Cambodia

It is a great honour for me to present my Government's views from this rostrum, where so many eminent personalities have preceded me. Like all small nations, Cambodia attaches very great importance to the work of the United Nations, the only Organization in the world in which de jure, if not de facto, equality exists between the very small countries and the enormously wealthy Powers. Here at least we can speak out freely with our feeble voice and thus become aware of the moral force represented collectively by those nations whose opinions are all too often unknown or ignored by the great Powers, as though a country's common sense, wisdom and reason were in direct proportion to the number of its population, the strength of its armed forces or the amount of steel, coal or oil that it produced. 85. It must be acknowledged that Asia has not yet received all the attention it deserves from the United Nations. Yet, when the problem arose in the United Nations of a successor to the late Dag Hammarskjold, it was Asia, in the-person of U Thant, a very distinguished son of the Union of Burma, that was called upon to resolve the dispute between East and West over the appointment of the Secretary-General. 86. I think I need scarcely recall, at the beginning of my statement, how unfair, ridiculous and unwise we consider it that the oldest and largest nation in the world, the People's Republic of China, has not yet been admitted to its legitimate seat in this Organization. Since 1958 all the heads of the Cambodian delegation have vainly protested against the ostracism to which the majority of the Members of this Assembly have been subjecting the only Government which truly represents 650 million courageous, active and industrious Chinese. Prince Norodom Sihanouk, our Head of State, has emphasized that, sooner or later, the United Nations will have to admit the People's Republic of China to full membership if international arrangements concerning such problems as disarmament, the suspension of nuclear tests and the organization of peace are to be fully effective. Our Western friends — and our United States friends in particular — have already had to admit China as a participant to the Geneva Conference on Laos, as also to the Geneva Conference on Indo-China in 1954. My country hopes that the new United States Administration will be sufficiently clear-sighted and possess enough political sense to understand that a China which is a Member of the United Nations, and therefore obliged to live up to certain international obligations, and mollified by the recognition of its rights, is much to be preferred to a China which is prevented from participating in the major decisions taken here, whose national pride has been injured and which, through the very fault of its opponents, has no account to render to anyone. 87. Nor do I think it necessary to recall that last year our Head of State requested in this very hall [1011th meeting] that greater consideration should be given to the question of the reunification of the countries which have been divided, and that, pending an honest and supervised referendum which would enable the peoples of those countries to decide their own destiny, each of the Governments of such divided countries should be given a seat in the United Nations, a course which would not change the political balance of the Assembly in any way. 88. I come now, if you will allow me, to my own country, which, while it endeavours to give the United Nations as little trouble as possible, is nevertheless obliged to inform the Assembly of the grave difficulties that it is encountering from its neighbours. 89. It may be useful to remind the Assembly that Cambodia is a country of only 5,800,000 inhabitants, with an army of 29,550 men which is poorly equipped and therefore incapable of attacking anyone, and the mere skeleton of a navy and air force. 90. It may also be appropriate to recall that ten centuries ago Cambodia was a vast kingdom, extending far beyond its present boundaries in all directions, whose neighbours have since nibbled away at the national domain, province by province, leaving it today with only about a third of its original territory. When we see how the Khmers tenaciously defend every square metre of their land, we must understand that it is an inheritance — although greatly reduced — and the last bastion of a country that has been besieged for centuries. 91. That is why my country, from which Thailand had seized the frontier temple of Preah Vihear, constructed in the north of the province of Kompong Thom by a king of Angkor, appealed to the International Court of Justice at The Hague so that its rights to the temple might be recognized and that the temple might be restored to it. By an overwhelming majority, the judges found in favour of Cambodia. It was only after having refused several times to accept that decision and having uttered many a threat against us that the Thai Government, feeling that it was the object of world-wide disapproval, complied with the Court's decision. It could have done so in such a way that friendly relations would have been re-established between our two nations, which Cambodia, for its part, greatly desired. Unfortunately, the deception practised by Thailand was demonstrated by its occupation, for several days, of a strip of our territory in the neighbourhood of the temple. 