YouSaid · the spoken record

HAMEED

lines on the record: 292
first: 1977-09-24
most recent: 1993-09-24
sittings or episodes: 11
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

“Sri Lanka welcomes the initiative leading to the visit by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to the area, and supports every effort to find a settlement acceptable to both parties. The Central American region presents no less a tangled web of issues, which can only be complicated further by unwarranted foreign intervention. The Guatemala Accord, a regional initiative, offers a blueprint for the construction of a solid edifice of peace. We hope that the initiative will lead to stable relationships among the countries concerned on the basis of sovereign equality, mutual respect, and the peaceful coexistence of differing political and economic systems.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Sri Lanka will continue to support the just struggle of the people of Palestine under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, whose participation is indispensable in the negotiations for a durable settlement. The Arab Peace Plan adopted in Fez in 1982 continues to be relevant in this regard. The plight of the people of Lebanon has become a part of the Middle East question. Sri Lanka calls for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanon to permit the sovereign exercise by the Government of its authority over all its territory. In the adjacent Gulf region, relations between two fellow members of the non-aligned countries, Iran and Iraq, have deteriorated into a wasteful war, which exacts a terrible toll on their peoples. Regional stability has been affected and there looms the threat of a wider conflict.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The last Ministerial Meeting held in New Delhi mandated a group of legal experts from SAARC countries to draft a regional convention on terrorism. I am happy to state that the group of legal experts who met in Sri Lanka this month have formulated a draft convention on terrorism which will now come up for consideration before the Council of Ministers in Kathmandu, early in November this year. A call has been made for an international conference to seek a just and lasting solution to the problems of the Middle East. The fate of an entire people, the Palestinians, continues to be in jeopardy, it is our view that until Israel withdraws from Palestine and other Arab territories it occupies, and until the rights of the Palestinians are restored, no lasting settlement to the cluster of issues known as question of the Middle East can be achieved.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The Ministerial Meeting also set up the 17-nation Indian Ocean Marine Affairs Standing Committee, which held its first meeting immediately after the Ministerial Conference. The second meeting of the Standing Committee was concluded successfully early this month in Colombo. We derive considerable satisfaction from the progress achieved so far by the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) for promoting regional co-operation. The agreement reached in identifying terrorist offences for the purpose of extradition is indeed a significant breakthrough. The Bangalore Summit Declaration recogni2ed the importance of the principle that each member State of SAARC should not permit the use of its territory for terrorist activities by terrorist groups against another member State.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Another initiative in disarmament and international security in which Sri Lanka has been engaged is the implementation of the Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace. We have offered to host one of the Ad Hoc Committee meetings in Colombo next year. This meeting is of course to be distinguished from the Colombo Conference on the Indian Ocean, which is now scheduled to take place by 1990. There is another area of marine activity, economic in character, in which Sri Lanka has taken an initiative. I am happy to state that early this year, we hosted in Colombo the Ministerial Meeting on Indian Ocean Marine Affaire Co-operation. The Conference formulated a long-term programme of co-operation and a plan of action to provide a basis for concrete co-operative action among the Indian Ocean States.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The Conference on Disarmament can be brought into service to negotiate the necessary agreements. This multilateral negotiating body has demonstrated its capacity in its efforts this year to complete a draft convention on chemical weapons. Few ages have faced such frightening challenges. To retreat from the nuclear race requires greater courage than to persist in a contest to exhibit military superiority. To extend this rivalry and to put weapons in outer space is to thwart the powerful development potential of the last frontier of mankind. Sri Lanka hopes to continue with other nations its efforts to reach consensus on a resolution that would help to prevent an arms race and to promote peaceful co-operation in outer space in the interest of all humanity.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The rationale of special sessions of the General Assembly on disarmament is that the imperative of disarmament affects, not only the nuclear-weapon States and those who have military muscle, but all nations. . Nuclear disaster would make no distinction between those who can use these weapons, those who possess them, and those like us who do not fall into either category. The joint acceptance by the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union of the fact that a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought, needs now to be translated into further reductions and the elimination of nuclear weapons beyond the intermediate nuclear forces. As an interim measure, negotiations for a comprehensive nuclear test ban should be conducted not only bilaterally but multilaterally as well.