99. Mr. President, it is my pleasant duty to offer you Uganda's hearty congratulations on your election to the high office of President of the twentieth session of the General Assembly. We are confident that with your personal qualities, experience and able guidance the present session will be able to accomplish all its objectives and discharge its duties effectively.
100. Allow me to pay sincere tribute to the outgoing President, Mr. Alex Quaison-Sackey, whose wisdom, statesmanship, and political sagacity enabled the United Nations not only to survive last year's problems over Article 19 of the Charter, but also to restore normalcy in the Assembly and thus pave the way for this session. His service has brought honour not only to Ghana, but to the whole of Africa.
101. The Uganda delegation warmly welcomes the admission of the Gambia, the Maldive Islands and Singapore as full Members of the United Nations. Their admission brings nearer the day when there will be no more colonies and nations to admit, that is, when all countries will be free.
102. Uganda takes a very firm and unequivocal stand on the question of colonialism. As a member of the Organization of African Unity, and in co-operation with all peace-loving countries all over the world, it is our hope that Africa will soon be free.
103. When we assembled last year, dark clouds were hovering over the British colony of Southern Rhodesia where the minority Government was threatening to declare independence unilaterally. Our position on this question was clearly stated and remains unchanged.
104. The Uganda Government would welcome the admission of Southern Rhodesia a full Member of the United Nations, as a member of the Organization of African Unity and of the Commonwealth after that country has regained its independence on the basis of majority rule and in accordance with the principle of one man, one vote.
105. Last June, the Commonwealth Prime Ministers urged the United Kingdom as the governing authority to take steps to convene a constitutional conference within the period of three months so that the British Government and the various political leaders in Southern Rhodesia, including the restricted leaders, could work out a constitution acceptable to the people of Southern Rhodesia. Unfortunately, no such conference has yet taken place. Reports are being received that the white minority Government, led by Ian Smith, is proceeding with the consolidation of its position and making friends with certain countries which are notorious for their complete disregard of world public opinion and democratic principles. It is reported that secret talks are going on between Smith and Her Majesty's Government. My delegation hopes that these talks are aimed at paving the way for a fully representative constitutional conference, and we also hope that Britain would not sacrifice the interests of the majority on the pretext that constitutional guarantees for the protection of majority interests have been entrenched in the Constitution.
106. In all former British colonies it was the minority which sought safeguards, and not the majority; we do mot see any good reason why the white minority should, in the case of Southern Rhodesia, be expected to safeguard the interests of the majority. In the opinion of the Uganda delegation, such guarantees are not worth the paper they are written on and can toe scrapped immediately after independence.
107. We in Uganda welcomed the strong warning which the British Government gave to Smith in October 1964 about the grave consequences of a unilateral declaration of independence. We are perturbed that Britain may now be shifting ground. Britain must not succumb to the pressures of the minority. Democracy must be established. This is the only way to establish a just and peaceful solution. We also, as last year, appeal for the release of all those African leaders who are restricted, many of whom the courts in Southern Rhodesia have ruled are being detained illegally.
108. The United Nations and the Special Committee of Twenty-four have been considering for some time Southern Rhodesia's problem. Resolutions have been adopted, but the situation is not improving. The United Kingdom Government has the power to abrogate the 1961 Constitution, and we call upon the United Kingdom to convene a constitutional conference before it is too late.
109. We would wish to see the United Nations consider seriously the situation developing in Southern Rhodesia. We urge the United Nations to take up this matter very seriously and to use all methods at its disposal to ensure that Ian Smith does not precipitate a catastrophe which will have dire consequences in Southern Rhodesia, in the Commonwealth and in the world at large by unilaterally declaring his minority Government independent.
110. We reject the argument that the United Kingdom Government has no constitutional powers of intervention in the affairs of Southern Rhodesia because that colony has been self-governing since 1923 and because the United Kingdom has no army in the country. In other colonies which were self-governing, including British Guiana and Aden, these arguments were not raised.
