International Day of Solidarity (1984) – Special bulletin

 SPECIAL BULLETIN ON THE COMMEMORATION

OF THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF SOLIDARITY

WITH THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

1984

CONTENTS

I.  Commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People

II. Texts of statements made and messages received on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People

COUNTRY/ORGANIZATION – NAME AND TITLE

I. COMMEMORATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF SOLIDARITY WITH THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

In accordance with operative paragraph 1(c) of General Assembly resolution 32/40B, the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People was observed in New York, Geneva and Vienna, as well as in several other cities on Thursday, 29 November 1984.

In New York, the programme of the Day included a photo exhibit. The theme of the display was "Scenes from Palestine, and the United Nations and the Question of Palestine". The exhibit, prepared by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and personally opened by the Chairman of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, Ambassador Massamba Sarré was displayed for one week. Throughout the week, the films "Palestinians do have rights", "The Palestinians of 1983", "The Key" and "Under the Israeli Thumb" were screened at the Dag Hammarskjold Auditorium.

The main event in the programme of the observance of the Day in New York were two special meetings of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, held at the Trusteeship Council Chamber. The Chairman of the Committee, the Secretary-General, the President of the General Assembly and the President of the Security Council addressed the meetings, as well as a number of United Nations bodies, several intergovernmental organizations and a spokesperson for the Interim Co-ordinating Committee of Non-Governmental Organizations. Texts of messages and statements received from heads of State or Government, Foreign Ministers, the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the PLO and others are reproduced below.

II. TEXTS OF STATEMENTS MADE AND MESSAGES

RECEIVED ON THE OCCASION OF THE

INTERNATIONAL DAY OF SOLIDARITY

WITH THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

A. Opening Statements

Statement by the Chairman of the Committee on the Exercise of the

Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, H.E. Mr. Massamba Sarré

We are meeting once again to commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People in conformity with the provisions of General Assembly resolution 32/40 B of 2 December 1977. This commemoration, to which the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People attaches great importance, reaffirms the concern of the international community about the Palestinian tragedy. Also, it provides an opportunity to reiterate the need for international action at every level to enable the Palestinian people to regain and fully exercise their inalienable rights. It will be recalled that 29 November was chosen for this commemoration because it was on that date in 1947 that the General Assembly adopted its resolution 181 (II), known as the partition resolution. That resolution stresses the responsibility of the United Nations to find a just and lasting solution to the question of Palestine.

I wish to reiterate my welcome to the Secretary-General, the President of the Security Council and the President of the General Assembly, and to welcome the chairmen of the regional groups and the representatives of Member States who have joined us this morning. I also welcome the representatives of non-governmental organizations, members of the press and all others who are present at this solemn meeting. Their presence among us shows the deep concern of the international community about the lack of tangible progress towards a just and lasting solution of the Palestinian question and of its determination to continue the search for ways of remedying the injustice of which the Palestinian people has been a victim for so long.

The Committee is pleased that parallel events are taking place at the United Nations offices in Geneva and Vienna and in many other cities throughout the world. The participation in these commemorations of many local groups and organizations is further evidence of the international community's wish for an end to this iniquitous situation, which poses a threat to international peace and security.

In pursuance of its mandate, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People has followed with deep concern the practices and policies of the Israeli Government, which constitute a violation of international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention and a contravention of the relevant General Assembly and Security Council resolutions. Through its Chairman, the Committee has protested more than once to the President of the Security Council against the continued occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories, against the illegal establishment of Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, against the confiscation of lands belonging to Arabs and against Israel's systematic and frequent violations of the rights of the Palestinian people.

The international community has come to recognize that the Palestinian question is at the core of the Middle East conflict and that the enjoyment by the Palestinian people of its inalienable rights is essential for the solution of that problem. Those rights have been reaffirmed many times by the General Assembly; they include the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination without outside interference, its right to national independence and sovereignty, including the right to establish its own State in Palestine and the right of Palestinians to return to their homes, from which they have been displaced and uprooted, and to recover their property or obtain compensation if they do not wish to return. Moreover, on the basis of objectivity and realism, the Committee has recognized the right of all States of the region to existence.

At the request of the General Assembly, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People has drawn up a programme to implement these rights, which has been approved several times by the General Assembly by an overwhelming majority. However, as everyone knows, the Security Council has been unable to enforce these recommendations owing to the opposition of one of its permanent members. As I have already said, any proposal intended to solve the Palestinian problem which does not take into account the essential elements of these recommendations is doomed to failure, and would, therefore, perpetuate a situation which imperils international peace and security.

I want once again to stress that we have now reached a critical, decisive stage in the restoration of Palestinian rights, and that every day without progress on the path recommended by the Committee only further complicates an already very difficult situation. The progressive annexation of illegally occupied territories, stepped up repressive measures against the Palestinian population, along with cycles of violence, clearly show that a just and lasting solution of the question is long overdue.

In its report to the General Assembly at its present session the Committee once again reiterated the validity of its recommendations and asked the General Assembly to insist again that the Security Council adopt positive measures to implement those recommendations, which should have been enforced long ago. Moreover, the Committee reiterated the validity of the recommendations adopted by the International Conference on the Question of Palestine, held at Geneva in 1983, emphasizing in particular that the international community must henceforth focus its activities on the preparations necessary for the convening of an International Peace Conference in the Middle East which, as we know, has been proposed and whose organization with the participation of all interested parties was approved by the General Assembly in its resolution 38/58 C.

In this connection I wish to reiterate the Committee's appreciation for the contacts initiated by the Secretary-General. While it regrets the negative attitude of certain countries, the Committee is none the less determined to continue its efforts to ensure that the proposed conference is convened soon, for we believe that such a conference would be an important milestone on the path towards the settlement of the Palestinian question. We therefore urge all parties concerned to overcome their emotions and passions and to co-operate in achieving a positive result, in the clear interest of peace and justice.

With that goal in mind, the Committee has been particularly encouraged by the massive support from the international community enjoyed by the proposal to convene this peace conference and by the growing evidence that its recommendations are now better known and better understood throughout the world. Equally positive are the notably increased interest in the question of Palestine and the active support of non-governmental organizations for the Palestinian cause, as well as the decision by those organizations, taken at a meeting held under the Committee's auspices, to launch an international campaign to gather signatures in support of the proposed peace conference. That campaign is both a symbol of the world-wide commitment to the Palestinian cause and an important way to achieve heightened mobilization of the international public in support of peace.

I take this opportunity to pay a special tribute to the Secretary-General for his continuing efforts to ensure that the decisions taken by the General Assembly at its thirty-eighth session are enforced as soon as possible.

Peace is one and indivisible. We consider that at this critical stage it is urgent that we redouble our efforts to find a just solution to the question of Palestine and to put an end to the pointless suffering of the Palestinian people and other peoples of the region. On this solemn occasion we appeal to the international community as a whole once again to shoulder its responsibility to find a happy ending to this tragedy, which has lasted for nearly 40 years.

Statement by the President of the thirty-ninth session

of the General Assembly, H.E. Mr. Paul Lusaka

First of all, let me thank you, Mr. Chairman, and the entire Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People for inviting me to participate in this solemn meeting to commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

The observance of this Day is a manifestation of the commitment of the United Nations to support the cause of self-determination, freedom and independence for the Palestinian people. It is also a recognition, above all, that an equitable solution must be found, urgently, to a complex problem that has taxed the resources and energies of this Organization for so long.

The Palestinians deserve every act of solidarity which the United Nations and the international community can demonstrate or extend to them, because the United Nations, almost 40 years ago, assumed a moral responsibility to ensure that they have a homeland.

Our persistence in the search for a just and lasting solution to this problem is a measure of the importance which the international community attaches to it. It is, moreover, a reflection of our realization that permitting a situation to remain critical, to the point of endangering international peace and security, has adverse effects not only on the States and peoples of the region but also on the entire international community.

The General Assembly has determined, and the various conflicts in the area over the years have confirmed in no uncertain terms, that the question of Palestine is at the core of the whole Middle East problem, and that no solution to that problem can be achieved independent of a just and lasting settlement of the question of Palestine.

There is wide agreement also that the search for peace in the Middle East remains an essential responsibility of the United Nations, which should be the guiding force in the search for any solution to this question and which should seek to satisfy the divergent interests of all the parties concerned.

That search must be based on certain basic considerations, principles that cannot be ignored. Among these are: the principle that acquisition of territory by force is totally inadmissible; the principle that every State has the right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries: and the principle that all peoples have the right to self-determination and nationhood.

The Palestinian people, like any other people, is entitled to the attainment of self-determination under the principles of the Charter of the United Nations. As I stated in my opening remarks to the General Assembly, it is our duty to do all in our power to defend the principle of self-determination and to ensure its enjoyment by the Palestinian people.

It is most disquieting that the rights of the people of Palestine are being adversely affected by the continuing establishment of settlements in occupied territories. Both the General Assembly and the Security Council have condemned that policy as illegal and have called upon Israel to desist from such practices. If this is allowed to continue, I am afraid that the just solution and lasting peace to which we all aspire will, unfortunately, elude us. This is an eventuality on which, I think, we should reflect today as we commemorate another International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

Unfortunately, although a wide measure of agreement exists on the basic principles, an overall settlement of the problem has not yet been found. Determined efforts must therefore be made to achieve such a settlement through negotiations involving all the parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization.

Last year, the General Assembly, its latest attempt to move forward the search for a solution, called for an international peace conference on the Middle East in which all interested parties could negotiate. No less than 124 Members, or 80 per cent of the membership, joined in support of that resolution. Yet, as we are aware, little progress has been possible so far towards convening that conference. Let us hope that whatever obstacles remain are soon removed and that an opportunity is given for negotiations that will lead to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace. Any step which holds out the slightest promise of ending the violence and bloodshed that have characterized events in this troubled region for over 40 years must be given every opportunity for success.

I wish in conclusion, Sir, to pay a tribute to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, under your able leadership, which, as an essential part of its activities, has come up with some constructive guidelines and recommendations on the modalities for implementing United Nations resolutions relating to the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. This Committee's work is a constant reminder of the international community's deep concern about the plight of the Palestinian people and of the determination of this Organization to ensure the attainment of those rights. I wish you and the Committee success in your efforts.

Statement by the Secretary-General, H.E. Mr. Javier Pérez de Cuéllar

We meet today to observe the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. This observance is symbolic of the determination of the United Nations to help achieve a just solution to the problem of Palestine based on the full recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.

Thirty-seven years have passed since the problem of Palestine was first brought before the United Nations. Despite intensive efforts made by the Organization and individual Member States during those years, the problem has not merely remained unresolved but has led to repeated conflict between Arabs and Israelis, while most Palestinians have been uprooted and are now living in exile or under occupation, often in extremely precarious conditions.

We are all deeply conscious of the imperative need to resolve the problem of Palestine and the other aspects of the Arab-Israeli conflict. There is a wide measure of agreement within the international community that a just and lasting peace in the region can best be achieved through a comprehensive settlement covering all aspects of the Middle East conflict. I continue to believe that such a comprehensive settlement will have to meet the following conditions: the withdrawal of Israeli forces from occupied territories; respect for an acknowledgement of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and the right of every State to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries; and a just settlement of the problem of Palestine, based on the recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including self-determination. In this context the question of Jerusalem remains of primary importance.

Last year the General Assembly called for the convening of an international peace conference in an effort to achieve a comprehensive settlement in the Middle East. As participants know, I have undertaken detailed consultations with the parties to the conflict, including the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), and with the members of the Security Council. But it is quite evident in the light of those consultations that the conditions for convening the proposed conference with any chance of success have not been met at the present time. The various responses to the proposal exemplify many of the basic problems that since 1948 have hampered all attempts to negotiate a settlement of the Middle East conflict. Indeed, the history of the Middle East conflict has been a long record of missed opportunities, punctuated by wars and violence that have served to complicate the situation further and to create new misery and new obstacles to peace. We must try to put an end to this disastrous cycle and seek instead a course that will provide a better future for all the peoples of the region.

I firmly believe that, despite the difficulties involved, the United Nations has a special, obligation to make another determined effort to find the means by which we can move forward to a negotiated peace in the Middle East. In this connection I have urged that Member Governments should consider what form of Middle East peace conference might be most useful. This need not necessarily be a conference in permanent session. What is needed is a framework for negotiations among all the parties concerned, and an umbrella under which the necessary contacts could develop according to the demands of the problems that are being considered.

It is my hope that the parties concerned will come to realize that continued confrontation does not serve their best interests. There is need to make an earnest effort to agree on a suitable negotiating process in order to rekindle the search for a just and lasting settlement of the conflict. This is essential not only for the welfare and security of the local populations, especially the Palestinian people, but also to ensure the maintenance of international peace and security in that unique region.

Pending the resolution of the basic political problems, the United Nations must, naturally, continue to do all it can to alleviate the plight of the Palestinian people. Since 1950, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has provided shelter, food and, especially, medical care and essential educational services to Palestine refugees, who now number more than 2 million. Despite continuing financial difficulties, the Agency will endeavour to maintain its assistance at the highest possible level. In recent years, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in pursuance of decisions of the General Assembly and of the Economic and Social Council, has set up a number of development projects aimed at improving the economic and social conditions of the Palestinian people. The other programmes and agencies of the United Nations system are also concerned, and steps are being taken, in consultation with the PLO and the Arab countries, to formulate a co-ordinated programme of economic and social assistance to the Palestinian people. The United Nations recognizes its responsibility to assist the Palestinian people in this field, and it will do this to the fullest extent possible.

I am deeply conscious, Mr. Chairman, of the untiring efforts being made by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, under your very able leadership, to work for a just solution of the problem of Palestine. I should like to take this opportunity to wish you and your Committee well in your most important endeavours.

Statement by the President of the Security Council, H.E. Mr. Ling Qing

I wish first of all to thank you, Sir, and the other members of your Committee for inviting me, as current President of the Security Council, to take part in this important solemn meeting devoted to the Commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

For several years now, the observance of this nay has served to focus on the need to attain a settlement of the Middle East conflict, of which the Palestinian question is an essential element.

Beyond its symbolic significance, this celebration today is indeed a reflection of the deep concern still felt by the international community over a conflict which has more than once put international peace and security in serious danger and which has deeply affected the lives of whole generations in that unfortunate region, and most particularly the lives of millions of Palestinians.

As participants are aware, the Security Council, almost since its inception, has been closely associated with the efforts aimed at achieving a just and lasting settlement of the complex issues involved in the Middle East conflict. As the organ primarily responsible for the maintenance of international peace and security, the Council was called upon to direct its urgent attention to the repeated major crises endangered by that conflict and their lasting consequences. At the same time, the Council has been fully aware of the crucial importance of the Palestinian dimension of the problem.

While a relative quiet appears to prevail at present in the region, the situation remains extremely precarious in the Middle East as a whole, and the fate of the Palestinians remain as tragic as ever despite the sum of efforts deployed thus far.

It is therefore imperative that the international community continue with renewed vigour to pursue the arduous quest for a settlement of the Palestinian problem and for a just and lasting peace in the area.

For its part, the Security Council, guided by its responsibilities under the Charter, will continue its efforts to seek a just and lasting peace in the Middle East for the benefit of all the parties concerned, including the Palestinian people.

Statement by Mr. Yasser Arafat, Chairman of the Executive Committee

of the Palestine Liberation Organization and Leader of the

Palestinian Revolutionary Forces

I am particularly pleased to address you on this important occasion, which is now being commemorated by all free and noble people throughout the world as an indication of solidarity with the just struggle of the Palestinian people, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, its sole legitimate representative, aimed at recovering and exercising our inalienable rights as a people. I am pleased to convey to you and to the Committee how proud our people are to note your untiring efforts to preserve peace in an area that is subjected to the greatest threats of our times.

I should like to express our deep appreciation for the efforts of the Secretary-General of the United Nations towards finding solutions to all of mankind's ills, and notably in favour of our people's cause. I wish to thank all United Nations bodies for their activities and the steps taken to mobilize international awareness as to the justice of our cause.

I should like also to thank our brothers and the Heads of State or Government for the messages of solidarity we have received on this crucially important occasion, which this year coincides with our commemoration of the twentieth anniversary of the launching of our armed struggle on 1 January 1965. Our people have revolted and taken up arms in self-defence in order to throw off the yoke of occupation and regain our inalienable rights, recover our territory and establish our own independent State. We see in this twofold occasion a symbol of the harmony between our revolution and the understanding of the international community represented by the United Nations.

The Middle East region last year witnessed a very trying period. The situation is increasingly disquieting because of the continued Israeli and American aggression against the Palestinian people and our Arab nation.

In the Gulf region, a cruel and destructive war is going on between Iraq and Iran, while American imperialism is attempting to fan the flames of the war by deploying its fleet in and around the Gulf waters and by repeated threats of military intervention.

We are aware that the Israeli-American alliance is aimed at dividing the Arab nation and setting up factional States by all possible means, including direct military intervention and the use of the big guns of the battleship New Jersey.

The Lebanese people have been resisting this ongoing aggression, without which the forces would not have withdrawn from the region. These forces are exerting diplomatic pressure aimed at isolating Lebanon so as to be able to occupy it. The Reagan Administration, which has planned, financed and armed the Israeli army to invade Lebanon, is continuing to assist the Israelis and to cover all expenses for the Lebanese invasion no matter how long it lasts. The American campaign is aimed at dividing the PLO, ensuring its failure and breaking our Palestinian people.

I am very pleased to inform the Committee and all our friends in the world that the Palestinian National Council (PNC), the highest authority of the PLO, has convened a meeting, with a full quorum, thus responding to all the attempts aimed at the destruction of the Palestinian struggle. The PNC has focused on the justice of the Palestinian cause the rights of the Palestinian people.

All these American attempts and plots to deny the rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to the establishment of their own independent State are doomed to failure. Thus there is increasing contradiction between American practices and the image the United States is trying to project.

Through its strategic agreement with Israel the United States is directly responsible for Israel's aggression in our region aimed at setting up an expanded, greater Israel. Thus the international community represented by the United Nations is required today to intensify its efforts in support of the just struggle of our people and to establish and implement all measures possible so as to counter the policies of the United States and preserve peace in the world.

The tragic situation in our region has deteriorated further because of the aggressive policies of the Israeli authorities aimed at destroying our national economy so as to compel our people to leave the area. Despite all the resolutions adopted by the United Nations and by international organizations as a whole condemning these practices and declaring them null and void and in violation of United Nations Conventions, the Declaration of Human Rights and the Geneva Convention relative to the protection of civilians in time of war, an attempt has been made to annex the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, as has been done in the Syrian Golan Heights.

Israel's policy is also aimed at desecration of the sacred Al Aqsa Mosque; but any threat to the mosque by Israel could endanger world peace. The Israeli Government's intentions to destroy the mosque have become quite clear. This year again there have been attempts to destroy the Islamic centre by way of excavations; and these actions are being encouraged by the Israeli Government.

The United Nations has the duty to take all necessary steps to put an end to such practices and to stop the looting and desecration of Holy Places, including the Church of the Resurrection.

There is also the question of our heroic detainees who have resisted occupation in defence of their liberties, just as heroes have always resisted ideologies such as fascism. Israel refuses to consider those detainees as prisoners of war or to implement the provisions of the Geneva Conventions, in spite of the insistence of the United Nations and the condemnations of Amnesty International, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Commission on Human Rights.

We must also underline here that the Ansar detention camp, which had to be closed after the exchange of prisoners last year, has been reopened by Israel and is now filled with sons of Lebanon and Palestine who are facing the worst forms of torture.

I call upon your Committee to do everything possible to compel Israel to abide by international law and to implement the exchange of prisoners agreement of 1983.

Israel is still continuing its aggression and raids against our camps in southern and eastern Lebanon. We express here our deepest concern at Israeli practices and at events which could lead to the slaughter of their inhabitants.

We have taken note of what the Secretary-General has already said in that regard, but here we would also warn once again of the danger of massacres similar to those of Sabra and Shatila, and we are well aware of the intentions of the Zionist leaders, in particular of the present Government of the generals, starting with the Head of State, Chaim Herzog and the Prime Minister, General Shimon Peres, and ending with the general whose past is notorious and whose current policies are well known, the general who is responsible for the Sabra and Shatila massacres, Ariel Sharon.

The convening of the PNC is an indication that we are determined to continue our struggle. We reaffirm here today the continuation of our struggle, with a gun in one hand and an olive branch in the other, until we reach our capital, Jerusalem, and recover the inalienable rights of our people.

Through this message I extend to our people in the occupied territories a salute of pride and high esteem for their steadfastness in the face of all conspiracies and for their firm stand in this legitimate struggle. I wish once again to express to you the assurance that our people and our Organization will always remain faithful to the cause of national liberation movements fighting against imperialism, zionism, racism and racial discrimination.

We call on the United Nations and all noble forces to do everything possible to support the struggle of the people of Namibia, under the leadership of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), to implement Security Council resolution 435 (1978) and to put an end to the inhuman and racist policies of the apartheid régime in South Africa in order that the South African people may exercise their national rights. Furthermore, the military aggression and pressure exerted against the African front-line States – in particular against Mozambique, Angola and Zimbabwe – by the Pretoria régime must be halted.

The Latin American countries, and especially those of Central America, are being subjected to United States aggression, and here we declare our total solidarity with the Latin American peoples, in particular those of Nicaragua and El Salvador, and we condemn all dictatorships which attempt to oppress the people.

I avail myself of this opportunity to express my gratitude to the peoples of the world, the political and humanitarian bodies, the States and all those prominent world figures that have supported and continue to support the Palestinian people in their just struggle. I thank also the non-governmental organizations which met in New York in June 1984 and in Geneva in August 1984 and supported the just struggle of our people.

Our people are determined to continue their struggle. They are confident that victory will be theirs no matter how long it may take nor how great the sacrifices may be. They will continue to struggle until they fulfil their objectives as recognized by the community of nations and the whole world – with the exception of the United States and Israel.

We do not fear power; nor are we deceived by false notions. Twenty years of revolution, struggle and suffering have taught us the lessons that will allow us to fulfil our national goal and achieve our national objectives.

