INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS GROUP WEEKLY SUMMARY NO. 17

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79-01090A000100020035-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 13, 2000
• Sequence Number: 35
• Publication Date: April 26, 1949
• Content Type: PERRPT

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INTL: -dNATIONAL ORGtUi1Z t'i.'ICNS GAGUF
W t ,? ltLY 4U1 iatY NJG e ~-7
For week ending 26 April 1949
The international Week
USSR overtures to lift: the Berlin olockade raise the possibility of
another L,eetin? of the Council oa" Foreign Ministers. The ^, i~era enb1v
ti,eii husbldra 18!
condei::ned the USiR's rei:u.sal to a:l.l.ovv Soviet v.ives to join
abre,7ad. rlier the Ad Hoc. Political Committee voted 34-6 to p pons cora--
sidaration of the trials ~..)f CarUnal Miridszenty and the Bulgarian clergymen
until. the next GA session, aueauw hit appruvi:a-; resort to thd i.achinery of the
Hun arian and Bul ;ai1an peace treaties.
GA E6' P Ti
Mu3 a trusteestii or Libya. If the key Latin American and Arab blocs
can reach a meeting, of minus on the adminirrtrative features of a multiple
trusteeship for Libya, this solution is likely to be approved by the GA,, Both
the Latin Americans and the Arabs favor sorry form of US-Ui-French?rgyptian-
Italian trusteeship as a compromise solution, but they differ over internal. ad -
n irr stration . The Arab states insist upon unity of Libya ira fact as well as in
app.,arance, with a single governor general over the whole territory., The Latin
Americans favor having Italy adimiaister Tripolitania, France the Fezzan and
I31ri.,.ain Cyrenaica., Should these critical differences prove irreconcilable, no
oth- r solution offers much prospect ;of sectLring a two-thirds majority and the
dis,,osition of all Libya or at least Tripolitania will probably be postponed.
It .ors questionable, however, whether the i3ritish proposal t.o retain control
while postponing the' disposition of Tripolitania until 1952 would gain GA
app,-.Oval.
Meanwhile the efforts of the pro-Italian bloc to give Italy at least some
role in Zrriitrea have lessened the likelihood that the US-UK proposal to cede
the bulk of the colony to Ethiopia :ill be approved separately. There is a
strc,ng sentiment for a one-packave solution for all three colonies, with the
eom)eting blocs using each as a bargaining counter for the others. Corise-
queiitly, unless a comproaise is reached on all the colonies together, the whole
iss a may be postponed.
GA action on Sa ifl unlike: r, In view of the growing sentiment against the
Bra ilian proposal to raise the ban on chie "s of missions in ttadria, it appears
doxi,atful whether pro -Span.i.sh UN members can rally sufficient votes to pass such
a may asure . `.,,be US decision to abstain on this issue has strer4 th ed ;7estern
DOCUMENT NO. 11 -
)COECL4SSIFIED
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ruropean opposition. Although assured of come fifteen Latin American, six Arab
and possibly another half dozen iAAiddle and Far Lastern'votes, Brazil and its
co-sponsor would not be able to muster the two-thirds required for approval in
face of opposition from Western Lurope, the US, UK, Canada, Australia, China,
the Fhili,pines$ the Soviet bloc and the remainin; Latin American states.
Brazil is ;:till determined to present its resolution, but when the strength of
the opposition becomes fully apuax nt, the Brazilians may withdraw the proposal
rather tha::n see it defeated.
Human,.,r sin Venezuela. Uruguay's plan to brim ;before the GA the
question o ' the treat.-aeat of political prisoners by Venezuela would create an
embarras61:i; situation. It would reflect upon the ability of the Organization
of American :states to handle inter-American. affairs; would harni the UN, because
failure to approve the Uruguayan resolution rai6ht raise soi ie question of GA
authority 'Lo consider these matters; and would open the door to the submission
to the GA of too many similar cases. The only result would be an acrimonious
debate, presenting the Slav bloc with a wonderful propaganda opportunity.
satin American opinion on the matter is sharply divided. Venezuela argues
that the question is pnnrel,y domestic. several Latin American states consider
the ratter a f anily affair, properly to be handled by the OAS. The mere fact
that the issue has been rai.aed has apparently produced results in Venezuela.
Twenty-two prisoners have already been released and the fear remaining ones will
be brou;ht to trial promptly.
