India, 1969

99. I should like first of all to

offer our congratulations on the election of the honourable

Angie Brooks of Liberia to the Presidency of this twenty-fourth

session of the General Assembly. It is a fitting

tribute to her long association with this Organization, and

to her particular dedication to the cause of freedom of the

colonial peoples. We have every hope that under her wise

guidance this Assembly will make rapid progress on the

many important items of the present and the future.

100. I should also like to pay a tribute to the memory of

her distinguished predecessor, the late Mr. Emilio Arenales,

who presided over the twenty-third session of the General

Assembly with such courage and purpose. His untimely

death is a great loss to his country, to the Latin American

States and the United Nations.

101. Our distinguished Secretary-General, U Thant, who

has become, through the years, the repository of the

conscience of humanity, is carrying a heavy burden with

faith and fortitude. His role as peacemaker is difficult and

delicate and yet he has persevered relentlessly. We can do

no less than to assure him of our co-operation and support

for all that he is doing to uphold the Charter.

102. A full hundred years ago today, a light was lit in a

small coastal town in India. Within its life-span its brilliance

reached the dark corners in every land. It became the

symbol of hope for the down-trodden everywhere. Today,

we in India and millions of people all over the world

celebrate the centenary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi. As

I speak to this august Assembly, the thought uppermost in

my mind is his message for his countrymen, for the peoples

of the world and for generations yet unborn. It is a message

of peace and co-operation.

103. The Mahatma demonstrated to us by his deeds that

man is capable of rising above his baser self to a plane that

befits his calling. Even while he fought the inequities of a

powerful colonial Power that subjugated his motherland,

he never let bitterness and prejudice envelop us.

104. Gandhiji set for us exacting standards. He wanted us

to be tolerant, non-violent and generous in our everyday

life. We do not claim that we have lived up to his precepts.

We have faltered many a time, even recently. But nobody

can accuse us of not earnestly trying to follow the path set

for us.

105. Permit me to say that those of us who saw this man

in flesh and blood, who were inspired by his soft voice

calling us to action, feel that this great Organization could

experience by his life-work and use some of his methods to

combat the horde of problems that beset the world

community today.

106. It is significant that the three causes for which the

Mahatma struggled non-violently throughout his life were:

first, elimination of racial, social and religious discrimination,

second, freedom from colonial subjugation of his own

people and others in different lands, and third, liquidation

of poverty and ignorance.

107. The Charter of the United Nations, which was

fashioned and drafted for the post-war world and in

Gandhi’s life-time, concerns itself with all the three:

discrimination, decolonization, and economic development

benefiting underprivileged everywhere.

108. Shri Jawaharlal Nehru, our first Prime Minister,

sought to reaffirm the Gandhian doctrine and to give form

and content to it in his policy of peaceful coexistence. He

proceeded on the basis that freedom not fear, faith not

doubt, confidence not suspicion can lead to friendly

relations between States in a world riven by conflict.

109. When he addressed this Assembly nine years ago he

drew attention to the fact that the propagation of this

concept was no empty idealism since, in practical terms, the

choice before the world was to co-operate or perish.

110. The adherence of all of us to the United Nations

Charter commits us to the principles of peaceful co-existence

between States with different social and political

systems; respect for the sovereignty, independence and

territorial integrity of one another; non-interference in the

internal affairs of each other; denial of the fruits of

aggression to the aggressor; respect for fundamental human

rights and the dignity and worth of the human person.

Yet, we see these noble ideas trampled upon in the march

of nations towards narrow selfish goals. Has the time,

therefore, not come when we should reaffirm our commitment

to these obligations and make a declaration which

will have, one hopes, binding force?

111. The Prime Minister of India, Shrimati Indira Gandhi,

speaking in this Assembly in 1968, said:

“Two years hence, in 1970, the United Nations will

complete 25 years. Can we make it a year of peace? A

starting point of a united endeavour to give mankind the

blessings of a durable peace?” [1693rd meeting,

para. 177.]

Can we not ensure that during this period we begin to

reduce expenditure on armaments and can we not also

ensure that a credible declaration for the renunciation of

force in settling disputes is made during this year?

112. Gandhiji believed that truth and non-violence could

bring peace, not only to individuals but also to nations and

the international community. More than 31 years ago he

wrote:

“Not to believe in the possibility of permanent peace is

to disbelieve the godliness of human nature ... If the

recognized leaders of mankind who have control over

engines of destruction, work wholly to renounce their

use, with full knowledge of its implications, permanent

peace can be obtained ... If even one great nation were

unconditionally to perform the supreme act of renunciation,

many of us would see in our lifetime durable peace

established on earth.”

