 31. If there should be further failures on the part of the General Assembly, we should be justified in asking whether there was not profound truth in the shrewd words of the great British stateman who, a century ago, with reference to the Concert of Europe — the United Nations of that period, if I may say so — said the following: “Each nation for itself and God for us all”. 32.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Today we observe exactly the same phenomenon: the same problems again come unsolved before the General Assembly. Moreover, the Interim Committee, despite the advantage of working under the direction of an eminent Chairman, has made no progress whatever with its programme of work for this year. 30. These are the reflections which the work of the General Assembly during the past three years arouse in us. It is high time to face problems squarely and to tackle the questions which have been held over from the first four sessions of the General Assembly. As was very well stated the other day [279th meeting] by the United States Secretary of State: “This session of the General Assembly is a session of decision.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Shall we be told that we must display a spirit of moderation and conciliation? My country, faced with a threat to its national security, is the only country which at the present time gives evidence of a spirit of conciliation. Everyone knows that we have carried this spirit of conciliation to the limit. 29. That is why I ask you how much longer we must wait to obtain justice from the General Assembly. Is that body determined to find just solutions for the problems which it has the duty to solve, and that without hesitation and in all sincerity? Last year, when the fourth session of the General Assembly began its work, I found it necessary to call attention to the fact that the same questions which had appeared on tire agenda of the third session of the Assembly had remained unchanged on the fourth session’s agenda.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“It may well be asked once again whether it was right to refer the matter to the General Assembly, which, with its Interim Committee, has already failed four times to meet its responsibilities because of purely political considerations. 27. Meanwhile, threats to the peace continue to develop in Africa, while territorial claims are directly and openly made against my country in the very region where the war broke out in 1935. In the circumstances, I feel that I am entitled to ask the members of this Assembly how much longer we must wait to obtain justice from the General Assembly. 28. Ought we still to be patient? Patient, after ten years of waiting, after four postponements of the problem by the General Assembly itself, patient in face of grave threats to our national security?”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“There is no doubt that, far from constituting an obstacle to a decision, the States of the African continent are actively seeking to satisfy the desires of the peoples and the just claims of Ethiopia. Ask them, ask Egypt, ask the Union of South Africa, ask Liberia. Neither the African States nor the twenty-one States that shed their blood and expended their resources for the liberation of the territories concerned and then drew up the peace treaty are impeding this decision. 26. It is therefore doubtful whether in the case of the other peace treaties which have still to be drafted the settlement of certain questions should be referred to the General Assembly, as was the case for the treaty of 1946.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“If a single State, whether or not it is a Member of the United Nations, can in practice defer or prevent the solution of a problem, are we not in the same position as we were in the Security Council, where the right of veto exists, and are we not faced with the very danger which we wished to avoid ? 24. Consequently the arguments which were invoked to justify reference of the question to the General Assembly have, by reason of the actual course of events, unfortunately been proved to be without foundation. 25. Much has been said in praise of the idea of regionalism and of the need to leave the responsibility for settling their own affairs to the States of the same continent or the same region.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“It must, then, be concluded that the declared reason — the desire to avoid political bargaining — is no justification for referring this matter of territorial settlement to the General Assembly. 22. Moreover, the second reason, the reason why the matter was referred to the General Assembly rather than to the Security Council — the desire to avoid a veto by a single Power — has likewise proved illusory. If the General Assembly has not escaped the danger of becoming a centre of political bargaining which, four times within three years, has prevented any solution of the problem, the responsibility for this is now clearly established. 23.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Although it was not the right moment to discuss the substance of the question, the representative of Guatemala spoke fervently the other day [280th meeting] from this rostrum in praise of a solution recommended by two of the five members, or by a minority, of the United Nations Commission for Eritrea. The solution he advocated is contrary to the welfare of the inhabitants, contrary to the wishes of the vast majority of the population, which wants union with Ethiopia, and contrary to the interests of Ethiopia, whose interests the representative of Guatemala took upon himself to interpret. Is that justice? 21. So we have fled from a non-existent danger, only to meet it precisely where we might have expected to be able to avoid it, that is, in a forum where the question ought to be discussed with complete objectivity.