We will struggle until final victory is achieved.

B. Messages from Head of State or Government

AFGHANISTAN

H.E. Mr. Babrak Karmal, General Secretary of the Central Committee

of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan and President

of the Revolutionary Council of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan

On the occasion of 29 November, the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I should like to take this opportunity to reiterate the sincere and firm support of the people and Government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan for the heroic and just struggle of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) for the restoration of their national inalienable rights usurped by Israel with the backing of imperialism.

Every passing day adds to the urgent necessity for a just and comprehensive solution of the question of Palestine. Without such a solution, there can be no peace in the Middle East. Arab peoples, and notably the Arab people of Palestine, have paid a heavy toll for Israel's expansionist policies. Today, it is a task more urgent than ever before to contribute through collective efforts of States towards achieving peace in the Middle East, peace for all States and peoples in the region.

Illusions created time and again by certain quarters of making peace in the area by separate agreements and 'Middle East Missions' cannot obscure that fact. Political realities are an alarming sign that the region is once again threatened by open military conflict posing dangers to international peace and security. All peace-loving peoples must be concerned to see that those who have up to now declared half of the world as 'spheres of their vital interests' now want to proceed to put their hegemonistic intentions into action.

The deployment by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization of new United States medium-range nuclear missiles in Europe figures prominently in those efforts. Such deployment, particularly on the island of Sicily, would also post a direct threat to the countries in the Middle East and in South-West Asia.

While reaffirming the strongest condemnation of the Zionists' savage actions, the Government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan supports the continued efforts of the United Nations to find a just a comprehensive solution of the Middle East problem, based on the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Israel from all occupied Arab territories and the restoration of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, truly represented by the PLO, including their right to establish an independent national State of their own.

We wish for the victory of the Palestinian people.

ALGERIA

H.E. Mr. Chadli Bendjedid, President of Algeria

The commemoration on 29 November of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People provides me with the opportunity to reaffirm, on behalf of the people and Government of Algeria, our unswerving support for the just struggle of the Palestinian people for the recovery of their legitimate national rights, including their right to return, their right of self-determination and their right to establish a State of their own in their land of Palestine.

The year that has passed since the last solemn meetings was marked by a sharp deterioration of the situation in the Middle East and by grave events which only increase the urgency of a just and final solution of the Middle East problem.

The Palestinian people, robbed of their land and their rights, forced into exile as a result of injustice unique in modern history, continue to be denied their imprescriptible national rights and to suffer the martyrdom of occupation and oppression.

Along with the policy of repression and genocide it has pursued for several decades against the Palestinian people – the apogee of which were the massacres of Sabra and Shatila – the Zionist régime, which continues to press its claim to make Al-Quds its capital and which has extended its legislation to the Syrian Golan Heights, is now preparing permanently to annex the Arab territories it has occupied since 1967, and to eliminate the Palestinian cause.

The international community has a special responsibility in this regard to put an end to Zionist adventurism and expansionism and to enable the Palestinian people to regain their legitimate national rights.

For its part, Algeria will continue in its unswerving support of the Palestinian people and to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), its sole legitimate representative, and will spare no effort to ensure the triumph of its just cause, the cause of the law and of freedom.

BAHRAIN

His Highness Sheikh Isa Bin Sulman Al-Khalifa,

Prince of the State of Bahrain

The continued Israeli occupation of the Arab territories has resulted in many of the tragedies that have befallen the peoples of the Middle East. Since its creation in 1948 Israel has disregarded the simplest rights of the Palestinian people. It has committed all kinds of crimes against that people, torturing it, imprisoning it and displacing it. Our commemoration today of the International Day of Solidarity with that people expresses our sympathy with it in its plight. The importance of this Day should serve not only to enlighten the international community on the various aspects of the question but also to promote a just solution to that question.

The volatile situation in the Middle East is a result of the racist and aggressive practices perpetrated by the Zionist entity. The establishment of settlements on occupied territories, changing their geographic, historic and demographic character, and the annexation of parts of them, represent defiance of international norms and the will of the international community. Therefore, we must put an end to continued Israeli aggression against the Arab nation and force Israel to comply with international law as recognized by various States. It is a historic irony that we find some of those States covering up for the crimes of the Zionist entity. Further, they assist that entity, directly or indirectly, to perpetrate more crimes against the Palestinian people and the other Arab peoples by providing it with unlimited military and economic assistance. We therefore hold those States responsible for jeopardizing international peace and security in the Middle East and call upon them to review their positions in order to bring about a just peace and restore stability to the region.

Israel's defiance of United Nations resolutions on the question of Palestine has been linked with an aggressive and expansionist policy applied against the Arab countries, with dangerous effects on neighbouring peoples, particularly the Palestinian people, which has borne the largest share of suffering. Therefore, it is high time the international community realized that bringing peace to the Middle East depends on the exercise by the Palestinian people of its legitimate, inalienable rights, particularly its right to establish its own independent State in its homeland and its right to self-determination.

The United Nations responsibility today is such that the Organization must take a responsible stand with regard to the plight of the Palestinian people. This can be done not by adopting more resolutions but by adopting a firm and determined position against the Zionist entity in order to put an end to its inhuman practices inside and outside the occupied territories.

We must reaffirm here that the shouldering by the United Nations of that responsibility required united efforts and depends upon all countries striving to achieve a just and lasting peace.

The State of Bahrain bases its position on its absolute belief in the right of peoples to self-determination, in accordance with the principles of the Charter. Today, in taking part with the whole world in commemorating this

International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, we reaffirm our complete solidarity with the just struggle waged by that people, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole legitimate representative of that people, to attain its legitimate rights – the right to self-determination, the right to return to its homeland and the right to establish an independent State in that homeland.

In conclusion, I wish you, Mr. Chairman, and the members of the Committee every success in your efforts.

BANGLADESH

H.E. Lieutenant-General Hussain Muhammad Ershad,

President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh

Today, as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is being observed all over the world under the auspices of the United Nations, the Government and the people of Bangladesh once again join with the international community in reiterating full and unswerving support for our Palestinian brethren in their just struggle for independence and for the realization of their inalienable and legitimate rights to establish a State of their own in their homeland, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, their sole and legitimate representative, with Jerusalem as its capital.

The question of Palestine is at the heart of the Middle East problem. It is a major challenge to the credibility of the international community in its efforts to uphold the principles and objectives enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. No other problem has evoked so much thought, unleashed such a high degree of indignation in recent times as has this issue, the tragedy of a dispossessed nation.

The political entity of the Palestinian people and their right to establish a State of their own in their homeland is an established fact under international law and jurisprudence. Ignoring this factor would be to discount a reality recognized by an overwhelming majority of the world's nation-States. The recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and to the establishment of a State of their own must be the fundamental element of any durable and lasting peace in the Middle East. Bangladesh has always taken a keen interest in and endeavoured to uphold the just cause of the Palestinian people in all international forums, especially the United Nations. From the very outset Bangladesh has actively advocated the establishment of the rights of the Palestinian people as a nation.

I should like to take this opportunity to convey the deep appreciation of the Government and the people of Bangladesh to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian people in projecting their just cause.

BRUNEI DARUSSALAM

His Majesty Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Prime Minister of Brunei Darussalam

The Government and people of Brunei Darussalam join the international community in observing 29 November as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. On this Day we reaffirm our support for and solidarity with the just struggle of the Palestinian people for its inalienable rights to self-determination in its own State of Palestine, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation organization, the sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.

The Palestinians are still being deprived of their inalienable rights to return to their own homeland and to establish their own independent and sovereign State. They are continually under the oppression and aggression of the Zionist régime, which has resulted in the death and suffering of thousands of Palestinian people and forced them to seek refuge in the neighbouring countries, leaving behind their own property and homeland.

We reiterate our condemnation of these acts and call upon Israel to end its hostilities against the Palestinian people and to respect the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Palestine.

The continued occupation of Palestinian lands in defiance of the various United Nations resolutions and in violation of the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter has contributed to instability in the Middle East region and constitutes a threat to regional and global peace. We urge the international community, sovereign States and world bodies to exert maximum pressure on Israel to end its aggressive, expansionist policies.

We believe a just and lasting solution to the Palestine problem can be achieved only by Israel's total and unconditional withdrawal from all Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and the restoration of the Palestinians' inalienable right to return to their homes, the right to self-determination without foreign interference and the right to establish their own independent and sovereign State in their national territory.

As a sovereign and newly independent State, Brunei Darussalam adheres to the principle of non-interference and non-intervention in the internal affairs of other countries, and respect for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of other countries, as enshrined in the United Nations Charter. We believe in peaceful coexistence between States and are committed to the maintenance and promotion of regional and international peace and stability.

CHINA

H.E. Mr. Zhao Ziyang, Premier of the State Council

of the People's Republic of China

On the occasion of the United Nations meeting marking the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I wish on behalf of the Chinese Government and people to extend our warm congratulations to the meeting and our cordial greetings and high respects to the Palestinian people, which is engaged in an extremely arduous struggle to regain its national rights.

The Palestine issue is at the core of the Middle East question. There can be no lasting peace and stability in the Middle East without a fair and reasonable solution to the Palestinian issue. We strongly call on the international community to make further efforts to condemn the Israeli policy of aggression and expansion and to support the just cause of the Palestinian people. We strongly call on the United Nations to take effective measures to ensure the implementation of the relevant resolutions adopted by the United nations General Assembly affirming the national rights of the Palestinian people.

The Chinese Government and people firmly support the Palestinian people and other Arab peoples in their just struggle to regain their national rights and recover the lost territories. We are convinced that, by upholding principles and closing ranks, the heroic Palestinian people, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), headed by Chairman Arafat, will overcome various obstacles in the way of their progress, regain their inalienable and sacred national rights and stand with other peoples in the comity of nations.

CUBA

H.E. Mr. Fidel Castro Ruz President of the Council of State

and Government of the Republic of Cuba

The annual commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People reaffirms the solidarity of the international community with the Palestinian people which, for more than three decades now, has been suffering from constant trials and tribulations in its just struggle for the exercise of its inalienable rights. In commemorating this solemn occasion, Cuba joins with the other nations of the world in support of the heroic struggle of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), its sole legitimate representative.

The Government and people of Cuba have repeatedly declared that the exercise by the Palestinian people of its rights, including the rights to self-determination, return to its homeland, independence, national sovereignty and the establishment of its own State, is an essential precondition for any overall settlement of a just and lasting nature to the problem in the Middle East, at the core of which is the Palestinian question.

In a situation characterized by the aggressive policy of imperialism, reflected in the constant use of force, intervention and interference in the domestic affairs of other States, worsened by the danger of the extension of armed conflicts, the international community and, more particularly, the United Nations must adopt effective measures to bring about a solution to existing crises and prevent the outbreak of new ones. In this connection, the crisis in the Middle East deserves priority attention, in view of the magnitude of the danger that it represents to international peace and security.

While the overwhelming majority of the Members of this Organization are convinced of the steps that must be taken to achieve peace in that long-suffering region, so far it has not been possible to adopt positive measures, owing to the obstruction of the Security Council by the negative vote of the United States, which time and again has thwarted such measures.

The covert support of United States imperialism for its Zionist ally constitutes encouragement for its policy of expansion and colonization on the West Hank, the Gaza Strip and other occupied Arab territories and support for its reiterated challenge to appeals by the General Assembly and the Security Council.

Cuba vigorously condemns Israel for its continuing occupation of Palestinian and Arab territories, as well as for the acts of repression, harassment and plunder that it continues to perpetrate against the Palestinian and Arab populations in those territories. It also condemns the United States for the economic, military and political support that it provides to Israel, and rejects all separate agreements and arrangements as a violation of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and in contravention of the principles for a just and comprehensive solution to the problem of the Middle East which would ensure the establishment of a lasting peace in the region.

We wish to make it clear today, once again, that the noble cause of the Palestinian people can always count on the steadfast support and full solidarity of our internationalist people in its historic struggle against imperialism and zionism, and for justice, freedom and the establishment of its own independent State.

I should like to congratulate the Committee, over which you, Mr. Chairman, so worthily preside, on the persistent efforts it has made ever since. its establishment in promoting the full exercise by the Palestinian people of its inalienable rights and, more particularly, for its commitment to fulfilling the tasks entrusted to it by the General Assembly, with special reference to the implementation of the Programme of Action adopted by the International Conference on the Question of Palestine and the convening of the International Conference on Peace in the Middle East under the auspices of the United Nations and with the participation of all the interested parties, including the PLO, which has the determined support of both our people and Government.

CYPRUS

H.E. Mr. Spyros Kypiranou, President of the Republic of Cyprus

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the observance of which constitutes an expression of the international will for solidarity with the just struggle waged by the Palestinian people and its legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), I wish to express once again the solemn commitments of the Government and people of Cyprus for a just and viable solution of the Palestinian question. Such a solution would enable the Palestinian people to exercise its inalienable national rights under conditions of Peace and security in its own independent State, would secure peace and stability in the area and bring about an end to the sufferings and hardships of the Palestinian people.

Lasting peace in the volatile Middle East region will be reached only if the relevant United Nations resolutions are implemented. Any arrangements that do not take into account the universal applicability of principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter are doomed to fail. That is why I have on several occasions recommended that a special session of the General Assembly should be exclusively devoted to the perennial problem of the implementation of the United Nations resolutions.

Cyprus, itself a victim of aggression and foreign occupation, has raised its voice resolutely together with other countries, expressing its dedication to the ideals of peace, freedom and justice for which the Palestinian people are struggling.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA

H.E. Mr. Gustav Husak, President of the Czechoslovak

Socialist Republic and General Secretary of the Central Committee

of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Arab people of Palestine, I send to the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and to all the Palestinian people, on behalf of the people of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic as well as on my own behalf, friendly greetings and sincere good wishes for many successes in its just struggle.

The people of Czechoslovakia attentively follows and fully supports the heroic struggle of the Palestinian people, guided by its sole, legitimate representative, the PLO, for the fulfilment of its inalienable rights of self-determination and its right to establish its own independent State. Together with the progressive and peace-loving forces of the whole world, we condemn with all resoluteness the expansionist policy of Israel support by United States imperialism. We consider the firm unity of the Palestinian resistance movement and the resolute attitude of solidarity of all Arab countries with its just cause to be a necessary condition for the success of the struggle of the Palestinian people. The dangerous development of the situation in the Middle East convincingly confirms that all separate and unilateral steps for the solution of the Palestinian question ignore the right of the people of Palestine, and only contribute to the expansionist plans of Israel and aggravate tension in the whole area.

The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia and all the people of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic will continue to support the efforts aimed at an equitable solution of the Palestinian question and to further the steps towards the establishment of lasting peace in the Middle East.

We are convinced that with the support of all progressive and anti-imperialist forces of the Arab countries and of the whole world the Arab people of Palestine will attain its goals and will triumph in the struggle for the ideals of the Palestinian revolution.

EGYPT

H.E. Mr. Hosni Mubarak, President of Egypt

On the eve of the fortieth anniversary of the United Nations – which was born to represent the will of the peoples to be victorious over injustice, oppression and aggression and express their aspiration to a dignified life of freedom, peace and justice – the Middle East, the cradle of civilization and religion, still remains a theatre of armed conflict that threatens life, wastes energy, not only threatens the peace and security of the peoples of that region but also destabilizes the basis for international peace and security, and results in disastrous consequences.

The question of the restoration of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people will always remain the core of this conflict; it will always represent the path to reaching a comprehensive, just and lasting peace, in accordance with United Nations resolutions and the principles of the Charter. Enabling the Palestinian people to exercise its legitimate national rights, particularly the right to return to its homeland and establish an independent, sovereign State, will always remain the collective responsibility of all forces which cherish and support peace and justice. It will always remain the responsibility of the entire international community and of every free and honourable person.

Egypt will spare no effort in discharging its national, historic and moral obligation to enable the Palestinian people to pursue its legitimate struggle until it achieves its inalienable right to an independent identity and to contribute to humanity's prosperity. This stems from our shared destiny with all Arab and Palestinian peoples and from our firm belief in the unity of Arab rights and Arab peace.

The commemoration of this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People by the United Nations not only represents international unanimity with the just cause of the Palestinian people and an extension of the deep awareness of the aspects of the historic tragedy of that people but also reaffirms the need to continue the fight to achieve a just, lasting and comprehensive settlement of the Middle East problem, the core of which is the Palestine question.

We believe that the achievement of a just peace is Egypt's historic calling, and the honourable alternative to the violence and destruction that are about to engulf the whole region. Egypt believes it high time to intensify all regional and international efforts to achieve this noble aim. Thus Egypt has always supported every constructive proposal and initiative – including that of the United Nations for the convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East with the participation of all concerned parties on an equal footing, including the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people – so that we can translate peace proposals into reality and the wish for coexistence into a historic reconciliation that will protect rights on the basis of legality and legitimacy.

Mr. Chairman, we greatly appreciate your contribution and that of the United Nations and of your colleagues in the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. We support all efforts of the Organization, including your own.

GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC

H.E. Mr. Erich Honecker, General Secretary of the Central Committee

of the Socialist Unity Party and Chairman of the

Council of State of the German Democratic Republic

On the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People we note with regret that the Palestinian people is still being denied its inalienable rights and that tensions in the Middle East have risen further. This is due to Israel's permanent expansionist policy, which has the full backing of the United States of America. Through their strategic alliance, those two States seek to involve the Arab region more deeply in the global confrontationist course of imperialism, to increase the imperialist military presence and to extend the sphere of activity of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to that part of the world. The German Democratic Republic is following these dangerous developments in the Middle East with grave concern. It resolutely condemns Israel's policies of occupation and aggression as well as the hegemonistic policy of interference pursued by its strategic ally.

To the German Democratic Republic the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is a fitting occasion to assure the Palestinian people of its firm solidarity in the struggle for its legitimate rights under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). The German Democratic Republic advocates a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement of the Middle East conflict. This requires that the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including its right to the establishment of an independent State, be assured. Israel must without delay withdraw from all territories it has occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem. It is only in this way that peace, security and the independent development of all States and peoples in the region can be ensured.

The German Democratic Republic emphatically supports the demand of the overwhelming majority of States for the early convocation of an international Middle East conference with the participation of all interested sides, including the PLO, the sole, legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. Israel and the United States must no longer be allowed to scorn world public opinion and to continue blocking the convening of such a conference.

The German Democratic Republic will also in the future stand firmly at the side of the Palestinian people struggling under the leadership of the PLO for the implementation of its legitimate national rights.

GHANA

H.E. Flight-Lieutenant Jerry John Rawlings, Head of State of Ghana

and Chairman of the Provisional National Defence Council

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I am pleased to renew the commitment of the Government and people of Ghana to unwavering support for the people of Palestine in their just struggle to recover all their inalienable rights. We unreservedly condemn the illegal occupation of Palestinian lands by Israel and once again demand their immediate restoration to their rightful owners. Israel cannot have, and should not be allowed, enjoyment of lands seized through aggression and in total breach of international law and the United Nations Charter. Lawlessness among the illegal Israeli settlers on Palestinian lands continues to be a source of tension and of increasing acts of violence and repression perpetrated against the heroic and valiant freedom-fighters of the Palestine Liberation Organization.

Peace can return to Palestine and to the Middle East generally only when Israel withdraws all its settlements and forces from all Palestinian and Arab territories. The United Nations must not acquiesce in Israel's annexation of lands by war, and must insist on the unconditional and full implementation of relevant Security Council resolutions seeking to restore the rights of the Palestinian people to its homeland, to self-determination and to a sovereign independent State of its own. We in Ghana shall continue to support the just struggle of the Palestinian people until victory is won.

GUYANA

H.E. Mr. Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham,

President of Guyana

Events in the Middle East during the past year add a note of poignancy to the observance this year of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. The ignominy of Israel's genocidal assault in Lebanon, still a stain on the international conscience, is only the most notorious attempt in recent memory to suppress the political aspirations of the Palestinian people and to stifle their national identify. Subsequent actions by the Israelis against Palestinians in the occupied territories, and even against those in refugee camps, give added confirmation of this intent.

It is a tribute to the will of the Palestinian people, the strength of its nationalist sentiment and the justice of its cause that attempts at imposing military solutions or partial solutions in the Middle East have all proved ineffective and that the Palestinian cause attracts widening international support and solidarity. The current situation underscores the correctness of the position so long maintained by the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries, and endorsed by the General Assembly of the United Nations, that the Palestine question is the core and centrepiece of the Middle East question. Any attempted solution which ignores the factor of the Palestinian people lacks legitimacy and will fail.

Guyana therefore reiterates its support for the early convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East, which would include the participation of the Palestinian people on an equal footing, through its representatives, the Palestine Liberation Organization.

On this occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, Guyana reaffirms its support for, and solidarity with, the just struggle of the Palestinian people for the enjoyment of its inalienable rights, including its right to its own independent State. We pledge continuing support for the work of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and call for the intensification of international efforts in support of the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people.

INDIA

H.E. Mr. Rajiv Gandhi, Prime Minister of India and

Chairman of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I reaffirm India's full commitment to the Palestinian people in their struggle for their just and inalienable rights to self-determination and a national homeland. India has always seen the Palestinian struggle as an unfinished revolution that began with the great freedom movements in the early part of this century against imperialism and colonial rule. While almost all ex-colonial countries have attained independence, the Palestinians continue in their search for a national homeland.

The Non-Aligned Movement recognizes the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. There is a major struggle ahead. To achieve success we must remain steadfast and united, since only then can we succeed. For its part, India remains committed to exert all efforts in the cause of our Palestinian brothers.

My best wishes to the Palestinian Committee for continued success in its endeavours.

INDONESIA

H.E. Mr. Soeharto, President of the Republic of Indonesia

On the occasion of this observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I should like to reaffirm on behalf of the Government and the people of Indonesia, our long-standing policy of unswerving support for the Palestinian people under the leadership of their sole legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization, in their struggle to realize their inalienable rights, including the right to return to their homeland, the right of self-determination and the right to establish a State of their own on their national soil.