113. Peace, renunciation of force, respect for international

law, these cannot be mere slogans. They need to be given

substance through greater co-operation in practical everyday

international life.

114. Unfortunately this co-operation has been lacking so

far. While every opportunity is taken to make good

pronouncements, the will to implement them is conspicuously

absent. We have heard, in this Assembly, many

intentions expressed, declarations made and resolutions

passed. But we have noted with great disappointment the

lack of enthusiasm in putting those intentions into action.

Disenchantment with the whole process of our way of

working in this Organization is growing. On the eve of the

twenty-fifth anniversary of the founding of the United

Nations we have to give serious thought so that this attitude

of despair is turned into one of hope. We have, therefore, to

devise effective means of implementing our declarations.

115. We are, even today, continuing to deal with some of

the problems which were with us when the United Nations

was born. The racist policies of South Africa, rampant and

oppressive colonialism of the Portuguese in Angola and

Mozambique as well as in other Territories, the racist

oppression and reactionary exploitation of the people of

Zimbabwe by a white minority and the lack of progress in

the liberation of Namibia are amongst such problems.

116. It is a terror of might and blackmail by means of

sophisticated weapons that is helping to keep the African

peoples in the southern part of Africa under racial and

colonial subjugation. This situation causes us great anguish,

more so because it was there that Mahatma Gandhi first

preached and practised non-violence in the struggle against

racial discrimination, colonial oppression and violation of

human rights.

117. The United Nations Charter contains within itself the

means for dealing with these problems. If this has not been

achieved so far it is because those Member States of this

Organization, which are in a position to bring about a

solution of these problems, have been evasive in their

response to the appeals and demands of the international

community. They have voted for, and supported, various

resolutions in these halls of the United Nations, against the

racist and the colonialist policies. But at the same time,

they have stopped short of taking effective action to

implement these very resolutions. Perhaps their attempt is

to persuade the international community that the problems

faced by the peoples of the southern part of Africa are

beyond solution. We cannot agree with them. This last

stronghold of prejudice, reaction and colonialism must be

made to surrender to the work of this august Assembly and

to conform to the objectives of the United Nations Charter.

118. In Asia, too, we see conflicts which have persisted

from the days of the founding of this great Organization.

I refer specially to Viet-Nam and to West Asia.

119. There has been no lack of appreciation of the desire

to achieve peace in Viet-Nam. But to what extent has this

desire been translated into action? The stopping of

bombing by the United States of the Democratic Republic

of Viet-Nam has enabled talks to take place in Paris to find

a peaceful solution. The next steps have now to be taken.

All parties to that dispute agree that the people of

Viet-Nam should be left free to determine their own

destiny, and no one seems to hold a brief for keeping

foreign forces in that land. The first step to be taken is the

immediate cessation of hostilities. Thereafter, necessary

arrangements have to be made for the withdrawal of foreign

troops to enable the people of Viet-Nam to decide their

future, free from foreign interference. This process can be

carried out effectively only if arrangements which inspire

the confidence of all parties concerned can be established.

It would, therefore, seem necessary to have a Government

which is adequately representative to command the confidence

and the support of all sections of the people. Such a

Government would be in a position in Viet-Nam to

supervise the withdrawal of foreign forces and prepare for

holding fair elections. To facilitate this process for bringing

peace to Viet-Nam the international community should

pledge its full co-operation and support.

120. I cannot conclude these brief remarks on the

situation in that country without paying a tribute to the

late Dr. Ho Chi Minh, in whose death Asia has lost an

indomitable soldier for freedom.

121. In the Middle East, Israel continues to be in

possession of large areas of territory it overran by force in

June 1967. The human problem of large numbers of Arab

refugees is an element in that tangled situation to which we

must not and cannot close our eyes.

122. Almost two years ago, on 22 November 1967, the

Security Council unanimously adopted resolution

242 (1967). The Security Council and its permanent

members have a special responsibility to ensure the faithful

implementation of the 22 November resolution.

123. The first thing should have been not to permit the

aggressor to retain the fruit of his aggression and use it as a

means of bargaining. However, we are given to understand

that, in the interest of a mutual adjustment, a wider

solution of the Middle Eastern problem is being attempted.

