2. Madam President, first let me join with other delegations and offer
you my warmest congratulations on your election to the
high office of President. I can say with pride that this is a
tribute to you, to your country and to the whole of Africa
which you have served with so much distinction and
devotion, without being unmindful of other nations of the
world. You are the second distinguished lady to assume this
high office and I am confident that your experience in
public affairs and your loyalty to the cause of freedom,
justice and world peace will be an asset in the deliberations
of this Assembly.
3. I should also like to express my grief and sorrow at the
death of the former President of this Assembly, Mr. Emilio
Arenales, to whom we will all remain indebted.
4. In a world of so much goodwill and understanding
where people can live in freedom, peace and plenty, it is a
paradox that in the Middle East, in Viet-Nam and in Africa
there are interminable conflicts bringing ruin and misery in
their trail to millions of innocent human beings. It is in the
interest of all nations that these conflicts come to a speedy
end. On the war in the Middle East my country abides by
the resolution of the Security Council, which provides a
sufficient basis for negotiations for an honourable settlement
between the United Arab Republic and Israel. As to
Viet-Nam, let us all hope and pray that better counsels will
prevail, putting an end to a most bitter and fratricidal war.
But peace in those regions cannot come by itself and the
big Powers like the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and
the United States of America should make fresh attempts
towards peace.
5. Mauritius, which has been a Member of the United
Nations for only about eighteen months, has pledged its
unreserved support to this world Organization in its efforts
to bring about freedom and justice among all nations.
6. It is felt at times that the United Nations is not doing
enough towards peace in the world or that it is moving too
slowly in that direction. No human venture can be faultless,
and one must not be over-critical. In all fairness, it would
be no exaggeration to say that if there had been no United
Nations twenty-four years ago the whole world might well
have been plunged into chaos.
7. I should like here to place on record the magnificent
work done by the Secretary-General, U Thant, who has
unceasingly striven to end all racial and political conflicts.
8. The Charter of the United Nations will stand in history
as a great monument of human endeavour. The twenty-fifth
anniversary of the United Nations next year should project
the message enshrined in the Charter and make more widely
known, especially to the younger generation, the numerous
activities of the United Nations and its family. All efforts in
that direction have been warmly supported in my country,
and it is our earnest hope that this increase of knowledge
everywhere will serve to open the eyes of many in this era
where interdependence is no longer a metaphysical concept,
but a reality. The objective of universality which is one of
the main goals of the Charter must not be overlooked, and
in the case of China, for instance, my delegation is of the
view that the Chinese mainland, represented by Peking,
should take its rightful place as a Member of the United
Nations, but not to the exclusion of Formosa, which also
has a right to life as an independent nation. That is why
Mauritius abstained on that issue at the twenty-third session
of the General Assembly [1724th meeting]. We feel that
both the mainland and Taiwan should be represented in the
United Nations. It is our hope that a solution will soon
emerge.
9. Madam President, the name of your country suggests
freedom and liberty. It is therefore fitting that you should
be in the chair at a time when we are preparing to celebrate
the tenth anniversary of General Assembly resolution
1514 (XV) embodying the Declaration on the Granting of
Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples. Without
being over-critical of our friends who have been great
colonial Powers, we regret that there are many nations in
the world still under colonial rule with its degradation and
economic and social backwardness. Colonialism has always
been tied up with social injustice and racial discrimination,
which today has come to endanger world peace. The
concept of coexistence which in our country is a reality,
and which we have always advocated, does not seem to
have a place among many nations.
10. The apartheid régime of South Africa, for instance, is
repugnant to human dignity and can only foster hatred and
unrest. Man must be free and my country unreservedly
condemns any form of society that denies human beings
their basic rights. The illegal régime of Southern Rhodesia is
another glaring example which has deeply aroused the
conscience of the civilized world. Mandatory sanctions
which have been applied have not been encouraging because
the colonial Powers in the immediate neighbourhood have
refused to co-operate.
11. The case of the Territories under Portuguese administration
is another grave concern to Africa and there will
always be misery and loss of human lives as long as colonial
rule persists.
12. Still, in that same area where colonialism is fighting its
last stand, we have the case of Namibia, which used to be
called South West Africa. The responsibility of the United
Nations as a successor to the League of Nations cannot be
evaded, but it is also the duty of all of us here to lend our
support to end this trespass by South Africa so that
Namibians may finally breathe in freedom and peace.
13. These to my mind are the main currents of colonial
policies adopted by many Powers, Why do they not want to
withdraw gracefully from the territories they have occupied
for centuries? At times it was advanced by them that the
peoples of those territories were not ready to assume
independence; at other times it was said that those
territories were economically backward and not viable. On
either ground, they have forfeited their right to continue to
maintain their rule because after centuries of colonial rule
they have failed on all counts.
14. Colonial Powers should no longer invoke the principle
that the affairs of Territories under their rule are purely
their internal affairs. The time has passed for such a
concept; and they should voluntarily divest themselves of
their political rule without necessarily impairing their
cultural links.
15. It is our belief that the United Nations machinery
could help towards a smooth transition to freedom in those
countries, but new ways and means of doing so will have to
be found.
16. It might be suggested, for example, that the Trusteeship
Council, over which you have so ably presided, Madam
President, could be given a new form of life and invigoration.
Bringing these colonial Territories under the protective
wings of the Council and preparing them for their
independence would give to one of the principal organs of
the United Nations a new raison d étre.
