I have reported to you that Mr. MacLeish served most effectively as chairman, winning not
only the confidence of the American delegation but the respect of the
delegations of the other forty-three countries. The American delegation
itself was outstanding at the Conference and did us much credit. It worked
hard and it worked harmoniously. Senator Murray and
others on the delegation were enthusiastic in their reports to me. The only
comparable delegation was that of the French. The British magazines ran
severe criticisms of the bungling of their own Government in the appointment
pf a delegation obviously inferior to ours in reputation and stature. Our
delegation took the lead in injecting into the conference an emphasis on the
mass media of communication—notably broadcasting and the movies—in contrast
to the functions of the old Institute of Intellectual Cooperation, which
operated under the League of Nations largely under the influence of the
French.
Mr. MacLeish used a good metaphor in
describing UNESCO. He referred to a kite lying flat on the ground. He said
that, to give the UNESCO charter vitality, it now requires some wind to lift
it and carry it into the air.
The charter is good and provides an excellent framework but UNESCO will
amount to very little, and will fall far short of the [Page 1524] high hopes many groups in this country
have for it, unless it is backed by men and by money. Perhaps the more
important of the two is the men. If the men who go in as leaders are up to
the opportunity, they will see to it that the money is forthcoming.
The United States has asked for nothing thus far. The Preparatory Commission
is located in London. The executive secretary is an Englishman. The
headquarters of UNESCO are to be in Paris. It is generally understood that
the United States Government can nominate the permanent secretary-general if
it so desires. The choice of this man is crucial. I know you will agree with
me that, unless we turn up with a candidate of stature and capacity, we do
not want to press for an American in this role. I shall submit
recommendations to you subsequently on this.
I am attaching a summary report which reviews the London Conference. Mr.
MacLeish is writing a report on
behalf of the delegation, to be signed by the delegates. He plans a preface
of about 2500 words and a report that may run to 20,000 words. This report
will come to me and I shall forward it to you. This report should be printed
for distribution throughout the country. It will provide the background for
the presentation to Congress and other interested groups, from almost every
major city in the country, who are clamoring for information. A speaking
tour is now being arranged for Dr. Kefauver, our
representative in London on the Preparatory Commission. The delegates and
advisers in London are prepared to write articles and make speeches and, in
fact, nothing can stop them. The Department is providing guidance and
direction here.
I believe it would be a mistake for us in the Department to minimize the
potential significance of UNESCO. True, it may not reach the stratosphere.
But the hopes of millions of people are centered in it. Many believe that it
is the principal instrument through which the world may hope to achieve
better understanding and thus minimize the risks of future wars.
[Enclosure]
Summary Report on the UNESCO Conference
The London Conference, November 1 to 16, 1945
The United Nations Conference on Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization convened in London on November 1st under the Chairmanship
of Miss Ellen Wilkinson, Minister of Education in
[Page 1525] the British Government.
The Associate President was M. Léon Blum, Chief
Delegate of France. The Conference adjourned on November 16 after
adopting the Final Act which recorded approval of a Constitution for the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, an
Instrument establishing a Preparatory Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Commission, and a Resolution that the seat of the Organization
shall be in Paris. The Conference met in plenary session on six of the
sixteen days (three at the beginning, and three at the end) and during
the remainder of the time the draft texts of various parts of the
Constitution and the Instrument for the Preparatory Commission were
agreed to in five Technical Commissions. Forty-four Nations were
represented, and invited Observers were present from the following
International Organizations:
- International Labour Organisation
- League of Nations Secretariat
- League of Nations Committee on Intellectual
Co-operation
- International Institute of Intellectual Co-operation
- Pan-American Union
- United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
(U.N.R.R.A.)
- International Bureau of Education
The Conference had before it, and adopted as its basis of discussion, a
draft constitution prepared by the Conference of Allied Ministers of
Education and submitted to the Governments of the United Nations on
August 1, 1945, together with the invitation to the Conference. A draft
constitution prepared by the French Government and a number of proposals
for amendment of various portions of the text were also before the
Conference.
The Delegation of the United States, under the Chairmanship of Mr.
MacLeish, came together for
the first time on October 25th in Washington. After three days of
intensive review of the draft proposals which had been submitted by the
Conference of Allied Ministers of Education, the Delegation embarked for
London, most of the members arriving there on the evening of October 31.
