Eswatini, 1969

85. First of all, I should like

to express to you, Madam President, the cordial and sincere

congratulations of the delegation of the Kingdom of

Swaziland and of myself, on your election as President of

this twenty-fourth session of the United Nations General

Assembly. Your election to this high office in the community

of nations is not only a tribute to your person and

to your country, but also an accolade to the women of the

world in general, and to those of Africa in particular. We, of

Swaziland, particularly rejoice over this recognition of the

status of womenfolk, a tradition that has existed from time

immemorial in Swaziland and is enshrined in our Constitution.

86. We are confident that with your wide experience in

the field of international diplomacy, your long association

with the work of the United Nations in a number of

capacities, your wise counsel, able guidance and charm in

discharging your duties, you will be able to deal

constructively with the very important issues which we are

faced with at this time when, it seems to me, the United

Nations must prove its worth in the face of the many

challenges that face it. On this note, I should like to express

the hope that our deliberations will be blessed with a

satisfactory realization of the objectives of this twenty-fourth

session of the United Nations General Assembly.

87. Let me, at this early stage of my address, express,

along with those colleagues who have preceded me, my

profound grief and that of my delegation and my country,

over the death of the former President of the General.

Assembly, Mr. Emilio Arenales, Minister for Foreign Affairs

of Guatemala. We were all very happy when we saw him

resume his office, after his sudden illness during the

twenty-third session of the General Assembly last year, and

we sincerely hoped that he had completely recovered, but,

alas, death took him away before he had accomplished his

important task.

88. He was a man of rare ability, with a dedicated and

devoted enthusiasm for the affairs of his country and those

of the international world. Alas, “Whom the Gods love die

young.” Despite the pain he suffered, Mr. Arenales led the

deliberations of the General Assembly with such skill and

consideration that he successfully brought a somewhat

difficult session to a happy close. We shared the sorrow of

the Secretary-General and those Members of the General

Assembly who had worked closely with him and had to

accomplish their task without their leader. Our condolences

go to the Government of the Republic of Guatemala. My

delegation feels grateful that, while Mr. Arenales lived he

discharged his responsibility for the betterment of all mankind.

89. I would not fulfil my obligation and the wishes of my

delegation if I failed at this point, to join the other

numerous delegations in congratulating the United States of

America on the epic journey and the landing on the moon

of the two astronauts on 20 July of this year. All over the

world, it was a supreme historical moment that transcended

all differences when men from Earth went out into hitherto

unfathomed parts of space. Indeed, all men exult in the

glorious success of these American astronauts. It has been

said that their success was the result of scientific progress

throughout the world for over a century. We believe,

therefore, that this act was accomplished for the benefit of

all mankind and in the name of humanity. We hail the three

men for their courage, we hail the United States of America

for its stamina, and we hail the world.

90. We are happy to say of the three men, in the beautiful

words of an English poet:

“Born of the sun they travelled a short while towards

the sun, And left the vivid air signed with their honour.“

91. My delegation is aware that the Soviet Union also

contributed positively towards that scientific feat. Our

tribute goes to them as well.

92. Since last year, when my Prime Minister addressed this

Assembly [1674th meeting] and my country had the

pleasure of a unanimous welcome from this community of

sovereign nations and took its place, as an equal partner, in

this world Organization, new attitudes, new interests, new

ambitions and priorities, new hopes and aspirations, as well

as new goals have been revealed to us, and a new

determination was born with each of them.

93. Since we emerged from the chains of colonialism,

events have taken on a more realistic dimension to us. Time

is a great leveller, and through time’s correcting lens, what

was born of independence will, we are convinced, one day

bear wholesome fruit. To this end we cherish our political

independence, and in the name of peace and justice we will

not permit any departure from the noble principles that we

uphold: a non-racial democratic State, governed under a

constitution which recognizes fundamental human rights

and guarantees maximum freedom for the individual,

irrespective of race, colour or creed. We reiterate our

unswerving belief in, and our uncompromising attitude

towards these principles.

