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United Nations FIRST COMMITTEE, llllth GENERAL MEETING

Wednesday~ 16 November 1960, ASSEMBLY at 10.55 a.m. F/FTEENTH SESSION Official Records NEW YORK

CONTENTS of the existing frontiers; if old political entities had Page had to be reconstituted, independence would not have Agenda item 79: been achieved in the conditions of peace and harmony The problem of Mauritania (continued) which everybody had noted with gratification. General debate (continued). . • . • • • • . . • • 145 3. At a time when the whole continent of Africa was confronted with complex problems, it would be the part of wisdom to avoid reopening the question of the Chair man: Sir Claude CO REA CCeylonl. existing frontiers. From a purely historical point of view, Senegal also could lay claim to a part of Mauri­ AGENDA ITEM 79 tanla, the part lnhabited by black races, but it re­ frained from making any such claim because it The problem of Mouritania (A/4445 and Add.l) (continued)* considered that in Africa the interests of political GENERAL DEBATE (continued) stability should prevail over any other consideration. The Mauritanian controversy might set up a danger­ 1. Mr. THlAM (Senegal} said that Mauritania bor­ ous precedent and draw the countries of Africa into dered on Senegal, and that the valley of the Senegal a vicious circle of territorial claims which would River, which separated the two territories, was in­ sow discord and provoke disturbances at a time when habited on both sides by peoples of Senegalese orlgin the countries concerned needed to devote all their who belonged to the same ethnie group, spoke the energies to the tasks of national development. The same language and had the same traditions and cul­ problem of Mauritania had unfortunately been pre­ ture. Moreover, for a number of years until three sented in a context which was historically obsolete. years ago, when both countries had been given in­ In the present era, the only principle on which the terna! autonomy, Senegal and Mauritania had had the destinies of a people could be decided was that of same capital, St. Louis. Even now many of the Mauri­ self-determination: it was for the Mauritanians, and tanian Government's administrative services were them alone, to determine their future. still located in St. Louis. Thus, the close relations 4. To satisfy Morocco1s present claims the United between Mauritania and Senegal were of very ancient Nations would have to declare itself against the standing, long antedating the colonial era. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, when Morocco independence of Mauritania or refuse to admit that country to membership. At a time when a draft was still a sovereign State and had not yet been placed under French protectorate, Mauritania was resolution proclaiming the independence of all coun­ under French administration; it had first been ad• tries under colonial administration was being pre­ ministered as a naependent territory of Senegal n, pared, under item 87 of the General Assembly's after which it was made a separate territory under agenda, public opinion would be unable to understand the rule of a governor. Today, Mauritania was a such contradictory behaviour on the part of the United member of the customs union and the monetary union Nations. True, it had been asserted that the present Government of Mauritania did not represent the of the West African States; it had recent!y talœn part in a conference of Heads of State of French-speaking Mauritanian people and was controlled by foreign Powers. But even if that were true, the designs of African States held at Abidjan in October 1960, and those foreign Powers could certainly not be thwarted had decided to co-ordinate its policy with that of the other part!cipating States. Consequently, Maur!tania by standing in the way of Maurltanla's independence and maintalning the colonial system in that country. was undeniab!y linked with the African countries Moreover, if the Mauritanian people wanted to be­ south of the Sahara by bonds of fact and law. Ail those come part of the Moroccan nation, it would have clrcunnstances justified the Senegalese delegat!on's greater freedom to do so when it was independent. It interest in the prob!em of Mauritania. had also been argued that Mauritanla's budget was 2. The Sherlfian Government ln its White Paper!/ too small and that independent Maur!tania would be and the Nouakchott Government !nits "aide-mémoire" forced to cal! upon other States for subsidies. But of advanced arguments which were diametrlcally op­ al! the former territories of French West Africa posed and based on contradictory facts and asser­ only two, Senegal and the Ivory Coast, were not tions. In any event, the countries of Africa, like the receiving subsidies in order to balance their budgets; European States, had in the course of hlstory under­ that had not prevented the others from becomlng gone many frontier changes. As a result of those lndependent States and from being present in the changes, ethnie groups had occasionally been split United Nations today as Members of the Organization. into two communities, each under a different ad­ Furthermore, the very fact that the United Nations ministration. But the independence of the African was organizing a system of assistance to under­ (;ountrles had rightly been established on the basls developed countr!es testified to the fact that those • Re~umed from the l I09th meeting. countries were acknowledged not to possess sufficient li Kingdom o[ Morocco, MJnlstry of Foreign Affairs, White Paper on means to cape with al! the obligations of their newly• Maurltania (Rabat, 1960)" won independence. 