Cameroon, 1982

My first words will be words of congratulation

to Mr. Hollai on his unanimous election to the

presidency of this thirty-seventh session of the

General Assembly. It is a choice which does

honour to his outstanding qualities as a person

and an experienced diplomat and is also a tribute

to his country, the People's Republic of Hungary,

whose positive contribution to the work of the

Organization is well known. It is a pleasure for

me to assure him of my delegation's complete

co-operation as he carries out the difficult but

exalted task of guiding our work during this

period of disarray, instability and violence in

the affairs of the world. I take this opportunity

also to pay a tribute to his outstanding

predecessor in this post. Mr. Kittani of Iraq,

for the competence and patience without

firmness-which he demonstrated as he carried out

the lofty functions entrusted to him during the

thirty-sixth session and the special sessions of

the General Assembly held this year. Finally

1should like to express my admiration for the

Secretary-General for the clarity, courage and

competence with which he has been fulfilling for

almost a year now the prestigious functions

vested in him by the Organization. We find

stunning proof of these qualities in his report

on the work of the Organization and which raises

the vital question for the international

community-the future of the United Nations.

264. It cannot be disputed that the erosion of

the authority of the Organization has for several

years now been a source of major concern to the

international community. Never indeed has the

feeling of such a collapse been so keenly felt in

the world. Without respect for the principles of

the Charter, there could be no international

society that would be peaceful, harmonious and

balanced, yet they have been systematically

flouted. Instead of those principles the threat

or use of force is often resorted to in the

settlement of disputes. The revival of the cold

war, the hegemonistic rivalries of the major

Powers and the self-centred attitude of Member

States bring about a situation in which the

United Nations is usually bypassed in the search

for solutions to the problems which the world

faces.

265. When it happens that countries turn to the

United Nations, it is often for the reason of

giving free rein to ideological confrontations

for propaganda purposes, or as an alibi. so that

only their own point of view prevails. If they do

not succeed, they do not hesitate to block the

functioning of the Security Council by abusing

the right of veto. Nevertheless this right was

established in order to serve as an instrument to

safeguard the priceless common good of peace and

security in the world; it was not meant to be a

shield against sanctions that the Organization

can apply when there are flagrant violations of

the principles of the Charter.

266. Moreover, we must feel alarmed at the

serious financial difficulties, resulting from

the parsimonious contributions of Member States,

particularly the most wealthy, in the operations

of the specialized agencies, which were

established with the noble purpose of promoting

the harmonious and unified development of our

countries.

267. Regardless of what idea one might have of

the role of the United Nations, it is the

conviction of Cameroon, a former ward of the

Organization, that the Organization must remain

the single preferred instrument for maintaining

international peace and security, the

irreplaceable forum for international

negotiations and the tribune of the conscience of

mankind.

268. That is why we have constantly deplored the

paralysis and the crumbling of the credibility of

the United Nations as a place for the settlement

of international disputes during this period of

tension and confusion, when it should enjoy

authority commensurate with the scope and the

complexity of the burning issues of our time.

269. Unfortunately the inclusion in the agenda of

this session of numerous questions that have

faced the world community for decades testifies

to the growing weakening of our institution.

Among them we must cite, above all, the questions

of disarmament. It was a matter of concern for

all States even before the establishment of the

United Nations, and that concern has been revived

by the acute psychosis aroused by the threat of a

nuclear holocaust that looms over mankind.

270. In spite of long years of negotiation, of

recommendations of the General Assembly, and

vehement protest on the part of the public, the

situation remains explosive because of the

absence of the political will among the major

Powers, all of which have increased their

military expenditures and are continuing to

manufacture the most sophisticated and

increasingly deadly weapons.

271. At the second special session devoted to

disarmament, which was held in June in New York,

the Assembly did not even manage to adopt a

consensus text as it did at the first special

session on disarmament in 1978. The sole

achievement of that session was the granting of a

few disarmament fellowships. That surely proves

that the major Powers and their antagonistic

military alliances fighting for domination of the

world are not yet ready to join in a substantive

dialogue that could lead us resolutely towards

the general and complete disarmament advocated in

numerous resolutions of the United Nations.

272. The question of the Middle East, which has

been before us since 1947, has undergone more and

more tragic developments, which have horrified

and alarmed the international community, since

the invasion of Lebanon on 6 June of this year.

We vigorously condemn the hideous massacres of

women children and old people in the Palestinian

camps in west Beirut. It is deplorable that the

resolutions and decisions adopted by the Security

Council on the question of the Middle East,

particularly with regard to Palestine, have

remained a dead letter.

273. As we' have never ceased to state the

solution of the Palestinian problem is the key to

any just and lasting overall settlement of the

question of the Middle East. This implies that

Israel, which, like the other States in the

region, has the right to live in peace within

secure and recognized boundaries, must with draw

from the Arab territories occupied since 1967

including Jerusalem, and must recognize the

inalienable rights of the Palestinian people

represented by the PLO, including the right to

have an Arab Palestinian homeland.

