ments on the topics submitted and, in the event that favorable replies are received from at least two thirds of the governments, to send to all of them a questionnaire indicating points which might eventually constitute bases for conventions, declarations, or uniform laws; to prepare the bases of such conventions or uniform laws and to communicate these bases with all antecedent details on each subject to the Pan American Union in order that it may transmit them to the Committee of Experts on the Codification of International Law.56 COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS ON THE CODIFICATION OF (Resolutions of the Seventh International Conference of American States, 1933; Inter-American Conference for the Maintenance of Peace, 1936; and Eighth International Conference of American States, 1938) Members: Afranio de Mello Franco, of Brazil, Chairman; Luis Anderson Morúa, of Costa Rica; Eduardo Suárez, of Mexico; Carlos Saavedra Lamas, of Argentina; J. Reuben Clark, Jr., of the United States of America; Raimundo Rivas, of Colombia.60 Resolution LXX of the Seventh International Conference of American States, which met at Montevideo, Uruguay, in December 1933, provided for the creation of a Committee of Experts to organize in a preparatory way the work incident to a gradual and progressive codification of international law. The Committee as set up under this resolution consisted of seven jurists elected by the various American governments. The procedure as provided by the Montevideo resolution was that each government should submit a list of five names and from these lists the governments should designate seven persons, not more than two of whom should be nationals. The seven persons obtaining the highest number of votes became members of the Committee. The Inter-American Conference for the Maintenance of Peace clarified the duties of the Committee and referred to it certain projects for study, among which were the code of peace, the definition of an aggressor, nationality, immunity of government vessels, pecuniary claims, and coordination of conciliation and arbitration treaties. The Lima Conference increased the Committee of Experts from seven to nine members and defined its duties as follows: The Committee of Experts, after receiving, through the Pan American Union, the material from each of the permanent committees," shall make a technical examination of each subject, and, on the basis of the material furnished by those committees, it shall prepare adequate drafts. Those drafts, properly supported, shall be transmitted to the Pan American Union, which shall transmit them to the American governments. The work of the Committee has two phases: (1) the general codification of international law, and (2) the consideration of special topics assigned to it by the various conferences. It is with respect to these special topics that the Committee is active. The Second Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the American Republics, Habana, 1940,62 referred to the Committee of Experts a project on the extension of territorial waters. The Committee has held two meetings, the first in Washington, D.C., from April 5 to April 19, 1937, and the second at Lima, Peru, from November 30 to December 20, 1938. PERMANENT COMMITTEE OF JURISTS ON CIVIL AND (Resolution of the Eighth International Conference of American States, 1938) Offices: Lima, Peru. Members: Eduardo Arroyo Lameda, of Venezuela; Manuel Augusto Olaechea, of Peru; Wesley Alba Sturges, J. D., of the United States of America. Resolution VII of the Eighth International Conference of American States held at Lima, Peru, in December 1938, provided for the creation of a Permanent Committee of Jurists to study and prepare the unification of the civil and commercial laws of America. The resolution further provided that the Committee be composed of three members, of whom one should be designated by the Gov For information concerning the permanent committees, see ante, p. 57. 02 See ante, p. 1. "See Conference Series 45. 434299-42- -5 ernment of the United States and the two remaining members determined by lot by the Rector of the University of San Marcos from a list of jurists made up by the designation of one member by each of the other 20 American governments. The Committee was charged with formulating a plan for carrying on the work of unification of American civil and commercial legislation prior to July 30, 1939, in collaboration with the faculties of law of the University of San Marcos and of other universities of the American republics. When the Committee has prepared a definite uniform project of law or laws, it shall be distributed by the Pan American Union among the various governments for submission to their respective legislative bodies. The Permanent Committee is also undertaking investigations of new subjects of civil and commercial legislation susceptible of unification. Faculties of law may assist the Permanent Committee by sending, on their own initiative through the intermediary of the University of San Marcos, suggestions of new points of private legislation susceptible of unification. The reports which the Committee may prepare and the results at which it may arrive are to be filed and indexed by the Pan American Union in order to prepare, in time, the elements of American civil and commercial codes. INTER-AMERICAN COMMITTEE OF EXPERTS ON NATURE (Resolution of the Eighth International Conference of American States, 1938 **) United States Representative: Alexander Wetmore, Ph. D., D. Sc., Assistant Secretary, Smithsonian Institution. The Eighth International