701.0090/1740
The Department of State to the Spanish Embassy
The Department of State acknowledges the receipt of memorandum no. 175 Ex. 120.00 of July 26, 1943 from the Spanish Embassy in charge of Japanese interests in the continental United States setting forth the views of the Japanese Government in regard to the search of baggage and of the persons of repatriates and the amount of funds which each repatriate may be permitted to take out of the country. It is noted that the Japanese Government proposes that the two governments agree not to make a search of the persons of the evacuees and exercise leniency in regard to the search of baggage. It is also noted that the Japanese Government proposes to permit repatriates from the Far East to take with them 1,000 yen and suggests that likewise the United States Government permit repatriates from the Western Hemisphere to take $300 in United States currency.
At the time of the first exchange the United States Government found it necessary to search the persons of a few Japanese non-officials [Page 895] because it had good reason to believe that certain of those persons were attempting to take with them important amounts of currency in excess of the amounts permitted under the exchange agreement and other things which were prohibited in the interest of national defense. The results of the search justified the suspicion in these cases. The United States Government is furthermore informed that many non-official United States nationals had their persons searched prior to leaving Japanese-occupied territory and that even officials of the United States Government departing from Manchuria and Chosen had their persons searched.
The United States Government proposes that the two governments, while agreeing in principle to waive search of persons whenever possible, reserve to themselves the right in a limited number of cases where considerations of national security are felt to exist to exercise a normal search of the type customarily made in such cases. The Government of the United States is agreeable to the Japanese Government’s suggestion that the search of baggage be lenient. It is further proposed in the interest of the repatriates that the search of women if at all necessary be conducted exclusively by female matrons and that a representative of the protecting Power of the same sex be afforded the opportunity to be present if desired by the person to be searched when any search is made, whether of male or female.
With respect to the funds to be carried by repatriates, it is the understanding of the United States Government that under the agreement reached for the first exchange persons leaving the Far East will be permitted to take with them 300 United States dollars, or 1,000 yen or proportionate amounts of both currencies as, for example, $150 and 500 yen, and that reciprocally a choice of such currencies would be available to Japanese leaving this hemisphere. The United States Government upon confirmation that its understanding is correct will make such facilities freely available to all departing Japanese.
The United States Government expects to permit for humanitarian reasons an unaccompanied child under 21 years old or the oldest child of an unaccompanied family group to carry the full amount of funds permitted to an adult. The United States Government hopes that the Japanese Government will take reciprocal action.
The United States Government agrees that United States currency purchased by the Spanish representative on the Gripsholm shall be deposited in an appropriate account in a United States bank for use in the representation of Japanese interests and that Japanese currency similarly purchased by the Swiss representative on the Japanese exchange vessel shall be deposited in a bank and be used for the representation of the interests of the United States.