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

RESOLUTION ADOPTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Question of the Turks and Caicos Islands

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, contained in General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV);

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 contained in General Assembly resolution

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 General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV), as well as all other relevant resolutions of the Assembly;

5. 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 territorial Government, to take the necessary measures to promote the economic and social development of the Turks and Caicos Islands 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;

6. Emphasizes that greater attention should be paid to diversification of the economy, particularly in the promotion of agriculture and fisheries, which will benefit the people of the Territory;

7. Recalls that it is the responsibility of the administering Power, in accordance with the wishes of the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands, to safeguard, guarantee and ensure the inalienable right of the people to the enjoyment of their natural resources by taking effective measures to guarantee their right to own and dispose of those resources and to establish and maintain control of their future development;

8. Takes note of the statement of the administering Power to the effect that the military facility in the Turks and Caicos Islands has been closed and that the territorial Government now has complete control over the disposition of the land vacated by the base;

9. Urges the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system, as well as such regional institutions as the Caribbean Development Bank, to continue to pay special attention to the development needs of the Turks and Caicos Islands and welcomes the continuing contribution of the United Nations Development Programme;

10. Requests the administering Power, in consultation with the territorial Government, to continue to provide the assistance necessary for the training of qualified local personnel in the skills essential to the development of economic and social sectors of the Territory;

11. Considers that the possibility of sending a further visiting mission to the Turks and Caicos Islands at an appropriate time should be kept under review;

12. 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 fortieth session.