Conference of American States held at Lima, Peru, in December 1938, adopted a resolution designed to extend on a continental basis measures providing for the protection and preservation of the fauna and flora of this hemisphere. The Pan American Union established, in accordance with the provisions of this resolution, the Inter-American Committee of Experts on Nature Protection and Wild Life Preservation, the membership of which consisted of one representative from each of the American republics. The Pan American Union also authorized the designation of such advisers to the respective committee members as each of the governments might deem necessary. See Conference Series 45. The Committee was charged with the drafting of a convention for the protection and preservation in their natural habitat of the fauna and flora native to the various countries and for the establishment of national parks, national reserves, and nature monuments. The Inter-American Committee of Experts on Nature Protection and Wild Life Preservation met at the Pan American Union from May 13 to May 16, 1940. At this meeting the Committee considered and revised a preliminary draft convention which had been drawn up by the Pan American Union. As a result of these deliberations a draft convention on nature protection and wildlife preservation in the Western Hemisphere was formulated and adopted by the Committee of Experts. This convention was opened for signature by the governments of the American republics on October 12, 1940. At the end of the fiscal year 1941, the following governments had signed the convention: Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, United States of America, Uruguay, and Venezuela. INTER-AMERICAN FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE (Resolution of the First Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the American Republics, 19390) Offices: Washington, D.C. Representative on the part of the United States: Sumner Welles, LL.D., Under Secretary of State; Chairman of the Committee. The Inter-American Financial and Economic Advisory Committee was created pursuant to a resolution of October 3, 1939 of the First Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the American Republics, held at Panamá from September 23 to October 3, 1939. The Committee was installed at the Pan American Union in Washington on November 15, 1939, and since that date has met at regular intervals. It is composed of one representative from each of the 21 American republics. The Second Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the American Republics, Habana, 1940, resolved to strengthen and expand the activities of this Committee as the instrument for continuing consultation among the American republics with regard to economic and trade matters, particularly as affected by the curtailment See Conference Series 49. **See ante, p. 1. and changed character of important foreign markets. The Habana Meeting specifically instructed the Committee to proceed at once with the preparation of detailed plans for cooperative temporary handling and orderly marketing of existing and prospective surpluses of those commodities which are of primary importance to the economic life of the Americas; for the development, where feasible, of commodity production and marketing agreements and arrangements; and for the promotion among the American nations of mutually beneficial trade. The Committee was also instructed to devise methods of increasing consumption of surplus commodities in the American republics, through relief and in other ways, in order to aid in the disposal of such surpluses. Finally, the Committee was instructed to consider, while these measures and plans are being developed, the desirability of a broader system of inter-American cooperative organization in matters of trade, industry, money, foreign exchange, etc. A project concerning insurance and re-insurance facilities was referred to the Advisory Committee by the Habana Meeting. It was also recommended that the Advisory Committee collaborate with the Pan American Highway Financial Committee 67 in its task of drafting the plans for financing the construction of the Pan American Highway. To accomplish the varied tasks entrusted to it, the Committee has established four special subcommittees. These concern cotton, cacao, relief distribution of surplus commodities, and financing of the Pan American Highway. The first three are already taking active steps toward the formulation of international agreements on the respective subjects. There are three subcommittees of the general Committee: subcommittee I which deals with problems on monetary and financial relationships; subcommittee II, problems of commerce, transportation, and communications; and subcommittee III, problems of an individual and urgent character, and maritime matters in general. Each of these subcommittees has various special subcommittees to explore the technical aspects of specific problems. For example, many subjects were referred to the Committee by the Inter-American Maritime Conference for further study, and, in several instances, it has been necessary to set up special subcommittees to insure adequate treatment. The same observation may be made relating to the topics assigned to the Committee by the Habana Conference. Under the earlier directive from the Panama Conference, the Advisory Committee has studied and formulated resolutions on the following problems of importance in inter-American relations: 67 For an account of the origin and functions of the Pan American Highway Organizations, see ante, p. 50. |