274. The time has certainly come for the

intensive efforts at present under way to end the

long tragedy being played out in the Middle East

to take into account these fundamental facts;

otherwise international peace and security will

remain threatened in that particularly sensitive

region of the world, which could serve as the

detonator for a world-wide catastrophe.

275. The Namibian crisis and the base policy of

apartheid of the racist South Mrican regime

constitute in Africa two examples of typical

situations whose worsening over the period of

three decades constitutes a humiliating defiance

of the international community In spite of the

various means set forth in the Charter for ending

these anachronistic and universally condemned

situations, South Africa has not yielded an inch

0 ground, in spite of the numerous statements and

the pretences of negotiation repeatedly launched

in order to give the impression that it is

prepared to co-operate with the United Nations in

settling these questions.

276. Even though it IS a decolonization question,

and even though it is so clearly defined that

there can be no doubt about it, the question of

Namibia which has been under examination since

the first session of the AsseJ1lbly, in 1946, is

still on the agenda 36 years later.

277. Nevertheless, it is important to recall that

the patient and laborious efforts of the

international community have finally made it

possible to c()me up with a broad consensus, with

which South Africa has associated itself, to

bring about a solution of the problem within the

framework of Security Council resolution 435

(1978). While that resolution remains the basis

for any peaceful solution to bring about

authentic independence for Namibia, the delays

and turnabouts to which South Africa has

accustomed us raise §some doubts about the real

willingness of the racist minority of Pretmia to

release its grip on that international territory.

278. The same is true for the inhumane policy of

apartheid, which has been unanimously condemned

by the General Assembly as a crime against

humanity and which has been recognized by the

Security Council as being a threat to

international peace and security Nevertheless,

having been outlawed and banished from the

international community, South Mrica continues to

evade the sanctions provided for in Chapter VII

of the Charter, and continues to strengthen its

repressive machinery against the black majority,

which is still denied the most elementary human

rights.

279. The criminal obstinacy of the racist regime

of Pretoria can be explained only by the powerful

sup-port it has been enjoying even within the

Organization, which it uses to carry out with

impunity acts of aggression against neighbouring

African States. We condemn those acts, which

create and maintain in southern Africa a climate

of instability and dangerous tension. We reaffirm

our solidarity with the Namibian people in their

struggle to regain their independence and to

enjoy all their rights under the aegis of SWAPO,

their sole authentic representative. We also

stand shoulder to shoulder with the front-line

African States, which have willingly been making

heavy sacrifices so that the liberty and dignity

of the black man in southern Africa may triumph.

279. All of us are well aware of the many very

clear and firm resolutions and decisions of the

General Assembly and 'lf the Security Council on

other important questions which have not yet been

resolved and which give rise to instability,

tension and con-fusion, all of which are

disturbing the international climate.

280. First there is the question of Cyprus. In

this regard we have on many occasions asked for

the withdrawal of the foreign troops from that

country as a basis for a settlement of this

question, and we have reaffirmed the necessity to

respect the territorial integrity, the unity and

the non-alignment of that State. It is high time

the resolutions adopted on that matter were

implemented.

282. With regard to Kampuchea, again we must

emphasize that the solution can only be a

political one and it must not be interfered with

from outside in any way. Therefore we wish to

reaffirm that the Kampuchean people itself has

the right to decide its own .future and its

political, economic and social options.

Everything should be done to promote the

achievement of those objectives.

283. The same is true of Afghanistan, where

the situation still threatens the peace and

security of the whole of the region of South-West

Asia. Here again, the withdrawal of foreign

troops and total respect

for the independence, sovereignty, territorial

integrity and non-aligned status of that country

are in our view of .fundamental-importance to the

settlement of the question.

284. We are deeply troubled by the alarming

development of these problems, which are of

fundamental concern to the international

community.

28Sr The difficulties experienced by the United

Nations in playing its decisive role in the

safeguarding of international peace and security

have also prevented I it from effectively

fulfilling another part of its lofty'

mission-:-to achieve international co-operation

in solving international problems of an economic

and social character. In this regard the delay in

the launching of the global negotiations

envisaged in General Assembly resolution 34/138

is an obvious example.

286. Despite the major concessions that have been

made by the Group of 77 and the political will

that

was evident in that Group throughout the

consultations that took place during the

thirty-sixth session, that resolution remains

unimplemented because of the intransigence of

some industrialized countries. This blockage

cannot but have negative and destabilizing

effects upon the fragile economies of the

developing countries, because some of the

essential objectives of the International

Development Strategy for the Third United Nations

Development Decade, such as increased official

development aid or the mobilization of resources

in favour of the least-developed countries, have

not been achieved within the envisaged timetable.

287. The balance-sheet of the Third United

Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea

demonstrates that with regained and increased

solidarity and political will it is possible to

attain results that safeguard the basic interests

of all States and enhance the prestige of the

Organization. Indeed, after eight years of

intensive and thorny discussions the negotiations

on the law of the sea led to the adoption last

summer of a new Convention dealing with all

aspects of this problem. How can one not regret

the reluctance of some countries to associate

themselves with that result? We urgently appeal

to them to join in the general consensus.

