CEIRPP meeting – Press release

Committee on Rights of

 Palestinian People

74th Meeting (PM)

CONCLUSION OF OBSERVANCE OF SOLIDARITY DAY WITH PALESTINIANS

The Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People concluded this afternoon a day of special meetings in observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, proclaimed by the General Assembly in 1977.

The messages received and the statements read in commemoration of the Day were unanimous in affirming the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to a homeland and the creation of an independent State, and in calling for the withdrawal by Israel from Arab lands occupied since 1967.

Messages were read from the heads of State or Government or Foreign Ministers of the following countries:  Greece, Pakistan, Egypt, Libya, Democratic Yemen, Malta, Senegal, German Democratic Republic, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Viet Nam, Mongolia, Hungary, Tunisia, Soviet Union, Algeria, Iraq, Maldives, India, China, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Nicaragua, Morocco, Bahrain and Mauritania.

Messages were also read from the heads of State or Government, Prime Ministers or Foreign Ministers of Yugoslavia, Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Sri Lanka, Somalia, Guinea, and Indonesia.

The observers from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea read messages from their Presidents.

The representatives of the South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) and of the German Democratic Republic Solidarity Committee also made statements.

The representative of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) made a closing statement, as did the Committee Chairman.

At the beginning of the afternoon meeting, the Committee, at the suggestion of the Chairman, decided that the flag and map of Palestine should be brought into the committee room until the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People was concluded.

Statements Made

The Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People continued this afternoon its observance of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, as proclaimed by the General Assembly in 1977.

At the start of the meeting, the Committee decided, at the suggestion of the Chairman, Massamba Sarre (Senegal), that the flag of Palestine, and the map of Palestine, as it existed before 1948, should be brought into the Chamber and should remain there until the conclusion of the Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.

THEO-BEN GURIRAB, representative of the South West African People's Organization (SWAPO), said apartheid South Africa and Zionist Israel had over the years acted on the doctrines of racial superiority, colonization and systematic eviction of people from their ancestral homelands.  Namibia and Palestine shared twin histories of racism and political oppression.  The Namibians and Palestinians had resisted their oppression and had earned international respect for their statesmanship and persistence.

He said the resistance and revolutionary fighting conducted by the Palestinians must be recognized.  Any attempts to reach a settlement must include the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the only legitimate representative of the people.  The South Africa-Israel axis in mercenarism, intelligence-sharing and military affairs, had endangered peace.  Those pariah States had earned the enmity of the overwhelming majority of the world's countries and would not long block the way to independence for the people of Namibia and Palestine.

KURT SEIBT, President of the German Democratic Republic Solidarity Committee, said that all people were gravely alarmed that American circles, a lied with the Israeli aggressor, were constantly aggravating the situation in the Middle East, as shown by the manoeuvres held in the Arab region by the so-called rapid deployment force.  Such manoeuvres were clearly directed against the progressive regimes and were designed to bring the Arab peoples again under the heel of United States imperialism, particularly that of the oil monopolies.  The settlement of the Palestine question was the most important element of a just and lasting solution of the Middle East issue. The Soviet proposal of convening an international peace conference on the Middle East was a timely initiative to bring about, through the sincere co-operation of all interested parties, the justice the Palestinian people had for decades been deprived of, due to imperialist machinations.

Nobody, not even Israel, could ignore the fact that the PLO was the sole and authentic representative of the Arab people of Palestine, he said.  The PLO was entitled to take its rightful place in all international forums and to participate on an equal footing in all negotiations related to a settlement of the Middle East issue.  At the request of the Special Committee the German Democratic Republic Solidarity Committee had designed a calendar for 1982 dedicated to the aspirations and the struggle of the Arab people of Palestine, he said.  He presented a copy to the Chairman.

NICOLAS KATAPODIS (Greece), reading a message from the Foreign Minister of Greece, Yannis Haralambopoulos, said that the Palestinian people continued to be denied the right of self-determination.  That state of affairs caused unending bloodshed and suffering and perpetuated the confrontation and tension in the Middle East, with all the ensuing dangers for international peace and security.