92. Our Head of State has decided to go to Preah Vihear next December, accompanying a procession of monks who will hold religious ceremonies in that holy place. No troops will accompany our Prince and we shall see whether that peaceful procession will be prevented from reaching its destination. 93. Preah Vihear has been restored to us and we shall know how to prevent its ever being taken from us again. This, however, is only one of the incidents in the underhand campaign that our neighbours have been waging for centuries in an effort to absorb us. I should like the statesmen gathered here to understand that there are no differences between a neutral Cambodia, on the one hand, and a pro-Western Thailand or South Viet-Nam, on the other. Our disputes date back to the distant past and have nothing to do with present-day ideologies. The accusations hurled against us by our neighbours are only the modern expression of expansionist and annexationist designs which go back three or four centuries. 94. The Members of the Assembly are undoubtedly aware that, in a determined effort to put an end to the difficulties that our neighbours are creating for us and thus to avoid an open conflict which would rapidly extend beyond the frontiers of our States, the Head of State of Cambodia requested the Powers which participated in the Geneva Conference on Laos to render the same service to our country that they rendered to Laos, namely to recognize and guarantee our independence, neutrality and territorial integrity. 95. Cambodia does not want to go on living under the constant threat of nations which have been armed to the hilt by their allies for the purpose of fighting communism and which are using — I might even say diverting — a part of their troops and armaments in order to satisfy old ambitions against a small and peaceable country, twenty times less powerful in the military field and with a population which is only one eighth that of the combined populations of its neighbours. 96. Cambodia no longer wishes to be in a position where it can be accused of serving as "a springboard for communist aggression against its neighbours”, a "withdrawal area" or a corridor for forces hostile to the Saigon Government. It is true that the best foreign observers, the Chief of MAAG, i.e., the American military assistance advisory group at Phnom-Penh, and the International Commission for Supervision and Control have proved the falsity of these accusations, but adverse propaganda goes on serving them up and always finds simpletons or accomplices to repeat them. 97. Cambodia does not want to go on being subjected to countless acts of aggression and violations of its frontiers, in which soldiers and peasants are killed, wounded or carried off. It no longer wants to see foreign aircraft flying illegally over its territory and diving on its military posts and its airfields to photograph them, which happened some hundred times in last July and August alone. It no longer wants to see foreign warships violating its territorial waters on the strange pretext that all the islands along the Cambodian coast belong, no doubt by the grace of God, to the Viet-Namese. 98. Since Cambodia would not be able to defend itself in the event of a large-scale invasion, it must choose one of two alternatives: an internationally guaranteed and supervised neutrality, or an appeal to friendly foreign forces to protect its territory. 99. In an obvious desire to discredit Cambodia in the eyes of the United Nations and of the world, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand, on 4 September 1962, accused Prince Norodom Sihanouk, the Head of State of Cambodia, "of ignoring the existence of the United Nations and turning instead to the fourteen-nations of the Geneva Conference on Laos". This accusation is completely false, for as soon as the Royal Government was informed of the Thai proposal to the effect that the United Nations should be invited to investigate the Khmero-Thai dispute, Prince Norodom Sihanouk stated that "he welcomed the proposal made by Thailand with joy and gratitude". Not only did we accept the Thai proposal but we notified the Secretary-General officially that we supported it. 100. Furthermore, the Royal Government requests that the Secretary-General's representative should also conduct an inquiry in Cambodia — the victim of the aggression — among the inhabitants of our country concerning the acts of aggression, violation, piracy and murder committed by the Thais and the South Vietnamese. 101. At a press conference held on 6 September 1962, Prince Norodom Sihanouk pointed out that the Thai Government's criticism was illogical, for Thailand had been careful to make no such criticism when it was a question of settling the Laos affair. Moreover, Thailand cannot be unaware that eleven of the fourteen nations which took part in the Geneva Conference on Laos are Members of the United Nations. Thailand itself attended that Conference. 