Through my eminent colleague, Mr. Raymond Nthepe, the twelve States of the Brazzaville Group have participated in the tribute of the General Assembly to the memory of Mr, Dag Hammarskjold. But, since I am called upon to speak this morning, I wish to express the deep feeling of sorrow in my country at the death of the Secretary-General. The physical and moral courage, the impartiality, the diplomatic skill, the capacity for work of this great international civil servant, and also the faith which moved him in the accomplishment of his tasks, have been described in this hall by many eloquent speakers. While fully associating myself with the tributes paid to his eminent qualities, I shall therefore not recall the occasions when those qualities we re shown at their best.
5. There is, however, one aspect of the personality of Mr. Hammarskjold which was particularly appealing to my country and on which I should like to dwell. Like other nations of Black Africa, the Central African Republic has, by reason of its recently acquired independence, been called upon to take its seat in the community of nations as an equal among equals. But I need not recall what this de jure equality amounts to in fact. And in this matter the activities of our Secretary-General were most beneficial. His best efforts, especially for the last two years, had been devoted to the cause of small nations, especially those of the new African States and Madagascar. In order to defend them and restore peace and unity, which were threatened by powerful and selfish interests, he embarked on a fatal night, despite all the hazards on his last tragic adventure.
6. That is why the Central African Republic is particularly conscious of the greatness of the loss the Organization has suffered as a result of the death of Mr. Hammarskjold. It has shown its grief by flying its flag at half-mast for three days over its territory.
7. Today my country is concerned over the difficulties which are preventing the appointment of a new Secretary-General. It hopes that this problem will be rapidly solved, so that the Secretariat will be able to accomplish its difficult tasks. I shall come back to that point: at the end of my statement in order to give the views of my Government.
8. Having paid a last tribute to the illustrious deceased who has left our community to take Ms place in the pages of history, I now turn towards the living— those whom we have elected to guide our work during the sixteenth session of the General Assembly. It seems to me that we can only congratulate ourselves upon our elected officers, especially at having chosen as President such a skilful diplomat, such an impartial arbitrator and such an able defender of the United Nations as Mr. Mongi Slim. The weight of his authority will, I am sure, greatly assist us in successfully concluding discussions of the items on our very heavy agenda.
9. In his famous book, Jonathan Swift related the travels of his hero, Gulliver, in the course of these travels, he visited the imaginary island of Laputa, which was peopled with learned and wise men so immersed in deep and continuous meditation and so engrossed in their own ideas that each one lived in a completely closed world and could neither understand his neighbour nor make himself understood by him. Consequently their sight and hearing had become impaired. To remedy this state of affairs, servants armed with rattles accompanied them everywhere, and shook these rattles before their eyes or in their ears so as to make them aware of the most pressing realities of life.
10. If some inhabitant from another world were to land on our planet today, I wonder whether he would not be as surprised as was Gulliver on beholding the impractical and visionary philosophers of Laputa, He would behold a divided human species, segregated into hostile classes, races and nations, deaf and blind, and sometimes combining into groups, but only the better to resist or dominate. If he were to try to acquaint himself with the general political situation, his informants would no doubt try to make matters clearer to him by explaining that the world was .divided into several blocs or alliances, and that two of these were split by an ideological quarrel or by irreconcilable interests, while the others were so constituted as to resist the domination of the first two, showing preference sometimes for one of these and sometimes for the other*
11. The Central African Republic firmly rejects this depressing concept of a society crystallized into opposing blocs. It will in any case belong to none of them and will, in each separate case, exercise its free judgement.
12. Like so many other small nations, my country is profoundly disappointed that the great Powers are unable to find some common ground for agreement. Instead of looking to them to guide us, we are reduced to regarding them as the possible authors of our annihilation in the near future. Their tremendous resources, a small part of which would provide our economies with the support they so sorely need, are being used to forge ever mightier weapons. One of these countries, breaking the truce despite the wishes of all free nations, has just given the signal for the resumption of atomic and thermonuclear bomb tests. The rapidity with which these explosions succeed one another dearly shows that these tests have been prepared for a long time and the reason given sounds so
much like a pretext that it is an insult to the United Nations.
13. Thus it may be said that the Berlin crisis is reaching its acutest phase amid the roar of explosions. The attitudes of the adversaries are hardening from day to day. Until recently those attitudes were still sufficiently fluid and flexible to give diplomacy the necessary elbow room and free play so that nothing irreparable would happen. But today such diplomatic action is becoming almost impossible as the threats and declarations proffered by the two opponents prevent them from giving way.
14. To avoid disaster I would, on behalf of my Government, urge the great Powers concerned to enter without delay into negotiations on the problem of Berlin, so that a solution acceptable to all the parties concerned can be found. Before anything else, the wishes of the Berlin inhabitants and their right, too seldom mentioned, to determine their own fate, must be taken into account.
15. I would call on these countries, in particular on the United States of America and the Soviet Union, to pursue their discussions with the sincere desire to succeed, so that they may establish an effective system for the control of nuclear and conventional armaments applicable to all atomic Powers, present and future. Like so many before me, I would like to draw their attention to the frightful dangers that the inadequacy of their efforts at conciliation is imposing upon the whole of humanity.
