YouSaid · the spoken record

MOLAPO

lines on the record: 188
first: 1977-09-24
most recent: 1983-09-24
sittings or episodes: 6
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 ideals for which the international community strives and for which we also strive create a bond generating the belief that collectively we are fighting for a just cause. The international community has stood with us during the crisis we are facing. We request the Members of the Organization, in the name of fairness and justice, to continue to give us moral, political and material support. For what has been done so far, whether at the bilateral level with those countries with which we have friendly relations or at the level of pressure groups or even individuals, we wish to say thank you. 34. May right always prevail over might.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“As I have said earlier, the contemptuous rejection of that resolution—and this is only one of many—is an indictment against South Africa in its pursuit of a policy of continuing to defy the Assembly, thus contributing to its general paralysis, only to turn around and accuse the Organization of impotence. 33. Despite this picture of gloom and uncertainty, my Government and the Basotho people in general have been strengthened by the manner in which the plight of the refugees in Lesotho and of the Basotho in general, and the attendant unfair pressure upon them, are being understood by the international community. The international community has been a source of strength to us during our darkest hour.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“To us in Lesotho the so-called constitutional dispensation provides no hope or solace, since the politically ostracized black majority will continue to struggle for its rights within South Africa. The intensification of this struggle will surely mean more refugees, more attacks in South Africa resulting in more attacks on us from South Africa, more economic and arms embargoes and, indeed, a constant threat to our very existence as a nation and a people. 32. This grave situation is also exemplified by Pretoria's rejection of the Security Council's directive in resolution 527 (1982) calling on the Republic of South Africa to pay damages to Lesotho citizens for the unwarranted killing of persons and destruction of property during the deplorable 9 December 1982 attack on Lesotho by the South African Defence Force.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“This development is by its very nature unacceptable because it continues to entrench race as a factor in constitutional reform. It also retains the supremacy of the white Parliament over the other so-called parliaments. But, worst of all, now it not only makes denationalization of the black majority a matter of Acc legislation but also elevates it to the status of constitutional entrenchment. We call on all mankind to condemn these actions, which are intended to deny over 18 million people their basic birthright of citizenship of their country. South Africa must be persuaded to start an immediate dialogue with genuine leaders of Mack opinion in South Africa, as the only alternative to an intensified armed struggle. 31.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“This relegation of black South Africans to just 13 per cent of South Africa's most impoverished areas that had always existed as reserves for, and sources of, cheap black labour is an ominous enough development. But it has even more ominous connotations when this independence is used, in the final analysis, to denationalize all South African blacks. This banishment to the remote barren part of South Africa, with which they have no connection at all except remote ethnic links, to us constitutes the bleakest and most wicked aspect of the apartheid policy. 30. Recently the white South African Parliament passed legislation for a three-chamber parliament, including the Coloureds and the Indians, once again totally excluding the black majority.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“Just as the dispersal of the Palestinians all over the Mediterranean countries has failed to bring peace to the Middle East or even to wish the problem away, to the same extent the dispersal of refugees from southern African countries will not solve the problem of South Africa, which is an internal problem fraught with dangerous consequences for all of us in southern Africa; nor will the problems of South Africa be wished away. Rather than stabilizing the situation, the dispersal of the refugees in other southern African countries will cause the entire region to be destabilized. This presents a very bleak picture. 29. Members will recall that in 1976 South Africa gave its brand of so-called independence to one of its black homelands . Since then, another three have acceded to this dubious status.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“Lesotho finds those demands unacceptable. We repeat our appeal to the Secretary-General and to the countries that have contacts with South Africa—and there are many in this Assembly—to ask South Africa to accept Lesotho's genuine interest in its own security, which cannot be enhanced by attacks into South Africa from its territory. 28. The expulsion of refugees from one country to another offers no permanent solution to the basic problems involved.