General Assembly

Distr. GENERAL  

11 December 1989

ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH

                                                        A/RES/44/98
                                                        80th plenary meeting
                                                        11 December 1989
                             Question of Guam
 
      The General Assembly,
 
      Having considered the question of Guam,
 
      Having examined the relevant chapters of the report of the Special
 Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the
 Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,
 
      Recalling its resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960, containing the
 Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,
 and all resolutions and decisions of the United Nations relating to Guam, in
 particular General Assembly resolution 43/42 of 22 November 1988,
 
      Conscious of the need to ensure the full and speedy implementation of the
 Declaration in respect of the Territory,
 
      Having heard the statement of the representative of the United States of
 America, as the administering Power,
 
      Recalling the approval, in referendums held in Guam in 1987, of a draft
 Commonwealth Act, which, upon its enactment by the United States Congress,
 would reaffirm the right of the people of Guam to draft their own Constitution
 and to govern themselves,
 
      Noting that the draft Commonwealth Act provides that the Congress of the
 United States would recognize the inalienable right to self-determination of
 the Chamorro people, for which provisions would be made in the Guam
 Constitution,
 
      Aware of the special circumstances of the geographical location and
 economic conditions of the Territory and bearing in mind the necessity of
 diversifying and strengthening further its economy as a matter of priority in
 order to promote economic stability,
 
      Taking note of the statement of the representative of the administering
 Power that legislation had been introduced in the United States Congress to
 release 1,431 hectares of land no longer required by the Department of Defense
 and that the 100th Congress of the United States had considered the issue, and
 noting that a decision has yet to be taken on the matter,
 
      Noting the potential for diversifying and developing the economy of Guam
 through commercial fishing and agriculture,
 
      Taking note of the statement of the representative of the administering
 Power concerning the growth in tourism and the desire of the Government of
 Guam for balanced economic growth,
 
      Taking note also of the statement of the representative of the
 administering Power that the cultural identity of the Chamorro people, the
 indigenous inhabitants of Guam, would be recognized,
 
      Recalling the dispatch in 1979 of a United Nations visiting mission to
 the Territory,
 
      Mindful that United Nations visiting missions provide an effective means
 of ascertaining the situation in the small Territories and reiterating that
 the possibility of sending a further visiting mission to Guam at an
 appropriate time should be kept under review,
 
      1.   Approves the chapter of the report of the Special Committee on the
 Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting
 of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples relating to Guam;
 
      2.   Reaffirms the inalienable right of the people of Guam to
 self-determination and independence in conformity with the Declaration on the
 Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples;
 
      3.   Reaffirms its conviction that such factors as territorial size,
 geographical location, size of population and limited natural resources should
 in no way delay the implementation of the Declaration, which fully applies to
 Guam;
 
      4.   Reaffirms the importance of fostering an awareness among the people
 of Guam of the possibilities open to them with regard to their right to
 self-determination and calls upon the United States of America, as the
 administering Power, in co-operation with the territorial Government, to
 expedite the process of decolonization strictly in accordance with the
 expressed wishes of the people of the Territory;
 
      5.   Reaffirms its strong conviction that the presence of military bases
 and installations in the Territory could constitute a major obstacle to the
 implementation of the Declaration and that it is the responsibility of the
 administering Power to ensure that the existence of such bases and
 installations does not hinder the population of the Territory from exercising
 its right to self-determination and independence in conformity with the
 purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations;
 
      6.   Urges the administering Power to continue to take all necessary
 measures not to involve the Territory in any offensive acts or interference
 against other States and to comply fully with the purposes and principles of
 the Charter, the Declaration and the resolutions and decisions of the General
 Assembly relating to military activities and arrangements by colonial Powers
 in Territories under their administration;
 
      7.   Reaffirms the responsibility of the administering Power, under the
 Charter, to promote the economic and social development of Guam and, in that
 connection, calls upon the administering Power to take further steps to
 strengthen and diversify the economy of the Territory, with a view to reducing
 its economic dependence on the administering Power;
 
      8.   Reiterates that one of the obstacles to economic growth in Guam is
 the holding of large tracts of land by the United States federal authorities,
 and calls upon the administering Power, in co-operation with the territorial
 Government, to expedite the transfer of land to the people of the Territory
 and to take the necessary steps to safeguard their property rights;
 
      9.   Urges the administering Power, in co-operation with the territorial
 Government, to take effective measures to safeguard and guarantee the
 inalienable right of the people of Guam to own and dispose of the natural
 resources of the Territory, including marine resources, and to establish and
 maintain control over the future development of those resources, as well as to
 support measures by the territorial Government aimed at removing constraints
 to growth in commercial fishing and agriculture;
 
      10.  Reaffirms the importance of continued efforts by the territorial
 Government, with the support of the administering Power, to promote and
 develop Guam's unique cultural identity;
 
      11.  Urges the administering Power to give full recognition to the status
 and rights of the Chamorro people;
 
      12.  Requests the Special Committee to continue the examination of this
 question at its next session, including the possible dispatch of a further
 visiting mission to Guam at an appropriate time and in consultation with the
 administering Power, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its
 forty-fifth session.