145 A/C.1/SR.1111 146 General Assembly - Fifteenth Session - First Committee 5. There appeared at present to be two trends in responsible ta a higher authority, the Sultan of Mo­ Mauritania. Sorne \vanted to be merged with Morocco, rocco, to whom they paid homage, whose envoys they and spoke of "reunification" · On the other band, the received and in whose name they offered prayers. present Government of Mauritania, supported by its The annals of French history wez'e full of doctunents National Assembly, wished ta maintain the independ­ attesting that the emirs of Mauritania paid allegiance ence of the territory. The Senegalese delegation ta the Sultan. A French Government publication on be!ieved that that was an internai problem which it Moroccan affai1·s, the Yellow Paper, contained a was not the business of the United Nations ta solve. series of letters and reports from French officials If at some future time, as a result of the freely ex­ in West Africa emphasizing that the occupation of pressed will of the Mauritanian people, the inte­ Mauritania could never be dissociated fromMoroccan grationists succeeded in achieving unification with affairs and that the conquest of Mauritania was only Morocco, that would certainly meet with no opposi­ one aspect of the general plan for the domination of tion from the United Nations. Only the future could ail of Morocco. Various documents dated 1906 and tell which path Mauritania and its people would 1907, reproduced in that publication, made it clear choose; until that choies was made, the Sengalese that the Sultan of Morocco was the supreme authority delegation could not take any position which might be in Mauritania. regarded as standing in the way of the independence 9, In April 1855, when France had embarked on its of Mauritania. military adventure, the Sultan of Morocco had sup­ 6. Mr. SHUKAIRY (Saud! Arabia) said that the prob­ plied the Emir of Trarza with military equipment lem of Mauritania was the sequel to the question of and had given him full authority to repel the French Morocco, which had finally been settled by the acces­ aggression. In 1857, under the command of the Emir, sion of the latter country to independence and its the Moroccan forces, including those of Mauritania, admission to membership in the United Nations. had taken the offensive and crossed the Senegal River. Mauritania was an integral part of Morocco, which After that victory, an agreement had been concluded France had severed from Moroccan territory in the between the Emir and France under which France nineteenth century and on which it now wished to im­ had been required, inter a!ia, ta pay a duty of 3 per pose independence by its militacy presence. Thus, cent of the cost of rubber shipped down the Senegal the complaint before the Committee was directed not River. That agreement had corne to an end in 1902, against Mauritania or its people, but against France, which year had marked the beginning of large-scale which wished to give Mauritania an independence operations by France to annex Mauritania. The tribes fashioned ta suit French interests rather than the in all the provinces, under the command of their aspirations of the Mauritanian people. emirs, had bravely resisted the French invasions; 7. Mauritania had always been part of Morocco, but the struggle had been one between Morocco as a ernbracing the southern provinces of that country and whole and France. Only after having proclaimed ils protectorate over Morocco, in 1912, had France been extending up to the Senegal River. Those provinces able to conqtter Mauritania. The French administra­ had been named after tribes of the area, and the tion of the south had then become separate from that term "Mauritania" had first been used by France to designate those provinces in 1904; that exp!ained why of the north, but MauI'itania had still not on that account becoroe detached from the history of Mo­ Mauritania as such did not appear in the annals of rocco. international history. The Romans had applied the name nMauritania n to the whole ar·ea of Morocco, 10. Ta conquer Morncco, the French had had ta dis­ Algeria and Tunisia, but the Mauritania of today had member it, according to the strategy of imperialism. never been a nation or a sovereign State. Morocco Thus, Morocco had been shared between Spain and and Mauritania formed a spiritual, cultural and France. But the liberation movement had continued physical unity. The people were the same, as was throughout the country, regardless of artificial bound­ shown by the fact that in many tribes some members aries. That struggle for unity and freedom would lived in Morocco