| General Assembly A/RES/38/58(A-E)
13 December 1983
38/58. Question of Palestine
The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolutions 3376 (XXX) of 10 November 1975, 31/20 of 24 November
1976, 32/40 of 2 December 1977, 33/28 of 7 December 1978, 34/65 A and B of 29 November
1979 and 34 C and D of 12 December 1979, ES-7/2 of 29 July 1980, 35/169 of 15 December
1980, 36/120 of 10 December 1981, ES-7/4 of 28 April 1982, ES-7/5 of 26 June 1982 and
ES-7/9 of 24 September 1982 and 37/86 of 10 December 1982,
Having considered the report of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People,1/
1. Expresses its appreciation to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People for its efforts in performing the tasks assigned to it by
the General Assembly;
2. Endorses the recommendations of the Committee contained in paragraphs 94 to 98
of its report and draws the attention of the Security Council to the fact that action on
the Committee's recommendations, as repeatedly endorsed by the General Assembly, at its
thirty-first session and subsequently, is long overdue;
3. Requests the Committee to keep under review the situation relating to the
question of Palestine as well as the implementation of the Programme of Action for the
Achievement of Palestinian Rights 2/ adopted by the International Conference on the
Question of Palestine and to report and make suggestions to the General Assembly or the
Security Council, as appropriate;
4. Requests the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine, established
under General Assembly resolution 194 (III) of 11 December 1948, as well as other United
Nations bodies associated with the question of Palestine, to co-operate fully with the
Committee and to make available to it, at its request, the relevant information and
documentation which they have at their disposal;
5. Authorizes the Committee to continue to exert all efforts to promote the
implementation of its recommendations, to send delegations or representatives to
international conferences where such representation would be considered by it to be
appropriate, and to report thereon to the General Assembly at its thirty-eighth session
and thereafter;
6. Decides to circulate the report of the Committee to all the competent bodies of
the United Nations and urges them to take the necessary action, as appropriate, in
accordance with the Committee's programme of implementation;
7. Requests the Secretary-General to continue to provide the Committee with all the
necessary facilities for the performance of its tasks.
B
The General Assembly,
Having considered the report of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People,1/
Noting, in particular, the information contained in paragraphs 86 to 91 of that
report,
Recalling its resolutions 32/40 B of 2 December 1977, 33/28 C of 7 December 1978,
34/65 D of 12 December 1979, 35/169 D of 15 December 1980, 36/120 B of 10 December 1981,
and 37/86 B of 10 December 1982,
1. Notes with appreciation the action taken by the Secretary-General in compliance
with General Assembly resolution 37/86 B;
2. Requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the Division for Palestinian
Rights of the Secretariat continues to discharge the tasks detailed in paragraph 1 of
General Assembly resolution 32/40 B, paragraph 2 (b) of Assembly resolution 34/65 D and
paragraph 3 of resolution 36/120 B, in consultation with the Committee on the Exercise of
the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and under its guidance;
3. Also requests the Secretary-General to provide the Division for Palestinian
Rights with the necessary resources to accomplish its tasks and to expand its work
programme, inter alia, through:
(a) Closer contacts with the media and wider dissemination of the Division's
information material, particularly where information on the question of Palestine is
inadequate;
(b) Increased contacts with non-governmental organizations and the convening of
symposia and meetings for non-governmental organizations in different regions in order to
heighten awareness of the facts relating to the question of Palestine;
4. Further requests the Secretary-General to ensure the continued co-operation of
the Department of Public Information and other units of the Secretariat in enabling the
Division for Palestinian Rights to perform its tasks and in covering adequately the
various aspects of the question of Palestine;
5. Invites all Governments and organizations to lend their co-operation to the
Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People and the
Division for Palestinian Rights in the performance of their tasks;
6. Notes with appreciation the action taken by Member States to observe annually on
29 November the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People and the
issuance by them of special postage stamps for the occasion.
