Third Committee
Summary record of the 30th meeting
Held at Headquarters, New York, on Tuesday, 6 November 2012, at 10 a.m.
Chair: Mr. Mac-Donald …………………………………………………….. (Suriname)
Contents
Agenda item 67: Elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance (continued)
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5. Mr. Rahman (Islamic Republic of Iran) said that the Palestinian people had an inalienable right to self-determination, yet their exercise of that right continued to be denied by the occupying Power, including through abuse, restrictions and the killing of civilians. Flagrant international human rights violations by the occupying Power continued unabated in Palestinian occupied territories. Palestinians deserved liberation and self-determination, and the measures taken by the international community had been inadequate to date. The international community would not remain indifferent to that travesty of justice and humanity and must act collectively to support the Palestinian people and to save the credibility of the United Nations. As long as that issue remained unresolved, peace could not prevail in the region. The question of Palestine was at the core of the Middle East conflict. The root cause of the problem should be addressed through a democratic process for the future of the Palestinian people. To that end, all original inhabitants of Palestine, including Muslims, Christians, Jews, as well as the Palestinian refugees who lived in the diaspora in refugee camps under precarious conditions should be able to enjoy their inherent rights to self-determination and participate in a democratic process for determining the destiny of their ancestral homeland. The final outcome of that process should be an independent, democratic Palestine with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
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10. Mr. Haniff (Malaysia) said that the Palestinian struggle for self-determination from the illegal occupation by Israel was ongoing, and the expansion of Israeli settlements reflected the encouragement of settler violence against Palestinian people and property. Israeli policies and practices of displacement and dispossession only worsened the disempowerment of the Palestinian people. He urged the international community and the Middle East Quartet to take firmer action to stop the illegal Israeli settlements, confiscation of Palestinian land and resources and demolition of Palestinian homes, property and infrastructure. A stronger international response to the practices of administrative detention and extrajudicial execution was also required.
11. In addition, the Palestinian right to self-determination had been denied through the continued illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip, where for more than five years, 1.6 million people had been living in insecurity. In the context of the United Nations Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories, he had personally witnessed the sufferings under the military occupation and blockade, which destroyed the economy and minimized employment opportunities in the occupied Palestinian territories. Under restrictive and oppressive conditions, Israel’s control over the entry and exit of all people, goods and services in and out of Gaza slowed the Palestinian path towards achieving self-determination. He appealed for a solution as soon as possible: the only option was the two-State solution based on 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine.
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12. Ms. Sabja (Plurinational State of Bolivia) …
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14. Lastly, she urged the United Nations to support the Palestinian people and help it to realize its right to self-determination, and called for removal of obstacles to Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations.
15. Mr. Sareer (Maldives) …
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16. … Taking note of the report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, his Government firmly supported a two-State solution with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace as the only way forward, and called on the United Nations to seek the right of self-determination for the Palestinian people.
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21. Ms. Rasheed (Observer for Palestine) said that Israel had violated, trampled on and violently withheld the inherent right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, which it held captive in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem. The occupying Power’s continuation of its illegal policies, including the building of settlements and of its expansionist Wall, was a clear attempt to strengthen its subjugation and strangulation of the Palestinian people and to entrench its illegal occupation. That had resulted in the displacement of thousands of civilians and arbitrary and discriminatory restrictions on the freedom of movement of Palestinian civilians through checkpoints and roadblocks, where civilians were subject to humiliation, harassment and abuse. Moreover, settler violence had recently intensified, with complete impunity and the protection of Israeli occupying forces.
22. There was no justification for the deliberate planning and expansion of settlements, or the Wall. It was clear from its actions that the Israeli Government was interested neither in the two-State solution, nor in peace and security. Continued illegal settlement had led to a point where many now openly questioned the attainability of the two-State solution. Nevertheless, the Palestinian people remained committed to peace and had not forsaken their legitimate national aspirations, including the realization of the inalienable right to self-determination in their own independent and sovereign State of Palestine, with East Jerusalem as its capital. Israel, as the occupying Power, should not be allowed to continue obstructing and dictating the terms of the exercise of that right to self-determination. The Security Council’s duties, the responsibilities of Member States, and the obligations of the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention were clear: Serious, practical measures must be undertaken to ensure that Israel halted its illegal settlement activities and put an end to its illegitimate and belligerent 45-year occupation.