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“There is no denying the complexity of the issues involved, but the high-level political participation in the International Conference was indicative of our collective willingness to address those complexities and to find solutions through multilateral co-operation. Next year we shall- gather in New York again for the third special session of the General Assembly on disarmament. That session must not slide back from the achievements of the f lest special session on disarmament. Sri Lanka had the honour and privilege of introducing in the Assembly in 1977, on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, the resolution calling for the convening of the first special session of the General Assembly devoted to disarmament.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Despite the easing of tension in many sensitive areas, much more remains to be achieved before we can enjoy the fruits of lasting peace and security. The horrific destructive power of nuclear weapons must itself be destroyed and a genuine process of disarmament under adequate verification must be set in motion. The nexus between disarmament and development was explored barely a fortnight а з by an International Conference held under the aegis of the United Nations. The Conference reached the clear conclusion that disarmament and development are the two pillars on which enduring international peace and security can be built and that an arms race and a more sustainable world order are not compatible.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“On 12 October the Assembly will devote two plenary meetings to the observance of the International Year of Shelter for the Homeless. We see hopeful signs in the international political situation. We welcome the proposed summit meeting between the leaders of the United States and the Soviet Union, The agreement in principle to dismantle intermediate-range nuclear forces signals the removal of an entire class of weapons of a particular range from the arsenals of the major military Powers. The threat of global extinction has not, by any means been removed, or even substantially reduced. Yet agreement is in the course of being reached on intermediate-range nuclear forces and its positive impact on the international scene make this perhaps the most significant step of the century in disarmament initiatives.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“A referendum will take place a year thereafter to ascertain the wishes of the people of the Eastern Province on the question of a merger with the Northern Province. We are hopeful that violent divisive and separatist tendencies in the Northern and Eastern Provinces will give way to the democratic process which has nourished Sri Lanka's political life for over half a century. The year 1987 was designated by the United Nations General Assembly the International Year of Shelter for the Homeless on a proposal made by the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka in this Assembly in 1982. As a consequence we have witnessed impressive programmes of national and international activities to focus attention on the problem of adequate housing and to formulate enduring solutions aimed at satisfying a basic need.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Today I am able to state that a new situation has been brought into existence by the signing of the India-Sri Lanka accord in July this year. The wisdom and statesmanship that led to that accord have been widely acclaimed both within and outside the Assembly. Today, terrorism is virtually at an end, with only some sporadic in-fighting between rival terrorist groups which have not yet surrendered all their weapons. Negotiations have been almost completed on the question of the devolution of political and administrative functions to the provincial councils. There will be an interim administration for the Northern and Eastern Provinces pending the transfer of responsibilities to an elected provincial council.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The decision represents a political commitment by the international community to work towards the revitalization of development, growth and international trade through multilateral co-operation. It remains for the International community collectively to honour commitments that have been undertaken and to implement them faithfully and effectively. Before turning to the international political and security situation I should like to refer briefly to the current situation in Sri Lanka. Last year I detailed the efforts of President Jayewardene to resist a threat to impose a separate State unacceptable to the vast majority of the people in Sri Lanka. I also detailed the endeavours of the Government to reach a negotiated political settlement with the Tamil community to redress their grievances.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The notion of Interdependence will have to be transformed into a global and co-ordinated approach reinforced by concrete policies and actions. It is heartening, therefore, that recent developments have recognized the need to address common concerns in a mutually beneficial way on the basis of International economic co-operation. At Punta del Este in September last year Ministers from developed and developing countries alike adopted a bold and ambitious agenda in launching the Uruguay round of multilateral trade negotiations. That was aimed at a greater liberalization of world trade and the strengthening of the international trading system. Again, as recently as July his year, in Geneva, the Seventh United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) adopted by consensus the Final Act of that Conference.