YouSaid · the spoken record

Mahathir

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS MAHATHIR

lines on the record: 147
first: 1982-09-24
most recent: 1995-09-24
sittings or episodes: 4
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

“When all is said and done, we still have to admit that the United Nations is the only truly multinational Organization where the voices of small nations can be heard. We support the United Nations, but we must correct the tendency to make it an instrument of the rich and the powerful. The United Nations must stand on the side of the collective needs of people and nations in order to serve all mankind.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Now the computer network created for the spread of knowledge and information has become polluted by the irresponsible dissemination of filth through it. Someone is making money from this filth. The world community must find a way to keep out such filth and to provide for legal action to be taken against its purveyors by aggrieved countries, even when they broadcast from outside their borders. They should be allowed to bring these miscreants to trial in the aggrieved countries, under their laws. After all, we have already had many instances of extraterritorial application of the laws of some countries without so much as a by-your-leave. Freedom of information is fine, but even in this age of freedom we cannot allow morals to be completely undermined in order to enrich the merchants of porn and filth.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Regrettably, powerful trading nations threaten, through unilateral actions, to undermine the carefully negotiated agreements. The deliberate creation of regional trading blocs, the introduction of managed trade and the attempts to link human rights, environmental considerations and labour codes to trade are major threats which, if implemented, would dim the hope of a free environment for trade. We reject such attempts. The new protectionism will return the world to a bygone era when trade wars led to military confrontations. Finally, we have the new threats with the advent of the information age. The poor countries have long suffered from biased reporting by the world media, controlled by the developed world.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“The World Bank continues to increase its profit levels and amasses reserves which today stand in excess of $16 billion. Why are these reserves, built from payments by developing countries, not used for debt relief? And why do we allow the intransigence of one or two countries to preclude the issuance of special drawing rights by the International Monetary Fund? These and other issues must feature in a reform of the Bretton Woods institutions. The conclusion of the Uruguay Round and the establishment of the World Trade Organization offer a glimmer of hope for rule-based trading relationships. Malaysia applauds and welcomes the underlying principles, and we pledge ourselves to play by the mutually agreed undertakings.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“New arrangements for governance must recognize the growing clout of the newly emerging economies that now contribute to a rising share of global output, to trade and to capital flows. The debt millstone weighs heavily on the poor. This burden must be eased, especially for the poorest nations of Africa and Asia. Malaysia hopes that effective actions will be taken forthwith, taking into account decisions made at the forty-ninth session of the General Assembly on finding a durable solution to the external-debt problem of developing countries. While bilateral debts extended by donor countries have over the years been restructured and rescheduled — though with humiliating conditions imposed by the Paris Club of creditors — multilateral institutions, led by the World Bank, have steadfastly refused to consider restructuring debt owed to them.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“The Bretton Woods institutions have to cease acting as debt collectors for the mighty and the rich bankers, who, in turn, must learn to live within the rules of their own creation, with regard to taking commercial risks which go hand in hand with the pursuit of gain. A return to their original mandates — to promote balanced development, in the case of the World Bank, and to enforce monetary and fiscal responsibility in all countries, irrespective of their status in the global economy — is a first priority. Reform must include a re-evaluation of the governance arrangements at the Bank and the Fund through a realignment and reallocation of quotas and shareholdings that take into account the changed structure of the world economy.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Unemployment in the developed countries is due not to workers’ in developing countries working hard to compensate for their lack of other competitive advantages, but, rather, to the profligate ways of the developed nations, with their high wages and unemployment benefits. Why it is assumed that workers in developed countries would work when they are to be paid for not working is a mystery on a par with the idea that people would be happy and productive if the diligent were paid as much as the indolent. The reform of global institutions must encompass the Bretton Woods institutions. Their energies and resources must be channelled towards the battle against the pollution caused by poverty worldwide.