brutality could be measured by the numbers of children it had killed and the orphans, widows and widowers it had created. And still it lived on, provoking strange and monstrous debates over the means which its victims were obliged to use in order to rid themselves of an intolerable scourge. Those who chose not to act argued that to do nothing must be accepted as the very essence 'of civilized opposition to racism. 53. It was an inviolable principle that racism must be opposed by all the means which mankind had at its disposal. All forms of racism were inherently a challenge to human rights, because racism denied that all human beings were of equal worth and treated entire peoples as subhuman. For that reason, it had been correct to characterize the apartheid system as a crime against humanity. It had been appropriate for the international community to decide that apartheid should be suppressed and that its perpetrators should be punished. For that decision, and for similar actions, he paid tribute to the United Nations. 54. He also commended the Special Committee, which had been and remained an important instrument in the struggle against the oppressive policies of the South African Government, and its members, who had been unrelenting in their resolve to mobilize world action against apartheid. 55. The Declaration on Apartheid and Its Destructive Consequences in Southern Africa (General Assembly resolution S-16/1), adopted by consensus at the sixteenth special session of the General Assembly, would go down in history as one of the most "important document.s in the international community's struggle against apartheid. Its adoption by consensus was in itself a blow against the apartheid system and a vital statement of international unity with regard to the resolution of the South African question. He looked forward to the report to be submitted by 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be a speech or statement about the issue of apartheid, its effects, and the international community's response to it. The language used is formal and diplomatic, suggesting a high-level political or international context. The text focuses on the moral and ethical aspects of apartheid, highlighting its destructive consequences and the need for international action to oppose it.

**Category**
Humanitarian aid and relief, International relations