Following is the Statement by His Excellency Major-General Dr. Joseph Saidu Momoh, on Tuesday, 5th September, 1989.
Mr. Chairman,
Your Majesties,
Your Excellencies, Heads of State and Government,
Distinguished Delegates,
It is a joy and an honour to be a part of this great gathering of the distinguished nations of the Non-Aligned Movement. let me at the outset register my gratitude on my personal behalf and that of my country to the Government and People of Yugoslavia for the hospitality accorded my delegation and the facilities put at the Conference's disposal. To you Mr. Chairman, we register our warm congratulations on your election which is a testimony to the constructive role your government and people have played in the service of our Movement.
Let me also express our gratitude to the outgoing chairman, President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, for his distinguished service to our Non-Aligned Movement during he last three years.
Fifty years ago, a global human tragedy swept across our world leaving economic and social chaos and general misery unknown in the annals of human history. Thus, as we gather and deliberate here in Belgrade, we reflect on the aftermath of global catastrophe. It was our of that conflict that emerged new ideas, institutions and technologies. There also arose the super powers, and a world that became ideologically and militarily polarized. Along with these, developed the concept of collective security, alliances and the United Nations system. It was in this world situation that the Non-Aligned Movement was born.
Thus we come back to Yugoslavia first to pay tribute to the founding fathers of the Non-Aligned Movement as well as to all those who have helped to sustain it. Secondly, we come to seriously reflect on our future as a Movement, in the light of present-day world developments.
The Non-Aligned Movement had its inception here in Belgrade which makes this historic city particularly appropriate for this meeting today. Yugoslavia was in the forefront in the global resistance to fascism, and in the search for peace and security. Its contribution to the attainment of freedom for mankind and peace for our world is also universally recognized. We pay tribute to the courage of its people and its late great leader President Josip Broz Tito, whose commitment to the ideals of the Non-Aligned Movement we recall with respect and admiration.
Tenth-eight years ago, this Movement was born of the need to improve the human condition of its members living in an age fraught with tension and social inequalities, a world torn by prejudice, mistrust and misunderstanding. Our Movement has managed to surmount natural obstacles and man-made difficulties in its period of existence. This is a record we ought to be proud of.
Since our last summit meeting, the international climate has shown some measure of improvement. However, super-power rivalry and the accumulation of armaments still persist. Mistrust for each other by the two super-powers continues to inhibit the success of producing a comprehensive and acceptable agenda for the reduction of nuclear and conventional stock-piles.
As we therefore gather here to speak for a large number of the world's population, a population wishing to live in a growing world, secure in its peaceful pursuits, o-existing in harmony and moving confidently towards a better life for all, we have to face and resolutely come to terms with those critical issues confronting us with courage and determination. The imperatives of survival dictate no other cause but this. We must avail ourselves of this opportunity to say and proclaim that, man, once again, is master of his race and not the slave of his own heritage. This gathering must therefore send a clear message to the super-powers, that they should bear in mind constantly their responsibility for keeping the peace: They must use their strength and resources not to advance their own particular political hegemony or selfish interest but rather for the welfare of mankind that is still living in a world where hunger, poverty and illiteracy continue to afflict large segments of our globs. Efforts towards the implementation of the action programme of the International Conference on the relation between disarmament and development held in 1987, should be speedily considered.
Mr. Chairman, our Movement comprises least developed and developing nations with law, and in some cases, the lowest indicators of the physical quality of life. Most of us have been victims of colonial and racist exploitation, and our economic policies are still subjected to external manipulation because of our over-dependence on the export of basic raw materials and minerals. This is an untenable situation that we should arrest. But we can only do so if we accelerate our efforts at promoting collective self-reliance, self-sustaining development programmes and cooperation among ourselves.
Much meaningful economic progress can hardly be achieved in the present context of our debt burden. National policies in many cases are formulated to the wishes of external parties with little or no regard to internal prevailing conditions. This has consequently assumed a crisis proportion threatening the very fabric of our socio-economic structures and political survival. The solution of the debt question lies in a joint approach between creditor nations and institutions, and debtor countries.