102. Thailand seeks every opportunity to discredit Cambodia. Recently the Government of the United States decided to send the Royal Government certain light armaments and twelve training aircraft, which are not even armed. On learning this news, the Thai Government reacted sharply against such military assistance. The Royal Government wishes to make it clear that this war material, furnished under the terms of the 1955 agreement, is extremely limited and represents only an infinitesimal part of the equipment provided to Thailand and to South Viet-Nam, Quite recently an important American military figure stated that Cambodia would receive neither anti-aircraft batteries nor armed planes capable of preventing Thai aircraft from flying over Cambodia. According to this same person, Cambodia would receive neither armoured vehicles or heavy equipment capable of resisting the continual incursions carried out by its neighbours. The Royal Government wishes to draw international attention to the fact that Thailand is resorting to blackmail, claiming that the United States is furnishing Cambodia with all the necessary military means for threatening its neighbours. 103. At the time I left Cambodia, our Head of State had received answers from all the Powers to his request for the recognition and the guarantee of our neutrality and our frontiers. While the nations of the socialist camp gave our Prince's proposal their warm and complete approval, the replies of the Western camp — with the exception of France, always friendly and understanding in our regard — were most unsatisfactory. The United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, in particular, did indeed state that they were willing officially to confirm their respect for our independence, our sovereignty, our frontiers, etc. — a respect that we have never doubted — but they failed to give the guarantee which we had requested. Their refusal to hold an international conference was, however, accompanied by suggestions which allowed of discussion. As for South Viet-Nam, its categorical refusal, couched in insulting terms, evinces a clear desire to close the door to any agreement and is further proof — if any were still needed — of its imperialism and its policy of annexation at the expense of Cambodia. 104. Cambodia realistically welcomed the counterproposals of the Western great Powers that have become involved in South-East Asia. Prince Norodom Sihanouk said in fact that for him the end alone counted and that he was prepared to seek other ways and means of obtaining for his country the guarantee without which all the promises in the world were no more than pious declarations of intentions. Noting that certain Western Powers were unwilling to participate in a conference where their many errors would inevitably expose them to accusation, the Prince, our Head of State, suggested two reasonable solutions. The first solution would be for the Powers concerned to sign "at home" a document modelled on the agreement on Laos, that is to say, giving Cambodia similar guarantees to those given to Laos. The second solution would be for the said Powers to send the Royal Government of Cambodia a formal letter containing those guarantees. 105. In this way the public confrontations of East and West so greatly dreaded by the West would be avoided. The Prince added that he would not ask for any condemnation, even moral condemnation, of the Powers that were threatening Cambodia and that he had no intention of linking the problem of the neutralization of South Viet-Nam to that of the neutralization of Cambodia, thus disposing — at least we hope so — of two matters of serious concern to the United States. 106. It would, however, be a serious mistake to regard the spirit of conciliation displayed by our Head of State as a sign of hesitation or weakness. The Prince warned the Western Powers, without any possible ambiguity, that if he did not obtain satisfaction on the substance of the issue he would not hesitate to ensure the security of Cambodia by appealing to the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union for troops. The choice is therefore clear: Cambodia can either remain completely neutral or else, in order to survive at least as a national entity, become an ally — or satellite, if you wish — of the Eastern bloc. The example of Cuba is there to show that, after reaching the depths of despair, small nations are capable of taking the gravest of decisions in order to avoid extinction. 107. Cambodia ardently desires to remain as it is — an island of peace in a South-East Asia that is rent asunder by the clash of ideologies and ambitions; a tolerant nation, where the stranger is received and treated like a brother; a great family, where hatred and envy are unknown and where the message of compassion bequeathed to us by the Buddha Is scrupulously respected, 108. At a moment when very delicate negotiations are being undertaken to ensure the continued existence of one of the last happy peoples on this earth, I ask all of you to show us your sympathy and understanding and to do everything in your power to influence those who rule the world today, so that we may live in accordance with our aspirations and our traditions and preserve that joy on the faces of our peasants which we see also on the great stone figures that keep watch from the roofs of our temples. 