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“The significance of this fact is that cross- border incursions are intensified simultaneously with the holding back of the arms. 26. We have appealed to the Secretary-General and through him to the Member States of the Organization, especially those which have contacts with South Africa, to persuade South Africa to desist from its punitive measures against Lesotho. Lesotho genuinely wants a return to normalization of relations with its neighbour but should not, in the process, be forced to abandon its obligations under international conventions with regard to the welfare of those genuinely seeking political asylum. South Africa is demanding, as a condition for normalization of relations between the two countries, the return to it of all refugees of South African origin or their expulsion from Lesotho. 27.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“Lesotho does not solicit these refugees, but we are fully aware that the tide will continue as long as apartheid remains the official policy in South Africa. Recently Lesotho has witnessed restrictions on its common borders with South Africa, which have affected the movement of people and goods; there have been incursions into Lesotho's territory by armed bandits who come from South Africa and have unrestricted access to its territory whenever they are forced to retreat. These bandits, when caught, testify readily to the fact that they are trained in South Africa and are armed and given logistic preparation by white South African security officers. Because of South Africa's intermittent embargo on the transit of essential security equipment, the internal security and maintenance of law and order of Lesotho become heavily compromised.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“The conflicts at the time in southern Africa which were responsible for the refugee movements have now been replaced by the actions of the present South African Government through its policy of apartheid. 24. As a consequence of the latter, Lesotho has continuously received refugees from South Africa. Our accession to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees' and the 1967 protocol is an event that conforms naturally to our basic national character, but, because of our geopolitical situation, we have always made it a condition of asylum for all refugees that they may not use Lesotho to plan and launch attacks against their countries of origin. This is especially the case with South African refugees, who form the majority of refugees in Lesotho and whose country of origin is the closest to Lesotho geographically. 25.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“It is now a matter of record that South Africa's own investigations have failed to show Lesotho to be a party to any action intended against the security of South Africa. Lesotho is fully aware of its national and international responsibilities, and South Africa should have no fear of insecurity because of any actions emanating from Lesotho. For example, with regard to the Pretoria bomb blast, which was followed by South Africa's imposition of a nearly total economic embargo, the South African security service itself has absolved Lesotho from allegations that it was the country from which the operations were planned. 23. Historically, Lesotho is a country of refugees, who were received in the mountain kingdom and moulded into one nation by the great Moshoeshoe I.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“It is ironic that, when the General Assembly and the Security Council have set the target of achieving the noble aim of Namibia's independence, and despite the Secretary-General's attempt to execute his mandate to implement this target within the context of Security Council resolution 435 (1978), the very countries which are normally most vocal in portraying the importance of the United Nations in resolving international problems are the ones which are now blocking the vindication of the Organization's success by indexing irrelevant issues to Namibia's independence. 22. Lesotho, as an independent country, continues to look at the future with anxiety, especially as its giant neighbour continues to view it as the source of all security problems within its territory.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“If it is the intention of South Africa to use its military might to partition Angola, then the Government and people of Angola are left with no choice but to resort to the assistance of countries friendly to it. The suffering in Angola as a result of the war situation there is a matter of great concern. The Assembly may not permit any parties to this conflict to look upon the suffering of innocent citizens of Angola and the very security and survival of that country as a bargaining chip in an attempt to stall Namibia's independence. 21.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“We condemn in the strongest terms these delaying tactics, which can only result in the intensification of the armed struggle and, with it, continued loss of life on both sides. We should like to repeat that we find totally unacceptable attempts to establish linkages between Namibia's independence and the withdrawal of Cuban troops from Angola. We know that since 1975 the People's Republic of Angola has been subjected to constant military incursions by South African troops which are now occupying southern Angola. South Africa's main motive seems to be the promotion of the puppet, Savimbi, to the status of a serious factor in Angola. 20.