C
The General Assembly,
Recalling its resolution 36/120 C of 10 December 1981, in which it decided to
convene, under the auspices of the United Nations, an International Conference on the
Question of Palestine on the basis of its resolution ES-7/2 of 29 July 1980,
Recalling also its resolution 37/86 C of 10 December 1982 in which it, inter
alia, reiterated the responsibility of the United Nations to strive for a lasting
peace in the Middle East through a just solution of the problem of Palestine,
Having considered the report of the International Conference on the Question of
Palestine, held at Geneva from 29 August to 7 September 1983,3/
Convinced that the Conference, in adopting by acclamation the Geneva Declaration on
Palestine 4/ and the Programme of Action for the Achievement of Palestinian Rights,2/
made an important and positive contribution to the attainment of a comprehensive, just and
durable peace in the Middle East through a just solution of the problem of Palestine, the
core of the Arab-Israeli conflict,
Conscious of the importance of the time factor in achieving a just solution of the
problem of Palestine,
1. Takes note with satisfaction of the report of the International Conference on
the Question of Palestine;
2. Endorses the Geneva Declaration on Palestine, adopted by acclamation on 7
September 1983;
3. Welcomes and endorses the call for convening an International Peace Conference
on the Middle East in conformity with the following guidelines:
(a) The attainment by the Palestinian people of its legitimate inalienable rights,
including the right to return, the right to self-determination and the right to establish
its own independent State in Palestine;
(b) The right of the Palestine Liberation Organization, the representative of the
Palestinian people, to participate on an equal footing with other parties in all efforts,
deliberations and conferences on the Middle East;
(c) The need to put an end to Israel's occupation of the Arab territories, in
accordance with the principle of the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by
force, and, consequently, the need to secure Israeli withdrawal from the territories
occupied since 1967, including Jerusalem;
(d) The need to oppose and reject such Israeli policies and practices in the
occupied territories, including Jerusalem, and any de facto situation created by
Israel as are contrary to international law and relevant United Nations resolutions,
particularly the establishment of settlements, as these policies and practices constitute
major obstacles to the achievement of peace in the Middle East;
(e) The need to reaffirm as null and void all legislative and administrative
measures and actions taken by Israel, the occupying Power, which have altered or purported
to alter the character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem, including the
expropriation of land and property situated thereon, and in particular the so-called
"Basic Law" on Jerusalem and the proclamation of Jerusalem as the capital of
Israel;
(f) The right of all States in the region to existence within secure and
internationally recognized boundaries, with justice and security for all the people, the sine
qua non of which is the recognition and attainment of the legitimate, inalienable
rights of the Palestinian people as stated in subparagraph (a) above;
4. Invites all parties to the Arab-Israeli conflict, including the Palestine
Liberation Organization, as well as the United States of America, the Union of Soviet
Socialist Republics and other concerned States, to participate in the International Peace
Conference on the Middle East on an equal footing and with equal rights;
5. Requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with the Security Council,
urgently to undertake preparatory measures to convene the Conference;
6. Invites the Security Council to facilitate the organization of the Conference;
7. Also requests the Secretary-General to report on his efforts no later than 15
March 1984;
8. Decides to consider at its thirty-ninth session the report of the
Secretary-General on the Conference.
D
The General Assembly,
Having considered the report of the International Conference on the Question of
Palestine,3/ held at Geneva from 29 August to 7 September 1983,
Taking note of the Programme of Action for the Achievement of Palestinian Rights,2/
Bearing in mind its resolution 38/145 of 19 December 1983 on assistance to the
Palestinian people,
Urges the meeting of specialized agencies and other organizations of the United
Nations system to be convened in 1984, referred to in General Assembly resolution 38/145,
to take into account the recommendations of the five regional preparatory meetings of the
International Conference on the Question of Palestine 5/ and the United Nations
resolutions concerning economic and social assistance to the Palestinian people in
developing a co-ordinated programme of economic and social assistance to the Palestinian
people, and to ensure the implementation of that programme.
E
The General Assembly,
Having considered the report of the International Conference on the Question of
Palestine, held at Geneva from 29 August to 7 September 1983,3/
Convinced that the world-wide dissemination of accurate and comprehensive
information and the role of non-governmental organizations and institutions remain of
vital importance in heightening awareness of and support for the inalienable rights of the
Palestinian people to self-determination and to the establishment of an independent
sovereign Palestinian State,
Requests that the Department of Public Information of the Secretariat, in full
co-operation and co-ordination with the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable
Rights of the Palestinian People, should:
(a) Disseminate all information on the activities of the United Nations system
relating to Palestine;
(b) Expand publications and audio-visual coverage of the facts and developments
pertaining to the question of Palestine;
(c) Publish newsletters and articles in its relevant publications on Israeli
violations of the human rights of the Arab inhabitants of the occupied territories, and
organize fact-finding missions to the area for journalists;
(d) Organize regional encounters for journalists;
(e) Disseminate appropriate information on the results of the International
Conference on the Question of Palestine.
Notes
1/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Thirty-eighth Session, Supplement
No.35 (A/38/35).
2/ Report of the International Conference on the Question of Palestine, Geneva,
29 August-7 September 1983 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.83.I.21) chap.
I, sect. B.
3/ A/CONF.114/42.
4/ Ibid., chap. I, sect. A.
5/ Ibid., chap. II, paras. 10 and 11.
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