109. Another problem, which our delegations have regularly raised here and which touches us to the quick, requires to be mentioned once again from this rostrum; the deplorable fate of those whom we call the Krom Khmers—Cambodians, about 600,000 in number, living in South Viet-Nam, who are trapped between the Government troops and the rebels. Having lost their original nationality, although not their love for their old homeland, they are subjected to discriminatory measures and very serious extortion on the part of the South Viet-Namese authorities. I do not wish to introduce an impassioned note into this debate, but once again I would appeal to the conscience of the Viet-Namese authorities, imploring them not to drive our brothers and sisters to despair but, on the contrary, to spare no effort to make these good people, today so unhappy, a bond of union between our two countries. 110. The dangers to world peace inherent in the situation in South-East Asia are present in the minds of all statesmen throughout the world. In all the great capitals men are wondering what can be done to put a stop to local conflicts and to safeguard the Interest of their own country and the other countries on their side by preventing the outbreak of open warfare. Unfortunately the great Powers, not sufficiently aware of the complexity of Asian problems, constantly find themselves in very embarrassing situations. It would be an oversimplification to attribute all disturbances and all civil wars that break out in Cambodia's neighbouring countries exclusively to a matter of conflicting ideologies. In a single country we are in fact witnessing racial, religious and social conflicts closely connected with popular revolts which are inevitably exploited by one ideological camp or the other. Among neighbouring countries, the stronger ones seek to increase their territory at the expense of the weaker ones and to oppress them; Cambodia lives under this constant threat. 111. In his speech from this rostrum at the last session of the General Assembly [1011th meeting], Prince Norodom Sihanouk drew the attention of the world to the risk that the civil war in Laos, ted by both blocs, would spread. After much vacillation and many difficulties, an international agreement on Laos was signed last July. Since then the Government of Prince Souvanna Phouma has been pursuing its task of reconciliation and reconstruction and the kingdom has again found peace. 112. The success of the Geneva Conference on Laos, a success due to the international recognition of Laotian neutrality, made it possible to extinguish an extremely dangerous source of fire. But why was it necessary for the great Powers to go so far into an impasse before they discovered a solution which Cambodia, through its Head of State, had suggested to them long before? However that may be, and while we do not offer the Laotian agreement as an example applicable everywhere and in all cases, we are convinced that it could well serve as a pattern for any efforts to stabilize our South-East Asia. 113. Although Laos has found peace again, the same is not true of South Viet-Nam, where the civil war is gaining in intensity and horror every week. Cambodia is strictly neutral in this trial of strength between the Government of Saigon and the rebels. Nevertheless, we think that direct foreign intervention, openly recognized and proclaimed, is not likely to bring about a settlement of this conflict, which we fear may spread. We are convinced that it is possible and desirable to find some formula which would satisfy the aspirations of the people of South Viet-Nam without upsetting the equilibrium between the two camps that was achieved by the Geneva agreements of 1954. 114. It is unfortunate and regrettable that our Western friends, who are usually more understanding on the subject of neutrality, nevertheless persist in considering this political attitude as favouring their ideological adversaries and preparing the way for their own eviction. We must recognize that the West is reluctant to see one of its friends embark upon a policy of neutrality which it could respect but never guarantee. 115. In this connexion, may I be permitted to express before the Assembly our gratitude to the delegation and the Government of the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia for the unfailing support which the Government of Yugoslavia has given to my country's efforts to maintain its independence and safeguard peace by a policy of strict neutrality and non-alignment. On the occasion of Prince Norodom Sihanouk's proposal of 20 August 1962 to convene an international conference with the object of guaranteeing the neutrality and the territorial integrity of Cambodia, and in other international questions also, the Government of the Federal . People's Republic of Yugoslavia has consistently shown a sincere understanding of the difficulties of my country, and has always shown its desire to promote peace through scrupulous application of the policy of peaceful coexistence and through respect of the principles of the United Nations Charter. 