THE LEAGUE

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLII, Issue 20513, 3 September 1936, Page 4

THE LEAGUE

GOVERNMENT’S VIEWS ON REFORM MEMORANDUM TO ASSEMBLY py Telearnph—Press Association WELLINGTON, September 2. The Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage, stated to-day that the New Zealand Government had forwarded to the Secretary-General of the League of Nations a memorandum setting out the Government’s views on the reform of the League, in compliance with a resolution of the League Assembly, inviting members of the League to make proposals with the object of strengthening the authority of the League. The Government, in forwarding its reply, indicated that if New Zealand's proposals were not considered immediately practicable, it would not demur to consideration of progress by stages, or of alternative proposals. The New Zealand Government's memorandum is as follows: “In accordance with the resolution of the Assembly of the League on July 4, 1936, and anticipating a formal request from the Council (as is necessary in the circumstances of New Zealand, if the proposals of the New Zealand Government are to be received by the Secretary-General before Sep- I tember 1 next) I have the honour to I forward herewith the expression of the ' views of the New Zealand Government I on the Covenant of the League of : Nations: “(1) We believe, in the first place, that there is no material fault in the existing provisions of the covenant, and that the difficulties that have arisen, and that may arise in future, are due to the method and extent of its operation. “(2) We believe that the covenant has never yet been fully applied, and that it cannot be characterised as an ineffective instrument until it has been so applied. "(3) We. are prepared to reaffirm, with the utmost solemnity, our continued acceptance of the covenant as it stands. “(4) We believe, nevertheless, that the covenant is capable of amendment, which should take the form of strengthening rather than weakening its provision. “(5) We are prepared to accept in principle the provisions proposed for the Geneva Protocal of 1924, as one method of strengthening the covenant as it exists. Sanctions. “(6) We are prepared to take our collective share in the application against any future aggressor of full economic sanctions, contemplated by Article XVI., and we are prepared to the extent of our power to join in the collective application of force against any future aggressor. We believe that the sanctions contemplated by the present covenant will be ineffective in future as they have been in the past: “(1) Unless they are made immediate and automatic.

“(2) Unless economic sanctions take the form of the complete boycott contemplated by Article XVI. “(3) Unless any sanctions that may be applied are supported by the certainty that the members of the League applying the sanctions are able, and, if necessary, prepared to use force against force. “(8) It is our belief that the covenant as it is, or in a strengthened form, would in itself be sufficient to prevent war if the world realised that the nations undertaking to apply the covenant actually would do so in fact. “(9) We are prepared to agree to the institution of an international force under the control of the League, or to the allocation to the League of a definite proportion of the armed forces of its members to the extent, if desired, of the whole of those forces, land, sea and air. “(10) We consider’ that there can be no certainty- of the complete and automatic operation of the covenant unless the governments of all members of the League are supported in their determination to apply it by the declared approval of their peoples. “(11) We propose, therefore, that all the members of the League and as many non-members as may be persuaded to adopt this course, should hold immediately a national plebiscite, with the object of taking the opinion of their peoples on the following points: (1) Whether they are prepared to join automatically and immediately in the sanctions contemplated by Article XVI of the Covenant against any aggressor nation nominated as such by the Council or the Assembly; (2) Whether in such case, the armed forces of their country (or such proportion as may previously have been fixed by the League), should be immediately and automatically placed at the complete disposal of the League for that purpose. Regional Facts. “(12) We do not accept the desirability of regional pacts, but if members of the League generally approve of such pacts, we should be prepared to support a collective system, in which all members of the League, while accepting 'he immediate and universal application of the economic sanctions contemplet ’ by Article XVI. neve:tireless, if they desired to do so, restricted to defined arears their undertaking tc use force. “(13) In such case we consider that the question of the use of force in defined areas should also be made the subject of national plebiscites. “(14) We believe it improper to enforce a system of preventing war without at the same time, setting up adequate machinery for the ventilation and if possible rectification of international grievances, and we would support the establishment of an acceptable tribunal for that purpose. “(15) We believe that in peace treaties of the Great War carried within tl mselves the germs of future conflicts. Wc realise the enormou.. (but not insuperable) difficulties of reconsidering the status established by those treaties, and for our part we are prepared in the most genuine and broadminded spirit to join in such a reconsideration. “(16) As a first step we are pre; wed to agree to a proposal that the cove”- rt of the League shoo’d be separated from these peace treaties. “1171 For any general reconsideration of the peace treaties, we shou’d

wish to see all nations of the world, whether members of the League or not, invited to take part. “(18) We should wish also to see al. nations of the world, whether members of the League or not invited to take part in the consideration of the terms and application of the covenant, or of any other universal method of collective security that may be proposed in its stead. ‘‘(l9) We realise the important effect of economic conditions o” the peace of the world, and we should wish also that a world-wide survey of such conditions should be undertaken at tlr same time. “(20) We feel that the peoples o r th world as distinct from their Governments’ should be afforded every possible facility for following the transactio.. of a League, and that all appronriat League discussions should accord igly be broadcast by short wave radio. “(21) Finally, although we belie- e that a collective peace system that is not suppe cd by all nations tlu world, is b“t»— than no collective 1” '.c ‘■■ystem at all. yet. 're - convinced thno such system can be c"‘”’e'y satisfactory "util it is universa’, and I hat every proper effort should be mack to that end.