The plight of the Palestinians and the denial of the fulfilment of their legitimate aspirations to independence and statehood have always been a matter of great concern to the people and Government of Indonesia. Indonesia, as a country whose own independence was achieved through revolutionary struggle and which is enjoined by its Constitution to oppose colonial domination in all its forms, has not only expressed its full support for and solidarity with the just struggle of the Palestinian people, but has also made every effort to make a substantial contribution to the solution of the problem.

This commemoration in the United Nations once again manifests the ever-growing determination of the international community to seek an urgent solution for the just cause of the Palestinian people. Indonesia has always believed, and today the whole world recognizes, that there can be no viable or enduring solution to the Middle East conflict unless the core issue of the right of the Palestinian people to independent nationhood on its territory is justly addressed. Indonesia, as a Member of this Organization, of the Non-Aligned Movement and of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, will maintain its principled position that in all these forums the fundamental questions of justice and sovereignty for the Palestinian people should continue to be accorded the highest priority that it rightly deserves.

In this connection, I should like to refer to the International Conference on the Question of Palestine, held at Geneva last year. Prominent in the Declaration of the Conference is the call for the convening of an international conference on peace in the Middle East, under the auspices of the United Nations. The peace conference would represent a crucial step in bringing together on an equal footing all parties concerned, including the PLO, in the framework of a comprehensive negotiating process. Indonesia fully supports the decision of the thirty-eighth General Assembly session on the convening of the conference, and we shall continue to strive with like-minded States for its realization.

May God Almighty bestow His blessings and guidance on all of us.

IRAQ

H.E. Mr. Saddam Hussein, President of Iraq

It is my pleasure on the occasion of this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People once again to express, on my own behalf and on behalf of the leadership and the people of Iraq, our great appreciation of the role played by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People in supporting the Palestinian cause, and of its efforts to promote the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people in all international forums in accordance with the principles of international law, justice and peace. There is no doubt that as long as it continues its praiseworthy efforts on the basis of the priority it gives to finding a just solution to this problem, the Committee will be serving the cause of peace and stability both in the Arab region and in the world at large.

It is regrettable that in the year since my last message on this occasion it has been difficult to discern in world events any hope that the desired solution will be reached or that peace will come in the foreseeable future. It is regrettable too that there is evidence that the occupation is being entrenched and that inhuman practices continue, savagely and in complete disregard of the provisions of international law, morality and justice. No heed is paid to the resolutions of the international Organization or to world opinion.

It is strange that certain quarters, particularly the United States of America, continue to support this régime despite its practices in the Arab territories and in southern Lebanon. Even if Israel continues in this way, everyone knows perfectly well that the Arab position is characterized by responsiveness and responsibility, and aims at achieving a just and honourable solution of the Palestinian question and the Middle East problem in general. That is because we have faith that a just solution to this problem will be found.

To be sure, Iraq is engaged in the legitimate defence of its soil and independence against the aggression imposed upon it by an alien régime. But this has not diminished our concern regarding the Palestinian cause and the suffering of the Palestinian people, both inside and outside the occupied territories. Iraq recognizes that this war is closely linked to Israeli machinations in the area and to the relations between the Teheran and Tel Aviv règimes.

On this occasion we cannot but strongly reaffirm our support for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the legitimate leader of the Palestinian people, against all the manoeuvres from outside and from within aiming at sowing the seeds of dissent in order to eliminate the Palestinian cause and carry out imperialist Zionist schemes.

I wish in conclusion to reaffirm our confidence in the Committee, and our appreciation of its efforts in support of the Palestinian cause. We hope that it will succeed in carrying out its responsibilities.

JORDAN

His Majesty, King Hussein bin Talal of the

Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

The universal celebration of this occasion every year is an affirmation of the continued international interest in the plight of the Palestinian Arab people and their just cause. It is also an expression of the direct responsibility horned by the international community towards that people, as well as a renewed pledge to stand beside the Palestinian people and support its just struggle so that it can attain its legitimate rights in its homeland.

If the international Organization is called upon today to shoulder its responsibilities towards the Palestinian people, it stems from the role it played in the developments that led to the question of Palestine originally.  It stems also from the fact that it took upon itself to accept this role until the end. It also is in conformity with its central responsibility to maintain international peace and security. The United Nations, which represents the will of the international community, recognizes the just cause of the Palestinian people and its legitimate rights. Therefore it is called upon to implement that will.

In spite of all international commitments and the interest in the just cause of the Palestinian people, that people day after day continues to suffer in the hope that it will achieve justice. But our efforts to achieve justice are fading. This is due to Israel's persistence in defying the international will by refusing to comply with the international community's call for a just and comprehensive peace — a call which everyone has been called upon to heed.

In spite of the fact that the Palestinian people and the whole Arab nation have fallen victim to Israeli aggression, they have expressed the wish for peace and have responded to international efforts aimed at achieving it. Nevertheless, Israel has amply proved to the whole world that it does not want peace, that it is not willing to respond to the requirements of peace. It has spared no opportunity to demonstrate its disdain for peace. It has frustrated peace efforts. It has a record of aggression and extreme actions: its annexation of the Holy City of Jerusalem and the Golan Heights, its establishment of settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, its undermining of the Palestinian people's means of existence, its aggression against the vital interests and legitimate rights of the Arab nation as well as its threats to international peace and security through various forms of aggression and blackmail.

Israel's continued aggression against the Arab nation and its persistent threats to that nation's existence were evidenced again by its invasion of Lebanon in 1982 and its present occupation of large parts of that country, in an attempt to impose hegemony over it and prevent Lebanon from exercising full sovereignty in the future. That aggression is but one of a whole series of acts of aggression against the Arab nation. However, Israel's policy, which is represented by intransigence and rejection, in persisting in extreme measures, must not paralyze our common will to work towards correcting this injustice which has befallen the Palestinian people. We must try to avoid further catastrophes in that sensitive and vital part of the world.

Proceeding from its national and historic responsibilities and realizing the dangers implicit in the continued plight of the Palestinian people without an honourable and just solution, Jordan has called upon all to assume responsibility to bring about peace in the Middle East through the convening of an international conference with the participation of all parties, including the two super-Powers and the permanent members of the Security Council, to reach a formula whereby we can implement the unanimous will of the international community represented in Security Council resolution 242 (1967), which stipulates the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territories by force. Those Arab territories have been occupied by Israel since 1967. Implementation of the substance of that important resolution, especially trading peace for land, will lead to enabling the Palestinian Arab people to exercise its right to self-determination over its homeland like all other peoples in the world.

On this occasion we reiterate our appeal to all, in particular to those countries which have been entrusted by the Charter of the United Nations with a special responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security, to help make our noble efforts succeed and thus enable all peoples of the region to achieve peace, stability and tranquility, so long overdue. The international community is today, more than ever before, called upon to see justice done and to deter aggression so that this unprecedented injustice imposed on the Palestinian people will disappear. This will provide a test of our ability to bring peace and to establish a world in which peace, justice and right will prevail.

In conclusion, I should like to express to you, Mr. Chairman, and to the other members of the Committee our appreciation and gratitude for your sincere efforts to assist the Palestinian people attain its rights, regain its land, achieve its freedom and live in peace, tranquility and security.

DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA

H.E. Comrade Kim Il Sung,

President of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea

On behalf of the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Korean people and on my own behalf, I wish to extend my warm fraternal greetings to you and, through you, to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian people on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

The Korean people always stands firmly on the side of the Palestinians, who are indomitably and determinedly fighting to oppose the aggression and repression of the United States imperialists and the Israeli Zionists and to restore their legitimate national rights, including that of regaining their homeland and returning home, the right to self-determination and the right to the establishment of their own independent State.

The struggle of the Palestinian people, as a just cause, enjoys ever-increasing support and encouragement from the world's progressive peoples standing at the forefront of the common struggle for independence against imperialism.

Firmly believing that the national liberation cause of the Palestinian people will surely win ultimate victory under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization headed by you, we take this opportunity to renew our firm solidarity with the Palestinian resistance fighters and people.

The militant friendly relations between the Korean and Palestinian peoples, cemented ever strongly by your visit to my country in May of this year, will be further strengthened and developed as the days go by.

KUWAIT

His Highness, Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait

First of all, I take this opportunity to send greetings from the people of Kuwait and to thank the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.

Like all lovers of freedom, right and justice, we welcome any such occasion meant to express solidarity with them in their just cause as well as to stress the urgent need to come to a quick solution of this problem by implementing the United Nations resolutions providing for their rehabilitation and the recovery of their legitimate inalienable rights, including the right to self-determination. I think that there is none so cruel and unfair ─ except the aggressor ─ as to deny them such natural rights.

Undoubtedly, contemporary history has not witnessed injustice on a scale comparable to that suffered by this ill-fated people, afflicted as they have been with seizure of their homeland and gross violations of their rights.

And here one might ask: Why has this issue lagged behind all this time? Thirty-six years have already elapsed since the Palestine catastrophe, with no one to redress the wrong they suffered or to take any resolute action, such as implementing the relevant United Nations resolutions.

If that means anything, it certainly demonstrates the lack of commitment on the part of the big Powers and indifference on the part of the international community as a whole.

Meanwhile the oppressors pursue their arbitrary measures and violations, paying scant attention to and utterly disregarding all international conventions and established norms, including the United Nations Charter. Would the aggressors have dared go to such lengths in their transgressions if they had not enjoyed the total support irrationally extended to them by certain quarters, which seem unaware that such support may demolish the very foundations on which international legitimacy is based?

If this explosive issue remains unresolved, it will constitute a challenge to the big Powers, as it does to international legitimacy represented by the United Nations. It is high time, therefore, that injustice be redressed and rights restored. Only in this way can the Middle East region enjoy peace and stability throughout the entire world.

In calling upon all international bodies and organizations to do their utmost to bring about a quick solution of this problem, we can but speak highly of the honourable stand of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries in this regard.

Finally, may all our good efforts be crowned with success and enable this dispersed and homeless people to realize its hopes and aspirations for freedom, independence and human dignity.

LAO PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC

H.E. Mr. Souphanouvong,

President of the Lao People's Democratic Republic

The United Nations on 11 December 1948 in its resolution 194 (III) established a Conciliation Commission on Palestine, which should have enabled the Palestinian people to return to their country of origin. In 1975 the Committee of the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People was established. Since those two dates many conferences have been convened and numerous resolutions have been adopted in an attempt to attain the return of the Palestinian people to its homeland and implement its right to exercise its national sovereignty and independence. Despite those efforts by the international community, Israel, with-the tacit complicity of imperialism, has always blocked resolutions to the problem of the Palestinian people through incitement, confrontation and war, and has thus posed a threat to the peace and stability of the entire Middle East.

Today the Palestinian people more than ever has been uprooted and risks extinction because of the strategic co-operation between the United States and the Zionist State. I should like to take this opportunity to reiterate the unflinching support of the Government and people of the Lao People's Democratic Republic for the just cause of the Palestinian people, which, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, its authentic representative, has been struggling for its universally recognized inalienable rights.

LEBANON

H.E. Mr. Rashid Karami, Prime Minister and

Minister for Foreign Affairs of Lebanon

The International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People reminds us of the cause of a people and of the tragedy of a nation. The consequences of this situation have been felt in the Middle East and throughout the world for more than 45 years. That tragedy has led to the dispersion of a people, in violation of its natural right to life, to its territory and to the enjoyment of its rights, in the way that peoples throughout the world enjoy their rights.

The Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People must bring to mind the right of peoples to self-determination, and, more specifically, that of the oppressed Palestinian people. Today provides the opportunity for us to intensify our efforts to end this situation, which has lasted too long, and to put an end to the suffering which has given rise to extreme tension in the Middle East. This situation from time to time has led to regional wars, destruction, death and the most devastating material damage.

The international community, peace-loving peoples and the United Nations are all required to support the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and to act to implement all the decisions and resolutions of this international Organization with respect to the Palestinian people and its legitimate rights. The Israelis' defiance of the international community has led to their trampling the principles of international law underfoot, and they have failed to comply with the resolutions of the United Nations. In noting their aggression in the occupied territories, we can expect an increase in tension.

In commemorating the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, we also pay tribute to the efforts of friendly, peace-loving countries that sympathize with that people in the tragedy besetting it and wish it to regain its rights, which have been usurped despite United Nations decisions and resolutions.

We call on the Member States of the United Nations fully to assume their responsibilities in the face of the most painful tragedy experienced by a people since the Second World War. That tragedy came about just after the birth of the United Nations in the full knowledge of its Members, although the Organization was unable to stop the situation evolving. That situation continues and, if not checked, will go beyond the borders of the Middle East and threaten world peace. We call on everyone to contribute to a just solution to the tragedy.

MADAGASCAR

H.E. Mr. Didier Ratsiraka,

President of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar

The commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People gives us an opportunity to reaffirm the unconditional support of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar for the just cause of the Palestinian people, under the leadership of its legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

The tragedy of the Palestinian people, deprived of its rights, dispossessed of its property and driver from its homeland, troubles the conscience of mankind. Despite the efforts of the international community, the Zionist régime continues to display an attitude of contempt, arrogance and cynicism, and is increasingly escalating violence which makes all too clear the true ambitions of that régime in the Middle East.

The Democratic Republic of Madagascar continues to be deeply concerned about developments in that part of the world, which have taken a dangerous turn for the worse with the proliferation of conspiracies of all kinds. At a time when the struggle of the Palestinians is going through a difficult, if not crucial phase, I should like once again to assure them of the whole-hearted support of the revolutionary Government of Madagascar.

The establishment of a lasting peace in the Middle East depends on a just settlement of the Palestinian question, which lies at the heart of the Middle East problem. The two problems constitute an indivisible whole. There can be no question of a separate peace, and no agreement that ignores legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people or is concluded without the participation of the PLO can be regarded as valid. Peace must be comprehensive and based on respect for the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including its right to return, its right to self-determination and its right to establish an independent, sovereign State, together with Israeli withdrawal from all occupied Arab and Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem.

In that respect, the Democratic Republic of Madagascar continues to support the recommendations of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, whose invaluable contribution to the search for a just, comprehensive and lasting solution to the Middle East conflict deserves warm commendation today.

Finally, with regard to our brother Arafat and his comrades-in-arms, I reiterate that we share the aspirations of the PLO and that Palestine shall prevail.

MALAYSIA

The Right Honourable Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir bin Mohammad,

Prime Minister of Malaysia

The Government and people of Malaysia join the international community in dedicating this day as a Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. The tragedy which has befallen the Palestinian people is indeed a tragedy for all mankind. It is imperative that the plight of the Palestinians be at the forefront of our conscience. A whole nation of people has been driven from its homeland and forced to live as refugees. The Palestinian people continues to be subjected to political, social, economic and cultural oppression, and generations have grown up who have never known peace.

It is a further tragedy that, despite all the efforts of the international community as expressed in the United Nations, the Palestine problem is no nearer to a solution. The solution must be and can only be one that brings justice to the Palestinian people within the context of its inalienable right to establish its own independent homeland.

Given the implications of the Palestinian question on international peace and security it is also incumbent upon the international community to persevere in its efforts towards a just, comprehensive and durable settlement. Malaysia believes that the Geneva Declaration and Plan of Action adopted at the International Conference on the Question of Palestine in September 1983 and subsequently endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly provides an important basis for a just settlement.

In this context Malaysia fully supports the efforts of the United Nations Secretary-General for the convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East. We believe that such a peace conference, in which all parties would be invited to participate, including the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, can contribute towards a solution.

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the Government and people of Malaysia reiterate our pledge to continue our support for the Palestinian people in its just struggle for its freedom and its own homeland.

MALDIVES

H.E. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom,

President of the Republic of Maldives

In the momentous affairs of the human race, just as in the life of every individual and every nation, there arises a cause which claims unreserved allegiance and total commitment. In our time there is no greater deserving human cause to fight for than that of the restoration to the Palestinian people of its homeland, a restoration which will have as its guarantee an acknowledgement by the international community of the inalienable right of the Palestinians to self-determination and full national sovereignty.

On this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I wish, on behalf of the Republic of Maldives and all its people, to reiterate our allegiance and commitment to the cause of Palestinian emancipation. I further declare our steadfast and unreserved support for the Palestine Liberation Organization and for its courageous and inspiring leader, Chairman Yasser Arafat.

Indeed, I take this opportunity further to confirm our belief that without the full participation of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, there can be no durable solution to the gross injustices or redress of the evil and criminal acts which have been perpetrated against them during the past 40 years by the forces of international zionism.

The continued occupation of southern Lebanon and other Arab territories, together with the uninterrupted establishment of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, is a challenge which the international community cannot in all legitimacy ignore. Israel never tires of informing the world at large that it seeks peace, and yet it continues to occupy Arab lands by force to carry out acts of military aggression and brutality.

Just 39 years ago the world ceased fighting a war which had been caused by similar acts of military occupation and expansionism backed by torture and civilian oppression on a scale not at that time previously witnessed. Yet those same States which prosecuted that war with such bravery, skill and determination now turn their backs on the long-suffering Palestinians and, often wilfully, pretend to see no parallel between the dispossession of the nations of Europe by the Nazis and the current dispossession of the homeland of the people of Palestine through Zionist military occupation.

It is of particular significance that as the international community marks its solidarity with the people of Palestine this year the Palestine National Council has held its seventeenth meeting, at Amman. The Maldives looks to the deliberations of the Palestine National Council with considerable hope and expectancy, and sincerely wishes that as a result of its decisions a renewed sense of unity may be fostered among all sectors of Palestinians and that the Palestinian people will continue to move with courage and determination towards the liberation that history and the international community so undeniably owe it.

MALTA

H.E. Mr. Dom Mintoff, Prime Minister of Malta

The 29th of November has become sacred in the calendar of the Palestinian people. It is the day when the world, through the United Nations, shows its solidarity with the Palestinian people and on which we are reminded in a special way of their struggle to acquire their fundamental right to a homeland of their own and to establish a State in which they could live peacefully and industriously.

This yearly commemoration also reminds us that a solution to the complex problem of the Middle East ─ at the core of which lies the Palestinian question ─ has been eluding us for far too long. A special responsibility for this failure lies with those who have the power to set in motion the appropriate actions for creating the right conditions for comprehensive, just and lasting solutions, but whose political unwillingness prevents them from doing so.

Looking at the history of the Palestinian people, it is easy to be overwhelmed by a sense of tragedy and failure. What is perhaps less evident ─ because of the overall shadow of repeated setbacks ─ but is none the less equally present is the strong sense of hope and resilience which has inspired that people throughout the years to pursue a legitimate goal the attainment of which has now become a matter of necessity, if the world really wishes to look forward to a peaceful future.

At the present moment a unique opportunity for a comprehensive solution under the auspices of the United Nations is being offered. This is the call for an- international peace conference on the Middle East which should be convened without delay. We are happy to recall in this context that at the Ministerial Meeting of Non-Aligned Mediterranean Countries, held in Valletta last September, the ministers endorsed the Geneva Declaration and Programme of Action adopted at the International Conference on the Question of Palestine held in Geneva in the summer of 1983, which includes, of course, the call for the convening of an international peace conference on the Middle East with the participation of the Palestine Liberation Organization as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people on an equal footing with other parties. We firmly believe that the complexity of the problems warrants such a gathering where all views could be heard and taken into account in a final settlement. Limited contacts aimed at partial solutions have not been successful in the past and will not be successful in the future. Only bold and imaginative actions by the United Nations can bring about those results for which so far we have striven in vain.

Malta has worked and will continue to work assiduously on behalf of the Palestinian people until their legitimate rights are attained in practice. We do not limit ourselves to making declarations ─ we work in practical terms for the attainment of these objectives.

MONGOLIA

H.E. Comrade Jagvaral,

Vice-President of Presidium of the People's Great Khural

On behalf of the Government of the Mongolian People's Republic, I send you and all the other members of the Special Committee our sincere greetings and best wishes on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. We are commemorating it this year under difficult, tense conditions in the Middle East, which are the result of the expansionist policy of Israel and the aggressive actions of the United States.

Recent events demonstrate that the imperialist and Zionist circles of the United States and Israel, as part of their strategic alliance, are trying by every means possible to achieve their goal of dismissing the Palestinian problem and undermining the unity of the Palestine resistance movement, represented by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the sole legitimate representative of the Arab people of Palestine. Those same circles are continuing their brazen interference in the internal affairs of the sovereign State of Lebanon and encouraging Arab countries to make separate deals. Under those conditions, a just settlement of the Palestinian problem is becoming more and more urgent, and effective support for the struggle of the Palestinian people to attain its inalienable rights is becoming more and more necessary.

It is a pleasure for us to note, that your Committee is making great efforts to solve that problem in the interests of the Arab people of Palestine. The Government of the Mongolian People's Republic reaffirms that a just and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian problem can be achieved only through joint efforts with the participation of all interested parties, including the PLO. Such a settlement should provide for the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from all Arab territories occupied since 1967 and for the exercise of the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to establish their own independent State. We feel that the best way to achieve such a settlement is to convene an International Peace Conference on the Middle East, with the participation of the PLO on an equal footing. We also feel that in present conditions more and more attention needs to be paid to the close interrelationship of Arab countries and the strengthening of the solidarity of the ranks of the anti-imperialist and anti-Zionist forces of the Arab world. Furthermore, we support the unity of the Palestinian resistance movement on an anti-imperialist basis.

The Government of the Mongolian People's Republic and the Mongolian people again express their warm solidarity with the heroic Palestinian people, and vigorously support that people in its struggle, under the leadership of the PLO, against imperialist and Zionist aggression; we support its fight to exercise its inalienable rights and to establish genuine peace in the Middle East.

I take this opportunity to send you, Mr. Chairman, and your Committee best wishes for great success in the noble activities you are carrying out to assist the achievement of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and the implementation of United Nations resolutions on this important problem.

NICARAGUA

H.E. Commander Daniel Ortega Saavedra,

Co-ordinator of the Junta of the Government of

National Reconstruction and President of Nicaragua

The annual commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People expresses the interest in and support for the just cause of the Palestinian people on the part of all nations. It is deplorable that the will of the international community is thwarted by the practices of Israel and its principal protector, the United States, which continue to usurp the rights of the Palestinian people.

