YouSaid · the spoken record

Koroma

THE RECORD WRITES THIS SPEAKER AS KOROMA

lines on the record: 91
first: 1986-09-24
most recent: 2004-09-24
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

“We note with interest and satisfaction the unanimous adoption of Security Council resolution 598 (1987) and appeal to the Secretary-General and all Members of this Organization to help create the conditions suitable for the implementation of that resolution. The revival of the idea of an international peace conference on the Middle East, and the current wide international support which that idea enjoys, is of great interest to my delegation. We have followed closely the progress of the Secretary-General's efforts to mobilize a consensus on the procedural aspects of the conference among the parties concerned, and we observe with deep disappointment that it has not yet been possible to obtain the agreement of some of the parties to the idea of convening an international conference.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“The role of the United Nations in the pursuit of this objective is crucial, and we endorse the long-standing preoccupation of the Secretary-General with efforts to find a lasting solution to the conflict, culminating in his recent visit to Iran and Iraq. We believe that Member States of this Organization can, in their individual capacities, make significant contributions to the peace process by helping to create the general climate of trust and urgency without which the current cloud of suspicion which pervades the atmosphere cannot be dissipated, and without which there will be a prolongation of hostilities.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“It is therefore logical that we keep up the pressures that brought these changes about, not only to achieve the eventual dismantling of apartheid but also to accelerate the process for the independence of Namibia. In this context we recognize and commend, among other things, the efforts that have brought about massive disinvestments in South Africa, the activities of trade unions and church organizations, in and outside of South Africa, the resolution of the freedom fighters, as well as the fortitude of the front-line States in southern Africa. The war between Iran and Iraq represents a tragedy of enormous proportions which the international community should do everything to end.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Both the spiritual and the intellectual underpinnings of apartheid suffered severe assault recently when the White Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa, the body that formulated the theological justification for that system, declared that scriptural rationales for enforced racial separation were an error that should now be rejected. Also recently, the University of Stellenbosch, the erstwhile intellectual powerhouse of apartheid, became a centre of opposition to that system. Let us realize that these events did not occur by accident or in a vacuum, but as a result of the intense and consistent political, economic and military pressures which the international community has exerted on South Africa in recent years.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Oliver Tambo, who said; "Nobody should demand of us that we seek change by non-violent means when we are denied all constitutional possibilities to redress the grievances of the majority" We believe that the international community has the chance to avert the human tragedy in South Africa if it heeds the advice of the Secretary-General and takes timely action, for if by neglect or by cynicism we allow the tragedy to occur, the consequences may turn out not to be as bearable to some of us as we might have assumed. There is ample evidence that apartheid is crumbling.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“This becomes a classic case of what the late President Kennedy referred to, with characteristic eloquence and perceptiveness, when he said: "Those who make peaceful evolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable." That is the assessment of the situation in South Africa which those who directly carry its burden have now reached, as expressed by the African National Congress (ANC) leader, Mr.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“While we detest, as a matter of principle, the use of force for the achievement of political objectives as much as any other State Member of this Organization, we would not hide behind that principle to camouflage the abandonment of our sacred duty under the Charter to help eliminate from the face of the earth the barbarism, immorality and conflict all of which apartheid so visibly embodies. Very few of us need reminding that any system such as apartheid, which continues to subsist on a daily diet of imprisonment, torture and murder of black children as young as seven years of age, the indiscriminate massacre of dispossessed, defenceless and innocent members of its community, as well as citizens of neighbouring States, offers very few options for redress.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“In the absence of the apartheid regime’s readiness to negotiate a democratic and peaceful transition to majority rule in South Africa, and because of the reliance by that regime on the use of naked force against the majority black population to perpetuate its illegal existence, it becomes absolutely absurd for anyone to claim to be on the side of freedom and justice in South Africa and at the same time to repudiate the use of effective pressure against South Africa either in the form of sanctions or in the threat or use of military coercion.