Equatorial Guinea, 1992

We are pleased to express our warmest and most sincere

congratulations to Mr. Ganev on his well-deserved election to the presidency

of the General Assembly at this session and on the competent and dynamic

manner in which he has been conducting the Assembly's proceedings. We are

convinced that achievements and successes will be the common denominator of

his term of office.

To his predecessor, Mr. Samir Shihabi, we express our profound

appreciation for the exemplary way in which he conducted the proceedings of

the previous session.

We wish to convey to you, Mr. Secretary-General, the fraternal greetings

of the people and the Government of Equatorial Guinea, and also the special

greetings addressed to you by the President of the Republic,

His Excellency Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, who congratulates you both on your

election as Secretary-General of our world Organization and on the efforts you

are making, in all parts of the world and day after day, with the sole aim of

achieving justice for a better world. Given the complexity of this task, we

extend our best wishes to you for your own personal well-being and that of

your family.

Our greetings and warm welcomes go to the new States that have joined the

United Nations family. As in a traditional family, the birth of a new member

is a symbol of joy and hope: joy, because of the new-found vitality of our

Organization; and hope, because of the new experiences, opinions and

alternatives that there will be to enable us to resolve the problems and

situations confronting the international community.

Our Government, in the conviction that there can be no better unity than

that which flows from and is based on diversity, has formally recognized all

those States that are members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and

has initiated and established diplomatic relations with each of them; our

Government hopes to be able to proceed in the same manner with each of the new

Members of the United Nations family.

On the political scene, the forty-seventh session of the General Assembly

is taking place at a historic time characterized by new crises, new

obscurantism and new methods of exerting pressure and oppression that stand in

real contrast to the hope and the optimism that filled the international

community with the end of the cold war.

The reason for this is very clear and appropriately reflected in the

report of the Secretary-General, in which he so rightly states that:

"The cold war confronted the international community with a singular

threat to security; now, a widely varying array of resentments,

ambitions, rivalries and hatreds masked for decades have come to the fore

to threaten international harmony and shared purpose." (A/47/1, para. Ill)

Figure 6 of that report, on peace-keeping forces and observer missions,

testifies most tellingly to this sad reality: before 1988, the United Nations

had conducted 13 missions, while between then and now there have been 14 of

them in only four of the Organization's 47 years of existence.

True, there are glimpses of optimistic, hopeful signs on the horizon;

however, it is also true that all generations have the right to live in peace,

justice and security and to enjoy life so as to leave a better legacy to

future generations.

We note that high-level international conferences are being held these

days in order to find solutions to the problems facing peoples and nations:

New York saw the World Summit for Children in September 1990; Geneva hosted

the summit on the advancement of the rights of rural women this year;

Rio de Janeiro hosted the Earth Summit in June 1992; the international

community's agenda includes the holding of the second World Conference on

Human Rights in 1993, the conference on population and development in 1994 and

on the advancement of women and on social development in 1995.

Equatorial Guinea welcomes these and other similar events, and once again

reaffirms that, for these events to succeed and their results to be

implemented in practice, the principle of the self-determination of peoples

and the promotion of responsible relations between States are necessary

conditions if justice, peace and international security are to prevail.

In South Africa, apartheid and racial discrimination continue to claim

innocent victims. In Somalia, selfish political interests and the desire for

power have combined with natural disasters to accelerate the disappearance of

an entire nation. The civil war in Liberia, which continues to claim victims

and cause the permanent exodus of its citizens, has spilled over its borders,

destabilizing the countries of the subregion and blocking the way towards a

peaceful solution to the conflict: the holding of free elections in an

atmosphere of peace and security.

In the former Yugoslavia, war is resorted to in order to slow down the

effects of the end of the cold war, setting an extremely dangerous precedent,

bearing in mind that the geopolitical and demographic spectrum of the former

Yugoslavia is not unique in the community of nations. Our Secretary-General,

Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, pointed out that sad reality when he rightly wrote:

"This is, then, a conflict with an international dimension. The

future shape and security of one or more Member States indeed their

very existence has come under threat." (A/47/1, para. 141)

On the Korean Peninsula, as in Cyprus, intervention and interference in

the internal affairs of States, including foreign occupation and domination,

continue to play the same role as they did in the days of the cold war. The

legitimate desire of the Korean people, both North and South, to see their

country reunited, and the legitimate aspiration of Cypriots to attain their

national identity, free from ethnic disputes and narrow-minded nationalism,

are receding farther and farther from the process of peaceful solution and are

disappearing in the sea of hegemonic interests. We believe that the best

contribution that the international community, the United Nations and peoples

who love peace and justice can make to the peaceful and lasting solution of

these and other conflicts is, above and beyond all interests, to ensure

respect for the self-determination of the peoples affected.