23. Ms. Alsaleh (Syrian Arab Republic) …
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24. Israel’s terrorism and aggressiveness against the Arabs had included the building of an apartheid wall in the occupied territory, the establishment of an entity which, under the racist notion of Judaization of the “State of Israel”, barred the original people of the territory, the Palestinians, from citizenship, and daily racist practices against Palestinians. The Israeli occupying authority was also currently building a racist separation wall east of the village of Majdal Shams in the occupied Syrian Golan in a vain attempt to isolate it from the Syrian motherland, Judaize and alter the demography of the Golan, build more settlements there and create a new de facto situation on the ground, in addition to stealing water, land and property, in violation of the Geneva Conventions. The right of the Syrian people to recover their occupied territory must not be ignored, nor must their suffering in the occupied Syrian Golan be overlooked.
25. The requirement for non-Jews to pledge allegiance to the Jewish State and the linking of the concept of peace to that of a “Jewish State of Israel” were clear expressions of racism, as were the violations committed by the Israeli occupying forces against Syrian nationals in the occupied Golan in the areas of health, culture and language or the treatment of Palestinian prisoners and prisoners from the occupied Syrian Golan. Indeed, in clear violation of the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law and with the knowledge of the International Committee of the Red Cross, the occupation authorities had been holding nine prisoners from the occupied Syrian Golan, including journalists, students and farmers, for 27 years under inhumane conditions that had resulted in serious illness and death. The sole charge against them was rejecting the occupation, burning Israeli identity cards and clinging to Syrian nationality.
26. The fact that Israel’s defenders within the United Nations ignored such crimes encouraged further Israeli violations of human rights. Her delegation once again called on the United Nations to take immediate action to fulfil its undertakings to deal with such grave acts of racism more resolutely and without selectivity for the sake of international peace and security and respect for human rights in the occupied territories.
27. Her delegation had examined the report of the Secretary-General on the universal realization of the right of peoples to self-determination. It condemned the high-handed measures taken by Israel, the occupying Power, which were confirmed in the report. It was sad that the United Nations had not yet managed to use its power to guarantee the inalienable right of self-determination of peoples labouring under the yoke of occupation and had in fact turned a blind eye to the issue, and that Israel, the occupying Power, still prided itself in the use of devious methods and the help of certain influential States within the United Nations to deprive millions of Palestinians of the enjoyment of their right of self-determination.
28. The Israeli occupying authority must respect the right of self-determination and withdraw from the occupied Arab territories in accordance with the Madrid terms of reference, the principle of land for peace and the relevant Security Council resolutions.
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31. Ms. Tandon (India) …
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32. India had contributed significantly to efforts to secure the right of peoples to self-determination and to the decolonization effort. Its unwavering support for the Palestinian cause had been a cornerstone of foreign policy and it supported Palestine’s aspirations for enhanced status at the United Nations. It was imperative to establish a sovereign, independent, viable and united State of Palestine with East Jerusalem as its capital, living within secure and recognized borders, side by side and at peace with Israel, as endorsed in relevant peace initiatives and United Nations resolutions.
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38. Ms Šćepanović (Vice-Chair) took the chair.
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42. Ms. Gunnarsdóttir (Iceland) …
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44. Iceland also reiterated its long-standing support for the right to self-determination. It was determined to contribute to the realization of the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and continued to call upon the Security Council to recommend to the General Assembly Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations. Until then, Iceland would support any decision by the Palestinians to pursue its application for status as a non-member observer State.