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“We have no wish whatsoever to repeat those views here except, of course, to remind those who continue to oppose the imposition of comprehensive sanctions against the racist South African regime that they are endangering the very interests that they seek to protect by undermining the only viable instrument of gentle pressure against South Africa and making the violent destruction of that regime inevitable.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“That is why we have been tireless in calling on all nations to be resolute and noncompromising in demanding majority rule in South Africa and self-determination in Namibia. We have also constantly advocated that equal resolution be applied in the search for just settlements of the disputes in the Middle East, Kampuchea, Central America, Afghanistan, the Western Sahara and Chad. The Secretary-General has warned that a human tragedy of overwhelming proportions is imminent in South Africa unless, of course, timely action is taken to prevent it. The delegation of Sierra Leone has had occasion in this Assembly and elsewhere to offer its views on the kind of actions it considers appropriate for the international community to adopt to stave off this impending tragedy.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Therefore, as we acknowledge this remarkable disarmament effort between the super-Powers, we expect that the entire international community will perceive the true significance of this event as a major step in the urgent pursuit of more global and comprehensive arms control and disarmament agreements and as part of a greater security enterprise whose success also requires the peaceful resolution of regional and internal conflicts as well as the achievement of acceptable economic and social conditions in all nations. We believe that it would be naive for anyone to assume that islands of peace and security could be created and sustained in a world awash in tension and fed by racial prejudice, religious intolerance/ economic injustice and, above all, hegemonistic aspirations.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Thus it would be a serious mistake for any Member State to view its commitment to the United Nations as an altruistic gesture subject to its whims, rather than as a sacred duty dictated by an enlightened perception of its self-interest. Since the previous session, developments in the security, economic and social conditions in many parts of the world have given us more cause for despair than hope. As we observe the progress of negotiations towards the reaching of a historic agreement on disarmament between the super-Powers, our excitement is tempered by the knowledge that extensive testing of weapons capability is simultaneously taking place, and enormous resources are being devoted to the perfection of other means of mutual destruction.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“But firm commitment to the provisions of the Charter is the other, and perhaps the most crucial, element in ensuring our Organization's effectiveness. It is therefore a matter of great regret to us that Member States have often undermined the credibility of the United Nations for purely short-term political objectives, or sometimes through wilful neglect. The relevance of the United Nations as an instrument for the peaceful existence and orderly development of every nation no longer requires justification. Suffice it to say here that history is replete with instances of even weaker nations denying peace and orderly progress to greater nations in an unmanaged international environment.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“My Government is encouraged that the Secretary-General has risen sufficiently to this challenge by fearlessly pointing out flaws in the structure of the Organization and repudiating inappropriate conduct by Members, regardless of their size or influence. In this regard we note with approval the critical view he has cast on the current structure of the Economic and Social Council and the reforms he has proposed, especially the call to upgrade representation in that Council at the ministerial level, as well as the need to establish a small planning staff for development which could consider integrated approaches to development-related problems, taking account of the capacity of the system as a whole. The Secretary-General's efforts represent only one facet of what we require to ensure the viability and efficiency of our Organization.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“I take this opportunity to express my delegations appreciation to the Secretary-General for the lucid and comprehensive report he has presented on the work of the Organization since the last session, vie are deeply heartened that the Organization is gradually becoming the object of a "greater commonality of views" among its Members, scarcely a year after its very existence was in jeopardy. The renewed interest in multilateralism this development represents calls for deep reflection, since it entails complex processes at work, requiring skilled management on the part of the Secretary-General and the Secretariat.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“On behalf of the Sierra Leone delegation I should like, Sir to extend warm congratulations to you on your election to the presidency o£ the General Assembly at its forty-second session. Your unanimous election to that high office is in recognition of your distinguished record as a statesman and your long experience in diplomacy· I wish to assure you of my delegation's fullest co-operation in the discharge of your awesome duties. May I also avail myself of this opportunity to pay tribute to your predecessor for the admirable manner in which he conducted the deliberations of the forty-first session.”