111. As regards the Portuguese colonies of Angola, Mozambique and so-called Portuguese Guinea, the Uganda delegation rejects Portugal's argument that these are "provinces" and an integral part of Portugal. It is obvious that Portugal falls squarely into the category of those States Members of the United Nations which administer territories as defined in Article 73 of the Charter. A study of events in these territories reveals not "respect for the culture of the peoples concerned", not "just treatment, and ... protection against abuses", as the Charter stipulates, but torture, brutality, and a military build-up by Portugal to ensure that the liberation struggle is defeated and freedom-fighters exterminated. According to Portugal, this is the best way of promoting to the utmost the well-being of the inhabitants of its territories.
112. I do not intend to analyse in detail Portugal's colonial history, nor to explain how Portugal imposed its rule over the peoples of those territories. One thing is abundantly clear, namely, that the indigenous people concerned have never exercised their right of self-determination. It is also clear that, instead of receiving rights and services from metropolitan Portugal, they receive bombs and gunfire.
113. Portugal, in pursuance of its policies, regards the spontaneous uprising and struggle of the people of Angola, Mozambique and so-called Portuguese Guinea as a threat to its national security and integrity. Recent petitioners from Mozambique have reported to the Special Committee of Twenty-four that more than 12,000 inhabitants of Mozambique are homeless refugees in Tanzania, and many others have fled to Zambia and Malawi. The number of people leaving so-called Portuguese Guinea to seek asylum in Senegal and in the Republic of Guinea is increasing.
114. The General Assembly has, in recent years, adopted many resolutions urging Portugal to recognize the right of the people in its territories to self-determination and independence. Portugal has been requested to stop repressive measures and to free political prisoners whose only crime has been to demand their freedom. Instead, Portugal, contrary to the present twentieth century trend of thought, is determined to impose its rule by force of arms. We demand that Portugal review its policies.
115. The Uganda delegation welcomes the very encouraging words addressed to this Assembly by His Holiness the Pope last Monday [1347th meeting]. We are encouraged by his timely appeal for peace and the settlement of all disputes through peaceful negotiations. We are particularly glad that the Pope has warned us against pride which, in his words "provokes...colonialism" [1347th meeting, para. 32]. His stand against colonialism is a source of strength to all those, particularly in Africa, still under this terrible yoke and a warning against régimes established on the basis of pride and racial superiority rather than on humanity and equality.
116. The principal reason for the establishment of this Organization is the preservation of peace and security in the world in which we live. Members of this Organization have been so preoccupied with so many important roles which the United Nations has to play in the world that my delegation makes no apology for underlining once again the most important aim and objective of the Organization. It is not only the ideological conflict between West and East and the piling of armaments which menace the peace of the world today. The dictatorial and totalitarian governments, which are too much in evidence in the world, should be taken more seriously by this Organization as permanent obstacles to the maintenance of international peace and security. It is only by means of democratic institutions, and by that I mean the active participation of the people of Africa and elsewhere in governmental deliberations and decisions, that we can ensure international stability and prevent bellicose governments from resorting to war as an instrument of foreign policy.
117. Without political freedom and without social justice there can never be peace in the world. That in why my delegation wishes to reiterate the great danger to the peace of mankind that lies in the policy of racial discrimination which is being observed as an article of faith by the Government of the Republic of South Africa, and in the incidence of colonialism in Mozambique, Angola and so-called Portuguese Guinea. My delegation urges this twentieth session of the General Assembly to adopt and implement practical measures which will bring an end to apartheid in South Africa. Uganda has made it clear, not only here but at all other international meetings, that it does not recognize the South African régime or because it is unrepresentative, it is racist and it is not based on the ideals of human rights to which we are all committed. Above all, that régime is oppressive. Uganda as an African State cannot accept any régime which in any way suppresses human rights and makes the African a second-class citizen. We shall continue to support any efforts on the part of the Africans in South Africa until they regain their power.
