710.FEAC/4–2345
Memorandum by the Assistant Chief, Division of American Republics Analysis and Liaison (Halle)16
Two inter-American committees, on which the United States is separately represented, are now engaged in making designs for the Inter-American Economic and Social Council that, in accordance with Resolution IX of the Mexico Conference, is to replace the present Inter-American Financial and Economic Advisory Committee (IFEAC). One is the Committee on Inter-American Organization, a subcommittee of the Pan American Union Governing Board, on which Mr. Rockefeller represents the United States. The other is a subcommittee of the IFEAC, on which Mr. Collado of OFD represents the United States. The Governing Board committee is specifically charged with this responsibility. The IFEAC has undertaken to put forward its proposals on its own initiative, as recommendations to the Governing Board.
At the first meeting, last Thursday (April 19), of the Governing Board committee, it found itself confronted with two separate designs for the projected Council: one prepared by Dr. Manger, Counselor of the Pan American Union; the other prepared by the subcommittee of the IFEAC. As might be expected, Dr. Manger’s design ties the Council in very closely to the Union, providing that the economic and social divisions of the Union should be remodeled and enlarged to serve as the Council’s secretariat; the IFEAC design has the Council standing almost entirely free of the Union, with a secretariat of its own that shall take over the economic and social divisions of the Union. The IFEAC design further provides that the Council shall assume a sort of parental relationship to other inter-American agencies in social or economic fields, some of which, like the Inter-American Institute of Agricultural Sciences, now acknowledge the parenthood of the Union.
Dr. Manger’s design cites, for its justification, the “basic concept” of Resolution IX of Mexico “that there should be greater coordination and closer integration of the various agencies and elements that function within the (inter-American) system, under the general supervision of the Governing Board of the Pan American Union”. The [Page 176] IFEAC puts forward as the justification for its design “that in the discussions at the Mexico City Conference it was greatly stressed that the Inter-American Economic and Social Council should be largely autonomous, under the supervision of the Governing Board of the Pan American Union”.
Faced with these two mutually opposed concepts, the Governing Board committee, at its meeting last Thursday, appointed a combined committee consisting of some of its own members and members of the IFEAC committee, and charged it with attempting to reconcile them. This combined committee is scheduled to meet tomorrow (April 24). This Government will be represented on it by Mr. Collado.
I bring this situation to your attention because here is a question of basic policy on which there will need to be coordination within the Department, if it does not already exist, in order to insure that this Government shall not take one position through its representative on one of these committees, another through its representative on the other committee.
I attach copies of the two memoranda17 prepared, respectively, by Dr. Manger of the Union and by the subcommittee of the IFEAC.