1987-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 42 (1987)
“Once again the delegation of Sierra Leone solemnly renews its faith in the noble ideals enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and its endeavors to pursue the objective of a peaceful, stable and progressive world.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Although the complexities of international relations today make the Organization's task, sometimes insurmountable, the successes achieved, with the determination, skill and perseverance of the Secretary-General, staff and Member States, have outweighed the frustrations and disappointments. No nation, no matter how small, can in splendid isolation be master of its fate, but equally, no nation, no matter how great, can compel all others to do its bidding nor convert them by vigorous persuasion to its own beliefs. All nations are interdependent in terms of politics, economics and strategy. The United Nations is a guarantor of that eternal truism.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In that connection, a positive and sympathetic approach by the international community to the persistent and pervasive question of external debt can have significant effects on prospects for future development. Some of our partners in development, by canceling substantial debts accruing as a result of our implementing programs for infrastructure investment, have shown the way to others. Debt relief, judiciously and appropriately applied, eases economic and financial constraints, offers the recipient some respite and, properly handled, improves the prospects for recovery and rehabilitation. The United Nations has over the years stood the test of time, in spite of difficulties which sometimes challenge its usefulness, without a shadow of doubt, it has become the only medium through which peace and security can be assured.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In that connection, we believe that the major industrialized countries should have the vision to offer greater, more reliable, constant and effective assistance without very harsh conditions whose implementation can cause severe hardship. The special session on the critical economic situation in Africa, which convened here in the spring, identified some areas for priority action, and we believe that tha international community must support our efforts to achieve meaningful, effective and sustainable development. The funds required to support and implement the program of Action over the next five years are substantial, and Africa first and foremost, whit the international community in support, must renew its commitment to achieving economic recovery and development.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“We have no doubt that some of the traumatic incidents associated with famine and food shortages in Africa must be attributed essentially to the basic constraints of inadequate and ineffectual resource flows. For our part, my Government has adopted and is pursuing programs for rehabilitation and economic recovery, and in order to accelerate their implementation it has gone a long way, and has bent over backwards, to reach an accommodation and understanding with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). That is not an easy process. It runs the risk of instability for any Government that attempts to operate within a framework which is unacceptable to the majority of its people. In accommodating IMF conditions, one can undermine democracy.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The fact that many African Governments have revised their policies and reformulated strategies and programs should not invite complacency on the part of the international community. The present crisis is largely attributable to fundamental structural problems which can be rectified only by sustained, long-term, growth-oriented adjustment programs. This requires several years of coherent, sustained and well-co-ordinated action, appropriately initiated at the national level and receiving the ungrudging co-operation of the international community and particularly, the support of the major financial institutions. Indeed, the shortage of liquidity and inadequate financial resource flows to many developing countries have both contributed to disturbing levels of poverty and deprivation.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The hesitations and prevarications which have since attended its implementation have undermined the efforts of our institution to reduce the widening gap. Many developing countries, including Sierra Leone, remain particularly vulnerable to unpredictable external economic forces. Our era is one that requires sustained reflection, a frank and hottest analysis and the combined efforts of all the human and technological resources at our disposal if we are to provide a solution to the unprecedented economic crisis that still besets our nations. In spite of appreciable shifts in perception among the major industrialized countries, the socio-economic situation in Africa remains precarious and disturbing.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The Secretary-General has reacted courageously and promptly to that crisis, a report on which was submitted, discussed and partially acted upon at the resumed session of the fortieth General Assembly in May this year. Such action appropriately sets the tone and the mode for the extensive and detailed discussion necessary for an accurate diagnosis and solution of the Organization's problems. My delegation acknowledges in an equally hopeful spirit, the report of the Group of 18 on the efficiency of the administrative and financial functioning of the United Nations. The report requires careful study to ensure that the broadest possible consensus is reached on its reconsiderations. Over 12 years ago the Assembly, disturbed by the growing disparities between the rich and the poor, proclaimed a new international economic order.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“They need action, and, as we enter the fifth decade of our Organization's existence, we can enhance its credibility by the decisive measures we bring to bear on the crises that threaten peace, security and socio-economic progress. But what we see in our time is that certain States, in pursuit of their separate interests, are not doing much to ensure the success of our Organization and further the progress of the rest of the human community. The problems of our Organization are further compounded by the fact that only a year after we reaffirmed our faith and continued support for it, the United Nations is facing a grave financial situation.