Other colonial Territories 1319 Chapter IV Other colonial Territories Contents Page Page General aspects. ............................. 1319 Cocos (Keeling) Islands. ................... 1357 Status of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) ........ : 1320 General Assembly decision 37/413 ........ 1357 General Assembly decision 37/404 ........ 1346 Gibraltar ................................ 1358 Security Council resolution 502(1982) ...... 1347 General Assembly decision 37/412 ........ 1358 Security Council resolution 505(1982) ...... 1347 Guam.. ................................ 1358 General Assembly resolution 37/9 ......... 1347 General Assembly resolution 37/21 ........ 1358 East Timor question .......................... 1347 Montserrat .............................. 1359 General Assembly resolution 37/30 ........ 1349 General Assembly resolution 37/27 ........ 1360 Western Sahara question ...................... 1349 Pitcairn ................................. 1360 General Assembly resolution 37/28 ........ 1352 General Assembly decision 37/415 ........ 1361 General Assembly decision 37/411 ........ 1353 St. Helena .............................. 1361 Other Territories ............................. 1353 General Assembly decision 37/416 ........ 1361 American Samoa. ........................ 1353 St. Kitts-Nevis. .......................... 1362 General Assembly resolution 37/20 ........ 1353 General Assembly decision 37/418 ........ 1362 Anguilla ................................ 1354 Tokelau ................................ 1362 General Assembly decision 37/419 ........ 1354 General Assembly decision 37/414 ........ 1362 Bermuda ............................... 1354 Turks and Caicos Islands .................. 1362 General Assembly resolution 37/22 ........ 1354 General Assembly resolution 37/25 ........ 1363 British Virgin Islands ...................... 1355 United States Virgin Islands. ............... 1363 General Assembly resolution 37/23 ........ 1355 General Assembly resolution 37/26 ........ 1364 Brunei .................................. 1356 General Assembly decision 37/417 ........ 1356 Related topic: Cayman Islands. ......................... 1356 Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons in Latin General Assembly resolution 37/24 ........ 1357 America (Treaty of Tlatelolco). For resolutions and decisions of major organs mentioned but not reproduced, refer to INDEX OF RESOLUTIONS AND DECISIONS. and some 200 smaller ones with a total area of about General aspects 12,000 square kilometres, lie in the South Atlan- tic, some 772 kilometres north-east of Cape Horn. In April 1982, Argentina and the United King- The Falkland Islands (Malvinas) dependencies con- dom alerted the Security Council to a deteriorat- sist of South Georgia, situated about 1,300 kilometres ing situation in the South Atlantic, where a dispute east-south-east of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) concerning sovereignty over the Falkland Islands group, and the uninhabited South Sandwich Islands, (Malvinas) resulted in an outbreak of armed hostil- some 756 kilometres east-south-east of South Ge- ities between the two countries. Despite Security orgia. At the census held in December 1980, the Council action, intensive negotiations by the population of the Territory, excluding the depen- Secretary-General and mediation efforts by in- dencies, numbered 1,813, of whom just over 1,000 dividual countries, fighting lasted until the mili- lived in Stanley, the capital on East Falkland. tary commanders of both sides signed a cease-fire The extent of progress towards self-determination agreement in mid-June. and independence in other individual Non-Self- On 4 November, the General Assembly requested Governing Territories was again examined in 1982 the two parties to resume negotiations towards a by the General Assembly and its Special Committee peaceful solution of their sovereignty dispute and on the Situation with regard to the Implementa- requested the Secretary-General to undertake a tion of the Declaration on the Granting of Indepen- renewed mission of good offices to assist them in dence to Colonial Countries and Peoples. that task.