N.Z. joins call to aid poor nations

Press, 28 August 1980, Page 2

N.Z. joins call to aid poor nations

NZPA New York' - New Zealand yesterday /'added its voice to calls by •'the. orid’s poorest nations ;-for a new international -economic order under which •"they would share some of ’■mankind’s wealth.

? -In a speech to a special of the United ■■Nations General Assembly, The Deputy Prime Minister '(Mr Taiboys) said: “The ■needs of developing countries have to be taken into account in a way they never ■have been before.”

•' Noting the little progress jnade after two previous .-■special United Nations’ sessions on the same topic in /the last six years, Mr Tal-.-boys called for “a solid com■jnitment to the goal of economic justice and fair op'mortunities for people everywhere.” > He suggested that big •changes were needed in the world’s existing trade a d •monetary structures, systems and institutions, and he jrehe'"ed New Zealand’s attacks on agricultural protectionism.

5 The special session, which •began on Monday, has been Iballed to assess progress on Amoves to establish the new •int"national economic orc’-r ,gnd consider moves to help nations particularly hard hit by soaring oil prices. ; ■> It heralds the start of a mew round of what are ’termed “global negotiations” •on vital economic issues ■such, as energy, trade, raw

i materials and finance. The negotiations are expected to last for a year. The session began against a background of bickering between the “have” and “have-not” countries which failed, in preparatory meetings, to even reach agreement on an agenda for the global negotiations. The differences were apparent at the opening session, with the United States Secretary of State (Mr Edward Muskie), blaming the oil-producing countries for the world’s economic plight. But Mr Narasimha Rao, the Foreign Minister of India, the chairman' country of the Group of 77 developing nations, said their situation could only be improved by “a huge transfer of resources on a predictable, long term, and assured basis” — those resources to come, he made it clear, from the rich, industrialised countries.

India had said previously that the collapse of the preparatory t "rs was entirely caused by the developed Western world. Mr Taiboys t”d a careful path between the two antagonists. “Th. r existing system is not about to be overturned overnight,” he said.

Both sides had much to gain. "Developing countries know that the capacity of industrialised countries to import f ir goods and to transfer resources is related to the health of the industrialised economies,” Mr Talboys said.

“For their part the industrial countries know that their own opportunities to increase exports, and thus help to solve their ova economic problems, are related to the economic growth of the developing world.

“That growth in turn depends on the willingness of the industrialised to open up their markets to the commodities, and increasingly the manuafcturers, of others, with all the readjustment, even disruption, that may involve.” All countries had to seek new national economic orders to deal with the problem, which was political, Mr Taiboys said. “What is lacking at this time is the public understanding that will be essential.

“The consequence of not moving on these important questions before us will have serious and far-reach-ing implications for the welfare of people everywhere.”

He called on the 'United States members to “show a degree of far-sightedness, of internationalism, of flexibility, a degree of plain commons.ense far beyond what has been evident over the last 30 years.” After his speech, Mr Talboys, who was to leave New York today, said he sensed “a will to make progress,” but he added “whether that progress comes up to people’s expectations may be another thing.”