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Reform of the United Nations also requires the cleansing of the bureaucratic Augean stables in the Secretariat. The morale of the international civil service is at its lowest ebb. The excesses and the fat must be trimmed, but failure to do so must not be used as an excuse for not paying dues or for opting out. It is heartening to note that the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and other United Nations economic agencies have now acknowledged that linking trade and non-trade issues serves no useful purpose either for the developed or for the developing countries.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Reform must also extend to the financing of the United Nations. It is wholly unacceptable that Member States, especially the rich ones, should fall into arrears with impunity and yet exercise special rights and influence. The membership rules must be applied to one and all. New bases for assessment should be laid down, taking into consideration the wealth, or lack of it, of Members. Various global taxation schemes, including modest levies on global air travel, a tax on global speculative flows of capital, a tax on the exploitation of mankind’s common assets on the seabed and a tax on the trade in weapons of war, have all been proposed. Of those, the last one, based on the principle that he who profits from the tools of war must contribute to the maintenance of peace, merits urgent attention and adoption.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Surely the results of that war cannot be reflected in the structure and procedures of the United Nations for ever. It has to end some time, and the fiftieth anniversary is as good a time as any for burying the relics of past follies. Since democracy seems to have displaced religion as a faith, it is fitting that there should be democratic reforms in the United Nations. Some of those countries which had vested themselves with infallibility and permanency have now become second-raters. New players have emerged that should be accorded recognition. A more equitable representation on the Security Council is a must. This means that permanent seats should be given to regions, possibly determined by a regional mechanism. The veto power should be dropped. Under no circumstances must the Security Council be made an instrument of any one country.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Sexual freedom will render fidelity meaningless as much as it renders marriages anachronistic. The new liberalism extends to a new definition of the family, which is to include homosexual pairs, unmarried women with children by unknown fathers, groups of men and women living together with no fixed partners, and many other combinations. If the West wants to be liberal and sexually free, that is its right. What is wrong is the attempt to impose its morality, or lack of it, on the rest of the world, and in Beijing that was what it tried to do. The United Nations should not lend itself to this kind of undemocratic disregard for the rights of others. Of late there has been much talk about reform of the United Nations. Clearly, there is a need for this after 50 years of the United Nations carrying the tattered baggage of the last world war.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“These modern-day imitations of the Communist agitators would do well to look to their own countries’ wasteful consumption and carbon-dioxide emissions. Social disintegration is a serious problem as the world’s population becomes more urbanized. This is not helped by the West’s seeking to impose its moral values. The institutions that hold society together are now being undermined. At the Beijing Women’s Summit, despite a consensus cobbled together to alleviate the sufferings of women, the mad quest for personal freedom took one more tradition-bashing step. People, it seems, cannot be free unless they have sexual freedom, a freedom that 3 rejects the inhibitions of traditional and religious values, of marriage and family as institutions of society.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“The Western consumer society, which is spreading world wide, requires ever-increasing consumption to keep production and profits continually rising. For this, more fuel is needed, and the trend in the use of fossil fuels in recent years is alarming. Yet very little is being done to curb such wasteful use of a depleting resource, while the development of renewable resources, such as hydropower, meets with all kinds of objections. Progressively industrializing Malaysia has the capacity and the resources to design and implement a model of development sensitive to the needs and cultural values of developing countries without imitating the flawed Western model. We ask only that misguided crusaders should keep out.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Yet the environmental obstacles placed in the way of the poor South will do just that, beggaring the poor to enrich the already rich. Poverty itself creates an environment that is as damaging to humanity as any other kind of environmental pollution. Obviously, we need to determine our priorities. Do we keep the poor permanently poor so that the rich can enjoy the environment, or do we sacrifice the environment a little in the interest of relieving poverty? We in Malaysia accept that economic development should not be at the expense of other groups or future generations. Environmental sustainability, social equity and a culture that allows for the fulfilment of human needs must replace the culture of materialism.