while others lived in Mauritania. bear eternal witness to the will of the Mauritanian Moreover, the inhabitants of Morocco and of Mauri­ people to remain United with Morocco. There could tania had one and the same past. Contrary to the have been no further doubt on that score after the French representative's assertion, Mauritania had battle fought against the French at Casablanca in 1911 always been under the spiritual and temporal au­ by tribes which had crossed over from Mauritania thority of the Sultan of Morocco. It was sufficlent ta under the command of the great leader Sheikh Ma recall that in the e!eventh century the throne of Mo­ el-Ainin. After the Second World War, the Mauri­ rocco had been occupied by the Almoravide dynasty, tanians had again been in the forefront of the move­ which had actually originated in the environs of the ment for Morocco's unity and independence; they had present capital of Mauritania. MoI'eover, in the joined the Moroccan liberation arrny and had shed Franco•Spanish Convention of June 1900,Y the Gen­ their blood until Morocco had gained its freedorn, eral Act of the International Conference of Algeciras then the survivors had transferred from the libera­ of 1906 and the Franco-German Convention respect­ tion army into the Royal Army of Morocco. Thus, ing Morocco of 4 November 1911, Mauritania was hundreds of Mauritanians were now serving under the recognized, expllcitly or implicitly, to be part of Moroccan flag, which was their own flag. Morocco. 11. The movement for unity had not corne to an end 8. When France had fiI'St invaded Mauritania, the in March 1956 when Morocco's independence hadbeen provinces of the territocy had been ruled by emirs proclaimed. Mauritania, for instance, had still re­ Y Convention berween France and Spain for the delimitatîon of the mained under foreign domination. The struggle had French and Spanlsh possessions in West Afrka, along the coast of the then entered a new phase, and the Moroccan Govern­ Sahar·a and the coast of the Gulf of Guinea, signed at Par·Js on 27 June ment had taken every opportunity ta press France 1900. for the return of Mauritania. In a note ta the French llllth meeting - 16 November 1960 147 Dovernment dated 28 August 1956, it had expressed namely, the firm de sire to be their own masters, the most explicit reservations concerning the inte­ while living on good tenns with neighbouring coun­ gration of parts of its territory into the Organisation tries. The political argument of the right to self­ commune des régions sahariennes, under the name detennination seemed to prevail over all others. To "Saharan zones of the French Republic". On 11 No­ show that the people of Mauritania really wished to vember 1958, it had strongly protested against the merge within a greater Moroccan entity, more would proclamation of the so-called "Islamic Republic of be needed than a few statements by refugees. Mauritania11 • Thus, the Moroccan Government had tried ail peaceful means of settling the dispute before 16. If there was really a unanimous and clearly ex­ brlnging the matter to the United Nations. pressed wish on the part of the Mauritanian people, the problem would easily be solved, for Mauritania 12. The self-determinatlon of whlch the representa­ Would soon be a Member of the lJnited Nations and tlve of Senegal had just spoken could be exercised would be able to express its views freely. Mauri­ olliy in freedom, and not under the sbadow of military tanian self-government had reached so advanced a bases and armed forces. The referendum of 28 Sep­ stage that it had proved possible to proclaim the tember 1958 to which the representatlve of France Islamic Republic in November 1958, and the in­ had referred (1109th meeting) had put the question of dependence of Mauritania was no more illusory or independence alone; there had been no mention of disputable than that of the young African countries unity, for France continued to oppose unity by keeping which had just been admitled Io the United Nations. its troops in Mauritania. On!y recently, the French 17. The present frontiers of the African countries army had initiated a campaign of repression against which had recently attained independence had been the people of Mauritania. The political parties had drawn more or less arbitrarily by the colonial been dis sol ved and no Jess than fifty leaders had been Powers in the wake of conquests and treaties; they imprisoned, so as to pave the way for secession under were often artificial and did not always coincide with the guise of independence. If the present attempt at dismemberment succeeded, the peoples of Africa and ethnical and linguistic groupings. Nevertheless, in Asia would be exposed to the danger of a new im­ the course of time new nationalisms had arisen which perialism operating through separation and partition. in nearly all cases embraced quite disparate groups of people who had now chosen a corn.mon destiny. 