Trusteeship Council calls termination of Micronesia agreement 'appropriate.'

Trusteeship Council calls termination of Micronesia Agreement "appropriate'

The Trusteeship Council on 28 May stated it considered that the United States, as Administering Authority of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, had "satisfactorily discharged its obligations under the terms of the Trusteeship Agreement' and that it was "appropriate for that Agreement to be terminated' upon the entry into force of the Compact of Free Association for the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau, and the Commonwealth Covenant in respect of the Northern Mariana Islands.

The Territory consists of three archipelagos of more than 2,100 islands and atolls scattered over some 7.8 million square kilometres of the western Pacific. Its population is 161,000; its total land area 1,854 square kilometres. Designated as a "strategic territory', it has been administered by the United States as a United Nations Trust Territory since 1947.

In adopting its resolution 2183 (LIII) on the future of the Territory, the Trusteeship Council also noted that after freely exercising their right to self-determination in plebiscites observed by Visiting Missions of the Council, the peoples of the Marshall Islands (in 1983), the Federated States of Micronesia (in 1983) and Palau (in 1986) had chosen free association with the United States; those of the Northern Mariana Islands had chosen Commonwealth status (in 1975).

The Council asked the United States, in consultation with the governments of those four entities, to agree on a date not later than 30 September 1986 for the full entry into force of the Compact of Free Association and Commonwealth Covenant, and to inform the Secretary-General of that date.

Resolution 2183 (LIII) was adopted by a vote of 3 in favour (France, United Kingdom, United States) to 1 against (USSR). The Council's fifth member--China--does not participate in the body's work.

The USSR, in explanation of vote, said that the resolution had been adopted "undemocratically'. The question of the termination of the Trusteeship Agreement should be considered by the Security Council, it said. The Trusteeship Council had no power to consider termination of Micronesia's trusteeship. The USSR maintained that the United States had not fulfilled its obligations under the Trusteeship Agreement, the Charter and the Declaration on decolonization.

On 4 June, in adopting the report of its Drafting Committee, composed of the United Kingdom and France, the Council also recommended that the United States complete at the earliest possible date its internal process of approval of the Compact of Free Association for Palau. The vote was 3 (France, United Kingdom, United States) to 1 (USSR). On 1 July, the Council adopted, by the same vote, its report to the Security Council.

After the adoption of the Drafting Committee report on 4 June, the United States said the Council's 1986 session had been "historic' for the International Trusteeship System. The Council deserved its reputation for "careful and consistent fostering of self-determination and self-government' in the trusteeship areas, "in a manner fully reflecting the wishes of the inhabitants of those areas.' The United States said it had "adhered scrupulously' to its obligations under the Charter and the Trusteeship Agreement in its years of administration in Micronesia.

Because of its "strategic' status, the Trusteeship Council reports to the Security Council about conditions in Micronesia. According to Article 83 of the United Nations Charter, "all functions of the United Nations relating to strategic areas, including the approval of the terms of the Trusteeship Agreement and of their alteration or amendment, shall be exercised by the Security Council'.

Other issues: At its fifty-third session (12 May-30 June, New York), the Trusteeship Council also adopted two other resolutions (2181 and 2182 (LIII)), both by votes of 3 to 1, noting the report (T/1878) of its 1985 periodic Visiting Mission to Micronesia and the report (T/1885) of its Visiting Mission to Observe the Plebiscite in Palau in February 1986.

It also reviewed offers by Member States of study and training facilities for inhabitants of the Trust Territory; dissemination of information on the United Nations and the International Trusteeship System in the Territory; co-operation with the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination; the Decade, for Action to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination; and attainment of self-government or independence by the Trust Territory and co-operation with the Special Committee on decolonization.

The annual report of the United States as Administering Authority (T/1888) was examined (see below), as were written petitions and communications from individuals and organizations concerned, and a working paper prepared by the Secretariat entitled "Outline of conditions in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands' (T/L. 1249).

Statements were made to the Council by Micronesian representatives of the four administrative entities, the personal representative of the United States President in the Micronesian status negotiations, the representative of the Administering Authority, the United States High Commissioner of the Trust Territory and representatives of seven States Members of the United Nations from the Pacific region. The Council also heard statements and questioned 11 petitioners regarding conditions in the Trust Territory.