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) privileges are withdrawn and their records on human rights, democracy, and so on, are scrutinized in order to obstruct their progress. Some among the more successful countries of the South have been enticed to join the rich and the strong, so they may not lend what little strength they have to their compatriots. Commitment to the environment should not be turned into an occasion for recrimination and the pointing of fingers. Worse, it should not be politically instrumentalized to disadvantage the South. Development can take place without irreparable damage to the environment. Forcing the developing countries to remain undeveloped in order to preserve the environment for the rich is manifestly unfair.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Yet such is the concern for the survival of insects and plant life that human development must be stopped if it is suspected it might endanger a few animals or plants. That there are plenty of the same species elsewhere is considered irrelevant. And so one-fifth of the world’s population remains mired in poverty, having been denied development assistance by the rich and the powerful. The latter have retreated into their regional clubs and cosy arrangements for perpetuating unconscionable levels of consumption. Some of the countries of the South have tried to pull themselves up literally by their bootstraps. But the moment they appear to succeed the carpet is pulled out from under their feet.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“But, instead, when peace is broken the United Nations threatens to withdraw and leave the victims to their fate. Fortunately, in Palestine, another historical flash point, efforts continue to be made towards durable peace. That peace process must result in a Palestinian homeland, a viable State at peace with its neighbours. The attempts to weaken the present Palestinian leadership by undermining its credibility will only result in the rise of extremism and a protracted and bloody intra- Palestinian conflict which will spill over into Israel and elsewhere. The absence of international leadership and commitment is evident in the area of development as well. The rhetoric of development is increasingly devoid of meaningful content. The North has turned its back on commitments relating to development assistance.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“And in Somalia failure to understand the situation led to the victims fighting their United Nations saviours. The United Nations Secretariat must take some of the blame for all these brutalities. In Rwanda it truly shirked its duty, while in Bosnia it sent in a protection force which was instructed not to protect the Bosnians. Why it should be called the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) has been a mystery until recently. It was there to protect itself. It makes a distinction between peace-keeping and peace-enforcement. If there is peace to keep, why are military forces needed? Are not the forces put there because of the possibility of breaches of the peace? And when there are breaches the forces must stop them, if peace-keeping is to be meaningful.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“The threat of a brutalized world has never been more evident than in the Serb programme of “ethnic cleansing” in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the massacres in Rwanda. For a long time the major Powers were opposed to taking strong measures against the Serbs. We are seeing belatedly some sense of purpose in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) bombings and efforts to negotiate a solution. However, we should be cautious about rushing towards solutions that reward aggression and genocide. It is possible that some in the West and in the United Nations had longed for Bosnia’s quick defeat. It would have saved them from making any decision. But 2 the Bosnians refused to oblige. In Rwanda the European troops withdrew when the massacres began.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Clearly the major Powers have failed to provide leadership, choosing only to act in furtherance of their national or domestic political interests. They continue to harp on human rights and the sanctity of human life but they act only when they run no risk. Admittedly, blame must also be apportioned to many of us in the third world. Some of us have led our people down the path of despair and misery. With the demise of colonialism there was the promise of freedom and development. Yet many succumbed to the temptations of creature comfort, failing to further the rights and welfare of our own people. But then, when we were colonies, the only form of government we knew was authoritarian colonialism. It is too much to expect some of us, at the midnight flag-lowering, suddenly to become democratic and sophisticated.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“The United Nations has been party to the double talk in Bosnia, insisting that morality has no place in peace- keeping since the impartiality that peace-keepers had to maintain required them to eschew making any judgement about the rights and wrongs of the situation. I ask the United Nations whether there can be a middle ground where genocide and “ethnic cleansing” are concerned. I ask the Secretary-General of the United Nations whether he is obliged to defend the moral principles in the United Nations Charter or whether he should console the dying and the bereaved by saying that there are others elsewhere who are suffering worse fates. Is there not, in the context of the larger picture, a special role for the United Nations to provide international leadership?”