Even so, there is no movement towards a peaceful solution,

and hostilities continue to flare up from time to time, with

even more dangerous consequences.

124. Furthermore, there is an unfortunate attempt by

some interested parties to give religious overtones to a

problem that is essentially political. This could only play

into the hands of those who wish to confuse the issues in

the Middle East and fan religious emotions, making the

quest for an objective political settlement even more

difficult.

125. My Government has welcomed the initiative of the

permanent members of the Security Council to engage in

negotiations amongst themselves on this question. We have

no desire to prejudge or to prejudice the outcome of those

efforts, especially as those efforts continue to be made,

albeit at a leisurely pace. We feel, however, that the

responsibility cannot be that of the permanent members of

the Security Council alone. All States Members of the

United Nations have a collective responsibility in all such

matters.

126. I have just referred to the trouble spots of the world

where the return of peace must become an international

responsibility. However, a serious threat to international

peace and security today stems from the spiralling arms

race. This race is entering a new stage, both in terms of

sophistication of armaments and expenditure involved.

There is a systematic attempt to widen progressively the

gap between the military Powers and the weaker nations.

Concentration of enormous power in the hands of a few

nations is leading to a division of the world into spheres of

influence, in which might alone becomes right in the

relationships between States. It is imperative that this drift

towards a new and unequal balance of power be halted and

reversed. It is the responsibility of all peace-loving States,

particularly the non-aligned ones, which are adversely

affected by the emergence of new power patterns, to

restore the balance. They must seek to widen the scope of

international co-operation based on the sovereign equality

of all nations.

127. The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear

Weapons [resolution 2373 (XXII)] represents an effective

demonstration of the latest trends in relations between

States. That Treaty is as unequal as it is ineffective. It

cannot contribute in any way to a balanced process of

disarmament, on which alone the security of nations can

depend. We have, on a matter of principle, rejected the

validity of an instrument which seeks to bind the hands of

the powerless and to licence the further accumulation of

armaments by those whose stockpiles threaten our very

existence. It is for this reason that we remain unable to sign

the Treaty.

128. That unequal Treaty has become even more unacceptable,

because of an attempt on the part of the big

Powers to modify assurances of security, implicit under the

provisions of the Charter, to those who do not subscribe to

the Treaty. These new tactics are symptomatic of the

growing tendency to make power and might the basis of

international relations. It also represents the increasing

attempts to settle questions of war and peace outside the

forum of the United Nations. We cannot be a party to the

weakening of the basic tenets of the Charter and to the

whittling down of the inherent responsibility of Member

States. This serious situation can be solved only by

increasing Our co-operation so that a more scrupulous

adherence is obtained for the provisions of the Charter.

129. Domination and exploitation continue to be a

normal feature of international life because of a toleration

of the persistence of inequality. It is this approach which

requires to be overhauled. It is only enlightened economic

co-operation on a global scale that can set a new process in

motion and contribute to a more durable peace and stability.

130. It is not enough for those of us who belong to the

developing world: merely to expose the hypocrisy and

hollowness of the assertions of the developed countries that

they are straining every muscle to give us help, when they

are not prepared even to respect, in practice, the commitments

which they make year after year through resolutions

sponsored in the various forums of the United Nations. The

time has come for us to indicate frankly and clearly what

are the responsibilities of the developing and the developed.

131. I had the privilege of presenting the report of the

second session of the United Nations Conference on Trade

and Development to the twenty-third session of the General

Assembly [1708th meeting]. Since then the Trade and

Development Board has met in Geneva in its eighth and

ninth sessions. I said then that the eyes of the world were

fixed on results we might be able to obtain from the

continuing machinery. Those very eyes, I fear, have

witnessed the futility of the ninth session. I therefore ask

myself, and I also venture to put this question to this

Assembly: what has gone wrong with the developmental

process and with the climate for international economic

co-operation?

132. To aggravate matters further, there is a growing

tendency to detract from the importance of the basic

objectives and put emphasis on palliatives. In spite of a

reasonably thorough identification of the problems of

development through numerous studies, there is an attempt

to initiate new studies and reviews, in a vain attempt to gain

more time and to evolve a plausible philosophy for the

present state of stagnation and withdrawal. The effective

multilateral agencies are progressively failing to reflect the

collective will of the international community. Instead,

efforts are being made to base such activities on unilateral

and at times even paternalistic patterns of providing

assistance.

133. To my mind, the basic cause for widespread disenchantment

with international co-operation lies in the

deliberately exaggerated dichotomy between the responses

and interests of the affluent and the poorer nations.

