14021964 Text of the Speech made by Mr. Castrillo Justiniano (Bolivia) in the Security Council Meeting No. 1091 held on 14 February 1964

Text of the Speech made by Mr. Castrillo Justiniano (Bolivia) in the Security Council Meeting No. 1091 held on 14 February 1964

The delegation of Bolivia has listened very carefully to the statements made in the Security Council by the Minister for External Affairs of Pakistan and the Minister of Education of India on the dispute between the two countries regarding the legal status of the peoples and territories of Jammu and Kashmir.

My delegation realises that the Council is faced with an unduly complex problem, which cannot be reduced to a single factor. It seems that it was this complexity-due to all kinds of elements, including the most sensitive and primitive such as those of a religious nature-which has prevented the Council from intervening more forcefully since the problem arose fifteen years ago.

Nevertheless, however difficult or complex the problem may be, there is still hope that a speedy and suitable solution will be found. This hope is based on our confidence in the peaceful and conciliatory inclinations of the two countries involved. Both peoples have devoted all their energies and efforts to the most noble tasks undertaken by mankind in our time, and we all owe an immense debt to the ancient Hindu and Muslim cultures.

In recent years, we have seen India and Pakistan fighting boldly and equally strongly for the abolition of colonialism; we have found them ranged in battle against racial discrimination; we have seen them both searching for suitable ways to raise the social level of living of their peoples; and we have joined them in their campaign to ban violence as a method of political enforcement. Because of all this, we still have faith that, loyally responding to their most noble traditions, India and Pakistan will manage to overcome this crisis in their neighbourly relations.

The international conduct of Bolivia, which has always been based on the support and practice of methods of peaceful settlement, gives us the right to urge the Governments of Pakistan and India to strive for a direct understanding, for we have always supported all the efforts made here in the Council in that respect.

The delegation of Bolivia has at all times and from the beginning of this debate been pleased to follow the African Asian delegations such as those of the Ivory Coast and Morocco in their efforts to find an equitable solution to the problem under discussion.

My delegation doubts whether the adoption by this Council of a new resolution of the question of Jammu and Kashmir can lead to the goal to which we all aspire. In support of this attitude, it is sufficient to contemplate the results obtained in practice by previous resolutions of the Council. A resolution should be the result of a confrontation with the facts, which are constantly changing and creating new circumstances that must be considered. We are not doubting the value of the Council's resolutions; we consider their value indisputable, if it is analysed dogmatically; but none of this prevents us from looking at the facts to see whether or not these resolutions are operative. By comparing these factors, we shall see whether the resolutions clearly retain their original validity or whether, on the contrary, it will be necessary to seek new paths leading to a final solution of the problem.

In the controversy over Jammu and Kashmir, one thing seems certain to us: direct negotiations between both parties. have not been exhausted, and nothing can officially be done under the peaceful procedures provided for by the United Nations Charter until it has been announced that the two countries have nothing more to say to each other. What the Council is obliged to do in the present circumstances is to help. to create a propitious atmosphere in which such direct negotiations can be continued in an attempt to reduce the tension between the two Governments.

In order to attain this objective, it is essential to separate the positive from the negative aspects of the problem. For example, we could start by taking advantage of the parties' willingness, expressed in the Council by the representatives of Pakistan and India, to continue measures which ensure an atmosphere of peace and prevent fresh outbreaks of violence.

The delegation of Bolivia warmly supports the motion put forward here in this Council at the last meeting to the effect that, from this high tribune of world peace, the Governments of India and Pakistan should be urged to analyse, in an atmosphere free of violence, the responsibility which they bear, not only towards other nations but towards their own peoples, for finding a peaceful solution so that Pakistani and Hindu can live in an atmosphere of mutual tolerance and strive together to overcome the great problems confronting peoples and men that aspire to a better life in all latitudes of the world.