The right of peoples to self-determination and Its application to peoples under colonial or alien domination or foreign occupation

14 (XXXVII). The right of peoples to self-determination and Its application to peoples under colonial or alien domination or foreign occupation[1]37

The Commission on Human Rights, Bearing in mind the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other relevant international instruments relating to human rights, Recalling General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960 containing the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, and resolution 35/119 of 11 December 1980, Recalling further General Assembly resolutions 2649 (XXV) of 30 November 1970, 2955 (XXVII) of 12 December 1972, 3070 (XXVIII) of 30 November 1973, 3236 (XXIX) of 22 November 1974, 3246 (XXIX) of 29 November 1974, 3382 (XXX) of 10 November 1975, 33/24 of 29 November 1978 and 35/35 of 14 November 1980, Recalling also its resolutions 3 (XXXI) of 11 February 1975, 9 (XXXII) of 5 March 1976, 3 (XXXIV) of 14 February 1978 and 2 (XXXV) and 3 (XXXV) of 21 February 1979, and 5 (XXXVI) of 15 February 1980, Reaffirming once again the importance of the effective realization of the right of peoples to self-determination, national sovereignty and territorial integrity and of the speedy granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples as imperative for the enjoyment of human rights, Reiterating its profound indignation at the continued and flagrant violations of human rights of the peoples still under colonial and foreign domination and alien subjugation or foreign occupation, the perpetuation of the racist minority régime in South Africa, its illegal occupation of Namibia and persistent attempts to dismember the territory of Namibia, and the denial of the inalienable national rights of the Palestinian people,

1. Calls upon all States to implement fully and faithfully the resolutions of the United Nations concerning the exercise of the right to self-determination by peoples under colonial or alien domination and foreign occupation;

2. Reaffirms once more the legitimacy of the struggle of peoples for independence, territorial integrity, national unity and liberation from colonial and foreign domination and foreign occupation by all available means, including armed struggle;

3. Reaffirms the inalienable right of the peoples of Namibia, South Africa and the Palestinian people and of all peoples under alien and colonial domination, to self-determination, national independence, territorial integrity, national unity and sovereignty without external interference;

4. Strongly Condemns the ever-increasing massacres of innocent and defenceless people, including women and children, by the racist minority régime of southern Africa is its desperate attempts to suppress the legitimate Demands of the people;

5. Condemns South Africa's wanton acts of criminal aggression and flagrant violations of the territorial integrity of the frontline States through military attacks by land and air with the sole aim of destabilizing and weakening these States in their resolve and determination to give their support to the liberation struggle in southern Africa, and requests that some help should be given to the frontline States to buttress their determination;

6. Condemns also the expansionist policy of Israel, and its practices in the region as well as the continuous aggression against the civilian Arab population, in particular the Palestinians, and the destruction of their villages and camps, which constitute serious obstacles to the achievement of self-determination and independence by the Palestinian people;

7. Reaffirms once again that the practice of using mercenaries against national liberation movements and sovereign States constitutes a criminal act and that the mercenaries themselves are criminals, and calls upon Goverrnents to enact legislation declaring the recruitment, financing and training of mercenaries in their territory, and their transit through it, to be punishable offences and prohibiting their nationals from serving as mercenaries, and to report on such legislation to the Secretary-General;

8. Welcomes with satisfaction the convening of the first session of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Drafting of an International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries;

9. Condemns in particular the policy of those States which, in disregard of United Nations resolutions, continue to maintain political, economic, military and other relations with the racist régime in southern Africa, thus supporting, protecting and encouraging them to persist in their suppression of the aspirations of peoples for self-determination and independence;

10. Demands once more the immediate and unconditional release of all people detained or imprisoned as a result of their struggle for self-determination and independence, full respect for their fundamental rights and the observance of article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, under which no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment;

11. Condemns the sentencing to death, by the South African courts, of freedom fighters of the African National Congress and the South West Africa People's Organization and calls on the South African Government to reprieve the sentences in the name of humanitarian considerations;

12. Decides to continue to give the question "The right of peoples to self-determination and its application to peoples under colonial or alien domination or foreign occupation" priority consideration at its thirty-eighth session.

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[1]37 Adopted at the 1630th meeting, on 6 March 1981, by a roll-call vote of 3 to 8, with 3 abstentions. See chap. VII.