The election of Mr. Boland to preside over this historic session of the General Assembly bears eloquent testimony to his eminence among the representatives to the United Nations. It is a recognition of his personal merit and acknowledged experience in the affairs of the Organization.
2, To use the language of hyperbole, may I say, in the words of a Persian poet, that stars looking from the firmament into this Assembly might feel a little envious of the scintillating galaxy gathered here. The great men, who have come from the East and the West, personify the might and the majesty of the countries they represent. They are here today with a single purpose; to find a solution to the problems of this troubled world; and while they are here, mankind waits in breathless suspense. Some of them are armed with the awesome power of life and death over the human race, but we believe that they have come to the United Nations in quest of peace. They have come to parley, to try to lay down their arms, to find means of living together in peace with one another in a world free from fear and free from want.
3. This year and this session will remain famous in history because of the presence here of many African nations that have won freedom and have been admitted to the United Nations. That great continent which was called dark, but on which the light of freedom now shines, is free to bring its youth mid its vigour to the service of its peoples. For many generations the Africans were held in bondage. Today they are free and are here with us as equals to discuss and solve the problems facing humanity.
4, May I mention here that I have been instructed by the President of Pakistan, Mohammed Ayub Khan, to extend to our African comrades his warm personal greetings. Now that the chains of political subjection, theirs and ours, have been broken, we look forward sincerely to close relations with the new African States. Despite the long distances between us, there are historical ties of faith and culture between the teeming peoples of Africa and Pakistan. These bonds transcend distances and differences of custom and language.
5. We have gathered here from all parts of the world, all seeking one paramount objective: peace. We had hoped that the great nations of the world, which have conquered space, would teach us here how to conquer our passions and our vanities so that we may live in peace without fear. Though but a few days have passed since we came full of hope, we already witness disillusionment. We had thought that it was a manifestation of the new strength of the United Nations that great nations, which among themselves commanded the strength to destroy, had come here to ensure peace. But to our dismay we find that this great house of peace, to which are committed the aspirations of all nations, has itself become a target of attack. This can only bring disappointment to all of us who look to the United Nations as the instrument which man has forged to control his ambitions and his anger.
6. The course of world affairs over the past decade has demonstrated the fact that, while at critical times the great Powers dispense with the United Nations in both aggravating and easing their tensions, if in the smaller countries, the defenceless ones, that stand in dire need of the Organization in order to shield themselves from the dangers of power politics and to moderate the policies of the great Powers.
7. It has been said of great historical figures that they wade across the world to make an epoch, bless, confuse or appal. What kind of epoch are we about to make? Have we come here to bless or to appal?
8. The peoples of the world live under a perpetual terror of annihilation. In a matter of minutes, cities can be destroyed and the countryside laid waste by means which neither the imagination nor the cruelty of Attila or of Genghis Khan could have conceived. We do not believe that any of the nuclear Powers at present would deliberately launch a war of extermination. But the possibilities of miscalculation, mistake or accident, which may unleash such a calamity, cannot be precluded. For fifteen years the great Powers have talked of disarmament, but with what results? Not a single division has been disbanded nor a single tank destroyed by agreement. There has been some reduction of armed forces and presumably of some armaments. But these reductions have taken place by unilateral action, not by agreement. There is, therefore, nothing to prevent their unilateral increase.
9. In securing the peace of the world through disarmament, undoubtedly the end is more important than the means. Barely twelve months ago, we discussed disarmament in this very Assembly hall in an atmosphere radiating hope. But, unfortunately, the Paris Summit Conference, which followed it, failed, and the storms which had gathered there overtook the Ten-Nation Committee on Disarmament.
