South Africa & The Non-Aligned MVT on Palestine

STATEMENT ON THE SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs

STATEMENT ON THE SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST BY THE PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE 
OF SOUTH AFRICA, AMBASSADOR D.S. KHUMALO, ON BEHALF OF THE NON-ALIGNED 
MOVEMENT IN THE SECURITY COUNCIL , ON 22 NOVEMBER 2000

Mr President,

The Non-Aligned Movement comes before this meeting today and
wishes to repeat its call to Israel to stop subjecting the
Palestinian civilians to collective punishment. This is in
violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. We reiterate our
call to Israel to act with restraint, and to meticulously abide by
its legal obligations with respect to the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Just more than a month ago, this august body met in emergency
session, in accordance with its mandate as the custodian of
international peace and security, and adopted resolution 1322. The
resolution called for the establishment of an international enquiry
to the conflict. The NAM believes that the full and expeditious
implementation of Security Council Resolution 1322 would go a long
way in proving that the Council is prepared to take decisive action
in the maintenance of international peace and security. It is time
to seriously consider protecting the Palestinian people.

Mr President,

The NAM firmly believes that it remains the permanent
responsibility of the United Nations to stay fully engaged in the
Palestinian question until a definitive solution is achieved. In
this regard, we welcome and fully support the important role of the
UN Secretary-General in the pursuit of peace at the Sharm Al-Sheikh
Summit, and his efforts in the recent dialogue with both the
Israelis and Palestinians. This serves to reaffirm the primacy of
the UN in global peace and security. We appeal to both parties to
respond constructively.
It is incumbent upon the UN to adopt measures to protect the
Palestinian people, and to ensure that actions which exacerbate
their suffering, must not be allowed to continue. The international
community has an obligation to this end. We call on the Council to
seriously consider the immediate deployment of a protection force
to the region.

Mr President,

The question of Palestine constitutes the nucleus of the Middle
East conflict. The achievement of the inalienable right of the
Palestinian people to self-determination and to an independent
State with East Jerusalem as its capital, is pivotal to the
achievement of a sustained and comprehensive peace in the Middle
East.
The Movement believes that peaceful negotiation is the only
means of ensuring lasting peace, security and stability in the
region. We urge the parties to take the required steps to ensure
the cessation of hostilities, to restore calm, and adopt measures
to re-establish mutual trust. It is only then that an atmosphere
conducive to the resumption of negotiations, can be created.
The Ministers of NAM, meeting in September in New York during
the Millennium Assembly, reaffirmed their determination to actively
strive towards the achievement of a just and comprehensive peace on
the basis of Security Council Resolutions 242 (1967) and 338
(1973).

Mr President,

In a statement issued in Pretoria yesterday, the South African
Government strongly condemned the attack on the Israeli civilian
bus two days ago. We equally strongly condemned the
disproportionate and excessive retaliatory attacks by the Israeli
security force that followed, disturbingly moving the crisis to a
precarious new level. We must ask ourselves the question : how much
longer can this collective punishment by an occupying militarily
superior force - in violation of international humanitarian law -
be endured by the Palestinian people? Closures, blockades, and
restrictions on the movement of goods, persons, and resources
imposed by Israel have resulted in the economic suffocation of the
Palestinian people. The crisis has exacted too much suffering and
claimed too many innocent lives.
We firmly believe that the condition of land for peace is
essential if meaningful progress in the peace process is to be
attained. For a durable, just and comprehensive peace, negotiation
towards final status issues has to be in accordance with the
relevant UN resolutions and international legitimacy.

I thank you.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT DUMISANI RASHELENG
OFFICE NO. (012) 351 0067 / 0128
CELL NO. 082 709 8166

ISSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
PRIVATE BAG X152
PRETORIA
0001