PRINCIPLE OF JOINT ACTION

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26126, 31 May 1950, Page 7

PRINCIPLE OF JOINT ACTION

Important recommendations are:— (1) In the political field the conference has emphasised the need for consultations through normal channels.

(2) The conference firmly established the principle of joint action among countries of the region for a specific purpose.

(3) The conference establishes the doctrine that the interests of the peoples of the region will be the primary consideration in any attempt to solve their problems.

(4) In the economic field the conference sets forth the principle that the countries of the region should have a hand in fixing fair prices in the world market for their export products. (5) The conference points out the need for bilateral trade and payments agreements, and points to the possibility of a multilateral clearing agreement.

(6) The conference further emphasies the need for the interchange of technical men and technical informa-

tion among the countries of the region as well as the adjustment of their economic plans in order to enhance their productive capacities and achieve better balanced economies.

In a statement to the press General Romulo said: “The document proposes no final solution for the complex and difficult problems of our region. It contains no earth-shaking declaration, but it is epoch-making in that it is the first official declaration of its kind emanating from a conference of representatives of free states of South and South-east Asia, which, in itself, is a milestone in the history of the region. “Viewed against the background of conditions that have obtained among our peoples in the region for many centuries, this document is much more than a mere statement of familiar principles. It i$ a triumph of initiative, courage, and understanding, and I am certain that succeeding generations will consider it in this light at the beginning of a major historic development in Asia.”