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The situation relating to commodities is critical and prices have slumped since 1980 to their lowest levels in the last 50 years. What is more, there are little signs of an improvement. Several developing countries, such as Sri Lanka , which face huge losses in export earnings as a result of falling commodity prices ; and the deterioration in the terms of trade, find their development efforts seriously disturbed. There is, however, a silver lining to the present gloomy situation and there is the increasing realization by the major market-economy countries of the need for greater co-ordination of their macro-economic policies and recognition of the interlinkages of issues of commodities, trade, monetary and financial policies. This awareness must be seized and broadened and deepened.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“It is equally clear that if the negative influences are not reversed in time, they could move the world economy closer to a global recession. Therefore, the urgent imperative is for the launching of policies and measures towards the stimulation of world economic growth. This has to be accompanied by an effective reinvigoration of development and trade on the basis of international economic co-operation. The present modest economic recovery in the industrialized countries has slowed down further in the last two years. The macro-economic and deflationary policies pursued by them in recent years are responsible for this underlying situation. They have had only negative consequences for the third world, as they have precipitated protectionist policies, restrictive trade measures and a decline in third world exports.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“For many developing countries it is a tragic tale of economic stagnation, with falling living standards and negative growth rates. Adverse socio-economic consequences of these developments have led to social and political unrest. The prospects for growth and development for many of us remain increasingly unfavourable. If the developing countries are to break out of this vicious circle there has to be a revitalization of the development process. This will be possible only in an international economic environment that is supportive of such efforts. The assessment of the world economy which emerges from the World Economic Survey 1987 is clear. World economic growth, as the Survey points out, is weak and fragile, and the prevailing uncertainties point downwards.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“For the last 10 years I have had the opportunity to observe the vagaries of the international situation, both economic and political. Many of the items I saw on the agenda in 1977 have eluded settlement. This has not always been for want of solutions. For many of these problems the General Assembly has, often by consensus, prescribed solutions based on the principles and purposes of the Charter. Unfortunately, those prescriptions have not been dispensed, nor have solutions been implemented. However, I will not outline the reasons for this sad state of affairs. They are very well known. Permit me to look at the global economic situation. The 1980s are already being characterized as the lost decade of development. The development process as a whole stands disrupted.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Let me at the outset convey to the President the warm and sincere felicitations of Sri Lanka on his assumption of the presidency of the General Assembly at its forty-second session. Sri Lanka and the German Democratic Republic have enjoyed a fruitful association of co-operation in bilateral and international affairs, an association which has been further strengthened by exchanges of visits at a high level between our two countries recently. A special word of gratitude is due from us to the Foreign Minister of Bangladesh, my friend and colleague from the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) , for his outstanding contribution to the forty-first session as President. To strike a personal note, it is now a decade since I first addressed the General Assembly as Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Most of us are more transgressed against than transgressing. Yet we are collectively answerable for the failure to implement our own decisions. We have a collective responsibility to heed the injunctions in the document to which we all profess allegiance, the United Nations Charter. Let us be fair to the Organization, now caught up in a mood of self-analysis and introspection. The fault lies not in our Organization, but in ourselves. Our obligations under Article 103 of the Charter are of a higher priority than any other international obligations. For small States like my own, nothing would better guarantee our security and our independence than observance of the Charter. History will judge us by our performance, not by the piety of our pronouncements.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“is there a crisis of confidence in the United Nations and its inability to settle the major outstanding issues of the day? As a parliamentarian of more than 20 years' experience, I view the world as our electorate or our constituency. The media have focused on the United Nations administrative and other weaknesses which have been examined by an Expert Group. Unfortunately, not much light has been thrown on how the Organization has failed to implement its own decisions. Let us examine the record - in respect of apartheid in South Africa, in respect of Namibia, in respect of the Middle East, in respect of Central America, in respect of disarmament issues, and in respect of international economic issues. I referred earlier to the question of Namibia as a glaring instance of the impotence crippling this Organization.