116. It is not my intention to speak at length on the international situation. I would like, however, to express our heartfelt wish that the courageous efforts of the uncommitted countries to reconcile the points of view of the Western countries and the Socialist countries on disarmament should be taken once more into consideration; there is no doubt that they represent the bravest attempts ever made to prevent the great Powers from entering into conflict one day through fear of being "overtaken" in the field of arms of mass destruction. 117. Last year, our delegation asked France to recognize the independence of Algeria, for which a whole people had been struggling for so many years. Thanks to the personal action of General dc Gaulle, France made the gesture which the whole world was waiting for and completed its work of decolonization. Today, our Algerian brothers are free, and Algeria has entered the great family of nations. Cambodia, which recognized the Provisional Government of Algeria in September 1961, now asks that the Republic of Algeria should be admitted forthwith to the United Nations. 118. We learnt with interest that a plan to settle the vexatious affair of the Congo had been worked out thanks to the efforts of our devoted Secretary-General, U Thant, and his distinguished colleagues. We hope with all our hearts that the Republic of the Congo (Leopoldville) will be able to re-establish its unity in a form that will obtain the support of the majority of its citizens. 119. The situation of Berlin, with which we will end this rapid review of the world situation, has been made so complicated by the uncompromising attitude of former allies that have become enemies that it would be presumptuous for a small Asian country to suggest a solution which, indeed, it has not been asked for. 120. It is, however, obvious that the situation of the city of Berlin will only be finally settled as part of a settlement of the German situation as a whole, which depends, in its turn, on, the state of the relations existing between the western and socialist camps. In spite of the alarms of the last few weeks, it does not seem that either side wishes to take any steps, at any rate in the immediate future, which would lead inevitably to a trial of strength. There are "swords of Damocles" which fortunately remain suspended for a long time, and which can sometimes be taken down before they fall. Possession of the former capital of Germany is certainly not worth a war, and we hope that opinion is shared by all the Powers which profess to feel "responsible" for the fate of the Berliners. 121. Before concluding this statement, I would like to express a hope. Soon this Assembly will be called upon to designate a new Secretary-General. U Thant, who has taken on the most difficult interim appointment imaginable with independence, foresight, and courage, is in our opinion entirely worthy of being confirmed in his position. This very subtle Burmese jurist and philosopher has very often made the voice of reason and wisdom heard, and has been able to solve difficult questions with quiet efficiency. It is he who "least divides" the Powers represented here. Our delegation therefore wishes to pay solemn tribute to him and express its entire confidence in him. 122. My delegation is particularly happy to offer you its congratulations, Mr. President, on your brilliant election to the presidency of this Assembly, and it is my pleasant duty to associate myself with the tribute which has been paid to your eminent qualities as a statesman. All the qualities which have marked your brilliant career, added to the unique and rare experience of the United Nations which you possess, give us the assurance that you will successfully accomplish the high mission with which the Assembly has just entrusted you. 123. We are also particularly happy to welcome the delegations of four new Members: Rwanda, Burundi, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago, which were admitted to the United Nations at the beginning of the present session. We are sure that these countries will make a valuable contribution to the work of the United Nations. 124. We offer all the Members of this Assembly our sincerest good wishes for the peoples whom they represent and for the success of the work of the present session. 125. We hope that the General Assembly will this year justify the confidence of the peoples which are represented in it and will gain that of the peoples which are still outside it. We are in no doubt about our Organization's call to universality, and indeed this is an indispensable condition for a true peace and sincere reconciliation.