During the Conference, the Delegation met at least once a day and had a
second meeting almost every day. The members of the Delegation worked
together effectively with the common purpose to obtain the adoption of a
Constitution for the projected organization in harmony with the Charter
of the United Nations.
The Constitution of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization
While the text of the Constitution, as adopted by the Conference, differs
at many points from the language of the draft which was the [Page 1526] basis of discussion, there is, in
fact, a considerable improvement over the earlier text. It does not
differ from it markedly in any important principles. To some extent, the
text of the Constitution spells out in greater detail the principles
which were implicit in the draft. This is especially true with respect
to the Preamble and Article I, Purposes and Functions. The Preamble was
rewritten so as to take account of a wide-spread desire for a statement
which would incorporate the highest aspirations of the peoples of the
United Nations and would evoke a ready response from all who believe in
the dignity of man and the validity of his striving toward knowledge and
his search for truth.
The most important issues involved in the drafting of the Constitution
were: (1) the explicit recognition of science and the interchange of
scientific knowledge as a part of the program of the Organization; (2)
the method of giving adequate representation to and relationship with
the educational, scientific and cultural groups in all countries while
retaining the essential responsibility of governments for developing and
supporting the program of the Organization; (3) the relationship of the
UNESCO to non-governmental international organizations; and (4) the
relationship of UNESCO as a specialized agency to the United Nations
Organization.
- (1)
- There was no controversy about the importance of adding the word
“Scientific” to the title and mentioning science and scientific
cooperation throughout the text. The change was supported,
wholeheartedly by all the Delegations.
- (2)
- The scheme of representation in the General Conference and the
cooperation of the governments with their national educational,
scientific and cultural groups were dealt with by adoption of the
following texts:
Article IV, A, 1
The General Conference shall consist of the representatives
of the States Members of the Organisation. The Government of
each Member State shall appoint not more than five
delegates, who shall be selected after consultation with the
National Commission, if established, or with educational,
scientific and cultural bodies.
Article VII, 1
Each Member State shall make such arrangements as suit its
particular conditions for the purpose of associating its
principal bodies interested in educational, scientific, and
cultural matters with the work of the Organisation,
preferably by the formation of a National Commission broadly
representative of the Government and such bodies.
- (3)
- The French Delegation urged that the United Nations provide for
membership in the Organization by non-governmental international
associations whose aims and purposes are similar to those of UNESCO.
There was little support for the proposal, and although [Page 1527] the French Delegation modified it
considerably to surround such a membership with many conditions, the
proposal was finally defeated by a considerable vote. There was a
consensus of opinion that this Organization must work in close
cooperation with non-governmental bodies, and provision was made at
several points in the Constitution for the development of close
working relationships, including especially the formation of
advisory committees and the presence of invited observers at the
sessions of UNESCO.
- (4)
- The draft submitted by the Conference of Allied Ministers of
Education had stated that this Organization should be brought into
relationship with the United Nations Organization by an agreement to
be negotiated between the appropriate organs of the two bodies. The
statement of this principle has been expanded considerably in the
Constitution. It is made specific with respect to membership and
budget, and the way is left open for the negotiation of an agreement
which will provide for very close working relationships. There was
some support for the immediate consolidation of the budget of UNESCO
with that of UNO. It was finally decided that the wiser course would
be to leave the way open for the closest budgetary relationships but
not to attempt, at this time, to anticipate the extent to which the
governments of the United Nations may wish to go in consolidating
the budgets of the specialized agencies with UNO.
The Delegation of the United Kingdom proposed that the Constitution of
UNESCO be brought into operation by a resolution of the General Assembly
of the United Nations. The American Delegation opposed this suggestion
on the grounds (a) that such method of acceptance
would not be valid for the United States Government which must have the
approval of the Congress for adherence to an international organization,
and (b) that the incorporation of such a
provision in the Constitution of a specialized agency before the United
Nations Organization itself is in full operation would be an attempt to
legislate for the United Nations Organization. When the vote was taken,
seven delegations supported the British proposal. The others agreed with
the position of the United States and preferred not to attempt to
anticipate the extent to which the General Assembly of UNO might wish to
exercise authority over the constitutional existence of the specialized
agencies.