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Yet in statements made at the General Assembly on the evening of 17 May 1949, open reference was made to political bargaining. The justice of the Ethiopian claims were frankly recognized by an overwhelming majority, but at the same time it was stated that, for reasons of political expediency, they could not be satisfied. 19. When we are told that the decision to refer these questions to the General Assembly was made because the members of the Assembly would have a keener sense of justice, we wonder what the people of Somaliland think of such justice? And what do the people of Eritrea, whose deepest aspirations have not yet been satisfied, think of it? 20.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Do India and the Union of South Africa, which are not agreed on certain of the questions before the General Assembly but which played a particularly important part in the liberation of the former African colonies, disagree concerning the general terms of the settlement of the Eritrean question? Can it be said that Norway, which took part in the Paris Conference but, desiring to preserve complete objectivity, did not ask to participate in the discussion of the question there, is among the countries opposed to finding a just solution for that territory? Moreover, Egypt, the European countries, indeed all the States represented at the Paris Conference including the three great Powers most closely concerned with the problem, are agreed upon a solution. 18.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“But it is clear, in our opinion, that the very reasons for referring the issue of the colonies to the General Assembly have already lost their validity. If the intention was to avoid political bargaining, there was no point in referring the matter to the Assembly, for the very simple reason that none of the great Powers or any of the other States which took part in the Paris Peace Conference are seeking to engage in political bargaining. As far as they are concerned, there is no obstacle in the way of a solution. On the contrary, they openly seek a settlement in favour of Ethiopia. 17. In this connexion, I would recall that at the Peace Conference, Brazil, a country friendly to Ethiopia, was among the nations directly concerned and signatories to the treaty.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“The first of these reasons was certainly that if the great Powers failed to agree, the matter should be placed before the smaller States, which, having no interests at stake, would be more capable of reaching an objective and impartial decision based on justice and equity. 14. The other reason for referring the question to the General Assembly, and at the same time, for designating that organ in preference to the Security Council, was the desire to prevent any failure to reach a solution due to the existence of the veto in the Security Council. 15. Such, at all events, are the only reasons which can justify referring the matter to the fifty-nine States members of the Assembly, whose disinterestedness and sense of equity are the only guarantees that a just decision will be reached in this matter. 16.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Therein lie the function and responsibility of the General Assembly, to which the twenty-one countries which took part in the Paris Peace Conference referred the question for settlement. It was a novel and unprecedented step to make the General Assembly itself responsible for settling the consequences of a war and of half a century of aggression, misery and bitterness. 12.. Why, then, was it decided, under the terms of article 23 of the Peace Treaty with Italy, to call upon the General Assembly to settle this question? There are only two possible reasons for the decision to appeal to the Assembly in the event of the failure of negotiations between the four great Powers responsible for settling the question. 13.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Owing to the failure to achieve the settlement of these problems, and in spite of the peace treaty of 1946, which incidentally did not cover all the issues, it has been impossible hitherto to re-establish relations of friendship and trust between former enemies; and the accumulation of bitterness caused by seventy-five years of injustice has still not been removed and had resulted in the recent disturbances in the southern regions of Ethiopia. 11. In this case, therefore, the United Nations is not called upon to carry out one of its routine functions, namely, to see to it that the provisions for the peaceful settlement of international disputes are observed, but rather to fulfil a function and a responsibility of a more fundamental kind, namely, to lay the very foundations of peaceful relations.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Apart from Italy’s renunciation of them, disposal of these former colonies is not in any way provided for in the Treaty of Peace concluded with Italy in 1946. As we all know, the disposal of these colonies was to be determined by the four great Powers or in the event of their failure to agree, by the General Assembly. 10. With the exception of certain frontier adjustments claimed by Egypt, our very great friend in Africa, Ethiopia, is the only Member of the United Nations which has territorial claims to be settled under this peace treaty. Certain problems resulting from the war which were not solved by the Peace Conference thus have to be settled.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“In these circumstances, is it surprising that the United Nations should now be confronted with the difficult question of Korea, and that the question of Formosa should be included in our agenda, when the disposal of those two territories should have been settled by peace treaties which still do not exist five years after the armistice? No wonder, then, that the Members of the United Nations are in constant fear that a new crisis may break out in Europe, Asia, or Africa, over territories and peoples whose fate is still to be determined. 