It is a tradition at the United Nations for its
Members to gather at the General Assembly to
reflect upon the manner in which they plan to
shoulder the responsibilities incumbent upon them
in guiding the fate of mankind. However, there is
no doubt that such collective reflection can bear
fruit only if it is pursued in the light of the
goals that have been set. This session, more than
any other, is of great importance for the Central
African Republic in appreciating the efforts the
Organization has made out its mission.
I am also very pleased, Mr. President, to convey
to you and, through you, to the Assembly, the
wishes for complete success from General Andre
Kolingba, President of the Military Committee of
National Reconstruction and head of State, who,
together with the people of the Central African
Republic, has a profound trust and renewed faith
in the Organization. It also gives me great
pleasure to congratulate you, Sir, on behalf of
the delegation it is my honor to head, on your
important election to the presidency of the
thirty-seventh session of the General Assembly.
Your great personal qualities will, I am certain,
lead to the success of our work.
I should like to address my sincere
congratulations to the outgoing President, Mr.
Kittani, for the dynamism, competence aid
efficiency with which he guided the previous
session of the Assembly.
It gives me pleasure to renew my congratulations
to the Secretary-General, Mr. Perez de Cuellar,
and to assure him that the Central African
Republic stands ready to support the efforts he
is undertaking with fervor, conviction and
courage in the daily accomplishment of his tasks.
Lastly, my country wishes to express its
appreciation to the former Secretary-General, Mr.
Kurt Waldheim, for his devotion to the cause of
the United Nations during his term of office.
Although States with different social and
political systems may experience certain problems
in coexisting within the United Nations, it is
none the less true that such diversity clearly
testifies to the vitality of the Organization.
And although some of those problems, by their
very nature, often constitute an outright
challenge, the imperatives of the well-being of
mankind demand from us a concerted search for
ways and means of strengthening the
Organization's capacity to act. To that end, the
United Nation: should not only be an instrument
for making the international political climate
more healthy, it should be, above all, an
instrument for economic and social development.
That twofold wish which, in the view of my
delegation, lies at the core of our concerns and
forms the framework of United Nations doctrine,
has inspired the two themes of the message I have
been entrusted to deliver to the Assembly for its
consideration.
Created at the outset as an instrument for
improving the international political climate, as
it was of the common will of States that cherish
peace and justice, the Organization has
unfortunately been constant prey to the harsh
daily reality of intolerance and violence. In
many parts of the world, particularly in southern
Africa, the Middle East, South-East Asia and
Latin America, the emergence of conflicts creates
hotbeds of tension whose persistence is inimical
to peaceful and fraternal coexistence.
Some people even today, 22 years after the
adoption of General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV)
continue the struggle for their human dignity and
freedom. The distressing situation which prevails
in southern Africa is a clear example of this.
In this connection, my (delegation believes that
the accession to sovereignty of territories still
under colonial and racist domination can only
promote the universality of the Organization.
Therefore, the improvement of the political
climate requires, first, the elimination of all
forms of domination now existing in the world,
which today are considered to be contrary to
international morality. That is why the Central
African Republic believes that Namibia should as
soon as possible-and why should this not be in
1983- accede to independence in accordance with
the spirit and letter of Security Council
resolution 435 (1978).
In Lebanon and the Falkland Islands (Malvinas),
in a period of less than four months this year,
the international community witnessed and
remained powerless in the face of a tragedy most
of whose victims were innocent people. In one
case there was aggression by force in an attempt
to thwart the aspirations of a people, in
flagrant violation of international rules; in the
other case there was an express refusal to have
recourse to the principle of the peaceful
settlement of disputes.
In the case of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas),
my country appeals to the good sense of the
interested parties to begin direct negotiations,
if necessary with the participation and the good
offices of the Secretary-General.
Recent events in the Middle East can be described
by only one word, horror. The massacres at Sabra
and Shatila, despicable acts directed at women,
children and the elderly, constitute nothing less
than the crime of genocide, which no country that
supports the ideals of the United Nations can
tolerate. I wish to reiterate from this rostrum
my country's condemnation of that abject act
which compounds other attempts by the State of
Israel to contain the just struggle of the
Palestinian people, through the PLO, for
self-determination. The life of wandering forced
on that people cannot continue. That is why my
country continues to support Security Council
resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) as the
basis for an acceptable solution to the conflict
in the Middle East.
Because the United Nations has been paralyzed and
unable to act in that region at this critical
stage, it has become more urgent than ever, as
suggested in the report of the Secretary-General
on the work of the Organization, to strengthen
the capacity of the Organization to accomplish
its mission. The Central African Republic
considers that it is necessary to restore to the
Security Council its role as the guarantor of
international peace and security and,
furthermore, to reconsider the mechanics that
govern its operation, because the important
changes that have occurred on the international
scene since the San Francisco Conference, call
for the establishment of a balance in the
decision-making process.
Improvement of the international climate, as I
have said, means, in the final analysis, the
maintenance of world peace and security.
33. The United Nations, through the organ
competent in that area, is frequently called upon
in the case of a threat to peace. The
unsatisfactory results of sessions devoted to
disarmament reduce the chances of consolidating
and preserving peace. States continue to devote
enormous sums to armaments, while two thirds of
the people of the world live in poverty. The
struggle for world supremacy, which is called
hegemonism, is pursued inexorably, leading to the
research into, manufacture, and qualitative and
quantitative stockpiling of weapons of mass
destruction. This phenomenon, added to everything
covered by the key word "deterrence", seriously
compromises peace and security in many regions of
the world. That is why the Central African
Republic encourages all new initiatives designed
to curb the arms race and help to improve the
international climate.