94. It has been rightly asserted that political independence

without economic independence is meaningless. Our struggle

for economic independence began when we regained our

political freedom and national sovereignty. My delegation

notes, however, that no country can be economically

independent in the modern world. It is true that some

countries, by their strategic position and geographical

situation, are better able to regulate their terms of trade

and gain tremendously compared to others, but all countries

are, as they must be, interdependent.

95. Ours is a land-locked country with all the limitations

which such a situation naturally imposes on trade. On this

issue I can say no more than quote my Prime Minister when

he addressed this Assembly last year:

“Of necessity we co-operate economically with these

neighbours, for, apart from our local arrangements, we

reach the outside world through them. Consequently, we

feel that if economic sanctions were applied by the

United Nations against our two neighbouring countries,

they would adversely affect our economic development.

“This does not, however, mean, that we subscribe to

these countries’ political beliefs, as we are totally opposed

to racial discrimination...” [1674th meeting, para. 124.]

May I add that we are equally opposed to any form of

perpetuation of colonialism and minority rule in any part

of the world.

96. On the question of land-locked developing countries,

my delegation is encouraged by the initial steps taken at the

resumed eighth session of the Trade and Development

Board held in Geneva from 5 to 20 May 1969 in

accordance with resolution 11 (II) adopted by the United

Nations Conference on Trade and Development at its

second session, and resolution 50 (VIII) by the Trade and

Development Board at its eighth session. My delegation

hopes that this problem will be given a prominent place in

the priority list of urgent United Nations undertakings, and

that those Member States of the United Nations which are

neighbours of land-locked countries will find it possible to

accede, as Swaziland has acceded, to the International

Convention on Transit Trade of Land-locked States. This

should be done, if, only by so doing, a sense of security, so

essential for trade and stability in developing countries, can

be generated and maintained.

97. Earlier in my statement I referred to the majestic

adventure of man’s epic journey to the moon, a dream that

came true within a decade of its inception. The then

President of the United States of America, the late John F.

Kennedy, on 25 May 1961 said:

“I believe this nation should commit itself to achieving

the goal of landing a man on the moon and returning him

safely to earth.”

98. By a combination of scientific knowledge, courage,

dedication, genius and ingenuity, the human spirit, as

indefinable as faith or love, has, in the incredibly short time

of man’s progress, achieved an apparently impossible task.

Indeed, a giant step for man, in the words of the first man

on the moon. While my delegation applauds this successful

venture, as indeed does the rest of the world, some concern

is felt, by the fact that this achievement itself relates to

man’s daily needs here on earth. It has political, moral,

social and philosophical implications, We ask most humbly:

will this achievement increase technological progress or help

desperate social needs? Will it help to bring about closer

co-operation between technologically advanced countries or

will it simply spur them on to work in competitive secrecy

for world domination? Will it form a base for a joint

venture by all nations for the exploration of outer space for

peaceful uses by all mankind or will a great deal more

expenditure go towards duplicating the efforts of power-bloc

leadership? These are questions that my delegation

puts to this august Assembly and indeed before the rest of

mankind. How very encouraging it would be to see answers

to these questions provided in deeds and not merely in words.

99. In the year 196] another programme was initiated:

the first United Nations Development Decade. When the

General Assembly designated the decade [resolution

1710 (XVI)], it noted that “in spite of the efforts made in

recent years the gap... between the economically developed

and the less developed countries has increased ...”

Here again, my delegation does not wish to draw

unnecessary analogies from the success of the Apollo

programme except in so far as both the Apollo and the first

United Nations Development Decade were initiated in the

same year. One has been successful and the other has failed.

In spite of all efforts and in spite of minimal achievements

registered here and there, we recognize that the Development

Decade has so far failed in its principal objectives,

namely, that of raising, to an appreciable degree, the

standard of living in less developed countries and narrowing

the gap between the “haves” and “have-nots”. My delegation

can only suggest that the failure of the first United

Nations Development Decade programme was mainly

caused by the lack of political will on the part of some of

those nations which could have invested capital in this programme.