118. The evils of the apartheid policy currently pursued by the Republic of South Africa within the Republic itself are so well known that the case for the prevention of the extension of such a vile system of South West Africa needs no lengthy elaboration. Uganda awaits with great eagerness the outcome of the ruling of the International Court of Justice on this issue. However, until any other ruling is given, Uganda and the United Nations must regard South West Africa as a Trust Territory whose peaceful and gradual development to an independent status has been thwarted by the extension of the apartheid policies of South Africa.
119. We in Uganda were shocked by reports of the outbreak of fighting between India and Pakistan. Our interest in this matter is not academic. Both
countries are fellow members of the Commonwealth and of the Afro-Asian organization. In addition, a large population of people of Pakistani and Indian origin are resident in Uganda and East Africa generally. Armed conflict between their countries of origin could quite easily, therefore, adversely affect the good relations which have been happily existing between the two communities in East Africa. Our Prime Minister, Mr. Obote, therefore felt in duty bound to send an urgent cable appealing to both President Ayub Khan and Prime Minister Shastri to stop the fighting and withdraw their troops.
120. I should like to congratulate the Security Council on the prompt manner in which it handled this crisis and eventually brought about a cease-fire. Our thanks also go to the Secretary-General, U Thant, for the important role he played in bringing about a stoppage in fighting. In spite of current reports about the non-observance of the cease-fire, we still hope that both sides will respect the Security Council resolution and that neither side will try to exploit the lull created by the cease-fire for its national advantage. My delegation strongly supports the Security Council resolution [210 (1965)] appealing to both sides to withdraw their troops to the positions they held before 5 August. Now that the fighting has stopped, it is essential that the United Nations should redouble its efforts to seek a permanent solution to this very complex and delicate problem in accordance with the resolutions adopted by this Organization.
121. Many times leaders of delegations have from this rostrum repeated their belief in self-determination. We in Africa have observed a certain tendency which has disturbed us: because of the ideological conflict between East and West, certain big Powers take it upon themselves to interfere in the internal affairs of States and attempt to decide who should be in power and what path should be followed by certain developing countries in their economic or political development.
122. In the case of Viet-Nam, my delegation appeals to all the countries involved to transfer the conflict, as a matter of urgency, from the battlefield to the conference table. The Viet-Namese people should be given a chance to exercise their right of self-determination, in accordance with their legitimate right to freedom, independence and sovereignty.
123. My delegation would be happy to support any initiative by this Organization to bring about a peaceful and lasting settlement in Viet-Nam within the framework of the Geneva Agreements of 1954.
124. A close study of the world scene strengthens my belief that non-alignment is the correct policy for developing countries. We wish to concentrate our efforts on the eradication of ignorance, disease and poverty. We are ready to co-operate fully with any friendly country in our struggle to raise the standard of living of our people. However, we would reject without hesitation any co-operation if it is conditional upon the acceptance by us of ideologies not of our own choosing.
125. There are other factors that are proving to be obstacles in the way of our rapid economic development. Last year, in my statement to the General
Assembly [1293rd meeting], I explained that because of Uganda's central geographical position in Africa we had experienced an influx of refugees from the neighbouring countries of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Sudan. More refugees have continued to flock into Uganda, and my Government has spent a large amount of money in affording relief and settlement. Our policy on refugees has been made very clear: while we are prepared to grant asylum to genuine refugees from neighbouring countries, we do not permit refugees or any other nationals to use Uganda, or the facilities afforded to them, to attack their own governments or to launch subversive activities in their countries of origin.
126. On a number of occasions my country has had its territorial integrity violated by the forces of neighbouring States which, either accidentally or knowingly, have crossed into Uganda in pursuit of their own refugees. I do not need to elaborate on the problems created by such incidents.
127. While Uganda is appreciative of the help so far given us by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, we should like to see a fresh approach to this problem. We therefore suggest that all refugees, irrespective of their origin, should be recognized as refugees and should be given help by one central United Nations refugee organization.
128. For our part we are prepared to co-operate with the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity to ensure that the conditions which compel large numbers of people to flee their countries are removed. We are ready to enter into bilateral negotiations with our neighbours and with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees so that satisfactory arrangements may be made to repatriate refugees as soon as conditions in their countries of origin are sufficiently stable.