Contrary to: the facts of economic history, people in

positions of power have come to believe that the process of

transmission of growth impulses is unilateral or irreversible.

One has only to reflect on the rise and fall of nations to

come to the conclusion that such a belief is totally

unwarranted. Some of the centres of economic power

today have derived their present strength and their present

potential for transmitting growth from the investment and

the skills that flowed to them, when not so long ago they

were not in such a happy position. This process cannot but

repeat itself in the case of the developing countries which

are striving to break the vicious circle in which they find

themselves enmeshed by the accident of history, and

through the operation of an economic order erected on a

very narrow base.

134. In the developed world, the inevitability of rapid

change has yet to dawn on those entrusted with the reins of

authority. We need to remind ourselves that when we

launched the First United Nations Development Decade and

when we approved the Final Acts of the Geneva and New

Delhi Conferences of UNCTAD, we committed ourselves to

the establishment of a new and dynamic international

economic relationship and to the achievement of a new

world economic order. The fulfilment of this commitment

requires not only determined efforts and perseverance but

also imagination and courage of conviction. We will be

judged harshly by history if we do not display these

qualities at this crucial moment on the eve of the launching

of the Second United Nations Development Decade.

135. We have been conscious of the fact that the primary

responsibility for the development of developing countries

rests on themselves.

136. In Asia, Africa and Latin America a beginning has

been made, however modest, to advance the objective of

co-operation between developing countries and to prove

that they do not intend to spare their own efforts but are

serious in carrying out the recommendations of the Algiers

Charter and the second session of UNCTAD. The real

security of the developing countries can be ensured only if

they are able to develop their own strength, vitality and

vigour; secure for their people economic and social gains

and foster the habit of meeting together to pursue common

objectives.

137. In Asia we are attempting to evolve a strategy for

integrated development of regional economic co-operation

which represents a well co-ordinated attack on the manifold

problems and deficiencies in Asia. The move has been made

to provide an Asian answer to Asian problems. What Asia

needs today is not military pacts but economic co-operation.

138. Regional economic co-operation, and particularly

socio-economic resurgences in Asia can, in the ultimate

analysis, be sustained only on the basis of better utilization

of Asian resources and a more even distribution of wealth

and opportunities within our respective societies. We, in

India, have not flinched from taking decisions which alone

can ensure that the wealth of the nation is utilized for the

welfare of all its peoples without distinction. We have been

trying resolutely to work in the context of the phenomenon

of rising expectations. In so far as our society is

concerned, we have, in the two decades of our independence,

tried to organize ourselves in a manner to ensure

that the response of our socio-economic structure to the

demands on it are quick, unequivocal and progressive.

139. We have also attempted to forge closer economic

relations with our neighbours and, indeed, with other Asian

countries represented on the Council of Ministers for Asian

Economic Co-operation. Significant arrangements have already

been concluded with some countries. More are under

negotiation. It is our hope that all Asian countries will

respond favourably to these efforts for co-operation and

that we shall receive the necessary assistance from others so

that we will be able to establish in Asia, torn by conflicts

for centuries, new associations of co-operation based on

equality and friendship.

140. There are a number of items on the agenda and we

shall naturally express our views on them when they come

up for discussion. Here I have spoken of colonialism in

Africa and the conflicts in the tortured continent of Asia

because these concern us directly. I have spoken of the

socio-economic resurgence of Asia because we are involved

in it. I have spoken of economic development because we

are a part of it. I have also spoken of the arms race and the

attempts that are being made to carve out spheres of

influence in our world. I have talked of the United Nations

and its role in the field of international relations. I have

drawn my inspiration for all this from the message of

Gandhi for our own generation and for generations to

come. Permit me to end my speech by quoting a statement

made by Mahatma Gandhi to the representatives of a

resurgent Asia at the Asian Relations Conference in New

Delhi 10 months before his martyrdom. He said that the

world “is despairing of a multiplication of atom bombs,

because the atom bombs mean utter destruction”. He went

on to say: “It is up to you to tell the world of its

wickedness and sin — that is the heritage your teachers and

my teachers have taught Asia.” This was the reaffirmation

of his belief which he expressed thus:

“My nationalism is fierce but not exclusive and not

devised to hurt any nation or individual. India’s freedom

as conceived by me can never be a menace to the world.

The whole of my country may die so that the human race

may live.”

It is in this spirit that we shall endeavour to work.