§ SIR MANCHERJEE BHOWNAGGREE (Bethnal Green, N.E.)To ask the Secretary of State for the Colonies, in respect to the provision of constitutional changes in the Transvaal, whether his attention has been called to the fact that the undertaking in the terms of peace signed in 1902 that the question of granting the franchise to the natives would not be decided until after the introduction of self-government did not apply to the case of non-African coloured subjects of His Majesty, or bind the Government to withhold the franchise from British Indians possessing the requisite educational and property qualifications; and whether, in these circumstances, he will advise His Majesty to so amend the Letters Patent and Order in Council as to admit such British Indians to the franchise, in fulfilment of various official pledges, including that contained in Governor Viscount Milner's despatch to Mr. Chamberlain, dated May 11th, 1903.
737 (Answered by Mr. Secretary Lyttelton.) The reason why, as stated in my despatch of March 31st in [Cd. 2400], His Majesty's Government have been unable to make provision for the representation of any of His Majesty's coloured subjects is that they understand that the interpretation placed upon the pledge contained in the terms of peace by the burghers is that the question of granting the Parliamentary franchise to any coloured persons would not be decided until after the introduction of self-government. Having regard to this fact and to the importance of giving no ground for a charge of departing from the terms of peace, I am not prepared to advise His Majesty to amend the Letters Patent, and I am not aware that specific pledges on this point have been given either in the despatch quoted or otherwise.