Papua New Guinea, 1982

Mr. President, I join the previous speakers in extending to you, on

behalf of my Government, our congratulations on your election as

President of the thirty seventh session of the General Assembly. My

congratulations also go to your predecessor for the exemplary manner

in which he conducted the proceedings of the last session. This

session of the General Assembly is convening at a time when the very

foundations of international peace, stability and prosperity are

being assailed by global disharmony and serious economic crisis.

Hardly a day goes by without our attention being drawn to a new and

terrible flashpoint where reason and negotiation yield to rash and

precipitous conflicts under arms. Border wars rage, and nations parry

and thrust over the negotiating table with all too little concern for

the consequences of their inability to compromise. On a different

plane, where the stakes are much higher and the destructive

capabilities terrifyingly lethal the super Powers have yet again

failed to secure any meaningful agreement on nuclear arms limitation.

The impunity with which nations flout the Charter, too, gives rise to

our fears that true and lasting peace Is an impossible dream. As a

small country, far removed from these areas of conflict, Papua New

Guinea has no illusions about its position in the scheme of things.

However, we feel obligated to draw the Assembly's attention to the

perspective we hold of the deterioration of relations between

countries. Our concern also extends to the growing disparity between

the industrial and non industrial countries. We are therefore

compelled to express our concern at the indifference shown by

industrial countries in procrastinating in the implementation of

successive economic summits dealing with the world economic order.

423

Papua New Guinea believes that removing the threat of armed conflict

and establishing procedures designed to assist the economic

improvement of poor nations are the two issues requiring the urgent

attention of the General Assembly. These are not new issues in the

General Assembly's agenda. They have in fact been debated many times

both here and in other international to rums. Regrettably, on each

occasion, no satisfactory solution has been reached. My Government

believes that the time is now overdue for all of us to make some real

progress on these crucial issues. Instituting reforms to correct

these anomalies will require a degree of strength and unity of

purpose which has so far eluded the Assembly. My Government therefore

hopes that at this session the Assembly will distinguish itself by

finding common ground where these and other issues of global concern

can be resolved. I now wish to address myself to those specific

issues that my Government considers appropriate for debate in this

forum. My Government continues to consider colonialism an anachronism

of our times. We fully share the view that dependent and Non Self

Governing Territories must be given the opportunity to exercise their

inalienable right to self determination and independence as

stipulated in General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 1960. Papua

New Guinea, like other independent Pacific island countries, is

particularly concerned with the remaining dependent Territories of

the Pacific region. Since Papua New Guinea became independent seven

years ago, we have been obliged to support independence for our

Pacific island neighbors. Our resolve in this respect today is

undiminished. We shall continue to ensure that the colonial era in

the Pacific region comes to an end. We note with satisfaction the

recent developments within New Caledonia resulting in greater

participation of the Melanesian people in the Council of Government.

We commend the French Government on the reforms which are aimed at

achieving greater political, economic and social benefits for the

indigenous Melanesian population. We trust that this is an integral

part of an evolutionary process which will eventually lead New

Caledonia to plan its own destiny towards independence. Hence,

pleased as we are at the progress made so far, we cannot be fully

content until we see the emergence of an independent New Caledonia.

These views were echoed at the South Pacific Forum meeting in August.

We urged the French Government to work closely with the Kanak people

of New Caledonia in formulating a political programme for a peaceful

transition to independence. We also hope that other French

Territories in the Pacific are given equal opportunities to determine

their own future.

I also wish to state that Papua New Guinea cannot be indifferent if

the Micronesian people of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands

are denied their right to decide their own future. We acknowledge the

efforts that are being made by the United States Government to place

before the people of Micronesia a range of options which will include

a plebiscite to enable them to determine their own future. To deny

them these options would be contrary to the principles of the Charter

of the United Nations and the spirit of the Trusteeship. Who is

better able to decide whether the Micronesian people are ready for

self determination than the Micronesians themselves? Over the past

few years we have witnessed the resurgence of a particularly

deplorable world wide phenomenon. I speak here of the tendency of

countries in recent times totally to disregard the principles of

sovereignty and independence of other States by pursuing blatant acts

of aggression and interference. It is indeed disheartening to note

that those same States, which have representatives at the Assembly,

freely abuse the principles of the Charter. The use of superior

economic and military strength to invade small countries for the

purpose of securing spheres of influence is a matter of the utmost

concern to my Government.

