CO129-396 - Public Offices - 1912 — Page 269

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(Translation.)

CHAPTER III.---Medicinal Opium, Morphine, Cocaine, &c.

Definitions. By "medicinal opium" is understood:

Raw opium which has been heated to 60 degrees centigrade, powdered or granulated, mixed, if

necessary,

with neutral substances and containing not less than 10 per cent. of

morphine.

By "morphine" is understood:

The principal alkaloid of opium, expressed by the chemical formula C1: H1, N 0.

By "cocaine" is understood:

The principal alkaloid of the leaves of Erythroxylon coca expressed by the formula C H N 04

By "heroine" is understood:

Morphine-diacetylate, expressed by the formula C2 Hà N O

By "codeine" is understood:

Another alkaloid of opium, morphiue-methylate, expressed by the formula C1, H2 N 0.

ÁRTICLE 9.

The contracting Powers shall issue pharmacy laws or regulatious in such a manner as to limit the manufacture, sale, and use of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts to medical and legitimate uses only, unless there be laws in existence which have already regulated this question. They shall co-operate with the other Governments in order to prevent their use for

other object.

any

ARTICLE 10.

The contracting Powers shall limit by laws to establishments and premises, which shall have been designated for this purpose, the manufacture of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts.

ARTICLE 11.

The contracting Powers shall require that all who manufacture, import, sell, distribute, and export morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts, be furnished with a licence allowing them to engage in these transactions.

ARTICLE 12.

The contracting Powers shall require from manufacturers and merchants provided with such licences an account in their books of all transations concerning the manufacture, importation, sale, distribution, and exportation of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts. This rule shall not necessarily apply to medical prescriptions and to sales made by duly authorised pharmacists.

ARTICLE 13.

The contracting Powers shall undertake to cause these manufacturers and merchants, as well as the premises where they carry on this industry or commerce, to be controlled.

ARTICLE 14.

The contracting Powers shall prohibit in their internal commerce, all surrender of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts, to any but authorised persons.

ARTICLE 15.

Due regard being had to the differences in the commercial conditions, the con- tracting Powers shall forbid the importation of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts by unauthorised persous.

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ARTICLE 16.

The contracting Powers bind themselves to prohibit, by special conventions or otherwise, the exportation of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts, from their countries and colonies to the countries, colonies or leased territories of the other con- tracting Powers, except in the case where the consignee shall have received a licence granted according to the laws of the importing country authorising him to import these drugs.

However, every Government wishing to profit by the stipulations of this article shall give from time to time to the Governments of exporting countries information relative to persons to whom licences to import shall have been granted with respect to morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts.

ARTICLE 17.

The contructing Powers shall apply the laws and regulations for the manufacture, importation, sale, or exportation of morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts:

(a.) To medicinal opium;

heroine.

(b) To all preparations (officinal or non-officinal, including the so-called anti-opium remedies) containing more than 0-2 per cent. of morphine, or more than 0.1 per cent. of cocaine;

(c.) To heroine, its salts and preparations containing more than 0.1 per cent. of (d.) To codeine, its salts and preparations containing more than 04 per cent. of (e.) To any new derivative of morphine, cocaine, or their respective salts or to any other alkaloid of opium, which may appear on scientific enquiry to be liable to similar abuse and productive of like ilbeffects.

codeine.

ARTICLE 18"

The contracting Powers shall examine the possibility of taking measures to make it a penal offence to be in illegal possession of raw opium, prepared opium, morphine, cocaine, and their respective salts, unless laws on the subject are already in existence.

40. The only important contemporary amendment, as compared with the original resolutions, cousisted in the interpolation of the clause italicised in article 16, which was moved as an amendment by the German delegation at the ninth session and accepted by us. For the definitions and article 17 we were indebted to the labours of the Technical Committee.

41. Of the above draft articles, No. 9, which was based on a resolution proposed by Sir William Collins at the eighth session, figures as article 9 of the final convention, Nos. 10-16 form the basis of final articles 10--13, and No. 18 corresponds to article 20.

but only after they had undergone very important modifications at a subsequent stage, which will be referred to later on.

42. No. 17, corresponding to final article 14, also underwent subsequent modifica- tions, which may be conveniently dealt with here. In the first place clause (d), which contains a reference to codeine, has been omitted, and consequently there is no mention of codeine in the definition at the head of the chapter. This amendment was moved by the German delegation at the twelfth session, on the ground that there was no a mania or give rise to evidence that the drug in question was calculated to produce habituation. The resolution was supported by the Russian delegation; but opposed by our own, by the Americans, and by the Chinese, on the ground that, although the abuse of codeine was not so generally recognised as in the case of morphine and On a division, the amendment cocaine, there was not wanting evidence of its occurrence. was lost by 8 votes to 2.

43. At the twenty-third session, however (19th January), when the article came up for second reading, the Germans again brought forward their amendment, and stated that if it were rejected they could not vote for the following clause (now article 14 (d) ), on the ground that the introduction of codeine as a drug which at present called for special measures, would indicate that other drugs might be penalised without adequate reason. The majority of the delegates abstained from voting, largely because their scientific members were not present. Finally, however, for the sake of unanimity the proposal was carried, and the references toco deine omitted.