17. We have always adhered to the principle of
self-determination, but we must not overlook the basic fact that
the exercise of this fundamental right must be free to be
effective and fruitful; for it is almost impossible for a slave
to vote for his own freedom. Colonial Powers, for the
preservation of their rule, divide the countries under their
jurisdiction horizontally and vertically, thus making a free
choice by the people a farce. Freedom is indivisible, to my
mind, and one does not vote for one’s freedom with a rope
around one’s neck. A nation should assume freedom
without any limitation.
18. I shall now turn to another subject which is of the
highest importance in this century, and we are grateful to
the delegation of Malta, an island like Mauritius, for raising
this question of the sea-bed and the ocean floor. The ocean
is a vast expanse and great patience and perseverence are
needed, since so many nations seem to have different views
on the subject: for instance, views range from 3 miles to
200 miles on the exact line of the ocean floor which lies
beyond the limits of territorial jurisdiction. The immense
potential of cheap nutritious food should be made available
to all nations in order to supplement their requirements.
The vast ocean bed should be exploited for the benefit of
all mankind, and not merely for the benefit of those Powers
that are in a position, either technologically or economically,
to exploit its abundant mineral, animal and vegetable
resources. It is also: to be remembered that the exploitation
of the sea-bed must be essentially for peaceful purposes,
and is not to be put to military purposes by great Powers.
I therefore appeal in a most earnest manner to the
industrialized Powers to lend their most co-operative support to
the progress of the work of the sea-bed Committee.
19. Linked with that is the question of human environment.
We are very grateful to Sweden for having brought
that very important problem into the limelight.
20. I now come to the problem of economic and social
development, which is preoccupying the minds of all
nations. The First United Nations Development Decade is
now almost over, and preparations for the second one are
under way. Mauritius welcomed the idea of last year’s
session of the General Assembly to set up a Preparatory
Committee for the Second United Nations Development
Decade [resolution 2411 (XXIII)] to elaborate a strategy
of development for that Decade, to be launched at the end
of next year. As a member of that Committee, Mauritius
has participated actively in its work, and very soon the first
interim report will be presented to the Assembly.
21. The First Decade has not fulfilled everyone’s aspirations
and it is to be hoped that the second one will bring us
nearer to the goal we all have in view. Otherwise, the
divisions between the third world, in which we belong, and
the rich countries wilt continue to increase. The gap
between the developed and the developing countries must
therefore be bridged at all costs, or at least considerably
reduced to avoid further frustration.
22. This is neither the place nor the moment to be
technical, but it might still be helpful at this stage to
remind the Assembly of a few basic problems facing the
developing countries. First of all, most of our economies
are based on trade in primary products. In the case of
Mauritius, it is cane sugar, of which we are one of the oldest
producers. Unless we obtain a better quota and a remunerative
price for our product, we cannot hope to survive.
This is also true of many other countries in many other
spheres. The need for commodity agreements therefore
made itself felt a few years ago, and developing nations will
welcome a stabilization of prices in order to plan their
economies ahead instead of relying on aids which at times
are not forthcoming.
23. Another serious problem confronting developing countries
like Mauritius is the demographic explosion, with
which is also associated large-scale unemployment. We
believe that the doors of countries which do not have
over-population problems and which, on the contrary, lack
manpower should be opened to emigrants from the
over-populated areas of the world. Population mobility
should be increased and must not be confined to a
particular race or colour.
24. Another need of the day is intensive diversification of
agriculture to provide additional employment to people
seeking work. The United Nations must undertake proper
economic and social surveys in order to determine the
available potential resources, both human and material; and
economic organizations such as the World Bank should
finance the implementation of such findings, for the
developing countries themselves are not in a position to
provide all the funds essential for their development. We all
know that developing countries, in their economic and
social development, find themselves in great difficulties in
the financing of their projects.
25. The World Bank is doing fine work, but its loans cover
only certain projects which it considers viable and which
would give sufficient returns; developmental projects therefore
become restricted because of the high rates of interest.
More soft loans are required to build up the infrastructures
or to carry out projects which can be productive only on a
long-term basis. It is unfortunate, however, that this kind of
financing suffers from a paucity of available funds. Richer
countries should therefore contribute more towards such
organizations as the International Development Association
so that more financial resources may be made available for
that category of projects.
26. On the whole, therefore, in the decade to come we
should expect from the developed countries more commitments
derived from a political will; in return, the
developing countries, including Mauritius, will be in a better
planning position to obtain the optimum results from their
natural resources. In this connexion we welcome the
statement made here by Mr. Maurice Schumann, Foreign
Minister of France [1763rd meeting], to the effect that the
percentage of the gross national product that the developed
countries have been devoting to development aid remains
insufficient.
27. There is another matter, relating to the younger
generation, which I feel it my duty to mention here. The
state of unrest among today’s youth is symptomatic of a
sense of frustration. During the twenty-third session of the
Assembly, Mauritius was one of the co-sponsors of a
resolution [2447 (XXIII)] requesting a study of the education
of youth, and recalling the Declaration on the
Promotion among Youth of the Ideals of Peace, Mutual
Respect and Understanding between Peoples [resolution
2037 (XX)]. The youth of today will be the leaders of
tomorrow. It is therefore the duty of all the States of the
world to help towards a fuller participation of young
people in the different spheres of society.
28. Those are some of the points which have occurred to
us and which we submit for consideration by the United
Nations. I am confident that in an atmosphere of better
understanding there will emerge more friendliness among
nations. We all, as Members of the United Nations, have a
duty to perform and we must all participate so as to
demonstrate clearly that human brotherhood is not a mere
phrase. The whole United Nations family, working in a
better spirit of co-operation, may then fulfil our most
earnest hope that the day will come when man will be one
and peace will prevail.