Palestine question/Jerusalem – Final communiqué of OIC FMs – Letter from Malaysia (excerpts)

Letter dated 1 November 2000 from the Permanent Representative

of Malaysia to the United Nations addressed to the Secretary-General 

         I have the honour, in my capacity as Chairman of the Islamic Group at the United Nations, to transmit herewith the text of the final communiqué of the annual coordination meeting of the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the States members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York on 18 September 2000 (see annex).*

         I should be grateful if you would have the text of the present letter and its annex circulated as a document of the General Assembly, under agenda items 10, 20, 24, 31, 36, 40, 41, 45, 46, 50, 52, 54, 56, 59, 60, 64, 70, 73, 76, 84, 85, 98, 109, 113, 155, 164 and 177, and of the Security Council.

(Signed) Hasmy Agam
Ambassador
Permanent Representative of Malaysia
to the United Nations
Chairman of the Islamic Group

_______________

*          The annex is being circulated in the languages of submission only.

Annex to the letter dated 1 November 2000 from the

Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations

addressed to the Secretary-General 

[Original: Arabic, English and French]

FINAL COMMUNIQUE OF THE ANNUAL COORDINATION MEETING OF

THE FOREIGN MINISTERS OF OIC MEMBER STATES UNITED NATIONS

HEADQUARTERS – NEW YORK 20 JUMADA II, 1421H 18 SEPTEMBER 2000 

1. The Annual Coordination Meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the OIC Member States convened on 20 Jumada II, 1421H (18 September 2000) at the United Nations Headquarters in New York under the Chairmanship of His Excellency The Honourable Dato Syed Hamid Al-Bar, Foreign Minister of Malaysia, Chairman of the 27th Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers.

2. The Meeting was attended by His Excellency Mr. Ibrahima Fall, representative of the UN Secretary-General, and His Excellency Ambassador Houssein Hassouna, representative of the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States.

3. The Meeting took note with deep appreciation, of the reports submitted by the Secretary General on the Meeting's agenda items.

Issue of Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif and the Arab-Israeli Conflict: 

4. The Meeting approved the Report issued by the Six-Member Committee on Palestine (Annex-1) which was held on 14 Jumada II, 1421H (12 September 2000) as well as a Declaration on Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Annex-10).

5. The Meeting endorsed the recommendations of the Eighteenth Session of the Al-Quds Committee, held under the Chairmanship of His Majesty King Mohamed VI, in the city of Agadir, Morocco, on 28 August 2000.  The Meeting also reaffirmed its support for the stand of the State of Palestine which is founded on a firm adherence to its sovereignty over Al-Quds Al-Sharif, including the Holy Mosque of Al-Haram Al-Sharif and all the Holy Christian and Islamic sanctuaries which constitute an integral part of the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.  The Meeting also affirmed that Al-Quds Al-Sharif is the capital of the independent State of Palestine and renewed its rejection of any attempt to diminish the Palestinian sovereignty over Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

6. The Meeting reiterated the necessity to end all occupation and colonialist settlement measures and practices in Al-Quds and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories, in line with the resolutions of the international legitimacy and international covenants, conventions and norms that consider all the Israeli legislative, administrative and settlement schemes and measures designed to alter the legal, demographic, architectural, cultural and civilization-related status of the Holy City as null and void, running counter to the decisions of international legitimacy, covenants and norms as well as against the agreements signed by both the Palestinian and Israeli sides.  The OIC Six-Member Committee on Palestine also called upon the Security Council to revive the Commission established by the S.C. to examine the situation relating to settlements in the Arab territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, in accordance with resolution 446 (1979).

7. The Meeting urged all States of the world, including the two co-sponsors of the peace process, the European Union (EU), China, Japan, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) nations and the United Nations Organization to see to the implementation of the resolutions of international legitimacy relevant to the issue of Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

8. The Meeting exhorted all States of the world to abide by Security Council resolution 478 (1980) calling upon them not to transfer their diplomatic missions to the city of Al-Quds; and called on those States not to have dealings with the Israeli occupation authorities in any way that may be construed as a de facto recognition of the fait accompli imposed by Israel which claims that the city of Al-Quds Al-Sharif is its capital. Likewise, it expressed its rejection of the recommendation issued by the American Congress as well as the American statements advocating recognition of Al-Quds as the capital of Israel and the shifting of the American embassy to the Holy City.

