LEAGUE OF NATIONS

Otago Witness, Issue 3992, 16 September 1930, Page 29

LEAGUE OF NATIONS

OPENING COUNCIL MEETING. REPORT ON PALESTINE READ. RUGBY, September 8. At the opening meeting of the League Council at Geneva to-day M. Procope, Finland’s representative on the council, read the report of the Mandates Commission on Palestine, and outlined the measures taken by the British Government to prevent a recurrence of the disprders. He dwelt on the tremendous difficulties with which the mandatory Power was faced in facilitating the establishment of a Jewish national home and at the same time guaranteeing the political rights of the Arabs. M. Procope expressed the view that |he British statement that the suspension of Jewish immigration was only temporary should allay the anxieties ghown by the Jewish communities. The British Foreign Secretary (Mr Arthur Henderson) dealt at length with |he report, and said the policy of the niandatory Power was to treat equally f)oth sections of the population in Palestine. In the belief that its obligations jn this respect were not irreconcilable, the British Government had sent to Palestine Sir John Hope, a recognised pxpert in land settlement and colonisation, and his report was now under consideration, and would be laid before the council at an early opportunity. The JJritish Government accepted the report pf the commission, and would adopt all the measures likely to bring about goodwill between the two sections of the population, for such goodwill was necessary to the prosperity of Palestine. Subsequent speeches expressed general ponfidence in the mandatory Power, and M. Procope’s report and resolution on Palestine were unanimously adopted.

DELEGATES ASSEMBLING. ' COUNCIL MEETINGS HELD. GENEVA, September 10. Senor Querrero, the retiring president, paid that when they considered the deeprooted errors that the League had been palled upon to eradicate they must be f ratified by what had been done since 929. It would be idle to ignore the fact that there was a certain uneasiness in various parts of the world, but this feeling was productive of less uneasiness than was apparent at first sight. The assembly would welcome M. Briand’s plan, which showed the way to complete ponsolidation of European peace. The assembly elected M. Titulesco as president.

SIGNOR GRANDI LEAVES GENEVA. ft DANGER OF ASSASSINATION. GENEVA, September 10. Signor Grandi, who had attended the League of Nations Council, left for Italy to-day without waiting for the opening of the Assembly. It is rumoured at Geneva that Signor Grandi was in danger of assassination in pevenge for the execution of the four Yugo-Slavs who attempted to blow up the offices of the newspaper Popolo di Trieste. It was feared that terrorists might take advantage of the easy access to Ministers at Geneva, since they are quartered in ordinary hotels. The head of the Italian delegation is not a Minister.

THE ASSEMBLY IN SESSION.

MK HENDERSON’S MESSAGE.

GENEVA, September 11. The Assembly’s eagerness to get down to the principal topics, instead of wasting the early days in listening to flowery platitudes from representatives of the smaller States, led M. Briand to take the rostrum in the forenoon to expound his United States of Europe plan. He Baid he had discussed the scheme with leading Americans, who said it would be an insult to their intelligence to suggest that the federation was aimed against America. On the contrary, it would tend to strengthen the consumptive capacity of Europe, which was America’s largest customer. Cheers greeted the announcement that definite progress had been made in solving the Franco-Italian naval disagreement problem.

Mr Arthur Henderson (British Foreign Secretary) rather increased the view that no great result was to be expected from the plan of a European federation. He only gave the subject a passing reference before he delivered his prepared oration dealing with disarmament, which is nearer to the MacDonald’s Ministry’s heart. Mr Henderson’s real message consisted of one of the strongest British pleas for real progress in disarmament ever heard in Geneva.

Although it was his first attendance at the League, Sir Thomas Wilford (New Zealand’s High Commissioner) was honoured by election to the Assemblys’ committee of seven, which is supervising the agenda. Sir Thomas Wilford is also on six other committees — (1) Constitutional Questions; (2) Technical and Economic; (3) Disarmament; (4) Finance; (5) Health and Social Questions; and (6) Political. At the plenary meeting of the Assembly, M. Briand, in an optimistic speech, declared that the League was increasing in authority among the nations of the world. It was a barrier against

war. There were still difficulties regarding disarmament. France was doing her best to overcome them. He realised that there were obstacles to his plan for a European federation, .but with the cordial co-operation of all nations these could be surmounted.