100. I now turn to the troubled spots of the world. We

live in a divided world which has political and ideological

divisions and these are a source of danger in the affairs of

man. Regrettably, they have not been lessened, even after

24 years of United Nations activities. There is division in

Europe and there is division in Asia, Yes, there is also

division in Africa and Central America. My delegation

would be happy if all the Member States of the United

Nations began, right here and now, a combined deliberate

effort to give momentum to a détente, and also co-operate

more to consolidate universal peace. It appears to us that

the pledges made, some 24 years ago, to promote the cause

of peace and harmony among nations, have not taken.man

much further from the miseries of war than he was then. If

anything, the road to peace is being made more difficult by

those nations which say one thing at the United Nations

here and do just the exact opposite of what they have said

in the practical execution of their home policy towards

their neighbouring or other States. Without a rule of law,

justice and respect for one another’s sovereignty, we remain

far from the objective which we have pledged ourselves to

achieve; realization of world peace, guided by the principle

of mutual respect and sovereign equality.

101. However, my delegation is nevertheless encouraged

by the efforts of those concerned to end the war in

Viet-Nam, although the Paris peace talks have not gained

ground as effectively as one had expected to save human

lives that are being lost daily.

102. The Middle East situation remains a source of grave

concern to us and to all other peace-loving nations. My

country has faith in the role of the United Nations as an

effective means for bringing about peace and happiness in

that troubled area, as well as among other nations. We also

hold the view that all nations, big or small, have a

God-given right to exist and that the sovereignty of each

State is indivisible. Consequently, in all our international

operations we have to be guided by the principle of respect

for the dignity, independence and sovereignty of all States

of the globe.

103. We do not regard the Nigerian tragedy lightly.

Indeed, it weighs heavily on Africa. It is an ominous cloud

of evil over our cherished and hard-won freedom. Because

we realize that many innocent lives have been and are being

lost, and because we hate to see that situation continuing to

undermine African independence, we urge all men of

goodwill to support the Organization of African Unity in its

endeavour to find a negotiated peace.

104. The intolerable situation in Rhodesia continues to

haunt the conscience of free Africa. That situation has been

brought about by the puzzling failure of the British

Government to assert its ultimate legal authority over

Rhodesia, and these circumstances have been ruthlessly

exploited by a dominant white minority against the

legitimate interests of the African majority. It is indeed sad

that Britain’s past record of decolonization should now be

marred by this final eclipse of its power to further the cause

of freedom. We cannot rest under this inertia but will take

up the cause of the United Nations in its efforts to bring

down the illegal Smith regime and to restore justice to Rhodesia.

105. We have been very distressed by the Portuguese

Angola-Zambia border disturbances. We sincerely hope that

the facilities of the United Nations will enable a peaceful

solution to be effected before further incidents occur.

106. We, in the Kingdom of Swaziland, are now engaged,

as I said earlier, in a serious economic struggle. We truly

hope that, with the help and co-operation of Member States

of the United Nations, our economy may, before long, take

proper shape. We have, of course, serious problems and

set-backs which beset us, but these are not insurmountable.

Already, with the encouragement and tangible participation

of the United Nations in Swaziland, at least some ground of

our development programme is being covered, and I should

like to record my country’s appreciation and gratification

to the United Nations for the assistance already made available.

107. In conclusion, allow me to repeat my delegation’s

conviction regarding the United Nations. We regard it as a

collective instrument for international peace, and not

merely as a platform where we can air our grievances and

our differences in complete disregard of the provisions of

the Charter and its objectives. We believe, as is stated in the

Charter of this family of sovereign nations, that force has

no place in modern society, that this generation and the

generations to come should suffer war no more, but that

they should learn to love, and to eliminate ignorance,

poverty, hunger, disease and discrimination.