A prime example was Viet Nam's invasion of Kampuchea in late 1978,

and its installation of a puppet regime. The Kampuchean people have

suffered intolerably; thousands have been killed and others have fled

to neighboring and far away countries to seek sanctuary. Together

with other concerned countries, Papua New Guinea supported

initiatives to bring about a peaceful solution to the problem of

Kampuchea. We actively participated in the International Conference

on Kampuchea held here last year. 13. Last year Papua New Guinea,

along with the Association of South East Asian Nations and many

States Members of the United Nations, adopted a declaration which

advocated a negotiated settlement of the problem of Kampuchea. Viet

Nam's continued rejection of these calls has necessitated the recent

formation of a Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea. We

consider this development a positive move and therefore pledge our

support, together with the member States of ASEAN, in welcoming the

formation of the Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea. The

Afghanistan issue is somewhat analogous to the Kampuchea issue. Papua

New Guinea has opposed and will continue to oppose the foreign

occupation of Afghanistan. We note with regret that the Soviet Union

has not responded to Genera! Assembly resolution 36/34, calling for

the immediate, unconditional and total withdrawal of foreign troops

from Afghanistan. We believe that the situation in Afghanistan cannot

be normalized as long as foreign troops are present in that country.

While taking note of the second special session of the General

Assembly devoted to disarmament this year, we are dismayed that there

has been no real effort to reduce the manufacturing and stockpiling

of trade in both conventional and nuclear weapons. My Government,

nevertheless, commends the efforts of the Committee on Disarmament to

curb the arms race. While we have not succeeded in effecting a

comprehensive reduction in arms, the fact that both bilateral and

multilateral disarmament measures exist in the form of treaties and

conventions provides some hope for optimism. There is, however, a

great danger in the belief that armaments are causes of war. Arms do

not decide to go to war; it is human decisions that put them to war.

Arms control alone cannot remove the possibility of war, but arms

control backed by political will can prevent war and contribute to

peace and security. Another alarming aspect of the arms race is the

expansion in nuclear weaponry. For a number of years now one of the

major tasks of the United Nations has been to promote the peaceful

use of nuclear energy while attempting to deter its military

application. In spite of those efforts, however, nations still find

reason to develop nuclear weapons. Like our neighbors in the South

Pacific, we are increasingly alarmed at the continued testing of

nuclear weapons in the region by outside Powers. At this year's

meeting of the South Pacific Forum, the Pacific island leaders again

strongly condemned France for its nuclear activities in our region

and called for an immediate halt to them. Furthermore, the Forum

called on those States with nuclear capability not to store or dump

nuclear wastes in the Pacific. We object to the long term effects of

nuclear experimentation, which could adversely affect the lives and

the welfare of our people. It is against this background that Papua

New Guinea is totally opposed to nuclear testing and to the dumping

of nuclear wastes in the region. For many sessions now the Assembly

has adopted resolutions condemning South Africa and seeking to

eliminate its abhorrent policy of Papua New Guinea finds it difficult

to understand why some members of this body continue to condone the

actions of a regime which has persistently spumed United Nations

resolutions and yet continue to support South Africa indirectly

through trade and other relations. I make particular reference here

to those countries which saw fit to veto a Security Council draft

resolution in April 1981 requesting Members of the United Nations to

impose comprehensive and mandatory sanctions against South Africa.

Their actions in this respect are indicative of the indifference of

some Members of this world body who profess to be guardians of the

rights and dignity of mankind. It is this kind of hypocrisy that

provides reason for the Pretoria Government to continue pursuing its

repugnant racist policies. The attitude so far displayed by these

countries evokes no optimism concerning the total abolition. My

delegation looks forward to the time when all Members of the

Organization can sincerely and effectively impose trade and economic

sanctions against South Africa. When that time comes, and my

Government hopes it will come soon, it will be a triumphant

vindication of the human values which have been totally repudiated by

the South African Government.

It would be remiss of me to bypass Namibia at this juncture. Papua

New Guinea has supported and will continue to support United Nations

efforts to accord Namibia the right to free itself from its

subservient role to South Africa. We shall continue to press for an

early and peaceful settlement to this long standing question, as

provided for in Security Council resolutions 435 (1978) and 439

(1978). We find consolation in the efforts of the contact group of

Western States. However, we strongly urge all concerned speedily to

facilitate a durable solution for Namibia's independence. The Middle

East issue will continue to be of grave concern if the recent and

unfortunate events in Lebanon are not properly resolved. These events

have surely undermined the efforts of the parties concerned to find a

lasting solution to the problems of the sovereign State of Lebanon.