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Tears appear to be shed about the human tragedies in Bosnia, Rwanda, Liberia, Somalia and Chechnya, but many have become desensitized to the horrors that flash across our screens. The Charter incorporating the idealism and dreams of 1945 is more honoured in violations of it than in adherence to it. Tell us: How have the principles of the Charter on the non-use of force and the illegality of claiming territory acquired by aggression been of help to the Bosnians? What protection or solace has the genocide Convention been to those slaughtered in Rwanda, Bosnia, Cambodia and Chechnya? The lesson for the peoples of these countries is clear: no international order or international ethos will be defended unless the major Powers see that their vital interests are at risk.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“It is time that the nuclear-weapon States committed themselves to nuclear disarmament through a programmed reduction of their nuclear arsenals within a specific time-frame, beginning with the immediate cessation of all nuclear tests and culminating in their total elimination. Soon it may be too costly and too late. Perversely, the major Powers not only continue to compete in developing ever more destructive conventional weapons but also compete to sell arms. And when some developing countries buy arms the Western-controlled media accuse them of indulging in arms races. We seem to have inherited a world in which moral considerations have no real role to play in which acts of realpolitik have no moral consequences.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“The multilateral organizations created on the eve of war’s end were and still are structured to further their economic interests and the pursuit of their strategic political goals. The Security Council, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have merely become the instruments of power perpetuation. Less than six months ago, we witnessed the use of the United Nations to push through, draconian-like, the nuclear non-proliferation Treaty. Before the ink was dry, some of the nuclear Powers proceeded to test their diabolical weapons. What, may I ask, qualifies some countries to possess the means of mass destruction in perpetuity?”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Confrontation between States, intra-State conflicts, economic and military threats, the dehumanizing effects of poverty: all these are heightened rather than diminished by the end of the cold war. The contradictory impulses of interdependence and isolationism are more evident than ever before. Not only is humanitarianism drying up fast, but what survives is replete with conditionalities. The United Nations presents a shattered image with a threadbare moral authority, despite the important early successes in decolonization and the subsequent elimination of apartheid. The victors of 1945 have clung tenaciously to the levers of power. They control the high ground, exercising influence and power as nakedly as when they were colonial Powers. Only the masks have changed.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Despite earlier hopes of a just world order following the end of the cold war, what we still see is a United Nations which dances to the grating music of the major Powers, in total disregard for the high principles and objectives pledged at its formation. We will have to conclude that the narrow national interest of the few is still what the United Nations is all about. Also, the principle which largely moves the major Powers, that what they need for themselves must influence their dealings with the needs of others, is fully operative, making nonsense of interdependence, social compassion and justice. And so we must forget the promise of an international political leadership that can collectively come to grips with the myriad issues for a shared survival.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Will the high point of the fiftieth anniversary be reduced to a special commemorative meeting condensed into a declaration of good intentions which no one seriously cares for, or should we resist the tendency to celebrate, to expend millions on galas and parties and to eulogize through rhetorical speeches the anniversary of the establishment of the United Nations? After all we cannot even answer the basic questions of where we stand and what the United Nations is, whipping boy or serious, enduring player. Admittedly it is easier to raise questions than to find answers. But these questions must be raised and they deserve to be answered. In its fiftieth year the United Nations system finds itself criticized for being unable to handle basic and critical political, economic and social issues.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“Let me first congratulate you, Sir, on your election to the presidency of the fiftieth session of the General Assembly. I wish you a successful presidency. Appreciation is also due to your distinguished predecessor, His Excellency Mr. Amara Essy, who provided the leadership during the forty-ninth session of the General Assembly. The General Assembly is meeting in the midst of hectic schedules of events to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations. Some of us have become preoccupied with these celebrations. We should ask whether these activities are merely media events or could seriously contribute to a better United Nations.”
