Libya, 1969

131. On behalf

of the delegation of the Libyan Arab Republic to the

twenty-fourth session of the General Assembly, I have great

pleasure in extending to the President our warmest congratulations

on her election to preside over this Assembly.

Her election is a recognition of her great competence and

vast experience and illustrates the high esteem and admiration

in which the world community holds her country.

As Africans, we are proud to see a daughter of the African

continent attain a position of such responsibility. This is a

manifestation of the emancipation of the African woman,

as well as a recognition of the active role of women in

today’s international community. Having known her well,

and having worked closely with her in a spirit of true

co-operation, we are certain that she will conduct the

deliberations of this session objectively and successfully.

132. At this point I cannot but recall with deep regret the

passing of the President of the twenty-third session of the

General Assembly, the late Mr. Emilio Arenales. We wish to

pay posthumous tribute to his valuable service to the world

community and to his efficient conduct of the Assembly’s

deliberations. We also wish to convey our condolences to

the delegation of the Republic of Guatemala for the

grievous loss they have suffered.

133. I should also like to take this opportunity of

addressing the Assembly to convey the profound esteem of

the Libyan Arab Republic for His Excellency U Thant. We

deeply appreciate his sincere and indefatigable efforts in the

service of, this Organization and his constant endeavours to

uphold its principles and Charter. We wish him all success in

this formidable task and pledge him our full support.

134. It is an honour for me to lead this first delegation of

the Libyan Arab Republic, which came into being as a

result of the revolt of the Libyan people and the Libyan

Army against the evils of domestic corruption. When the

Libyan Army, led by the Revolutionary Command Council,

took action on 1 September 1969, it was merely responding

to the wishes of the Libyan people who cherish the human

values of freedom and progress, and who seek the attainment

of dignity and social justice.

135. Our revolution is an attempt to end the past lassitude

in dealing with the various social and economic problems

confronting the Libyan homeland. Our revolution seeks to

enable the Libyan people to participate effectively in

meeting the challenges facing the Arab individual and the

Arab nation. It anticipates their taking part in the battle

waged by our Arab nation against under-development,

imperialism and foreign aggression, and their contribution

to the solution of the massive problems confronting all

mankind. Both our people and our revolution firmly

uphold the human values proclaimed by the United Nations

and laid down in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

136. When the Libyan Army began the revolution of

1 September 1969, the hopes of our people finally found

concrete expression. It is the Libyan people who have

suffered under the yoke of imperialism and foreign

intervention, and it is they who were victimized by a corrupt

and reactionary regime. For many years freedoms were

suppressed and attempts were made to destroy the identity

of our people, whose energies were wasted. The Libyan

people were denied the participatory role consistent with

their deeply rooted Arab character and Islamic tradition,

and in keeping with their long history of struggle against

the forces of evil, tyranny and aggression.

137. An era of great hope has arisen from this rAdical

change, and the potential of the Libyan people has been

directed towards constructive and valuable achievement.

The take-over was the first landmark in a strenuous but

necessary campaign to mobilize the resources of the Libyan

people, strengthen their internal structure and unify their

ranks. This mobilization is a prerequisite for their participation

in the great struggle for progress, freedom and unity,

currently being waged by our embattled Arab nation in

each and every part of our larger Arab homeland. Libya,

needless to say, considers itself an integral part of this

homeland and an entity which can grow and flourish, only

within its fold. Libyans have always cherished their

Arabism and believed in the oneness of the Arab homeland

and the Arab nation. The Arab people of Libya have thus

marched with the times and moved to assume their place in

this decisive stage in the history of the Arab nation.

138. Our revolution seeks to restore to the Libyan people

its true identity, release their creative energies and open the

way for a more positive awareness of international issues

and the problems of modern man. The Libyan people are

thus already in a position to identify themselves more

closely with the struggle of oppressed people to eradicate

the last vestiges of exploitation, slavery and colonialism.

The new Libya, which has chosen socialism as the path to

social justice, will provide added strength to the camp of

peace and strengthen progressive forces in their decisive

battle against reaction and imperialism.

139. I wish to stress that the Libyan Arab Republic firmly

upholds the purposes and principles of the Charter of the

United Nations, and that it bases its foreign policy on the

tenets of non-alignment, of mutual respect between members

of the world community and non-interference in the

domestic affairs of other States. It sincerely desires to win

the friendship of all peace-loving nations and to work for

the consolidation of world peace and international understanding,

in conformity with the purposes and principles of

this Organization. The Libyan Arab Republic is also

determined to honour its international obligations and fulfil

its undertakings, especially within the context of the

regional organizations of which Libya is a member, such as

the League of Arab States and the Organization of African Unity.

