HC Deb 21 February 1884 vol 284 cc1607-8
MR. GIBSON (for Sir H. DRUMMOND WOLFF)

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, Whether, on 4th August 1877, a Convention was concluded with the Egyptian Government containing, among other stipulations, the following:— Article 2. Any person who, either in Egypt, or on the confines of Egypt and her Dependencies towards the centre of Africa, may he found engaged in the traffic in slaves (Negroes or Abyssinians), either directly or indirectly, shall, together with his accomplices, he considered by the Government of the Khedive as guilty of stealing with murder ('vol avec meurtre'); if subject to Egyptian jurisdiction he shall be handed over for trial to a court-martial," &c.; whether in the annexe to this Treaty, and forming part thereof, there is contained a Decree by the Khedive Ismail, in the following words:— Article 1. The sale of slaves, Negroes or Abyssinians, from family to family shall be and is prohibited in Egypt, in an absolute manner, in all the territory comprised between Alexandria and Assouan. This prohibition will have effect in seven years from the signature of the said Convention, of which the present Ordinance will form an integral part. The same prohibition will he extended to the Soudan and other Egyptian Provinces, but only in twelve years from the date of the above signature; whether such dates are respectively 1884 and 1889; and, whether the recent Proclamation of General Gordon relieves the Egyptian Government from the obligations of the said Convention?

MR. GLADSTONE

The citations which occupy the second and fourth paragraphs of this Question are, I believe, accurate, and the dates referred to in the next paragraph are, I believe, also correctly given. With regard to the legal bearing of the recent Proclamation of General Gordon, I could not undertake to enter into the question, or to discuss that subject, until the Government are in authentic possession of official information. I have no official or certain knowledge as to the text of the Proclamation.

MR. GIBSON

Is the right hon. Gentleman in a position to say whether the translation of the Proclamation, as given in The Times, is accurate?

MR. GLADSTONE

There is no doubt the translation approaches to accuracy, but it does not agree with other accounts; and even if we were certain of its accuracy, it would be obviously rash for me to give an opinion on its legal bearing until the text was in the possession of the Government.

MR. JOSEPH COWEN

Will the right hon. Gentleman state when the Government are likely to be in possession of the text of the Proclamation; and, whether the House will be put in immediate possession of it?

LORD EDMOND FITZMAURICE

was understood to say that he expected to have the text of the Proclamation by Wednesday.

MR. JOSEPH COWEN

I suppose the House will be put in possession of it as soon as it arrives?

LORD EDMOND FITZMAURICE

Yes.

MR. JOSEPH COWEN

And of all the Proclamations?

LORD EDMOND FITZMAURICE

Yes.