UN Secretariat Item Scan - Barcode - Record Title Page 11 Date 15/06/2006 Time 4:59:16 PM S-0907-0001-11-00001 Expanded Number S-0907-0001 -11 -00001 items-in-Heads of States - Austria Date Created 27/03/1974 Record Type Archival Item Container s-0907-0001 : Correspondence with heads-of-state 1965-1981 Print Name of Person Submit Image Signature of Person Submit MS cc: SG bf:AR/MKP/GMM/CCF/AF/MJS File: HE xRef: Austria 17 July 19SO Dear Mr. Ambassador, The Secretary-General would appreciate it very much if you could forward the enclosed letter to His Excellency Dr. Willibald Pahr, Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Austria, A copy of this letter is enclosed for your information. Accept, Mr. Ambassador, the assurances of my highest consideration. Rafeeuddin Jkhised Chef de Cabinet His Excellency Mr. Thomas Klestil Permanent Representative of Austria to the United Nations New York RECEIVED JUL-31980 t^/ea Vienna, 20 June 1980 6? N-o. 2220. 02/1177-1. 2. a/80 1 enclosure Dear Mr. Secretary-General, I take the liberty of transmitting to you the copy of a letter which I have addressed to the Chairman of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (36th session). The letter concerns the human rights situation in Guatemala. It is selfexplanatory. Naturally I would highly appreciate any action you, Mr. Secretary-General, may take with a view to supporting the ideas underlying my letter to the Chairman and thus helping improve the situation in Guatemala as that situation is prone to deteriorate further. Accept, dear Mr. Secretary-General, the assurances of my highest consideration. TT "Cl Dr.*Kurt WALDHEIM Secretary-General of the United Nations New York AKU/MS bf: RA/AR/MKP/GMI-1/CCP/AF/MJS cc: File-E xRef:Austria 17 July 1900 Bear Mr. Minister, Upon joy return from an official trip abroad, I received year letter of 20 June concerning human rights violations in Guatemala. I have read the enclosed copy of your letter to the Chairman of the Coauaissicn on Eumaa Sights with great interest. You are undoubtedly aware that human rights violations have always been of particular concern to me and I wish to assure you that the situation in Guatemala is under continuing review. Following consideration by the Commission on Human Rights at its recent session, a note was sent in say name on 13 June to the Permanent Representative of Guatemala to the United Rations for the purpose of establishing direct contact with his Governsasnt regarding this question. It is my earnest hope that this course of action will have the desired results and contribute to the measures ensuring full respect for the human rights and ^fundamental freedoms of the people of Guatemala. Jkccept, Mr. Minister, the assurances of my highest consideration. Kurt Waldheim His Excellency Dr. Willibald Pahr Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Austria Vienna Vienna, 20 June 1980 <r N:o. 2220.02/1177-1. 2.a/80 Dear Mr. President, I would like to raise with you an issue which is a matter of serious concern to me and also to many of my countrymen, i.e, the current human rights situation in Guatemala. We have received reports of numerous acts of violence committed at random against innocent people in Guatemala. It seems that the population of that country is currently the victim of an indiscriminate wave of terrorist acts, abductions, murder and torture. The Government, however, of whom one would expect a firm reaction in the face of such a situation, has apparently failed so far to take appropriate measures to prevent those acts. It has failed to protect innocent people and to ensure to its own population the enjoyment of those fundamental rights to which everyone is entitled. In fact, the reports mentioned as well as indications which I personally received during my recent travel in Central America lead me to believe that the situation can only be remedied through some sort of international action. Indeed if everyone remained silent while acts such as those referred to continue, the situation in Guatemala might further deteriorate with serious consequences for the human relations among the population of that country. If there is a vicious circle someone ought to break it. IT -ri Dr/Waleed M. SADI, Ambassador, President of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (36th session) Ministry of Foreign Affairs Amman - 2 - I am therefore appealing to you, Mr. President, in your capacity as President of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to exercise your influence, in what manner you see fit, with a view to inducing the authorities of Guatemala to do their best in order to curb the violence rampant in their country. I am, of course, aware that any action you may take will necessarily be of a limited nature, but I believe that the prestige of your high office and your own personal