CEIRPP meeting – Summary record

                  COMMITTEE ON THE EXERCISE OF THE INALIENABLE RIGHTS

                               OF THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

                           SUMMARY RECORD OF THE 66th MEETING

                            Held at Headquarters, New York,

                           on Friday, 10 July 1981, at 3 p.m.

                             Chairman:  Mr. SARRE (Senegal)

                                  CONTENTS

Statement by the Chairman

Adoption of the agenda

Report of the Chairman on his participation in the Twelfth Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers and in the thirty-seventh session of the Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity

Other matters

     This record is subject to correction.

     Corrections should be submitted in one of the working languages.  They should be set forth in a memorandum and also incorporated in a copy of the record.  They should be sent within one week of the date of this document to the Chief, Official Records Editing Section, Department of Conference Services, room A-3550, 866 United Nations Plaza.

     Any corrections to the record of this meeting and of other meetings will be issued in a corrigendum.

                     The meeting was called to order at 3.20 p.m.

STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN

1.   The CHAIRMAN informed the Committee that the representatives of Morocco and of the United Arab Emirates had asked to be allowed to participate as observers.  If he heard no objection, he would take it that the Committee wished to accede to those requests.

2.   It was so decided.

ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA

3.   The agenda was adopted.

REPORT OF THE CHAIRMAN ON HIS PARTICIPATION IN THE TWELFTH ISLAMIC CONFERENCE OF FOREIGN MINISTERS AND IN THE THIRTY-SEVENTH SESSION OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AFRICAN UNITY

4.   The CHAIRMAN said that 17 of the 43 resolutions adopted by the Twelfth Conference of Foreign Ministers, held in Baghdad from 30 May to 6 June 1981, had dealt with the question of the Middle East and Palestine.  Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and its establishment of settlements had been condemned, and member States had been invited to do their utmost to secure the adoption by the Security Council of a resolution stressing the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to return, their right to self-determination without external interference and their right to establish a Palestinian State.  The Conference had established a five-member committee to study ways of suspending Israel's membership in the United Nations, owing to its persistent refusal to respect the Organization's decisions.

5.   The Conference had also condemned the Israeli plans to excavate a canal between the Mediterranean and Dead Seas and had called upon all Member States of the United Nations to refuse to co-operate with Israel in executing that project. It had strongly condemned the Israeli policy of establishing settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories and had invited States not to encourage Jewish emigration to Israel.  The relevant resolutions of the Conference would be circulated to members of the Committee.

6.   The resolutions adopted by the Conference covered the political, economic, social, cultural and human aspects of the Palestinian question.  To the extent that they were based on the principles and objectives of the United Nations the Committee could draw on them in its work.

7.   The Council of Ministers of the Organization of African Unity, meeting in Nairobi from 15 to 28 June 1981, had devoted particular attention to the problem of Palestine and the Middle East.  It had condemned any separate treaty which violated the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, had stressed that no peaceful solution could be found without the participation of PLO and the recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, and had welcomed the work of the Committee.  It had also invited the League of Arab States to accept African liberation movements as observers and had condemned the Israeli attack on the Iraqi nuclear power station.

8.   Mr. TERZI (Observer, Palestine Liberation Organization) welcomed the observer delegations of Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.  The Chairman's participation in the Islamic Conference and the Council of Ministers of OAU would have helped to disseminate the truth about the Palestinian cause.  His delegation was indebted to the Chairman for his efforts in defence of that cause.

9.   Mr. NAIK (Pakistan) likewise welcomed the observer delegations of Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.  The presence of the former should help to improve co-ordination with the Islamic Conference.  Noting that the Conference had established a committee to consider resolutions to be adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations at its thirty-sixth session he suggested that the Committee should co-operate with that body in an endeavour to promote the rights of the Palestinian people.

OTHER MATTERS

10.  Mr. TERZI (Observer, Palestine Liberation Organization) welcomed the circulation of document A/36/341, which revealed the aims of the World Zionist Organization and provided ample evidence in support of the view that the Fascists in Israel had no place at the United Nations, given their violations of the human rights of the Palestinian people.

11.  His delegation wished to know what stage had been reached in the preparation of certain publications relating to Palestine.

12.  Mr. YOGASUNDRAM (Chief, Special Unit on Palestinian Rights) said that two studies, relating to Palestinian children and institutions, had been issued, and that two others, relating to settlements and the legal status of Palestine, would be ready for publication very shortly.

13.  Mr. TERZI (Observer, Palestine Liberation Organization) said that he was concerned over the fate of the Palestinian who had been held hostage for two years by the United States Government, prior to being extradited to the Fascists in Israel.  It was a clear case of highway brigandry, and the Committee should take appropriate action.

14.  The CHAIRMAN said the relevant authorities had already been contacted. The Secretary-General would be approached to see if further steps could be taken.

15.  Mr. TERZI (Observer, Palestine Liberation Organization) said that the Fascists in Israel were increasing their human rights violations and were attempting to eliminate the Arabs from all of Palestine.  Restrictions had, for example, been placed on the activities of the Red Crescent in Gaza, while Israelis continued to harass the local populace by blowing up their homes without court orders. Religious sites had been desecrated, so that the rights of dead Palestinians were also being violated.

16.  The CHAIRMAN said that the Committee would draw the attention of the Secretary-General to the points raised by the representative of the Palestine Liberation Organization.

17.  Mr. TERZI (Observer, Palestine Liberation Organization) said that the papers produced by the United Nations Secretariat for the seminars held in Arusha and Vienna had been extremely helpful.  His delegation hoped that it would be possible to hold further seminars in the coming biennium.  Perhaps the Committee might take a decision on the matter there and then.

18.  The CHAIRMAN said that it might be more appropriate for the question of further seminars to be considered by a working group in the first instance.

19.  Mr. TERZI (Observer, Palestine Liberation Organization) said that his delegation would have welcomed an introductory note by the Secretary-General to the document containing the reports on, and papers presented at, the two seminars. With regard to the holding of further seminars, his delegation would have preferred to see the Committee take a decision in principle at that meeting.  Such a procedure would minimize the problems likely to be caused by those elements of the Secretariat which were opposed to the Committee and its work.

20.  Mr. YOGASUNDRAM (Chief, Special Unit on Palestinian Rights) said that any further seminars would have to be approved by the General Assembly.  It was important to decide how many seminars were wanted and where they should be held. It would be extremely difficult to prepare cost estimates without such information.

21.  The CHAIRMAN said that it would be difficult to take a decision on the matter there and then.  The Committee could perhaps simply state that it wished to hold further seminars.  The main thing was to ensure that the report of the Committee to the General Assembly established the principle of continuing to hold seminars.

                            The meeting rose at 4.10 p.m.