439
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Article 17.
The Contracting Powers having treaties with China shall undertake to adopt the measures necessary for the restraint and control of the opium-smoking habit in their leased territories, "settlements" and concessions in China, for the suppression pari passu with the Chinese Government of the opium divans or similar establishments which may still exist there, and for the prohibition of the use of opium in houses of amusement and of prostitution.
Article 18.
The Contracting Powers having treaties with China shall take effective measures for the gradual reduction, pari paasu with the effective measures which the Chinese Government shall take to the same end, of the number of shops, intended for the sale of raw and prepared opium, which may still exist in their loased territories, set- tlements and concessions in China. They shall adopt efficacious measures for the restraint and control of the retail trade in opium in the leased territories, settlements and concessions, unless existing measures have already regulated the matter.
Article 19.
The Contracting Powers who have post-offices in China shall adopt efficacious measures to prohibit the illegal importation into China, in the guise of a postal package, as well as the illegal transmission from one locality to another in China through the intermediary of these post-offices, of opium, whether raw or prepared, of morphiné and of cocaine and their respective salts, and of other substances indicated in article 14 of the present Convention.
CHAPTER V.
Article 20,
The Contracting Powers shall examine into the possibility of enact- ing laws or regulations making the illegal possession of raw opium, prepared opium, morphine, cocaine and their respective salts liable to penalties, unless existing laws or regulations have already regu- lated the matter.
Articlo 21.
The Contracting Powers shall communicate to each other, through the Netherlands Ministry for Foreign Affairs:
a. the text of the laws and the administrative regulations in exist ence which concern matters aimed at by the present convention or enacted by virtue of its clauses;
b. statistical information with respect to that which concerns the traffic in raw opium, prepared opium, morphine, cocaine and their respective salts, as well as all other drugs or their salts or prepara- tions aimed at by the present Convention.
These data shall be furnished with as much detail and in as short a time as shall be deemed possible.
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CHAPTER VI,
Final Provisions.
Article 22.
The Powers not represented at the Conference shall be permitted to sign the present Convention.
To this end, the Netherlands Government shall invite, immediately fter the Convention shall have been signed by the Plenipotentiaries of the Powers who have taken part in the Conference, all the Powers of Europe and of America not represented at the Conference, to wit, the Argentine Republic; Austria Hungary; Belgium; Bolivia; Brazil; Bulgaria; Chile; Colombia; Costa Rica; Republic of Cuba; Denmark; Dominican Republic; Republic of Ecuador; Spain; Grecce; Guate- mala; Republic of Haiti Honduras; Luxemburg; Mexico; Monte- negro; Nicaragua; Norway; Panama; Paraguay; Peru; Roumania; Salvador; Servia; Sweden; Switzerland; Turkey; Uruguay, United States of Venezuela, to designate a Delegate armed with the full powers necessary for the signing of the Convention at The Hague.
The Convention shall be furnished with these signatures by means of a "Protocol of signature of Powers not represented at the Con- ference," to be added after the signatures of the Powers represented and indicating the date of each signature.
The Netherlands Government shall give notice every month, to all the Signatory Powers, of each supplementary signature.
Article 23.
After all the Powers, as much for themselves as for their posses- sions, colonies, protectorates and leased territories, shall have signed the Convention, or the supplementary Protocol herein before indi- cated, the Netherlands Government shall invite the Powers to ratify the Convention together with this Protocol.
In case the signature of all the Powers invited shall not have been secured by December 31, 1912, the Netherlands Government shall immediately invite all the Powers who have signed by that date, to designate Delegates to proceed to The Hague to examine into the possibility of nevertheless depositing their ratifications.
Ratification shall be executed within as short a time as possible and shall be deposited at once at The Hague in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
The Netherlands Government shell give notice every month to the Signatory Powers of the ratifications which it shall have received in the interval.
As soon as the ratifications of all the signatory Powers, as much for themselves as for their colonies, possessions, protectorates and leased territories, shall have been received by the Netherlands Government, this government shall give notice to all the Powers who shall have ratified the Convention, of the date on which the last of such acts of ratification shall have been received.