140. Because we believe in the necessity of consolidating

Libyan sovereignty and in ridding our country of the

unwholesome vestiges of the past, and because we concur

with the desires of the Libyan people to be freed from the

traces of foreign presence and foreign bases, the Revolutionary

Government of the Libyan Arab Republic has

proclaimed its intention not to renew the agreements and

treaties relating to the presence of foreign bases in our

country. The removal of such bases, imposed on us under

particularly historic circumstances, will also contribute to

the reduction of world tension.

141. At a time when the United Nations is approaching its

twenty-fifth anniversary, we are grieved to find that the

international situation is deteriorating throughout the

world. We witness the continuation of violence and

repeated resort to force, whether to settle international

differences, to attain expansionist goals, or to impose the

will of the strong on the weak. We witness the persistent

use of colonialist methods and the continuation of the

colonialist mentality. We see the arms race reaching new

heights, whether in the fields of nuclear, biological,

chemical or conventional weapons. Poor nations grow

poorer while rich nations accumulate new wealth; the gap is

widening and seriously hinders common action and co-operation

at the international level.

142. After the horrors and devastation of two world wars

in which millions of lives were sacrificed, the United

Nations was formed to strengthen world peace and security,

to lay the foundations of international co-operation and to

liberate humanity from fear and want. Many of its goals in

the social, cultural and economic fields have been realized.

To our consternation, however, it has been rendered

incapable of fulfilling its basic task of maintaining peace

and security in all those instances where the major Powers

decline to co-operate, as is the case in Viet-Nam and the Middle East.

143. In Viet-Nam, a small but brave people continues to

wage a heroic struggle against a mighty Power whose

military resources and strength are entirely out of proportion

to their own. At this juncture, when the Paris talks are

proceeding, we can only express our earnest hope that the

heroic Viet-Namese people will achieve its goal of self-

determination and the withdrawal of foreign troops. It is

our sincere wish that peace be restored there after a quarter

of a century of warfare and enormous sacrifices.

144. Peace is the most cherished goal of all peoples,

irrespective of colour or race. But peace comes only when it

is based on justice and equity and when the principles of

the Charter of the United Nations are respected. How, may

I ask, can there be any possibility of peace in the Middle

Fast unless such a peace is based on justice? Can the

expulsion of a whole people from their land to make room

for aliens be called justice? Let us ask ourselves, how can

we expect such people to reconcile themselves to spending

their entire lives homeless, in tents, on international

charity? Should they sit impassively and watch strangers

occupy their homes, exploit their lands and reap the fruits

of their fields? Is it possible that in an age when

self-determination is constantly upheld, confirmed and

reiterated by the General Assembly, when self-determination

is proudly considered one of the greatest achievements

of our era, that the people of Palestine should be denied

that right?

145. Nor can anyone maintain that the interests of peace

and justice can be served by the continued Israeli occupation

of Arab territories in Syria, the United Arab Republic

and Jordan. Neither will peace and justice be served by

Israel’s insistence on the retention of whatever land it

covets, in the face of overwhelming opposition by the

majority of Member States against forceful territorial

acquisition and expansion, an opposition which has been

Stated repeatedly before this Assembly and which reflects

one of the basic principles of the United Nations. Israel,

none the less, refuses to withdraw from lands forcefully and

aggressively acquired and demands instead direct negotiations

and secure boundaries. At the same time, we are

bound to remember that Israeli officials have invariably

declared their resolve to retain Jerusalem, the Golan

Heights, the Gaza Strip, Sharm El-Sheik and other sectors

of Sinai, and to effect other border modifications as well.

Some Israeli officials have demanded the establishment of

Israeli military posts along the bank of the Jordan. Still

others demand that all Arab territory seized by the Israeli

forces in the June 1967 war be retained in realization of

their dreams of a greater Israel.