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“At the root is antagonism towards multilateralism and a tendency to lapse into myopic unilateral^, which appears as an attractive and convenient path to those with economic or political might, or both. Wisely, long-term and medium-term remedies were sought, attacking the cause rather than the symptoms. During the current session this crisis is likely to affect the consideration of all issues on the agenda. Let us be realistic. If we reform the united Nations structurally, administratively and financially to present a model of rectitude, wise management and good husbandry, we will still need to deal with this tendency that seeks to drift away from multilateralism and global co-operation. This is the base of the new challenge that this body must face.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The fortieth session, as the President of the General Assembly himself observed in his introductory comments last week, was a time for both celebration and reflection. Never had so many world leaders gather together to participate in a session of the United Nations General Assembly and never had such impassioned commitment to the purposes and principles of the Charter and the United Nations system been expressed. However, hardly had those voices died down when the United Nations began to reel under what is described as its worst financial crisis. It is clear that what we are confronting is a fundamental crisis of political proportions far beyond a financial shortfall.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“We are keener and more anxious than anyone else to find an early solution to this problem and are confident that we have the will and capacity to do so, provided all the parties in Sri Lanka co-operate to create the necessary atmosphere of peace and security to implement a political solution and all countries committed to the eradication of terrorism extend to us their unqualified and unreserved support. It is not Sri Lanka's intention to permit this problem to reach the size and status of a world problem threatening international peace and security. Therefore, we would appreciate it if the EEC countries wishing to see a political settlement in Sri Lanka also place this problem in its proper perspective.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Any solution we arrive at must preserve the multi-ethnic, multilinguistic, multireligious and unitary status of an undivided Sri Lanka. A memorandum has been circulated on behalf of the European Economic Community (EEC) by the representative of the United Kingdom in which reference has been made to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has learn from the experience of some EEC countries facing similar problems that such complex issues concerning tensions between communities in any country are best settled without elevating them to the status of "grave world problems". There are many situations elsewhere in the world comparable to that in Sri Lanka, and those situations have persisted for several years without being raised in the United Nations. It would be unreasonable to expect Sri Lanka to solve overnight a problem with a major terrorist dimension.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In 1984 he set up a round-table conference which was attended by all parties concerned, except the Tamil terrorist groups. After one year's deliberations, presided over by the President himself, efforts to find a political solution acceptable to all parties were not successful because the main Tamil groups did not agree to the proposals of the majority. Again during the past two months negotiations have been resumed and the talks have progressed satisfactorily. The successful conclusion of the talks now depend on the willingness of the terrorists to be a part of the democratic process. We are thankful to those friendly countries which have been with us in this hour of trial and stress, especially India, our immediate neighbor.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“At the Eighth Summit of the Non-Aligned Countries held in Harare, Zimbabwe, Heads of State condemned all terrorist activities and called on all States to fulfill their obligations under international law to refrain from organizing, instigating, assisting or participating in terrorist acts in other States or acquiescing in activities within their territories for the commission of such acts. Adherence to those principles is a precondition for combating terrorism in any part of the world. Permit me to volunteer some observations on the domestic situation in Sri Lanka which has received publicity and projection in the international media. It has been the consistent view of ray President, Mr. J.R. Jayewardene, that this issue should find a political solution, to which end he has striven hard during the past three years.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Sri Lanka's position is that traditional international extradition legislation must be modified so that the political motivations advanced to justify certain terrorist actions will no longer suffice to deter the extradition of persons who have committed heinous crimes, including mass murder. Certain European States have entered into bilateral agreements which prevent terrorists from fleeing across borders to avoid punishment for their crimes. Within the regional grouping to which Sri Lanka belongs, the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAA8C), steps are being taken to promote regional co-operation in the eradication of this pestilence.