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GV International voting board in U.N. General Assembly, with delegates seated (2 shots)
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SV General Assembly President Salim A. Salim announcing result of vote (3 shots)
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SV United States Representative for Special Political Affairs, Richard Petree, speaking
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MCU Japanese Permanent Representative Masahiro Nisibori speaking in English
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GV West German Permanent Representative Rudiger von Wechmar speaking in English
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PETREE: "The adoption of the convention against the taking of hostages is a major achievement of this Assembly. The object and purpose of this convention is the commitment of the international community to co-operate in the prevention of hostage taking, and, in the event of an act of hostage - taking, to apply the principle of prosecution or extradition to all persons accused of committing such an act. States, parties in whose territory a hostage-taker is found, shall quote be obligated without exception whatsoever and quote, to apply the convention's basic obligation to prosecute or extradite. Whenever states, members of the international community, co-operate to deal effectively with a common problem it is cause for satisfaction and hope."



NISIBORI: "Although my delegation had some difficulties with some provisions of the convention, it has joined in its adoption by consensus. We have done so in the belief that the early adoption of the convention is urgently needed throughout the international community, and we strongly hope that the convention will provide a concrete and effective international legal framework for the prevention of all the acts of hostage-taking."



WECHMAR: "There has been, as you will recall, general agreement both during the debates in the Sixth Committee, and the ad-hoc committee, that hostage taking is not permissible under any circumstances. Although there was thus a clear direction in orientation for our work, the task given to us by the General Assembly had nevertheless been extremely difficult. We were able to overcome these difficulties because all countries, and all groups of countries, felt the urgent need for the drafting of a convention against hostage-taking, and were therefore ready to make concessions in order to achieve that goal. Moreover, the Sixth Committee and its ad hoc committee for the elaboration of the Convention, succeeded in focusing their work strictly upon the elaboration of effective provisions against the taking of hostages, and withstood the temptation to deviate into other fields."




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TELERECORDING

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Background: The crime of hostage-taking must be punished in any country w???ere the offenders are caught, or else they must be extradited for punishment elsewhere, according to a convention approved on Monday (17 December) by the United Nations General Assembly. Iran did not take part in the Assembly's action. But the Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations, Mansour Farhang, was expected to talk with Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim on Tuesday (18 December) about the American hostages still being held in the United States Embassy compound in Teheran.

SYNOPSIS: The convention's West German proposers said it complemented the 1970 Hague and 1971 Montreal conventions against hijacking, and followed the 1973 New York convention prohibiting crimes against internationally-protected persons. General Assembly President Salim A. Salim announced the vote -- one hundred and twenty-five delegations voted in favour, ten members of the Soviet Bloc opposed, and Rumania and Cuba, together with Botswana, abstained. United States spokesman Richard Petree, Japanese Ambassador Masahiro Nisibori and West German Ambassador Rudiger von Wechmar addressed the Assembly.