1995-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 50 (1995)
“If the Organization is to continue to contribute to world peace and the progress of all nations, big and small, we must live up to our obligations and responsibilities to the United Nations. Just as the major Powers must not expect the United Nations merely to serve them, so must the developing countries be guided by the same principle. The Organization must be revitalized and allowed to serve all mankind. The major Powers have a particular responsibility for preserving the role of the United Nations, for they will always have the edge in making or breaking the United Nations. Even for them, what alternative is there? Perhaps only a return to unilateralism and an alliance system, with its attendant dangers.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“What we are after is improvement over the present situation, which is deficient and inclined towards exclusivity and therefore not in harmony with international aspirations. We are very clear about our commitment and very conscious of it. we should not falter in seeking out the objectives with which we began in 1982. Non-co-operation and non-participation by the Consultative Parties will not deter us from pursuing those objectives. It is the prerogative of the Consultative Parties either to opt in or opt out, but, for us, the decision is made. We therefore call upon the Consultative Parties to work with us towards attaining those universal objectives. In conclusion, I wish to reaffirm Malaysia's support of and commitment to the United Nations.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“What we sought was merely more information and an updated and expanded study of Antarctica, more information on the mineral-regime negotiations and a follow-up response from the Consultative Parties concerning the call by the General Assembly for the exclusion of South Africa from participation in the group of Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties. Yet that reasonableness and moderation proved unacceptable. We do not seek confrontation. We do not desire to threaten the security and interests of the Consultative Parties, nor do we wish to destroy the framework that the Consultative Parties have built. What we want is an internationally accepted system of management over Antarctica that caters to the interest of mankind as a whole.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“That positive commitment by the United Nations strengthens the will of Malaysia and other like-minded countries to continue to pursue the objective of an Antarctica that is for all mankind and not for an exclusive few. The importance of Antarctica to mankind is beyond dispute. It is for that reason that we can never yield to the pressure mounted by certain quarters to bring us to relent and renege on our commitment. Antarctica should be under an internationally accepted regime and managed for the benefit of all mankind. We remain committed to working towards those objectives with all interested parties, including the Consultative Parties to the Antarctic Treaty. Last year, there was no consensus, in spite of our efforts. The Consultative Parties chose to remain adamant and indifferent to the sincere wishes of the majority.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“That would be above and in addition to the Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Outline of Actions, we view such an expression of political willingness as essential for a successful implementation of the actions we have mapped out. Once there is political commitment, then the source of drugs must be attacked with every available weapon, wherever that source may be. A full-scale war must be waged, and that war must be internationalized. The fight to destroy production is too big and too costly for any of the producer countries to wage alone. I am pleased by the interest shown by you, Mr. President, and the support given by the Assembly on the issue of Antarctica.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The death penalty is an eminently just punishment for such criminals, for only death will stop those purveyors of misery and death. For us, the battle has barely begun. The international community must declare an all-out war against drug abuses and trafficking in deadly substances. The International Conference on drugs should come out not only with a definite plan of action but also with a firm political commitment by all participating nations, at the highest political level, to do their utmost. No stone should be left unturned and no avenues left unexplored in our war against this menace. We would like to see such political commitment expressed in a joint statement or declaration.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Malaysia therefore welcomes the convening of the International Conference on Drug Abuse and Drug Trafficking in June of next year. That opportunity should not be wasted, we should pool all our resources and combine all our efforts to remove this scourge that is sapping the vitality of our nations. In Malaysia, we are fully committed to combating the drug menace in all its manifestations and with every resource available to us. we have hanged and will continue to hang pushers and traffickers in accordance with our laws, irrespective of colour or creed. We would rather be unpopular in certain quarters than be hypocritical. It is only when such criminals know that they will not live to enjoy their ill-gotten gains that they will stop.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Malaysia wishes to join other developing countries in calling upon the developed countries to address in a just and equitable manner the various issues facing the international economy so as to ensure stable and sustained international economic growth, as well as to foster an inter nation . trading and financial system responsive to the needs of - and be of benefit to - all nations. It is in this spirit that Malaysia welcomed the recent launching of the new round of multilateral trade negotiations in Punta del Este this September. A major issue that confronts us and requires urgent attention is the i ^national drug problem. The modern-day manifestations of that threat, including the subjugation of whole nations, amplifies the need for concrete and decisive international action to overcome it.