Comoros

This year I should like to devote most of my statement once again to the important matter of the Comorian island of Mayotte. This has been a dispute between us and France for more than three decades. It is our hope that there will be greater understanding and more active solidarity on this matter on the part of this Assembly. It is my belief that the future of my country, the Union of the Comoros, depends on peace and stability. But there can be no lasting stability in my country without a final solution to this problem. Accordingly, this year we have once again requested that an item on the Comorian island of Mayotte be included on the agenda of the sixty-fifth session of the General Assembly. I also take this opportunity to express the deep gratitude of the Comorian people for the valuable and unwavering support of the African Union, the League of Arab States and the Organization of the Islamic Conference on this issue. I would like to begin by recalling that, pursuant to recommendations of the United Nations, the highest French authorities have themselves affirmed that the Comoros should accede to independence within inviolable borders. Thus, former French President Mr. Valéry Giscard d’Estaing declared, inter alia, that the Comoros are and always have been an entity and that it is natural that they have a common destiny. I also deem it vital and timely to recall today certain resolutions of our Organization confirming the legitimacy of the Comorian claim to the island of Mayotte. These include resolution 1514 (XV), of 14 December 1960, on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, which guarantees the national unity and territorial integrity of such countries on regaining their sovereignty. Resolution 3291 (XXIX), of 13 December 1974, reaffirms the integrity and unity of the Comoro Archipelago. In addition, resolution 3385 (XXX), of 12 November 1975, adopted a few months after the independence of the Comoros, affirms the admission of the Comoro Archipelago, composed of the islands of Mayotte, Anjouan, Mohéli and Grande-Comore, to the United Nations. Lastly, the historic resolution 31/4, of 21 October 1976, underscores the right of the Comoros and the duties of France with regard to that independent country. Allow me to read out the provisions of that resolution that is of paramount importance to my country and which will remain forever etched in the memory of my Comorian compatriots. 19 10-54965 “Considering that the occupation by France of the Comorian island of Mayotte constitutes a flagrant encroachment on the national unity of the Comorian State, a Member of the United Nations, “Considering that such an attitude on the part of France constitutes a violation of the principles of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations, in particular of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960 concerning the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples, which guarantees the national unity and territorial integrity of such countries, “1. Condemns and considers null and void the referendums of 8 February and 11 April 1976 organized in the Comorian island of Mayotte by the Government of France, and rejects: “(a) Any other form of referendum or consultation which may hereafter be organized on Comorian territory in Mayotte by France; “(b) Any foreign legislation purporting to legalize any French colonial presence on Comorian territory in Mayotte; “2. Strongly condemns the presence of France in Mayotte, which constitutes a violation of the national unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty of the independent Republic of the Comoros;” (resolution 31/4, third and fourth preambular paragraphs and paras. 1 and 2). France refuses to comply with all those relevant resolutions adopted by the General Assembly relating to the Comorian island of Mayotte and continues to violate the principle of the inviolability of colonial borders. It must be recalled that the principle of the inviolability of borders became a rule of customary international law, codified under paragraph 6 of resolution 1514 (XV), which stipulates that: “Any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and the territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.” That same resolution recalls in its paragraph 7 that: “All States shall observe faithfully and strictly the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the present Declaration on the basis of equality, non-interference in the internal affairs of all States, and respect for the sovereign rights of all peoples and their territorial integrity.” International jurisprudence fully recognizes that principle of the indivisibility of colonial entities. In the judgment handed down on 11 September 1992 in a dispute between Honduras and El Salvador, the International Court of Justice in The Hague declared that the principle of the inviolability of colonial borders is a retroactive principle that changes administrative boundaries originally designed for other purposes into international borders. For many years, my country has called the international community to witness and has made known its readiness to seek a fair and just solution bilaterally. The response to our position was crushing. France not only took unilateral steps in 1994 to hinder the free circulation of persons by introducing a visa for all Comorians wishing to visit Mayotte, part of Comorian territory, but also, in 2000, it began the process of making the island a department, which is illegal under international law. I wish to stress that the imposition of a visa requirement in 1994 had truly tragic human consequences. The small slice of the sea of approximately 70 kilometres separating Anjouan from the sister island of Mayotte has now become the largest maritime cemetery in the world. To date, nearly 7,000 people have been killed. Moreover, while we had agreed to establish a high-level working group to relaunch the dialogue in order to consider together equitable and just solutions, on 29 May 2009 France organized another referendum aimed at changing the status of the island of Mayotte into an overseas department. We are surprised that, despite all the good will demonstrated by the Comorian side — and in particular the innovative proposal on Mayotte known as “one country, two systems” or two administrations, which I myself introduced at an earlier session of this Assembly — there has been no positive response from France to that outstretched hand. The dual system would be a compromise that would finally ensure respect for international law, while enabling France to continue to legally administer the Comorian island of Mayotte during a period to be mutually agreed. It would also enable our Mahorais brothers and sisters, 10-54965 20 whom I love dearly, to preserve their social status and standard of living, and the three other islands to finally take up the many challenges of development in peace and stability. But France wants to know nothing about this compromise. Faced with such an attitude, we find ourselves obliged to request our dear Organization to require France to respect and comply with international law, implement the various relevant United Nations resolutions on the Comorian island of Mayotte, and to reconsider its position on our offer, which clearly represents a huge sacrifice on the part of my country, which in fact is within its rights. What is at stake is the future of the Comoros, a small sovereign country Member of the United Nations. Also at stake is the honour of France, a great country whose ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity so strongly and profoundly inspired the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the principles underpinning our Charter. Ultimately, what is at stake is the honour of our Organization, whose very credibility would be sorely challenged should international law and legality continue to be disregarded and the territorial integrity of the Comoros continue to be violated. The United Nations is the guarantor of respect for international law. It is duty-bound to require that its Members’ legislation complies fully with the relevant resolutions. I can only endorse the statement of the President of the General Assembly, His Excellency Mr. Joseph Deiss, who said at the opening of this session that the United Nations is the guarantor of global governance and enjoys a global legitimacy. I cannot end my statement without reiterating that the Comoros supports the efforts of the international community, and more specifically the personal efforts of His Excellency President Barack Hussein Obama, to establish a just and lasting peace in the Middle East enabling the Palestinian people to live freely and safely in an independent State and to enjoy fully all their legitimate rights. My country also pays tribute to efforts to bring an end to the fratricidal conflicts that are ripping apart the Sudan, Afghanistan, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes region. We also reiterate our strong support for the territorial integrity of the brotherly Kingdom of Morocco and our full backing for the Moroccan autonomy proposal as a definitive political compromise solution to the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara. We also reiterate our unwavering support for the legitimate demands of the People’s Republic of China for the return of Taiwan to China’s fold. It is through peace, stability and security and respect for international law that our nations will be able to attain the development goals they have set themselves to help our peoples. I therefore have full trust that our Organization shall continue to make these ideals its main focus. We must, as soon as possible, implement the agreements and resolutions that we have agreed in order to find peaceful and definitive solutions to all outstanding issues, because any delay in or suspension of our search for such solutions would create additional, similar issues and crises in other countries and spark the flames of extremism and terrorism throughout the world. We hope that we shall find solutions that will lead to the happiness and well-being of all our peoples.