Question of Montserrat : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly

The General Assembly,

Having considered the question of Montserrat,

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 resolutions and decisions of the United Nations relating to Montserrat, including in particular General Assembly resolution 43/38 of 22 November 1988,

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

Having heard the statement of the representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as the administering Power,

Noting the stated policy of the Government of the United Kingdom, the administering Power, that it remains ready to respond positively to the express wish of the people of the Territory on the question of independence,

Recalling the discussions held between an adviser to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom and the Executive Council of Montserrat in May 1988 and the wish expressed by the Chief Minister of Montserrat to transfer some of the reserved powers of the Governor to the elected Government,

Taking note of the statement by the Chief Minister that a referendum should precede any move towards political independence and that his Government favoured both independence and participation in the political union among the countries of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States,

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

Noting the measures being taken by the territorial Government to improve the efficiency of the civil service, the priority it places on cadre training and the strengthening of the educational system and its efforts to promote the integration of women in all phases of national development, and drawing attention to the need to associate the Territory in the related work of the United Nations bodies concerned in that regard,

Welcoming the contribution to the development of the Territory by the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system operating in Montserrat, in particular the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Children's Fund,

Noting with concern the continued dissociation of the Territory from the activities of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization since the withdrawal by the administering Power of the associate membership of Montserrat from that organization in 1983, and aware of the active interest of the Government of Montserrat in the readmission of the Territory as an associate member of the agency,

Expressing its sympathy to the people of Montserrat for the extensive damage caused by hurricane Hugo in September 1989,

Recalling the dispatch in 1975 and 1982 of 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 Montserrat 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 Montserrat;

2.         Reaffirms the inalienable right of the people of Montserrat 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 Montserrat;

4.         Reiterates that it is the responsibility 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 Montserrat 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.         Reaffirms that it is ultimately for the people of Montserrat themselves to determine their future political status in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and the Declaration, and reiterates its call upon the administering Power to launch programmes, in co-operation with the territorial Government, to foster an awareness among the people of Montserrat of the possibilities available to them in the exercise of their right to self-determination and independence;

6.         Reaffirms the responsibility of the administering Power to promote the economic and social development of Montserrat and calls upon the administering Power to continue, in co-operation with the territorial Government, to strengthen the economy of the Territory and to increase its assistance to programmes of diversification;

7.         Urges the administering Power, in co-operation with the territorial Government, to take effective measures to safeguard and guarantee the inalienable right of the people of Montserrat to own and dispose of the natural resources of the Territory, including marine resources, and to establish and maintain control over the future development of those resources;

8.         Urges the administering Power, in co-operation with the territorial Government, to overcome shortages in human resources by providing appropriate incentives to assist nationals in finding better opportunities at home and to attract qualified nationals from abroad;

9.         Invites the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system, as well as other international and regional organizations, to intensify their efforts to accelerate progress in the economic and social life of the Territory;

10.       Urges Member States and specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system to extend all possible assistance with a view to rehabilitating and reconstructing the Territory, which was devastated by hurricane Hugo;

11.       Calls upon the administering Power, in co-operation with the territorial Government, to take urgent steps to facilitate the readmission of Montserrat as an associate member of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization;

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 Montserrat at an appropriate time and in consultation with the administering Power, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its forty-fifth session.