9. Most of the problems with which the General Assembly is now confronted have arisen out of the fact that no peace treaties have been concluded; that applies particularly to the question of the former Italian colonies in Africa.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“Today, five years after the Second World War, not only have no peace treaties been concluded with Germany and Japan, but we are faced with the most serious threat to world peace. 7. Can it be wondered, then, that the United Nations, which was set up to serve the cause of peace, and to maintain that peace, should be accused of failure? Surely the Organization should be based on a firm structure of peace treaties. Is the United Nations not, so to speak, in the position of a train unable to move or go forward for want of a track? 8.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“When we recall that the era of the Napoleonic wars, which lasted for twenty-three years, came to an end with the treaties of Paris and Vienna, concluded within the short period of two years, and that the Treaty of Versailles followed the First World War after an interval of a few months, we have every reason to wonder at the existing situation, for although five years have passed since the Second World War, the principal enemy States have not yet signed peace treaties, and we are, in fact, in a permanent state of war. 6. We should recall that five years after the First World War began the period of the Geneva Protocol and the Locarno Treaties; Germany entered the League of Nations, although the League was an infinitely weaker organization than the United Nations.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“For my part I shall confine myself to drawing the attention of other members to the rather more general aspects of these problems. We are told that we are, if not participants in a cold war, at least spectators of it This expression, “cold war”, was in current use barely a few months after the end of the Second World War. This means that the problems raised by that frightful war have not yet been solved, and that, while some of the conditions which caused it no longer exist to disturb us, they were replaced in the course of the war by other and even more serious problems. 4. Thus, wittingly or unwittingly, we have gone directly from the Second World War to the cold war without enjoying a period of peace. 5.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“We are filled with anxiety, then, concerning the surprises which the future may hold in store; fears that the United Nations may be called upon to face events even more serious than those of the present time, and that such problems may greatly exceed its powers and capacity. As the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom so aptly remarked the other day, the United Nations has no assurance that, now that the spectre of war has loomed up, it may not manifest itself elsewhere. Indeed, the danger exists everywhere, in Europe, in Africa, in the Pacific islands and in other parts of the globe. 3. Is there any reason to be surprised at this? Some speakers have tried, with varying degrees of clarity, to determine the responsibility for this state of affairs.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“A year ago, when the fourth session of the General Assembly met, there was an atmosphere of optimism and determination to accomplish the work before us. The President of that session, General Romulo, expressed the hope that the fourth Assembly might become known as the “Peace Assembly”. Now, twelve months later, that spirit of optimism has given way to a spirit of acute concern, if not fear, at the dangers which threaten the peace of the world. It was this which lead the United States Secretary of State to say the other day [279th meeting] that a feeling of anxiety pervaded our hopes and our work. “Why is it”, he asked, “that we have been unable to achieve peace and security through the United Nations in these five years?” 2.”
1950-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 5 (1950)
“By proceeding without further delay to a settlement of the urgent and distressing matter of the former Italian colonies, an atmosphere Would be created which would favour the solution of the other political problems which had been on the Assembly’s agenda for so long and the way would thus be cleared for reconstructing, after so many years of conflict, international friendship and co-operation on a solid basis.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“The Assembly therefore had the duty and the possibility of finally settling the matter. As the United States Secretary of State had so rightly said in his speech (222nd meeting), the fact that by express prior agreement the responsible parties had enabled the United Nations to reach a settlement, gave reason to hope that henceforth the Organization would grow in influence. That was a precedent which might be taken as a basis of settling some political problems by special advance agreement to accept the recommendations of the General Assembly or of the Security Council. 140.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“If it were remembered that the twenty-one countries represented at the Peace Conference had referred the problem to the four great Powers for a solution and that they in turn had referred it after long study to the General Assembly, it would be clearly understood why, after the matter had been passed from one group to another, it was necessary to settle such an urgent problem without further delay. 138. Fortunately the General Assembly had resolutely rejected the various solutions involving a postponement of adjournment of a solution and, when it had been presented with the minimum and essential claims of Ethiopia, it had found a solution supported by six-sevenths of the members of the First Committee. That partial solution had, however, been defeated for wholly extraneous international political reasons. 