16. In the meantime, and as an immediate measure, I would urge them to allay the anguish of the world and to leave the door open to hope by agreeing to put an end to nuclear and thermonuclear explosions.
17. I said just now that my country recognizes no obligation whatsoever to belong to any political bloc. The Central African Republic refuses to form part of any groups that are usually designated by that term because for ideological or military reasons these blocs tend to lay stress on what divides nations rather than on what unities them. Such an approach is contrary to the spirit of the Charter of the United Nations, whereas two basic characteristics of the Central African Republic's foreign policy are a deep attachment to the Organization and the resolute support of its actions.
18. However, this position does not prevent us from entering into alliances which seem to us to have peaceful and beneficial objectives and from maintaining friendly relations with nations or groups of nations that are prepared to help us while respecting our rights. Thus we have joined the association known as
, the Union of African and Malagasy States which has strengthened the bonds between twelve countries linked by cultural affinities, geographical situation and memories of a common action to achieve independence.
19. Our group of twelve countries is in no way exclusive and it has a positive approach to others so that it also forms part of the much bigger Monrovia Group which is open to all new African Members that may wish to join us.
20. Our sense of African solidarity in no way prevents us from turning our eyes to the other continents. We stretch out our hand to all nations which, like our own, are endeavouring to progress economically and socially so that their citizens may achieve that human dignity of which independence, though essential, is but a part. And we look too towards the individual Powers which are prepared to help us to achieve this while.
respecting our sovereign nationality. In particular, my country views with favour any form of agreement or co-operation with Western Europe, for psychological, geo-political and economic reasons. In this connexion, I should like to quote the following passage from the speech made a few days ago by Mr. Adama Tamboux, President of the National Assembly, at Bangui, on the occasion of the opening of the special session of this Parliament;
"We clearly have many more affinities with Europe than with other continents or sub-continents. There is also no doubt that Europe, not being a monolithic continent, is less of a political threat than the two great Powers; the very fact that it is divided tends to promote discussion. Finally it must be recognized that Western Europe, which if taken as a whole is able to hold out as many economic possibilities as either of the two great Powers, has shown it is capable of decolonization, that it has no racial segregation and that at the same time it is the region—and France more particularly—that furnishes us the substantial aid which is vital to us. That is why I attach great importance to the European Economic Community, on- condition that it is reinforced and made complete, and it is my earnest wish that this Community will grow in an atmosphere of frank and loyal co-operation thereby ensuring the mutual and harmonious development of a Europe and Africa freely, and I repeat freely, associated."
21. Such are the main lines of the foreign policy of my own country, the Central African Republic. I should now like to turn back to Africa and to deal with the problem of decolonization in general and with some of its special aspects.
22. Decolonization and colonialism are the two main facets of Africa today. Old colonial Powers like France and the United Kingdom are, after a gradual preparation, leading their African territories to independence today. This evolution may not always have been as rapid as might have been desired, but it is at least about to come to an end, and in most cases the transitions have been organized well enough to avoid any serious disturbances. These two Powers have consequently reaped great moral benefits from their actions, and their wise policies have raised their prestige in the United Nations and earned them many friends on the African continent and in Madagascar.
23. In contrast to this privileged moral position of those countries, Portugal and the Union of South Africa are constantly being blamed by the great majority of the countries represented in the United Nations. In contrast to the friendly attitudes of France and the United Kingdom, there are the bloody war in Angola and the conspiracies and rebellions among the Bantus. The situation in Angola and the Union of South Africa is deeply disturbing to our country which cannot remain indifferent to the sufferings of our oppressed or murdered fellow-Africans. I shall not dwell on these matters today but deal with them at greater length when they are brought up on our agenda.
24. But I should like to remind the Governments of Portugal and the Union of South Africa already, through their distinguished representatives here, that the march of the nations of the black race towards their independence cannot be arrested. I should like to point out to them again that the use of arbitrary methods, bloody repression and the policy of racial segregation may slow down the Africans' accession to the status
free men, of citizens of free nations, but that nothing
can finally prevent it. I should finally like to ask them, for these reasons, to change as soon and as radically as possible a policy which, by endeavouring to arrest the present evolution, can only make the inevitable outcome more bitter and more painful,
25. In other regions of the African continent, the veil of uncertainty would seem to be lifting. It was with the most profound satisfaction that my Government saw France and Tunisia renounce the use of force and negotiate to settle the question of Bizerta. These two countries have, to our great satisfaction, been able to agree on a provisional modus vivendi. We hope the problem will soon be finally settled and cease to exacerbate the relations of two countries, which, judging by their history and geography and their cultural affinities, should be firm friends,
26. The. Algerian war is still on, but the recent statements made by the President of the French Republic hold out hopes that its end is near, since the preliminary conditions concerning the Sahara have now been withdrawn. The Central African Republic earnestly hopes that negotiations will be resumed between the French Government and the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic, if, as rumour has it, this has not already been done, so that an end will soon be put to the fighting and independence granted to the Algerian people. It hopes that, under the sovereignty of the Republic of Algeria, there will be a system of co-operation in the Sahara which will enable its wealth to be exploited for the common benefit of Algeria, other neighbouring countries of Africa, and France.