Greece had always supported and would continue to support the Palestinian people and its sole representative, the PLO, in their struggle to gain statehood.  Greece hoped that, with the contribution of the international community, an equitable solution would be reached to one of the longest standing international problems.

TAYYAB SIDDIQUI (Pakistan), reading a message from the President of Pakistan, Mohammad Zia-Ul-Haq, said the International Day was for Pakistan a grim reminder of the grievous wrongs which had long been perpetrated on the Palestinian people, who, forcibly uprooted from their ancestral homes, had had to suffer every kind of hardship and indignity including the deprivation of their inalienable and legitimate right to a homeland and an independent and sovereign State of their own.

The keen interest being displayed by the international community in the Palestinian cause was a testimony to the growing acceptance and recognition which was being accorded to the rights of the Palestinian people, the message continued.  It was also indicative of the fact that an irreversible historical process had been set in motion, one which would inevitably lead to the vindication of the just stand of the Palestinian people.  Pakistan reaffirmed its solidarity with the Palestinian people which was rooted in the strong bonds of Islamic identity and cultural affinity and in full consonance with the principles enshrined in the Charter.

AHMED ESMAT MEGUID (Egypt), reading a message from the Egyptian President Mohammad Hosni Mubarak, said the Day represented a commitment to solve the severe problems of the Middle East.  The years of warring had created the Palestinian refugee problem, and continued fighting could only aggravate the situation.

The Egyptian people were convinced that they had a major role to play in bringing about a settlement, and he believed that Egypt would play a constructive as it always had in the past.

ALI SUNNI MUNTASSER (Libya), reading a message from the Secretary of the Libyan People's Bureau for Foreign Affairs, Abdulati Obeidi, said the International  Day reaffirmed the commitment of the international community to noble principles and  reaffirmed the will of peoples to support the struggle of the Palestinian people to establish a sovereign state.  The Zionist entity was challenging international opinion in Palestine.  It was expelling Arab Palestinians and destroying Arab property.  Zionist crimes were also perpetrated against Lebanon, resulting in the genocide of that people, and the total destruction of many parts of that country.  Its goal was to divide the Palestinian people.  It had also attacked the nuclear facility of Iraq, an attempt to prevent the Arab nations from benefiting from modern technology.

The Zionist entity would not have been able to carry out its crimes without the military and economic support of American imperialism, the messagecontinued.  That military support was an obstacle to the right of the Palestinian people to a homeland and to establish a sovereign state.  American imperialism had tried to find in the Zionist entity an ally and partner, and the conventions signed by both sought to deny the rights of the Palestinian people.  Libya, in rejecting those conventions, also rejected their attempts to destroy the Palestinian people.  Libya was willing to co-operate with all peace-loving countries to find a solution to the Palestinian problem.  It did not fear the threats against it.

ABDALLA SALEH ASHTAL (Democratic Yemen), reading a message from President Ali Nassir Mohammed, said Israel sought to end the resistance by Democratic Yemen's Arab brothers to Israeli hegemony in the region.  That resistance would grow, to combat the Camp David accords and other conspiraciesagainst the Palestinian people and all Arab peoples.

VICTOR GAUCI (Malta) reading a message from the Prime Hinister of Malta, Dom Mintoff, reiterated his country's support and commitment to the noble cause of the Palestinian people struggling for their inalienable right to sovereignty.  Under the heroic leadership of the PLO, the Palestinian people had widened support for their just cause.

The socialist Government of Malta believed that the day was not far off when the people of Palestine would be victorious and Malta would continue its support to their cause.  Should the Committee decide, Malta would be willing to host one of the seminars of the Committee next year on the question of Palestine.

BABACAR DIOP (Senegal), reading a message from President Abdou Diouf of Senegal, said he was convinced that any settlement required the full participation of the PLO.  He reaffirmed Senegal's support for the efforts of the Committee, thus serving the ideals of peace and justice.