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Many third world economists, scholars and statesmen met and discussed the world economic situation and the approach towards improving the economic situation of developing countries. >3e cannot accept that the rich seven should have the exclusive right to impose their own solutions to the world's economic problems. Already their exchange rate approach has impoverished us further. An Independent Commission of the South has therefore been set up under the chairmanship of former President Julius Nyerere to examine and propose practical measures for us to take. We hope the United Nations and Member countries will help this Commission in every way possible.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“There should be a reduction of interest rates, stabilization of the exchange rates, reduction of budget deficits, planned recovery in the major developed countries and increasing market access for exports of developing countries. In addition, international financial institutions should provide the funds to meet the requirements of long-term development projects in developing countries besides short-term financing. It is here that the United Nations and its agencies have a major role to play. Malaysia has very recently taken the initiative in promoting economic co-operation among developing countries by hosting the Second International South-South Conference or South-South II, in Kuala Lumpur.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Hew then can we honestly say that the rich developed countries are not to be blamed for our economic miseries? How can we look at future meetings of the seven richest industrialized nations with equanimity? There is also at the moment an inadequate international monetary and financial system. Sovereign nations are no longer masters of their own currency. Speculators, including banks, can push currencies up or down at will. Indeed, trading in goods has been displaced by trading in currencies. The situation is anarchic, and serious-minded people must find a new monetary system that is more orderly if the problems of the debtor and creditor nations are to be resolved. In the first place, creditor countries should assist in increasing the rate of growth in the indebted countries.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“A glut situation then arises and becomes aggravated when the rich countries subsidize the production and sale of their commodities. The poor countries can never subsidize to the level of the rich and they lose all their traditional markets. If, in the past, the terms of trade were such that we had to sell more and more commodities in order to pay for less and less manufactured goods, now we cannot even sell more commodities to pay for even more expensive manufactured goods. And governments find it increasingly difficult to earn sufficient foreign currency to pay their debts. The collapse of commodity prices results in a chain reaction whereby all economic activities are slowed or forced to a standstill. As usual, it is at such times that creditors become predators.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“But yen revaluation which has caused havoc to our economy has done nothing to limit imports of Japanese goods into North America or Europe. The developing countries all depend on commodity exports to earn foreign exchange. Now all commodities are experiencing very lew prices, some falling by more than 60 per cent. A combination of factors has brought about this across-the-board price depression. First, new technology has rendered the traditional raw materials irrelevant. Either new and cheaper materials are substituted, as when glass fibre replaces copper wire in telecommunications, or the quantities used are so much reduced that the raw material as an input is irrelevant. At the same time, new technology has also immensely increased production of raw materials.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The debt burdens of developing countries is now at is highest level while the terms of trade for us are getting worse and worse. We do not want to blame the rich countries for all our woes, but the fact remains that it is their action that is at the bottom of our unprecedented economic crisis. Let us take the national debts as an example. When the seven rich countries had trade unbalances, their solution was to force the revaluation of the yen and the deutschmark. Many countries of South-East Asia borrow yen extensively. The appreciation of the yen alone has increased Malaysia's Japanese debts by 60 per cent. Other countries are even worse off. If the problem is massive Japanese imports into North America and Europe, it would have caused less damage to the poor countries if very high import duties are imposed.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“What do we call people who threaten to wipe out the whole human race in fulfillment of their war strategy? The cause of peace cannot be served by wasting scarce resources on nuclear arms. If the super-Powers stop their nuclear build-up we will not ask them to spend their savings on eradicating poverty, hunger and disease. They can spend it on themselves, by all means, for even that is better than the useless manufacture of these terrible indestructible weapons. Since our last United Nations General Assembly session in 1985, the world economic situation has deteriorated tremendously. We are meeting in New York today at a time of severe adversity in the economic field for almost all developing countries. The undermining of the economies of developing countries, in recent months, is unprecedented in scope.