10. Despite a measure of “rapprochement” between the two sides in the negotiations in the Ten-Nation Committee, the objective of general and complete disarmament remains distant so long as fundamental differences between them are not resolved. Two of the main difficulties relate to inspection measures. The first pertains to control, not control over what is to be reduced, on which agreement in principle has been reached, but the verification of armed forces and armaments, either before or after reduction in each stage. The second relates to the technical difficulties of ensuring by inspection that no undeclared stocks of nuclear weapons are concealed. It is admitted on both sides that such hidden stockpiles cannot be discovered by any means now known to either side. We note the Soviet contention that, with the implementation of general and complete disarmament, the difficulties of control, including verification of undeclared stockpiles, will disappear because all means of delivering the weapons to their targets will have been eliminated. We need a fuller and more convincing explanation of this thesis before it can be accepted as an adequate answer to the formidable difficulties which have supervened in the way of the total elimination of nuclear weapons under effective international control.
11. The Pakistan delegation welcomes the pledge of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, given in his statement last Friday [869th meeting], to resume negotiations with the Western Powers, which have been waiting for this positive response Since June 1960. We note that the document circulated by the Soviet delegation and entitled "Basic Provisions of a treaty on general and complete disarmament" [A/4505] revises in one important respect the Soviet plan of 2 June 1960 [A/4374], It is now proposed that the armed forces and conventional armaments of the United States and of the Soviet Union should be reduced in the first stage to 1.7 million, and those of the other States to fixed levels. Conventional armaments thus released are to be destroyed and military expenditures of States to be correspondingly reduced.
12. It is the view of my delegation that if obstacles to general and complete disarmament cannot be eliminated immediately there is no reason why some partial disarmament measures should not be undertaken now. A specific task of the General Assembly at this session should be to bring about an agreement in principle between the East and the West on the reduction in the levels of the armed forces of the United States and the Soviet Union to a figure between 2.5 and 1.7 million, as well as the reduction of conventional armaments to related levels and the elimination of stocks thus released. This agreement in principle should be followed by negotiations to fix the levels of forces and armaments of the other great Powers. If this should come to pass, the prospect of a real measure of immediate world-wide disarmament under international control will be unfolded.
13. The respective proposals of the Western and the Eastern Powers encourage us to believe that, in addition to a real measure of conventional disarmament, other initial measures are also possible in the immediate future.
14. It cannot be expected that all these intricate questions of substance can be resolved by the General Assembly. That is why a negotiating committee was established by the Foreign Ministers of the four great Powers in September 1959. Many representatives have referred to the constitution of this committee. At present it has five members from the Western and Eastern Powers, respectively. It has been suggested that the committee be expanded to include other interests as well. We agree to this, but in our view what is more important is the immediate resumption of negotiations.
15. May I at this stage touch upon a related question. It is a matter of regret that, despite two years of negotiations, no agreement has been reached to halt test explosions of nuclear and thermonuclear weapons. We would appeal to the parties concerned, with, all the emphasis at our command, to reach immediate agreement to stop such tests in order that the present uncertain voluntary moratorium may be replaced by a mandatory prohibition under effective international control.
16. In a search for general and complete disarmament it is not possible to ignore a study of the United Nations, with a view to determining how its machinery can best be developed in support of disarmament. If general and complete disarmament is achieved, the special responsibility of the permanent members of the Security Council for the maintenance of international peace and security, as reflected in Article 27, paragraph 3, of the Charter, pertaining to the right of veto, will wither away. The principle of the sovereign equality of all States, large and small, will then be freed from the anomaly and contradiction imposed by the veto power.
17. We have always been in favour of restricting the use of the right of veto as far as possible, slice it is against the very spirit of the Charter. We are therefore constrained to express our regret that at a time when its elimination is being foreseen suggestions should be made to extend its scope to the administrative machinery of the United Nations.
18. The Charter of the United Nations supplements the rules of general international law. By outlawing war and the use or threat of force and enjoining the settlement of disputes by peaceful means in accordance with the principles of justice and international law, the Charter establishes its supremacy. The International Law Commission, in the report of its second session, enunciated the proposition that in the light of the rules of general international law, read together with the provisions of the Charter, the sovereignty of a State is subject to the supremacy of international law. In their actual international conduct, however, many States Members of this Organization have shown themselves unwilling to strengthen the rule of law, in that they fail to accept the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice.
