67TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Special Political and Decolonization Committee 

General debate on all decolonization items 
(items 56 to 60)

Statement by Minister Mateo ESTRÉMÉ
Chargé d ’Affaires a.i. of the Argentine Republic to the United Nations

Mr. Chair,

Allow me first to congratulate you on your election as Chairman of this Fourth Committee and extend our congratulations to the members of the Bureau. While wishing you all the best of success, I commit the full support of my delegation. I wish also to express our recognition to Ambassador Simona Miculescu, Permanent Representative of Rumania, for the way she conducted the work of this Committee during the 66th session.

We must face the challenge to achieve the decolonization mandate while considering this challenge as an opportunity. For the United Nations, the persistence of colonial cases in all their forms and manifestations is a crime which constitutes a violation of the Charter of the United Nations, the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples and the principles of international law, as established in General Assembly resolution 2621 (XXV), adopted on the tenth anniversary of the adoption of resolution 1514 (XV).

After more than 50 years since the establishment of the Special Committee on Decolonization, the tenets of resolution 1654 (XVI) which created it in 1961 are fully in force as “further delay in the application of the Declaration is a continuing source of international conflict and disharmony, seriously impedes international cooperation, and is creating an increasingly dangerous situation in many parts of the world which may threaten international peace and security”.

Argentina totally coincides on the centrality and significance of the Special Decolonization Committee as the guiding body of the decolonisation process. In this regards, the participation of the President of the Argentine Republic in its sessions in June 2012 is a resounding proof of my country’s strong support to the work of the Special Committee, the Organization’s doctrine in this field, multilateralism, international law and the peaceful settlement of international controversies.

Mr. Chair,

The Argentine Republic reiterates its full support for and commitment to the decolonization process carried out by the United Nations through its relevant bodies, pursuant to the provisions and objectives of the Charter of the Untied Nations and the principles established by General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV).

It is always worth mentioning that resolution 1514 (XV) proclaimed the necessity of bringing to a speedy and unconditional end colonialism in all its forms and manifestations, making it clear that there exist “more than one form of colonialism” and establishing two principles to address the several cases: self determination and territorial integrity.

Argentina has always been and continues to be a staunch defender of the right of peoples to self-determination in all forums and cases in which that right is applicable. No people can be subjected to alien subjugation, domination and exploitation and foreign occupation in the 21st century, which is a denial of the fundamental human rights, is contrary to the Charter of the United Nations and is an impediment to the promotion of world peace and cooperation.

Colonised peoples are entitled to freely decide their future political condition in accordance with the pertinent provisions of the Charter, the Declaration and the General Assembly relevant resolutions and, to that end we reiterate our call to the Administering powers to cooperate with the Special Committee.

Mr. Chair,

It is in defence of the principle of self-determination that we cannot admit that this principle be distorted to such an extent as to force an argument in favour of the continued existence of an anachronistic colonial sovereignty dispute which mutilates the territorial integrity of Argentina since the British usurpation of part of our national territory in 1833 and which continues to be illegally occupied by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The sovereignty dispute over the Malvinas, South Georgias and South Sandwich Islands and the surrounding maritime areas has been recognized in successive resolutions of the General Assembly and the Special Committee on Decolonization as a “special and particular colonial situation” which must be solved through negotiations between its only two parties, taking into account the interests of the inhabitants of the islands.

This is so because there is not a population subjected or subjugated to a colonial power in the South Atlantic Islands usurped to Argentina but British subjects whose condition has not changed over the years they have resided there. At the same time, Argentines from the mainland have been impeded to settle on the islands, except for a few recent exceptions only to seek to justify the contrary.

There is in fact a “colonial situation” but not a “colonized people”. To allow the British population on the islands to become the arbitrator of a dispute to which their own country is a party distorts the right of self determination of peoples because there is not a people subject to the subjugation, domination or exploitation of a colonial power. In this sense, the announced “referendum” is an illegal, spurious and tautological exercise as it is promoted by the British to ask British citizens if they want to continue to be British. This is a serious distortion of the spirit of self determination as well as a serious violation of Argentina’s territorial integrity.

The United Nations have clearly established that the way to solve the sovereignty dispute is the resumption of the negotiations between Argentina and the United Kingdom, duly taking into account the interests of the inhabitants of the islands, and have excluded the applicability of the principle of self-determination to this specific case.

Mr. Chair,

At the same time, the United Kingdom illegally carries out unilateral activities of exploration and exploitation of renewable and non-renewable natural resources in the disputed archipelagos and waters, which are contrary to the mandate of the United Nations as set out in General Assembly resolution 31/49 that calls upon both parties to refrain from taking decisions that would imply introducing unilateral modifications in the situation while the islands are going through the settlement process.

The United Kingdom also conducts military exercises, including the firing of missiles from the Malvinas Islands, which violates the resolution referred to above, is contrary to the full implementation of the maritime safety standards of the International Maritime Organization and run counter to the regional policy of consistently seeking a peaceful settlement of the dispute.

That is why Argentina made a presentation on 10 February 2012 to the President of the General Assembly, the President of the Security Council and the Secretary General of the United Nations alerting to the growing British militarization of the South Atlantic which seriously affects the situation of peace in the region. Argentina has just made a new presentation to denounce the next carrying out of British military exercises including the firing of missiles from the Malvinas Islands, scheduled to take place between 8 and 19 October 2012.

Because all this is in violation of international law and the mandate of the international community, these British activities create unnecessary tension in the South Atlantic and constitute an affront not only to Argentina but to the rest of the countries of the region, which has led the conflict to reach a regional dimension. This does not affect our region only, insofar as other regions have echoed as shown in the pronouncements of regional and bi-regional organizations such as CELAC, MERCOSUR, UNASUR, the Ibero-American Summits, and the recent Summit of South American and Arab countries held in Lima on 2 October 2012 which made an express call to the United Kingdom to refrain from carrying out military exercises in the disputed area.

Mr. Chair,

The Argentine Government has expressed at every available opportunity its permanent willingness to negotiate in order to comply with the obligation equally pending on both parties to resume the negotiations on sovereignty, something which has been specially acknowledged by the our own region of Latin America and the Caribbean.

The United Kingdom must comply with that obligation imposed on it as a member of this Organization in order to reach a solution to the dispute. As the President of the Argentine Republic stated in the Special Committee on Decolonization on 14 June 2012, “what the United Kingdom is really doing is taking advantage of its privileged position as a permanent member of the Security Council”. This condition of permanent member of the Security Council does not relieve it from its international obligations; on the contrary, that permanent seat and the privileges associated with it demand a special responsibility as a guarantor of international peace and security, responsibility which it abandons when it refuses to dialogue with my country.

As the President of the Argentine Republic has just stated during the general debate of the 67th General Assembly, this is not only a bilateral question between the United Kingdom and Argentina; it has become in a global issue: that of putting an end to the last vestiges of colonialism, which has been one of the great merits of the United Nations when it established the Committee on Decolonization in 1961. To enter the 21st century without colonial territories also relates to the respect for human rights. Human rights which we certainly defend with strength in my country and we are an example at global level of respecting them. That is the reason why Argentina is willing, as it was in the past, to respect the interests and way of life of the inhabitants of the Malvinas Islands.

After more than fifty years since the establishment of the Special Committee on Decolonization the crimes of colonialism still persist. It is our duty to put an end to them. The international community and the Secretary General can count on Argentina’s best willingness and efforts to contribute to their eradication for good.

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.