SIEGFRIED ZACHMANN (German Democratic Republic), reading a message from Erich Honecker, Chairman of the Council of State of the Germany Democratic Republic, said peace could only be attained by the withdrawal of aggressor Israel from all lands occupied in the 1967 war, and the recognition of the PLO as sole representative of the Palestinian people.  The Germany Democratic Republic would extend aid to the Palestinian people and support an international conference to address the question of peace in the Middle East.

SALEH KABARITI (Jordan), reading a message from Jordan's Hinister of Foreign Affairs, Sharif Abdul-Hamid Sharaf, said the Palestinian people had suffered long in consequence of the aggression and injustice mounted by Israel.  Their suffering had gone too long unchecked, and he urged united action to stop their oppression.

DIA-ALLAH EL-FATTAL (Syria), reading a message from Syria's President Hafez Al Assad, said the people of Palestine still suffered from the crimes of Zionism and imperialism.  The Zionist was trying to impose hegeany in the region.  By commemorating the International Day the Committee was rejecting  injustices against the Palestinian people.  Syria reaffirmed its solidarity with those people and reaffi med its commitment to the principles of the Charter.  It reaffirmed the right of the Palestinian people to a homeland and statehood.

Zionist forces were trying to deprive the Palestinian and Arab people of their most natural right, as affirmed by the Charter, the message continued.  The conflict in the region was the struggle between good and evil, the struggle between the upholding of international law and violation of that law.  Syria hope the just cause on the Palestinian people would finally triumph.  It paid tribute to the international community which continued its support of the Palestinian cause.

GHASSAN TUEN (Lebanon), reading a message from Lebanese President Elias Sarkis, appealed to the world community to take up its responsibility to find a solution to the plight of the Palestinian people.  As the country that had suffered most from the Middle East conflict, Lebanon believed that Israel must withdraw from all occupied lands and cease its persecution of the Palestinian people.

HA VAN LAU (Viet Nam), reading a message from Vietnamese President Pham Van Dong, acclaimed the International Day of solidarity with a people who had had a ceaseless struggle against Israeli Zionist aggression and American imperialism to safeguard independence and freedom.  It was important to lend support and assistance to the struggle of the Palestinian people and the Arab peoples against United States imperialism, zionism and attempts to liquidate the struggle of the Palestinian people and to impose upon them their own solution Viet Nam condemned the Camp David accords and gave its unreserved support to the struggle of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the PLO, with a view to recovering their fundamental national rights to self-determination, the return to their homeland and the establishment of a Palestinian State, the message said.

BUYANTYN DASHTSEREH (Mongolia), reading a statement from President Tsedenbal of Mongolia, said the worsening situation led to a heightened need to protect the Palestinians.  The United States had helped raise the level of terrorism through Operation Bright Star and the existence of the Rapid Deployment force.  He strongly condemned the parties of the Camp David agreement  for negotiating an unfair settlement of the Palestinian issue.

He said Mongolia supported the convening of an international peace conference and expressed complete solidarity with the Palestinian people.

PAL RACZ (Hungary), reading a message from President Pal Losonczi to Yasir Arafat of the PLO, said Hungary's people followed with sympathy and support the Palestinian people's struggle for independence.  Any negotiations must involve the PLO, as the Palestinian people's sole legitimate representative.

SALAH LADGHAM (Tunisia), reading a message by Tunisian President Habib Bourguiba, appealed to the international community to recognize the Palestinian cause.   He said there could be no doubt as to the barbarous strategy of Israel against the  people of Palestine and its aggression against Arab peoples and countries.  Israel had tried to spread a state of permanent conflict to all countries in the area.  It had caused wars leading to Arab sacrifices. Israel was trying to impose its hegemony in the region.  The Arab world continued to suffer from that Israeli strategy.  That policy was aimed at undermining international attempts at dentente.

It was high time the international community and the United Nations exercised pressure to put an end to the arrogance of Israel, bring Israel to heel and make it respect international conventions, the message said.  Peace and justice would then be possible in the area, allowing the PLO and the Palestinian people to create an independent state.  Such measures would also promote detente.

OLEG A. TROYANOVSKY (Soviet Union), reading a message from President Leonid Brezhnev, said settlement of the Middle East problem rested on a solution of the Palestinian problem so as to enable those people to establish their own State.  Also important was the recognition of the PLO as the sole representative of the Palestinian people.