Our people and Government, which also suffer from unjust aggression and which continue to struggle determinedly for independence, sovereignty and dignity, are firmly convinced that the Palestinians, under the leadership of their sole, legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), shall win and recover their rights, including their right to return to their homes and to establish their own State in their homeland, Palestine.

In keeping with the demands of its history and tradition, Nicaragua has lent, and will continue to lend, militant support to the Palestinian people. In recent years, since we took our seat as a non-permanent member of the Security Council, we have constantly defended the rights of that suffering fraternal people, and we have been concerned to see at first hand how one of the Council's permanent members, disregarding its responsibilities and the principles of the Organization, continues its unlimited support of Israel's illegal conduct.

Like the overwhelming majority of members of the Security Council, our Government has strongly supported the convening of a conference on the Middle East with the participation of all parties concerned.

Those who are responsible for the tragedy of the Palestinian people cannot in the present situation remain deaf to the calls for peace. We shall continue, along with others ─ the Palestinian people, the Arab world, the United Nations and the Non-Aligned Movement ─ to raise our voice in the struggle against injustice and oppression, until the final victory of the Palestinian people.

NIGERIA

H.E. Major-General Muhammadu Buhari, Head of the Federal Military

Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces

On this solemn occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People I take this opportunity, on behalf of the Government and the people of Nigeria, to convey my sincere and hearty greetings to the people of Palestine. My Government strongly holds the view that the continued occupation of Arab territories by Israel not only is a flagrant challenge to the international community, but also constitutes a serious threat to international peace and security.

There is no shadow of doubt that a Middle East peace that is just and equitable cannot ignore the aspirations and rights of the Palestinians. We therefore reaffirm our support for a peace that must recognize their inalienable right to self-determination and their right to return to their homeland and establish an independent State of their own in Palestine.

We in Nigeria deplore the continuing Israeli denial of these legitimate rights, which constitute the core of the Middle East problem. We also firmly deplore the systematic expropriation of Arab land, designed to annex the occupied territories in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in persistent defiance of the resolutions of the United Nations. I further take this opportunity to reassure the people of Palestine that Nigeria will continue to exert the utmost efforts within the international community aimed at achieving a comprehensive, just and equitable solution of the Middle East problem, which will restore and guarantee their sovereign rights. We are convinced that time and justice are on the side of the people of Palestine.

Once more, on behalf of the Government and the people of Nigeria, I pledge Nigeria's unflinching and continued support for the legitimate struggle of the people of Palestine to establish a homeland in Palestine where they can live in peace and within secure borders.

PAKISTAN

H.E. President Mohammad Zia-Ul-Haq of Pakistan

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the Government and the people of Pakistan reaffirm their firm commitment and unwavering support for the just and principled cause of their Palestinian brethren against the barbaric aggression and occupation of their territories by the Zionist authorities.

All efforts thus far by the international community to resolve the long-festering Palestinian problem have been frustrated by Israel's intransigence and total disregard for the universally accepted principles of international law. In fact, Israel continues to mock world opinion by relentlessly carrying out its expansionist policies to change the demographic and geographic character of the Palestinian and Arab territories under its illegal occupation.

It is the moral duty of the international community and, in particular, the five permanent members of the Security Council to redouble their efforts to prevent any further acts of genocide against the Palestinian people and to put an end to the great injustices it has suffered during the past three decades.

Our sense of revulsion and indignation at the recent massacres of Palestinians in Lebanon cannot be expressed in words. We declare our complete solidarity with our Palestinian brethren and salute the indomitable courage and valour with which they continue to brave the ferocious Israeli onslaught against them.

On this solemn occasion, the Government and people of Pakistan reiterate their firm belief that there can be no durable peace in the Middle East unless a just solution is found to the Palestinian question based on Israel's unconditional withdrawal from all Arab territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem, and the restitution of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation organization, including its right to the establishment of a State of its own. To mark this solemn occasion special prayers will be offered all over Pakistan for the safe return of our Palestinian brethren to their homeland in peace and honour.

POLAND

H.E. Professor Henryk Jablonski,

President of the Council of State of the Polish People's Republic

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I wish to convey to you, in the name of the Polish People's Republic and in my own name, the expressions of strong support, solidarity with and sympathy for the fighting Palestinian people and for the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the genuine spokesman for its will and struggle for national liberation.

This support derives from our historical experience and ideological convictions which are at the roots of Poland's present statehood. Deeply devoted to ideals of freedom of nations, we wish to demonstrate again our ties with the just strivings and aspirations of the Palestinian people who have the inalienable right to live in their fatherland and in an independent State of their own.

Continued denial by forces hostile to world peace of the right of the Arab people of Palestine to self-determination is the essence of the Middle East conflict. It is followed by almost daily brutal Israeli activities aimed against that nation. We hold as our moral obligation and that of the entire peace loving international community to recall this essential truth through consistent support of the aspirations of the Palestinian people on all forums of international relations.

The United Nations plays a significant role in the consolidation of efforts with a view to a comprehensive settlement of the Middle East question. The convocation of a peace conference, under their auspices with the participation of all parties concerned, including the PLO, is the sole, realistic road to such a comprehensive solution to the Middle East conflict. Participation of a strong, cohesive PLO in these activities is a prerequisite to their success.

Our nation has followed with concern the present phase of the Palestinian national liberation struggle. Conflicts within the PLO are not conducive to the national interests of the Palestinians. It must be presumed that zionism and American imperialism unquestionably exploit the complex internal situation within the PLO to advance their expansionist plans contrary to the vital interests of all Arab people.

We wish to see, that by closing its ranks the PLO will carry on its effective activities in the name of the lofty aspirations of the Palestinian people, unity of the Arab world, progress and peace. We are deeply convinced that, despite painful experiences and obstacles, the PLO, true to the ideals of the Palestinian revolution, shall overcome internal difficulties and lead the Palestinian people to ultimate victory.

QATAR

His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al-Thani,

Emir of the State of Qatar

This meeting, the seventh of its kind to commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, gives me the opportunity to reaffirm on behalf of the State of Qatar, its people and Government, and on my own behalf, the position of our State, which has fully supported, and continues to support, the struggle of that heroic people to regain its inalienable rights, foremost of which are its right to self-determination, its right to return to its homeland and its right to establish its own independent State in that homeland, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, its sole, legitimate representative.

I am pleased also to reaffirm my great appreciation of the constructive role of your Committee in supporting the great Palestinian struggle to regain those rights. In participating in the commemoration of this day every year in this international Organization, we reaffirm our full solidarity with the Palestinian people and our determination to make every possible effort to ensure the success of its just cause. We cannot accept that this problem still lacks a just and comprehensive solution to end the blind Israeli aggression, which is a disgrace to mankind, undeterred aggression against all the values and the principles of the United Nations, developed by many centuries of continuing struggle as general rules of international behaviour aimed at securing the security and peace of the world.

The tragedy of the Palestinian people is unprecedented in history. It is a tragedy of crushing injustice, caused by Israel's ejection of that people from its homeland. Israel occupied its land and subjected the few who remained to the worst kinds of oppression and repression, depriving them of their most fundamental human rights.

The whole world is today convinced that the continuation of that situation, which has gone on for 37 years, has turned the Middle East into a source of tension, which threatens not only regional peace and security but international peace and security as well, "particularly since Israel has gone one step further, persisting in its injustice by redoubling its barbaric violation of the rights of the rights of the Arab nation and of its holy places, annexing sacred Jerusalem and Golan, invading Lebanon and raiding the Iraqi nuclear reactor.

We are convinced that the Palestinian cause is no longer merely an Arab or Middle Eastern cause; it has become an international issue high on the list of the world's concerns and priorities. It is truly regrettable that the international community has stood by watching Israel perpetuate its crimes and flout and disregard the highest principles and values of the international community. But it is even more regrettable, and surprising, that the international community should persist in its negative attitude towards punishment for these crimes, even though it has realized the danger they pose to international peace and security. It is unthinkable that our generation should bear the responsibility, before history and future generations, of having thus allowed the destruction of the principles of our international civilization, and of its moral, religious and legal values, standing arms folded and inflicting catastrophe on the world: the loss of international peace and security.

I urge all the peoples of the world, and all their leaders and thinkers, to exert every possible effort before it is too late so that the international community, as represented in the United Nations ─ and more particularly in the Security Council, to whose permanent members I address a particular call ─ may shoulder its responsibility to keep intact the pillars of our civilization, and world peace and security. There can be no doubt that the principles of the Charter of this Organization give the Security Council sufficient powers and duties to guarantee effectiveness.

The suffering to which the Palestinian people has been subjected has only increased its will and determination to show outstanding heroism in regaining its homeland, its freedom and its dignity.

The people of Qatar, which stands behind the fraternal Palestinian people and supports its struggle, believes in the wisdom of history, and history shows that no fight to regain a usurped right has been fought with more courage, heroism and selflessness than that of the Palestinian people.

The State of Qatar expresses its sincere hope that the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People will help achieve the victory of the just cause of the Palestinian people, and it hopes that this International Day will be fully successful in achieving its noble aims.

SAUDI ARABIA

His Majesty Fahd ibn Abdul-Aziz,

King of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

It is regrettable that this commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is taking place again while the Arab Palestinian people continues to suffer under the oppression of Zionist colonialism and to be deprived of the exercise of its legitimate rights. It also continues to be subjected to various forms of oppression and terrorism and to injustices and deprivations of all kinds.

An entire year has passed since my last message on this same occasion; every day of that year has marked another dark page in the history of mankind owing to the crimes committed by zionism against the Palestinian and Arab lands it occupies and owing to the practices of zionism in violation of human norms and international agreements.

Zionist aggression should be regarded not only as aggression against a peaceful people living in its own land or as a plunder of land and property, nor should it be regarded as mere disregard of human principles and ideals or a flagrant challenge to the resolutions of this international organization: it should be regarded as forcing the international community back to the law of the jungle, as rejecting the humanitarian principles, ideals and values to which the international community endeavours to adhere and defend.

The Palestinian people has never been an aggressor or the occupier of the lands of others. It has been the victim of aggression, its rights have been violated; its land and property have been confiscated. Despite the fact that the majority of the world's nations recognize the inalienable and legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, including its right to self-determination and its right to establish an independent State on its own land, the Zionist entity persists in its policy of aggression and in implementing its policy of creating colonial settlements in the land of Palestine. Through its policy of attempting physically to liquidate the Palestinian people, to obliterate the history of Palestine and destroy its cultural and religious establishments and to change its demographic nature, zionism is aiming at the total destruction of the Palestinian entity, in complete disregard of world public opinion and of the United Nations.

Zionist aggression represents the greatest challenge and the greatest threat to the ideals for which the United Nations was founded. The continued existence of that challenge and that threat undermines the effectiveness of this Organization and belittles its ideals and the principles of its Charter. The gravity of Zionist disregard can have a negative effect on the credibility of the United Nations, for the honour of this international Organization – which embodies the hopes for the peace of nations and peoples – will be diminished if it limits itself to adopting resolutions and making recommendations. Therefore, this Organization should live up to its commitments to the Palestinian people and also uphold its commitment to the ideals of the United Nations Charter.

The United Nations has made repeated appeals to ensure the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. Its resolutions have condemned the aggressive designs of zionism. But in the end the Zionist entity has not given up one iota of its aggressiveness, which is irrefutable proof that it pays no heed to the opinions of others and that it has no wish to conform to international consensus. The lack of international deterrence encourages that entity to persist in its arrogance and its reliance on force to carry out its expansionist ambitions.

There must be an end to this defiant persistence in such unlawful behaviour. It is high time that the international community moved from merely condemning that behaviour to adopting effective measures to restrain it.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia reiterates its firm belief that peace, security and stability will not prevail in the Middle East or in the world at large until a just, comprehensive solution of the Palestinian problem has been achieved. That solution must be based on the restoration to the Palestinian people of its full legitimate rights, foremost among which is its right to establish a State on its own land under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, its sole, legitimate representative, and upon a total unconditional Israeli withdrawal from all occupied Arab territories, including Al-Quds Al-Sharif, Holy Jerusalem.

There is no doubt that the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People is performing a vitally important role in bringing to the attention of the United Nations and the international community as a whole the facts about the Palestinian problem. It therefore gives me pleasure to hail the Committee for its constructive efforts in this field.

I wish the Chairman and the other members of the Committee every success in their worthy mission, and hope that their efforts to shoulder their responsibility will continue to be successful. I affirm that the international community is grateful for their efforts. I hope that we will not have to wait long before the rights of the Palestinian people are restores so that that nation may take its rightful place among the peoples of the world.

The ideals of the United Nations cannot but be enhanced by the support of a people which is destined to achieve its rights after a period of injustice and despotism which will live in history.

Members of the Committee: We appreciate your mandate, support your efforts and wish you every success. May peace and God's mercy and blessings be with you.

SENEGAL

H.E. Mr. Abdou Diouf, President of the Republic of Senegal

On the occasion of the commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I should like to send you, on behalf of the people and Government of Senegal, as well as on my own behalf, our very warm congratulations and our best wishes for complete success.

As in the past, Senegal wishes to join in the commemoration of this Day, which is a striking demonstration of solidarity with the legitimate struggle being waged by the Arab people of Palestine to achieve their inalienable national rights, and in particular their right to establish their own State on the land of Palestine.

It is appropriate here to reaffirm our conviction that a just settlement of the Palestinian problem demands Israel's withdrawal from all occupied Arab territories and the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, as defined by your Committee.

Senegal, which has always fully supported the right of the Palestinian people and their legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), to participate on an equal footing in all negotiations aimed at finding a solution to the question of Palestine, wholeheartedly appeals for the rapid convening of an International Peace Conference on the Middle East, which we regard as the most appropriate way to do justice to the legitimate cause of the brotherly people of Palestine.

Finally, I wish to reaffirm the constant support that the Senegalese Government and I give to the work of your Committee, which has succeeded in formulating a programme that is acceptable as a basis for settling the question of Palestine.

To the brother people of Palestine and their representative, the PLO, we express the wish that they will enjoy complete success in their struggle to secure the implementation of their right to national sovereignty and independence.

SEYCHELLES

H.E. Mr. France Albert Rene, President of the Republic of Seychelles

On behalf of the people of Seychelles, and on my own behalf, I wish to convey to you our good wishes, and our continued support and solidarity in your just struggle for the sovereignty of your nation and integrity of your territory.

We in Seychelles have always had great admiration for the courage of your people in the struggle for self-determination, independence and for a homeland of their own. We cannot deny to any people, under whatever pretext, the inalienable right of a people to a homeland.

Our most fervent hope is that our support, in conjunction with that of all other countries, will ensure that an end is put to this struggle which has lasted for too long and that it culminates in the establishment of an independent sovereign State.

On this momentous occasion, may I reiterate our assurances that my country will continue to give the Palestinian people all the support they deserve in their just cause.

SRI LANKA

H.E. J.R. Jayewardene,

President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

Today marks the international Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People which provides an occasion for the international community to focus its attention on the plight of the Palestinian people and redouble its efforts to finding a solution for this most vexed question. The decision of the United Nations to declare a special Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is an indication of the unqualified support and solidarity among the international community for the just cause of the Palestinian people.

Sri Lanka has always stood steadfast in its support for the Palestinian cause and has been firm in the belief and advocacy that the restoration of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to self-determination and return to their homeland, is fundamental for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East.

The Government and the people of Sri Lanka wish to express their disappointment that, notwithstanding the innumerable resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly, no satisfactory solution has yet been found to this question which continues to cause untold misery and hardship to the Palestinian people.

It is our hope that on this Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People the international community will reawaken itself to the urgency of a just solution to this question and bring to an end the repression and suffering of the Palestinian people. Sri Lanka's commitment to the Palestinian cause remains as strong as ever.

SUDAN

H.E. Mr. Jaafar Mohammad al-Nimeiri, President of the Republic of Sudan

Every year on this date the world family marks the international Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, a people which has been striving tirelessly to regain its legitimate rights and its territory, plundered by the claws of the terrorist Zionist occupier. The United Nations resolution declaring 29 November to be the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People shows the international community's interest in the Palestinian cause, and is another manifestation of the renewed support of the international community for that people and its legitimate aspirations to self-determination and to the establishment of an independent, sovereign State on its own national territory.

This year's commemoration is of particular genuine importance, given the situation in the region and throughout the world, which clearly highlights the fact that the Palestinian cause constitutes the very essence of the Middle East struggle and that that cause will continue to be a live volcano, threatening international peace and security, unless a just, equitable and lasting solution is found to this problem.

The struggle of the Palestinian people has taught us many lessons and facts. Among them is the fact that the flame of that struggle will continue to burn bright. It will stand boldly, despite all attempts to quench it and to prolong the suffering of the Palestinian people. In the face of hardship, the Palestinian people daily give new proof of the justice and equity of its cause.

It is clear that Israel's refusal, in the absence of a coercive force, to accept United Nations resolutions and any attempt to secure peace is a sign that Israel prefers the path of war, repression, terrorism and the Judaization of Arab territories. The cause of the Palestinian people will remain a standing challenge to the United Nations in its efforts to enable the Palestinian people to regain its inalienable rights. It will stand as proof of the aspirations of peoples throughout the world.

The convening at Geneva in 1983 of the International Conference on the Question of Palestine was a major event which gave the international community an opportunity to reaffirm its principles and views with respect to a solution of this problem, in the context of international legality and with the participation of all countries. The international community reaffirmed at that Conference that there can be no just and lasting peace in the Middle East without a total, unconditional withdrawal by Israel from all Arab territories occupied since 1967, including Al-Quds ─ Jerusalem ─ the Holy City, so that the Palestinian people may attain self-determination and recover its land and property, establishing a sovereign, independent State in its homeland, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, its sole, legitimate representative.

These principles are at the very basis of peace. Peace must be based on justice, not on force of arms. The international community's efforts to secure the exercise by the Palestinian people of its inalienable rights have been fully appreciated and supported by Sudan. The Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People has played an important role in heightening the awareness of the international community with respect to the suffering of the Palestinian people and to the legitimacy of its cause. We hope that its efforts will continue so that this people may attain its national aspirations and so that the commemoration by the United Nations of this Day may mark an important starting point on the way to the attainment of these objectives.

SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC

H.E. Mr. Hafiz al-Assad, President of the Syrian Arab Republic

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I should like to convey to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People the greetings of the Syrian Arab Republic as well as my own. The United Nations General Assembly resolution deciding to commemorate an International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People was taken in support of the rights of the Palestinian Arab people which were usurped by Israel through occupation and armed aggression, and by the use of oppression, repression, racial discrimination and forced displacement of persons in the occupied Arab territories.

The General Assembly resolution rightly recognizes the rights of the Palestinian Arab people to receive support from all freedom-loving countries. For our part, the people of Syria regard the question of the Palestinian people as at the heart of the problem of the Middle East and the focal point of our struggle against aggression and occupation and the establishment of a just peace in the region.

The territory of Palestine is part of the Arab nation ─ indeed, it is the heart of the Arab nation. The Palestinian people are part of the Arab nation to which we belong. For that reason, the aggression launched against the Palestinian people is aggression launched against the Arab nation.  It is the initial step in an expansionist Israeli plan aimed at establishing the greater State of Israel extending from the Nile to the Euphrates.

The United Nations, through the General Assembly and all its bodies ─ and in particular the Security Council ─ has adopted numerous resolutions affirming the inalienable rights of the Palestinian Arab people. Those rights are still being usurped as a result of Israel's persistent refusal to implement those resolutions and its continued challenge to the United Nations, and because of the support given Israel by the United States of America.

I am confident that the Committee will take these facts into consideration during its deliberations and that it will issue appropriate recommendations to the General Assembly to re-establish the inalienable rights of the Palestinian Arab people, including their right to return, their right to self-determination and their right to establish their own independent State on their own soil.

I reiterate our greetings and best wishes for the Committee in the successful carrying out of its task.

THAILAND

H.E. General Prem Tinsulanonda, Prime Minister of Thailand

On the occasion of this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, may I, on behalf of the Government and the people of Thailand, extend to you and, through you, to the Palestinian people our solidarity with its just struggle to obtain its legitimate rights of self-determination and a homeland.

For more than three decades the Palestinians were uprooted from their homeland and deprived of their rights to self-determination, as well as other basic human rights. In this regard we fully sympathize with their anguish. Not only must every effort be made to provide them with urgent and continuous humanitarian relief, but their legitimate and inalienable rights to self-determination without external interference, including the right to national independence and sovereignty and the right to return to their homes and properties must also be restored to them.

Thailand therefore fully concurs with the framework for a comprehensive political settlement as contained in various United Nations resolutions which call for immediate and unconditional withdrawal by Israel from all territories occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem. Yet it is our hope that a durable solution to the conflict in the Middle East, with the question of Palestine as its core issue, will be found through a peaceful and negotiated settlement.

It is therefore apparent to us that the United Nations system, particularly the Security Council, is the most appropriate forum in which to draw world attention to the need for a peaceful and durable solution to the Palestinian problem.

In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that until such time as freedom and self-determination for the Palestinian people are achieved we think it only right for us to continue to express our support for the Palestinian people in its just struggle on occasions such as this today.

TOGO

H.E. General Gnassingbe Eyadema,

President and Founder of the Rally of the

Togolese People and President of the Republic of Togo

The people of Togo, its union party, the Rally of the Togolese People, my Government and I myself take the opportunity presented by the commemoration of the International. Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People to renew our steadfast support for that people.

We greatly appreciate the tireless efforts made by the Palestinian people with a view to exercising its inalienable rights and to winning its emancipation.

We take this opportunity also to appeal to all parties involved in the tragedy of the Middle East, and to the concerned and interested parties, to demonstrate mutual understanding with the aim of achieving a peaceful comprehensive settlement of the crisis, within the framework of an international conference on Palestine.