Report on Micronesia

The United States report on Micronesia covers the political, economic and social developments in the Territory from 1 October 1984 to 30 September 1985. Also included is information on the status of the Territory and its inhabitants, international and regional relations of the Territory, its judicial and law enforcement system, economic advancement and cultural affairs, and environmental issues.

Under the Compact, the United States recognizes the sovereignty of the peoples of the Trust Territory and their right to create and maintain governments of their own choosing. The Compact describes the rights and responsibilities of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and Palau and specifies the obligation of the United States to defend them. Guaranteed economic assistance is also provided for in amounts negotiated and agreed to by the United States and the individual governments.

The needs of the affected people of Bikini and Enewetok atolls, which had been once used by the United States as nuclear test sites, would be adequately met by the Compact, which included provisions for continued monitoring of their medical condition.

On termination of the Trusteeship Agreement, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands was to be associated with the United States, and its people would become United States citizens.

The United States reported it had no plans to dump nuclear waste in waters adjacent to the Trust Territory. Any change in the United States policy would require discussions with governments of the Territory and would comply with international treaty commitments. Nor did it have plans to exercise options to establish a military presence in Palau.

Over the past year, there had been a marked increase in foreign investment in the islands, the United States reported.

Relations with international and regional organizations continued to strengthen as well. Economic development, especially in the field of tourism, continued to grow. Clothing factories and fishery-related and small industry projects had been set up. Arrangements had been made to upgrade power plants. Several new hospitals were under construction, and older ones were being renovated.

Visiting Missions: The 1985 Visiting Mission to the Trust Territory stated there was a general desire, particularly amongst the leaders of the Trust Territory, that the Trusteeship Agreement should be terminated quickly.

The Visiting Mission to Palau concluded that the 21 February plebiscite represented "yet another valid act of self-determination by the people of Palau in which all eligible voters had the opportunity to participate of their own free will'.

The 71 per cent turnout was "commendably high', given the "low-key atmosphere and a certain weariness with plebiscites'. The 72 per cent positive vote was a "remarkable achievement in any democratic society in which the vote is not compulsory', testifying to the "political awareness of the Palauan people and the importance they attach to their future constitutional status'.

Views expressed

The United States said the fundamental objectives of the trusteeship in Micronesia had been achieved. The trusteeship had served the Micronesians well, but it was no longer necessary for them. The peoples of Micronesia had achieved self-government. There were those within Micronesia and without who might have preferred a different outcome-- either a closer relationship with the United States or complete independence. While the United States respected those voices, it had an obligation to heed more closely the voice of the overwhelming majority and elected leaders of that majority. Respect for the principle of self-determination meant there was no single path to be imposed from the outside; it meant that the free choice of the peoples must be honoured.

Despite a small population, a melange of cultures and languages, the most rudimentary of transportation and communication networks, and an economy based principally on the needs of the preceding colonial Powers without concern for the indigenous inhabitants, the essential purposes of the Trusteeship set out in the Charter had been fulfilled. Since 1945, there had not been one battle, not one international conflict in the Micronesian islands. Peace had been achieved not-- as was sometimes recklessly charged--through militarization of the islands. Since the Second World War, the United States had dismantled the bases which used to be scattered throughout the Territory. The only remaining military facility in the Trust Territory was the missile testing range at Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands.

From 1978 to 1981 the peoples of Micronesia had created constitutional Governments based on principles of democracy, representative government, respect for fundamental freedoms and pluralism. It had once been hoped that the peoples of Micronesia might be able to live in a single, unitary State, but that had proved not to be the desire of the Territory's peoples. United Nations-observed plebiscites had confirmed the desire of the Micronesians to create four distinct constitutional Governments.

Major elements of the infrastructure were in place. Modern hospitals had been built on the major islands. Educational institutions had been developed from the primary through the post-secondary levels. Currently there were about 40,000 Micronesians enrolled in schools. Life expectancy had risen to over 60 years. Infant-mortality rates were among the lowest in the Pacific islands. Power plants had been installed on all major islands.