The Soviet Union expressed solidarity with the Palestinian people, under the vanguard of the PLO, in their struggle for sovereignty, the message said.

AHMED TADLAOUI (Algeria), reading a message from President Chadli Bendjedid of Algeria, said the commemoration of this Day reminded the world of the tragic suffering of the Palestinian people.  He commended the efforts of the United Nations in seeking a solution to the problem.  It was unfortunate that to date that question had not been resolved because of the intransigence of Israel.  Any attempt which did not take into consideration all the elements of the problem would be paralysed and doomed to failure, such as the tripartite Camp David accords, which had been rejected by the Palestinian people.

The Zionist entity continued to flout human rights in the eyes of the world, the message said.  Its policies were aimed at Judaising Palestine, thereby forcing the Arab people to leave the area.  The United Nations must call a halt to Israeli aggression and policies against the Palestinian people.  It was his belief that next year the Middle East would know peace.

SALAH OMAR AL-ALI (Iraq) reading a message of President Saddam Hussein al Takriti, said serious events had taken place in the Middle East as a result of Zionist aggression against Lebanon and against the Iraqi nuclear reactor, which was for peaceful purposes.  Those activities had been condemned by the international community, yet the Zionist entity continued to flout international law.

The Zionist entity continued to receive military equipment from the United States, which was used against the Palestinians and the people of neighbouring countries, the message said.  The United States gave material support to the Zionist entity through weapons.  Iraq expressed satisfaction with the efforts made by the international community to reaffirm the inalienable right of the Palestinian people under the leadership of the PLO.

AHMED ZAKI (Maldives), reading a message from President Haumoon Abdul Gayoom of the Maldives, said the United Nations was the best forum to publicize the forced, systematic dislocation of the Palestinian people.  He vigorously condemned the murder, theft and desecration of holy places.  Practically all Moslems and other Arabs had been driven out of Palestine sine Israel was established, leaving them homeless and subject to inhuman condition

He said total Israeli withdrawal from occupied territories was the absolute prerequisite for peace in the Middle East.

T. P. SEEHIVASAN (India), reading a message from Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, said India stood by the Palestinian people during their struggle.

LIANG YUFAN (China), reading a message from Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang, said the core of the Middle East question lay in the Palestinian question and that the PLO had become a political force not to be ignored in the Middle East.

The Chinese and Palestinian peoples had long sympathized with and supported each other and had established a profound friendship.

Not long ago, PLO Chairman Yasir Arafat had paid a visit to China, he said.  The visit was a complete success, further enhancing the understanding and friendship between the Chinese and Palestinian peoples and would exert positive influence on the development of Sino-Palestinian relations.

He strongly condemned Israel for its continued aggression and expansion and firmly supported the Palestinian and other Arab peoples in their just struggle.

The Chairman, MASSAMBA SARRE (Senegal), said he was aware of the concern all Heads of State or Government had for the cause of the Palestinian people.  More than 60 messages had been received from heads of State, Prime Ministers and Foreign Ministers, but there was a technical problem, he said.  There were still more than 20 speakers listed, and not enough time to hear them all.  He therefore proposed that those with messages from their Heads of State sum them up in a few minutes or have them transmitted to the Secretariat where they would be fully reproduced in the records of the meetings of this International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people.

SAOUD AL-ANSI (Oman) supported the suggestion that brief messages be read.

JASIM YOUSIF JAMAL (Qatar), reading a message from President Al-Thani, said Israel had flouted the United Nations and had committed barbarous and inhuman crimes.  Any delay in finding a just solution to the Palestinian problem, including a homeland on Palestinian soil, would only endanger world peace.

GAAFAR ALLAGANY (Saudi Arabia), reading a message from Crown Prince Fahd, recalled Saudi support for the Palestinian people to enable them to return to their home and to establish an independent state.  He thanked those countries which had refused to recognize Israel's claim of Jerusalem as its capital.  He also called on all States to oppose the Zionist plot aimed at distorting the Palestinian cause and of displacing that people.

