CO129-395 - Public Offices - 1912 — Page 281

CO129 Colonial Office Hong Kong Records 理藩院香港檔案 All

14

so-called anti-opium remedies, which for the most part contained opium, morphine, or cocaine. After some discussion, during which Dr. Wu-Lien-Teh showed, from a series of analyses that had been made in regard to a number of these remedies, that nearly all of them contained opium or morphine, even though in some cases warranted not to do so, the resolution was passed unanimously in the following form :--

"La conférence, constatant que, dans les pays où des efforts ont été faits pour combattre l'abus de l'opium, on a été amené à faire usage de soi-disant remèdes anti- opium, contenant de l'opium, de la morphine ou de la cocaïne, décide que les Gouverne- ments participants prendront contre ces remèdes dangereux des mesures analogues à celles qui sont proposées contre l'upium, la morphine, la cocaïne et contre leurs sels respectifs."

The substance of this resolution has been embodied in article 14 (b) of the final convention, which lays down that any preparations, whether styled anti-opium remedies or not, containing more than 2 per cent. of morphine or 1 per cent of cocaine, shall be treated in the same way as those drugs.

57. The Chinese delegation then submitted a series of resolutions having special reference to China, and to the Powers having special treaties with the Chinese Government. These resolutions had been previously discussed with us before they had been presented, and they had been worded in accordance with suggestions we had made.

The first two resolutions were to the effect that :--

(1) The participating Governments agree to co-operate with the Chinese Govern- ment in the prevention of the smuggling of opium, morphine, cocaine, &c., from their colonies in the Far East, or from their leased territories in China into Chinese territory, while the Chinese Government will similarly co-operate towards the prevention of such smuggling from China into the colonies and territories in question.

(2.) With a view to giving practical effect to the principle embodied in resolution No. 9 of the Shanghai commission, the Chinese Government will enact pharmaceutical laws for its subjects, regulating the sale and distribution of morphine, cocaine, &c., and will communicate these laws to the treaty Powers represented at the conference. These Powers will, if they find the said laws acceptable, take the necessary steps for applying them to their own nationals in China.

These two resolutions were carried as they stood.

58. The third resolution was to the effect that the participating Governments would undertake to adopt all necessary measures to restrict and control the smoking of opium in their leased territories, settlements, or concessions in China, and to suppress any opium smoking divans, &c., that might still exist there, as also to prohibit the emoking of opium in places of public amusement and houses of ill-fame.

To this resolution the German delegation moved an amendment, which was adopted, to the effect that the suppression of opium-smoking divans, &c., should take place pari pasen with similar measures adopted by the Chinese Government in its own territories.

59. The fourth resolution, as carried with a verbal amendment suggested by the French delegation, proposed that the participating Powers should take effective measures for the gradual reduction, pari passu with similar measures taken by the Chinese Government, of the number of shops dealing in opium, which may still exist in their leased settlements, territories or concessions, and that they should adopt suitable and effective measures for the restriction and control of the retail trade in opium in these areas.

60. The fifth resolution, after some alteration in the original wording which took place after discussion thereon, was to the following effect :---

"The participating Governments possessing post offices of their own in China undertake to adopt stringent measures to prevent the illegal importation into China. as well as the transmission from one part of China to another through the agency of their aforesaid post offices, of opium, whether raw or prepared, of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts, and of the other substances dealt with in the convention."

61. All these resolutions, subject to the amendments above indicated, passed without opposition, but Siam and Persia abstained from voting as not having treaties with China. The resolutions were originally embodied, as having special reference to the conditions of China and to circumstances which did not affect some of the conference Powers, in a separate supplementary convention. At the fourteenth session, however,

15

278

when the articles came up for discussion in this form, the Chinese delegation proposed that they should figure in the main convention, on the ground that they were of primary importance, and that their relegation to a separate convention would seem to place China on a footing apart from the other conference Powers, After some discussion the matter was referred to the Drafting Committee, which recommended (section II of its report on a variety of matters which had been referred to it, contained in the minutes of the fifteenth session) that to meet the Chinese wish, and with the alteration of "contracting Powers" into "contracting Powers having treaties with China," the articles should figure in the main convention. This proposal came up for discussion at the sixteenth session, and was adopted, Persia and Siain alone dissenting. The articles now figure as Nos. 15 to 19 of Chapter IV in the final convention, and in signing the convention the Siamese and Persian delegates indicated that they did so with a reserve on the subject of these articles, since they have no special treaties with China. We could never understand why these delegations, and especially that of Siam, were so tenacious in pressing this point, since obviously the chapter, as now worded, could only refer to the treaty Powers.

62. The Drafting Committee then put before the conference three drafts, com- prising:-

(a.) Draft articles of a convention embodying the general resolutions already passed on the subject of opium, raw and prepared, morphine, cocaine, &c.

(b) Draft articles on the subject of ratification, adhesion, and denunciation. (c.) A draft final protocol.

A preliminary reading was then given to document (a), and some verbal amend- ments were introduced.

63. At the twelfth session (20th December) the conference proceeded to the discussion of the first portion of document (b), which dealt with the procedure in regard to ratification coming into force, adhesion coming into force, and denunciation in respect of the convention. The procedure submitted for discussion was as follows :----

(1.) There would be a premier dépôt des ratifications at The Hague as soon as several signatory Fowers were prepared to ratify.

(2.) The remaining participating Powers would ratify subsequently by written notification.

(3.) All outside Powers should then be invited to adhere.

(4.) The convention would come into force a year after the Netherlands Government had received the ratifications of all the contracting Powers and the adhesion of all the outside Powers above mentioned.

(5.) If, however, matters were not so far advanced two years after the signing of the convention, all the Powers that had by that time ratified or adhered were to be invited to send delegates to a fresh conference at The Hague to consider the conditions under which the convention might nevertheless be wholly or partially enforced.

(6.) A subsequent denunciation of the convention by any Power would apply only to that Power, and would come into effect a year after notice of denunciation had been given.

6. In regard to the first condition above mentioned, we proposed, to expedite matters, that the convention should in any case be ratified by the participating Powers within six months, and, subject to an American amendment which extended the period to one year, this was carried. As regards the third condition, we also procured an amendment providing that invitation to the outside Powers should take place after the premier dépôt instead of after universal ratification, and that the premier dépôt might have effect as soon as six Powers were ready to ratify.

The discussion of the draft did not proceed further before our Christmas recess, but at the thirteenth session we tabled an important amendment with reference to the manner in which the convention was to come into force, which is given in paragraph 77 infra.

This amendment was referred to the Drafting Committee.

65. The Germans had at the same time drawn up an additional draft article on the subject of denunciation to the following effect :---

"In case a nation which, up to the date of signing the present convention, has not produced opium or manufactured morphine, cocaine, &c, should engage in such production or manufacture, every Power within whose territories opium is produced, or

Ly

Comments

Approved members can add comments, bookmarks, and private notes.

No comments yet.

Private Research Note

Private notes are available after approval.