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In reaffirming our solidarity with the people of Kampuchea in their struggle for self-determination, we urge that the other parties to the conflict participate in discussions cm the implementation of the eight-point peace plan, which has already won substantial support. The solution to many of today's world problems and the enhancement of peace and security cannot be achieved with passionate slogans, pious and self-righteous speeches and tiresome resolutions, many of which have remained unimplemented. The people of South Africa, Namibia, Western Sahara, Afghanistan, Palestine, Kampuchea and the Koreas, the representatives of the last of which should be sitting here with us, are sick and tired of these.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Along with the vast majority of the international community, we condemn the cruel Israeli practices in the occupied Palestinian territories and urge the occupying authorities to take an enlightened view of their need for security by recognizing that an oppressive and cruel neighbor never endears himself to anyone. My delegation continues to oppose the presence of foreign troops in Kampuchea and regrets that previous appeals by this Assembly in numerous resolutions for the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from that country have not been heeded. We pay a tribute to the Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea for significantly furthering the peace process by presenting in March this year an eight-point peace plan for a political settlement of the Kampuchean problem.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“That situation can persist only at the cost of the continued suffering of the Palestinian people under occupation and mistreatment and the risk of another outbreak of hostilities in the region. We consider any efforts based on a policy of extracting unreasonable concessions from the Palestinian people to contain no prospects of yielding enduring stability. Similarly, the policy of substituting unrepresentative Palestinians for the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole authentic representative of the Palestinian people, as negotiating partners is short-sighted and succeeds only in further clouding the prospects for peace in the region.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The question of Western Sahara and the continuing stalemate can only be brought to a final conclusion through negotiation. In the light of this, we wish to echo the call for the withdrawal of foreign troops and a referendum on the Territory, in order to give the people of Western Sahara the opportunity to work out their destiny. It is in this respect that we restate and reaffirm our support for General Assembly resolution 40/50, on Western Sahara, as offering the desired and appropriate process for a peaceful resolution of the problem. The impasse that now exists in the Middle East peace process is a consequence of the aggression against the Palestinian people and the denial of their right to a homeland.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“It must be clear to all by now that the presence of Cuban troops in Angola is entirely the sovereign decision of the Government of Angola, which is free to formulate and pursue its own independent foreign policy objectives and work out its own national destiny. The withdrawal of Cuban forces is a matter for the Governments of Angola and Cuba, and we believe that this process can only begin when Security Council resolution 435 (1978), on Namibia, is implemented and the threat to the internal and external security of Angola is eliminated. Meanwhile, the struggle for Namibian emancipation from colonialism and illegal occupation will go on under the sole and authentic leadership of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) and the support of concerned nations.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In doing so, I do not intend to underestimate the size of the resources required for such an undertaking in terms of fighting sanctions-breaking activities as well as ensuring that the front-line States are provided adequate assistance by the international community to enable them withstand South Africa's reprisals. Namibia presents one of the most glaring examples of South Africa's violation of international law and our Organization's inability to uphold its own legal prescriptions. Aside from this, Namibia's independence is further delayed by unjustifiably linking it with the withdrawal of Cuban forces from Angola.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In addition, the South African journalist Donald Woods, in a study for the Commonwealth secretariat, calculates that South African blacks are materially worse off than citizens in at least 12 other African countries. And all this is happening in one of the world's richest countries. We also know that in July this year, after a South African court overturned part of the emergency decree imposed by the regime. Prime Minister Botha simply issued an executive order annulling the Court's ruling, making nonsense of any argument that South Africa offers a vision of judicial liberty unparalleled on the continent. My delegation wishes to reiterate its conviction that the imposition of comprehensive mandatory sanctions against South Africa is now necessary.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Those who try to justify apartheid by arguing that Africans in South Africa and Namibia are better off than their counterparts in other African countries succeed only in deluding themselves. The rest of us know that in Namibia, for instance, while the per capita income for whites is estimated at over $8,009, the average income for Africans, who constitute 92 per cent of the population, is only $188. A recent survey by the Carnegie Foundation revealed that the incidence of disease associated with malnutrition among rural blacks in South Africa is among the world's highest and that nearly half of the black population lives below the minimum subsistence level.