45. Mr. Selim (Egypt), recalling that the right to self-determination was at the forefront of international covenants, declarations and resolutions on human rights, said that despite the significant progress made by the United Nations, the Organization had been continuously politicized where the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination was concerned. Their legitimate rights were being flagrantly violated on a daily basis despite reports and resolutions adopted on the matter. He expressed grave concern at Israel’s unilateral decision to suspend cooperation with the Human Rights Council, which set a dangerous precedent that, left unnoticed, would undermine the effective role and mandate of the Council.
46. Egypt reiterated its call for the full implementation of the recommendations contained in the report of the International Independent Investigation Commission; the international community had a moral and legal responsibility to prevent the reoccurrence of violations and to hold perpetrators of human rights abuses accountable. Egypt also remained hopeful that next report the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 would include specific recommendations on how the Council should perform its role. The choice of the theme of the sixty-seventh session of the General Assembly underscored the need to ensure that mediation was objective and effective. The many efforts undertaken by the United Nations and its agencies to end decolonization remained incomplete and greater international efforts were required. His country welcomed the report of the Special Committee on decolonization. Declaring 2011-2020 the third International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism would send the right message and encourage all parties to step up efforts to achieve tangible results. He called upon the United Nations to meet fully its responsibility to ensure the unconditional right to self-determination by building the trust needed to reach a just and lasting peace in the Middle East and to enable the Palestinian people to establish the State of Palestine within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
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49. Mr. Kariv (Israel) said that it was surreal to hear the Syrian representative speaking about protecting civilians and human rights when her Government continued to slaughter its own people daily and had massacred tens of thousands of men, women and children. It was time for the desperate regime to stop using Israel to distract attention while sweeping its own atrocities under the carpet. The representative of Palestine had, once again, chosen to use the current forum to make inflammatory statements instead of taking the proper steps towards peace. Israel was, in fact, committed to advancing the self-determination of the Palestinian people in a two-State solution, side by side with the nation State of the Jewish people. She and other speakers had conveniently omitted the fact that the many overtures for negotiations made by the Israeli Prime Minister since taking office had been rebuffed time and again as the Palestinian authorities seemingly preferred to criticize Israel in international forums. She should refrain from distorting international norms, stop berating Israel and begin cooperating with it.
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54. Ms. Alsaleh (Syrian Arab Republic) said that the statement by the representative of the occupying Power was inaccurate and aimed to divert attention from events in his country. That delegation represented an authority that had been exercising racial discrimination for more than 60 years as it murdered, raped, and imposed a blockade. The representative’s expression of concern about the fate of the Palestinian people only served his own purposes. The Government of the Syrian Arab Republic impatiently awaited the Israeli occupying Power’s evacuation of the Golan Heights. Her Government would continue to draw the international community’s attention to the actions of the occupying Power for as long as it continued occupy Arab territories.
55. Ms. Rasheed (Observer for Palestine) said that it was regrettable that the same assertions of misrepresented and distorted truths continued to be made by the delegation of Israel year after year. The fact was that Israel, as the occupying Power, continued to violate international law, international humanitarian law and United Nations resolutions, counter to its false claim of wanting peace and being a peace-loving country. Meanwhile, it continued to demolish Palestinian homes and displace the Palestinian people, building illegal settlements and unleashing racist settlers. Israel must stop making false statements of peace, and, instead, end its violations against a defenceless population. Only when Israel ended its occupation and violations would peace and security prevail. Her delegation and the rest of the international community would continue to shed light on all of Israel’s violations until justice was served and peace brought to Palestinian people.
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The meeting rose at 12.20 p.m.
This record is subject to correction. Corrections should be sent under the signature of a member of the delegation concerned within one week of the date of publication to the Chief of the Official Records Editing Section, room DC2-750, 2 United Nations Plaza, and incorporated in a copy of the record.
Corrections will be issued after the end of the session, in a separate corrigendum for each Committee.
Document Type: Summary record
Document Sources: General Assembly, General Assembly Third Committee (Social Humanitarian and Cultural)
Subject: Human rights and international humanitarian law, Inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, Occupation, Self-determination, Statehood-related
Publication Date: 05/11/2012