9. The Meeting also invited all countries [of the world] to extend recognition to the State of Palestine with its capital Al-Quds Al-Sharif as soon as it is proclaimed on Palestinian land and to provide all kinds of support to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and its National Authority to concretize its sovereignty over Palestinian land within the boundaries of the 4^th of June 1967, in conformity with the decisions of the international legitimacy ; and appealed to all countries, as well, to support the State of Palestine's candidature for full-fledged membership of the United Nations.

10. The Meeting reiterated its support for the Middle East Peace Process according to the foundations which formed the groundwork of the Madrid Peace Conference, based on the U.N. Charter and decisions, especially security council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), and 425 (1978), and the land-for-peace principle which calls for Israel's evacuation of all the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories, including the city of Al-Quds Al-Sharif and re-establishment of the inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people, along with Israel's total pull out from the occupied Syrian Golan up to the June 4, 1967 line, and from the occupied Lebanese territories until the internationally recognized borders. Also urged for the minute and genuine implementation of all the agreements signed within this framework between the parties concerned.

11. The Meeting called for a more active participation, on the part of the U.N., in helping ensure the success of the Mideast peace process and stressing the U.N.'s sustained and firm responsibility towards the Palestinian cause until such time when a just and comprehensive peace settlement, covering all aspects, is reached.

12. The Meeting requested action at the U.N. and all other international institutions and fora to bring pressure to bear on Israel to release the detainees, allow back the deportees and put an end to its practice of collective punishment and to the confiscation of land and property, the demolition of houses and any actions hazardous to the ecology (life and environment) in the occupied Palestinian and other Arab territories, including Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

13. The Meeting affirmed the continued responsibility of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in the Near East (UNRWA) in fulfilling its mission and discharging its duties towards the Palestinian nationals wherever they may be staying by virtue of the relevant UN General Assembly resolution; and asked the member states to submit to the U.N. Secretary-General that the Conciliation Commission, in cooperation with UNRWA and the countries concerned, may conduct a comprehensive survey of the Palestinian refugees and their property and come out with an overall vision of their problems resting on their right to return to their homeland – Palestine – in accordance with General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 1948. It called, as well, upon all States to extend more assistance so as to cover UNRWA's budget and make it possible for it to dispense its prescribed services.

14 The Meeting urged the international community to take all necessary measures to compel Israel to set free all the Lebanese Prisoners of War (POWs), abductees and those detained as hostages in its jails in contravention of the provisions of International Law, the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and The Hague Agreement of 1907. Similarly, the Meeting exhorted the Member States and international organizations to pressure the Israeli Government into allowing representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other humanitarian organizations to visit the Lebanese detainees in Israeli Jails, on a periodic and regular basis, to report on their condition and provide them with the necessary health and humanitarian care.

15. The Meeting reaffirmed its attachment to Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders and backed up the stance of the Lebanese Government in its insistence as to the necessity of ensuring the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from all the Lebanese territories, including Shaba' Farms, for Lebanese sovereignty to prevail therein.

16. The Meeting condemned Israel's policy of refusal to comply with Security Council resolution no. 497 of 1981, the imposition of its mandate over the occupied Syrian Golan as well as its policy of annexation, creation of colonial settlements, land confiscation, diverting water sources and imposing Israeli nationality on Syrian citizens. The Meeting also underlined that all such measures are null and void and constitute a blatant violation of the principles of International Law on occupation and war, in particular the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949; and urged Israel to pull out fully from the occupied Syrian Golan to the lines of June 4, 1967.

17. The meeting urged the international community and the Security Council to compel Israel to abide by the U.N. resolutions, especially Security Council resolution 487 of 1981; insist that it join the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and implement the resolutions of the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) according to which all Israeli nuclear installations must submit to the Agency’s system of comprehensive guarantees; and request Israel to publicly renounced nuclear armament and submit a complete statement on its capabilities and reserves in terms of nuclear arms and substances to both the Security Council and the IAEA, as a pre-requisite to the creation of an area free of weapons of mass destruction, foremost among which are the nuclear ones, in the Middle East and the establishment of an overall and just peace in the region.

/…

ANNEX I

REPORT OF THE MEETING OF THE OIC SIX-MEMBER COMMITTEE ON PALESTINE

HELD ON 14 JUMADA AL-THANI 1421H (12 SEPTEMBER 2000)

SUBMITTED TO THE ANNUAL COORDINATION MEETING OF THE

FOREIGN MINISTERS OF THE OIC MEMBER STATES

UNITED NATIONS – NEW YORK 20 JUMADA II, 1421 H 18 SEPTEMBER 2000 

FIRST:

The Organization of the Islamic Conference's (OIC) Six-Member Committee on Palestine held a meeting at the U.N. Headquarters in New York. on 14 Jumada Al-Thani 1421H (12 September 2000) under the chairmanship of His Excellency Dr. Azeddine Laraki, Secretary General of the OIC.