The message stated that Saudi Arabia was convinced that peace would not come to the Middle East until Israel had withdrawn from occupied Arab territory and allowed the Palestinian people the right to a homeland and to statehood.

Mr. AL-ANSI (Oman), reading a message from Sultan Qaboos bin Said confirmed solidarity with the Palestinian people who lived in tragic circumstances since Israel's occupation of their lands.

All Israeli practices were a threat to peace and security not only to the region but to the world and must be condemned.  The international community must step up its support for the Palestinian people, he said.  Previous peace plans had come to naught.  Oman hoped the Saudi peace plan would meet with success.  It also welcomed United Nations efforts in seeking a solution to the problem of Palestine.

ALEJANDRO BENDANA RODRIGUEZ (Nicaragua), reading a message from the governing junta, expressed militant support for the Palestinian people in their struggle against imperialist, Zionist aggression.

MENDI MRANI ZENTAR (Morocco), reading a message from Foreign Affairs Minister Mohamed Doucetta, said Horocco had always supported the Palestinian peoples right to recover all their territory and to establish a homeland on the territory of Palestine.  It was high time that Israeli aggression was halted and peace for the Palestinians found.

WASFI NIMER (Bahrain), reading a message from Amir Isa bin SuIman Al-Khalifa, said the importance of this Day of commemoration demonstrated the urgent need for an equitable solution to the cause of the Palestinian people an issue which had existed since the creation of the United Nations.  The world was convinced of the right of the Palestinian people to a homeland which would lead to peace in the region.

Since the partition of Palestine, that region had never known peace, he said.  More than 300 United Nations resolutions dealt with the question of the Middle East, but their failure to be implemented resulted from the intransigence of Israel.  The tragedy of the Palestinian people could not continue without threatening the United Nations itself and the international community.  Bahrain had, on many occasions, reaffirmed its solidarity with the Palestinian people who were heroically struggling against zionism.  It supported the legitimate struggle of those people and the PLO.  Peace could only come when Israel withdrew from occupied Arab territory, allowed the Palestinians to return to their country, and when an independent Palestinian State was created.  The international community should compel Israel to heed United Nations resolutions to return Arab soil to the true legitimate owners, thereby sparing the world a catastrophe.

MOHAMED SAID HAMATA (Mauritania) reading a message from Chief of State Mohamed Khouna Ould Haidallah, reiterated Mauritania's commitment to a solution of the Palestinian problem by the establishment of an independent Palestinian State under the leadership of the PLO and the total and unconditional withdrawal of Israel from Palestinian and other occupied Arab lands, including the City of Jerusalem.

Mauritania was sure that under the leadership of the PLO and with world public opinion, the Arab people of Palestine would recover their inalienable rights.

CHON JAB HONG (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) reading a message President Kim 11 Sung, said the militant bonds between the people of Korea and the Palestinians were strengthening every day.  He expressed solidarity with the Freedom Fighters and called for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

MILIVOJE ZAGAJAC (Yugoslavia), reading a message from President Sergej Krajger, said the PLO was a full member of the Hon-Aligned Movement and an observer of the United Nations — proof that their struggle had weighed on the world's conscience.  The Palestinian people deserved and must have their own state and be allowed to join in international negotiations.

MUHAMAD ZAHIR (Bangladesh), reading a message from President Abdul Sattar, reiterated support for the Palestinian people in their struggle for national liberation.

Peace, to endure, must be based on justice, he said.  The people of Palestine were a definite political entity which could not be ignored. Permanent peace in the Middle East would depend upon the Palestinian people being able to establish their own state.

FAHIM AL-QASIMI (United Arab Emirate), reading a message from his country's President, said the Palestinian people had suffered deprivation of their land and denial of their right to self-determination.  Israel was constantly violating human rights by killing and torturing individuals in the territory of Palestine.

The United Arab Emirates welcomed the commemoration of this Day, which reflected the concern of the international community for that people and for justice.  The United Arab Emirates was happy to see international rejection of agreements which did not take into consideration the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.  He called upon the international community to mandate its support for the Palestinian people into action to help those people recover its rights.

