845A.411/12–654: Telegram
The United States Representative at the United Nations (Lodge) to the Department of State
Delga 344. Re Apartheid.
Following draft resolution tabled December 6 by Afghanistan, Bolivia, Burma, Chile, Costa Rica, Egypt, Ethiopia, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, Pakistan, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Yemen and Yugoslavia:1
The GA, having considered the second report of the United Nations Commission on the racial situation in the Union of South Africa supplement No. 16 (A/2719),
Recalling its declaration in Resolution 103 (I) that it is in the higher [Page 1055] interest of humanity to put an end to racial persecution and discrimination and its conclusion in Resolutions 395 (V) and 511 (VI) that a policy of racial segregation (apartheid) is necessarily based on doctrines of racial discrimination,
Further recalling that the Commission in its first report, had concluded that the racial policies of the Government of the Union of South Africa are contrary to the Charter and to the universal declarations of human rights,
Noting with regret the adoption of new laws and regulations by the Union Government which in the Commission’s view are also incompatible with the obligations of that Government under the United Nations’ Charter,
Noting further the profound conviction of the Commission that the policy of apartheid constitutes a grave threat to the peaceful relations between ethnic groups in the world,
- 1.
- Commends the Commission for its constructive work;
- 2.
- Notes with regret that the Government of the Union of South Africa again refused to cooperate with the Commission and that this refusal was in the Commission’s opinion the greatest obstacle to the fulfillment of its task;
- 3.
- Notes the Commission’s recommendations for facilitating a peaceful settlement of the problem contained in paragraphs 368–384 of its report;
- 4.
- Invites the Government of the Union of South Africa to conform to its obligation under the United Nations Charter, taking into account the provisions of the Charter and in particular the second and fourth paragraphs of the preamble; paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of Article 1; Article 2, paragraph 2; Article 13, paragraph 1B; Article 55; Article 56; and Article 62, paragraph 2; and further taking into account the valuable experience of other multi-racial societies as set forth in Chapter VII of the Commission’s report;
- 5.
- Further invites the Government of the Union of South Africa to take into consideration the suggestions of the Commission for a peaceful settlement of the racial problem, namely those detailed in paragraphs 370–383 of its report;
- 6.
- Requests the Commission to keep under review the problem of race conflict in the Union of South Africa;
- 7.
- Requests the Commission to report to the General Assembly at its 10th session.
- UN document A/AC.76/L.20.↩