}
~
"Article 1
1. Each Member
which ratifies this Convention
shall communicate to the Director-General
in respect of the territories referred to in
Article 35
the extent to which it undertakes
that the provisions of the conventions set forth
in the schedule to this convention shall be
applied in respect of the said territories".
+
ILC 83 was adopted at a time when the advanced countries were overwhelmed by the desire to raise the minimum standards of social policy in dependent territories. "Between May 1944 and November 1945 the war had come to an end both in Europe and in the East; the United Nations Charter had been signed at San Francisco and widely ratified; progress had been made in defining responsibilities for the countries which the International Labour Organisation has termed dependent territories; and, in general, courageous attempts of a new type had become essential in order to seek the association of dependent territories in world advancement as an alternative to endemic distrust and epidemic disorder". The concern of the ILO was that "whereas a Convention once ratified by Member states is obligatory upon the metropolitan territory of that State, in the case of colonies, protectorates and other possessions (ie. NMTs in present terminology) no such unconditional obligation exists". The IL General Conferences in 1946 and 1947 considered several options and decided that the adoption of ILC 83 would be the best way to require member states to take on further responsibilities for their dependent territories. These sentiments of the member states should have been well appreciated by the Director-General of the ILO when he made the interpretation of Article 35(4) of the Constitution in 1953. Therefore ILC 83 and ILO's interpretation of Article 35(4) might not be incompatible after all. It should also be noted that back in 1946 when the proposed convention was under discussion, Article 35 was different from our present version. As we do not have a copy of the 1946 ILO Constitution, it might be dangerous to read too much into the background of ILC 83.