19. This year, Pakistan has submitted a revised declaration accepting the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court to include all cases, other than those which, under international law, fall essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of a State. It has thereby surrendered its sovereign right to determine for itself whether or not a particular matter is essentially within its domestic jurisdiction and has solemnly declared in advance that should such a question arise it would be content to accept a determination made in accordance with the rules of international law. Pakistan has thus demonstrated, in tangible terms, its willingness to subordinate its sovereignty to the supremacy of international law.
20. Under conditions of general and complete disarmament the supremacy of international law must be proclaimed as an imperative of international conduct. Looking towards this evolution in international life, the time has come to pursue with a greater sense of urgency the task of the progressive development of international law and its codification, as envisaged in Article 13, paragraph 1 (a), of the Charter. Thought must also be given to the need to amend the Statute of the International Court of Justice to extend the scope of its jurisdiction to all matters to be provided for in a treaty on general and complete disarmament and to make Article 36 of the Statute, relating to the declaration on compulsory jurisdiction, applicable to all legal disputes arising from the treaty for the duration of its validity.
21. The economic development of under-developed countries presents a challenge of the highest magnitude to all the nations of the world. Both President Eisenhower and Prime Minister Khrushchev expressed great solicitude for the welfare and economic progress of these countries. We the people of the under-developed countries note this with profound satisfaction.
22. We are conscious of the great development which in the course of the last forty years has placed the USSR in the forefront of scientific and technological progress. The countries of Asia, too, have tirelessly endeavoured within their limited resources to improve conditions for their peoples. Despite our meagre resources the pace of our development has been significant, and this represents, by and large, the voluntary sacrifices of our people.
23. The Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union cited a few statistics relating to some under-developed countries, including my own, to highlight the contrast in the economic progress between the Central Asian Republics and their neighbouring countries. For example, he mentioned the low rate of electric power generation per caput as an illustration of our primitive economy. It is true that the position is as suggested by the statistics. The only point that I may mention is that the present generation of power in Pakistan is more than 700 per cent of what it was when we became independent a few years ago. In the same context I should like to repeat that, despite our, limitations and our meagre resources, we have achieved substantial progress.
24. Since independence, our industrial production has risen by approximately 400 per cent and, during the last two years, by about 70 per cent. But by far the most significant change brought about as a result of the revolution in October 1958 has been the radical land reforms, which have not only achieved social justice and the promise of a better future for the tillers of the soil, who constitute 85 per cent of our population, but have also changed the pattern of our entire society. They have given a sense of self-respect and dignity to our masses, who before this revolutionary change were crushed under the burden of an iniquitous and effete social system. These are great changes, and our people see before them the dawn of a better future. Their energies have been mobilized for the common weal,
25. My country has received generous aid from the United States of America. We have made good use of this assistance, and there is in evidence a considerable degree of improvement in the infrastructure of our economy on which to base our future development. We acknowledge with gratitude this assistance; but at the same time we have been a victim, like many other under-developed countries, of the harsh and unrelenting interplay of international market forces. For many years now, the terms of trade have moved progressively against the primary producing countries. In fact, the position is that we have lost much more in trade than we have gained by aid. There is no coordination of policies amongst the primary producers, and they suffer from their disjointed state. On the other hand, much of Europe, for instance, is becoming increasingly a closed community, which gives it great economic and commercial power. The future is grim, indeed, for the under-developed countries, for their dependence on foreign aid is likely to increase rather than to diminish in the immediate future. This deterioration in the economic conditions of African, Asian and Latin American countries, which depend so heavily and so exclusively on the export of a few primary commodities, is a subject-which should become of paramount importance to the Secretariat.