36. Although a sovereign State may freely choose
a given system, certain Powers continue to
interfere in their internal affairs, using the
weapons of blackmail and threat. Are we to infer
from that that the principles which govern
international relations need be observed and
applied only by the weak countries? That is the
question my delegation wishes to put to the
Assembly.
Between Iraq and the Islamic Republic of Iran, in
Western Sahara, in Democratic Kampuchea and in
Afghanistan armed conflicts persist which
threaten peace in those regions of the world.
Nevertheless, the Charter commits nations to
settling their differences by peaceful means. We
firmly believe in the virtues of dialogue and
appeal urgently to the various protagonists in
these conflicts to resort to it.
With regard to the Korean problem, the North- South joint communique
of 1972 advocates direct negotiations between the
two parties, free of all foreign interference.
That historic document, constitutes in the view
of my delegation, a valuable basis on which to
seek a just and lasting solution. The Central
African Republic welcomes the strenuous efforts
made by the parties to the conflict to lay the
basis for the constructive, fruitful dialogue
which is so sincerely desired so that the
question of their simultaneous admission to the
United Nations can be considered again, without
prejudice to the principle of reunification, in
keeping with the wishes of their peoples.
The present international situation gives no
cause for optimism because the world political
order is being challenged by another factor: the
unequal development of the members of the
international community. This is the second part
of my message.
The United Nations should devote itself
increasingly to the economic and social
development of Member States. Indeed, how can we
not be moved by the problems caused by the world
economic crisis, which is seriously affecting
third world countries? These include: increasing
balance-of-payments imbalances, the constant
deterioration in the terms of trade; the
excessive burden of their foreign debts; the
insecurity of their food supplies; and the
disorganization of the present monetary system.
All these factors, which indicate the
interdependence of States, should lead the
"haves" to seek more actively, together with the
"have not", new bases for a restructuring of
international economic relations.
On the contrary, however, we are witnessing a
very marked re-emergence of protectionism, which
seriously penalizes the countries of the South.
The illusion of the concept of the transfer of
technology in turn compounds their
disillusionment. That is why we believe that the
"have" States, in a spirit of solidarity, should
facilitate and support the United Nations in its
efforts to establish a new international economic
order.
These efforts clearly demonstrate the will of the
Organization, which is now engaged in "economic
decolonization". This will is reflected in the
adoption of the Charter of Economic Rights and
Duties of States the International Development
Strategy for the Third United Nations Development
Decade and the Substantial New Programme of
Action for the 1980s for the Least Developed
Countries.
The Central African Republic, which falls within
the category of least developed countries, would
like to see the "have" countries devote more
effort and sacrifice to the implementation of
those measures, in order to establish
co-operation between them and the developing
countries, to the mutual advantage of their
respective peoples.
As the Assembly is aware, there was a change of
regime in the Central African Republic on 1
September 1981. It should be recalled that the
National Army took power following dark years
during which the country was on the verge of ruin
and security and peace were increasingly
threatened. As stated recently by the head of
State, General Andre Kolingba, the Military
Committee of National Reconstruction set for
itself four goals: the creation of conditions of
general mobilization through a resumption of
work; the reorganization of the State finances;
the restoration of a climate of confidence and
guarantees of the security of property and
person; and economic recovery.
The highest priority was given to the correction
of economic and financial imbalances. We
therefore reduced the budget deficit of the State
by almost 30 per cent as compared with that of
previous years. That result was obtained as a
result of very severe limitations on certain
expenditures, a reordering in the area of
earnings, a campaign to combat fraud and the
financial sacrifices of State officials.
The reassurance of investors by restoring a
climate of confidence is one of the policies
guiding the actions of the Military Committee for
National Reconstruction intended to bring about
conditions for the economic recovery of the
Central African Republic.
The plan requires that other demands be met,
including food self-sufficiency and growth
through increased productive investments, both
public and private. However, our present
financial situation does not yet enable us to
tackle by our own efforts alone other vital
tasks, such as the reconstruction of our road
system and the creation of social and educational
structures. The co-operation of the international
community, which we hope will be increased,
remains essential in that regard.
Thus the accomplishment of the mission that the
Military Committee of National Reconstruction has
set for itself has not been easy and continues to
be limited in terms of time and of objectives. To
achieve the necessary results, the Military
Committee of National Reconstruction has only one
weapon: dialogue, based on the concept the
Central African people has of the real democracy
that results from listening to the questions in
the hearts of the people. The Central African
Government has a dynamic view of democracy, which
must take account of the developmental aspects of
the life of a people capable of reconstructing
its national unity, which is a prerequisite for
development.
As a land-locked country, the Central African
Republic has been subjected to serious
constraints. The Convention that has just been
adopted a§ a result of the work of the Third
United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea
could make it possible for us to be provided with
the necessary trade facilities. That is the
fervent hope of my country.
We wish to welcome once again resolutions 35/37
of 5 December 1980 and 36/206 of 17 December
1981, in which the General Assembly calls upon
all Member States, the specialized agencies and
other economic and financial organizations to
contribute generously to the reconstruction,
rehabilitation and development of the Central
African Republic, whose economic situation
remains a matter of concern.
On behalf of the Central African people, the
Military Committee of National Reconstruction and
its President, General Andre Kolingba, I wish to
thank from this rostrum all the States and
institutions which, in spite of their own
difficulties, have shown a generosity which we
very much appreciate- My country is convinced
that this international solidarity, which is
based on human awareness, will continue to
increase.
The Central African Republic hopes, and indeed is
convinced, that the Member States, in spite of
this period of adversity that the world is
experiencing, will make the contributions
necessary to make the Organization an instrument
for the improvement of the international
political environment and of economic and social
development. The Secretary-General's report, with
the spirit of which we fully agree and to whose
author we pay a tribute, is important because it
concurs in that idea. The unity and harmony of
the international community will certainly
benefit from it.