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In their Declaration, they asked that outer space be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and called for the establishment of an international agency to promote international co-operation in that area. That call has recently been renewed, and we support it. Another form of violence to which humanity has been subjected in this century is the crime of terrorism, by which innocent human beings become the victims of sudden, indiscriminate killing. This problem has acquired an international dimension, as terrorists frequently operate from across State boundaries. Certainly, the underlying causes of terrorism must be eradicated, but in the meantime the international community must take decisive action to counter terrorism whenever and wherever it erupts.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“We endorse the Mexico Declaration by six fellow non-aligned leaders and call on the nuclear Powers to call a moratorium before negotiating the nuclear test ban to which some of them have pledged themselves through international treaty commitments. Sri Lanka has long associated itself with the prevention of an arms race in outer space. We call once again for early negotiations of an agreement or agreements, as appropriate, to ban weapons - including anti-satellite weapons - in outer space before the arms being developed in research laboratories are translated into destructive reality. Twenty-five years ago, the non-aligned States met in Belgrade.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“However, the extension of the multilateral process to the field of disarmament negotiations and the active involvement of the non-aligned nations in that process are irreversible facts. The conference on the relationship between disarmament and development is now scheduled to be held next year, in 1987. The conference is a global imperative, and we look forward to universal participation in the conference, with adequate preparation to permit the achievement of concrete results. In the field of disarmament, the agenda requiring action is urgent and will brook no delay. The overwhelming demand by the peoples and nations of the world for an end to nuclear testing is still being opposed, even after verification arrangements have clearly been shown to be adequate.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Disarmament issues, and the need to release the energy and resources now being expended on armaments for peaceful economic and social development, have figured prominently since the first Non-Aligned Summit in Belgrade. The messages sent out by that Summit to the leaders of the two super-Powers remain milestones in the endeavor by third world countries to promote bilateral negotiations to achieve peace. Since then, all third world declarations have attached great importance to disarmament, and the first special session devoted to disarmament, in 1978, when Sri Lanka was Chairman of the Movement, was an outstanding non-aligned initiative, culminating in the final document of that conference, which serves as a charter for disarmament negotiations. Regrettably, the ideals, agenda and machinery set out in that document have not been realized.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“That Program is based on the belief that housing does not merely provide protection from the elements but also shelters all the diverse stabilizing components that together improve the quality of life. The success of that project will be determined largely by the degree of support it receives from the international community. On a global scale, the area where our common destiny is most at risk is that of the failure to achieve general and complete disarmament. In this International Year of Peace, military expenditures are running at almost a trillion dollars per annum, and some 50,000 nuclear warheads are poised to destroy mankind and all its creative endeavors on this planet several times over.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The United Nations functions on the basis of consensus, and what is now required is an exercise of greater political will and a sense of commitment to decisions already adopted which will ensure the establishment of a zone of peace. Sri Lanka looks forward to hosting the conference on the Indian Ocean as soon as preparatory work for that conference has been completed, at a date no later than 1988, I should like to draw the attention of the Assembly to another initiative by Sri Lanka - the declaration by the United Nations of 1987 as the International Year of Shelter for the Homeless. An elaborate Program has been formulated, with strategies and over-all plans for national and international action for the period preceding and following that International Year.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The basic tenets of international law and the application of these by recognized institutions must be respected in working out good-neighborly relations with other countries in the region. Great Power military presence and confrontation in the Indian Ocean have not abated, and tension continues to escalate in the area. The proposal for the establishment of a zone of peace in the Indian Ocean was born of the determination of the people of the Indian Ocean area to preserve their independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and to resolve their political, economic and social problems in conditions of peace and tranquility. Seven years ago, in 1979, the Indian Ocean States secured virtual unanimity in the adoption of 11 principles of agreement for the implementation of the Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The armed conflict between Iraq and Iran has brought great grief to the two countries, with tragic loss of life and destructive effects on their economies. Sri Lanka, which enjoys the closest relations with both countries, hopes that the various efforts to bring about a settlement acceptable to both parties will be pursued with all vigor and earnestness. In Central America, the right of all nations to coexist peacefully despite differences in their political and economic systems must be upheld. We support the Contadora process and urge all parties to accept this as a viable regional initiative based on the true interests of regional peace. We support the right of Nicaragua to decide on its own political, economic and social system without outside interference.