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“Africans have come to regard the major cause of this scenario as what they term the constructive engagement syndrome . We all know that the present United States Administration meant well in its initiation of this policy. What is important to us in Africa is not the good intentions of Washington but how its good intentions are being taken advantage of by Pretoria. Indeed, the latter interprets this United States policy as a carte balance allowing it militarily to disregard internationally accepted civilized norms in relationships with its neighbours for the sacrosanctity of its strategic position and mineral wealth as it is supposedly seen by Washington. 19. Namibian independence has yet to materialize. What is the problem? Why is Namibian independence being indexed to the unrelated issue of Cuban withdrawal?”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“We have always urged that the Middle East issue must be viewed in the context of Security Council resolutions. In Central America, Lesotho supports the efforts of the Contadora Group. 17. Within the context of the Organization of African Unity [OA U], we are eagerly looking forward to the OAU machinery for resolving the problems of Chad and Western Sahara. Lesotho enthusiastically supports any practical measures that may contribute to the speedy solution of those problems. 18. South Africa's policy of destabilization manifests itself in diverse ways, encompassing and affecting all the independent States in southern Africa. Its main victims include the entire membership of the Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference and the frontline States.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“On the political front, we note with much trepidation the multiplicity of problems facing the world today, ranging from the Middle East to Central America to southern Africa. The worsening situation in Lebanon, a country torn apart by forces stronger than itself, most of them external, can only force us to pray that enough is enough. We in Lesotho, surrounded as we are by a similarly threatening external factor, have reason to understand in the fullest sense the tribulations of the people of Lebanon. 16. The world conscience continues to be affronted by the impasse on the Palestinian question. Lesotho has in the past made its position very clear, that, without prejudice to anybody's interests, the Palestinians have a right to their land, identity and sovereignty.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“There was a similar call to pursue monetary and financial reforms capable of arresting the continuation of the economic crisis by some leaders of industrialized countries in other forums earlier this year. This indicates that there is some consensus and only details need to be worked out. 14. It is, however, our belief that the idea of a world development fund should be kept alive. This idea calls for a move towards greater equality and partnership between North and South in financial institutions; universal membership, including full representation of Eastern European countries; new lending policies; export credit's; commodity financing and the channelling of new resources raised on an international basis—in other words, the restructuring of the Bretton Woods system should incorporate this idea. 15.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“In the circumstances, it remains the responsibility of the General Assembly to address itself fully to all these questions, and it should do so with a commitment to success. 13. In this regard, the General Assembly should seriously consider the call of the heads of State or Government of the non-aligned countries at their seventh conference, held at New Delhi from 7 to 12 March 1983, urgently to convene an international conference on money and finance for development. This conference should aim at meeting effectively the development and other financial requirements of international economies, particularly those of the developing countries. It should also examine any necessary growth-oriented structural adjustments.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“It is regretted that the ministerial meeting of the Contracting Parties of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade held from 24 to 29 November 1982 at Geneva failed to utilize its chance to turn the tide against protectionism. It was also unfortunate that the sixth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development last June failed to agree on any steps aimed at reducing barriers to free trade as a starting point in an economic dialogue on fostering the growth of output and employment without provoking inflation and/or balance- of-payments problems. Finally, it was disappointing that that session failed to come up with a resolution on the need for a conference on money and finance with a view to restructuring the Bretton Woods system, despite forceful appeals from the third world and some industrialized countries.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“The aid performance of donor countries is still one half of that called for in the Strategy, and the volume of contributions to the multilateral programmes has actually declined. Official development assistance receipts by the least developed countries by no means constitute the substantial increase needed to enable them to double their national income during the decade, as envisaged. The message is therefore that we cannot look forward to the review and appraisal of the Strategy with any encouragement. It is also evident that the General Assembly should agree on a continuing annual review and monitoring of the Strategy until such time as an improvement in the world economy can be widely recognized. 12.