146. More than two years have elapsed since Israel waged

its treacherous and aggressive war on neighbouring Arab

countries. As if this were not sufficient, Israel persists in

aggressive and racist policies, each day providing further

proof of its expansionist designs. The Arabs, aware of such

designs long before the June 1967 aggression, repeatedly

drew the attention of the world community to their

gravity. Today, we have only to cite Israel’s refusal to

implement the resolutions relating to Jerusalem as

incontestable evidence of Israel’s contempt for this Organization

and its defiance of world opinion. In lieu of implementing

the resolutions of the General Assembly and the Security

Council, Israel proceeds with the frightful demolition of

peaceful civilians’ homes, the deportation of Arab citizens

and the seizure of their property. This flagrant denial and

constant violation of fundamental human rights, this

expulsion of individuals and groups, and this establishment

of alien settlements in the midst of occupied Arab

territories, contravenes the Geneva Conventions of 1949

and shames the human conscience.

147. The Security Council resolutions on Jerusalem have

explicitly called upon Israel to desist from taking any

action which would change the status of Jerusalem and to

rescind all measures taken to that effect. However, in

flagrant defiance of these resolutions and of world opinion,

Israel is carrying out measures for the Zionization of the

city and the expulsion of its Arab inhabitants. The most

recent illustration of Israel’s contempt for all human and

spiritual values was the heinous crime of last August when

the Al Aqsa Mosque, one of Islam’s most sacred shrines,

was set on fire. This nefarious crime represents an attempt

to set back the clock of history by man’s return to the dark

ages of bigotry at a time when the United Nations and the

international community are seeking to eradicate all forms

of religious and racial prejudice, and to nurture the spirit of

tolerance and brotherhood among people.

148. The situation in the Middle East, as the Assembly is

well aware, is deteriorating rapidly and moving fast towards

a new explosion. In the introduction to his annual report

the Secretary-General states:

”...failing some early progress towards a settlement,

there is a very real danger that this great and historic

region, the cradle of civilization and of three world

religions, will recede steadily into a new dark age of

violence, disruption and destruction...” [A/7601/Add 1, para. 71].

149. The responsibility for this situation lies squarely

upon Israel and its supporters. We need not recall once

more that Security Council resolution 242 (1967) of 22

November 1967, which calls for the withdrawal of the

Israeli troops from the territories occupied by Israel as a

result of its treacherous aggression of 5 June 1967, has

provided a formula for the peaceful solution of the Middle

East problem. Yet Israel has persistently refused to accept

and implement that resolution. Israel has hampered all the

efforts of the United Nations and the major Powers towards

achieving a peaceful solution in accordance with the

Security Council’s resolution, and it has done so in the

hope of successfully dictating its terms and thereby

achieving its expansionist ambitions, which not only

threaten peace in the area but endanger the security of the

whole world.

150. At a time when Israel makes no secret of its

opposition to the endeavours of the great Powers and of the

United Nations, when it refuses to implement Security

Council resolution 242 (1967), when its jets mercilessly

attack Arab civilians and refugees with napalm, when its

officials call for the total or partial annexation of occupied

Arab lands and categorically refuse to recognize the

legitimate rights of the Arabs of Palestine—at such a time

the United States supports Israel. In spite of United States

professions of interest in the establishment of peace in the

area, the United States provides Israel with destructive

weapons and Phantom and Skyhawk planes, which cannot

but help Israel persist in its defiance of the world

community, and pursue its constant threat to the Arab

countries, dictating terms which express its expansionist

ambitions. This policy, based solely on violence and

aggression, which arms a State, can only obstruct peace in

the Middle East, further aggravate the situation and

jeopardize world peace and security.

151. The uprooted and dispossessed Palestinian people

constitute the heart of the problem in the Middle East.

They have suffered hardships for over 20 years, and their

very existence was only recently denied by the Prime

Minister of Israel. Their long plight was further aggravated

by Israel’s aggression of 5 June 1967, whereby more

Palestinians were expelled and additional Palestinian property

was seized. The Palestinians have waited for over two

decades for justice from the United Nations, but the failure

of the international community to grasp the enormity of

what happened in this area, let alone the magnitude of their

suffering, has forcefully persuaded the Palestinian people

that they must rise in arms to regain what is legitimately

theirs. Let us remember that the Palestinian fedayeem

whom some like to call terrorists, are in fact freedom

fighters and the legitimate owners of the land. Their cause

is, in fact; a just and plausible cause under international law

and bears comparison to various struggles waged by our

peoples against foreign occupation. We wish here to pay

tribute to the struggle of the Palestinian people and to hail

their heroism and great sacrifices in resisting the usurper.

We look forward to the attainment of their aspirations and

the realization of their legitimate right to self-determination.