13. France had launched a campaign Io demonstrate What would become of the young African countries, that pan-Arabism was an expansionist movement, of which were stlll trying to establish their identity, if which the Mauritanian problem was one manifesta­ they embarked on the foolish course of revising tion. Nothing could be more false. Arab nationalism frontiers? The pan-African ideal would no doubt be was a natural reaction against the imperialism under achieved eventually, but for the moment, wisdom which the Arabs had always suffered, and harboured required the retentlon of the status quo. aggressive designs against no one. The Arab world 18. The independence recently attained by Mauri­ represented one people, one language, one past, and tania was perfectly valid, and the Mauritanian people, one civil!zatlon. It merely wished to be reunited. Mo­ rocco had no plans for domination; it wanted only the who had had an opportunity to make their views heard freely, would always be able Io do so. It was for them restoration of Moroccan unity. France's policy, on the other band, was motivaled by a desire to exploit to state their wishes. If there was genuine feeling in Mauritania for some form of union or federation with Mauritania' s resources. The Société des mines de fer de Mauritanie, for instance, had nothing Mauri­ Morocco, the truth could nol be suppressed. The lanian about it except the ore and the name. Its Government of Gabon hoped that reason and modera­ tlon would prevall and would impose their own solu­ capital was exclusively French, British, Italian and German. tion. 19. Mr. BOUCETTA (Morocco), exercising his right 14. Morocco was not seeking any profit. After re­ of reply, said that France bore a heayy responsibllity unification ail Moroccans, whether from the north or from the south, would have the same rights. There in the Mauritanian question. It had created a com­ pletely artlficial State and had confronted the world was already a Minister of State from Mauritania in with a "fait accompli". Now it was trying to have that the Moroccan Cabinet, and the Moroccan Ambassador decision ratlfied by the United Nations. That sort of to Libya was a former Mauritanian deputy to the French Assembly. To support Morocco in the present behaviour was inadmissible. case was thus to support the cause of freedom and 20. The French representative, in his statement at unity based on justice. the 1109th meeting, had expressed surprise at Mo­ 15. Mr. N'GOUA (Gabon) said that his country would rocco's claims, which, he had said, not only were unexpected but were of recent origin. Since the stand by Mauritania and defend it against the annexa­ tionist designs of Morocco, which appeared to be proclamation of Morocco's independence in 1956, however, the Moroccan Government had sent many justlfied neither by history nor by the nature of things. It was idle to discuss religions, linguistic, notes to the French Government, and had made every effort to settle the matter peacefully. It had not done historical, ethnical, geographical, economic, juridical and other ties existing between Mauritania and Mo­ so earlier because it had been barred from the ex.er­ cise of its sovereignty. Before the establishment of rocco, for those ties, undeniable as they might be in some cases, were not sufficient to justify the Mo­ the Protectorate, Morocco had exercised sovereignty roccan claims. Similar arguments could be invoked over the entire area extending to the Senegal River in nearly every part of the world. Al! the South and thus over Mauritania. American States, for example, could justlfy the 21. France would have the Committee belleve that annexation of ail or part of their neighbours; they had Morocco was trying to prevent Mauritania from much in common, but differed on one essential point, exercislng the independence which had been gener- 148 General Assembly - Fifteenth Session - First Commlttee ously gr·anted iL Surely, howeveI', it would be more The Moroccans, the Tunisians and the heads of the correct to say that an attempt had been made to pre­ Algerian National Liberation Front had received vent Morocco from exer·cising sovereignty over part siroilar treatment. For his part, during the Second of its territory. It might be true that Mauritania did Wor1d War he would not have regarded General de not constitute a single. geographical entity with Mo­ Gaulle and his fe!low members of the Government­ rocco, but tbat did not detract from the political unity in-exile as embittered men or as a negligible handful of the two parts of the territory. Climatic and geo­ of individuals. Mentioning the most prominent of the grnphical contrasts were disp!ayed by India, the USSR Mauritanian refugees in Morocco, he said that those and the United States, and indeed by France. Ibn persans were in reality the most representative IChaldun, whom the French representative had cited, elen1ents in the Mauritanian population. The so­ had never refer·red to the Jebel Daran as a political called "Mauritanian Government" was made up en­ frontier but as a dividing line between geographical tirely of puppets, and many of its members-such as areas with different climatic conditions. Ahmed Dyayé and Sidi Moktar N'Diaye, who came ftom Senegal, Mr. Maurice Compagnet, who con­ 22. The French representative had pointed out that trolled the transport system, Mr. Henri Bruno, the Almoravide