Conference urges world-wide boycott of South African and Namibian goods.Conference urges world-wide boycott of South African and Namibian goods A world-wide boycott of Namibian and South African products-- scheduled to begin on 1 January 1986 unless South Africa South Africa, Afrikaans Suid-Afrika, officially Republic of South Africa, republic (2005 est. pop. 44,344,000), 471,442 sq mi (1,221,037 sq km), S Africa. complies with Security Council resolution 435 (1978)--was urged by the Conference on the Intensification of International Action for the Independence of Namibia. The Conference, which met in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of from 11 to 13 September, also urged that a special 1986 session of the General Assembly be convened to terminate South Africa's illegal occupation of Namibia. In addition, the Conference condemned South Africa for its "continuing defiance of the international community' and rejected the United States' "constructive engagement' policies as well as the Reagan Administration's insistence on the linkage of Namibia's independence to the withdrawal of Cuban forces from Angola. Organized by the United Nations Council for Namibia, the Conference was convened to focus attention on the "ever-growing threat to international peace and security' caused by South Africa's refusal to comply with all United Nations resolutions and decisions on Namibia. Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar Pé·rez de Cuél·lar , Javier Born 1920. Peruvian diplomat who served as secretary-general of the United Nations (1982-1991). reminded the conferees that the Security Council--through resolution 566 of 19 June 1985--had declared the interim government in Namibia "illegal, null and void', and demanded that South Africa immediately rescind To declare a contract void—of no legal force or binding effect—from its inception and thereby restore the parties to the positions they would have occupied had no contract ever been made. rescind v. its illegal and unilateral action. Noting that 1985 marked not only the fortieth anniversary of the United Nations, but also the twenty-fifth anniversary of the formation of the South West Africa People's Organization South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO) Party in South West Africa (now Namibia) that advocated immediate independence from South Africa. Founded in 1960, it used diplomacy to attain its goals until 1966, when it turned to armed struggle. (SWAPO SWAPO or Swapo South-West Africa People's Organization SWAPO n abbr (= South-West Africa People's Organization) → SWAPO f SWAPO n abbr (= ), General Assembly President Paul J.F. Lusaka (Zambia) said that in Namibia's case "there is nothing to celebrate'. Mr. Lusaka called on the Conference to take stock of where things stood and seriously reconsider how a more effective effort could be made to bring about Nambia's independence. With a situation "more encouraging than it had ever been' for liberation movements A liberation movement is a group organizing a rebellion against a colonial power (Anti-imperialism) or seeking separation from a state for parts of the population that feel suppressed by the majority. of South Africa and Namibia, Noel G. Sinclair (Guyana), Acting President of the United Nations Council for Namibia, said it was "essential to take full advantage of the present moment of weakness' and to proceed with a planned and carefully co-ordinated application of pressure on the Pretoria regime. "The writing on the wall is emerging with greater clarity', he said. |
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