AHMED MURAFEH (Yemen), reading a message from the President of Yemen, reasserted support for the Palestinians in recovering their legitimate rights, their land and territory and in the creation of their own state.  Israeli expansionist policies represented a threat in the region.  Yemen reaffirms its support in the struggle of the Palestinian people for the recovery of their inalienable rights.

NIHAL RODRIGO (Sri Lanka), reading a message from President Jayawarden, said no Middle East solution could work without a just solution to the Palestinian question including a total Israeli withdrawal from all occupied lands.

SOO GIL PARK (Republic of Korea), reading a message from his Foreign Minister, said his country could not accept the occupation of land taken by force, and called for an immediate solution to the suffering of the Palestinian people.

AHMED MOHAMED ADAN (Somalia), reading a message from President Mohammed Siyad Barre, expressed strong support for the struggle of the Palestinian people and the return of their land.  Somalia called for Israeli withdrawal of all Arab land occupied since 1967, the dismantling of settlements, the return of the Palestinian people to their homeland and the establishment of an independent state.  Somalia called on the international community to oppose Israeli occupation of Arab lands and to support the just cause of the people of Palestine.

OUSMANE KABA (Guinea), reading a message from President Ahmed Sekou Toure, said that for more than three decades the Palestinian question had been at the heart of different Middle East conflicts.  Nothing was served in trying to ignore that the PLO had become the sole and authentic representative without whom no viable solution could be envisaged.  Only such a realistic approach could resolve the crisis and result in peace.

As long as Israel continued to annex the Holy City of Jerusalem, to occupy by force Arab territories, to violate the sacred national rights of the Palestinian people despite numerous resolutions, tension and a state of war would persist in that region and peace would be threatened.  Guinea was convinced of final victory for the just cause of the Palestinian people which was also that of all justice- and peace-loving peoples.

IZHAR IBRAHIM (Indonesia), reading a message from Foreign Minister Kusumaatmedja, supported the just cause of the Palestinian people for the implementation of the inalienable rights to a Palestinian state.  The Palestinian question was the core of the Middle East problem.  Any solution of that problem must include the withdrawal of Israel from occupied Arab territories and the creation of a Palestinian homeland.  Indonesia was sure the United Nations would continue to play a role regarding the cause of the Palestinian people and it was sure that Palestine would soon take its rightful place as an independent sovereign state.

Statement by PLO

FAROUK KADDOUMI, of the PLO, expressed thanks to the Committee for its determined support and assistance to the Palestinian people against the Israeli enemy.  He also expressed thanks for all messages of solidarity conveyed to the Palestinian people.

He offered gratitude to the heroic people of Namibia and their national liberation movement.  Mr. Nujema and the South West Africa People's Organization (SPAPO) were carrying out a just struggle against the racist regime of South Africa, which was the ally of the Zionist entity in Palestine.  The struggle of the people of Namibia was the same struggle of the people of Palestine.

He thanked the people of the German Democratic Republic for the calendar offered today, which was proof of their solidarity.  He also thanked the Chairman of the Committee and other members for their increasing efforts in the cause of the Palestinian people.

He said the attitude of Israel reflected a rejection not only of the resolution of the United Nations but also of the Charter and its noble goals.  That rejection reflected a barbaric attitude everyday in a hotbed of tension which was being whipped up anew.  Israel's policies were those of expansionism and hegemony in the region.

The policies of the United States and of the Zionists posed obstacles to finding a solution to the Middle East problem.  These two regimes were seeking to rupture any attempt to bring about international detente.  The law of the jungle should not triumph and should not govern international relations.

The CHAIRMAN said that the Committee had drawn the attention of the world to the question of the Middle East and of Palestine.  The statements made today and the many messages received converged around one goal, namely peace — how to achieve it, and the restoration of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.

This Day was organized within a framework of co-operation and fraternity, he said.  Today's ceremony reflected once again the popular nature of the cause being defended because it was a just cause and one of peace.  The Committee would continue its efforts towards that goal.  It was his hope that the people of Palestine would soon be the recipients of such peace.

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