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“One of the many intractable issues confronting us is that of disarmament, an issue which this Organization has been grappling with for many years. It is obvious that the problem of disarmament cannot be addressed effectively unless major Powers are resolved to negotiate a halt to the proliferation and the eventual elimination of nuclear arsenals. Already we have accumulated enough nuclear devices to destroy the world. Even if we decide to dispose of them, we cannot. We have already condemned ourselves to permanent fear of radiation and destruction. Doomsday may be nearer than we think. It is indeed a horrifying prospect that the survival of mankind should be dependent on a "balance of terror". Malaysians ate called "barbarians" because we hang convicted white criminals for drug offenses, as we hang others for the same crime.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The proposal also provides for free elections in which all parties can take part. Surely this is a just and workable proposal in consonance with the principles of self-determination and of the United Nations. However, Viet Nam seems intent on rejecting everything other than its own military solution. In Central America, the super-Powers and their proxies are just as active, trying to shape governments and countries in their own images through subversion and through provoking and directing rebellions. Is the majority in this Organization wrong when it condemns such acts? If there is an "automatic majority", is there not also a tendency on the part of the big Powers to automatically use their brute strength when they dislike the stand of the majority.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Just as we stand behind the Mujahideen in Afghanistan, so too must we stand by' the people of Kampuchea in their valiant struggle. While Malaysia and the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries hail the efforts of the Kampuchean resistance under the leadership of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, we have always encouraged a negotiated solution. It is in this context that we urge Viet Nam to reconsider iti rejection of the eight-point proposal put forward by the Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea. Malaysia believes the eight-point proposal contains the elements of a constructive framework for negotiations that could lead to a comprehensive and peaceful solution inasmuch as it is based on a policy of national reconcile.nation that includes all parties.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“We must continue to condemn the Soviet action and that of its puppets just as the majority of the people of Afghanistan, despite the terrible odds, continue to fight and resist the aggression. Similarly, the international community should never acquiesce to Viet Nam's invasion of Kampuchea. Indeed, the international community has repeatedly affirmed its condemnation of Viet Nam, but nevertheless that country persists in its intransigence in rejecting all efforts for a peaceful solution. This is indeed an arrogant attitude, made no less so because of the firm backing that Viet Nam has been getting from a super-Power. It is ironic that Viet Nam, which was itself subjected to a long struggle against foreign domination, should now seek to impose its domination on a small, weak neighbor.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“But as small developing countries we must, nevertheless, continue to raise our voices against any instances in which important principles such as the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of States are violated and ignored. He, the small nations, are all potential victims. The case of Afghanistan serves as an example. An independent, sovereign nation is invaded and occupied by one of the most powerful countries in the world. For the Soviet Union, a permanent member of the Security Council, one of the countries to which we are expected to entrust questions of world peace and security, to perpetrate such an act cannot but leave us all in a state of permanent fear. We can never accept what may happened in Afghanistan as a fait accompli.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“While we should not be selective in our condemnation of terrorism, let us not ignore the fact that policies such as those practiced by Israel are based on terror and invite retaliation based on the same psychology of terror. If we are to condemn and act against terrorism, let us not be selective, nor must we resort to it as a counter measure. In many of the major crises that confront the world, the majority of States are reduced to the position of bystanders, powerless to act or influence, save perhaps by our moral outrage and our pleas and appeals. Even in some cases of seemingly limited and local conflicts the hand of a greater actor is thinly veiled, adding fuel to the fire. Our inability to act is even more circumscribed when a major Power is involved and openly ignores all the basic tenets of the Charter of the United Nations.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The= Palestinians, therefore, unlike the Israelis, have to fight against all odds in their struggle for their rights and identity. In the process, the Palestinians have always been condemned by the world while the fact is ignored that Israel itself is a product of terrorism, that its unceasing intimidation, harassment and victimization of Arabs in the occupied territories and elsewhere is purely and simply a policy based on terrorism. While we are on the subject of terrorism, let me state categorically that my country joins the international community in condemning terrorism. It is indeed significant that the United Nations was able to adopt a resolution by consensus against terrorism. Our concern must also cover acts of terrorism by Governments.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)