Finally, we express the hope that all Palestinians will unite more closely in their struggle to recover their national identity within secure and internationally recognized boundaries, and we warmly welcome this commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

H.E. Mr. George Chambers, Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago

As the international community joins in the observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, it is yet another opportunity for us to reflect on the plight of that long-suffering people. Though Trinidad and Tobago recognizes the importance of such observances to the morale of those committed to the struggle of the Palestinian people and acknowledges the significance of the role such commemorations play in sensitizing the unsupportive to their plight, nevertheless my Government is deeply-disturbed that over the years such reflection has not resulted in any significant progress towards the attainment of the legitimate goals and aspirations of the Palestinian people. Trinidad and Tobago once again wholeheartedly endorses the right of the Palestinian people to its own nation-State.

Trinidad and Tobago has always stood for the peaceful settlement of disputes and, in seeking a just and lasting settlement of the Palestinian question in particular, and peace and stability in the Middle East in general. We reiterate our support for the convening of an International Peace Conference on the Middle East under the auspices of the United Nations and urge all concerned parties to participate in it so that the search for a just solution to the problems of the region can be accelerated.

it cannot be overemphasized that the conflicts in the area pose a grave threat to international peace and security and seriously drain the region's human and financial resources, resources which are vital to the social, economic and cultural development of the area. Trinidad and Tobago commends the untiring efforts of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and reaffirms its unstinting support for all efforts to find just and lasting settlements to the problems of the Middle East.

On this solemn occasion the Government and people of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago again express their solidarity with the Palestinian people and pledge full support to the struggle for its inalienable rights to self-determination and the establishment of its own State and national independence.

TUNISIA

H.E.  Mr. Habib Bourguiba, President of the Republic of Tunisia

At a time when the international Organization is commemorating the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I extend to you and to the Special Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People my deep appreciation of, and thanks for, your persevering efforts to support the Palestinian people in its just struggle to recover the rights of which it has been deprived and to endorse those legitimate rights and reveal the plots and machinations of the Israelis, which go beyond all the norms and deny all the values for which the international community has struggled since the birth of this Organization.

The holding of a day of solidarity with the militant people of Palestine is to remind us of those daily practices of the Israelis against a helpless, unarmed people that has been subject to the most violent forms of injustice in this century. It deserves the support of all peoples.

This commemoration takes place at a time when Israel is continuing its defiance and is trampling underfoot the resolutions and decisions of the United Nations. Therefore, it means support for our Organization and its noble aims. It will also ensure support for the dignity of man and his security.

Israel's stubborn persistence in creating settlements in the occupied Arab territories, its deportation of the indigenous people and its dispersal of that people by force, its pursuit of that people throughout the territories of the neighbouring countries in order to exterminate them and destroy their just cause all these practices give irrefutable proof of Israel's defiance of the most elementary moral principles underlying human rights and of international law and the human conscience.

Instead of choosing peace, instead of complying with the resolutions of our international Organization and enabling the Palestinian people to win its inalienable rights, Israel has preferred to engage in those illegal practices, considering itself superior, and thus creating a situation of constant tension in the Middle East. That situation remains a threat to international peace and security.

I should have been glad if today we could be speaking in a climate propitious to a settlement of the situation, but unfortunately Israel remains intransigent, persisting in its racist policy of aggression against the Palestinian people. Unfortunately, its practices have prevented that people from realizing its dreams and therefore peace is alien to that region.

I have expressed Tunisia's position on the Palestinian question on a number of occasions. A just and lasting peace in the Middle East can be achieved only if together we find a just and lasting solution to the problem of the Palestinian people, under international law and in such a way as to guarantee to that people its. legitimate and inalienable rights, enabling it to return to its homeland and establish an independent State on its own territory. That is the peace plan adopted by the Fez Summit. We consider that any international efforts to ensure a just and lasting peace in the Middle East deserve our support and that of the whole international community.

We call on the Committee to continue its work to ensure the rule of law, to fight for this just cause and to bring an end to Israel's aggressive actions. We hope that the international community will succeed in its efforts and produce a just solution supporting the Palestinians in their struggle to return to their land and to establish an independent State on their own territory.

TURKEY

H.E. Mr. Turgut Ozal, Prime Minister of Turkey

On the occasion of the seventh anniversary of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People I would like, on behalf of the Turkish people and my Government, as well as on my own behalf, to convey our solidarity with the Palestinian people.

I welcome the General Assembly's decision concerning the commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, which presents the opportunity not only to demonstrate our solidarity on the matter, but also to evaluate the events relating to the question of Palestine that have taken place during the past 12 months. In this period it was encouraging to note the ever-growing support and sympathy in the world community for the just Palestinian cause. In this respect I would like to commend the efforts undertaken by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People to promote a wider awareness of the Palestinian problem.

Turkey is convinced that recognition of all the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people is a fundamental prerequisite for a lasting peace in the Middle East. We firmly support the right to self-determination of the Palestinians on their own soil. Needless to say, the withdrawal of Israel from the occupied Arab territories, including Jerusalem, without which no settlement can be just and durable, is crucial.

Along these lines we will continue to support our Palestinian brothers and I am confident that with the increasing understanding and support of the international community, as well as with the unity in their ranks, the Palestinian people, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), will sooner or later succeed in attaining the realization of their legitimate aspirations.

On this occasion I would like also to convey to the brotherly Palestinian people the sincere wishes of the Turkish people and Government for early success in its just struggle.

UGANDA

H.E. Dr. A. Milton Obote, President of the Republic of Uganda

On this solemn occasion when we observe the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I wish to convey to you the commitment of the Government of the Republic of Uganda and the people of Uganda to work towards the rehabilitation and enjoyment of the full rights of the Palestinian people.

Uganda is of the view that the holding of an International Conference on Palestine in which all the parties to the conflict, including the Palestine Liberation Organization, participate, would be a major step in the search for a comprehensive, just and genuine peace.

We have witnessed the massacres of Sabra and Shatila, the occupation of southern Lebanon by Israeli forces and the subsequent cruel destruction of Palestine and Lebanese lives and property, the annexation of Palestine lands and the attempt to annex the Holy City of Jerusalem.

The Palestinians have the right to return to their homeland, the right to self-determination and the right to set up an independent State of their own. There can never be just and durable peace in the Middle East without addressing the injustice done to the Palestinians.

It is the hope of my Government that out of your gathering today a new determination to secure the inalienable rights of Palestinians will be generated.

Please accept, Mr. Chairman, my best wishes for your Committee's complete success.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan,

President of the United Arab Emirates

On behalf of the United Arab Emirates and its people, I wish to renew our thanks to you and the members of your august Committee for your constructive and untiring efforts to realize the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including its right to return to its homeland from which it was forcibly deported by Israel, to exercise its right to self-determination like all other peoples of the world, and to establish an independent State in its homeland, Palestine.

The choice of 29 November as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people has a noble and positive meaning. This clearly expresses the position of the United Nations vis-à-vis the eradication of the injustice to which that people was subjected when it was decided to partition its homeland ─ 29 November 1947 ─ against its will, in violation of its rights and in disregard of its hopes and aspirations by the powers of injustice and colonialism which at that time imposed their will on the United Nations.

We also support you fully in your efforts aimed at convening an international conference on the Middle East, the crux of which is the Palestinian cause. We believe that the convening of such a conference and its agenda are the appropriate way to settle this problem in a durable and just way that would guarantee to-the Palestinian people the exercise of its national inalienable rights.

We believe that stressing the importance of the international conference has two facets: first, the United Nations, as the source of international will and legitimacy, is the appropriate framework within which to settle disputes and solve international problems in accordance with the Charter) and, secondly, the United Nations bears a very special responsibility vis-à-vis the Palestinian cause, since it was in the name of the United Nations that Palestine was partitioned and the State of Israel created.

We regret that some States have opposed the convening of that conference, in accordance with their policies of providing military, economic and diplomatic aid to Israel without which that aggressive State would not have been able to persist in its policies of aggression and annexation as well as the repression and oppression of the Palestinian people. It would not have been able to defy the United Nations and its resolutions on the question of Palestine.

One month ago the United Nations celebrated a Week of Solidarity with the People of Namibia. That people has been subjected to the very same sufferings to which the Palestinian people has been subjected ─ repression, apartheid and foreign occupation. We therefore stress the necessity of collective action against the two racist régimes of Tel Aviv and Pretoria in order to restore the legitimate rights of the two peoples of Palestine and Namibia.

Finally, may I renew the support of the United Arab Emirates and its people for the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. We are convinced that its efforts will inevitably be crowned with success, that it will achieve the desired ends, and that the national aspirations of the Palestinian people will be realized.

VIET NAM

H.E. Mr. Pham Van Dong, President of the Council of

Ministers of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People observed by the United Nations, I would like to convey warmest greetings to you and through you to the Palestinian people and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Faced with their worsening quagmire and defeat, the United States authorities and Israel have increased their collusion, obdurately persisted in their policy of intervention and aggression and sought every means to divide and undermine the solidarity of the Palestinian people and to impose a solution contrary to the Palestinian people's fundamental national rights and Arab peoples' interests. The adventurous, reactionary policy of the United States and Israel, however, has met with one failure after another. Bringing into play its staunch, indomitable tradition, the Palestinian people under the leadership of the PLO is carrying out the valiant struggle for national liberation against United States-Israel intervention and aggression, thus making a worthy contribution to the struggle of the peoples of the Middle East and the world over for peace and independence.

The people and Government of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam constantly and resolutely support the just struggle of the Palestinian people for its sacred, inalienable national rights, including the right to self-determination and the right to return to its homeland and to establish a sovereign, independent State of Palestine. The proposal put forward recently by the Soviet Union on convening an international peace conference on the Middle East, with the participation of all parties concerned, including the PLO, is a reasonable and practical proposal aimed at finding a proper solution to the Middle East and Palestine question.

Realities of struggle of the peoples have testified to the fact that "unity is strength" and that it is a primary decisive factor in victory. We are firmly convinced that the Palestinian people, with the strong support of peace- and justice-loving peoples the world over, successfully uniting all Palestinian revolutionary forces around the PLO, its sole legitimate representative, maintaining its unity with other Arab peoples and struggling resolutely, will certainly achieve final victory.

We hope that the annual observation of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people will help increase stronger support and more effective assistance by the world community to the just cause of the Palestinian people.

DEMOCRATIC YEMEN

H.E. Mr. Ali Nasir Muhammad,

Prime Minister of Democratic Yemen

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, 29 November 1984, it gives me pleasure to salute you and, through you, the United Nations, which decided to declare this Day within the framework of the efforts you are exerting to achieve victory for the just cause of the Palestinians ─ a cause that has been reconfirmed in so many relevant United Nations resolutions, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), their sole, legitimate representative, and their struggle to return to their homeland, to determine their own future and establish their own independent State.

It is perhaps appropriate to reiterate my country's firm position at the side of the Palestinian people, under the leadership of the PLO and against all aggressive policies and schemes designed to achieve partial solutions in contravention of United Nations resolutions and of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.

In the past Israel has persistently disregarded those rights and has continued to pursue its expansionist and aggressive settlement policy against neighbouring Arab States in the Middle East.  That has further complicated the already tense situation in the region and threatened international peace and security. Israel still continues along the path of aggression and expansion in an attempt to entrench its occupation of Arab territories and its violation of the human rights of the Palestinian people and of United Nations resolutions. The Palestinian people, the Arab people and all peace-loving peoples are strongly opposed to such activities.

Developments in the Middle East have proved that a just and comprehensive peace in that region of the world cannot be achieved without Israel's withdrawal from the Arab territories it occupies and without the implementation of relevant United Nations resolutions on the rights of the Palestinian people. In this connection, we wish to express our appreciation for the international efforts and initiatives aimed at realizing a just and durable peace in the Middle East.

Of particular importance are the proposals put forward by the Soviet Union in this regard to convene an international peace conference on the Middle East with the participation of all the parties concerned, including the PLO. We believe that those proposals, which are completely in keeping with the call of the General Assembly for the convening of such a conference, represent a practical and realistic framework for the attainment of peace in that region and for the promotion of international peace and security.

There can be no doubt that peace- and freedom-loving countries and peoples that have supported the cause of the Palestinian people by calling for its inalienable rights will continue their active solidarity with the Palestinian people and its constructive actions to abort all aggressive acts aimed at eradicating that people's identity.

This International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People reaffirms an international fact by which peace- and freedom-loving nations can express their solidarity with the cause of the Palestinian people, as well as their condemnation of the policies of aggression and expansionism practised by the Zionist entity, aided and abetted by the Government of the United States of America and its allies aimed at prolonging the tense situation in the Middle East and transforming the Arab homeland into a base for schemes and plots against peace-loving nations as a first step for extending hegemony over those peoples and plundering their natural and human resources.

There can be no doubt that the Palestinian people and all Arab peoples will struggle against all plots and schemes of aggression and will achieve their just aims through the widespread solidarity with other States and Powers that share their love for peace, freedom and justice.

YEMEN

H.E. Colonel Ali Abdulla Saleh, President of the Republic,

Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces

and Secretary-General of the People's Assembly

It is my pleasure, on the occasion of the celebration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, in its legitimate and just struggle to regain its national inalienable rights, to salute you and all participants in its celebration. I express to you the appreciation of the Yemen Arab Republic for the efforts you are making to realize the inalienable and legitimate rights of the Palestinian Arab people and to serve the purposes and principles of the United Nations as well as the cause of international peace and security.

The attention given to this occasion reflects the determination of those struggling everywhere to achieve peace and justice and is a great asset to those struggling to rid themselves of the scourge of colonialism and racism. Israel, supported by the Powers allied with it in its war waged against the very existence of the Palestinian people and its legitimate and inalienable rights, has used every sort of weapon, has resorted to schemes and plots to abort the struggle of the Palestinian people, has persisted in disregarding the international will and has insisted on refusing to implement United Nations resolutions, including the General Assembly resolution calling for the convening of an International Conference for Peace in the Middle East.

In the face of all these facts, the United Nations is called upon to take practical measures that would force Israel to heed international legitimacy so that we may save the world from the gravest of dangers.

We in the Yemen Arab Republic have stressed and continue to stress our principles and unswerving support for the just struggle waged by the Palestinian people under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization, its sole legitimate representative, to regain its inalienable and legitimate rights, including its right to self-determination and to establish an independent State on its own land, a struggle waged in the service of the causes of freedom, justice and peace in the world. I wish you all success in your work.

ZAMBIA

H.e. Dr. Kenneth David Kaunda, President of the Republic of Zambia

On behalf of the Party, its Government and the people of Zambia, and indeed on my own behalf, may I on this occasion commemorating the international Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People reaffirm our unflinching support for, and solidarity with, the Palestinian people in its just struggle for its inalienable right to self-determination and independence in Palestine, in terms of General Assembly resolution 181 (II), of 1947, which provided for the establishment of two States in Palestine, a Jewish State and an Arab State. TO this end Zambia reiterates its call for the unconditional Israeli withdrawal from all Arab territories occupied since 1967. We believe that Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) provide a valid basis for a peaceful settlement to the conflict in order to bring about a lasting solution in the Middle East.

I also wish to reaffirm Zambia's unqualified support for the principles contained in the Final Document adopted at the Twelfth Arab Summit held at Fez in Morocco in September 1982, which, inter alia, reaffirms the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and independence, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), its sole and legitimate representative, and calls for the establishment of an independent Palestinian State, with Jerusalem at its capital.

As I have said before, the question of Palestine is the core of the Middle East conflict, and no lasting solution can be attained unless the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people are respected by Israel.

Peace in the region cannot be guaranteed by aggression and usurpation of Arab lands. Israel, like any State in the area, should accept the inevitable – to coexist within secure and internationally recognized boundaries with its neighbours.

Once again, I reaffirm our support for the proposed international peace conference on the Middle East, to be held under the auspices of the United Nations, with the super-Powers and the parties directly concerned, including the PLO, participating on an equal basis.

I wish in conclusion to commend the Special Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People for its continued efforts in fostering the interests of the Palestinian people.

C. Messages from Ministers for Foreign Affairs

ARGENTINA

H.E. Mr. Dante Caputo, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Worship

The United Nations General Assembly at its thirty-second session established the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

Since then, year after year, countless activities have been organized throughout the world to express the solidarity of peoples with the Palestinian people regarding their inalienable rights.

The democratically-elected Argentine Government also wishes on this occasion to endorse the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, in the conviction that by so doing it is performing an action demanded by justice and peace.

The Argentine Republic is fully convinced that the question of Palestine is the basic element in the Middle East conflict which for the last 30 years has been endangering international peace and security.

That conflict will be resolved satisfactorily only by an agreement resulting from negotiations between all the interested parties, including the Palestine Liberation Organization, which represents the Palestinian people.

Accordingly, the Argentine Government considers the following to be essential:

A.  Recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to achieve self-determination and independence and establish themselves as a sovereign State.

B.  Withdrawal of Israel from all the Arab and Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, and acknowledgement that all administrative acts of the Israeli authorities are absolutely without effect.

C.  Recognition of the right to existence of all the States in the region and their right to live in peace within secure and internationally recognized boundaries.

D.  Recognition of a special régime for the Holy City of Jerusalem in accordance with General Assembly resolution 303 (IV).

The solidarity of my country with the Palestinian people and their problem has been reiterated both in succeeding General Assembly sessions and in the various international fora where the question has arisen, within the framework of the Non-Aligned Movement and during the International Conference on the Question of Palestine held in Geneva in 1983.

It bases its position on the principles of the United Nations Charter and also on the substance of the resolutions adopted by the General Assembly and the Security Council on the question.

It is the sincere wish of the Argentine Government that the day may not be far distant on which the Palestinian people will take their rightful place in the community of nations and live in peaceful coexistence with the other peoples of the region.

BANGLADESH

H.E. Mr. Humayun Rasheed Choudhury, Adviser for Foreign Affairs

(in his capacity as Chairman of the Fourteenth Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers)

I have learnt with great pleasure that the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People is to observe the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People on 29 November 1984 through a special commemorative meeting.

Bangladesh has always endeavoured to project the cause of the Palestinian brethren in all international forums and has taken keen interest in the realization of their just and inalienable rights.

On this solemn occasion I wish to reaffirm Bangladesh's total support for the just and legitimate cause of the Palestinian people for the achievement of their rights and for the establishment of a State of their own.

On this occasion I also wish to express my warm felicitations to the members of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People for their commendable task in the projection of the just cause of the Palestinian people.

GREECE

H.E. Mr. Yannis Haralampopoulos, Foreign Minister

Once more the international community is called to celebrate the "Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People" as a reminder that the Palestinian problem still remains unresolved despite a long series of resolutions of the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council, which set out the conditions for its solution.

I would like on this occasion to reaffirm that Greece will continue to grant her full support to the struggle of the Palestinians for independence and statehood.

The Greek Government is convinced that, since the Palestinian question lies at the core of what is known as the Arab-Israeli conflict, a lasting peace in the Middle East can only be established when the question of Palestine is settled on an equitable basis and by peaceful means. Such a settlement can only be achieved if the Palestinian people are given the opportunity to freely exercise their right to self-determination, including the right to have their own State and if all States in the region can exist safely within internationally recognized borders. To this end it is necessary that negotiations be started among all the parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization, the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.

There is no doubt that the Committee over which you preside has undertaken a difficult noble task in the service of a just cause. I wish to reiterate to you my highest appreciation for your indefatigable efforts. The Greek people and Government are truly convinced that the day will soon come when the Palestinian people can take its rightful place in the international community.

JAPAN

H.E. Mr. Shintaro Abe, Minister for Foreign Affairs

On the seventh international Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I wish to extend, on behalf of the Government of Japan, cordial greetings to you and to the other members of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.

The situation in the Middle East continues to be increasingly volatile and more deeply complex and hopes for peace remain dim. Of particular concern is the continued dispute within the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), one of the parties concerned, which further exacerbates the situation. I would like on this occasion to express the hope that officials of the PLO will work toward a reconciliation, and from a realistic viewpoint, will co-operate to strengthen the solidarity of the Palestinian people and advance the cause of peace.

The peace and stability of the Middle East directly affects world peace and prosperity. Deeply concerned about the situation in the region, Japan steadfastly hopes for the early achievement of a just, lasting and comprehensive peace.

Japan believes that the following conditions must be satisfied if the problem is to be resolved and peace achieved:

1. Israeli forces must be completely withdrawn from all the Arab territories occupied since the 1967 War;

2. The legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to establish an independent State, must be recognized in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations;

3. The security of all the States in the region must be guaranteed and their territorial integrity respected.

I strongly hope that all parties concerned, in a spirit of human charity, will put their combined wisdom to good use and through a process of negotiation strive to settle this unfortunate and difficult situation without further delay so that all the people in the region can live in peace.

REPUBLIC OF KOREA

H.E. Mr.  Won-Kyung Lee, Minister of Foreign Affairs

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I would like to express, on behalf of the Government and people of the Republic of Korea, our continued support for and solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle to exercise the right to self-determination and to attain national independence.

Although the United Nations has been seized with the Palestine question for more than 30 years, the question of Palestine is far from being settled to this day. All the major resolutions of the United Nations, including those that have provided for a reasonable basis for a comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Middle East problem, such as Security Council resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973), remain unimplemented.

The Government of the Republic of Korea firmly believes that international, disputes ought to be settled through peaceful negotiations and that acquisition of territory by force is inadmissible and cannot be justified under international law.

Based on this conviction, the Republic of Korea has fully supported the international efforts to solve the Middle East question and in particular, the question of Palestine, the core of the problem in that region, on the basis of the Security Council resolutions referred to above.

The Korean Government welcomes the Conference of Military Representatives of Lebanon and Israel, which is being held under United Nations auspices to discuss the withdrawal of Israeli forces and security arrangements in southern Lebanon.

We sincerely hope that a successful conclusion of the Conference will eventually lead to a more comprehensive, just and lasting solution to the Middle East question.

In commemorating this solemn occasion, I wish to reiterate that the Government of the Republic of Korea remains committed to complying with the relevant resolutions of the United Nations and is ready to assist the Palestinian people in every possible area.

In this connection, the Korean Government fulfilled its pledge of $US 1 million for an education grant to Palestinian students by presenting the fourth and final payment of $US 100,000 to the fund of Arab Student Aid International (ASAI) in April 1984.

In addition, the Korean Government has decided to sponsor training awards as part of its technical co-operation programme for 1985 for Palestinian students.

