884.05/7

The Minister in Ethiopia (Southard) to the Secretary of State

No. 241

Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of the Department’s telegraphic instruction No. 38 of August 10th, 1:00 p.m., 1929, expressing the opinion that the proposal for a special court here by the local Diplomatic Corps, as previously submitted to the Department, required further consideration and redrafting before the issuance of definite instructions to this Legation. I am directed to ascertain the attitude of the other interested powers by means of discreet inquiry among my colleagues.

My colleagues of Britain, France, Italy, Germany, and Belgium, all inform me that their respective governments promptly approved the project forwarded with the Legation’s No. 179 of April 10th, 1929.4 The above governments are all represented here by full Ministers who naturally take the initiative in such matters but also, as a matter of courtesy, consult their lesser colleagues. The career Consul who represents Egypt here has indicated the approval of his government. The Honorary Consul General of Greece, who is always consulted because of the comparative size and importance of the Greek colony here, has indicated the approval of his government. The local representatives of Turkey, Sweden and Austria, who are honorary Consuls, are understood not to have been consulted. I long since informed [Page 987] my colleagues that no approval had been received from my government but that in the absence of instructions to the contrary I did not anticipate any serious objections.

On the basis of the above the written proposal for a reorganized special court has already been submitted to the Ethiopian Government in practically the form transmitted with the Legation’s despatch of April 10th, 1929. I am at once informing the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps of the withdrawal, pending further instructions from Washington, of the Legation’s former tentative adherence to the project. This will not, I assume, make any great difference as the matter of a special court is considered at present as of much less interest to Americans than it is to the British, French, Italian and German Legations with their much larger numbers of resident nationals and protégés. Whatever concessions these four nationalities obtain from the Ethiopian Government we can adhere to or not as best suits our opinion. If we do not adhere there is always the danger that an attempt may be made to submit our few Americans here to the … Ethiopian legal and court procedure, against the application of which to foreigners the local British, French and Italian Legations have always been most active. There is a sort of “united we stand, divided we fall” situation.

I would, therefore, appreciate the instructions of the Department as to whether I should inform the Ethiopian Government that the American Government does, or does not, adhere to the project for a special court submitted by the Diplomatic Corps. Although I have made no formal indication of American adherence the Ethiopians will assume such unless the Legation makes soon a formal statement to the contrary. Some action from us is, therefore, due without great delay should the Department disapprove of the project as originally drafted. If the Department will indicate the changes desired I can possibly persuade the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps to submit them in the form of an amendment to the original draft.

However, in the final opinion of the Legation there is no important reason for endeavoring just now to submit this amendment. We need only to indicate approval or disapproval of the project. …

In summary I respectfully venture the opinion that any form of special court procedure meeting the ideas of the local British, French, Italian, and German Legations as providing sufficient protection for their nationals, would seem to be ample protection for Americans and American interests. The national interests indicated can be relied upon to accept nothing less than the most that is possible in concessions from the Ethiopians. Viewing the matter in this light, and in the light of my own appreciable practical and firsthand experience in observation on the ground in various countries of the functioning of [Page 988] the more usual forms of extraterritorial or other special courts, I recommended on page three of Despatch No. 179 the Department’s approval. Nevertheless the Legation can in the end be guided only by the Department’s instructions and such, in detail, would be much appreciated at this time.

I have [etc.]

Addison E. Southard
  1. Not printed.