152. As the United Nations prepares to celebrate the tenth

anniversary of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence

to Colonial Countries and Peoples, we note with

the deepest regret that the southern regions of Africa

remain unaffected by that historic resolution [1514 (XV)].

Millions of people who have associated their highest

aspirations with the United Nations have, in effect, been

abandoned to struggle for their most elementary rights

single-handed.

153. Nationalists in Angola, Mozambique and Guin

(Bissau) are confronted with a nineteenth-century mentality

which denies them freedom, dignity and self-determination.

The Government of Portugal deludes itself in

thinking that the nineteenth century can be indefinitely

prolonged, but its selfish deceptions are encouraged by

certain Powers which conveniently overlook the principles

of the United Nations because their immediate interests

converge with those of Portugal. We see, therefore, that the

privileges of the strong are sustained through the victimization

of millions of people whose only desire is to lead a

proud and decent existence.

154. However limited the measures adopted by the Security

Council have been, we see to our dismay that the

situation in Southern Rhodesia remains unaltered. Once

again, a European minority not only defies the world

community but does so at the terrible expense of four

million Africans whose right to self-determination is ignored.

Its protestations notwithstanding, the United Kingdom

Government has declined to render any effective intervention.

155. Farther south, the Government of South Africa

ignores United Nations resolutions on Namibia, a Territory

under the direct responsibility of the United Nations. It

refuses to withdraw its troops and will not allow United

Nations representatives to enter the Territory and discharge

their responsibilities. Furthermore, the policy of apartheid,

a policy abhorrent to the majority of mankind, is being

extended to that Territory, simultaneously with its solidification

within the Republic of South Africa proper. mi

156. It is safe to say that without the endorsement and

sustenance of certain interested Powers, these racist and

colonialist regimes in the south of Africa would not be

flouting our sensibilities today. Indeed, they might not have

survived.

157. A decade has elapsed since the Declaration on

decolonization was adopted. Declarations of intent become

a mockery unless brought to fruition. The time has come

for the United Nations to live up to its intentions and

exercise its responsibilities. The hopes attached to this

Organization by the weak and oppressed should not be

frustrated, moreover, the words we speak here and the

work we do here must not be in vain. The United Nations

must adopt the measures provided for in the Charter to put

an end to this anomalous situation in southern Africa.

158. The evolution of the United Nations has lagged

behind the rapid and unprecedented global changes which

have occurred in the past quarter of a century. The distance

separating this Organization from its greater environment

constitutes a weakness which, in great part, prevents the

elimination of unparalleled world tension. Moreover, fresh

and constructive approaches are necessary if we are to lay

the foundations for peace and security.

159. We must, therefore, review the foundations on which

this Organization is built. It is incumbent on the great

Powers to reconsider their policies towards this Organization.

For it is the great Powers, whose actions so deeply

affect mankind, which can transform this Organization into

an effective instrument for the peace, progress and welfare

of the world. This is not to absolve the small Powers of

their responsibilities. They, too, should contribute more to

the success of the United Nations. We see that an essential

requirement for the success of this Organization is the

realization of its universality.

160. Those policies are myopic in the extreme, which

assume that the United Nations can serve the cause of peace

and progress in the world while over 30 per cent of its

inhabitants are still outside its fold, either because they are

among the colonized peoples or because their nations are

still divided and, consequently, could not, under existing

circumstances of international conflict, join the international

family and contribute to its endeavours. It is

incredible that 700 million people in the People’s Republic

of China should be excluded from the United Nations. The

Government of the Libyan Arab Republic is convinced that

the interests of world peace not only require, but demand

the admission of the People’s Republic of China to this

Organization. It is a prerequisite to meaningful international

co-operation.

161. Preparations for the celebration of the twenty-fifth

anniversary of the United Nations, which coincides with the

tenth anniversary of the Declaration on the Granting of

Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, are now

under way. We hope that these anniversaries will give real

cause for celebration. We earnestly desire that a new era for

mankind will unfold; in which colonialism is finally

liquidated, in which the United Nations will truly become

universal, and in which peoples now oppressed will determine

their own destinies. Finally, we hold out hope for a

world of peaceful co-operation, without which humanity

suffers unwarranted pain and wastes great energies.

162. In conclusion, I salute all the distinguished heads and

members of delegations to this session of the Assembly, and

express the readiness of the delegation of the Libyan Arab

Republic to co-operate fully in the deliberations of this

session which we hope will terminate successfully.