At non-governmental level, the Korean-Arab Friendship Society held a celebration of "The Week for the Palestine" from 23 to 27 May 1984 in Seoul, in an effort to strengthen our solidarity with the Palestinian people. Airing the celebration, a public lecture on the Palestine question, a Palestinian art exhibition, a photography exhibition on the Palestinian refugees and a film presentation on the Palestinian people were held.

In conclusion I wish to express our earnest hope that this meaningful occasion will mark a step forward in our common efforts to bring about a peaceful solution to the question of Palestine in particular, and to achieve the goal of peace, security and prosperity in the Middle East as a whole.

LIBYAN ARAB JAMAHIRIYA

Dr. Ali Abdussalam Treiki, Secretary of the People’s

Committee of the People’s Bureau for Foreign Relations

I am pleased, on the occasion of the Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, to express to you the esteem of the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya for the efforts being made by you and by the United Nations to resolve the conflict existing in the Arab region.

The resolutions adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations and its specialized agencies in the face of the Zionist aggression against the Arab nation are a clear indication of the extent of the world's concern with the cause of the Palestinian people to liberate its land and to build its independent State on all of Palestinian soil.

No other people has been exposed to what the Palestinian people has been exposed to since racist Zionist groups set about occupying its land. The aim of the acts of genocide, collective expulsion, destruction of homes and confiscation of land and the practice of all kinds of injustice and oppression to which the Palestinian people has been exposed at the hands of the Zionist racists is to empty the Palestinian territories of their original inhabitants and settle there groups which have emigrated from their original countries under the influence of Zionist propaganda. On this occasion, we stress once again the need for these groups to return to the countries from which they emigrated.

The resolutions adopted by the United Nations for the solution of the Palestinian question have met with rejection and disregard on the part of the Zionist groups, which have even increased their obduracy and have persisted in creating conditions of anarchy and instability in the region, thanks to the unlimited support which they receive from the United States Administration in all areas, including strategic alliance and the preparation of capitulationist agreements which they force some Arab régimes to enter into, such as the Camp David accord, which is considered blatant aggression against the Palestinian Arab people and its inalienable rights.

The United States of America, by its use of the veto against the will of the peoples and their aspirations, particularly against the cause of the Palestinian people and other Arab causes, in the context of its efforts aimed at imposing domination and hegemony on the principal organs of the United Nations and paralysing the effectiveness of its most important organ, namely the Security Council, prompts us to call emphatically for the abolition of the veto and the amendment of the Charter to accord with the will of the peoples and the principles of justice and equality between all nations and peoples.

On this occasion, we express to you our full and unlimited solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinian people to achieve the restoration of all its rights and to establish its independent State on all the territory of Palestine.

OMAN

H.E. Mr. Yousuf Bin Alawi Bin Abdullah,

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs

It is our pleasure, on the occasion of the commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, to convey to the Chairman and other members of the Committee our deep gratitude for their efforts in support of the Palestinian people. We take this important opportunity to reaffirm our support for and solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle to regain their legitimate rights, including the right to self-determination and to establish a State of their own.

It is high time that Israel heeded the Arab and international appeals and peace initiatives and complied with United Nations resolutions. Israel should realize that peace can come only through constructive dialogue and consultations in good faith aimed, in the final analysis, at the restoration to the Palestinian people of their legitimate rights and at guaranteeing peace and security in the entire region.

We call upon the international community to step up its efforts to find a just political solution to the Palestinian question.

SAN MARINO

H.E. Mr. Giordano Bruno Reffi,

Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs

I am deeply grateful for the kind invitation extended in letter number CPR/SD/94(3) of 9 October and being unable to send a representative of San Marino to the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I would be deeply grateful if you would kindly take note and inform the participants in the meeting to be held on the Day itself, that the Government of the Republic of San Marino considers the problem of the Palestinian people to be one of the most serious problems facing present-day society. Every people, in the view of the Republic of San Marino, whose ancient history has been marked by a continual struggle to ensure its own independence and survival, has the right to establish its own State and live an independent life in a secure territory of its own.

San Marino hopes that the States of the world will, in the shortest possible time, finally hail the birth of the Palestinian State under the leadership of the legitimate representatives of the Palestinian people and it believes that such an event would constitute a fitting and long-awaited act of justice.

San Marino hopes that the serious efforts made by the United Nations towards that end will help to bring about that hoped-for development and I beg you to accept by best wishes and the assurances of my highest consideration.

YUGOSLAVIA

H.E. Mr. Raif Dizdarevic, Secretary for Foreign Affairs

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People and on behalf of the people and Government of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, I would like to express solidarity with and full support for the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), its sole and legitimate representative, for the full exercise of its inalienable rights including the right to self-determination and the establishment of its own State.

Yugoslavia condemns the aggressive and expansionist policy of Israel and rejects Israeli practices and policies in the occupied territories, including Jerusalem, especially the establishment of illegal settlements.

We deeply believe that the crisis in the Middle East cannot be resolved without a just and durable solution of the question of Palestine which is at the core of the problem.

The solution of this most complex crisis of the contemporary world, which gravely threatens international peace and security, cannot be found without the exercise of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to return to their homes, to self-determination, independence and establishment of its own national State, without the withdrawal of Israel from all Palestinian and Arab territories occupied in June 1967 and later, and without ensuring to all the peoples and countries in the region the right to independence and safe development.

Together with other non-aligned countries, Yugoslavia consistently endeavours for the solution of the Middle East crisis through the United Nations, which is the only framework that can provide a just and lasting solution based on General Assembly and Security Council resolutions.

The non-aligned countries are constantly emphasizing that the efforts of the PLO, as the sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, that has the exclusive right to represent it, aimed at solving the question of Palestine through negotiations, deserve the broadest support of the international community.

Expressing the full solidarity with the Palestinian people who are facing permanent hardships and sufferings, Yugoslavia will continue to render all-round support and assistance to its legitimate and heroic struggle for the exercise of its inalienable national rights and for the attainment of freedom and independence.

D. Messages from Governments

BULGARIA

H.E. Mr. Boris Tsvetkov, Permanent Representative

to the United Nations

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, on behalf of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Bulgaria and the Bulgarian people, we express our most cordial congratulations to the movement of Palestinian resistance and to all the Palestinian people. The Bulgarian people has great esteem for the heroic struggle and courage of the Palestinian people, which has been so sorely tried, for the achievement of its inalienable rights to self-determination and the establishment of its own independent State in its own homeland. In this struggle over the years the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) has gained universal recognition and prestige as the militant vanguard and sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, and has won a prominent place in the ranks of the Arab and world national liberation movement.

Expressing our unflagging solidarity with the friendly Arab people of Palestine, we wish it unity in the struggle against imperialism, zionism and reaction and for the exercise of its legitimate national right to create a free, independent and democratic Palestinian State. Guided by its position of principle, the People's Republic of Bulgaria will continue in the future to give disinterested support to all the Arab peoples in their struggles to achieve a just and lasting peace in the Middle East.

HUNGARY

H.E. Mr. Miklos Endreffy, Permanent Representative to the United Nations

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the Hungarian people assures the Palestinian Arab people of our support in its struggle for a just cause. We are firmly convinced that only a just and comprehensive settlement of the Middle East crisis can guarantee peace and security for the peoples and countries in the region. The attainment of the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian Arab people and the establishment of its own independent State should constitute the heart of the settlement. All parties concerned, including the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian Arab people, should take part in the settlement process.

While reaffirming our solidarity with the Palestinian Arab people, we sincerely desire the PLO to restore, on the basis of democratic organizational principles and decisions adopted at the supreme forums of the movement, its unity and strength and the joint stand with the forces fighting for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East in their struggle for a just cause.

The Presidential Council of the Hungarian People's Republic and the whole Hungarian people wish you success in your 'struggle for the realization of the fundamental interests of the Palestinian people.

UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS

H.E. Mr. Oleg Aleksandrovich Troyanovsky,

Permanent Representative to the United Nations

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, we extend to the Arab Palestinian people and its political vanguard the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) our congratulations and best wishes. The Soviet people has the greatest respect for the Palestinian people, and firmly believes in the justice of its struggle to secure its inalienable right to self-determination and to establish an independent State of its own.

We are convinced that the fact that the Palestinian people has been closing ranks on an anti-imperialist, patriotic basis, and that close co-operation exists between the PLO and the Arab countries and peoples on positions of principle against the expansionist plans of the United States and Israel will enable the Palestinian resistance movement successfully to overcome its present difficulties, which are a result of Zionist and imperialist activities in the Middle East and of the activities of all those who oppose the realization of the aspirations of the Palestinian people.

The Palestinian patriots can always count on the support of the Soviet Union in this cause; as in the past, the Soviet Union will continue systematically to defend the path towards the attainment of a just, comprehensive settlement in the Middle East.

E. Statements by Regional Groups at the United Nations

GROUP OF AFRICAN STATES

H.E. Mr. Paul Ergo, Permanent Representative of Cameroon to the

United Nations and Chairman of the Group of African States

I bring the greetings of the African nations at the United Nations. We have not found it necessary to submit a memorandum, because it is the growing conviction of the African peoples that documentation alone is no longer enough.

I should like to remind all those present that the African continent, through its Heads of State, has expressed recognition not only of the Palestinian people itself but also of its determination to achieve basic decency, which adheres to the dignity and worth of the human person in the international community today.

The Palestine Liberation Organization is recognized by the Organization of African Unity and its leadership and has received consistent support, both moral and material, from the African peoples. It is not a matter of pure humanitarianism. We in Africa are also very closely involved in the global struggle for freedom. All over our continent we have spent generations struggling to re-establish the dignity and worth of the human person. We see in the struggle of the Palestinian people nothing different from that same struggle, in which we are still engaged, trying to complete the dissolution and frustration of imperialism in our own continent.

It is very difficult for anyone to understand how the countries of other parts of the world have recognized this principle in the United Nations Charter, as declared in the Declaration on Principles adopted by the General Assembly in 1970, and yet make exceptions for a people that has been thrown out of its homeland, where it had been naturally implanted by the maker of the human family itself, God in heaven. It is difficult to understand why it should be declared a homeless people that must therefore roam the earth, or to understand how there can be such complacency in the face of so much deprivation. Therefore, it is not difficult for the African peoples to understand the plight of the Palestinian people.

It is easy for the African peoples also to understand that we are all involved in the same struggle, whether we are talking about Namibia or are addressing the people of Palestine. There is a proposal for a realistic International Conference to address the question of Palestine. There can be no doubt that there is wisdom in it, because it has become clear from the events of the past two decades that it is not possible to get the parties concerned to the table while the arrogance of power dominates one side and the parties are supported by interests that are not consistent with the interests of the peoples concerned but want to see that there is ferment in the area.

Pursuing the present course cannot bring peace; it cannot return the Palestinian people to its homeland; it cannot ensure that the Palestinian people, like other peoples across the globe, can make a contribution to world peace and security; it cannot ensure that those peoples can pursue their own destiny through decisions based on their own personal experience. That cannot happen, because that is the truth of the history of the past two decades.

It is only in the process of assembling mankind as a whole in a Conference in which the issues will be discussed in objective terms ─ in which the people of the world interested in the peace process can pronounce themselves and where people can meet and partake of the collective wisdom of the present generation of mankind ─ that we can expect to have any semblance of success in finding a permanent solution to the problems of the area.

It hurts the African States very much that the arms race has continued to accelerate. This year the African States have made it clear in the First Committee and in the plenary meetings of the General Assembly that disarmament is a critical question if all our notions of development are to succeed. It is in the Middle East that we find the worst devastation of resources capable of producing the elements and beginnings of development.

It is up to us Africans to appeal to others concerned to end the war, cease to regard Palestinians as hostile individuals who are trying to upset the global structure; it is up to us to respond to the need to give those people a home and enable them to make their valuable contribution to international relations. All the resources being burned up in warfare in the Middle East should be diverted to rehabilitating the deprived Palestinian people, so that it may be able to settle down and no longer have to wander. Let our efforts serve as a marvel of international co-operation in achieving the objectives of that people.

I wish, Mr. Chairman, to thank your Committee for enabling us to express these views and our solidarity on this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People in its struggle. We are grateful for this opportunity once again to reflect soberly on what direction we should take and to appeal to the international community to recognize the highly provocative elements in the Middle East that could undermine international peace. We are glad to be able to appeal to all concerned to join us, the deprived peoples of the world, in trying to find the necessary wisdom to save mankind from the scourge of war. It may not take the form of global conflict, but will cause more misery, not only to deprived peoples but also to the international community as a whole.

Finally, on behalf of the African Group I salute the people of Palestine and express the hope that in the decade ahead it will attain freedom and that the people of Israel and their supporters will come to realize that their economies and security cannot be guaranteed in an atmosphere of belligerency, but that it is through co-operative effort and discussions between the parties in the area that peace can be restored.

GROUP OF ARAB STATES

H.E. Mr. Dia-Allah El-Fattal, Permanent Representative

of the Syrian Arab Republic to the United Nations

and Chairman of the Group of Arab States

Allow me at the outset to express to you, Sir, and to the members of your Committee deep thanks for the kind invitation extended to me in my capacity as Chairman of the Group of Arab States for this month to participate in commemorating the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

This observance is an indication of the deep understanding and full awareness of the international community of the question of the Palestinian people, evicted from their homeland and territory and still subject to the threat of annihilation. The Day of Solidarity is an indication of United Nations support of the Palestinian people in their struggle to regain their national rights and to establish their independent State on their national soil, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Indeed, the list of grievances of the Palestinian people is a long one. it proves that since its inception Israel has practised usurpation, aggression and expansion at the expense of the territories of the Arab States and has defied the international community and the united Nations and its resolutions. Since its creation Israel has launched various barbaric attacks against Arab countries and has blatantly stated its expansionist plans and its intention to dominate the Middle East. Further, it has annexed Arab Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan Heights and has invaded Lebanon and committed there the most horrendous kinds of murder, destruction and genocide. Israel is trying to strip Lebanon of its independence and sovereignty by attempting to impose an agreement upon it with the collaboration of the United States of America, an agreement that has been overthrown thanks to the struggling people of Lebanon.

In addition to the gross crimes perpetrated by Israel against the rights of the Palestinian people and its total responsibility for the displacement of millions of Arabs from their homes in Palestine, the Golan Heights and Lebanon, it is exercising throughout the occupied Arab territories an apartheid policy that is no less atrocious than that being pursued in South Africa. By such expansionist and aggressive policies and practices Israel has created an explosive situation with dangerous repercussions for international peace and security.

Israel could not have been able to persist in its aggressive and expansionist policies and actions and have continued to flout international public opinion and to violate the relevant resolutions adopted by the Organization without the encouragement and support it obtains from world imperialism, headed by the United States of America, in every political, diplomatic, economic and military field. The strategic co-operation begun in November 1981 between Washington and Tel Aviv has been extended and expanded and is directed against the interests of the Arab nation and its desire to live free from menace and from threat. Hence the relationship of the Arab nation to the Palestinian question, which is at the heart of the Middle East conflict, has been far deeper than that of mere solidarity. It is a link of common destiny based not only on the national ties that bind the Palestinian people to the rest of the Arab nation, since Israel's ambitions do not stop at the boundaries of Palestine but go beyond them to include the whole of the Arab region from the Nile to the Euphrates.

The fact that Israel rejects the idea of holding the International Peace Conference on the Middle East is a further flagrant defiance of the efforts of the United Nations and the international community to establish a just, durable and comprehensive peace in the region. In particular it ignores the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. Israel's refusal is a further attempt to undermine the Committee's mandate based on the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, rights that have been internationally recognized. Most important among them is the right of the Palestinian people to accede to self-determination and to establish their own independent State in their national homeland free from any external intervention or interference.

The Arab Group urges the Committee to continue its strenuous endeavours to fulfil its mandate and to remove all obstacles placed by zionism and imperialism in the path of just peace. I should like to reiterate the hope that the total solidarity and support enjoyed by this Committee will be of considerable help in the performance of its noble task.

GROUP OF ASIAN STATES

H.E. Mr. Mizuo Kuroda, Permanent Representative of Japan

to the United Nations and Chairman of the Group of Asian States

In my capacity as current Chairman of the Asian express, on behalf of the Group of Asian States, our Mr. Chairman, as well as to the other members of the of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, opportunity to speak on this important occasion.

We are all aware that the question of Palestine is at the core of the Middle East problem. The situation in the region continues to be volatile and deeply complex, and hopes for peace remain dim. The bloodshed and suffering will continue until a just and lasting solution to the question of Palestine is found. Tragically, efforts towards a solution have not been fruitful. On the contrary, we have observed that the plight of the Palestinian people has worsened recently.

In order to achieve the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, we hope that the unity of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) will be restored and that it will consolidate its position as an integral party in the search for peace.

The peace and stability of the Middle East directly affect the peace and prosperity of the world. Deeply concerned about the present situation, I believe that the following conditions must be satisfied if the problem is to be resolved and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace achieved. Israeli forces must be completely withdrawn from all the Arab territories occupied in the 1967 war) the legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to establish an independent: State, must be recognized in-accordance with the Charter of the United Nations) and the security of all the States of the region must be guaranteed and their territorial integrity respected.

I trust that the Palestinian people will transcend their present difficulties in the near future. It is also our sincere hope that the question of Palestine will be resolved through negotiations involving all the parties concerned, including the PLO, and that peace and stability will be established in the Middle East as soon as possible.

GROUP OF EASTERN EUROPEAN STATES

H.E. Mr. Wlodzimierz Natorf, Permanent Representative of Poland to

the United Nations and Chairman of the Group of Eastern European States

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People I should like, in my capacity as Chairman of the Eastern European Group of States at the United Nations, to pay tribute to the Palestinian people struggling for the realization of their inalienable right to self-determination and national independence.

The annual solemn observance of this Day is an occasion to focus attention on the tragic plight of the Palestinian people and to express the deep concern of the international community at the fact that the inalienable rights of that people have not yet been satisfied.

It has become axiomatic that the question of guaranteeing the exercise of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people lies at the very core of any Middle East settlement. The tragic events in the Middle East have confirmed the fact that until the Palestinians are guaranteed the opportunity to exercise their rights there can be no peace in the region.

Unfortunately, as a result of the aggressive expansionist policy of Israel, supported by its American strategic ally, the prospects for a Middle East settlement are still very remote, notwithstanding the fact that the international community, and particularly the United Nations, has devoted considerable attention to this question during recent year.

It is obvious that the arrogant policy of Israel could not have been pursued had it not relied on the total support of the United States. That country's constant and massive supply to Israel of the most sophisticated and destructive weapons, its huge material assistance that enables Israel to pursue its expansionist goals, its blocking of a just settlement in the Middle East ─ all this has greatly exacerbated the already explosive situation in that part of the world.

The basic principles of a just and lasting settlement of the question of Palestine and the restoration of peace in the Middle East are today recognized by the overwhelming majority of States. Many important proposals to ensure their implementation have been made, inter alia, by the Arab States in their well-known Fez plan of 9 September 1982 and by the subsequent conferences of the countries members of the Non-Aligned Movement, as well as by the International Conference on the Question of Palestine, held in Geneva last year. A great number of States have supported these proposals; some of them have put forward their own suggestions, both jointly and individually. Among these are the recent proposals by the Soviet Union of 29 July of this year ─ and let me recall today the basic principles of the proposed settlement contained in that initiative.

One, the principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of foreign lands through aggression should be strictly complied with. Accordingly, all the territories occupied by Israel since 1967 ─ the Golan Heights, the West Bank of the River Jordan and the Gaza Strip and the Lebanese land ─ should be returned to the Arabs. The settlements established by Israel in the Arab territories after 1967 should be dismantled. The borders between Israel and its Arab neighbours should be declared inviolable.

Two, action must be taken to guarantee in practice the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people ─ whose sole legitimate representative is the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) ─ to self-determination and to establish its own independent State on Palestinian lands which will be freed from Israeli occupation on the West Bank of the Jordan River and in the Gaza Strip. As envisaged by the decision reached at the Arab Summit Conference at Fez, and with the consent of the Palestinians themselves, the West Bank of the Jordan River and the Gaza Strip can be placed by Israel under the control of the United Nations for a short transitional period not exceeding a few months.

Following the creation of an independent Palestinian State, it will naturally, by virtue of the sovereign rights inherent in every State, itself determine the nature of its relations with neighbouring countries, including the possibility of forming a confederation. The Palestinian refugees should be given the opportunity envisaged by the United Nations decisions to return to their homes or to receive appropriate compensation for the property they have left behind.

Three, East Jerusalem, which was occupied by Israel in 1967 and which is the site of one of the main Moslem shrines, should be returned to the Arabs and become an inalienable part of the Palestinian State. Freedom of access of believers to the Holy Places of the three religions should be ensured throughout Jerusalem.

Four, the right of all States in the region to secure an independent existence and development should be effectively guaranteed with, of course, full reciprocity, since the genuine security of some cannot be ensured by violating the security of others.

Five, an end should be put to the state of war, and peace should be established between the Arab States and Israel. This means that all the parties to the conflict, including Israel and the Palestinian State, should commit themselves to honour each other's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and to resolve by peaceful means, through talks, the disputes that have arisen.

Six, international guarantees of the settlement should be drawn up and adopted. The role of guarantor could, for example, be assumed by the Permanent Members of the United Nations Security Council or by the Security Council as a whole.

An international conference on the Middle East, especially convened for this purpose under the auspices of the United Nations and with the participation of all parties concerned ─ including the PLO as well as the Soviet Union and the United States ─ is the only right and effective way of ensuring a radical solution to the problem.

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People it is proper to reaffirm the strong conviction that that is the only right way to restore all rights to the valiant people of Palestine.

GROUP OF LATIN AMERICAN STATES

H.E. Mr. Vincent Pompey, Permanent Representative of

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the United Nations

and Chairman of the Group of Latin American States

On behalf of the Group of Latin American States and on my own behalf I should like to extend to you personally, Sir, and to all the members of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, as well as to the representatives of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) present here and other Palestinian representatives, our sincere congratulations and best wishes on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

Since the last observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, nothing much has changed in so far as arriving at a solution to the Palestinian problem is concerned. The international Conference on the Question of Palestine and other diplomatic activities over the past 12 months have brought us no further towards a solution to this problem, which remains a major threat to international peace and security. The international community must redouble its efforts to find a just and peaceful solution that will satisfy the legitimate interests of all the par ties involved and, in particular, those of the Palestinian people.