SECOND:

The meeting was attended by Their Excellencies the Foreign Ministers of the Committee member states, namely:

THIRD:

In his inaugural address, the Secretary-General reiterated the OIC's unwavering position with regard to the foremost cause of Muslims, the cause of Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif.  He called for efforts to be concerted so as to save the peace process in the Middle-East, through the implementation of all the relevant international resolutions foremost of which General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 1948, and Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), and all other resolutions concerning Al-Quds. The Secretary General emphasized that the issue of Palestine forms the core of the conflict in the Middle-East and that, as long as it remains unresolved, there would be no hope for a just and comprehensive peace to prevail in the region.

FOURTH:

The Foreign Minister of the State of Palestine then delivered a statement which included an exhaustive review of the developments of the peace process and of the intransigent Israeli stand which has precluded the attainment of an agreement at the Camp David II Summit.  His Excellency also reported on the broad gap between the Palestinian and Israeli stands regarding the final settlement.

FIFTH:

The Committee members contributed interventions in which they reiterated their States' stand on the side of the Palestinian right and their support for the steadfast Palestinian position in the negotiations for the benefit of achieving a just and comprehensive peace in the region.

SIXTH:

The Committee submitted the following recommendations to the coordination meeting of Foreign Ministers of OIC Member States:

1 – Reaffirming the provisions of all the resolutions adopted by the relevant Islamic conferences on the cause of Palestine and Al-Quds as well as the Arab-Israeli conflict;

2 – Underlining the necessity for the establishment of the independent Palestinian state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the capital along with the implementation of all the international resolutions concerning the Palestinian cause, particularly the two resolutions nos. 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) of the Security Council relevant to the Al-Quds issue and particularly resolutions No. 252 (1968), 267 (1969), 465 (1980), 476 (1980), 478 (1980), 1073 (1996) as well as the U.N. General Assembly resolution no. 194 (III) of 1948 regarding the refugee issue considered as the main guarantee for peace to take hold in the area.

3 – Supporting the stand of the State of Palestine which is founded on a firm adherence to its sovereignty over Al-Quds Al-Sharif. including the Holy Mosque of Al-Haram Al-Sharif and all the Holy Christian and Islamic sanctuaries which constitute an integral part of the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, and further affirming that Al-Quds Al-Sharif is the capital of the independent State of Palestine. Also affirming in this connection, its rejection of any attempt to diminish the Palestinian sovereignty over Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

4 – Stressing the necessity for all occupation and colonialist settlement measures and practices to be terminated in Al-Quds and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories, in line with the decisions of the international legality as well as international covenants, conventions and norms that consider all the Israeli legislative, administrative and settlement schemes and measures designed to alter the legal, demographic, architectural, cultural and civilization-related status of the Holy City as null and void, running counter to the resolutions of international legitimacy, covenants and norms as well as the agreements signed by both the Palestinian and Israeli sides. The OIC Six-Member Committee on Palestine also calls upon the Security Council to revive the Commission established by the Security Council to examine the situation relating to settlements in the Arab territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, in accordance with resolution 446 (1979).

5 – Urging all States of the world, including the two co-sponsors of the peace process, the European Union (EU), China, Japan, the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) countries and the United Nations Organization to see to the implementation of the resolutions of international legitimacy relevant to the issue of Palestine and Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

6 – Exhorting all States of the world to abide by Security Council resolution 478 (1980) calling upon them not to transfer their diplomatic missions to the city of Al-Quds; and calling on those States not to have dealings with the Israeli occupation authorities in any way that may be construed as a de facto recognition of the fait accompli imposed by Israel which claims that the city of Al-Quds Al-Sharif is its capital.  Likewise, expressing rejection of the recommendation issued by the American Congress as well as the American statements advocating recognition of Al-Quds as the capital of Israel and the shifting of the American embassy to the Holy City.

7 – Inviting all countries [of the world] to extend recognition to the State of Palestine with its capital Al-Quds Al-Sharif as soon as it is proclaimed on Palestinian land and to provide all kinds of support to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and its National Authority to concretize its sovereignty over Palestinian land within the boundaries of the 4^th of June 1967, in conformity with the resolutions of the international legitimacy; and appealing to all countries, as well, to support the State of Palestine's candidature for full-fledged membership of the U.N.O.