dynasty had been of Mauritanian who controlled the fishing industry, and Mr. Franz origin. Surely that pI'oved that Morocco and Mauri­ BourgaI'el, who was acting as Minister of the In­ tania were one and the same. It was not a question of terior-wer·e not Mauritanians. reuniting them, for they constituted a single entity. At the beginning of the centucy treaties had been con­ 28. A reference had been made to elections. A cluded between France and Spain providing for the week before those elections, however, the courts had dismemberment of Morocco-a plan which had re­ handed do\Vn a series of harsh sentences, condemning mained secret until the establishment of the pro­ varinus individuals to death, to exile, and to forced tectorate. The treaties of 1767 and 1799, to which the labour for life or for ten or twenty years. Under French representative had referred, were obsolete. those conditions, the people could scarcely have been able to express its will. 23. The statement had been made that Morocco's natural frontier was the Oued Noun. But there were 29. He wondered why Algeria was not being given 700 kilometres of coast!ine between the Oued Nonn the independence which had so generously been ac­ and the frontier of the teI'ritory over· which Morocco corded to Mauritania. 'fhe fact was that new tech­ exercised sovereignty at the present time; thus, the niques were being used in an attempt to install a new existing situation belied the assertion that the Oued form of colonialism which would malte it unnecessary Noun was the natural frontieI' of Morocç:o. Moreover, to send an exped.itionary force. The precedent of the French representative had failed to mention the Mauritania could prove a dangerous one. The very Anglo-Moroccan treaty of 1895,i!/ according to which same problem would arise if, in the near future, Tarfaya province, i.e., the area between the Oued States should be asked to recognize the independence Dra and Cape Bojador, was undeniably a part of of Katanga. Morocco did not wish to !ose the goodwill Morocco. of its friends, particularly its AfI'ican friends, but il would never be guided by anything but the true 24. The town of Tindouf, to the east of the Rio de desires of the people. Oro, had been under the jurisd.iction of Rabat until 1952, as was attested by a decree of 11 January 1935. 30. The question of time was of extreme importance, for if France's position was upheld, Mauritania would 25. Fort Trinquet, which was even further south become a Member of the United Nations and reluct­ than Tindouf and was at present included within the ance to intervene in the domestic affairs of a Member nlslamic Republic of Mauritania n, had been part of State would be used as a pt·etext for not discussing the Agadir command until fairly recently, and Mo­ the problem further. That was why his delegation had roccan currency alone had circulated there. Indeed, requested that the debate should take place before it was in order to blur the historical line of develoP'"' 28 November 1960, the date set by France for pro­ ment of Moroccan sovereignty that France had con­ claiming the independence of the so-called Islamic stantly altered the boundaries of the Sahara and Republic of Mauritania. tampered with geographical nomenclature. The fron­ tier problem could be solved only by a return to the 31, Mr. THIAM (Senegal) said that he was unfortu­ realities which bad preceded the establishment of the nately obliged to correct certain inaccurate state­ protectOI'ate. ments made by the Moroccan representative. The latter had said that the Mauritanian Government in­ 26. The Fr·ench representatlve had asserted that c!uded two Senegalese, Sldi Moktar N'Diaye and Shelkh Ma el-Alnin had hecome a bitter enemy of the Ahmed Dyayê. In actnal fact, those two lndivlduals Sultan. In all official French correspondance, how­ were Maur·itanians, who lived not in Senegal but in ever, Ma el-Ainin was referred to as a loyal subject Mauritania and had always lived there. of the King of Morocco, who had glven him the mis­ sion of defending the country's territorial lntegrlty 32. Mr. PAZHWAK (Afghanistan) requested that in and r·esisting the occupying Power. view of the importance of the lime factor the list of speakers on the problem of Mauritania should be 27. The French representative had referred to a c!osed on the following day. handful of Mauritanian refugees in Morocco who had followed in the wake of certain pol!tica! leaders 33. The CHAffiMAN said that there appeared to be embittered by e!ectorn! set-backs. Such allegations few representatives wishing to speak in the near were frequently made about men who refused to yield. futnre on the problem of Mauritania. He would pro­ pose to the Committee on the following day that a Y Agr·eement between the Bdtlsh and Moodsh Gover·nments respect­ date should be fixed for closing the !ist, if the num­ ing the Pur·chase by Morocco of the pr·opec·ty of the North-West Afdca ber of speakers listed warranted it at that time. Company ln Ter-faya, signed at Cape Juby on 13 March 1895 (Bdtlsh and Foc·eign Srnte Papers, voL 87, p 972) The meeting rose at 1.25 p.m.

Litho in U.N. 77101-Febr-uary 1961-2,125