(2) For most of the Territories, the United Nations The Falkland Islands (Malvinas), consisting of Secretariat prepared working papers for the Com- two large islands (East Falkland and West Falkland) mittee, outlining recent developments. The Com- 1320 Trusteeship and decolonization mittee, and usually its Sub-Committee on Small United Kingdom rejected any attempt to change Territories, examined the situation in each Terri- the situation by force and asked the Council to call tory, hearing further information in most cases from on Argentina to refrain from the use of force. a representative of the administering Power. A set Argentina told the Council that the United of conclusions and recommendations was approved Kingdom’s threat of the use of force against wor- for each Territory, and these were set out in the Com- kers engaged in peaceful commercial activity in (1) mittee’s report to the Assembly, where the situ- South Georgia constituted an act of aggression. ation in the Territories was discussed mainly in the Argentina did not seek that incident; the crisis Fourth Committee. resulted from the perpetuation of, and the irra- Report (1)Committee on colonial countries, A/37/23/Rev.l. tional rejection of a search for a logical solution Resolution (1982). (2)GA: 37/9, 4 Nov. to, the colonial situation. Argentina said that dur- ing lengthy negotiations between the two Govern- ments since the British seizure of the Malvinas by Status of the force in 1833, the United Kingdom had consis- tently rejected Argentine proposals, while Argen- Falkland Islands (Malvinas) tina provided uninterrupted assistance to the Is- lands’ inhabitants. The Malvinas question, Security Council action (April). In a letter to Argentina said, was that of the right of a State to the President of the Security Council dated 1 April territorial integrity; the principle of self- 1982,(l26) the United Kingdom requested an im- determination was inapplicable to that question mediate meeting of the Council, saying it had good because of the forced displacement and replace- reason to believe that Argentina’s armed forces were ment of the islanders with subjects of the occupy- about to invade the Falkland Islands. By a letter ing Power. Argentina would not pursue negotia- of the same date,(8) Argentina informed the Council tions without prior recognition by the United that a situation of grave tension existed between Kingdom of Argentine sovereignty over the is- it and the United Kingdom, citing news reports that lands. In the face of the latest act of aggression, British warships had been sent to the South Atlantic Argentina asserted, it would be obliged to act in region because of a dispute involving Argentine wor- self-defence, to protect its territory and citizens. kers in the South Georgia Islands. Following consultations among the members of At a Council meeting that day, the United King- the Security Council, its President made the fol- lowing statement at the end of the Council meet- dom stated that an Argentine Navy cargo vessel (199) was reported anchored on 19 March at Leith har- ing on 1 April: bour, South Georgia-a dependency of the Falk- lands Islands-over which the United Kingdom had “The Security Council has heard statements from exercised sovereignty since its discovery by Cap- the representatives of the United Kingdom and Ar- tain Cook in 1775, that a large party of Argentines gentina about the tension which has recently arisen were setting up camp and that the Argentine flag between the two Governments. had been hoisted. The Commander of the British The Security Council has taken note of the state- ment issued by the Secretary-General, which reads Antarctic survey base on South Georgia told the as follows: men they had no right to land without seeking per- ‘The Secretary-General, who has already seen the mission from the British authorities and ordered representatives of the United Kingdom and Argen- them either to seek the necessary clearance or to tina earlier today, renews his appeal for maximum res- leave. While Argentina withdrew on 21 March all traint on both sides. He will, of course, return to but about 10 of the party, purported to be non- Headquarters at any time, if the situation demands it.’ military personnel working for a commercial com- The Security Council, mindful of its primary pany, an Argentine naval transport vessel arrived responsibility under the Charter of the United Na- at the harbour on 25 March to deliver further supplies tions for the maintenance of international peace and security, expresses its concern about the tension in the to the men ashore. When requested again to re- region of the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas). The move the personnel or request proper authoriza- Council accordingly calls on the Governments of Ar- tion, Argentina pressed on 28 March for talks on gentina and the United Kingdom to exercise the ut- the wider sovereignty issue. The British efforts to most restraint at this time and, in particular, to refrain engage that Government in the search for a diplo- from the use or threat of force in the region and to matic solution had been rebuffed. At the same time, continue the search for a diplomatic solution. it had noted Argentine press reports, supported by The Security Council will remain seized of the government statements, concerning the country’s question.” naval movements in preparation for operations