§ 1. Mr. CROWDERasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has yet received a detailed report from Sir Sidney Barton on the period immediately preceding the occupation of Addis Ababa by the Italian forces; and, if so, whether he will consider its publication, together with any written communications which have been received from foreign Powers whose legations owe some measure of their security to the activities of the British legation guard?
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Mr. Eden)I have now received this report and will arrange for it to be made available as a 964 White Paper at an early date. I am also prepared to include in the White Paper the written communications received from certain foreign Powers to which my hon. Friend refers, but it will first be necessary to obtain the consent of these Powers.
§ 3. Mr. MANDERasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what steps the Government propose to take to carry out in respect of Abyssinia, in association with other League members, the obligation under Article 10 of the Covenant to preserve against external aggression the territorial integrity and political independence of all members of the League?
§ Mr. EDENPerhaps the hon. Member will await the Debate which is to take place shortly when all aspects of the Italo-Abyssinian dispute will be under review.
§ Mr. MANDERDo I understand from that that my right hon. Friend will tell us to-morrow what steps the Government intend to take to carry out our obligations under Article 10 of the Covenant?
§ Mr. MANDERWill the right hon. Gentleman be good enough to say whether he will deal with that matter?
§ Mr. EMMOTTCan nothing be done to save the League of Nations from its friends?
§ Mr. MANDERCan I not have an answer?
Mr. VYVYAN ADAMSHave the Government fully before them the plea of the Imperial statesman, General Smuts—to use his own language—that Italy must not get away with it?
§ 8. Mr. DENVILLEasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that the report just issued by the League of Nations Slavery Commission says that after 1932 the Abyssinian Government failed to prove that the measures promised for the abolition of slavery were being carried out; that the proportion of slaves in the Tigré territories was found by the Italian troops to be one-twelfth of the population and that the fate of 10,000 slaves 965 attached to Ras Desta's army was unknown; and whether he will move for investigation into this matter and place these facts before the League Assembly at Geneva on 30th June?
§ Mr. EDENNeither of the statements attributed by my hon. Friend to the Advisory Committee of Experts on Slavery in fact appears in their report. Certain statements relating to the situation in those parts of Ethiopia occupied by the Italian forces are, however, contained in a document communicated to the Committee by the Italian Government and published as an annex to the report. The Committee did not express any opinion upon the statements in this document, since, under the Assembly resolution by which the Committee was constituted, communications relating to slavery transmitted by one country and dealing with the situation in another country are required in the first instance to be communicated for observations to the country concerned. The report of the Committee is on the agenda of the next session of the Council.
§ 10. Mr. A. HENDERSONasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what are, in the view of his Department, the benefits furnished by the Pact of Paris, to which reference is made in the preamble of the Treaty?
§ Mr. EDENThe benefits furnished by the Pact of Paris consist for this purpose of the undertaking of the parties not to resort to war with one another in violation of its terms. The object of the provision in question was, as appears plainly from the published correspondence which preceded the signature of the Pact, to ensure that the Pact should not debar the parties to it from coining to the assistance of a party which had been attacked by another party in violation of its terms.
§ Mr. HENDERSONIs it not established beyond doubt that Italy has resorted to war in order to promote a national interest in breach of this Treaty, and will not the right hon. Gentleman consult with the United States Government and the other Governments signatories to the Treaty with a view to denying Italy the benefits of the Treaty to which the right hon. Gentleman has just referred?
§ Mr. EDENI do not think the hon. Member has understood the position. Perhaps he will read the answer I have given and put a question on the Paper.
§ Mr. MANDERIs it not perfectly clear that pacts of this kind are useless unless they are backed by genuine sanctions?
§ Mr. HENDERSONIs there anything which would prevent the British Government from consulting with the other Governments signatories to the treaty with a view to making a declaration or taking up some position, having regard to the breach of the treaty by Italy?
§ 11. Mr. COCKSasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, in the course of the Italo-Ethiopian conflict, any proposal or proposals by His Majesty's Government to impose more effective sanctions on Italy were rejected by the League of Nations; and, if so, will he give particulars of such happenings?
§ Mr. EDENHis Majesty's Government have repeatedly declared their readiness to participate in any further measures of a financial and economic character which might be agreed upon.
§ Mr. COCKSDoes the right hon. Gentleman mean that no proposals made by the British Government have been rejected by other nations, and that therefore the failure of sanctions is not due to other nations, but to the weakness, timidity and cowardice of the British Government?
§ Mr. EDENI would not like to deprive the hon. Gentleman of any satisfaction he gets from such reasoning.
§ Mr. DALTONWhat is asked in the question is whether any proposals by His Majesty's Government to impose more effective sanctions on Italy were rejected by the League of Nations. We have not had an answer to that.
§ 12. Lieut. - Commander FLETCHERasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether any decision has yet 967 been come to as to recognising the assumption of the title of Emperor of Abyssinia by His Majesty the King of Italy?