§ Mr. LANSBURY(by Private Notice) asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, now that he has returned from Geneva, he can give the House any information as to the latest stages of the treatment of the Sino-Japanese dispute by the special Assembly of the League?
§ Sir J. SIMONAs the House is aware, the representative of China on the Council of the League of Nations on the 12th February exercised the right conferred by Article 15 of the Covenant of the League to transfer the dispute which he had submitted under that Article from the Council to the Assembly. A special Assembly of the League met on the 3rd March to consider the question. On the 4th March the Assembly adopted unanimously a preliminary resolution dealing with certain aspects of the matter, the substance of which was given to the House in the answer of my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary on the 10th March. The special Assembly next undertook a more elaborate examination of the matter from the point of view of the principles involved. The discussion, which took place in a general commission of the Assembly in which all States present were represented, extended over several days, and, after a large number of States present had put forward their views, it was decided to endeavour to embody the result in a comprehensive Resolution. The draft of this Resolution was prepared by the Drafting Committee, composed of a number of both large and small States, under the Presidency of M. Hymans, the Foreign Minister of Belgium, who had also been chosen as President of the special Assembly, and to whose skilful and authoritative chairmanship I wish to 26 pay my tribute. As a result, on Friday evening last, the draft Resolution was put before the Assembly, and I am very happy to be able to report to the House that it was adopted without dissent. All the delegations present voted in favour if it, save the parties to the dispute, both of whom abstained from voting. As, under the Constitution of the Assembly, abstention counts as absence, the result is that the Resolution has the full effect of unanimity. I propose to circulate as a White Paper this Resolution, as well as the Resolution of the 4th March. The House will observe that the Resolution referred, not only to the obligations involved in the Covenant of the League of Nations, but also to the Pact of Paris, and the Government of the United States has since communicated officially to the Secretary-General of the League indicating its satisfaction and approval. The Assembly remains constitutionally in session, and is likely to have a further meeting not later than the 1st May. But what I have reported to the House constitutes the completion of the first stage of the Assembly's work, and I think we have ground for satisfaction in the unanimity of the conclusions which have been reached.
§ Mr. LANSBURYWhile thanking the right hon. Gentleman for his reply, I would like to ask him whether it will be possible for him, either on Wednesday or on Thursday, to give the House any further information as to the steps that have been taken at Shanghai itself to carry out the proposals contained in the recommendations of the League?
§ Sir J. SIMONYes, Sir; I will give an answer on that point as soon as possible, I think that later in the week would be better, because I have not at the moment any very exact information on the subject.
§ Mr. LANSBURYSome of us may desire to discuss this matter before Easter, and it is only in order that we may have the very latest information that I now give the right hon. Gentleman notice that I will put another question to him on Thursday.
§ Earl WINTERTONWill the right hon. Gentleman include in the White Paper an account, by British representatives on the spot, of the exact military position at 27 Shanghai; that is to say, the extent to which the Chinese have been driven back, and the extent to which the Japanese are satisfied with the situation?
§ Sir J. SIMONI will consider my Noble Friend's suggestion, though I do not think it would be very easy to include in a White Paper particulars of that sort, some of which, of course, are of an extremely technical kind.
§ Colonel WEDGWOODWill it include the message we have had from the Government of the United States?
§ Sir J. SIMONYes.