Steady Progress at UNICO

Manawatu Times, Volume 70, Issue 111, 12 May 1945, Page 5

Steady Progress at UNICO

Thorny Problem Trusteeships (By Telegraph— Press Alin.— Copyrlgbt.l Received Friday, 11.5 p*m. SAN FRANCISCO, May IQ. The Big live failing to present a joint proposal in the irusteeamp question tarew tne prooiem into tne lap of the lesser nations to-nigat, whereupon the a rusteesnip committee under the chairmanship of Mr. Reter Fraser went to work, using as the basis of its discussions a statement irom tne Big Five l rankly setting fourth the divergent views. The New York Times's’ correspondent says mere is a possibility that the whoie question will have to be postponed lor rurther negotiations after the Conference unless the lesser nations break the deadlock. The stumbling block appears to be Britain’s desire to avoid any strong international supervision over her colonies. The original idea about trusteeship attributed to President Roosevelt was that they should be extended to all | colonial territories and should aim to | bring backward peoples to a level of j independence. The idea has been whittled down until only the former mandates and lands from enemy nations I would be subject to trusteeship under the present American proposal. The correspondent says Russia suggested that independence be made the ultimate objective of all colonial territories under the ney League of Nations. This introduced a new element into the trusteeship controversy since Britain and France are not in favour of it and the Americans are still undecided. This is virtually the only proposal the Russians made at the trusteeship meetings. There has been some progress toward resolving the problem of reconciling world and regional security systems with a growing support among the Americans for a simple formula whereby regional disputes should be settled in the Security Council by a rote of any seven of the eleven nations. This would deny the veto on regional questions to five permanent members. The Steering Committee overruled the Economic and Social Committee’s decision that the World Federation of Trades Unions should be allowed to sit in at the committee meetings. The committee voted 32 to 10 when Belgium and Canada protested. The Times comments that this is the first time the powerful Steering Committee has ovtrruled one of the technical committees. The action is regarded as a rebuff to the Russians who laboriously worked for a Conference recog- : mtion of this trade union. The British Dominions continued to • j take the lead in attacking the power of the Big Five in the Security Coun--5 cil. Mr. MacKenzle Kang in committee argued against putting troops at the - disposal of the Security Council withi out having a vote. New Zealand went further, arguing i that the Security Council Should be - stripped of its great powers and made i responsible to the wishes of the G«n----r eral Assembly. 5 The Herald-Tribune says Evatt presented a formula designed to bar Spain f under the present Government from l membership of UNCIO. The formula t bars any Government which has given i military aid to the Axis since 1939 i either in personnel or supplies. i Several Governments expressed opposI ition to the formula and its fate is ref gprded as h’ghlv uncertain. The New York Times’ correspondent f points out that the Conference like an JI iceberg is at least ninetenths below the -1 surface, but from what one gathers conj siderable progress is being made in t solving the problems. The regional I I question is moving to a solution under 31 which the right of any one of the perl manent members on the proooeed Recur i! ity Connell to paralyse the enforces ment of action bv a regional agency is e going to be removed.