نا
"1. That the farm system, where it is still in operation, should be abolished, and the opium business should be made a Government monopoly and kept ent in the hands of the Government.
"II. As a corollary of paragraph 1, that the retail sale of prepared opium should
made only from Government shops, and that all private shops should be abol Persons in charge of the Government shops should be paid a fixed salary, with any commission on the amount of business done, and therefore would hav temptation to push the sales.
Twenty-one Governments had transmitted to the Secretariat an approximate estimate their total annual requirements for internal consumption, and the Mixed Sub-Committee ointed jointly by the Health and Opium Committees was still pursuing its investigations. Suggestions were considered regarding the limitation of the manufacture of morphine, heroin: nd cocaine, and the Committee reached the conclusion that it now seemed possible for the Govern- nts of the producing countries to approach each other with a view to reaching a general under- nding.
With regard to heroin, the Advisory Committee, on the suggestion of the Portuguese repre- tative, decided to recommend to the Council a resolution to the effect that Governments should asked to transmit their views as to the possibility of the total suppression of the manufacture as necessary either for special cases or for prescriptions by specialists. The Portuguese represen
"III. That a uniform maximum limit should be fixed for the amount of proef heroin or, alternatively, the limitation of its manufacture to the minimum quantities recognised
opium placed on sale for consumption, calculated according to the aunier
the adult Chinese male population, e.g.. x taels per 10,000 adult Chinese mitive supported his proposal by referring to certain authoritative opinions expressed in the
in the territory, and that the annual imports of raw opium should be li to the amount required for that rate of consumption.
"IV. That the possibilities of the system of registration and licensing, which has alres
been introduced in some of the Far Eastern territories, should be thor explored.
"v. That the possibility should be considered of making uniform, so far as cir
stances permit:
(a) the price at which prepared opium is retailed in the different territories, a (b) the penalties for infraction of the law in regard to the import, export, s
and use of prepared opium.
edical world, which tended to show that the total suppression of the manufacture of heroin ould not deprive the medical world of a necessary drug.
of the limitation of the manufacture of these drugs will be found in that part of this report dealing The Committee's final decision regarding the action to be recommended on the question with the proposals of the United States of America.
PROGRESS REPORT.
The Advisory Committee also had before it a progress report by the Secretariat on the work complished since its January session.
"vi. That the interested Powers, that is the Powers having territories in the F East where the consumption of prepared opium is still permitted, should concheg an agreement among themselves to apply the foregoing measures for the purro of carrying out Chapter II of the Convention.
"VII. That the position should be generally reviewed periodically by the Pos interested and the question of further reducing the maximum limit fixed in agreement should be considered. "
The Committee further unanimously decided to recommend that the minutes of its dis sions on the subject should be communicated to the Governments with the resolution.
LIMITATION OF THE MANUFACTURE OF MORPHINE, OTHER OPIUM DERIVATIVES AND "COCAINE,
(a) Signature and Ratification of the Convention.
had ratified, the International Opium Convention of 1912 (Annex 1). Mrs. Hamilton Wright The Committee noted that fifty-one countries Members of the League had signed, and forty- arnished the Committee with information regarding the position in Turkey. She had been that the text of the Convention had been included in the Treaty at present under consideration fficially requested by the Turkish Delegation to the Lausanne Conference to inform the Conumittee between Turkey and Greece, that Turkey was willing to accept the Convention, to join the League
of Nations and to accept the same restrictions as any other nation.
(b) Import Certificate System.
The Committee reviewed the general situation and noted that twenty States had accepted the import and export certificate system and had put it into force, and that thirteen others had ccepted it in principle (Annex 2). Since the last session of the Committee, therefore, eight more countries had now put this system into effect and three had accepted it in principle.
The representatives of the United States of America explained the system of certificates Control Board in respect of each consignment proposed to be imported, and, if approval were ven, could obtain from the Board a certificate to that effect. The Board had full power to
The Advisory Committee examined such figures as had been obtainable regarding the main force in that country. An importer had to obtain authority from the Federal Narcotics facture of morphine, other opiam derivatives and cocaine in the producing countries. It became apparent, during the consideration of this item of the agenda, that there was a large nous of morphine and other drugs imported to and manufactured in Japar.. The Committee receivedopt any form of certificate which it might think fit. explanations from the Japanese representative to the effect that, as no figures for the quantity of morphine actually remaining in stock in Japan were available, the statistics for import and manufacture combined could not be taken as representing consumption. The Committee note that those States might, before sanctioning exports to the United States of America, obtain the that, from information supplied by the Japanese Government to the Japanese Diet on February and, 1923, it appeared that the quantity of narcotic drugs required by Japan for internal co sumption was far below the amount imported and manufactured.
The Japanese representative said that it might be supposed that some quantity of drugs was smuggled out of Japan without the knowledge of the Japanese Government, but he informed the Committee of new ordinances which had lately been promulgated by his Government with the object of restricting the import and export of morphine, cocaine and their respective sals and of supervising their manufacture, sale and consumption. The new laws required the permis sion of the Department of Home Affairs for the export and import of these drugs, and, in the case of export, the application had to be accompanied by a certificate issued by the authorities of the locality to which the shipment was destined. A manufacturer was required to notify the local authorities of the raw materials which he used, his yearly output and the whereabout. of his factory, He had further to furnish an annual report of the names of the products, the quar tities which he manufactured and the sources of supply of his raw materials. The Committee was glad to receive the assurances of the Japanese representative that his Government was taking more effective measures to cope with the general situation in Japan regarding narcotics.
The Committee had before it statistics of the import of drugs into America showing that the great majority of the derivatives of opium and cocaine imported by the United States was furnished by Switzerland. The importance of obtaining the adhesion of Switzerland to the Convention and the import and export certificate system was emphasised.
The information obtained by the Committee concerning the manufacture of drugs was steadily increasing and seemed to make it possible now to form a rough estimate of the world's requirements.
The Committee instructed the Secretariat to communicate the particulars of the system in force in America to all signatory States of the International Opium Convention of 1913 in order
production of a certificate from the Federal Narcotics Control Board.
The Portuguese representative stated that a Bill was at the moment before the Portuguese Chamber providing for the issue of a certificate of import to all exporting countries which demanded it. The certificate would state that the quantities imported were for medicinal and scientific purposes and, further, that the drugs would not be re-exported; the certificate would apply only to European and Insular Portugal. With regard to the Portuguese Colonies, the Portuguese Government thought it preferable to make special provisions in view of the special conditions obtaining in Macao with regard to the question of opium.
Through lack of time, the further consideration of the position in regard to the import cer- sficate system was postponed till the next session of the Committee.
The Committee was also compelled to postpone the further consideration of the resolution of the third Assembly, as the position in regard to Switzerland, Turkey and Persia was not yet cleared up.
(c) Annual Reports.
Fifteen annual reports for 1921 and eleven for 1922 have been received by the Secretariat. Several of these reports, however, are not complete. The Committee decided once more to ask the Council to urge on the Governments the importance of sending in the annual reports on the traffic in opium and other dangerous drugs in accordance with the unanimous recommendation of the Assembly, since the information which they contained was of the utmost value.
The following States Members of the League have signed but not ratified the Convention: Argentine, Colombia, Costa Rica, Esthonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Paraguay, Persia and Switzerland.
Albania has neither signed nor ratified the Convention.
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