26. During the fifteen years of the existence of the United Nations, the economic and social picture of the world has become increasingly a study in contrast. The appalling poverty and misery of some parts of the world stand out in sharp outline against the abundance and opulence of other parts of this same world. An average annual income in the under-developed countries of approximately $120 per person is to be contrasted with an average per caput annual income in the more advanced countries of $800, According to another estimate, the majority of the inhabitants of the under-developed countries subsist on an income of only $8 per month as against $6 a day in the most highly developed countries.
27. There are two aspects of this difference in the standards of living which are of crucial importance to the world today: first, that the disparity is not only great but growing; and, secondly, that the peoples of the under-developed countries, living so long at levels of bare survival, are no longer prepared to accept such conditions of life as immutable, A revolution of rising expectations is sweeping through these countries. Fatalism and resignation have given way to expectation and demand.
28. The under-developed countries are in a predicament. Despite all the sacrifices and austerity of which their people are capable, the march forward is only nominal because of the simultaneous decline in trade. It was hoped that their political emancipation would lead to economic development. But, unfortunately, so far the odds have been heavily against them. I have already mentioned the change in the terms of trade against the under-developed countries, which means in effect that the improvement in the standards of living of the manufacturing countries has in a large measure taken place at the cost of the starving people of the backward nations. Would it not be an act of historic justice if some restitution were made in the present for the wealth which has flowed in the past from these countries to enrich the economies of those now so industrially advanced?
29. I have gone into some detail about economic matters only because they pose serious problems for a large part of humanity.
30. To sum up briefly, our position is: because of the declining terms of trade, all that we are able to do, despite our very best efforts and sacrifices, is to reduce the pace of retrogression. Unless this decline is halted, significant progress will not be possible and the primary producing countries will always have to depend on foreign assistance even to maintain their present standards.
31. Turning to political problems, may I say that the situation in the Congo continues to cause concern to all of us. The threat of unilateral intervention by the great Powers in the heart of Africa, and the consequent danger to peace in the African continent, has not been removed. If Africa is to be saved from becoming an arena of conflict between the East and the West, it is imperative for the United Nations to play a positive and impartial role there. We believe that as far as possible the Secretary-General has endeavoured scrupulously to comply with the spirit and the letter of the resolutions of the Security Council. Considering the magnitude and the complexity of the task and the speed with which the United Nations operation had to be launched, Mr. Hammarskjold and his associates must be considered to have faithfully carried out their difficult mandate in accordance with the basic principles endorsed by the Security Council. The Pakistan delegation recognizes that the Secretary-General mission is an extremely delicate one and has not been made any easier by the internal confusion in the Republic of the Congo. Therefore, we take this opportunity of reaffirming our confidence in the Secretary General’s integrity and judgement.
32. It would appear to my delegation that at present the main problem in the Congo is the prevalence of internal strife, which is unhappily preventing the restoration of normal conditions. The resolution [1474 (ES-XV)] adopted at the fourth emergency special session does envisage the appointment by the Advisory Committee on the Congo, in consultation with the Secretary-General, of Asian and African representatives, for the purpose of conciliation between the parties to the political and constitutional conflicts. In the furtherance of this objective, the African States must of necessity play a leading role. Thus the mandate given to the Secretary-General can well be supplemented by the good offices of the African States in the solution of the internal problems of the Republic of the Congo. Whatever might have been the changes in the situation and the conflicts of interest, it was the general expectation that the United Nations operation would crystallize the positive role that the Organization could play in strengthening the independence of emerging nations against external pressures.
33. My delegation believes that the isolation of the African continent from the East-West conflict must be ensured by the Africans themselves and supplemented by the assistance of the United Nations only when necessary. It cannot be done by the United Nations alone, because the Organization itself is so often a centre of this conflict. It may not always be capable of adequately filling the vacuum. Therefore, the principal actors on the African scene must be the Africans themselves and, in our opinion, they are quite capable of fulfilling their own destiny.
