Implementation of the Declaration on t he Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples

XXX. RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED WITHOUT REFERENCE TO A MAIN COMMITTEE
3481. Implementation of the Declaration on t he Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples

The General Assembly, Having examined the report of the Special Committee on the Situation on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,[1] Having reviewed, the occasion of the fifteenth anniversary of its adoption, the implementation of the historic Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, contained in General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960, by which the Assembly affirmed that the subjection of peoples to alien subjugation, domination and exploitation constituted a denial of fundamental human rights and was contrary to the Charter of the United Nations, Aware that the principles enshrined in the Declaration have continued to serve as an important source of encouragement and inspiration to the peoples under colonial and alien domination in their struggle to achieve their inalienable right to self-government and independence, Noting with satisfaction that, since the adoption of the Declaration, a number of Territories have achieved self-government and independence and many have since joined the United Nations system of organizations, and welcoming the positive developments towards full internal self-government and independence in the remaining colonial Territories, Condemning the continued colonialist and racist repression of millions of Africans, in Namibia by the Government of South Africa, resulting from its persistent, illegal occupation of the international Territory, and in Zimbabwe by the illegal racist minority régime, Deeply conscious of the pressing need to take all the necessary measures to bring about the speedy and complete elimination of the last vestiges of colonialism, particularly with respect to Namibia and Zimbabwe, where millions of Africans continue to be subjugated under the oppressive rule of the racist minority régimes, Strongly depreciation the policies of those States which, in defiance of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations, continue to collaborate with the Government of South Africa and with the illegal racist minority régime in Southern Rhodesia, thus perpetuating their domination of the peoples in the Territories concerned, Noting that the success of the national, liberation struggle and the resultant international situation have created favourable conditions for the complete elimination of colonialism, racial discrimination and apartheid in southern Africa, Noting with appreciation the work accomplished by the Special Committee with a view to securing the effective and complete implementation of the Declaration and other relevant resolutions of the United Nations, in particular the constructive results achieved as a consequence sequence of the visiting missions it had dispatched, Noting with satisfaction the increased co-operation and the active participation of the administering Powers concerned in the relevant work of the Special Committee, as well as the continued readiness of the Governments of Australia, New Zealand, Portugal and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to receive United Nations visiting missions in the Territories under their administration, and deeply deploring the negative attitude of those administering Powers which, despite the repeated appeals addressed to them by the General Assembly and the Special Committee, persist in their refusal to co-operate with the Special Committee in the discharge of the mandate entrusted to it by the Assembly, Reiterating its conviction that the total eradication of racial discrimination apartheid and violations of the basic human rights of the peoples in colonial Territories will be achieved with the greatest speed by the faithful and complete implementation of the Declaration,

1. Reaffirms its resolutions 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960 and 2621 (XXV) of 12 October, 1970 and all other resolutions on decolonization, and calls upon the administering Powers, in accordance with those resolutions, to take all the necessary steps to enable the dependent peoples of the Territories concerned to exercise fully and without further delay their inalienable right to self-determination and independence;

2. Declares that the continuation of colonialism in all its forms and manifestations—including racism, apartheid and the activities of foreign economic and other interests which exploit colonial peoples, as well as the waging of colonial wart to suppress the national liberation movements of the colonial Territories in Africa—is incompatible with the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Hunan Rights and the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples and poses a serious threat to international peace and security;

3. Affirms its determination to continue to take all necessary steps with a view to the complete and speedy eradication of colonialism and to the faithful and strict observance by all States of the relevant provisions of the Charter, the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples and the guiding principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;

4. Approves the report of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples covering its work during 1975 including the programme of work envisaged for 1976;[2]

5. Calls upon all States, in particular the administering Powers, and the specialized agencies and other organizations within the United Nations system to give effect to the recommendations contained in the report of the Special Committee for the speedy implementation of the Declaration and the relevant resolutions of the United Nations;

6. Reaffirms its recognition of the legitimacy of the struggle of the peoples under colonial and alien domination to exercise their right to self-determination and independence by all the necessary means at their disposal;

7. Condemns the continued influx of foreign immigrants into the colonial Territories in southern Africa and the eviction and displacement of the indigenous inhabitants of those Territories, as well as the intensified activities of foreign economic and other interests which are impeding the implementation of the Declaration with respect to the Territories;

8. Requests all States, directly and through their action in the specialized agencies and other organizations within the United Nations system, to withhold or continue to withhold assistance of any kind from the Government of South Africa and from the illegal racist minority régime in Southern Rhodesia until they restore to the peoples of Namibia and Zimbabwe their inalienable right to self-determination and independence and to refrain from taking any action which might imply recognition of the legitimacy of the domination of the Territories by those régimes;

9. Calls upon the colonial Powers to withdraw immediately and unconditionally their military bases and installations from colonial Territories and to refrain from establishing new ones;

10. Urges all States, directly and through their action in the specialized agencies and other organizations within the United Nations system, to provide all moral and material assistance to the oppressed peoples of Namibia and Zimbabwe and, with respect to the other Territories, requests the administering Powers, in consultation with the Governments of the Territories under their administration, to take steps to enlist and make effective use of all possible assistance, both bilaterally and on a multilateral basis, in the strengthening of the economies of these Territories;

11. Requests the Special Committee to continue to seek suitable means for the immediate and full implementation of resolution 1514 (XV) in all Territories which have not yet attained independence and, in particular;

(a) To formulate specific proposals for the elimination of the remaining manifestations of colonialism and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its thirty-first session;

(b) To make concrete suggestions which could assist the Security Council in considering appropriate measures under the Charter with regard to developments in colonial Territories that are likely to threaten international peace and security;

(c) To continue to examine the compliance of Member States with the Declaration and with other relevant resolutions on decolonization particularly those relation to Namibia and the Southern Rhodesia;

(d) To continue to pay particular attention to the small Territories, including the sending of visiting missions thereto, as appropriate, and to recommend to the General Assembly the most suitable steps to be taken to enable the populations of these Territories to exercise their right to self-determination, freedom and independence;

(e) To continue to enlist the support of national and international organizations having a special interest in the field of decolonization in the achievement of the objectives of the Declaration and in the implementation of the relevant resolutions of the United Nations;

12. Calls upon the administering Powers to cooperate, or continue to co-operate, with the Special Committee in the discharge of its mandate and, in particular, to participate in the work of the Committee relating to the Territories under their administration and to permit the access of visiting missions to the Territories in order to secure first-hand information and ascertain the wishes and aspirations of their inhabitants;

13. Requests the Secretary-General to provide the Special Committee with the facilities and services required for the implementation of the present resolution, as well as of the various resolutions and decisions on decolonization adopted by the General Assembly and the Special Committee.

2437th plenary meeting
11 December 1975

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[1] Official Records of the General Assembly, Thirtieth Session, Supplement No. 23 (A/10023/Rev.1). [2] Ibid., chap. I, paras. 172-183.