8 – Highlighting its [the Committee's] support of the Middle East peace process according to the foundations that served as a springboard for it at the Madrid Peace Conference, based on the U.N. Charter and resolutions, especially Security Council resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 425 (1978) and the land-for-peace principle which calls for Israel's withdrawal from all the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories, including the city of Al-Quds Al-Sharif and re-establishing the inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people, along with Israel's total pull out from the occupied Syrian Golan up to the 4th of June 1967 line, and from the occupied Lebanese territories until the internationally recognized borders. Also urging for the minute and genuine implementation of all the agreements signed within this framework between the parties concerned.

9 – Underlining the fact that Israel's failure to abide by the principles and foundations upon which the peace process was built, its reneging on the commitments, pledges and agreements reached in the context of that process and its procrastination and prevarication when it comes to implementing them and again, its reneging on them all that could seriously undermine the peace process.

10- Requesting [all] states and international institutions and bodies to abide by the international decisions relating to the city of Al-Quds as an integral part of the Palestinian and Arab territories occupied in 1967 and inviting them also to refrain from participating in any meeting or activity of such a nature as to serve Israel's objectives of consecrating its occupation and annexation of the Holy City.

11 – Condemning Israel's continued excavations under the archaeological, cultural and religious landmarks and relics in the eastern part of the holy city, particularly beneath the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Mosque of the dignified Dome of the Rock and its opening of a tunnel in the Holy City of Al-Quds, thus posing a threat to both Muslim and Christian shrines and sanctuaries.

Furthermore, urging the international community and the Security Council to carry out their decisions regarding the preservation of the status of Al-Quds, including a mechanism for the implementation of the Council's resolution no. 1073 of 1996 on closing the said tunnel and taking the necessary measures for the Security Council to follow-up the implementation of the provisions laid out in the Council's Presidential Statement endorsed by the Council on 13 July 1998, including adoption of the appropriate decisions and measures in this connection in accordance with the U.N. Charter, which consider Israel's undertakings in Al-Quds as a breach of the peace process in the Middle East, and a threat to international peace and security, as-well as an act of aggression.

12 – Calling for the pursuance of the endeavors aiming at the implementation of both Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973), as well as the relevant U.N. resolutions concerning the return of the displaced persons, specially resolution no. 237 of 1967.

13 – Insisting that the United Nations sends a "fact-finding mission" to probe the state of affairs in the Palestinian territories; the violation of their property rights and deeds, the exploitation of such property and obtaining integral copies of the documents and maps of the lands in the custody of the Israeli administration.  Also to use good offices and make efforts for the implementation of U.N. General Assembly resolution no. 43/57, dated 6 December 1988 on the revenue of the property of Palestinian refugees – the resolution stipulating that the [U.N.] Secretary-General should take appropriate steps, in consultation with the U.N. Conciliation Commission for Palestine to safeguard and administer the Arab properties, assets and property rights in Israel and set up a fond to collect the proceeds thereof on behalf of the owners. Also demanding of the United Nations to appoint a permanent trustee for such property who should submit periodic reports to the U.N. on the properties' situation and safeguard them until the return to them of their rightful owners.

14 – Calling for a more active participation, on the part of the U.N., in helping ensure the success of the Mideast peace process and stressing the U.N.'s sustained and firm responsibility towards the Palestinian cause until such time when a Just and comprehensive peace settlement, covering all aspects, is reached – a deal securing the end of the Israeli occupation and enabling the Palestinian people to exercise their inalienable national rights, including that of returning, determining their own future and setting up their own independent state on their national soil with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as capital.

15 – Requesting action at the U.N. and all other international institutions and fora to bring pressure to bear on Israel to release the detainees, allow back the deportees and put an end its practice of collective punishment and to the confiscation of land and property, the demolition of houses and any actions hazardous to the ecology (life and the environment) in the occupied Palestinian and other Arab territories, including Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

16 – Affirming the continued responsibility of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in the Near East (UNRWA) in fulfilling its mission and discharging its duties towards the Palestinian nationals wherever they may be staying by virtue of the relevant General Assembly resolution; and asking the Member States to submit to the U.N. Secretary-General that the Conciliation Commission, in cooperation with UNRWA and the countries concerned, may conduct a comprehensive survey of the Palestinian refugees and their property and come out with an overall vision of their problems resting on their right to return to their homeland – Palestine – in accordance with international resolution no. 194 (III) of 1948.  Calling, as well. upon all states to extend more assistance so as to cover UNRWA's budget and make it possible for it to dispense its prescribed services.