Mr. Chairman, on the political front, the International Community is familiar with the situation in South Africa. The apartheid system in that country continues to deny basic rights and freedom to the vast majority of the people. The South African Regime continues unabated with its acts of destabilization against frontline and neighbouring states with a view to reversing the socio=economic development of the region. If South Africa is not willing to change then the only remaining peaceful means for effecting change in South Africa is through the imposition of comprehensive mandatory sanctions against the regime under the provisions of Chamber VII of the United Nations Charter.
Meanwhile, we should continue to lend both moral and material support to the Liberation Movements in South Africa.
Mr. Chairman, one of the most serious challenges facing Africa now is the implementation of the United Nations plan for the Independence of Namibia as embodied in Resolution 435 of 1978. Int is needless to restate that Namibia is the sacred responsibility of the United Nations. Yet events since the signing of the New York Agreement on Namibia in December, 1988, have not given cause for much joy. Against protestations, the permanent members of the Security Council decided to reduce drastically the size of the military component of UNTAG. This to some extent led to the tragic events of April 1 in Namibia. As a result, we believe that additional manpower resources are needed if we are to have free and fair elections in Namibia. South Africa for its own part continues to put obstacles in the way of returning refugees as well as engaging in intimidation of SWAPO supporters. In these circumstances, our Movement must be unequivocal in our demand for a free and fair election in Namibia.
Mr. Chairman, on the Middle East, there has been no progress towards the convening of an International Conference as called for by the General Assembly of the United Nations. The right of the people of Palestine to self-determination (in) an Independent State is unchallengeable. We believe that the Middle East crisis can only be solved in a sincere spirit of reciprocity. In this regard, the Palestinians through the PLO have taken significant and courageous steps in the quest for peace, through the implicit recognition of the State of Israel. It is now incumbent upon Israel to respond positively to those courageous steps.
Events in the Gulf, Afghanistan, Kampuchea and Central America, not so long ago, gave hopeful signs that peace in these regions was finally being attained. This however has proved largely elusive while much of the International Community watches with increasing despair and concern. While we appeal and call on the actors involved in these conflicts for a resolution of the problems, our Movement must play a relevant role in solving these regional issues.
Regarding the problem on the Korean peninsula, we cannot pretend to speak for the Korean people. No one can speak for either separate or collective national interests. While we support the unification of both the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, we can only do so in the context of the wishes of both countries and the desire of their two peoples.
Mr. Chairman, our Movement must welcome the great efforts at mutual accommodation demonstrated by the United States and the Soviet Union. Indeed, these two nations bear a primary responsibility for the preservation of world peace. Our Movement was born out of a desire not to get involved in their established military structures that divided them into East and West bloc nations. However, our Movement has on many occasions violated its fundamental principle of being Non-Aligned. This has produced inevitable strains and stressed among members of the Movement. What then is the future of our relationship with the super-powers? We cannot indefinitely pass a host of unimplementable and sometimes meaningless resolutions that ar quietly forgotten at the end of each conference.
We must carefully take stock of our Movement in terms of its relationship with the super-powers, its contribution to the solution of the problems of development, food production, the environment and toxic waste disposal, debt resolution, North-South and South-South dialogue and drug trafficking. Our Movement must make a calculated effort at solving outstanding regional conflicts.
As we deliberate these issues, let us restate and reaffirm our commitment to the ideals that inspired the founders of this Movement, our firm opposition to nuclear and conventional arms and the threat they pose to human security. September 1, 1939, and the six years of war left a lasting imprint in our memory.
Places names such as Pearl Harbour, Okinawa, Dunkirk, Stalingrad, Anzio, Iwo Jima, Hiroshima, all individually and collectively, recall the ferocity and horrors of those six years of conflict. And while these slowly fade into history and world peace becomes increasingly enhanced, the Non-Aligned Movement must not lapse into irrelevance. We must define new strategies to find solutions to problems that still threaten the human race, and work for greater world peace and understanding.
I thank you.