APPENDICES

APPENDIX No. I

THE SMUTS PROPOSALS

OWING to the fact that many of the proposals of the South African statesman, Jan Christian Smuts, were incorporated into the League of Nations Covenant, the condensed form of his plan is here given. In the original work entitled The League of Nations: A Practical Suggestion,1 General Smuts discusses in detail each of the twenty-one points of his plan, but the heart of each of his suggestions was summarized by him as follows:

1. That in the vast multiplicity of territorial, economic, and other problems with which the conference will find itself confronted it should look upon the setting up of a league of nations as its primary and basic task, and as supplying the necessary organ by means of which most of those problems can find their only stable solution. Indeed, the conference should regard itself as the first or preliminary meeting of the league, intended to work out its organization, functions, and programme.

2. That, so far at any rate as the peoples and territories formerly belonging to Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey are concerned, the league of nations should be considered as the reversionary in the most general sense and as clothed with the right of ultimate disposal in accordance with certain fundamental principles. Reversion to the league of nations should be substituted for any policy of national annexation.

3. These principles are: firstly, that there shall be no annexation of any of these territories to any of the victorious Powers, and secondly, that in the future government of these territories and peoples the rule of self-determination, or the consent of the governed to their form of government, shall be fairly and reasonably applied.

4. That any authority, control, or administration which may be necessary in respect of these territories and peoples, other than their

Published December 16, 1918.

own self-determined autonomy, shall be the exclusive function of and shall be vested in the league of nations and exercised by or on behalf of

it.

5. That it shall be lawful for the league of nations to delegate its authority, control, or administration in respect of any people or territory to some other state whom it may appoint as its agent or mandatory, but that wherever possible the agent or mandatory so appointed shall be nominated or approved by the autonomous people or territory,

6. That the degree of authority, control, or administration exercised by the mandatory state shall in each case be laid down by the league in a special act or charter, which shall reserve to it complete power to ultimate control and supervision, as well as the right of appeal to it from the territory or people affected against any gross breach of the mandate by the mandatory state.

7. That the mandatory state shall in each case be bound to maintain the policy of the open door, or equal economic opportunity for all, and shall form no military forces beyond the standard laid down by the league for the purposes of internal police.

8. That no new state arising from the old empires be recognized or admitted into the league unless on condition that its military forces and armaments shall conform to the standard laid down by the league in respect of it from time to time.

9. That, as the successor to the empires, the league of nations will directly and without power of delegation watch over the relations inter se of the new independent states arising from the break-up of those empires, and will regard as a very special task the duty of conciliating and composing differences between them with a view to the maintenance of good order and general peace.

10. The constitution of the league will be that of a permanent conference between the Governments of the constituent states for the purpose of joint international action in certain defined respects, and will not derogate from the independence of those states. It will consist of a general conference, a council, and courts of arbitration and conciliation.

11. The general conference, in which all constituent states will have equal voting power, will meet periodically to discuss matters submitted to it by the council. These matters will be general measures of international law or arrangements or general proposals for limitation of armaments for securing world peace, or any other general resolutions, the discussion of which by the conference is desired by the council before they are forwarded for the approval of the constituent Governments.

Any resolutions passed by the conference will have the effect of recommendations to the national Governments and Parliaments.

12. The council will be the executive committee of the league, and will consist of the Prime Ministers or Foreign Secretaries or other authoritative representatives of the Great Powers, together with the representatives drawn in rotation from two panels of the middle Powers and minor states respectively, in such a way that the Great Powers have a bare majority. A minority of three or more can veto any action or resolution of the council.

13. The council will meet periodically, and will, in addition, hold an annual meeting of Prime Ministers or Foreign Secretaries for a general interchange of views, and for a review of the general policies of the league. It will appoint a permanent secretariat and staff, and will appoint joint committees for the study and coördination of the international questions with which the council deals, or questions likely to lead to international disputes. It will also take the necessary steps for keeping up proper liaison, not only with the Foreign Offices of the constituent Governments, but also with the authorities acting on behalf of the league in various parts of the world.

14. Its functions will be:

(a) To take executive action or control in regard to the matters set forth in Section A [that is, points 1 to 9] or under any international arrangements or conventions;

(b) To administer and control any property of an international character, such as international waterways, rivers, straits, railways, fortifications, air stations, etc.;

(c) To formulate for the approval of the Governments general measures of international law, or arrangements for limitation of armaments or promotion of world peace.

(Its remaining functions in regard to world peace are dealt with in the following Section C [that is, points 14 to 21]).

15. That all the states represented at the peace conference shall agree to the abolition of conscription or compulsory military service; and that their future defence shall consist of militia or volunteers, whose numbers and training shall, after expert inquiry, be fixed by the council of the league.

16. That while the limitation of armaments in the general sense is impracticable, the council of the league shall determine what direct military equipment and armament is fair and reasonable in respect of the forces laid down under paragraph 15, and that the limits fixed by the council shall not be exceeded withou: its permission.

17. That all factories for the manufacture of direct weapons of war shall be nationalized and their production shall be subject to the inspection of officers of the council; and that the council shall be furnished periodically with returns of imports and exports of munitions of war into or from territories of its members, and as far as possible into or from other countries.

18. That the peace treaty shall provide that the members of the league bind themselves jointly and severally not to go to war with one another

(a) without previously submitting the matter in dispute to arbitration, or to inquiry by the council of the league; and

(b) until there has been an award, or a report by the council; and (c) not even then, as against a member which complies with the award, or with the recommendation (if any) made by the council in its report.

19. That the peace treaty shall provide that if any member of the league breaks its covenant under paragraph 18, it shall ipso facto become at war with all the other members of the league, which shall subject it to complete economic and financial boycott, including the severance of all trade and financial relations and the prohibition of all intercourse between their subjects and the subjects of the covenant-breaking state, and the prevention, as far as possible, of the subjects of the covenantbreaking state from having any commercial or financial intercourse with the subjects of any other state, whether a member of the league or not. While all members of the league are obliged to take the above measures, it is left to the council to recommend what effective naval or military force the members shall contribute, and, if advisable, to absolve the smaller members of the league from making such contribution.

The covenant-breaking state shall after the restoration of peace be subject to perpetual disarmament and to the peaceful régime established for new states under paragraph 8.

20. That the peace treaty shall further provide that if a dispute should arise between any members of the league as to the interpretation of a treaty, or as to any question of international law, or as to any fact which if established would constitute a breach of any international obligation, or as to any damage alleged and the nature and measure of the reparation to be made therefor, and if such dispute cannot be settled by negotiation, the members bind themselves to submit the dispute to arbitration and to carry out any award or decision which may be rendered.

21. That if on any ground it proves impracticable to refer such

dispute [that is non-justiciable disputes] to arbitration, either party to the dispute may apply to the council to take the matter of the dispute into consideration. The council shall give notice of the application to the other party, and make the necessary arrangements for the hearing of the dispute. The council shall ascertain the facts in regard to the dispute and make recommendations based on the merits, and calculated to secure a just and lasting settlement. Other members of the league shall place at the disposal of the council all information in their possession which bears on the dispute. The council shall do its utmost by mediation and conciliation to induce the disputants to agree on a peaceful settlement. The recommendations shall be addressed to the disputants and shall not have the force of decisions. If either party threatens to go to war in spite of the recommendations, the council shall publish its recommendations. If the council fails to arrive at recommendations, both the majority and the minority on the council may publish statements of the respective recommendations they favor, and such publication shall not be regarded as an unfriendly act by either of the disputants.