783.003/233
Memorandum by the Assistant Chief of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs (Alling)
Mr. Mallet, Counselor of the British Embassy, called today to communicate orally and confidentially a statement from the British Embassy in Cairo. Mr. Mallet explained that at the time the Embassy in Cairo had furnished Mr. Childs, Secretary of the American Legation in that city, with information concerning the proposed reorganization of the Mixed Courts, it had been stated that during the first half of the proposed interim period vacancies occurring among the foreign judges would be filled by the appointment of new foreign judges. The Egyptian Council of Ministers, however, objected to this arrangement and held out for an arrangement under which vacancies among the foreign judges from the beginning of the interim period would be filled by Egyptian appointees. The Council of Ministers agreed that it would recede from its demand that vacancies among the foreign judges on the Court of Appeals be filled by Egyptian judges if the British would agree to the replacement of foreigners by Egyptians in the lower courts. The Egyptian Council of Ministers also offered to guarantee to suspend this arrangement in the event that the proportion of foreign judges on the Courts of First Instance should at any time be reduced below one-third. In order to obtain [Page 624] the consent of the Council of Ministers to other safeguards which were considered more important, the British finally agreed to the Egyptian proposal, the effect of which is to give the Egyptian Government eventually the same majority on the Courts of First Instance that the foreign Powers now enjoy. It is felt, however, that this concession is adequately safeguarded by continuing a majority of foreign judges on the Court of Appeals.
At the time of his call Mr. Mallet left the attached document12 which he stated required no acknowledgment.
- Supra.↩