34. That great continent is pulsating with a new life and a new force. It is in transition from the old to the new. Colonial empires are being succeeded by a community of sovereign States, conscious of their solidarity and determined to give Africa its rightful place in the comity of nations. We have heard in this very hall the voice of free Africa and seen the passion in African hearts for peace and justice and their determination to exclude outside interference in the affairs of their continent, of their people and of their Governments.
35. It is a matter of sorrow that great nations and statesmen should not see the logical sequence of events as they must ensue. Events carry with them the seeds of consequences and, like nemesis, they are inexorable. Prejudice and chauvinism make men myopic. In this world of turmoil and conflict, the heart of humanity is yet with the peoples struggling for freedom and equality. One may delay the deliverance of a people, but then nature extorts a high price for it, as in the Congo. It may also do the same in the Union of South Africa, where racial discrimination is rampant. As one who is aware of liberal political thought, I am appalled that in a country which claims to be civilized and Christian, human beings should be denied basic human rights because of their race and their colour.
36. The Sharpeville disturbances underline the serious nature of the situation prevailing in the Union of South Africa. They made it very plain that unless the situation improves, conditions will deteriorate to an explosive point. The General Assembly has adopted resolutions for many years asking the Union Government to cease and desist from its discriminatory racial policies. The South African Government has so far ignored the appeal to reason. In a continent which is now free, and in the midst of peoples determined to make good their claim to equality. South Africa cannot remain isolated. To attempt to do so is to oppose the march of history. Future generations of the Union of South Africa may have to pay a very heavy price for the resentment and rancour that the "apartheid” policy of that country is creating around her.
37. Nothing in this world is quite perfect and it would be futile to expect perfection in an organization which combines the attributes and characteristics of almost all the nations of the world. Looking at the performance of the United Nations from the darker side, one would be inclined to stress the failures, the unsettled problems, the unattained objectives, the hopes unfulfilled, the promises unrealized. There is a "catena" of them, but life must be measured not only by failures, but also by accomplishments. We can mention grave failures, where people have been denied their rights because political expediency has prevailed over the conscience of nations. I shall not dilate on them, for, despite their tragic remembrance, we Still have faith that right must prevail and the United Nations must succeed.
38. In this context, among the other vital unsolved issues, I have in mind Algeria — that strife-torn land where the blood of patriots still flows in their fight for freedom. Is it not an irony of fate that that struggle should have to be won against a nation which through history has been identified with liberty and equality?
39. At the opening of the General Assembly last year, we welcomed the declaration of President de Gaulle on 16 September 1959 recognizing the right of self-determination for the people of Algeria. We regret that no significant development has since taken place which would translate that inalienable right into a reality. At one time there appeared a prospect of a “rapprochement” between Algeria and France, but the preliminary talks to arrange the "pourparlers” have failed. Let me declare here that the sympathies of the people of Pakistan are with the valiant sons of Algeria, fighting heroically for their freedom. At a time when so many countries on the continent of Africa are taking their place in this Assembly, it is with great sorrow that we note the absence of Algeria. We appeal for a new effort on the part of the parties concerned to settle this human problem by peaceful means. If we succeed, a tragic chapter will close in the history of mankind, and to the brave people of Algeria will be brought peace and the freedom and dignity for which they have fought so long and so well.
40. Another problem which haunts the conscience of nations is the denial of justice to that part of the Arab nation which comprises the population of Palestine. The failure to solve the Palestine question has kept the Middle East for all these years on the verge of conflagration. It has been suggested that the tension in the Middle East should be removed by the dictates of realism. In the view of my delegation, the only realistic approach in this case is to recognize the human rights of a million Arab refugees who have been uprooted from their homes. Unless the resolutions of the General Assembly on this question are implemented, no arrangements to enforce peace in the Middle East by outside powers are likely to be effective or lasting.
