§ 17. Mr. OUTHWAITEasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs the substance of the agreement which has been entered into between the Portuguese Minister of the Colonies and the Witwatersrand Native Labour Association relating to the recruitment of natives in the province of Mozambique?
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for the COLONIES (Mr. Harcourt)It is difficult to state the substance of a document dealing with a number of matters of administrative detail, but the agreement among other matters touches on medical fitness of natives, permits for recruiters, passports, wages, including a system of deferred pay and the period of service, which was fixed at eighteen months. In this latter point the agreement has been held by the Union Government to contravene the Convention of 1909. If the hon. Member desires further information I will place a copy of the agreement in the Library.