Obsta-?Lars to FOI Convention. The attitude of numerous countries favoring
wider lini.4,s of censorship indicates that the US will have difficulty in secur-
ing the type of Freedom of Information Convention that it wants. wince the
opening of the GA, the Social Committee has been considering three draft con-
ventiona concerning freedom of the press adopted at a Geneva FDl Conference .n
early 1948m a US text for the Gather ng and International T'ranar, fission of Rows
recently combined with the French text on the International i ht of Official
Correction; and a UK text, Freedom of Infortaation, which seeks to eliminate
goverrurental interference. The US faces a stiff fight in the 124,, because Wany
countries with ideologies far different from those of the i366R --? particularly
some Latin American states - have regrettably similar notions about the ex-
pediency of censor,,hhip. There is dander that these conventions will, be used as
a Lle;ans of imposin? new controls on the press. The original US draft permitted
censorship of outgoing despatches solely for reasons of "national Milltarx
security." Uexico proposed striking out the work "'military" and adding vaguer
reasons of "national d' ;nlty and prestige." A compromise Australian phrase,
"national defense," was carried after a vi, ;orous f =fht by the U3 delegation.
The Soviet bloc contended that to limit censorship to matters directly related
to "national defense" would constitute an invasion of the sovereign rights of
states. There is no chance whatever of the ;;;lav bloc ratifying the Convention.
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British labor will call world meet` of free trade unions. Significant
progress towards the formation of a new world labor organization has emerged
from recent meetings of British and US labor leaders. The British Trades Union
Con ;ross plans to convoke in Geneva a June meeting of the world's "free trade
unions" which will afford the TUC, the AFL and the CIO an opportunity to resume
the joint consultations on a new world labor international begun in January.
The decision to hold the Jur-,e meeting (by assembling the Western labor delegates
during the Geneva ILO Conference) may represent the imuediate reaction of the
three big power trade unions to the recent demand of the Brussels small power
labor conference for prompt organization of the new international.
Despite separate TUC meetings held recently with the AFL and CIO?however,
no common agreement on the scope and functions of the nevi international has yet
been reached. Resolution of basic differences still dividing them is necessary
before any general convention of the non-Communist trade unions can establish
a comprehensive Western labor federation. The relationship of the AFL and the
CIO in the new federation remains a critical point. One source of friction,
however, appears to have been removed by recent TUC agreement not to press the
candidacy of forrner WFTU Assistant Secretary Schevenela for the leadership of
the new internationals This move, together with the natural desire of the
British and US organizations to regain the initiative from the szaal.l nation
unions, may hasten the formation of a Western world labor federation capable
of competing on equal terms with the Communist-led WFTU for the control of
world labor.
WFFTU seeks to retain non-Cammun3at representation. The World Federation
of Trade Unions is seeking; to hold to a minimum anticipated defections of it*
remaining non-Communist elements at the June WFTU Congress in ;.Eden. In an
effort to counteract the recent decision of the smaller Western turopean powers
to withdraw, the V FTU is atteraptinZ to retain the Australian Trade Union Council
or at least its left wii and to dissuade Swedish labor from withdrawing by
adroit handling of the Swedish trade unionists attending the Moscow Congress of
Soviet trade Unions. Despite these moves, however, the WWFTU will probably not
succeed in retaining any small power labor elements not already Corauiunist--
controlled (such as the Australian iwetal i'lorkers and .'Waterside Workers).
Paris Congress plans permanent "peace organizations." The deter4nation
of the Communist leaders of the World Congress of Partisans of Peace to convert
the already widely organized "peace and democracy" movement into a permanent
front for promotion of soviet objectives is dicated by plans to establish an
international organization and permanent national committees. The international
"peace organization" would be responsible for applying Congress decisions general-
ly, while specific weans of action in each country would be left to the national
committees. The type of activity v,hich mi.;ht be assigned to the national peace
committees has been suggested by a leftist British Labor Party delegate who
proposes popular ratification of a document expressing Soviet views on atomic
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energy and on increasing the effectiveness of the UN in maintaining peace.
Existing; Soviet front organizations like the '67orld Federation of Trade Unions
and the World Federation of Dewocratic Youth will work closely with the new
movomunt during coming; months in a coordinated drive to give the widest possible
currency to the "peaceful" aims of Soviet policy.
Council of herons. At a preliminary conference, the Brussels Pact powers,
Italy, Portugal and the Scandinavian states have reached a large measure of
agreement on the framework of the proposed Council of urope. The questions
of voting procedure and of admitting Greece and Turkey are apparently the only
major unsolved problems but it is almost certain that the two eastern Mediter-
ranean nations will be invited to join. The Foreign Ministers of the prospec-
tive member nations plan to meet. in London 3-6 May to sign the agreement
establishing the Council.
25X6A
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Affairs bill confronts the UN with a nearly insoluble problem. South African
Prime Liaister ialan stated that the bill would demonstrate by law that the
Union no longer recognized the existence of the League of Nations iandate over
South Vest Africa. This ..eans that for all practical purposes the mandated
area has been incorporated in the Union in violation of UN resolutions reco-
mending the establishiuent of a W Z trusteeship. Faced with South Afri n in--
transigeance, the GA can now do little a,.ore than renew its recommendations and
express displeasure at this latest flouting of its resolutions.
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