Chapter 1

INTERNATIONAL LAW IN GENERAL

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Nature, Basis, Purpose

International Law and National Policy

On August 19, 1977, President Carter signed Proclamation 4514 designating Sunday, August 21, 1977, as World Law Day in the United States. This proclamation drew attention to the unprecedented development of international law in the last twenty-five years because of the need for cooperation among nations. It also emphasized the dependence of such cooperation on the development of legal norms which are responsive to the legitimate interests of each nation and which foster a climate of justice and liberty for each individual:

The past twenty-five years have been marked by the unprecedented development of international law as nations have come to recognize that cooperation in international relations is the only alternative to chaos. This cooperation depends upon mutual respect, which in turn depends upon the development of legal norms upon which all parties can rely with confidence. These norms must be responsive to each nation's legitimate interests, must respect the feelings and beliefs of all peoples, and must foster a climate of justice and liberty in which each individual on this planet can achieve his or her full potential.

Representatives of the legal profession from every corner of the globe will gather in Manila during the week of August 21, 1977, under the auspices of the World Peace Through Law Center, to inaugurate the Eighth World Conference on World Peace Through Law. Together they will search for ways to further universal human liberty and security. Celebrations devoted to international legal protections for human rights will be held not only in Manila, but in more than one hundred countries. Accordingly, it is fitting that the United States join in this effort to focus the world's attention on the pressing need for continued vigilance in protecting fundamental rights and freedoms for all.

Now, THEREFORE, I, JIMMY CARTER, President of the United States of America, do hereby designate Sunday, August 21, 1977, as World Law Day in the United States. I call upon all public and private officials and organizations, members of the legal profession, the clergy, educators, the communications media, and all men and women of good will to join with the peoples of the world on this

day in reflecting on the importance of the rule of law in achieving world peace as well as justice, freedom and dignity for all.

42 Fed. Reg. 42299 (1977).

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Sources

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Relation to Municipal Law

During his talks in Vienna with South African Prime Minister B. John Vorster on May 19-20, 1977, Vice President Walter F. Mondale presented the U.S. positions on Southern Rhodesia, Namibia, and South Africa's internal policies. Portions of the text of Vice President Mondale's statement on May 20, 1977, follow:

Put most simply, the policy which the President wished me to convey was that there was need for progress on all three issues: majority rule for Rhodesia and Namibia and a progressive transformation of South African society to the same end. We believed it was particularly important to convey the depth of our convictions. There has been a transformation in American society of which we are very proud. It affects not only our domestic life but our foreign policy as well. We cannot accept, let alone defend, the governments that reject the basic principle of full human rights, economic opportunity, and political participation for all of its people regardless of race. This basic mission was accomplished during these talks. I believe our policy is clear, and I believe the South African Government now appreciates that it is deeply rooted in American experience and values. I do not know how or whether this will affect the decisions that confront South Africa, particularly in regard to its own system, but I made it clear that without evident progress that provides full political participation and an end to discrimination, the press of international events would require us to take action based on our policy to the detriment of the constructive relations we would prefer with South Africa.

As for Rhodesia and Namibia, I believe we registered some useful progress but the significance of this progress will depend on future developments. Prime Minister Vorster agreed to support BritishAmerican efforts to get the directly interested parties to agree to an independence constitution and the necessary transitional arrange

ments, including the holding of elections in which all can take part equally, so that Zimbabwe can achieve independence during 1978 and peace.

Likewise every effort will be made to bring about a deescalation of violence, and it is believed that the negotiating process will be the best way to achieve this end. We believe this is an encouraging step in a positive direction. Hopefully we will work together to bring the interested parties to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Rhodesia. The extent to which this pays off will, of course, remain to be seen as we pursue the British initiative. In this connection I made clear our support for these efforts and the closest collaboration with them.

I explained that our concept of the Zimbabwe Development Fund is different from that of the previous American Administration. Instead of being a fund aimed at buying out the white settlers in Rhodesia, we want to reorient that fund to a development fundone that will help build a strong economy and one that will encourage the continued participation of the white population in an independent Zimbabwe. I emphasized that the United States would support a constitution for Zimbabwe that would contain guarantees of individual rights such as freedom of speech, religion, assemblage, due process of law, and an independent judiciary and that we believe these are essential to a democratic system of government.

On Namibia I made clear that we supported the efforts of the so-called contact group-which consists of the United States, West Germany, Britain, France, and Canada-in their efforts to implement Security Council Resolution 385. In some respects the position of the South African Government, as reflected in the earlier talks, was encouraging. In those talks they agreed to free elections to be held on a nationwide basis for a constituent assembly which would develop a national constitution for an independent Namibia. They agreed that all Namibians inside and outside the country could participate, including SWAPO [South West Africa People's Organization]. They agreed that the United Nations could be involved in the electoral process to assure that it was fair and internationally acceptable.

However, potentially important differences over the structure and character of the interim administrative authority that would run Namibia while this process takes place became much clearer in the process of our talks. South Africa wants an administrative arrangement that draws upon the structure developed at the Turnhalle conference [South African-sponsored constitutional conference held in Windhoek, Namibia, beginning September 1975]. This structure, in the conference that proposed it, is based on ethnic and tribal lines, and as it stands it is unacceptable to us. We emphasized that any interim administrative arrangement must be impartial as to the ultimate structure of the Namibian government. Moreover, it must be broadly representative in order to be acceptable to all Namibians and to the international community.