reputation will lend particular weight to any appeal you may wish to address to the Government of Guatemala. The situation in Guatemala has already been discussed by the Commission on Human Rights at its 36th session. At that time speakers have repeatedly stressed the importance of bringing to an end the present climate of insecurity and violence in that country and of replacing it by a climate in which the human rights of the people are respected. I felt it my duty, Mr. President, to draw your attention to the situation described above hoping that you will find ways and means to help the people of Guatemala in their present distress. Accept, Mr. President, the assurances of my highest consideration. OSTERREICHISCHE PRASIDEN 3ENWAHLEN Kirchschlager 80 % Gredler 17 % Dritter Kand. 3,2 % M 19 May 1980 A.Rohan ' EOSG/N.Y. SEINER EXZELLEHZ £ HERRN DR. RUDOLF BIRCKSCHLAEGER BUWDSSPRBESIDENT DER REPUBLIK OESTERREICH ~ VIF^JHA (AUSTRIA) '-, SEHR GEEHRTSR HERE BUNDESPRAESIDSNT, LIEBER FREUNDJ A?-E,AESSLICH DEINER WIEDERWAHL ZUM BUf^DESPRAESIDENTEN BITTE IG! DICH, I1EIME AUFRICHTIGSTEN GLBECIWUENSCHE ENTGEGENZUT^EHMEN. MOEGE DIR DIE NEUE AMTBPERIODE VIEL ERFOLG, GESUNDHEIT UTTD DNVERMIT1DERTE SCHAFPEWSKRAPT BRINGEW. MIT EMPFEHLUHGEN AN HERMA TJND HOCHMALIGEN BESTEN WUEKSCHEM, DENEN SICH AUCH SISSY ANSCHLIESST, VERBLEIBE ICH DEIN KURT WALDHEIM ft .*£ z fffjl^t Z.CZC SIP07V 1334,4 PRAES A DR. KUPT VAI DHEI/ DEC DE1? B&TTErt rfJE^CHEN *UEF' IHR FFF iLKPG'EHEN' UT-D. ElttE 1/EITtFE r}FULCPFlCHE FHFUEL />"EK IHRES ' • HOHEW A1TTCH VERrlLIgr; ich , IT OE'1 /'lirlDRUO" AFII VCrZUEGLIOMLfr •, i L I HP PUDcfLF i i PERMANENT MISSION OF AUSTRIA TO THE UNITED NATIONS 809 UNITED NATIONS PLAZA NEW YORK, N. Y. 10017 Telephone (212) 949-1840 PLEASE CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY ADDRESS by the Federal Chancellor of Austria Bruno KREISKY to the General Assembly of the United Nations on October 29, 1979 Mr. President, It gives m-e great pleasure to address this General Assembly which meets under the distinguished leadership of President Salim Ahmed Salim. I would like to take this opportunity to convey, through you Mr. President, ray greetings and the expression of my highest esteem to President Nyerere, one of the most eminent statesman of Africa. It has been five years since I last spoke before the General Assembly of the United Nations, The problems I brought up then are still the problems which are on our agenda today. Among the issues I dealt with were the oil problem, the situation in the Middle East, and the relations between the industrialized countries and the developing nations. At that occasion I expressed the opinion that the intricate problem of bringing peace to the Middle East cannot be solved without taking into account the legitimate asperations of the Palestinian people. I asked you to consider the Middle East problem as intimately linked with the overall world-wide process of detente. There have been significant developments in world affairs during this five year period. Permit me to refer to some of them: On 1 August, 1975, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe has been concluded in Helsinki. Thoroughly prepared, the Conference confirmed and was the culmination of detente which I believe had started with the conclusion of the Austrian State Treaty 25 years ago. This process has not been without setbacks. — 2 — There have been deadlocks and crises. There were periods of pessimism and optimism. Finally it xnras possible to bring about the conference in Helsinki and the Final Act xiras signed by the representatives of 35 nations. Although the provisions of the Helsinki Act do not have the force of a treaty, they nevertheless include a broad range of declarations of intent, concessions and norms of conduct, and the very fact of their formulation in the Act gives them an important role in our international relations. Even though not all of the Act's provisions are being complied with to the letter, the document does provide signatory states with legal authorization, so to speak, to seek recourse to the Helsinki Act without having to fear accusations of intervention in the domestic affairs of another state. A second reason for the importance of the Helsinki Act is, in our viextf, the fact that it has established human rights as an international political issue. Finally, we also consider the Helsinki Act to be the essential beginning of a dynamic process, a process which is necessary to develop detente and normalization between people in the West and the East of Europe. However, this dynamic process will only take place if economic cooperation between ihoS'^-'.-.cs in Eastern and Western Europe will continue, and if new, constructive forms of cooperation are found which go beyond the limits of a mere exchange of commodities and financial transactions.