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“The effects of sanctions on South Africa can be gauged from the paranoia with which the South African Government is reacting to the issue and the elaborate machinery it is now assembling to circumvent them. Recently South Africa's Manpower Minister, Pieter du Plessis, gave Archbishop Desmond Tutu what he called a friendly warning that the Archbishop's calls for sanctions against South Africa bordered on "high treason". Not too long ago the head of the South African Reserve Bank, Dr. Gerhard Kock, after reporting a one billion dollar capital outflow from South Africa in the first half of this year, explained that perceived threats of intensified economic sanctions and news of continued social unrest were the main factors behind the outflow.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“It would hardly have been worth the time and effort for me to attempt to rebut those fallacies had they been confined to the traditional fringes of society. In the circumstances it has to be pointed out that whatever adverse effects sanctions might have on the oppressed people of South Africa, such effects would pale into insignificance when compared to the immorality of apartheid. Therefore to choose for the South African people the immorality of apartheid over the so-called immorality of sanctions is not only logically absurd but morally indefensible. Predictably, the oppressed people of South Africa have shown their content for such faulty reasoning and hypocritical concern by overwhelmingly supporting the call for sanctions, the effects of which upon them could make very little difference to their already subhuman existence.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Those collaborators with apartheid have spawned dozens of reasons for their reluctance to fulfill their obligation under the United Nations Charter and as members of the human race. We have been told, for example, that the imposition of comprehensive sanctions against South Africa is immoral assuch sanctions impose hardships on the lives of ordinary people, in particular black people, and that in any case sanctions could not bring about the desired political changes in southern Africa as they have historically been proven to be ineffective in these circumstances. At other times we are told that South Africa has already embarked upon a process of significant political change and that sanctions could only scuttle that process.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“Because of South Africa's proven aversion to reason over several decades of negotiations with it, the great majority of the international community is now firmly convinced that one of the few remaining options for ending apartheid and the atrocities it embodies is the imposition of effective comprehensive and mandatory sanctions against that regime. It is regrettable, however, that after several years of intense efforts by the international community the struggle against apartheid is still in a state of ferment, not due so much to credible resistance by South Africa to international pressures as to the apparent existence of a conspiracy by a section of the international community which, for mostly cynical reasons, has directly or indirectly undermined those pressures.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“In view of the sensitivity and importance of this issue and the increasing urgency with which the international community must now deal with South Africa, permit me to deal a little extensively with the subject. The evil character of the South African regime is vividly portrayed in the report of the Commonwealth Group of Eminent Persons on South Africa, which made the following observation about apartheid: ■As a contrivance of social engineering, it is awesome in its cruelty. It is achieved and sustained only through force, creating human misery and deprivation and blighting the lives of millions." While much of the world is in agreement about the abhorrence of that regime, some controversy still exists about how to deal with it.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“For many, parochial and selfish national interests remain the corner-stone of policy and international behavior contrary to the principles of our Organization, the pleas and supplications of concerned humanity and simple ethical rules of conduct. Perhaps nowhere else today are those ethical principals more violated, nowhere else the conscience of humanity more called into question and nowhere else urgent action more demanded than in South Africa. The tragedy of South Africa continues to be perpetuated with painful consistency. Never in the course of political history has a regime been so utterly callous and insensitive to the fundamental rights and needs of the majority of its citizens.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“As we commence the fifth decade of our Organization's existence we continue to face enduring threats to international peace and security. The continued accumulation of massive nuclear and conventional arsenals, the persistence of terrorism within States and across State frontiers, inter-State aggression with sophisticated weaponry and massive forces, and the continued polarization of the world into ideological and military blocs have consistently raised the specter of a dangerous world on the brink of catastrophe. Despite the endless speeches and the numerous resolutions of this Assembly, peace remains a dream and a faint hope to the peoples of Central America, parts of Africa, Kampuchea, Afghanistan and the Middle East.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)
“It is an honor for roe, on behalf of the delegation of Sierra Leone, to extend to the President our congratulations on his election to preside over the United Nations General Assembly at its forty-first session. Assured, as we are, of the commitment of his great country, Bangladesh, to the noble ideals of this Organization, and given his own personal qualities as a statesman and diplomat of distinction, we have every confidence that he will guide the deliberations at the forty-first session to a successful conclusion. We would also register our appreciation and gratitude to his distinguished predecessor, Mr. Jaime de Pinies of Spain, who successfully presided over the historic and truly memorable fortieth session.”
1986-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 41 (1986)