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PRIME MINISTER
TRANSCRIPT OF NEWS CONFERENCE, PAN PACIFIC HOTEL, KUALA
LUMPUR, 23 OCTOBER 1989
E 0 E PROOF ONLY
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Mrs Thatcher says she's appalled
that anyone would even question her right to put out her
point of view.
PM: Yes, she said that. The position was very clearly
accepted by the rest of the Commonwealth Heads of Government
that an agreed position had been arrived at and that it was
everyone's understanding that that agreed position would be
adhered to. Now I've made my point of view known, as has Mr
Mulroney and may I say that all the other members of the
Commonwealth have quite clearly indicated their support for
the position that we've expressed. Now I don't think any
useful purpose is served by taking it any further. We know
what's happened and the concern that we have expressed has
been endorsed by others. Now no-one's purposes are served by
taking it any further.
JOURNALIST: It's very harmful to the Commonwealth's position
surely, what she's done?
PM: Well I think that if you had a position where the rest
of the world thought that the declaration represented other
than the view of the Commonwealth as a whole with the
qualifications that Mrs Thatcher has wanted to express for
the United Kingdom, it would be dangerous. But the world can
have no doubt that the Commonwealth has expressed a clear
view on South Africa.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, isn't what she's done
effectively an act of duplicity though?
PM: I'm not making any descriptive comments about what Mrs
Thatcher has done. I expressed my view in the Heads of
Government Meeting, I expressed my opposition clearly, as did
Mr Mulroney and as I've said all people who've spoken to us
have endorsed what we've had to say. That was the point to
express a position, I've done that.
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JOURNALIST: But one minute she's says one thing or accepts
one thing and the next minute she says quite the opposite.
That's duplicity.
PM: You are in the media, you have the delightful task of
interpretation for the public. I have a responsibility as a
Head of Government in the meetings of Heads of Government to
put a point of view which I took the lead in doing, no-one in
the room was left in any doubt as to my feelings. But that's
where I'll do it, in the meeting. Now you have the role of
interpretations, you get delightfully well paid for it.
JOURNALIST: Why do you think she put out the statement?
PM: Well you would, again as I've had cause to say at a
previous conference, if you're asking what's in the mind of
Mrs Thatcher I'm not the guardian of her mind. I mean she is
and you'll have to ask her, if you could get through to
asking her. But I'm not trying analysis as to why she's done
what she's done.
JOURNALIST: Don't you agree it's very strange way to do
business though?
PM: It's, as we've said, rather unusual to have an agreed
position and the adoption of that agreed position being moved
by Mrs Thatcher and as a result of that, no further
discussions occuring, and then to have you know, what's
happened, that is unusual. I've described it as unusual.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM:. I'm not properly going into a-
JOURNALIST: Do these kind of actions by Britain threaten the
future viability of the Commonwealth, do you think?
PM: No.
JOURNALIST: Mr Hawke, what is your understanding of
Britain's current position in relation to existing sanctions
against South Africa?
PM: I suggest you read paragraph nine, which is very
fascinating. Paragraph nine of the agreed communique says
these things: that all existing sanctions should be
maintained, and the second thing it says is that it calls on
the rest of the world community to apply them. That
paragraph nine has no qualification from the United Kingdom.
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( PM cont) So one would have to say on the basis of the
agreed document moved in its adoption by Mrs Thatcher that
that paragraph nine unqualified by a reservation in regards
to the United Kingdom represents her position. I mean
that's what she moved.
JOURNALIST: Would you see that as a slight shift from their
position at previous CHOGM's?
PM: Well it's a position which I welcome.
JOURNALIST: But she quite clearly accepts that trade
sanctions are reasonable and working.
PM: All I can say is that Mrs Thatcher was the one who at
the Retreat moved the adoption of the statement and I've
referred to you paragraph nine which contains no
qualification. So that's the position which she moved at the
Retreat. JOURNALIST: Do you find this confusing?
PM: I expressed how I found the British position. But I
expressed that as I said, in the Heads of Government meeting..
I'm not going to go into any public observation about what's
happened. I did that in the meeting.
JOURNALIST: Well do you believe that this is a deliberate
strategy by Britain or do you believe it's confusion within
their own ranks?
PM: Oh well, I don't know. If I thought it was helpful to
anyone to engage in a detailed public analysis of what's
happened then I would do that. But I really don't think that
Australia's interests, Britain's interests, but most
importantly the interests of the people of South Africa, of
all the people of South Africa, I don't think any of those
interests are served by me going into such an analysis. I
imagine there's going to be a lot of interpretation done by
others, well that's OK. I honestly don't think that anyone's
interests are served by me undertaking that analysis.
JOURNALIST: Mrs Thatcher seemed to suggest that the
complaints by the other countries were somehow less than
democratic, that she had a right to express Britain's view.
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PM: Yes, she has exercised those rights on the Thursday in
the Heads of Government meeting, her rights were exercised,
she expressed a point of view there. Their rights were
exercised by having her Foreign Minister in the drafting
group where, as you'll appreciate, concessions were made by
us and others in that drafting process, concessions of
language on the basis of accommodating Britain's position.
So they exercised their rights there and exercised their
rights at the Retreat by moving the adoption for the agreed
communique. So all the rights have been exercised as were
everyone else's in the process up to an including the
Retreat. JOURNALIST: In the interests of both South Africa and the
Commonwealth, what would you like to see Mrs Thatcher
do now?
PM: Nothing more, I would think would be the best answer to
that. ends