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“In 1981 world trade was stagnant for the first time since the Second World War, and it declined by 6 per cent in real value in 1982. The responsibility for this unfortunate state of affairs should be attributed to a fall in commodity prices by 16 per cent between 1981 and 1982. Protectionism persisted and grew stronger, and as a result there was a decline in exports and intense pressure on the balance of payments position of the developing countries. 11. Signs of recovery have recently emerged in some developed countries, but they appear tentative and far from reaching developing countries. Debt servicing among the developing countries continues to be widespread and unmanageable, while interest rates have remained at unprecedented levels since 1980.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“But the rigidity in some of these countries' financial policies resulted, for instance, in the failure of the sixth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development held at Belgrade from 6 June to 2 July 1983. These developments leave no room for optimism. 10. It is three years now since the new International Development Strategy for the Third United Nations Development Decade was adopted, and its overall review and appraisal is due in 1984, as provided for in General Assembly resolution 35/56. The indications are, however, that there is very little movement, if any at all, towards achieving the objectives of the Strategy. The past three years have seen a sharp decline in the rate of growth of world production, which reached in 1982 its lowest figure in three decades.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“It is their belief and ours that these problems call for a genuine dialogue and a willingness to recognize and accept not only the gravity but also the urgency of the matter. 9. However, we regret to note that despite all the efforts made by the developing countries during the eleventh special session, in 1980, and during subsequent General Assembly sessions, no agreement has yet been reached regarding the agenda, procedure and time-frame for these global negotiations. In the meantime, the world economy has been experiencing the most critical decline since the great depression. It may be noted that in some developed countries of the North there have been signs of recovery.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“The economies of more than two thirds of the Organization's Members are being hit by the worst recession since the Second World War, and all of those countries are pinning their last hopes on the Assembly. It is imperative, therefore, that the Assembly live up to those expectations. 8. When the heads of State or Government of the non- aligned countries pledged their commitment to the North- South dialogue at their sixth conference, at Havana in 1979, it was because they had recognized its significance in their area, especially in view of the prevailing world economic crisis. The situation facing these countries can be tackled only through a collective global approach.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“In accordance with our firm belief in the Organization's universality, we were more than delighted to be among the sponsors of the resolution admitting Saint Christopher and Nevis to membership. We are doubly gratified because that nation is a fellow member of the Commonwealth. This event is a credit to the British Government and to the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples. We view it with mixed feelings, because we are once again reminded of those countries and peoples that are still denied their rightful place in forums such as this one. In our view, the independence of Namibia is now overdue. 7. On the economic front, we note that the Assembly meets at a time when prospects for prosperity are at their bleakest.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“We also congratulate the other officers of the Assembly on their unanimous election. To you, Sir, and to all of them I pledge my delegation's full co-operation. 4. I also take this opportunity to express our satisfaction with the excellent manner in which the President of the thirty-seventh session and his officers concluded the work of that session. I should like to convey my delegation's commendation of the Secretary-General and his championship not only of the rights of the smaller and weaker Members of the Organization but also of the independence of those few parts of the globe that still labour under the yoke of colonialism. To us, his office is the pivotal point of the entire work of the United Nations, and we hope and believe that with him the responsibilities of that office are in very good hands. 6.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“1. It is with great pleasure that I bring to the Assembly the greetings of my head of State, King Moshoeshoe II, and of my Prime Minister, Mr. Leabua Jonathan. 2. Permit me, Sir, to congratulate you on your well- deserved election to the presidency of the thirty-eighth session of the General Assembly. Your well-known qualities and experience as an illustrious and dedicated diplomat certainly augur well for the Assembly. We are more than confident that you will guide its deliberations to a successful and fruitful conclusion, because your country is not only a prominent member of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries but also has an illustrious record on such issues as the eradication of colonialism, racism, racial discrimination and matters which are of paramount importance to us. 3.”
