Question of the Turks and Caicos Islands : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly

The General Assembly,

Having considered the question of the Turks and Caicos Islands,

Having examined the relevant chapters of the report of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples,

Recalling its resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960, containing the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, and all other resolutions and decisions of the United Nations relating to the Turks and Caicos Islands, including in particular General Assembly resolution 41/22 of 31 October 1986,

Conscious of the need to ensure the full and speedy implementation of the Declaration in respect of the Territory,

Aware of the special circumstances of the geographical location and economic conditions of the Turks and Caicos Islands and bearing in mind the necessity of diversifying and strengthening further its economy as a matter of priority in order to promote economic stability and develop a wider economic base for the Territory,

Noting that a constitutional commission was appointed in 1986 to review the 1976 Constitution and make recommendations for the future administration of the Territory,

Noting the continuing contribution of the United Nations Development Programme to the development of the Territory and welcoming the intention of the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands, in conjunction with the United Nations Development Programme, to improve the primary and secondary educational system in the Territory,

Recalling the dispatch in 1980 of two United Nations visiting missions to the Territory,

Mindful that United Nations visiting missions provide an effective means of ascertaining the situation in the small Territories and considering that the possibility of sending a further visiting mission to the Turks and Caicos Islands at an appropriate time should be kept under review,

1.         Approves the chapter of the report of the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples relating to the Turks and Caicos Islands;

2.         Reaffirms the inalienable right of the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands to self-determination and independence in conformity with the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples;

3.         Reiterates the view that such factors as territorial size, geographical location, size of population and limited natural resources should in no way delay the speedy exercise by the people of the Territory of their inalienable right to self-determination and independence in conformity with the Declaration, which fully applies to the Turks and Caicos Islands;

4.         Reiterates that it is the obligation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as the administering Power, to create such conditions in the Territory as will enable the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands to exercise freely and without interference their inalienable right to self-determination and independence in accordance with resolution 1514 (XV) and all other relevant resolutions of the General Assembly;

5.         Urges the administering Power to continue its efforts to resolve the situation that led to the appointment of a constitutional commission in 1986;

6.         Reaffirms that it is the responsibility of the administering Power under the Charter of the United Nations to develop its dependent Territories economically and socially and urges the administering Power, in consultation with the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands, to take the necessary measures to promote the economic and social development of the Territory and, in particular, to intensify and expand its programme of assistance in order to accelerate the development of the economic and social infrastructure of the Territory;

7.         Emphasizes the need to accelerate the diversification of the economy in order to develop a wider economic base for the Territory and welcomes the proposal of the territorial Government to include, in its National Development Plan, provisions for the improvement of the regulatory practice governing the fisheries sector;

8.         Recalls that it is the responsibility of the administering Power, in accordance with the wishes of the people, to safeguard, guarantee and ensure the inalienable right of the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands to the enjoyment of their natural resources, including their territorial waters, and to establish and maintain control over the future development of those resources;

9.         Urges the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system, as well as the regional institutions concerned, to continue to pay special attention to the development needs of the Turks and Caicos Islands;

10.       Urges the administering Power, in consultation with the territorial Government, to continue to provide the necessary assistance for the localization of the civil service at all levels and for the training of qualified local personnel in the skills essential to the development of various sectors of the economy and the society of the Territory;

11.       Requests the Special Committee to continue the examination of this question at its next session, including the possible dispatch of a further visiting mission to the Turks and Caicos Islands at an appropriate time and in consultation with the administering Power, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-third session.