However, much remained to be done to develop the Micronesian economy. The United States had provided considerable financial assistance and had obligated itself to continue to do so in the future. Whereas in the past it had been largely programme specific, lately the Micronesians had taken the lead in designating the sectors to which they wished to channel United States assistance funds. Self-management should lead towards greater self-sufficiency and to less reliance on the public sector for economic advancement. There had been already a substantial increase in private-sector foreign investment in many areas of the islands.

The freedom of Micronesians to state their views and their willingness to organize for political goals had been demonstrated time and again to the Trusteeship Council. Each of the Micronesian States had chosen its future status in acts of self-determination observed by missions sent by the Trusteeship Council. Each of those plebiscites offered the peoples of the Territory the choice of a range of status options, including independence. Each plebiscite had been judged to be a free and fair act of self-determination by the Trusteeship Council.

The United States, as Administering Authority, considered the report of the Visiting Mission to be helpful, perceptive and balanced. It had been prepared by representatives of four countries with long-standing democratic traditions and years of experience of conducting their own free elections. They were therefore supremely qualified to observe and judge the fairness of the elections in Micronesia.

In statements to the Council, the USSR said there was "clear evidence' that the Administering Authority was not carrying out its duties under the Charter and the Trusteeship Agreement. The Visiting Mission to Micronesia had not objectively brought to light the state of affairs there.

The Mission had totally omitted the fact of the "illegal fragmentation' by the Administering Authority of a single, unified Trust Territory, without the sanction of the Security Council. Its report had not assessed forms of free association in the Commonwealth, and thus served as "a cover-up for neocolonial actions by the Administering Authority aimed at the annexation of the Territory'.

Because of Micronesia's full political and economic dependence on the Administering Authority, it was impossible to ensure freedom and free choice of a political status, the USSR said. The Micronesian people had been deprived of any real opportunities to gain independent status.

The main goal of United States policy towards Micronesia was to turn the strategic Trust Territory into a military-strategic springboard in the Western Pacific for the Pentagon in order to ensure control over a large region of the globe. The United States had forced the local authorities of Palau to adopt agreements to permit transit of nuclear weapons through the Trust Territory, port calls and landings by American vessels and aircraft carrying nuclear weapons. The United States had used the Trust Territory as a testing ground for atomic and nuclear weapons.

Plans to militarize the Territory and deploy nuclear and other types of weapons of mass destruction seriously threatened the Micronesian people and countries of the entire region.

The Congress of Micronesia, which was striving to maintain the unity of its Territory and to establish an independent Micronesian State, had been dissolved. Micronesia had been divided into four island entities. That had been done to weaken the resistance of the native population to the "neocolonialist, annexationist policy' of the Administering Authority.

During its 40-year administration, the United States had pursued a policy of slowing down the Trust Territory's development. It had not promoted the establishment of a viable, independent economy, industry or agriculture which would meet the needs of the native population. While Micronesia had earlier been a food exporter, nowadays, as a result of agriculture's collapse, the population's food needs had to be satisfied through imports. A major problem was almost universal unemployment, especially among young people.

The Administering Authority also acted in violation of Article 83 of the Charter, which stated that all functions of the United Nations relating to strategic areas should be exercised by the Security Council. Never in the course of drafting the Compacts for the four separate parts of the Trust Territory had the United States gone to the Security Council. Nor had the Compacts themselves been submitted officially for consideration by the Trusteeship Council.

Micronesia had never been, and was not, a Territory of the United States. The question of its future was inseparable from the problem of decolonization. The United Nations must maintain responsibility for the Territory until it attained true independence. Under the Charter, any change in the status of a strategic Trust Territory was to be carried out only pursuant to a decision by the Security Council. Therefore, a unilateral action by the United States Administration could not be recognized under international law as legitimate or having legal force.

Under the Charter, the Trusteeship Council should not approve any measures that could be used by the Administering Authority to legalize its unlawful actions in the Territory. Micronesia must exercise its right to self-determination and independence. The rights of the Micronesians to an independent existence must be guaranteed.

The United Kingdom said the Soviet Union had long argued that the United States had fragmented the Territory to achieve its basic aim of annexation; that it had exploited and neglected its people; and that it had militarized the area. Those charges were "baseless' and not motivated by the realities of the situation and the interests of the Micronesiana.

