213
EUBLI
PECORD OUNCE
Reference -
C.O.882/12
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE: LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE 8F REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT 10|
24
charge on the community when opium smoking has been abolished. In any case it is doubtful if more than a small fraction of the revenue could be employed in this way.
The
It may be repeated that the action which the Commission suggests appears to be merely a preliminary step to the real problem of abolishing the opium revenue. latter will continue to accrue for a considerable period of time yet, not less than 15 years at any rate. Of the three methods proposed for utilizing the balance of this revenue, it is claimed that under (b), namely, to transfer it to the ordinary budget and utilize it for expenditure on social and sanitary services is the only practical one so far as this Colony is concerned. But, if that is admitted, there seems no valid reason for taking the opium revenue out of the ordinary budget at all. Not only would it be a cumbersome method but it might even tend to conceal the facts about the opium revenue. Surely it is desirable that all the facts about such revenue should be known and published.
31
6. To sum up, there appears to be no "economic advantage to this Govern- ment in making any alteration in its present arrangements which have been deter- mined after a full and complete consideration of the facts of the situation and with the fullest intention of fulfilling its obligations to the utmost.
10th April, 1931.
C.83014/31 [No. 57].
SIR,
No. 20.
A. S. SMALL,
Acting Treasurer, Straits Settlements.
THE BRITISH NORTH BORNEO COMPANY to COLONIAL OFFICE. (Confidential.)
17, St. Helen's Place, London, E.C.3, 10th June, 1931. ` I AM directed to refer to your letter of the 20th March last* and to my reply of the 27th idemt regarding the recommendations of the League of Nations Far Eastern Opium Smoking Commission and the International Conference to be held at Bangkok in November of this year.
2. I am now to transmit a confidential memorandum which has been prepared after consultation with the Governor, commenting on the recommendations of the Commission.
3. With regard to the inquiries in the concluding paragraph of your letter referred to above, I am to say that the Court would be obliged if arrangements could be made for North Borneo to be represented at the Conference by the Malaya delegate.
I am, &c.,
CECIL F. COLLINS,
Acting Secretary.
Enclosure in No. 20.
MEMORANDUM ON THE REPort of the LEAGUE OF NATIONS FAR EASTERN COMMISSION ON OPIUM SMOKING.
(1) Before dealing with the specific conclusions and suggestions of the Far Eastern Commission, contained in Part IV (pages 137 to 146) of Volume of their Report to the Council of the League of Nations, it is desired to call attention to certain erroneous statements, affecting North Borneo, made in Part III.
(2) At page 110 it is stated that :—
*
Opium smuggled into the Philippine Islands comes mainly from ports on the China coast, and though to a much smaller extent-from British North Borneo. The Chief of the Constabulary estimated that 75 per cent. of all smuggled opium came from ports on the China coast and the balance from North Borneo."
* No. 4.
† C. 83014/31 [No. 38]: not printed.
At
page 111 it is stated that :---
25
Opium was coming in freely from British North Borneo, the Moros them- selves being the principal smugglers."
The competent authorities in North Borneo question whether as much as one per cent. of the opium smuggled into the Philippines during the last five years came from North Borneo. In any case, the information given in the above-quoted extracts conflicts with that furnished at pages 70 and 71, viz. :—
"In the Philippine Islands, the Commission heard evidence to the effect that British North Borneo had been for a long time, and still was, a source of supply of illicit opium smuggled into the islands via the Sulu archipelago. Official statements, however, were given that, in latter years, only very small quantities of opium coming from British North Borneo found their way into the centres for illicit traffic in the Philippine Islands."
44
"
(3) In this connexion, it will be recalled that at the Seventh Session of the League of Nations Opium Advisory Committee held in August, 1925, Mrs. Hamilton Wright was obliged to correct her statement that a lot of opium came from British North Borneo" into the Philippines, as the Governor of the Philippines had informed her by telegram that only a very small amount of opium had been smuggled from North Borneo into those islands. Reference may also be made to the note dated 23rd December, 1927, from the United States' Secretary of State to His Majesty's Ambassador at Washington (vide enclosure in Colonial Office Confidential letter of the 6th February, 1928) stating that, according to information received from the Philip- pine authorities, smuggled opium from North Borneo came from Sandakan only, and that during the last two years no seizures of Sandakan opium have been reported by the Collectors of Customs at the Mindanao and Sulu districts, which indicates that the smuggling of opium from Sandakan has ceased or at least has considerably decreased."
(4) At page 133, it is stated that" according to the official reply" by the Govern- ment of North Borneo, no legislative action has been taken under Article IX of the Geneva Opium Agreement, 1925. By reference to the enclosure in the letter from this Company to the Colonial Office dated 23rd May, 1930, it will be seen that the Government of North Borneo answered affirmatively the question (D.17 in the Com- mission's printed Questionnaire) which was put to them on this point and which read: "Has the Government taken legislative measures to render punishable illegitimate transactions in opium carried out in another country by persons residing in its terri- tory? Legislation fully covering the Article in question was embodied in the North Borneo" Opium and Chandu Ordinance," No. 4 of 1927.
"
(5) Passing now to the conclusions and suggestions contained in Part IV, the following comments are submitted :—
No. 1. Necessity for Concurrent Measures.
L
It is considered that the sweeping general conclusions in paragraph 2 of the Commission's remarks under this heading require some modification. While it has undeniably proved a bad policy to combat the illicit traffic but to disregard poppy cultivation which supplies that traffic "; and "to endeavour to limit the demands for opium but to ignore the causes of that demand"; also to control “the use of opium but not of dross, "the remaining dicta of the Commission are open to question. The Government of North Borneo are unable to subscribe to the statements that it has proved a bad policy to register smokers but not to ration them "'; and " to control smoking establishments but to allow opium smoking outside them." 'The British Malaya Opium Committee of 1924 were emphatic in their opinion that registration should precede rationing and should slowly work up to that objective (Cf. their Report P.A. 57, paragraphs 23, 28-29, A. 63, paragraph 5, A. 64, paragraphs 21-22). The suggestion that opium smoking should be prohibited outside of opium smoking establish- ments is dealt with later (see remarks under No. 13). Here it is only necessary to point out that the statement" it has been proved a bad policy to control opium smoking establishments but to allow opium smoking outside them is open to serious question.
No. 2. Scientific Research on the Opium Smoking Problem.
With the limited means and staff at its disposal a small unit like North Borneo could not usefully undertake scientific research. It would appear better to concentrate scientific study in one or more of the bigger units concerned, subsidizing it if necessary by international pro rata contributions. Isolated observations and suggestions would of course be sent from smaller units to the scientific centre for further investigation.