288. The state of the world economy, which is

dominated by recession, unemployment, widespread

inflation and monetary instability, gives us

another reason for deep concern because it

affects all sectors of activity in an countries,

particularly the counties of the third world,

which indeed are the major victims, as is

indicated in the reports of all specialized

agencies, particularly the World Bank, as well as

IMF.

289. Indeed, the situation of the developing

countries, and particularly the least developed,

is extremely critical. Their current account

deficits are growing because of the continuous

deterioration in the terms of trade and rising

interest rates, whereas increased recourse to

capital markets and reserves to finance these

deficits burdens their external debt further and

reduces their development opportul1lities.

290. In the view of my delegation this crisis

can be resolved only through implementation of

measures on which there has been common agreement

within the framework of the new international

economic order.

291. We should be wrong if we did not begin to

face this problem with a sense of solidarity. It

would be useless for us to continue to resort to

self-interested measures such as restrictive

policies exemplified by increased protectionism

and some essentially

monetarist choices. Indeed the world economy as a

whole is taking a dangerous turn, and the

aftermath may be socio-political problems that

may threaten the very existence of young nations.

292. Responsibility for this state of affairs

rests basically with the developed countries, not

all of which, apparently, are yet convinced that

solution of the current economic crisis requires

an increasingly global approach rather than

simple domestic readjustments that in the final

analysis are merely temporarily palliatives. This

approach deliberately disregards the true

interdependence of all the actors on the world

economic stage that has so often been

demonstrated by experience.

293. So far as Cameroon is concerned, as has

frequently been stated by its head of State,

there can be no doubt that at this time the

launching of global negotiations in the framework

of the United Nations is the best way to promote

among States the development of just and

equitable economic relations. World economic

turmoil can be alleviated only within a climate

of co-operation, joint effort and dialogue

between States and the peoples of all nations.

This means that international relations must be

organized democratically and it presupposes a

real desire equitably to readjust relations

between industrialized and third-world countries,

in the context of world-wide solidarity.

294. The United Nations was created to safeguard

certain ideals and principles that would

guarantee international peace and security and

promote the progress and united development of

Member States while respecting a code of conduct

whose principles are clearly defined by the

Charter. For that reason in the Charter the

founding fathers of the Organization formally

enjoined us to practise tolerance, to live in

peace in a spirit of good-neighbourliness, to

reject the use of force in the settlementof

conflicts and to have recourse to international

institutions to promote the economic and social

progress of peoples.

295. A single generation separates us from the

solemn proclamation of that commitment. In view

of some of the painful, indeed intolerable,

situations we have just mentioned, we feel we

have largely lost sight of that commitment, which

was freely entered into. The discrepancy between

the ideals of the Charter to which Member States

subscribed and the: actual conduct of those

States is a fundamental cause of the crisis

besetting the Organization, which, need it be

reiterated, is no more than a mirror of our

society.

296. The expansion of the United Nations with the

emergence of young nations has enhanced its

universalist vocation and that means that all

Member States must reaffirm their loyalty to the

Organization so that it can play its full role.

This increased universalization, which the law of

the majority has legitimized, must be the

foundation of international legal order. However,

in our view this development has led the great

Powers to feel disappointment-so much so that the

Organization is largely left to one side in the

settlement of the major problems affecting the

fate of all peoples. We certainly recognize the

particular responsibilities of those Powers in

the conduct of world affairs. But, in a world in

which the progress of science and technology has

accentuated the interdependence of nations, we

shall continue to reiterate that no State or

group of States, however powerful can in and of

itself solve mankind's problems.

297. It is therefore a matter of urgency that we

return to what inspired the creation of the

Organization and strongly support the wise

proposal of the Secretary-General that a special

series of Security Council meetings be convened

at the highest level to seek ways and means to

reimbue that essential organ with the

effectiveness and authority it needs to discharge

the special responsibilities conferred upon it by

the Charter.

298. We are gratified that the Secretary-General

has unambiguously raised the question of the very

usefulness of the United Nations. What is

involved is whether we, the Member States, are

ready to let the Organization die a death similar

to that of the League of Nations or whether we

are determined to revitalize it by ensuring that

our conduct accords with the principles and

ideals of the Charter.

299. For Cameroon, the answer is clear. As Mr.

Ahmadou Ahidjo said from this same rostrum more

than 10 years ago:

"The unity of man's destiny is today more

concrete and more evident than ever before. For•

the first time in history, mankind is consciously

becoming a unified whole. For the first time, man

has at his disposal the means of shaping his own

destiny, allaying poverty and triumphing over

violence.

"Is it utopian to ask the United Nations, which,

we repeat, embodies our hopes for a better world,

to deploy all its resources so as to ensure that

our era, which sees a universal civilization

taking shape, is the beginning of a reign of

genuine brotherhood in the world?..