In Equatorial Guinea we welcome and applaud the efforts to restore peace

and justice to all the affected areas and the multifaceted humanitarian

assistance provided by the international community in the collective framework

of the United Nations system in general and in particular the European

Economic Community, the Organization of African Unity, the Non-Aligned

Movement, the Economic Community of West African States, the United States of

America, Japan and other States and governmental and non-governmental

charitable bodies.

The increasingly acute economic and financial crisis afflicting all

countries, and the developing ones in particular, with special emphasis on the

least developed countries, still rests on the well-known pillars built by the

current economic order, which has been so often denounced in almost all

international forums. With the passing of time, the external debt becomes

ever more unpayable, in spite of the constant efforts and sacrifices the

debtors make to increase the output of raw materials and export commodities

while accepting the discipline imposed by structural adjustment programmes.

In the international markets, to which access is difficult because of the

protectionist policies of the fortunate countries of the North, the prices of

raw materials remain low, while the prices of manufactured goods remain high,

much to the despair of the less fortunate countries of the South.

We are sure that everything needed to solve these and other problems in

the context of international cooperation for development is within our grasp:

a reduction in military budgets and progress in disarmament and the curbing of

the arms race, which, together with democracy, free markets and respect for

fundamental freedoms, would carry us swiftly to the goal that we all share:

well-being.

We take the opportunity given us by this world forum to express in this

context our profound and sincere gratitude to the World Bank, the

International Monetary Fund, the United Nations Development Programme and

other international financial organizations and individual countries for their

ongoing contribution to the task of rehabilitating and rebuilding the economic

and financial structure of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea. From this

rostrum we invite them all to continue along that path and to support

Equatorial Guinea on the occasion of the Third Round Table, to be held soon in

Geneva, Switzerland.

Equatorial Guinea cannot presume to be immune to and free of the ills,

often a legacy of the past, that afflict national communities and the world

community in the vital social domain and in the equally vital area of human

rights.

The economic and financial restrictions caused by the unbalanced

international economic order prevent our having enough schools and training

centres and make us unable to guarantee the provision of health services

meeting the needs of all our inhabitants. Nevertheless, the effort of our

Government, within the limitations of its modest means, combined with the

assistance received from friendly countries and international organizations,

is becoming increasingly evident in improvements in those sectors.

We in Equatorial Guinea believe that as long as a people lacks a basic

infrastructure to resolve problems of education, medical and pharmaceutical

care, a clean environment, drinking water, housing and so on there should be

serious, profound reflection on the concept of human rights.

In the face of all the factors affecting the human being, including the

challenges of his natural enemies, our Government has started out on the road

to the fullest enjoyment of fundamental freedoms and the guarantee of respect

for human rights. In this context, we express our deepest appreciation to the

following for their support of the work being carried out by our national

constitutional bodies and special commissions, such as the National Commission

on Human Rights, the National Commission of Support for the Children of

Equatorial Guinea and the National Commission for the Protection of the

Environment, to name but a few: the United Nations Educational, Scientific

and Cultural Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United

Nations, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Children's Fund,

the World Food Programme, the United Nations Population Fund and all those

others that directly or indirectly provide effective and disinterested

assistance to our country.

On mentioning, however briefly, the question of human rights, I cannot

fail to refer to the erroneous image of our country held by the Commission on

Human Rights and certain journalistic circles. We believe and maintain that

the Commission is an organ at the service of the United Nations and therefore

of the Member States. Its components, including experts and rapporteurs,

cannot become prosecutors acting against sovereign States Members of the

United Nations, nor can they assume the role that a country's legal system and

international law grant to State authorities.

We have seen, to our regret, that in exchange for the firm political will

and readiness of our Government to promote respect for human rights in

Equatorial Guinea by providing, inter alia, all sorts of logistical

assistance local transportation, public and private contacts, access to

public and private locations and places that were off limits for security

reasons, and so on - the report of the Rapporteur assigned to Equatorial

Guinea only denigrates the image of our country and its Government, incites

violence and undermines the peace and order that prevail in our country.