1983-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 38 (1983)
“This awareness has given us courage to look forward with determination to a future in which southern Africa will be rid of all racial discrimination and segregation. Lesotho offers its firm pledge to contribute towards the evolution of a southern Africa of peace, prosperity, tranquility and respect fbr the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all States in the region. We call upon South Africa sincerely to offer a similar undertaking.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“It seeks to isolate the Coloureds and the Indians from the mainstream of the political struggle inside South Africa by turning them into allies of apartheid without giving them any tangible benefits from such an unwholesome association. Finally I should like to thank all those Member States that have stood by us during our moments of great difficulty and all those that have hastened to assure us of their solidarity in times of great trial. The OAU, in particular, through the Secretary General, Mr. Kodjo, has been a true custodian of the principles and purposes which guided the founding fathers of the OAU. He has tirelessly kept the situation in Lesotho under constant surveillance, an act which has assured us that our plight in southern Africa is a matter of grave concern to the community of free nations.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“Even when the writing is on the wall and clear fbr South Africa to read, the authorities in Pretoria continue to tinker with the problem. The recently proposed constitutional dispensation for Colourgds and Indians is a political force. It is meant to appease public opinion while it shows the seeds of conflict and tribal polarization. It is intended to put up a façade of political change, to hoodwink world public opinion and to lessen pressure from abroad, thus creating a breathing space for the Apartheid policies, which have apparently run their course and outlived their usefulness to the South African regime. This constitutional arrangement completely ignores and circumvents the rights and legitimate aspirations of the black South Africans that constitute the overwhelming majority of the people of South Africa.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“We have to call continuously on South Africa to abandon the disastrous path of apartheid, which leads to the dead end of racial confrontation, a prospect too ghastly to contemplate. Lesotho will not watch silently while the stage is being set for a confrontation which would reduce southern Africa to ashes. For us the impending disaster with which apartheid threatens southern Africa is as real and as terrifying as the grim prospect of a nuclear holocaust hovering over mankind today. Because of our geographical location within the borders of South Africa, we cannot contemplate the prospect of violence and destruction in that country with composure. Our primary responsibility is to ensure the survival of our nation in peace and tranquility.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“Within South Africa itself signs of confrontation manifest themselves from all sectors of social life. Pretoria faces opposition from students, church leaders and sections of the white population, and the Nationalist laager itself is in terrible disarray. In our strong and vociferous opposition to as repeatedly stated in the past, we proceed from the moral position that apartheid is dangerous, not only for South Africa itself but also for its immediate neighbours and civilized humanity as a whole. We seek not to preach to South Africa regarding the objectionable tenets of its domestic policies, but we respond to a moral demand which we can only ignore at our own peril.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“They can all be assured that good use has been made and will continue to be made of their contributions. We urge to be donor countries to continue to respond to the appeal made in the report just mentioned. The complexity of the geo political situation, of which we are an integral part, hardly permits us the equanimity to consider Lesotho's political and socio economic problems without reference to the conditions which prevail in South Africa. The Assembly will have noticed that stability in South Africa is becoming more illusory and that the prospects of eventual racial accommodation are dimmer. At no time since the doctrine of apartheid became a way of life in South Africa has the Government of that country faced as great an assault on their racial policies as it does now.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“With respect to the special economic assistance programme for Lesotho, I am proud to announce that the generous response of the international community to the request for special economic assistance for Lesotho has been most encouraging and has permitted the implementation of a substantial portion of the programme. Some of the projects have been fully funded and others have been financed in part as revealed in the report of the Secretary General. On behalf of the Basotho nation, the Lesotho Government and myself, I wish sincerely to thank all donor countries and regional and intergovernmental organizations, as well as United Nations bodies and agencies for the assistance rendered under the special economic assistance programme for Lesotho.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“This will to survive has been adequately articulated within the PTA and the Southern African Development Co ordination Conference. This will to survive is further lucidly elaborated in the Lagos Plan of Action, which maps out Africa's economic strategy to the year 2000. We are, however, far from realizing the fact that the search for a universally acceptable formula of self reliance through the process of global negotiations has not yet been achieved. We are concerned about the continuing hesitation by some developed countries and we urge that an agreement be reached to launch global negotiations not later than January 1983.