General Assembly Session 49 meeting 51

The President

In a letter contained in document A/49/400/Add.4 the Secretary-General informs me that, since the issuance of his communications dated 20 and 26 September and 5 and 14 October 1994, the Comoros has made the necessary payment to reduce its arrears below the amount specified in Article 19 of the Charter.

May I take it that the General Assembly duly takes note of this information?

Mr. Eltinay (Sudan)

The so-called new international order has spawned an assault that targeted the cultural diversity of many States under the name of defending human rights. In the wake of the cold war, as the international arena became empty of ideological conflicts, certain countries, which have monopolized world leadership filled that vacuum with discriminatory policies which they pursued through the application of double standards and a marked reluctance to take the side of right and justice in areas where some would clamour that human rights are being violated.

It has been the misfortune of the Bosnian Muslim people that some have chosen to consider its existence through those double standards and through the absence of justice. As if this was not enough, the very existence of that people in a certain geographic context added to its demerit in the eyes of those parties and, thereby, added to its misery. Thus the Bosnian people fell victim to cultural intolerance and became fair game to all kinds of oppression and inhuman crimes such as "ethnic cleansing", mass killing, rape and siege. At the same time, it fell victim to the collusion and silence of those who considered its continued existence an obstacle in the way of their grand design.

People of good conscience who belong to the region that applies those double standards have testified to the collusion they have witnessed in the perpetration of those crimes by describing the limited and hesitant intervention of the United Nations in Bosnia as too little too late qualifying it as an action that rewards the aggressor in the name of neutrality, while such neutrality has never been the norm in any area where the conflicting parties belonged to a different culture.

Although the resolutions adopted by the Security Council in condemning the Serbs and establishing "safe areas" and exclusion zones have been numerous indeed, such resolutions have lacked the necessary ingredient, namely the political will of the major Powers and have fallen victim to the policy of double standards when it came to enforcing them. Even the establishment of the International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia has come up against the hurdle of financial difficulties. The recommendations of international mediation have tended to reward the aggressor with the territories acquired through the use of force, regardless of the fact that this runs counter to the principles of the United Nations Charter, the norms of international law and the resolutions of the United Nations.

Regardless of the courageous decision by the Bosnian Government to accept the Contact Group's plan of 30 July 1994, the Serb aggressors have defied even their closest friends and rejected the plan because of their awareness of the impotence or collusion that makes them immune to the imposition of any such plan upon them. Even those who have threatened to punish the Serb aggressors have been persuaded by their allies to turn a blind eye to the situation and to abandon any plans they might have had to deter the aggressor by military means.

The credibility of the United Nations, and the Security Council in particular, has been laid bare by the Bosnian question. Security Council resolution 943 (1994) by providing for a partial lifting of sanctions against Serbia and Montenegro has exposed the true intentions of those whose voices are loudest in opposition whenever it is suggested that the arms embargo against Bosnia might be lifted, regardless of the fact that imposing such an embargo on Bosnia contravenes Article 51 of the Charter and the right to self-defence enshrined in that Article. The pretext of those who oppose the lifting of that embargo has continued to be the contention that the lifting would lead to escalating of the conflict, closing the door to any peaceful settlement in addition to threatening the lives of the international peace-keeping personnel.

The war in Bosnia is not a civil war in the full sense of the word. There is an external party that helps the aggressor. Serbia and Montenegro, an arms-producing State, has been providing an unending flow of weapons and logistical support to the Serbs. The deployment of 100 United Nations observers on the borders of Bosnia and Herzegovina with Serbia and Montenegro does not, in any way, guarantee the stemming of that flow of arms to the Serbs across the borders. Therefore, lifting the arms embargo against Bosnia would give an impetus to the peace process by restoring some of the balance between the aggressor and the victim, as highlighted by the recent developments in Bosnia which demonstrate that the Bosnian people is quite capable of repulsing aggression. In order for the Bosnian people to repel the aggressor, there must be an end to the collusion that enables the Serbs to carry out their designs which aim at exterminating the Bosnians and at physically removing their State from the map of Europe, even though it is a State Member of the United Nations whose sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected.

The international community represented in the General Assembly should clearly and strongly condemn the crimes of the Bosnian Serbs -- their mass murders, "ethnic cleansing", attacks against the "safe areas" and exclusion zones established by the United Nations, including Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Bijelina and other areas, as well as attacks on United Nations personnel. The international community should also stress its commitment to stand by the behests of international legality and not to side with the aggressor against the victim.

