[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
OPIUM.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[50871]
No. 1.
471
[December 19.]
SECTION 1.
CO
2018
Rec 20 JAN 12
Sir,
Colonial Office to Foreign Office.--(Received December 19.)
Downing Street, December 18, 1911. WITH reference to your note of the 12th December, I am directed by Mr. Secretary Harcourt to transmit to you, to be laid before Secretary Sir Edward Grey, the accompanying memorandum respecting the exportation and importation of prepared opium in the British colonies in the Far East.
2. I am also to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 15th December, in which are stated the definitions arrived at by the Opium Conference of raw, prepared, and medicinal opium.
3. Mr. Harcourt understands that the resolution quoted in Sir C. C. Smith's telegram of the 12th December merely implies that each Power should undertake to manufacture, by itself or through its agents, only such amount of prepared opium as is required for consumption in its own territories, including in that term colonies and protectorates. Each Power would therefore bind itself not to interfere with the monopoly of any other Power, and would thus have complete control of the opium consumption in its own territories.
110
4. On the assumption that the adoption of the resolution will not interfere with the arrangements for the preparation and distribution of opium now in force in the Malay Peninsula or elsewhere in His Majesty's dominions, Mr. Harcourt sees objection to the British delegates being instructed to vote in favour of the resolution.
I am, &c.
G. V. FIDDES.
Enclosure in No. 1.
Memorandum respecting Restrictions on the Exportation and Importation of Opium in British Colonies in the Far East.
UNDER the law of Ceylon there is no restriction on the exportation of opium, whether prepared or not. This is due to the fact that opium may only be imported by an authorised public officer (the Principal Civil Medical Officer) and may only be supplied to medical practitioners and dispensers for medicinal purposes, and to the limited number of registered opium consumers.
The importation, possession, or sale of opium except by the authorised officer and for the above-mentioned authorised purposes is illegal. There is therefore no question of exportation, the amount imported being regulated by the local consumption.
2. In the Straits Settlements the law gives the Governor in Council power to prohibit the exportation of opium or chandu to any place or to subject exportation to limitations and conditions. So far the Governor in Council has forbidden the export of opium from the colony to Trengganu and Siam except when the requisition for the export is countersigned by the British agent at Trengganu or the consul-general for Siam at Singapore, as the case may be.
No restrictions on exportation from the Federated Malay States are provided by the law.
But in both cases the reason is to be found in the fact that the colony imports only such amount of raw opium as is required for local consumption after preparation, inclusive of the Federated Malay States and other protected States.
3. In Hong Kong exportation of prepared opium or dross opium to China, French Indo-China, the United States of America, the Philippine Islands, Netherlands Indies, Siam, and Japan is forbidden (section 36 of Ordinance No. 23 of 1909 and Government notification No. 94 of the 1st April, 1910).
The exportation of morphine or compounds of opium to Siam and the Netherlands Indies is only permitted on production of an official certificate from the country concerned that the morphine or compound of opium is required by the Government.
(2297 (-1]
འི་