17 – Urging the international community to take all necessary measures to compel Israel to set free all the Lebanese prisoners of war, abductees and those detained as hostages in its jails in contravention of the provisions of International Law, the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 and The Hague Agreement of 1907.  Similarly, exhorting the Member States and international organizations to pressure the Israeli government into allowing representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and other humanitarian organizations to visit the Lebanese detainees in Israeli jails, periodically and steadily, to report on their condition and provide them with the necessary health and humanitarian care.

18 – Reaffirming keenness on Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders and backing the stance of. the Lebanese Government in its insistence as to the necessity of ensuring the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from all the Lebanese territories, including Shaba' Farms, for Lebanese sovereignty to prevail therein.

19 – Condemning Israel's policy of refusal to comply with Security Council resolution no. 497 of 1981, the imposition of its mandate over the occupied Syrian Golan as well as its policy of annexation, creation of colonial settlements, land confiscation, diverting water sources and imposing Israeli nationality on Syrian citizens. Also underlining that all such measures are null and void and constitute a blatant violation of the principles of International Law on occupation and war, in particular the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949; and urging Israel to pull out fully from the occupied Syrian Golan to the lines of June 4 1967.

20 – Urging the international community and the Security Council to compel Israel to comply with U.N. resolutions, especially Security Council resolution 487 of 1981; insist that it join the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and implement the resolutions of the U.N. General Assembly and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) according to which all Israeli nuclear installations must submit to the Agency's system of comprehensive guarantees; and request Israel to publicly denounce nuclear armament and submit a complete statement on its capabilities and reserves in terms of nuclear arms and substances to both the Security Council and the IAEA, as a sine qua non step towards the creation of an area free of weapons of mass destruction, foremost among which are the nuclear ones, in the Middle East and the establishment of overall and just peace in the region.

21 – Mandating the Secretary-General to take ail necessary measures to enhance communications and coordination on the Palestinian cause and the Arab-Israeli conflict between the OIC, on the one hand. and the League of Arab States, the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the European Union (EU), the United Nations (U.N.) and its specialized agencies, on the other, and to express appreciation for the solidarity stances of those institutions and their support to the Palestinian people's Just struggle.

/…

ANNEX 10

ANNUAL COORDINATION MEETING OF THE

FOREIGN MINISTERS OF THE O.I.C. MEMBER STATES

Declaration on Al-Quds Al-Sharif

New York

18 September 2000

The Coordination Meeting of Foreign Ministers of the OIC Member States held on 18 September 2000 at the UN Headquarters in New York reviewed, with great concern and a sense of urgency, the situation related to the question of Palestine, Al-Quds Al-Sharif, and the Middle East peace process.  In this regard, it endorsed the Report of the Committee on Palestine.  It also expressed appreciation to the Chairman and the members of Al-Quds Committee for their continuing efforts in preserving the Palestinian, Arab, and Islamic rights in the Holy City reaffirming the clear position adopted by the Committee at its last meeting in Agadir, Kingdom of Morocco, which was also attended by Muslim and Christian religious leaders from the Holy City.

The Ministers reaffirmed their adherence to the Al-Quds Appeal issued by the 27 ^th Ministerial Meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

The Ministers noted, with concern, the Israeli intransigence in the Israeli-Palestinian track of the peace process, reaffirmed the need for full compliance with the basis of the process and the realization of the rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to establish their independent State with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, and the exercise of their sovereignty over their holy sites including AI-Haram Al-Sharif. In this regard, they provided their support to the Palestinian position upholding these rights and reaffirmed their rejection of any attempt to diminish the Palestinian sovereignty over Al-Quds Al-Sharif.

The Ministers affirmed the centrality of the issue of Al-Quds Al-Sharif, the first Qiblah and the third holy sanctuary for the Islamic States and the Islamic Ummah as a whole, especially the Islamic holy sites, foremost of-which is Al-Haram Al-Sharif.  They affirmed their devotion to Islamic rights there and the need for not undermining those rights by any party. The Ministers affirmed the applicability of Security Council resolution 242 (1967) on Occupied East Jerusalem and the urgency for Israel's complete withdrawal from it.  They also affirmed the respect of Islam for the other monotheistic religions and for all believers and their rights in freedom of expression, access, and worship in the Holy City.