EQUALITY OF SEXES

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21714, 22 February 1936, Page 26

EQUALITY OF SEXES

QUESTION OF NATIONALITY

Women's organisations which, for some time past, have been striving for equality of the sexes in the matter of nationality, are not expected to abate their energies in this direction as a result of the recent report of the first committee of the League of Nations Assembly. Indeed, in view of the divergence of opinion expressed by the delegations at Geneva, the committee itself stated that its resolution concerning the nationality of women "necessarily had the character of a compromise." The "intermediate attitude" adopted by several delegations was due, according to the report, to the fact that their governments, owing to the wide differences of opinion, did not think any further action going beyond the provisions of the convention signed at The Hague in 1930 was possible at the present time. Early Enforcement Desired Several speakers, the report continued, emphasised the value and urged the early enforcement of the convention, which recommended that a woman should not lose her nationality on marriage unless she acquired that of her husband. Some delegates, however, had more decided views. On the one hand, equal treatment of the sexes as formulated in Article 1 of the Montevideo Treaty of 1933—" There shall be no distinction based on sex as regards nationality in their legislation or in their practice"—was upheld-by a number of delegations. The representatives of Soviet Russia, Chile, China, Cuba, Mexico, the Little Entente, Norway, Sweden, Turkey, and Uruguay voiced their anxiety to go on record as having expressed themselves in favour of this, fundamental. On the other hand, certain delegates intimated that their governments could not agree that the nationality of a married woman should be independent of that of her husband. In short, the question of whether equality of the sexes in the matter of nationality would—or wouid not—impair the unity of the family, and would—or would not—improve the status of women in time of war, was not determined.