While we appreciate the significant efforts of the United Nations Protection Force and are anxious to ensure the safety of its personnel, we believe that it should be strengthened and empowered with the necessary competence in order for it to become a deterrent force that would repel aggression rather than continuing to be saddled with the neutral posture imposed on it by the Security Council. UNPROFOR should make greater efforts to protect the "safe areas" and exclusion zones designated by Security Council resolutions, as protection of those areas and enforcement of those zones lie within the mandate of the Force, with full consideration for the right of the Bosnian people to repel aggression and to free its territories from the occupiers. The Bosnian people has in fact demonstrated its ability to do just that, with a great deal of courage.

We call upon the Security Council to exercise its competence under Article 24 of the Charter. In so doing, the Council should not be influenced by the strategies of some of its members and should aim at achieving a just and lasting solution to the problem that does reward the aggressor. This the Council should do through the implementation of the principle of non-admissibility of the annexation of territories by force and the principle of the right of refugees to return to their homes. We must make it clear that failure to enforce the Security Council's resolution, including that relating to the opening of Tuzla airport, would pose a definite threat to the lives of the population which are already threatened by lack of medicine and food as a result of the Serb siege and their prevention of distribution of humanitarian assistance to Sarajevo, Tuzla and other "safe areas" designated by the Security Council.

The application of paragraph 6 of Security Council resolution 713 (1991) to Bosnia has no basis in legality. Such action puts the victim and the aggressor on the same footing and thereby deprives a United Nations Member State of the means of exercising its legitimate right to self-defence, a fundamental right enshrined in the Charter. We therefore call on the Security Council once again to lift the arms embargo imposed against Bosnia and Herzegovina. We also pay tribute to Bosnia's positive response that should eliminate the obstacles in the way of lifting that embargo.

We fully understand the circumstances under which Bosnia is trying to deal with the situation in a manner that would put an end to the suffering of its people who have fallen victim to very complex regional and international cross-currents. We call upon the Security Council to heed the urgent humanitarian needs and suffering of the Bosnian people and to respond by speedily lifting the embargo in order for Bosnia to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. We also call on the international community to live up to its commitment under Article 51 of Chapter VIII of the Charter by enabling Bosnia to defend itself. This is a collective responsibility imposed by the Charter, to which all peoples of the planet subscribe. The ploys of certain groups should not prevent us from standing by what is just and right.

Proceeding from this, our delegation is a sponsor of draft resolution A/49/L.14/Rev.1, which we hope will be adopted unanimously by the General Assembly.

Mr. Lamamra (Algeria)

The situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina is rightly of concern to the international community. It shakes our fundamental values and sorely tests our declared ability to promote peace with justice and respect for the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter. For over two years, one State Member of our Organization has seen its territorial integrity and its very existence threatened, while its people -- in particular the Muslim component of that people -- has been relentlessly exposed to armed aggression, "ethnic cleansing" and every sort of deprivation.

The determination of the international community, expressed in professions of faith, statements of intent and even demands, has rarely been translated into action in sufficient time, or on an adequate scale, to discourage and defeat outbursts of aggression, even though the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) has sought, commendably, to carry out its difficult mission, within the limits of its resources and its mandate, suffering insults and injuries which undermine the authority of the Security Council.

The painstaking search for a negotiated political solution, which has mobilized the energy of so many people of good will, has always encountered intransigence from the leaders of the irredentist Serb minority, which seeks to impose a dangerous logic of exclusion and fait accompli. When the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina accepted the peace plan of 6 July 1994, not without sacrifice, it saw its hopes dashed by those gambling on the international community's appeasement, or even the abandonment of its effort, in the face of their claims.

The Permanent Representative of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina made clear to our Assembly this morning the harsh reality of the situation in his country. He showed beyond all doubt how the maintenance of the status quo is neither possible nor acceptable, at three levels: humanitarian, military and political. He also resoundingly expressed the determination of his people to defend their sovereignty and territorial integrity, a determination equalled only by their legitimate expectation that the international community will fully assume its responsibilities. In particular, he defined the context in which lifting the arms embargo is a necessary factor in finding a just and lasting solution to the crisis which his country is suffering, whereas extending the applicability of Security Council resolution 713 (1991) to the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina has the unjustified effect of stripping that State of its natural right to self-defence.

With the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina marked by a rise in tension and an upsurge in armed violence, and with the siege of Sarajevo and other cities being tightened, this debate comes at just the right moment to awaken our consciences and alert us all to our responsibilities.

Algeria, motivated entirely by a concern for the restoration of peace, security and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the region as a whole, naturally supports the resistance of the Bosnian people and its Government, to which my country has always shown its brotherly concern. It was just as natural for my delegation to become a sponsor of the draft resolution, in which the General Assembly will send a message of hope to the victims and a message of resolve to those doggedly seeking to keep peace at bay.