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“We hope that an early solution will be found which would enable the Afghan refugees to return to their homes in safety and honor so that the people of Afghanistan may be able to exercise their sovereignty without interference or intervention from any quarter. In South-East Asia, collective security can be preserved only in an international environment in which nations can govern themselves freely and in which foreign troops do not violate the sovereignty of nations. We support all efforts to achieve a comprehensive political solution that would lead to the withdrawal of all foreign troops from Kampuchea. This step is vital to the restoration of normalcy and the creation of a climate of confidence and understanding in South-East Asia.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“As a member of the Non-Aligned Contact Group on Cyprus, Sri Lanka is especially concerned with the situation in Cyprus, a State facing the threat of separatism aggravated by external factors. Any settlement of the question of Cyprus must be freely arrived at and must be acceptable to the Government of the Republic of Cyprus and its two communities. We support the continuing efforts of the Secretary-General to achieve a settlement based cm the United Nations resolutions on Cyprus. Tension is a fact in South«West Asia because of the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan. We have always expressed our support for a political settlement that would include the withdrawal of foreign troops, and in this context we welcome the Soviet Union's commitment to withdraw some of its troops by the end of this year.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The agony of Lebanon is not an isolated phenomenon, but a part of the Middle East question. We declare our solidarity with the Government and people of Lebanon. We call for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Lebanon to ensure the exercise of sovereignty by the Lebanese Government and people over its territory. The presence of foreign forces in Cyprus has compounded an internal issue involving two communities cm that island into one of great complexity involving the de facto division of the island. We call for the withdrawal of foreign troops from the Republic. It is our view that foreign interference or intervention cannot be justified on any grounds, least of all in defense of ethnic kinship.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people must be restored, including the right of the Palestinian people to return to their homeland in safety, their right to self-determination and their right to establish an independent sovereign State without external interference or coercion. It is our position that Israel must withdraw from all occupied Arab and Palestinian territories and that Israel must dismantle the illegal settlements it has set up in the occupied territories. The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, must be a party to any negotiations leading to a settlement of the Middle East question. We support the peace plan adopted at the twelfth Arab summit conference held at Fez in 1982.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The International Conference on Sanctions against South Africa, held in Paris, reached a decision that the imposition of comprehensive mandatory sanctions was the most effective peaceful means of eradicating apartheid. At this session of the United Nations the General Assembly must mobilize international opinion against apartheid and co-ordinate a decisive consensus in order to prevent a bloody and violent climax in South Africa. The States in the Middle East cannot expect to live in peace and security until and unless the central factor of regional instability, the core of the Middle East problem, the question of Palestine, is faced squarely and solved justly.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“An essential step towards this goal is the unconditional release of all political prisoners, particularly Nelson Mandela, and the removal of the ban on the African National Congress of South Africa (ANC) and the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC), to permit the participation of South African patriots in any dialog with the apartheid regime for the establishment of a multiracial democratic society based on majority rule. The evil empire of apartheid extends its baneful influence over independent neighboring States, committing acts of aggression and destabilization against those States. The minority regime has manipulated armed groups to carry out cross-border terrorism against Angola, even occupying portions of its territory.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Security Council resolution 435 (1978), adopted unanimously in 1978, provides a detailed plan for the independence of Namibia on which all parties are agreed. It is the intransigence of the apartheid regime of South Africa and the reluctance and political permissiveness of those who have the power of persuasion over that regime that has prevented the people of Namibia from enjoying freedom and independence. It is the minority apartheid regime that is the tap root of the instability in the entire region of southern Africa. Within South Africa the regime has reacted with increasing repression and brutality to the nation-wide mass agitation for freedom. Clearly, there cannot be any peace or regional stability until the hideous structure of apartheid is totally dismantled.