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“The significance of the PTA is seen in particular in its scope, spanning as it does some 7.2 million square kilometres with a population of about 140 million people. For our part, having overcome domestic limitations imposed on us by our geography y Lesotho ratified the PTA Agreement in March 1982. We view the PTA as a right step towards the basic restructuring of the economic base of our continent. As the Executive Secretary of ECA, Mr. Adebayo Adedeji, said at the December meeting to launch the PTA, we see our continent as a boat in which there is less to eat, where poverty and degradation is the plight of the average person, a boat which may sink before long unless all hands are on deck and a will to survive and eventually thrive manifests itself.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“It is for these reasons that the idea of economic co operation among developing countries is increasingly gaining ground. We, therefore, entirely support the Lagos Plan of Action for the Implementation of the Monrovia Strategy for the Economic Development of Africa, whose future projections are geared towards economic integration of Africa by the year 2000. We recognize that ECA is engaged in consolidating sub regional plans and strategies towards the noble goal of economic integration. We support the recommendations of the Joint Inspection Unit on the reorganization of ECA recognizing the role of multinational programming and operational centres. We applaud the signature last year of the Preferential Trade Area Agreement for east and southern Africa in Lusaka, Zambia.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“We are aware that his task during the current cycle will be made more difficult by the fact that resource prospects for the period are gloomy and far from promising. However, we have reason to believe that the newly created Inter sessional Committee of the Whole will soon come up with specific proposals for recovery in the short term and for the longer term to secure predictability, continuity and assurance in the funding of the Programme. The developing countries recognize that they are, in the first instance, responsible for their own economic and social development and that external aid should only be supplementary. They accept that the economic challenges of the future demand a complete elimination of unhealthy competition among them. At the same time, they are aware of their individual limitations.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“This will be the culmination of nine years of patient negotiations and a firm determination to accord land locked States access to the sear whose resources are the common heritage of all. It is to be hoped that once it comes into force good will will prevail upon the international community to make the Convention a success. My Government is satisfied that UNDP has played a very important role in the transfer of assistance from the developed to the developing countries, and its importance in this role has all the more increased, as revealed by its latest reports. We also take cognizance of the interest UNDP shows in the least developed countries. We, therefore, wish to pledge our confidence in the manner in which the Administrator is handling the affairs of UNDP, and we give him the assurance of our co operation.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“In this respect, we applaud once more the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights adopted at the eighteenth session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the OAU. Significantly, the Charter draws attention to the distinctive nature of African values and morals, and also provides fbr the respective duties and responsibilities of individuals and groups to their communities. Lesotho is at present engaged in moves to incorporate the provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights into our municipal law. History will be made in Kingston, Jamaica, when the United Nations Convention on the Law of the. Sea is opened for signature in December.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“The Falk larders should be allowed to determine their own future in accordance with their inalienable right to self determination as stipulated in the Charter of the United Nations and General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV). The history of the human race is replete with international efforts to accord man his rightful place within the community of free nations. Over the past three decades in particular, the international community has witnessed a succession of attempts to codify legal instruments aimed at the promotion and protection of the basic rights of man. Ironically, world wide reports of flagrant and persistent violations of the sanctity of the human person continue to filter into the already heavy agenda of the United Nations. This is clearly reflective of man's reluctance to conform deeds to words.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“We are fully aware of the complex political and military relationships in South East Asia and South West Asia, and particularly the strategic interests of foreign Powers in those vital areas. In our humble view, the issue of peace in those areas does not depend solely on Viet Nam's willingness to withdraw its troops from Kampuchea and on Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan; it depends also on an overall recognition of the security requirements of each and every State in those regions. Another focal point of tension is the Korean peninsula. We renew our call for resumption of dialogue, without pre conditions or external interference, between the two parts of Korea so as to bring about a peaceful reunification of that artificially divided land. I also wish to repeat the well known position of Lesotho on the question of the Falkland Islands.