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should seek to evade its responsibilty by legalistic intorpretations of Chapter XI which, though they might have been valid a few years previously had lost much of their validity in the light of the current state of world affairs. The widespread unrest in Asia and Africa, which might well become a threat to poaco, had been caused by political
It was to suppression even more than by poverty and famine. counteract that unrest that the most liberal and generous view should
be taken of the meaning of Chapter XI.
Mr. FLETCHER-COOKE (United Kingdom) said that his Government also looked forward to the day when Non-Self-Governing Territories would be able to claim mombership in the United Nations, but reminded the Indian representative that Ceylon, which had recently attained its indepondence, had not yet boon admitted to the United Nations in spite of repeated
applications.
He fully agreed that the question mised by the Egyption representative lny outside the competence of the Committes. Furthermore, it was beyond the compotence of the General Assembly itself to attempt to define which territories fell within the scope of Article 73 e or to establish a list
of those territories, as the constitutional relationships between
Administering Authorities and the Non-Self-Governing Territories foll
entirely within the former's domostic jurisdiction.
Mr. GARREAU (France) pointed out that the torm "Non-Self-Governing
Territories" was not defined in the Charter and did not necessarily refer to
colonial territorios alone. The list of such territories had been drawn
up on the basis of statements made by certain Governments of their own
free will and was consequently by no means exhaustive. Many non-autonomous
populations were not included in it simply because the Governments
concerned had not seen fit to transmit information concerning thom.
The French Government had voluntarily and loyally submitted information
concerning all its overseas territories without exception, including even the
islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, the entire population of which was
French and enjoyed the same rights as the citizens of France itself.
Since then, far-reaching changes in the political relationship between France and its overseas territories had taken place; the latter, for exemple, were govorned in all internal matters by their own freely
elected assemblies. They could no longer be considered Non-Self-Governing
Torritories; the question of the constitutionel ties which bound
them to Metropolitan Franco was one of domestic jurisdiction and therefore
could not be discussed cither by the Committee or by the General
Assembly.
Mr. FARRAG (Egypt)
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