M. BRIAND’S SCHEME. RUGBY, September 11. At the League Assembly at Geneva to-day, M. Briand, addressing the gathering on his European federation scheme, said that all the countries which had replied to the questionnaire were favourable to the -principle of federation. It was logical, said M. Briand, that the countries which had suffered most from the recent war should work together to prevent another war. No conclusion had so far been reached save that some sort of a federation was necessary. M. Briand said there were many obstacles on the way to disarmament, but many had been surmounted already. So far as France was concerned, it would not have been possible for her to reduce her armaments in the way she had done if the League had not paved the way to security. He recalled the work o*f the London Conference, and said that as Foreign Minister he was in touch with neighbouring friendly nations, and he hoped that accord would be reached which would complete the London ao-ree-ments. °

The British Foreign Secretary (Mr Henderson), in referring to M. Briand’s speech, said the closest collaboration of the European Governments was vitally important to European peace. The British Government had stated its opinion in reply to the questionnaire, and had expressed its great sympathy with the proposal. Whatever developed tT o .™. a discussion of the scheme, the British Government hoped that it would be carried into effect in collaboration with the League and would be consistent with the international obligations of League membership, and would help forwar _ d Lea g« e ’s disarmament policy. Mr Henderson said the British Government heartily supported the majority i eport of the Committee on the Reorganisation of the League Secretariat, and hoped that it would be unanimously adopted. He also hoped that the optional clause would be universally adopted, liecause he regarded it as a first step towards the settlement of all questions by peaceable methods. He emphasised that Britain and the dominions had already ratified the optional clause. One of the chief tasks of the Imperial Conference would be to consider what further contribution the various members of the British Commonwealth could make in the cause of disarmament and world’s peace. Mr Henderson maintained that of all the security measures disarmament was the most important, and he trusted that further progress would be made this year.

SAAR VALLEY OCCUPATION. TROOPS TO BE WITHDRAWN. GENEVA, September 12. lhe council passed a resolution in favour of the withdrawal of the forces protecting the railways in the Saar territory within three months. Dr Curtius (Germany) expressed satisfaction at the solution of the matter. There was a notable decline in the tone of the general debate after yesterday s big guns. The main topic in the lobbies is Mr Henderson’s astute switching of the interest to the problems of disarmament and arbitration instead of M. Briand’s European project, which was not mentioned in any of the morning speeches. General Hertzog and Mr Borden suffered through uninspiringly reading written speeches. The German delegates stirred uneasily and looked daggers when General Hertzog, referring particularly to the recent examination of the South-west African mandate, declared that the Mandates Commission caused the greatest friction by raising academic questions about the permanency of mandates and the extent of the mandatory Powers' sovereignty. Such inquiries should either be abandoned or restricted universally. The League was most gratified by the council’s decision, to evacuate the Saar by all the occupational troops within the period accepted by Germany. This is regarded as a definite achievement towards a complete settlement of the situation, which was second only to the occupation of the Rhineland in the bitterness created in Germany.

AGREEMENT WITH DR CURTIUS. RUGBY, September 12. At Geneva this afternoon the League of Nations Council adopted an agreement reached during private conversa tions with Dr Curtius, the German Foreign Minister, whereby within three months the. last French soldier will have been withdrawn from Germany. The council, which was dealing with the problem of the protection of freedom of transport and transit of the Saar railways, decided to abolish the force protecting the railways as well as the Railway Committee. The abolition of the force is to take effect within three months. PROGRESS IN DISARMAMENT. IMPORTANT STEPS TAKEN RUGBY, September 12. Mr Henderson, when speaking at Geneva on disarmament, said he did not

say that no progress had been made. On the contrary, he believed that during the last 12 months important steps forward had been taken. After referring to the results of the Naval Conference, and to the fact that by the London agreement the British Navy would be 200,000 tons less than it would have been if the proposals before the 1927 conference had been accepted, Mr Henderson expressed the hope that before 1936 further agreements would be made under which no more capital ships should ever be reconstructed. He said that what had been done was only a first step, and he hoped that when the World Disarmament Conference met Britain would, with the other naval Powers, go still further in immediate and substantial reductions in the naval forces. The Preparatory Commission and the other League commissions had had great diffi culties to overcome, but the time for practical results had arrived, and he hoped the Disarmament Conference would be summoned for next year, and that a decisive step would be taken towards the fulfilment of undertakings which bound them all. He appealed for a strong and united effort to achieve the purpose for which the League existed.

ARRIVAL OF AIR SCULLIN. LONDON, September 12. The Australian Press Association’s Geneva correspondent states that Mr Brennan, who will address the assembly probably on Alonday, is considering the advisability himself of meeting Air Scullin at Toulon in order fully to post him with events here, especially as Mr Scullin’s stay will be short. TARIFF TRUCE CONVENTION. LITTLE HOPE OF REDUCTIONS. GENEVA, September 13. Air William Graham, addressing the League Assembly, announced that Britain would ratify the tariff truce con vention. He urged that all the signatories should ratify the convention in order that preparations for the forthcoming conference to negotiate a reduction of duties and to promote freer trade generally might proceed without delay. Air Graham declared that unless sufficient nations ratified by April 1, 1931 Britain would hold herself free to act in any way she desired. It seemed that there was little hope of a general tariff reduction at present, but it might be advantageous to concentrate on certain commodities such as textiles and machinery in order to see how far they could get in progressive reductions. Increased tariffs might temporarily stimulate industries, but the cumulative defect of such a course must seriously delay Europe’s restoration. The permanent solution of economic difficulties lay in the abolition of tariff barriers.