41. The solution of the problems to which I have referred is without doubt difficult, and the difficulties are seemingly insurmountable. But they have to be solved, and solved by peaceful means. The principle of the peaceful settlement of international disputes is a cardinal feature of the foreign policy of Pakistan. Only a few days ago, our firm faith in peaceful procedures was vindicated when we resolved our dispute with India over the distribution of the waters of the Indus Basin. This dispute, which had defied solution for almost as many years as Pakistan has been in existence, has ended by the signing of the Indus Waters Treaty between our President and the Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, who is here this afternoon. The conclusion of this treaty demonstrates the triumph of the procedures of peaceful settlement. We are hopeful that this initiative for peace will be extended now to the only grave issue still outstanding between India and Pakistan, namely, the Kashmir question. It is our most earnest hope that this noble precedent will give rise to a new spirit in the relations between Pakistan and India, and lead to the settlement of this problem of problems of our vast region.
42. We have always believed that every people and every nation must be permitted to live according to its own way of life, which reflects its accumulated national heritage. In fact, it represents an accretion of history. We, the 90 million people of Pakistan, claim to pattern our lives on the precepts of Islam. After all our turmoils and tribulations we now have a leader in whom the people of our country have reposed their hopes and their faith. He firmly believes in promoting fraternal relations between the peoples of the under-developed countries, particularly Asia and Africa, and to that end he has directed his efforts in a most positive and constructive way. Under his leadership, Pakistan is engaged in a great political experiment known as "Basic Democracies”. The objective of this political system is to foster and encourage the creative urges of our peoples.
43. The system of Basic Democracies is an attempt to evolve a political framework related to the conditions in the country, in conformity with our requirements and suited to the genius of our people. The system enables the people of Pakistan to be associated in the activities of government through their elected representatives at every level of the administration, beginning with the village and culminating at the centre of the highest functions of the State. Our objective in Pakistan is not to imitate systems of polity which have evolved in the altogether different historical circumstances of other countries. Our aim is to institute a system rooted in the experience of our own people and enabling them to reorient their whole outlook regarding their collective welfare. We believe that our system of Basic Democracies is the answer to our needs.
44. It has been said that hope builds sooner than knowledge destroys, and thus despite the many buffets. of fortune and the fluctuations in international relations, mankind has subsisted on hope, hope for a world free from humiliating poverty and degrading fear. The progress of science has opened majestic vistas of new worlds; yet, while there is the infinity of space to be explored and conquered, those in whose hands lies the knowledge and the means to do so are engaged in internecine struggle which creates new fears every day. The problem of poverty remains unsolved. There are hundreds of millions of men and women and children who from birth to the grave live an existence of privation and insecurity. May we not hope that these problems may be dealt with as the primary ones and that the phantom of armed conflicts and nuclear annihilation will be exorcised from the world — so beautiful and full of such great opportunities for happiness.
45. The Charter enjoins us not only to save ourselves, but also succeeding generations from the scourge of war. It has often been said that in the event of world conflagration, there will be neither victor nor vanquished. This seems obvious, but even if there is a sham victor, his victory will be that of the dying over the dead; his thrill the dubious one of glory in the utter demolition of civilization, the destruction of its culture, of its universities, of its institutions for art and science, of its mosques and temples and churches. It will be on this scene that the victor, too, will pass into nothingness.
46. We have the opportunity and the means to avert this catastrophe and to realize mankind’s dream of progress towards a future unbelievable at the present time. Shall we also have the will and the courage? We have the means because we are now told that according to the correct interpretation of Marxism-Leninism, war between the two social systems is not inevitable. But those who witness the arms race between the East and West cannot but be burdened by the fear that, unless it is immediately halted and the trend reversed, war is inevitable. A race in armaments has never ushered in peace; it has ever brought the sword. To one who can contemplate the terrestrial scene with a deep insight into the march of history, it would seem that a blind fate is moving us towards self-destruction. Is it that an imminent and blind will rules our affairs, driving us to inevitable doom? May it be given to the great men who take part in this session of the Assembly to prove that it is otherwise;, that mankind does have freedom of choice and that peace and war in this age of glorious opportunity and mortal peril are not predetermined but hinge upon the exercise of man’s free will and his determination to avert the ultimate world tragedy.