The General Assembly has on various occasions reaffirmed the basic outlines for a comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian question. These include recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and national independence, Israel's withdrawal from all Arab and Palestinian territories it has occupied since 1967 and the right of all States in the region to live in peace within safe and internationally recognized boundaries.

This year's commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People provides a timely opportunity for the international community to reflect on the need to find a just solution to the problems of the Middle East and to recognize the rights of the Palestinian people, including their right to a homeland and the exercise of self-determination and national independence, in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the United Nations.

F. Statements by United Nations Committees

SPECIAL COMMITTEE AGAINST APARTHEID

H.E. Mr. Joseph N. Garba, Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the

United Nations and Chairman of the Special Committee against Apartheid

On behalf of the Special Committee against Apartheid, I thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the invitation to participate in this solemn meeting.

South Africa, Namibia and Palestine are questions that have appeared on the agenda of the United Nations almost since its inception. Namibia and Palestine are two Territories for which the international community assumed a sacred trust more than 60 years ago under the League of Nations Mandate, but their peoples are not yet free. South Africa has been oppressed by racist domination following colonial domination for more than 70 years.

For over three decades this august Assembly has adopted numerous resolutions recognizing the inalienable rights of the peoples of those countries, but they are no nearer freedom or independence. Indeed, the oppression has grown worse, millions of persons have been uprooted from their homes and the conflicts resulting from injustice and oppression have spilled beyond national boundaries, causing enormous suffering and resulting not only in threats to international peace and security but also in constant breaches of the peace, acts of aggression and illegal occupation. The United Nations and the international community must combat the forces which so far have undermined their effectiveness and ensure victory for the legitimate struggles of the peoples of those countries, so that the era of colonialism and racist domination can be brought to an end.

It is not surprising that the racist régime of South Africa and the authorities in Israel have found common interests and steadily increased their collaboration to form a virtual alliance directed against the liberation struggles of the United Nations itself. The Special Committee has repeatedly brought to the attention of the General Assembly, the Security Council and the international community evidence of the continuing and increasing collaboration between Israel and South Africa. It has submitted several reports on this matter.

This collaboration is continuing in defiance of General Assembly resolutions. On 25 October Moshe Arens, former Defence Minister of Israel, visited South Africa. A few days later a Jewish settlement on the West Bank, Ariel, was twinned with Bisho, the new capital of the so-called independent bantustan of Siskei ─ although that so-called capital has not even been built ─ and the so-called President of Siskei, Chief Lenox Sebe, who is notorious for his brutality against black people, visited Israel for that ceremony. That is one of his many visits to Israel, which is training pilots for Siskei. His visit was closely followed by that of the Foreign Minister of the racist régime of South Africa to Israel. And yet Israel feigns innocence and its friends suggest that we are selective when we draw attention to the collaboration between Israel and South Africa.

The Special Committee, in co-operation with the League of Arab States, convened in Tunis in August of this year a Conference of Arab Solidarity with the Struggle for Liberation in Southern Africa. That Conference considered the threat facing the Arabs and the Africans as a result of the alliance between Israel and South Africa. It adopted a declaration and four resolutions, among them a resolution on "Special responsibility for the international community towards the peoples of Namibia, South Africa and Palestine". The resolution proclaims that the United Nations and the international community have an inescapable responsibility for securing the freedom and independence of the peoples of Namibia, South Africa and Palestine. It also calls upon all Government to refrain from any relations with the régimes in South Africa and Israel until the peoples of Namibia, South Africa and Palestine are enabled to exercise their inalienable rights, in particular their right to genuine self-determination.

The overwhelming majority of the international community realizes that what is needed to bring peace and justice to the Middle East and southern Africa is the taking of effective, collective measures to force Israel and South Africa to abide by the resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly on the Middle East and southern Africa. We need firm action to ensure respect for the will of the international community and to bring peace and justice to those two areas which are suffering from the consequences of colonialism and racism. This is a challenge that the United Nations and the international community must face with determination.

Mr. Chairman, I wish the Committee under your leadership every success in its noble work.

SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON THE SITUATION WITH REGARD

TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DECLARATION ON THE

GRANTING OF INDEPENDENCE TO COLONIAL

COUNTRIES AND PEOPLES (SPECIAL COMMITTEE OF 24)

H.E. Mr. Abdul Koroma, Permanent Representative of Sierra Leone to the

United Nations and Chairman_of the Special Committee of 24

On behalf of the Special Committee of 24, I wish to thank you, Mr. Chairman, and the other members of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People for inviting me to participate in the Committee's annual special meeting to commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

The long history of United Nations involvement in the question of Palestine imposes on our Organization a special and urgent responsibility to see to it that justice is done in respect of the Palestinian people. The decision of the General Assembly to observe this day as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is therefore not just a matter of symbolic significance. It is an affirmation of the commitment of the international community to strive indefatigably for the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. By this observance the United Nations reaffirms its commitments to the Palestinian people for the realization of their inalienable rights and seeks to enlighten and mobilize the international public opinion towards the attainment of its objectives on the question of Palestine.

These objectives have been clearly set out in a number of resolutions adopted by the General Assembly over the years. It is particularly relevant in this context to recall that the General Assembly has repeatedly called for the full and speedy exercise by the Palestinian people of their right to self-determination without external interference and to national independence and sovereignty, as well as their right to return to their homes and property from which they have been displaced and uprooted.

We in the Special Committee attach great significance to the mobilization of international opinion towards the attainment of the objectives of the United Nations on the question of self-determination for all peoples under alien and colonial domination. We are profoundly aware of the power of an alert and informed world public opinion in the struggle against injustice, oppression

and alien and colonial domination. It therefore gives me great satisfaction to join in this effort to enlighten and mobilize international opinion on the question of Palestine before such a representative gathering as is assembled here today.

Despite the best efforts of the United Nations over the past three decades, a peaceful and just solution for all the nations and peoples of the region has continued to elude us. In the recent past, the several steps taken in order to contribute to the solution of the problem of Palestine have not met with unanimous acceptance, so that whatever has been achieved has invariably fallen far short of our expectation. However, we should not be discouraged by this lack of progress; indeed, it should serve to inspire us to even greater efforts to achieve a just, secure and lasting peace.

The history of the Palestinian people is indeed one of a people with unequalled courage and determination to fight for the achievement of their legitimate rights. It is the history of a people which since 1947 has continued relentlessly the struggle to preserve its national identity, regain its homeland and re-establish on it its national sovereignty.

The time is overdue for concerted action to persuade the supporters of Israel to compel it to respond ─ and respond positively ─ to the relevant United Nations resolutions and to the will of the international community on the question of Palestine. Israel must be made to realize that it can no longer systematically ignore United Nations resolutions and world public opinion on the question of Palestine. Above all, Israel must be made to comply fully with General Assembly resolution 181 (II) of 1947 leading to the establishment of an independent Palestinian State.

As we are all aware, the situation today remains most critical and explosive as uncertainty, discord and violence continue to prevail in the area. On this special occasion it becomes all the more important therefore that we should firmly rededicate ourselves to the promotion of a genuine and lasting settlement of the Middle East conflict. In so doing, we should be fully cognizant of the fact that the attainment of our objectives will continue to elude us unless the core of the Middle East conflict, namely, the Palestine question, is addressed and resolved quickly. We must therefore work diligently for the realization of that objective and for the creation of all the conditions favourable to a just and lasting peace in the area. As I have stated, they would include the realization of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination, in particular the right to establish an independent State, the right of all States in the area to an independent existence and the strict observance of the principle of non-acquisition of territory by force.

This important Day provides us with an opportune occasion to reiterate once again our solemn commitment and determination to extend maximum support to the Palestinian people and to associate ourselves with the defence of their cause. In this context and in keeping with the relevant decisions of the General Assembly, it is incumbent upon all of us to work closely and co-operate fully with the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People to decide their destiny in accordance with their freely expressed wish and true aspirations. For only through our collective efforts and through the complete implementation of the relevant decisions of the United Nations can the injustice inflicted for so long upon the Palestinian people be rectified.

Before concluding, Mr. Chairman, I should like to acknowledge with appreciation the very important work carried out by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People under your wise, outstanding and dedicated leadership. Your skill as a diplomat, your commitment and that of your country, Senegal, to the cause of the Palestinian people give us hope that at the end of the day their cause will triumph.

SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE ISRAELI PRACTICES AFFECTING

THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF THE POPULATION OF THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES

(SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON ISRAELI PRACTICES)

H.E. Mr. Nissanka Wijewardane, Permanent Representative

of Sri Lanka to the United Nations and Chairman

of the Special Committee on Israeli Practices

On behalf of my two colleagues of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Population of the Occupied Territories and on my own behalf, I am privileged to make this statement on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

In a continuing attempt to ensure the safeguarding of the welfare and human rights of the population of the occupied territories and in accordance with the General Assembly resolution renewing its mandate, the Special Committee has spared no effort in providing the General Assembly with a complete picture of the human rights situation of the civilian population.

Since the inception of the Special Committee – subsequent to the 1967 hostilities and the occupation by Israel of the West Bank, including Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights – the Government of Israel has withheld its co-operation from the Special Committee in the execution of its mandate. Notwithstanding the difficulties that this lack of co-operation might provoke, the Special Committee has been able to follow the human rights situation in the occupied territories with a high degree of accuracy.

On the basis of information and evidence before it, the Special Committee has concluded that the situation of the civilian population gives cause for serious concern. This concern results from the occupying authorities' persistence in applying coercive measures that control and limit the most basic rights of the Palestinian population. The human rights situation of the Palestinian people in the occupied territories is seriously affected by the policy followed by Israel in its avowed efforts aimed at the annexation of the occupied territories. There is no doubt that the establishment of Israeli settlements ─ numbering today 220 ─ the transfer of Israeli civilians to the occupied territories and the escalation of violence which characterizes the activities of Israeli settlers are among the basic causes of the increasing tension in that region.

The Special Committee has followed with great attention the events leading to the discovery of the so-called Jewish underground groups. Nobody can remain unaware of the consequences of the activities of those groups which touch every facet of the life of the civilian population of the occupied territories. The latest developments as recorded in the Special Committee's report clearly illustrate the gravity of the situation.

In addition, Palestinians in the occupied territories continue to face limitations to their basic freedoms, as reflected by the ongoing pattern of censorship of cultural and artistic expression, not to mention freedom of the press.

The several hundred military orders which have substituted the law of the land restrict every facet of life of the civilians, including their right to work and their freedom of association.

Such a pattern of harrassment provokes intermittent periods of violent reaction. Demonstrations and strikes held in protest often result in massive arrests and loss of life.

This meeting should not forget the plight of those Palestinians who have been expelled from their homeland and who, until this day, remain in exile because the Israeli authorities continue to deny them their right to return to their home.

In view of what I have just said, I am compelled to echo the call of the Special Committee to the international community to assume its responsibility to the Palestinian population of the occupied territories by giving its support to them in their struggle to assert their basic rights.

NATIONS COUNCIL FOR NAMIBIA

H.E. Mr. Korkmaz Haktanir, Deputy Permanent Representative

of Turkey to the United Nations and Acting President

of the United Nations Council for Namibia

On behalf of the United Nations Council for Namibia I wish to express our profound thanks for the kind invitation extended to me by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People to participate in the observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. The Council and its President have long appreciated the dedicated efforts of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People in championing the cause of freedom of the oppressed people of Palestine.

The annual observance of this Day, established by a decision of the General Assembly, serves to focus the attention of the international community on the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and to give the widest possible exposure to the facts relating to those rights. The observance is not only a measure of the international community's deep concern for the Palestinian people but also a reflection of its recognition that a just solution of the Palestinian problem is of overriding importance. The Palestinian question constitutes the core of the Middle East problem, and there can be no solution to that problem without a positive settlement of this issue.

The United Nations Council for Namibia believes that the problems in the Middle East are inextricably bound to a just solution of the question of Palestine and that the lack of a solution to this question will continue to aggravate tension and conflict in the region as well as endanger international peace and security. Recent events in the region have proved once more how dangerous the situation has become.

The people of Palestine continue to be denied their fundamental and inalienable rights to live in freedom, peace and dignity in their own country. They have been uprooted from their own homes and become homeless people in foreign lands. The international community cannot stand by and condone Israel's continuing acts of aggression against the Palestinian people and annexation of territory of neighbouring States. The United Nations Council for Namibia affirms once more the United Nations General Assembly resolutions on the right of the Palestinian people to return to their homes and property in Palestine.

The Council for Namibia is convinced that the continued denial by Israel, of the just and righteous claim of the Palestinian people to their homeland is in violation of the fundamental principles of the Charter of the United Nations as well as of the United Nations resolutions on the question of the attainment of nationhood by all peoples under foreign and colonial domination. The Council for Namibia believes that all States are entitled to expect Israel, which owes its very existence to a United Nations resolution, to comply with the wishes of the international community formulated in repeated General Assembly and Security Council resolutions. The United Nations must leave no stone unturned in its efforts to impress upon Israel that the international community rejects the attempts by Israel to make Jerusalem its capital city, contrary to Security Council resolutions 476 (1980) of 30 June 1980 and 478 (1980) of 20 August 1980 which rejected the declaration by Israel making Jerusalem its capital.

The Council for Namibia, in solidarity with the Committee on the question of Palestine, strongly condemns the policies and plans of Israel aimed at the displacement of the Palestinian people outside their homeland. The Council for Namibia is convinced that all manoeuvres aimes at arriving at a settlement plan outside the framework of the relevant United Nations resolutions are bound to fail.

The question of Palestine, like the question of Namibia, continues to torment the conscience of the international community. Like the question of Namibia, the question of Palestine has been on the agenda of the United Nations General Assembly for many years indeed, but without a solution. Meanwhile, the suffering of the people and the turmoil in those respective regions continue to grow day by day.

In Namibia, the racist Pretoria régime continues to perpetuate its brutalities against the people of the Territory. The South Africa régime continues to pursue policies of apartheid in Namibia in an effort to force the people of the Territory to accept its illegal colonial occupation.

Efforts to reverse this trend continue to be met with arrogant intransigence by the South African régime. Efforts to implement United Nations Security Council resolution 435 (1978), which approved the United Nations plan for the independence of Namibia, continue to be met with defiance by the racist régime of Pretoria. South Africa continues to block the implementation of resolution 435 (1978) by insisting upon irrelevant and extraneous factors such as linking the independence of Namibia to the withdrawal of Cuba forces in Angola. South Africa must be impressed upon to realize that the path which it has selected to follow in connection with the independence of Namibia can only lead to further deterioration of the political and economic conditions in southern Africa and may create danger for the maintenance of international peace and security.

The Council for Namibia strongly urges the international community to redouble its efforts to exert pressure on South Africa to comply with the wishes of the international community over the question of Namibia's independence by making positive efforts towards the implementation of Security Council resolution 435 (1978).

The situation today in the Middle East, as in southern Africa, remains most critical and explosive as uncertainty, discord and violence continue to prevail in both areas. On this important occasion it becomes all the more important therefore that we firmly rededicate ourselves to the promotion of a genuine and lasting settlement of the Middle East conflict. However, as I stated at the outset, the attainment of such an objective will continue to elude us unless the core of the Middle East conflict, namely, the Palestinian question, is resolved. We must therefore work diligently for the realization of that objective and the creation of all the conditions favourable to a just and lasting peace in the area. These include the realization of the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, its right to establish an independent State and the right of all States in the area to an independent existence, and strict observance of the principle of non-acquisition of territory by force.

This important Day provides us with a timely occasion to reiterate once again our solemn commitment and determination to extend maximum support to the Palestinian people and to associate ourselves with the defence of their noble cause. In this context and in keeping with the relevant decisions of the General Assembly, it is incumbent upon all of us to work closely and to co-operate fully with the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People to decide their destiny in accordance with their freely expressed wish and their true aspirations. For only through our collective efforts and complete implementation of the relevant decisions of the United Nations can the injustice inflicted upon the Palestinian people be corrected.

The Council for Namibia insists that South Africa and Israel be impressed upon to comply with the universally accepted norms of the international community, or continue to stand condemned for their defiance of world opinion. The Council for Namibia believes that South Africa and Israel can, and indeed should, be compelled to comply with the relevant resolutions of the United Nations on the questions of Namibia and Palestine. The Council for Namibia strongly believes that effective means to compel South Africa and Israel to comply with United Nations resolutions can readily be found in the provisions of the United Nations Charter.

G. Statements by intergovernmental and

other organizations with observer

status at the United Nations

LEAGUE OF ARAB STATES

Mr. Chedli Klibi, Secretary-General

of the League of Arab States

As I cannot participate personally in your work, I should like to address this message to you.

I am particularly happy to begin this message by extending sincere greetings to the participants in your meeting in the United Nations pursuant to resolutions relevant to the celebration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. We are grateful to the international community for all the efforts made to condemn the steps taken by the Israeli authorities and we also thank it for its efforts to defend the rights of the Palestinian people. The United Nations Charter is a source of hope for people struggling to recover their dignity and to resist aggressors and any Power seeking to crush them. I am also convinced, just as you are, that the struggle of forces either peoples or international organizations ─ for peace and freedom, must sooner or later triumph.

We therefore consider that this is a matter of determination and of time. The will is there and time is precious. Thus, efforts on the part of Arab countries are increasing to convince States to implement the relevant resolutions and to recognize the rights of the Arab countries and the struggle of the Palestinians, in particular, to reject the designs of enemies and enable mankind to avoid further destruction.

For this to be achieved the Israelis must withdraw from the occupied Arab territories and grant the Palestinian people their right to self-determination and to establish an independent State on their own territory, under the leadership of the PLO, which was chosen by the people to be their sole legitimate representative.

Convinced of the gravity of the situation in the Middle East and of the fact that the principal cause in the region is that of the Palestinians, the United Nations has followed the situation there with great interest with a view to preserving peace and security in the region. It is also convinced that we are claiming our rights. Our cause is just. We are striving for a lasting peace and we hope that some day we will be able to turn over the page on past history and devote all our energies towards working for development, progress and prosperity.

Certainly, that spirit motivated the Arab leaders meeting in Fez at the Twelfth Summit, which led to the adoption of the Arab peace plan. As soon as the plan was promulgated, it was rejected by Israel in spite of the fact that its provisions were aimed at peace and security in the region. Even if international circumstances did not allow for the application of the peace plan, it once again showed that even under the most difficult circumstances of aggression the leaders of the Arab nation are completely convinced that peaceful coexistence was possible, if conditions for such coexistence should exist. We believe also in the dignity of our people and in the rights of the Palestinian people.

Israel's rejection of that Arab peace plan illustrates once more that Israel is not interested in a lasting peace or in genuine security. Israel is more interested in the territories it has occupied since 1967. This is clearly and manifestly in keeping with its expansionist policy, which is a challenge to international law and to United Nations resolutions.

No one knows what will happen next, because Israel has sunk to the most deplorable level of behaviour. Israel is proud of its strength. Supported by countries which ratified the United Nations Charter, Israel is challenging the principles and very spirit of the Charter.

Our meeting today is one which gives comfort to the Palestinian people and to the Organization as a whole, because it is an expression of international solidarity with the Palestinian people in its just struggle to recover dignity and liberty.

NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT

Mr. Natarajan Krishnan, Permanent Representative of India

to the United Nations and representative of the

Chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement

From the time of the first Non-Aligned Summit Meeting, held in Belgrade in 1961, the question of Palestine has been in the forefront of the deliberations and activities of the Non-Aligned Movement. Non-aligned countries have been particularly active in mobilizing international support in favour of the inalienable rights of the Palestinians and against Israel's action in the occupied territories. It has largely been at their initiative that the majority of United Nations resolutions on the subject have been adopted. Indeed, the support of the Non-Aligned Movement for the just Palestinian cause and the solidarity of the non-aligned countries with the Palestinian people have been firm, continuous and unwavering, and there is an overwhelming consensus within the Movement on the basic principles pertaining to Palestine and West Asia.

The Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries, meeting in New Delhi in March 1983, had the opportunity to reexamine exhaustively the question of Palestine. They affirmed that

The New Delhi Summit Meeting also decided to set up a Committee of Eight at the level of Heads of State of Government to support the rights of the Arab Palestinian people in accordance with international law and the will of the non-aligned countries and their peoples and with the specific objective of working to achieve a just, durable and comprehensive peace in the Middle East enabling the Palestinian people to exercise their rights in freedom and sovereignty in their independent homeland.

The Committee of Eight at the level of ministers and senior officials has held several meetings during 1983 and 1984 and has addressed itself to efforts that should be made in the light of the rapidly deteriorating situation in the region. At its recent meeting at ministerial level, held in New York on 3 October 1984, the Non-Aligned Committee of Eight reviewed the situation, particularly in the light of United Nations General Assembly resolution 38/58 C, which had endorsed the Geneva Declaration and plan of action and called for the convening of the International Peace Conference on the Middle East, The Ministers greatly appreciated the efforts of the United Nations Secretary-General towards the convening of the peace conference and expressed their regret at the negative response of some Governments to the proposed conference. They decided actively to continue in their collective and individual efforts to mobilize all means available with a view to realizing the implementation of the United Nations General Assembly resolution and to ensure the convening of such a peace conference, in which all parties to the Arab-Israeli conflict will be invited to participate, including the PLO, the sole and legitimate representative of the Palestinian people.

The recent meeting of Ministers and Heads of Delegation of Non-Aligned Countries to the thirty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly, held in New York in October 1984, called for the speedy implementation of General Assembly resolution 38/58 C and stressed anew the necessity for the early convening of the International Peace Conference on the Middle East. They stressed that every encouragement and support should be extended to the United Nations Secretary-General to pursue his consultations for the convening of the International Peace Conference on the Middle East. They reaffirmed that the question of Palestine was the core of the Middle East problem and the root cause of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Therefore, any partial solution or any solution limited to some aspects of the conflict and excluding the rest will not be possible.