We are particularly concerned that Israel's action has led to the

massacre and undue suffering of hundreds of innocent Lebanese

civilians and Palestinian refugees in west Beirut. We abhor such

action, irrespective of whoever is responsible. Although we

acknowledge Israel's right to exist and thus to defend its political

and territorial integrity, Papua New Guinea also firmly believes that

this longstanding crisis can never be resolved without acknowledging

the Palestinians' right to have their own State. Papua New Guinea

recognizes that right and will support any initiatives that are aimed

at convening a conference on Palestine as a means to finding a

lasting settlement to the Middle East situation. After many years of

protracted negotiations, my Government was happy to welcome the

adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in

April this year. We, however, remain disappointed that certain

countries sought to alter some fundamental provisions of the

Convention. I feel obliged to remind those countries that the

provisions in question are there for the benefit of mankind. My

Government is especially concerned that the United States has decided

not to become a party to the Convention when it is opened for

signature. Papua New Guinea's concern stems from the fact that key

provisions within the Convention relating to sea bed mining may not

be effectively implemented, white some industrial countries

possessing sea bed mining technology fail to support the Convention.

Papua New Guinea trusts and urges other industrial States to support

the Convention as the principal treaty governing the exploitation of

resources of the world's oceans. The single most important issue

facing the world community today is the current global economic

recession, especially the adverse impact it has had on the economic

and social well being of all nations. Against the background of the

current world economic crisis, Papua New Guinea joins other nations

in recognizing that co operation at the international level is

urgently requested in order to arrest and improve the deteriorating

economic situation. We are aware that the world economy has suffered

over the past decade from problems arising from inflation, high

interest rates, exchange rate instability, deteriorating terms of

trade in commodities, rising unemployment, slow growth and

protectionism. Because of the general downturn in economic growth,

industrial countries have had to apply so called safeguard measures

in order to cope with their own domestic pressures. Thus we have seen

substantial falls in the industrial countries' demands for non

industrial country products, the proliferation of tariff and non

tariff barriers and a general drift towards protectionism. In

addition there has been, a substantial reduction m the flow of

official aid and development finance to developing countries. Trade

barriers in various forms have effectively curtailed markets for non

industrial country exports Most of the restrictions have been

concentrated on manufactured products, although agricultural products

have been subjected to similar restrictions as well. As most of the

barriers to trade exist outside international rules, efforts to limit

their restrictive and trade distorting effects have never been

successful. We in the Pacific have suffered because of a serious drop

in the demand for those agricultural commodities upon which we are so

dependent, such as copra, cocoa, palm oil, fish and timber. Our.

small Pacific economies often rely for survival on the income from

just one or two of these primary products Marginal changes in the

volume and price of agricultural imports from industrial countries

result in plummeting prices for non industrial countries like ours.

At this point I must pay a tribute to the efforts of the European

Economic Community to compensate its associated African, Caribbean

and Pacific countries for drops m export earnings. Papua New Guinea

has recently benefited from this STABEX scheme, Stabilization System

for Export Earnings, and is due to receive additional loan and grant

finance. This assistance is certainly appreciated, but let us all not

forget that relatively small loans can only be partial compensation

for the much larger drops in export earnings we have been forced to

bear. STABEX though welcome, is merely a palliative. We must all

still strive for a new international economic order in which the

small producers are not forced to bear a disproportionate share of

the sacrifices all have to make during times of economic recession.

Papua New Guinea, like many other countries, is experiencing dramatic

falls in foreign exchange earnings. Consequently, like other

countries, it has been forced with very serious balance of payments

difficulties and problems of debt servicing. Both industrial and non

industrial countries have a responsibility to help revitalize and

rearrange the current economic order. Economic recovery depends upon

a number of factors, such as the elimination of trade barriers and

the elimination of other barriers that restrict trade growth. In

this" regard, we urge GATT at the next ministerial meeting and UNCTAD

at the sixth session to establish effective proposals for economic

recovery. There is one other area of concern to my Government. This

is in regard to the way in which quotas are distributed under current

international commodity agreements. During the recent meetings of the

International Coffee Organization in London, for example, it was

quite evident that the major coffee producing nations used their

economic power to increase. their quotas, to the detriment of smaller

producers like my own country. Papua New Guinea would like to see a

fairer, a more equitable distribution of quotas so that justice not

only is done but is seen to be done. There are many problems that

beset our world today. Although I have only touched on some of them,

a!! of them need to be solved, and solve them we must. To do this,

however, we need one another's shoulders to carry the burden jointly.

But to do this effectively we need the political will to do it, a

factor which is required if most of our collective endeavors are to

succeed now and in the future. My delegation Relieves that it is

pointless discussing what can be done unless we first establish that

there is a collective will to do it. Only then can we hope to create

a world order in which States can strive to live together in peace,

stability and prosperity.