The Preparatory Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Commission
The necessity of setting up a Preparatory Commission for UNESCO was
readily agreed to by all delegations. It was felt that the Organization
would come into operation with more vigor if in the meantime an interim
body had made preliminary studies of items to be placed on the agenda of
the first General Conference. The [Page 1528] United States Delegation proposed that an Interim
Executive Committee be set up by the London Conference, but there was
widespread desire for a Preparatory Commission with one representative
from each of the governments which took part in the constituent
Conference. Therefore, the framework of the Preparatory Commission is
similar to that of the Preparatory Commission of the United Nations.
The Preparatory Commission met immediately after the last plenary session
of the constituent Conference on November 16 and again on November 19.
However, many of the Delegations did not have sufficient authority to
represent their Governments in the Preparatory Commission, and it is now
agreed that the Preparatory Commission must hold a regular meeting on
February 1, 1946. Meanwhile the group which met on November 16 and 19
elected an Executive Committee of fifteen governments, and a Secretariat
has been set up with Sir Alfred Zimmern, who was
Secretary-General of the Conference, as Executive Secretary. Mr.
Walter Kotschnig, Associate
Chief of the Division of International Organization Affairs, U.S.
Department of State, has been detailed to serve as Deputy Executive
Secretary until February 15, in order to get the work of the Preparatory
Commission well under way. The Executive Committee is meeting December 3
and on December 4 there is a meeting of a Technical Subcommittee on
Educational Reconstruction representing seventeen governments. The acts
of the group which met November 16 and 19, as well as those of the
Executive Committee are considered preliminary and are subject to
confirmation and approval by the Preparatory Commission when it meets on
February 1.
One of the most urgent problems before the Preparatory Commission is one
which caused considerable controversy during the Conference, namely the
extent to which and the methods by which this body can assist in the
rehabilitation of educational systems of the countries devastated by the
war. In the Conference many delegations insisted that UNESCO, and
especially the Preparatory Commission, should be given the function of
obtaining funds and administering them for the rehabilitation of those
countries which need such assistance. It is probably not too much to say
that it was only the refusal of the Delegation of the United States to
accept this view that kept it from being adopted. The position of the
United States was (1) that the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization and its Preparatory Commission should not have
their energies turned as completely into short term activities as would
undoubtedly be the case if the task of educational reconstruction were
placed directly upon it; and (2) the limitations on the relief
activities of UNRRA indicated that the Government of the United [Page 1529] States would not participate
in such a program. At the same time, the United States Delegation
undertook to point out various ways by which the governments in need of
assistance could obtain it, and it was finally agreed that there should
be a Technical Subcommittee of the Preparatory Commission whose task
would be to compile information on the educational needs of the
devastated countries, and to provide information on the ways in which
assistance might be given through existing channels. There has already
been an effort to recommend to the Preparatory Commission that it ask
the Governments of the United Nations to extend the activities of UNRRA
into the field of educational reconstruction. The representative of the
United States has opposed this suggestion and will continue to do so on
instructions from the Department.
In spite of their opposition to certain of the proposals made for
educational relief in the devastated countries, the Delegation of the
United States recognized that the need of assistance is very great. The
governments of the liberated nations will make strenuous attempts to
rebuild the educational and cultural life of their people and they are
severely handicapped by the lack of money, equipment and trained
teachers. Most of the delegates expressed the feeling that it would be
desirable for a way to be found within the United States to encourage
widespread interest on the part of the general public in this problem,
and to develop a system for obtaining contributions from private sources
and not through the machinery of the United States Government. This
problem will need to be given careful consideration.
The Immediate Program of the United States
The most immediate question is how to proceed to obtain acceptance of the
Constitution of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization by the Congress of the United States. Some informal
discussions have already been held on this problem, and at present it
seems wiser to wait until after Christmas for the introduction of
legislation to authorize the United States to belong to this
Organization. The dissemination of information about the new
Organization is proceeding, and the Office of Public Affairs is already
making arrangements for this activity in cooperation with the other
interested Offices.
The organization of a National Commission in the United States is a
subject which will require considerable thought. It will be necessary to
decide whether there is to be a single National Commission or several
recognized bodies, and if there is to be a single body, how it is to be
organized and what its relationship is to be to the United States
Government.