27. One day, which I hope will be soon, we shall welcome into our midst Ruanda-Urundi. The political evolution of this country is not yet completed and it is still widely exposed to foreign interference which prevents the expression of the popular will. My Government therefore requests the United Nations to use the means at its disposal to ensure that the solutions applied to the problems of that territory are based on truly democratic principles.
28. We hope that the situation in the Congo will soon improve and that a reasonable solution will soon make it possible to reunite the country once and for all. The Government of the Central African Republic hopes that matters will not be precipitated and that the Congolese will themselves reform their Fundamental Law, in accordance with the facts of the situation and their freely expressed will.
29. I should now like to address the newest Members of our Assembly, Sierra Leone and Syria, and extend a cordial and fraternal welcome to the representatives of these young States.
30. The joy I feel at greeting these new colleagues is only equalled by our feelings of regret at being unable to extend the same wishes to another delegations which for a year has been waiting to be at last granted admission to the Organization, as if admission were a favour, bestowed on the approval of a few, and not a right, which must, it is true, be recognized by a vote, but which already exists when, as in the case of Mauritania, the country fulfils the conditions which have enabled the other nations to take their place in this Organization. I would even go as far as to say that, where independence is concerned, it fulfils them better than do some of the nations in question. I shall not dwell further on this matter, for during the past few days there have been certain signs which give
grounds for the hope that there may be a happy outcome to this question. Should this hope prove unfounded my country would, when it came to consider other problems, draw all the necessary conclusions from such a denial of justice resulting from manoeuvres which do no credit to our Organization.
31. The interest which the Central African Republic takes in all the questions I have raised does not make it lose sight of the importance of economic problems. That is why its delegation will follow very closely the discussion of the items on our agenda which concern industrial development, the creation of a capital development fund, primary commodities markets, and the acceleration of the flow of capital and of technical assistance. It goes without saying that my country fully approves of the wishes of the Organization to play an increasingly important role in this field an" it will view with favour any steps in that direction. We regard the intensification of United Nations economic activity as highly desirable, whether it takes the form of strengthening existing economic instruments or of creating new ones.
32. Nevertheless, the fact that we approve multilateral forms of economic aid does not mean that we are renouncing the benefits of bilateral agreements. It does not even imply any preference, as long as we consider that these agreements freely entered into in no way affect our independence. My country—and lam sure that it is not alone in holding this view—considers that the existence side-by-side of these two forms of assistance gives it greater latitude and freedom, by enabling it to choose the form of assistance best suited to it at any given moment or even to combine the advantages which each of these forms may offer.
33. This need for flexibility and the wish to remain as it were available actuate my Government in other economic fields. It is strongly repelled by the totalitarianism of the Communist world and yet recognizes the need for a planned economy; it is aware that it is not rich enough and that its social problems are too acute for it to adopt a liberal capitalist system and yet it wishes to hasten development by attracting private capital. Those are the ideas, at first sight contradictory, which the Central African Republic is trying to combine in order to create a planned economy within a non-totalitarian framework.
34. In this respect, too, then, my Government intends to reject ready-made solutions and to borrow whatever principles from each system or doctrine that it thinks may prove most profitable to an African country. In particular, while condemning the colonial capitalist exploitation, it would be in favour of capital investments, but naturally only in so far as such investments would respect national sovereignty and would be integrated into the life of the country, in other words in so far as such investments would' promote advancement throughout the nation. Foreign private capital which met these requirements would enjoy tax exemptions and could be withdrawn without difficulty. It is hardly necessary to add that the social climate and political stability of my country are also guarantees for the security of invested funds.
35. I am coming to the end of my speech and I must leave the higher spheres of economics and politics to mention two practical matters which concern the structure of the United Nations.
36* The first question is that of adapting the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council to the
new life of the United Nations. These bodies were set up when the Organization consisted of only slightly more than half the Members it has now. Since they were last reorganized, more than twenty Members have been admitted and the geographical distribution has changed very considerably. My Government hopes, therefore, that the number of members of the two Councils will be augmented and that there will be an equitable distribution of seats among the various continents, more representation being given to Africa and Asia.
37. Finally, I wish to revert to the problem of the replacement of Mr. Hammarskjold, The Government of the Central African Republic considers that the Secretary-General should have some freedom of action. It is therefore definitely opposed to the idea of a "troika" which would paralyse the executive organ of the United Nations and would render quite futile the modest decisions which we achieve with so much effort.
38. On the other hand, I am ready to cast my Government's vote for a solution which would give an acting Secretary-General five assistants chosen with due regard for the political and geographical balance of our Assembly.
This formula appears to be on the point of being accepted. I hope that it will enable the United Nations to pursue its labours with renewed ardour in a clearer atmosphere, so that it may draw ever closer to the goal it has set itself by assuming so ambitious a name.