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Perhaps both sides need to modify their agendas, striving for immediately attainable goals involving some relief for the developing countries, leaving the more elaborate tasks for a later period when world economic conditions improve. Realism is not a sign of weakness. At the same time, it must be Hatched by a corresponding willingness to make some concessions in the global interest. Let roe now turn from economic co-operation to political co-operation. The need for international co-operation in the current political scene is dramatically evident in respect of southern Africa and the Middle East, where the potential for peace available in ready-made proposals and plans remains tragically not utilized The question of Namibia is one such obvious issue, on which we met in special session last week.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The crisis also signifies an opportunity, if an appropriate redistribution of balance of payments surpluses and deficits takes place. Central questions regarding the character of an inflationary onset after expansion, the impact of higher real wages on employment, and the role of developing countries, need to be addressed in any policy context today. Opportunities to correct the global economic situation are never lacking. At Punta del Este, the GATT Ministerial Conference has just concluded with the promise of a new round of multilateral trade negotiations. Next year the seventh session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD VII) will be held, and we oust approach that Conference with shared views on how we can restructure the world economy. The North-South dialogF has too long been a dialog of the deaf.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“If free trade is championed in the services sector to allow open competition in all economies, then, equally, free trade in goods, without quota restrictions and other protectionist barriers, must prevail. The problems facing the world economy and requiring urgent action arise from the inadequacy of the recovery of the economies of the Western industrialized countries. The over-expansion of some of those economies financed by foreign borrowings leads to a high level of indebtedness and a consequent loss of confidence. Expansionary action elsewhere in the OECD to compensate for problems within the United States economy is crucial because of its impact on the growth performance of developing countries and their capacity to meet the burden of debt servicing.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The dominance of the countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in the world economy is a reality, and we recognize it, but with that dominance must come responsibility to manage the world economy in such a manner as to ensure justice for all and the continued efficiency of the system for mutual benefit, a comprehensive view of the global economy must remain in sight if we are not to perpetuate the inequalities of the present system. If efficiency is the criterion, then let it be applied uniformly in the economics of production on a global scale without penalizing countries for their lower costs. If State subsidies give unfair advantages, then State intervention to bail out ailing corporations and multinationals must also be contrary to the proclaimed values of privatization.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Newly industrialized countries, on the other hand, are checkmated by arbitrarily imposed protectionist measures derogating from the principle of free trade in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) . The transfer of resources is clogged by interest rates which are still too high for developing-country borrowers. Conditions imposed by lenders in their turn force adjustments the harshness of which creates social and political instability.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“We also wish to express our appreciation to Ambassador Pinies of Spain for his exemplary conduct of the Assembly's work during the historic fortieth commemorative session. We meet at a time when the basic needs of the millions of underprivileged in the developing nations are nowhere near being satisfied despite our determined efforts to adopt policies based on the realities of an interdependent world. The inequalities and imbalances of the existing economic situation act as a barrier to progress. Primary commodity agricultural economies are faced with declining commodity prices which impose intolerable strains on their balance of trade and balance of payments.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“It gives me great pleasure to see you. Sir, a distinguished son of South Asia, presiding ever this forty-first session of the United Nations General Assembly. The people of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have a long tradition of friendship and co-operation. We are partners in the pursuit of peace and economic progress in many forums - not only at the United Nations, but also in the Non-Aligned Group of States, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Colombo Plan and, most recently, in the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation, a grouping which held its first summit in your historic capital. Our congratulations and warmest good wishes go to you, and the General Assembly can look forward with confidence to a successful session under your guidance and wise chairmanship.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)