129. The Uganda delegation heartily welcomes the decision to enlarge some of the main organs of the United Nations. We are confident that the enlargement of the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council will truly reflect the change that has taken place in the membership of the United Nations in the past twenty years.
130. I should now like to turn to the perennial problem of the readmission of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations. My Government's views on that subject remain the same as stated last year. If this Organization is to continue to play the major role in international' life that we are all confident it will and must play, the readmission of the People's Republic of China should not be delayed any longer. We have stated time and again that China represents one quarter of the world's total population and is a great and significant Power, not only in Asia, but in the world. It is involved in and affected by all the events happening in Asia. It can therefore be excluded from the United Nations only at our own peril.
131. No other country is required to satisfy the United Nations about its peace-loving intentions before it is admitted to the United Nations, and we fail to see why that should be required of China. If that argument were pushed to its logical conclusion, then South Africa and Portugal, which have persistently flouted the Charter and resolutions of the United Nations, would have to be excluded forthwith from membership of the Organization. Cold-war considerations should, in our opinion, be divorced from this matter. Justice to the 700 million Chinese must be done if the United Nations is to avoid the danger of becoming an exclusive club.
132. In May of this year Uganda played host to the African Conference on Progress through co-operation, organized by the Council on World Tensions. The Conference was organized in the knowledge that factors which create tensions and impede development in the African nations are of world-wide concern. Better understanding of those problems and adequate aid on the part of other nations are essential if African nations are to mobilize fully their material and human resources, effectively utilize foreign aid, and ultimately take their place in the expanding economy of the world.
133. There exists a phenomenally pathetic situation, in which the developed countries are anxious to assist the developing countries and yet their generous intentions are frustrated by their own rules about the financing of local costs. In a word the donor countries are anxious to give and the developing countries are equally anxious to receive, but the non-availability of the funds needed to meet local costs has effectively prevented many useful programmes from being carried out. Aid can best be utilized if the conditions of procurement which make it obligatory for receiving conditions to buy exclusively from donor countries are relaxed.
134. We note with great anxiety the widening gap between the economies of the developed countries and those of the developing countries. Like most developing countries, we in Uganda have made and are making great efforts to raise the standard of living of our people, but our efforts are frustrated by a lack of capital and a shortage of trained manpower. Furthermore, forward planning is made difficult and often impossible because of the frequent fluctuations in prices of the vital commodities on which our economy depends. We attach great importance to the role of the United Nations in the economic field.
135. If the United Nations Development Decade is to have any meaning, the industrialized countries will have to make a greater contribution to bridging the gap between themselves and the developing countries.
136. The Uganda delegation feels that the United Nations can play an important role in raising the standard of living of the developing countries through the machinery recently set up by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). While welcoming that as an important first step, we note that there has so far been no progress towards the implementation of the UNCTAD resolutions and recommendations. We feel that immediate steps should be taken to solve the outstanding issues which were not fully settled by that Conference.
137. The question of preference measures in the field of finance and the problem of trade expansion among developing countries are among the issues
whose settlement cannot be long delayed if the modest gains so far made and the great hopes entertained are not to be lost. Uganda, together with other developing States, intends to continue to press for the early settlement of these and other economic issues.
138. My country, like many other agricultural developing countries, is dependent on the prices payable in the world market for its two major crops, cotton and coffee. Through UNCTAD and other organs, we hope to find a lasting solution to the problem presented by the falling prices of primary products which we export and the rising prices of manufactured products which we import.
139. As the Secretary-General, U Thant, stated in the introduction to his annual report to the seventeenth session of the General Assembly:
"... the present division of the world into rich and poor countries is, in my opinion, much more real and much more serious, and ultimately much more explosive, than the division of the world on ideological grounds.”
140. Lastly, Uganda welcomes the suggestion so aptly made by His Holiness the Pope that, after swords have been beaten into ploughshares and spears into pruning-hooks, the proceeds and savings should be used for economic assistance to developing countries.