GENEVA PROTOCOL.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 22 January 1925, Page 5

GENEVA PROTOCOL.

TO BE REJECTED. COMMONWEALTH CABINET’S DECISION.

BY CABLE—PRESS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT. Received Jan. 22, 10.55 a.m. MELOURNE, Jan. 22. The Federal Government lias decided that it would not be in the interests of. the Commonwealth to accept the Geneva peace protocol. Ministers will therefore recommend that it be rejected. It is learned that Cabinet has received information from the British Ministry to the effect that it could not see its way clear to recommend the British Parliament to ratify the protocol, and that certain other Dominion Ministries held similar views.

CONFERENCE OF DOMINIONS.

REASON FOR ABANDONING IT

LONDON, Jan. 20. In connection with the abandonment of the conference over the Geneva protocol, a communique issued by the Colonial Office stated that correspondence with the Governments of the Dominions and India regarding the proposed conference indicated that the exigencies of Parliamentary and other business rendered it impossible for a representative meeting to be held in London. In the circumstances the only possible course seemed to be to endeavour by correspondence to arrive at a common conclusion on the issues involved. The Australian Press Association says it is understood that a conference of sorts was possible, but this would not be sufficiently representative to satisfy the_ Government. Probably only two Dominion Premiers would have been able to attend. Should correspondence prove an unsatisfactory method of conferring, the Government will probably defer the matter till the next Imperial Conference.