8 February 1989
1. At Toronto, the Commonwealth Committee of Foreign Ministers on Southern Africa invited Commonwealth and other Governments to consider prohibiting technology transfer that is designed to enable South Africa to circumvent existing sanctions, particularly in the areas of arms, oil and computers. The intent of the existing UN and Commonwealth arms embargo is not only to deny South Africa a military capability but also to increase the cost of maintaining apartheid. The World Campaign Against Military and Nuclear Collaboration with South Africa Report makes clear that the most substantial loopholes in the UN arms embargo derive from differing interpretations of the embargo, more specifically, of what exports should be banned.
2. With a view to tightening the mandatory UN arms embargo against South Africa and in order to ensure that there is no misunderstanding about the Commonwealth ban, or the Commonwealth's interpretation of the UN ban, the Committee commends the following clarification of what exports should be banned as 'arms and related material' by way of supplement to the suggestions made in Security Council Resolution 591.
(i) Arms, ammunition, implements or munitions of war, or any articles deemed capable of being converted thereinto or having a strategic or tactical value or nature. Materials, equipment and technologies which are designed or used for the development, production or utilisation of arms, ammunition or implements of war. Materials and equipment incorporating unique technology, the acquisition of which by South Africa may reasonably be expected to give assistance to the development and production of arms, ammunition and implements of war, of their means of utilisation or delivery, or counter-measures to them. Materials, equipment and technologies of which South Africa has a deficiency, and which may be critical to the production of arms, ammunition or implements of war, or their means of utilisation or delivery, or counter-measures to them.
(ii) 'Strategic or tactical nature or value' to be considered to include goods which assist in the maintenance of repression in South Africa: specifically exports of high technology including aircraft, aircraft engines and parts thereto, data processing equipment and software, electronic and telecommunications equipment; and also exports of four wheel drive vehicles.
The Committee calls for the above provisions, in conjunction with those contained in Resolution 591, to be made mandatory by the Security Council.
3. The Committee also urges that:
(i) a Monitoring Unit be established at the United Nations in order to assist the UN 421 Committee. The Unit would, inter alia, investigate alleged breaches and publish its findings regularly;
(ii) measures be considered for preventing foreign technology and expertise from assisting the internal armaments industry of South Africa; and for subsidiaries in South Africa of overseas companies being prohibited from manufacturing or supplying any items having a strategic or tactical value which would enhance the capability of the military and security forces; and
(ill) the provision in the Resolution 418 (I977) (mandatory arms embargo) relating to licences be strictly applied with a view to all licences being terminated.
4. The Committee further calls for a mandatory embargo on the import of South African arms and military goods to complement the embargo on the export of arms and, in particular, for the Security Council to make its resolution on the import of arms mandatory.
5. The Committee encourages all Commonwealth members to provide the Secretary-General with details about how they have implemented the UN arms embargo as well as the further measures to strengthen that embargo which have been adopted by the Commonwealth.