If the United States had wanted to annex the Trust Territory, it would have been well advised to retain the virtually unlimited powers granted it under the Trusteeship Agreement. But political-status negotiations had begun as far back as 1969 in order to encourage a greater measure of self-government on the part of Micronesians. It soon became clear that the unity of the Trust Territory was more apparent than real. Different parts of the Territory had their own sense of separate identity and their own ideas about constitutional advance.

The Administering Authority had gone to great lengths to encourage democratic freedoms in Micronesia, including the fullest political participation by the local people in the affairs of the Territory. The people of the Territory had chosen freely to divide the Trust Territory into four political entities, in accordance with Charter purposes and principles.

As for the "militarization' theory, in the whole of Micronesia there were only 65 United States officers and men, plus a Coast Guard detachment. Most were members of civic action teams, engaged in civil engineering projects of benefit to the local economy. Suggestions that the United States planned to create "military bases' in the Territory, especially in Palau, and to deploy Trident submarines there, were "laughable'. The shallow, reef-strewn waters rendered the territory unsuitable for large-scale naval deployments. The islands were much too small to accommodate the sort of strategic bases of which Soviet representatives talked.

The economic situation in the Trust Territory did leave much to be desired. But to criticize economic under-development of the area was not the same as to accuse the United States of pursuing the policy of exploitation. Micronesia contained little in terms of natural resources to exploit, still less to deplete. Its population was tiny and spread over a vast area. Gradual decentralization of administration of the Territory had encouraged uncoordinated economic development planning. Vast sums had been pumped into the Territory over the years to make up for its many disadvantages. That reflected the traditional generosity of the American people and their fundamental dislike of their unaccustomed role as colonial-style administrators. Payments to the Bikini islanders--some $150 million so far-- could not compensate them for the loss of their atoll, but were a step towards redress.

France said it had participated in all Visiting Missions to observe plebiscites and most other missions to the Territory. It had also been active in discussions of reports of the Administering Authority. It was clear to France that the peoples of Micronesia had exercised, under United Nations monitoring, their right to self-determination. They had freely made their choice between the various means of exercising that right.

It had also been the wish of a large number of States of the region to be able to accelerate the development of their relations with the four entities of the Territory once they had taken their future into their own hands. It was time to implement the provisions of Article 83 and remove the trusteeship from the Trust Territory.

Negotiations concerning the future political status of the Trust Territory began in 1969. In 1975 a Covenant to establish a Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the United States was approved to enter into force on termination of the Trusteeship Agreement for the Trust Territory as a whole. The Covenant was approved by the Government of the United States in 1976.

Negotiations with regard to the rest of the Trust Territory based on the concept of free association continued over a period of years. The Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands approved the Compact of Free Association in plebiscites in 1983. The United States Congress amended and approved it in 1985. The United States President signed it on 14 January 1986. After reviewing it, the Marshall Islands Government approved the Compact on 20 February; the legislature of the Federated States of Micronesia did so on 26 March 1986.

In the 1983 plebiscite in Palau, 61.4 per cent of the voters supported the Compact. However, as the margin of support was less than the 75 per cent required by the Palau constitution, the Supreme Court of Palau ruled that the Compact was therefore not approved.

The most recent of plebiscite on a revised Compact for Palau was held on 21 February 1986. Of 7,036 votes cast, 5,079-72 per cent were cast in favour of the Compact. The Visiting Mission to Palau reported that the President of Palau had made it clear to the Mission that a simple majority was all that was required to approve the Compact. At the sixteenth special session of the Trusteeship Council, (4-6 February, New York) the United States stated that, in view of the agreement between the United States and Palau that the Compact and the Palau constitution were in harmony, a simple majority was sufficient to approve the Compact and to certify it for approval by the United States Congress. The Compact is now being reviewed by the United States Congress.

Photo: The Trusteeship Council held its 53rd session in New York from 12 May to 30 June.

Photo: The United States has administered the Trust Territory since 1947. Its flag flies over men's house of Micronesia atoll.

Photo: Consulting in the Council's Chamber, left to right, are United States representatives Vernon A. Walters, Patricia M. Byrne, and Herbert S. Okun.

Photo: At the podium of the Trusteeship Council are, left to right, Under-Secretary-General Rafeeuddin Ahmed, President Laurent Rapin of France and Secretary Girma Abebe.

Photo: TRUST TERRITORY OF THE PACIFIC ISLANDS