139.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“It had been studied by the twenty-one countries most concerned at the 1946 Peace Conference in Paris, For several months it had been considered by the Council of Foreign Ministers. That Council had had at its disposal studies carried out by the Four Power Commission of Investigation, which had spent almost a whole year in reaching its conclusions. Furthermore the countries most concerned had been requested on several occasions to state their views before the Four Power Commission. The Assembly had itself fully discussed the matter during the six weeks of the second part of its third session after having listened carefully and for a long time to the statements of the various non-governmental groups. So far, a total of no less than ten commissions had already studied and gone into the matter, which was nevertheless a simple one.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“Those remarks were particularly true as far as the question of the former Italian colonies was concerned. In that connexion no one could possibly deny that the Assembly had a direct and irrefutable responsibility. Regarding that matter, it was sitting, so to speak, as a court of appeal. The Council of Foreign Ministers of the four great Powers had failed and, in accordance with article 23. of the peace treaty with Italy, it had referred the question to the General Assembly and had bound itself in advance to abide by the latter’s recommendations. 137. It should moreover be noted that, among all the various questions appearing again on the agenda, the matter of the former Italian colonies was certainly the one which had been most studied and which was ripest for solution.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“They were all on the agenda because so far the General Assembly has been unable to solve them although it had set up in each case study committees and committees of inquiry. The Assembly would never be able to hope for any solution if it continued to shun its own responsibilities by referring the questions to other organs. Was the conclusion, as the Syrian representative had observed (222nd meeting), that the defects which had brought about the bankruptcy of the League of Nations were reappearing in the United Nations and were liable to bring about its end? The work of the fourth session must prove the contrary. 135. If, as everyone maintained; there was a real relaxation in tension, it was most important for the Assembly not to delay any further in facing its own responsibilities in solving those problems and completing its agenda. 136.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“Aklilou recalled in particular the numerous committees which had been set up .to deal with what had been in fact an extremely simple matter, namely, the fascist aggression against Ethiopia. It was indeed on account of that proliferation of meetings and committees that the world had accused the League of Nations of spoliation by procedure. 134. The same tendency was unfortunately becoming apparent at the moment in the General Assembly. The agenda of the fourth session of the Assembly comprised no less than sixty-six items, only eight of which could be considered as political. Yet it was evident from a glance at those eight political questions, namely, the questions of Palestine, Indonesia, Greece, Korea, atomic energy, disarmament, observance of human rights and the former Italian colonies, that not one of them was new.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“It also appreciated his very true remarks concerning the excessive number of bodies established by the United Nations; they had been allowed to proliferate to the point where they hampered the work of the General Assembly. There appeared to be a tendency on the part of the United Nations to shirk its responsibilities by dividing them among a multitude of other bodies. 132. A similar development had taken place in the days of the League of Nations. Could anyone have forgotten the time, immediately preceding the end of its work and of its very existence, when that organization had set up a great number of organs, committees of inquiry and sub-committees ? 133. Mr.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“It was sufficient to glance at the agenda of the First Committee and the Ad Hoc Political Committee to realize the little progress so far achieved. It was therefore most important to put the atmosphere of relaxed tension to good use and to see how the Assembly could catch up with its arrears and complete its work, 130. The Brazilian representative had stressed (222nd meeting) the meagre results achieved by the Security Council after innumerable meetings, the lack of activity of the International Court of Justice and the fact that, in attempting to solve concrete problems — in most cases physical problems — the main questions were lost sight of. He said that that was like taking care of the body and forgetting the soul. 131. The Ethiopian delegation fully endorsed the view so ably expressed by the Brazilian representative.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)
“Mr. AKLILOU wished to comment briefly on the agenda of the fourth session of the General Assembly. 128. General Romulo, President of the General Assembly, had expressed the hope (220th meeting) that the current session might later be called the “Peace Assembly”, and it was indeed a fact that the Assembly was meeting in an atmosphere of greatly relaxed tension. 129. It should nevertheless be noted that among the problems before the Assembly there were several which had been on its agenda for several sessions already, problems which it had unfortunately been unable so far to solve, which had left a legacy of discontent and which were disturbing international relations. There was no need to enlarge upon the nature of those questions.”
1949-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 4 (1949)