While flatly rejecting the report presented to the Commission on Human

Rights at its session in Geneva in March 1992 for its lack of realism and

objectivity, the Government of Equatorial Guinea pledges to the international

community that it will, within its means, continue its programme in defence of

human rights and fundamental freedoms, launched on 3 August 1979, in a climate

of peace, justice, harmony and understanding, and that it will not allow

itself to be swayed by attempts at intimidation and/or provocation.

Equatorial Guinea wishes to express its satisfaction at the bilateral and

multilateral efforts made by the international community to promote global,

regional and subregional disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons. In

this regard, we welcome the decision taken by the General Assembly, at the

initiative of the Economic Community of Central African States, to support the

formulation of confidence-building, disarmament and development measures, as

well as the establishment of a Standing Consultative Committee to deal with

questions of security in Central Africa. We hope that its programme and

timetable of activities, drawn up during the organizational meeting held in

Yaounde in July 1992, will be given the complete support of the Assembly at

this session.

We could not conclude this statement without availing ourselves of the

opportunity to inform the Assembly of the current state of the democratization

process being carried out in our country.

We overwhelmingly approved our new Fundamental Law at the end of last

year. It is based, inter alia.

"on the principles of social justice, reaffirmed solemnly in instruments

on the rights and freedoms of the human being, as defined and enshrined

in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights".

At the same time, it recognizes political pluralism in Equatorial Guinea. A

set of laws regulating these rights and freedoms was promulgated early this

year, and a transition Government was established with the sole and exclusive

task of preparing the people and adapting the Republic's institutions to

current realities, characterized by the multiparty democracy that has been in

effect over the 12-month period that will end on December 1992.

At present, five political parties the Partido Democratico de Guinea

Ecuatorial, the Union Popular, the Convencion Liberal Democratica, the Partido

Social Democrata and the Union para la Democracia Social - have been

registered and given official status under the provisions of the Law on

Political Parties of 6 January 1992. These parties are already conducting

their political activities throughout the country in a climate of dialogue,

order, peace and tranquillity.

In the same direction, and with the two-fold objective of involving all

the country's forces in the construction of a new era of democratic

coexistence, on the one hand, and of alleviating the sad and heavy burden that

the phenomenon of exile and displaced persons places on the international

community, on the other, the President of the Republic,

His Excellency Mr. Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, approved and promulgated for the

second time since 1979 the Law on Amnesty, under which

"All acts of commission or omission of a political nature committed

by Equatorial Guineans and characterized as political offences and crimes

in the Criminal Code or in special criminal laws passed prior to

2 December 1991 shall be forgiven and forgotten."

Therefore

"All citizens of Equatorial Guinea granted this amnesty who are

outside the country will be able freely to enter the national territory

and reside therein. They shall be entitled to all rights and freedoms

under the conditions set forth in the Fundamental Law and other legal

provisions of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea."

In this context, we hope that, on the same humanitarian grounds that

inspired the Governments of the host countries and the international

governmental and non-governmental organizations, they will continue to give

all assistance necessary to facilitate the voluntary return of our brothers

and sisters, just as our Government has already taken, and will continue to

take, steps to do so and to ensure their integration into the society of

Equatorial Guinea.

In the coming months, the People's House of Representatives - the

parliament of Equatorial Guinea - will be taking a decision on the draft

Electoral Law, which is to be formulated with the help and participation of

all duly constituted political parties. This will conclude the planned

medium-term actions and will lead to the final stage in the process of

democratization through the organization and holding of municipal, legislative

and presidential elections in the Republic of Equatorial Guinea.

May I conclude my statement by emphasizing the relevance and timeliness

of the report of the Secretary-General, Mr. Boutros Boutros-Ghali, entitled

"An Agenda for Peace". We believe that the content of this important document

is a challenge to our generation and to the United Nations, since, if by

national and international "preventive diplomacy" we succeed in attaining the

following objective:

"To seek to identify at the earliest possible stage situations that

could produce conflict, and to try through diplomacy to remove the

sources of danger before violence results" (A/47/277, para. 15).

we shall have marked the real beginning of the new era, and future generations

will indeed be grateful.