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“Today they have suffered a tragedy which invokes the deepest human emotions and disturbs the conscience and moral values of mankind. The Palestinian issue has come to symbolize, in our time, the ills and deficiencies which plague international diplomacy. We have maintained all along that the Palestinian issue is the crux of the Middle East problem. We do not need further massacres of Palestinian refugees to be reminded that the issue of Palestinian self determination is the crucial item on the agenda of peace in the Middle East. It is about time Israel learned that its security lies not in the dispersal of the Palestinian people and in war but in peace. Lesotho does not condone the breach of peace in the Middle East and southern Africa, nor does it countenance with complicity the presence of foreign troops in Kampuchea and Afghanistan.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“The world learned with shock and dismay of the dastardly assassination of President elect Jashir Gemayel, only to witness a few days later an even greater human tragedy and spectacle the massacre of Palestinian civilians in the refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila. Those unfortunate events have irrevocably placed the Palestinian issue at the centre of Middle East politics and have once and fbr all crystallized its central position in all peace efforts. The question of Palestinian rights and Palestinian self determination cannot be treated merely as a political issue, the solution of which is subject to Israel's security requirements. It is an issue which has brought untold suffering upon the Palestinian people. They have suffered the degradation of displacement and the squalor of refugee camps in foreign countries.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“Lesotho, as a member of the non aligned movement, places a high premium on international respect for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of States. We are therefore alarmed at the increasing readiness of States to use force to safeguard their proclaimed interests or to assert territorial claims, without any regard for the interests of other States, especially the weak and defenseless ones. I cannot comment on the current international political situation without touching on recent events in Lebanon, especially the human tragedies that have unfolded in that war torn land. We witnessed earlier the brutal siege of west Beirut by Israeli forces. No sooner had the siege been lifted than a succession of tragedies began to befall the people of Lebanon and the Palestinian refugees.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“The world order, on both the political and the economic front, continues to manifest signs of decline and impending collapse. This point is all the more poignant at this time when we are witnessing a resurgence of big Power rivalry and a dangerous tendency to assume that superior force is the final arbiter in international relations. This dangerous trend in the conduct of foreign policy must be arrested before it is too late. Lesotho will continue to participate in all efforts aimed at bringing about a global consensus on the vital issues of international peace and security, disarmament and the new international economic order, on the basis of the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“The President of the thirty sixth session of the Assembly, Mr. Kittani, presided over the second special session devoted to disarmament, in June July this year. That second global attempt to give disarmament a special place in this grim catalogue of the ills that afflict mankind clearly reflects the threat of universal annihilation that is posed by the unprecedented arms build up. That is why we have to express openly our disappointment that the session failed to produce any results. The world political situation remains tense; old rivalries have reemerged; the prospects of peace and tranquility have been diminished and the probability of war has been enhanced. In this decade of the 1980s we are facing a critical nation in which man's lust for peace is being replaced by a lust fbr war.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“In any case, it has always been our stand that South Africa will delay the independence of Namibia until such time as it may get a Government amenable to dictates. One of the ploys it is using to delay Namibia's independence is setting conditions such as the present one. That condition is unnecessary and uncalled for, and it negates the sovereignty of Angola. The numerous obstacles which have been placed in the way of a peaceful settlement of the Namibian issue have delayed the solution of this problem. I have to express in the Assembly the genuine fear of my Government that if this issue is made so drag on indefinitely, it may bring about the very thing that everybody has been trying to avoid for the last five years turning southern Africa into a constant hotbed of tension and a new arena of East West conflict.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)
“TM world has witnessed the worst defiance of international opinion as South Africa has employed one subterfuge after another to delay the attainment of independence by the people of Namibia. We are heartened by the fact that progress has been made on this issue in recent months, but we find it highly disturbing that the withdrawal of South African troops from Namibia is being linked with the withdrawal of Cuban troops from the People's Republic of Angola. No one can question the right of any sovereign State to determine its internal affairs, including its sovereign right to seek technical and military assistance from any friendly country. The presence of Cuban personnel in Angola is an extraneous issue which should not delay Namibia's independence.”
1982-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 37 (1982)