If I have gone into the activities of the Non-Aligned Movement in support of the Palestinian cause at some length, it is to emphasize that support for and solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and sisters has been a fundamental feature of our Movement.

I wish to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People in its search for a just solution to the question of Palestine. The Committee's contribution in this regard has been significant. The programme of implementation of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people drawn up by the Committee has repeatedly been endorsed by the General Assembly by large majorities. The efforts of the Committee towards the early convening of the peace conference and to mobilize public support for the Palestinian cause have been untiring. No doubt much of the credit goes to the diligent efforts of the Chairman of the Committee.

India’s sympathy for the Palestinian Arabs has been part of our foreign policy since the inception of our country.  Their struggle may be long and arduous; but we have no doubt that the ultimate victory will belong to them.  Let this historic occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People inspire us all to rededicate ourselves to the Palestinian cause, which is undoubtedly our own.  Our voice will be one with theirs till victory is one.

ORGANIZATION OF THE ISLAMIC CONFERENCE

Mr. Habib Chatti, Secretary-General

Each year on this very day the peoples and States of the world demonstrate their solidarity with the Palestinian people in their legitimate struggle to recover their land, to exercise their right to self-determination and to establish an independent State on their homeland. This day, the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, which is commemorated annually pursuant to a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly, is a day for the clear and overt recognition of that people by the international community, and it enshrines that people's inalienable rights, including the right to return, to self-determination and to establish an independent State in their own homeland, under the leadership of their sole legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Further, the Day reaffirms the fact that peace can be attained in the Middle East only through the full restoration of the rights of the Palestinian people and a just and comprehensive settlement of the Palestinian problem with the participation of the main parties concerned, in keeping with the principles of the Fez plan and of the principles enunciated by the International Peace Conference on the Middle East and endorsed by the United Nations.

On this occasion we cannot but remind the entire world that the Zionist entity has not only flouted international resolutions and world public opinion which has recognized and supports the historic rights of the Palestinian people, but it has, since its establishment, also resorted to all forms of terrorism, oppression and repression against that people and its land with a view to changing its composition and Judaizing it before annexing it by force by using the highly sophisticated war machinery provided it by the United States of America, which support merely exacerbates that entity's voracity, increases its appetite and contributes to the absorption of more neighbouring Arab territories in addition to the occupation of all of Palestine.

On behalf of millions of Moslems throughout the world, the Organization of the Islamic Conference strongly condemns the fascist, Zionist aggression against Islamic holy places and the Palestinian people of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and totally rejects the plan for Judaization of the Holy City and the policy of colonialist settlement and annexation of the territories through force. The Organization of the Islamic Conference reaffirms its ongoing solidarity with and absolute support for the Palestinian people at home and abroad and hails those who have risen up to defend Al-Aqsa, al-Haram al-Ibrahimi and all the other shrines in the occupied territories. Our organization has observed that so far the State of Israel, with the support of the United States, has been in a position to carry out its actions, and we recognize that there is need for courageous decisions to be taken towards a solution of the problem which so endangers both the interests of the United states and world peace. All Arab and Moslem peoples are aware of the importance of the United States role in ensuring that justice in done to the Palestinian people in a framework of international law and resolutions adopted by international bodies, and we anxiously await the time when the United States will finally take the path dictated by its own principles with respect to human rights and the right of peoples to decide freely on their own destinies.

We also call on European countries and the international community to shoulder their responsibilities and adopt the necessary measures to rein in Zionist arrogance, freeze the settlements policy and bring about the withdrawal of forces from occupied Arab territories and the recognition of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, in particular their rights to self-determination, under the leadership of the PLO, its sole legitimate representative.

ORGANIZATION OF THE ISLAMIC CONFERENCE IN NEW YORK

H.E. Lt. General Khwaja Wasiuddin, Permanent Representative

of Bangladesh to the United Nations and Chairman of the

Organization of the Islamic Conference in New York

The Organization of the Islamic Conference, which was established in 1969, has always attached the highest importance to the question of Palestine and the Middle East and we have adopted comprehensive resolutions on the subject at all our meetings, including the last Foreign Minister's Conference held in Dhaka last year which, inter alia, highlighted the following points on the question of Palestine.

First, the cause of Palestine is the core of the Middle East problem and the crux of the Arab-Israeli struggle.

Secondly, the Palestinian cause and the Middle East question forms an indivisible whole when dealing with the problem or seeking a solution thereto. Hence, no solution can be devised and applied to some parties to the exclusion of others, or limited to some of the causes and not to others) nor can partial peace be established, for peace should be comprehensive and inclusive of all parties to the dispute and should eliminate all the causes that led to the dispute and should, moreover, be a just solution.

Thirdly, a just peace in the region can be achieved only on the basis of complete and unconditional withdrawal by Israel from all the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories and on the recovery by the Palestinian people of their inalienable national rights, including their right to their homeland, Palestine) their right to return to their homeland and recover their property as guaranteed by United Nations General Assembly resolutions) their right to self-determination without any foreign interferences their right freely to exercise sovereignty over their land and natural resources and their right to establish their national independent State in Palestine, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Fourthly, that Al-Quds is an integral part of the occupied Palestinian territory, that Israel must unconditionally and totally withdraw from it and that it should be restored to Arab sovereignty.

Fifthly, that the PLO is the legitimate and sole representative of the Palestinian people and that it alone has the full right to represent that people and to participate independently, on an equal footing, in all Conferences.

Lastly, any solution which is not established on these principles and bases and on their application without exception cannot lead to the realization of a just peace but, on the contrary, will contribute to making the situation in the region-more explosive.

On behalf of the members of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in New York, I extend to you, Sir, our appreciation for the wise, skilful and dedicated leadership you have provided as Chairman of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, and I extend to you and to the other members of the Committee our wholehearted support in all your noble endeavours.

H. Statements by national liberation movements

AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS OF SOUTH AFRICA

PAN AFRICANIST CONGRESS OF AZANIA

SOUTH WEST AFRICA PEOPLE'S ORGANIZATION

Mr. Leake Hangala of the South West Africa People's Organization

On this solemn occasion in observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, allow me to express, on behalf of the liberation movements of South Africa and Namibia, our heartfelt gratitude to you and to your Committee for inviting us to participate in this important meeting. We hail you also, Sir, for the wise, dynamic and dedicated leadership that you continue to provide in the work of the Special Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.

This Day is being observed in keeping with the international commitment to affirm and uphold the rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and national independence in a free State of Palestine. In keeping with this commitment, it is indeed proper and fitting that the United Nations and the international community at large, which we join, rededicate itself to supporting the just struggle of the heroic Palestinian people, whose country is being occupied by Zionist Israel. The gallant fighters of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) are resisting massacres, torture and subjugation in all forms perpetrated against them by those forces of occupation and reaction supported by United States imperialism.

We share the common struggle against colonial domination, racism and imperialism, whose most conspicuous outposts today are racist South Africa and Zionist Israel. It is this common struggle that binds us together in our aspirations for freedom, self-determination and national independence. Our movements express their unwavering militant and fraternal support for and solidarity with the heroic people of Palestine and their national liberation movement, the PLO, their sole, authentic representative.

The struggle continues. Victory is certain.

I. Statements by non-governmental organizations

INTERIM CO-ORDINATING COMMITTEE OF NON-GOVERNMENTAL

ORGANIZATIONS ON THE QUESTION OF PALESTINE

Mr. Ernie Ross, Representative

On behalf of the Interim Committee, I thank the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People for its invitation to participate in this solemn meeting.

In August 1984 representatives of 98 non-governmental organizations participating in the International Non-Governmental Organizations Meeting on the Question of Palestine in Geneva called upon all peoples and Governments to take definitive steps to secure peace in the Arab-Israeli conflict, at the core of which is the question of Palestine. Since that momentous meeting, those organizations have recommitted themselves to this important quest.

As the representative of the Interim Co-ordinating Committee of Non-Governmental Organizations on the Question of Palestine for the non-governmental organizations that attended that meeting, I am here today to offer a global challenge. We believe that it is in the interests of all the world's peoples to secure genuine peace in the Middle East. All our lives have been punctuated by war and the prospect of war emanating from that historic region. But these wars have brought neither peace nor security to the antagonists in the region. We must search for an alternative, sane path to peace with justice.

On this day, 29 November, the United Nations rightly calls for us to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people and their struggle for self-determination and statehood. Today, in New York, Geneva and Vienna, and many other places in the world, a global campaign is being launched to gather the signatures of the world's peoples in support of an International Peace Conference on the Middle East. We, the non-governmental organizations committed to the attainment of the rights of the Palestinian people and especially a just and lasting peace for all peoples in the Middle East, offer the following world petition:

Through this petition we are declaring that there is an alternative to successive wars in the Middle East and the continued deprivation of the Palestinian people. We firmly believe that the process initiated by such a Conference may begin to counter the misperception and mistrust that plague the region. We believe that it is the first step in a sane process towards resolving them.

All the world's peoples are jeopardized by the threat of war. All the world's peoples are affected by the plight of the Palestinian people. All the world's peoples concerned with peace must also be concerned with justice.

Over the coming 12 months, non-governmental organizations around the world will be offering the people of their respective countries a chance to be peace-makers, to help restore the rights of suffering peoples by asking them to sign this petition.

On 29 November 1985, the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the results of this massive campaign will be presented to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

We are well aware of the magnitude of our project, but we are also painfully aware of the consequences of not acting. We ask all of you to join us in this quest to make peace in the Middle East a possibility through the promotion of genuine dialogue. That process could be set in motion by the convening of an International Conference on Peace in the Middle East.

As non-governmental organizations, we are particularly grateful to the United Nations, to you, Mr. Chairman, and to your Committee for the creation of a non-governmental organizations liaison staff function and for the provision of annual non-governmental organizations meetings and symposiums on the question of Palestine. We wish to voice our support for the United Nations, especially its work to achieve a just and lasting solution to the question of Palestine through the implementation of relevant United Nations resolutions.

Through you, Mr. Chairman, the non-governmental organizations send our best wishes to Chairman Yasser Arafat and the members of the Palestine National Council meeting in Amman, Jordan. We are confident that their discussions and deliberations will bring forward positive and constructive proposals on behalf of the Palestinian people in their struggle for their inalienable right to self-determination within an independent sovereign State for a just and lasting comprehensive peace in the Middle East.

AFRO-ASIAN PEOPLES' SOLIDARITY ORGANIZATION (AAPSO)

Mr. Abdel Rahman El-Sharkawi, President

Today and as decreed by the United Nations, the peoples of the world express their feelings of solidarity and support for the Palestinian people in their struggle for their right of self-determination. This year's festivities are of a different nature, for they take place in the wake of the success realized by the PLO, the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, in holding the Seventeenth Session of the Palestine National Council. Such success has proved the Palestinian people and its leadership able to overcome all obstacles and absorb the worst shocks to emerge unified and strong as it rallies round its wise and legitimate leadership which has stood steadfast in the confrontation of the tests of fortune and ordeals.

The Day is also commemorated in the wake of two important events of far-reaching implications on the situation in the Middle East. In the United States, President Reagan has been re-elected and the Reagan Administration's stance on the Palestinian struggle and the rights of the Palestinian people is familiar to the world at large. It is hostile to the Palestinian people and refuses to recognize such people, seeking to liquidate the Palestinian people's problem and its legitimate rights particularly its right to self-determination and to an independent State. The cornerstone of its Middle East policy is its strategic alliance with Israel and the use of such alliance to impose the American hegemony on the peoples of the Arab region.

In Israel, the new ruling coalition shows no substantive difference with the preceding Government which has signed the Camp David accords and planned the invasion of Lebanon. Israel is still occupying southern Lebanon inspite of all its allegations on withdrawal. It is still insisting on the occupation of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights, and the Palestinians in the occupied land are still staggering under the yoke of despotism, persecution and torture.

We do not expect any substantive, let alone radical change in the United States and Israeli stances. We expect rather that more United States plotting and Israeli aggression, particularly after the Palestinian Revolution has successfully re-unified and reorganized its ranks confirming the legitimacy and effectiveness of the PLO and its ability, to move on the local, national and international levels.

Hence, AAPSO calls on all the peace- and freedom-loving peoples in the world to intensify their support of the Palestinian people's struggle and the PLO as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people and to seek to bring to light and isolate the United States-Israeli aggressive schemes, including the Reagan initiative.

AAPSO reaffirms its full support for the struggle of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the PLO, its sole legitimate representative, for its legitimate national rights, primarily its right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent State on its national soil. It affirms that there can be no just and lasting peace without a settlement of the Palestinian problem. It is of the view that the recent Soviet initiative to hold an international conference on a solution to the Middle East problem is a correct approach, a sound basis for the solution of the Arab-Israeli conflict and a safeguard to the peace and security of all the States in the region which would eliminate tension of a serious nature, jeopardizing peace and security worldwide.

Finally, the AAPSO calls on all Governments and peoples of the world to step up their efforts to impose on Israel and the United States respect and implementation of United Nations resolutions on the Palestinian problem, and to give all kinds of aid and support to the uprooted Palestinian people and the PLO, its sole legitimate representative, under whose command it carries out its struggle to maintain its identity and unity and realize its legitimate aspirations.

CANADIAN JEWS SUPPORTING THE PALESTINIANS

On the occasion of the commemoration of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, it is pleasing to accept the recognition of an anti-Zionist voice of Jews who wish to indicate their rejection of a supposed homeland which is the land of the Palestinian people who are presently dispersed as a result of the military force practised by the pioneers in the continuing expansion of United States territories.

It is unacceptable that two people who have each been striving for independence and security in this modern age should be made enemies by the ideology of national chauvinism which has infected the Zionist Jews as a result of their abandonment to the Nazi party by an apathetic world.

At present although Palestinians and Jews are at war, one should expect that we could form a natural alliance based upon mutual respect of our rights to self-determination.

SOLIDARITY COMMITTEE OF THE GERMAN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC

Mr. Kurt Seibt, President

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I have the honour to convey the assurance to you that the citizens of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) continue to stand consistently for the implementation of the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people, including its right to self-determination and the establishment of an independent State. We regard the solution of the Palestine issue as the fundamental precondition for a just and lasting settlement of the Middle East conflict. The people of the GDR attach all the more importance to a peace settlement in the Middle East, to guaranteeing sovereignty and security to all States in the region as just in the present tense international situation. Peace in the world is being more jeopardized than ever. The Middle East conflict is constituting a permanent hotbed of tensions involving the danger of expansion to other regions. We are deeply convinced that our unflinching solidarity with the just struggle of the Palestinian people is a contribution to strengthening the peace-loving forces of the Middle East region connected with the national interests of the Arab peoples.

Our firm position at the side of the PLO, the only legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, is not only manifested in the numerous meetings that also this year took place again between representatives of our State and the PLO on a high levels it also finds its expression in the activities of the social forces of our country who in close connection with the governmental relations of the GDR stand by the side of the PLO.

Thus, both within the framework of the Week of Solidarity with the anti-imperialist struggle of the Arab peoples and on 29th November, events of solidarity with the Palestinian people took place where the imperialist aggressions on the national rights of the Palestinian people and on the unity of the PLO were denounced and repelled.

Also this year, active solidarity found its expression again in the training of cadres, medical treatment of forces of the PLO and the organization of holiday visits for Palestinian children. In 1984, 170 cadres of the PLO could start their training in the GDR, 75 Palestinians – including former prisoners of the Concentration Camp of Ansar – were treated in our hospitals until their recovery and 50 Palestinian children were staying in our holiday camps. The work of 30 doctors and nurses who since long have been devoting themselves to healing wounded Palestinian fighters was especially honoured this year. They were decorated by the president of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, Dr. Fathi Arafat, with the organization's Honorary Medal.

Our Committee regards the political and moral assistance of the struggle of the Palestinian people as an important task. In this connection, we see, among other things, the financing of the documentary entitled "Palestine – Chronicle of a People W, produced by the PLO in close co-operation with the GDR's national film studio, DEFA, by the Solidarity Committee of the GDR. The production of copies in foreign languages has been started.

With great interest, our Committee takes notice of the increased efforts of the United Nations to bring together the non-governmental organizations devoted to solidarity with the Palestinian people and to create possibilities for a better co-operation among the NCOs. A representative of our Committee took part in a corresponding United Nations meeting in Geneva in August. We likewise take an active part in the continuation of the activity of the International Investigation Commission into Crimes of Israel against the Palestinian People and in raising the effectiveness of the work of this Commission. Also in future, we will continue the material assistance for institutions of the PLO. In this, emphasis will be on the School of the Martyrs' Children in Tunis as well as on institutions of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society.

I would like to assure you that the good co-operation with the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People is very valuable and helpful for us and that we are interested in deepening our relations also in the future.

NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF BLACK LAWYERS

Mr. Adrien K. Wing, United Nations Representative

Pursuant to General Assembly resolution 32/40 B of 2 December 1977 in which the General Assembly requested observance of 29 November as International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the National Conference of Black Lawyers (NCBL) sends this message of greeting and solidarity.

Although we cannot be present on this important occasion, NCBL joins with the international community in recognizing the valiant struggle of the Palestinian people to achieve the basic right to self-determination granted by the United Nations Charter.

We look forward to continuing our efforts to express solidarity with the Palestinian people in the coming year and look forward to strengthening our ties with the Palestine Liberation Organization and the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.

WORLD FEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS

On the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People (29 November), the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) expresses, on behalf of its 206 million members from all countries, its unequivocal support to the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People in its efforts to guarantee the attainment by the Palestinian people of their inalienable rights to return to their homeland, and to self-determination, including the establishment of their own independent sovereign State, under the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), their sole legitimate representative.

The WFTU has always been a consistent supporter of the Palestinian people's struggle for their inalienable national rights and has extended in this capacity its all possible help to the Palestinian workers and trade union organizations, as well as to the PLO. It has spared no efforts to mobilise the trade union movement internationally, regionally and nationally, in support of the just struggle of the Palestinian people and against the aggressive and genocidal practices of the Israeli authorities.

The WFTU and its member organizations have noted with deep concern the escalation of Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and the neighbouring Arab countries, namely Lebanon and Syria. They have followed with deep anxiety and indignation the Israeli massacres against the Palestinian people – reminiscent of Nazi massacres during World War II – the escalation of terror, persecution, confiscation of land and establishment of Israeli colonial settlement in the occupied Palestinian territories. Recent efforts received by the WFTU from the occupied territories indicate that the Israeli authorities are considering plans for the mass forced eviction of Palestinians from their homeland.

The WFTU, while strongly condemning the criminal activities of the Israeli authorities, expresses its deep regrets that the United Nations has been unable to take measures to end Israeli occupation of Palestinian and other Arab territories and its criminal practices, due to obstruction by the United States Administration and some other Western States.

The WFU reiterates its demand that effective measures be taken by the international community, we all by the United Nations, to end this extremely explosive[ situation. The policy of aggression, genocide and terror pursued by the Israeli authorities, with the all-round support and aid of the United States, is threatening with a new explosion in the Middle East and consequently is increasingly endangering world peace and security.

The WFTU is of the opinion that durable peace in the Middle East cannot be achieved through partial and one-sided solution plans that ignore the inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people, above all their right to self-determination and national independence. Such partial solutions cannot guarantee for all peoples in the region the right to live in peace, security and full sovereignty.

The WFTU believes that the efforts embarked upon by the United Nations for the convening of an international conference for the settlement of the Middle East crisis are of importance for a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in this vitally important area in the world. In this connection, the WFTU supports the proposals to convene an international conference for a just and lasting settlement to the Middle East crisis with the participation of all concerned parties, including the PLO, on an equal footing.

The WFTU, on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, pledges its full support to all sincere efforts to guarantee the inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people and to attain a just and durable peace in the Middle East.

WORLD PEACE COUNCIL

(Text of cable sent by its president, Mr. Romesh Chandra)

"ON OCCASION INTERNATIONAL DAY SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINIAN PEOPLE WORLD PEACE COUNCIL REAFFIRMS FIRM SUPPORT FUR THEIR INALIENABLE NATIONAL RIGHTS RETURN SELF-DETERMINATION COMMA ESTABLISHMENT THEIR INDEPENDENT STATE STOP ENDING ISRAEL'S AGGRESSION COMMA ITS WITHDRAWAL ALL ARAB TERRITORIES OCCUPIED SINCE 1967 NECESSARY FOR PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST COMMA WORLD STOP CONSIDER CONVENING INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE WITH PARTICIPATION ALL PARTIES CONCERNED ACCORDING RELEVANT UN RESOLUTION APPROPRIATE MACHINERY ACHIEVE PEAT COMMA JUSTICE IN THE MIDDLE EAST STOP PLEDGE MAKE EVERY EFFORT ENSURE SUCCESS INTERNATIONAL SIGNATURE CAMPAIGN SUPPORT FOR CONVENING THIS CONFERENCE STOP SHALL ALWAYS SUPPORT EFFORTS OF UN TO THIS END STOP"

III. CLOSING REMARKS

Mr. Zehdi Labib Terzi, Permanent Observer of the

Palestine Liberation Organization to the United Nations

This has really been another glorious day in the history of the struggle of the Palestinian people. The reaffirmation by a great number of Heads of State or Government, as well as the great number of messages of solidarity received today by this Committee, is a manifestation of the true understanding of the just cause of the Palestinian people and the firm support for our struggle for peace through the attainment and exercise of our inalienable rights in our homeland in Palestine.

We Palestinians have asserted our unity and rallied around our sole and legitimate representative, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). So on behalf of all Palestinians, we wish to extend sincere thanks to all humanitarianly motivated friends and brothers. We assure them once again that it is peace with dignity and justice in Palestine that we struggle to achieve.

To the members of the Committee and to you, Sir, for your kindness the Palestinians, through their representative the PLO, wish to say "Thank you. To the vanguards and the non-governmental organizations, we wish success in their drive to mobilize international public opinion in order to bring pressure to bear with a view to convening an international peace conference on the Middle East. We have learned from history that the involvement of honest and noble people at the grass roots will inevitably prove fruitful and contribute positively to the efforts for peace.

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