The Southland Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. Luceo Non Uro. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27, 1928. BRITAIN AND EGYPT

Southland Times, Issue 20523, 27 June 1928, Page 6

The Southland Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. Luceo Non Uro. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 27, 1928. BRITAIN AND EGYPT

Nahas Pasha, the Wafd leader, has lost the coalition which gave him such power in the Egyptian Chamber, and it is possible that the political situation will undergo another change, but the position as it affects the British occupation is not likely to improve sufficiently to remove all friction. In fact it is difficult to see how there can be smooth working. Britain has withdrawn from the internal administration, but remains under the unilateral arrangement of February, 1922, to safeguard in Egypt the rights of British people, of foreign residents and of native minorities, the safeguarding of which may at any time necessitate in the British Government’s judgment a far reaching interference with the details of the Egyptian internal administration. While the control of the internal administration was in British hands many subversive movements could be nipped before they became dangerous, but now it is impossible to do anything until disturbances have actually reached the open. Britain has retained serious responsibilities in Egypt without any means of discharging them except by the use of external pressure in the form of threats, ultimata, the despatch of warships, and the seizure of the Customs or other State assets. This is a clumsy method of keeping the peace, and it is weak because it allows the Egyptian Government to compel the British Government to take extreme measures which appear as flagrant coercion and so annoy the Egyptians. Britain has •full responsibility without constftut-ional powers; Egypt has full constitutional powers without responsibility. But the future is not without hope so long as there is preserved to Britain sufficient power and ecope for effective action where it is required for the protection of British and foreign rights. A greater measure of responsibility for the Egyptian Parliament would probably steady the Wafd and in the long run tend to increase the appreciation of British aid. The maintenance of a visible occupation is a stumbling block, but a compromise might be effective without any impairing of the effectiveness of Britain’s protective power. Nahas Pasha may not be ready even for that compromise, but it is tolerably clear that quite a large section of the Egyptians are prepared to meet the situation frankly and seek out some common basis for the establishment of better relations. Negotiations should be taken up again and if Nahas Pasha is removed from the political

scene by the appearance of a more reasonable Government hopes will rise. At the present time, however, it is not clear that even thia first step is imminent, so that we must be prepared for further evidences of irritation in Egypt.