U

LEAGUE OF NATIONS Geneva, December 23rd, 1924.

GREEK REFUGEES

Fourth Quarterly Report on the Operations of the Refugee Settlement Commission.

Athens, November 25th, 1924.

The preceding report of the Refugee Settlement Commission as regards financial work covered the period from January 1st to August 15th ; as regards the Agricultural Settlement, from January 1st to July 31st, and as regards the Urban Settlement, from January 1st to August 31st. H The present report deals with all the work up to October 31st. In the first place, it is gratifying to observe that the exchange of populations has nearly come to an end. At most, there can only be some few thousand more exchangeable Greeks to arrive from Asia Minor. It will be a great relief when the exchange is completed because in Greece, which is overcrowded with refugees, any new arrival is infinitely more difficult to settle and establish in a productive occupation than those who came in the first wave of j*iigration. There are no statistics to show the numbers of the refugees, and perhaps no exact record can ever be compiled, because, in addition to those who passed through the official exchange organisations, there were many others who came over of their own accord. Some of these, especially the earliest to arrive, have been so well absorbed into the population of Old Greece that they can no longer be regarded as refugees. We now have yet another category of “ independent ” refugees : those who are considered as “ established ” but who, nevertheless, are leaving Constantinople for pecuniary or other reasons. However, we must repeat that Greece is overcrowded with refugees ; according to the most conservative estimates, they number at least 1,300,000, and of these our Commission could only deal with 600,000, of which 500,000 belong to the agricultural class. The rest, if we deduct the small proportion who can at once become self-supporting, are an enormous burden not only upon the country and the good-will of the population but upon outside charity as well. The suffering is great, and we give our sincere thanks to all the national and international organisations already at work. The Refugee Commission has been greatly encouraged by the support of the Greek Government and the , and feels confident that it will be able to carry out its work when the main refugee loan is concluded. Meanwhile it has tried to make every drachma spent produce the maximum result for the refugees and lead to the establishment of a “ productive ” population as laid down by the Protocol of Geneva.

F in a n c ia l A c t iv it i e s ,

The Refugee Settlement Commission during the last three months has proceeded with a certain caution, in order to ensure that the liabilities will be met and that the balance left over will not be exhausted before the arrival of fresh funds. , This caution was imperative, for in August the estimates of funds required for the settle­ ment of refugees up to the end of December amounted to over £3,000,000. This sum, added to the requirements of the Urban Settlement and to the general expenses of the Refugee Settlement Commission, brought the necessary expenditure up to the end of the year to £3,500,000, while the available funds of the Commission amounted at that time to only £400,000, after deducting the existing liabilities of £1,000,000. I Moreover, as this year’s crops in Macedonia have largely failed owing to drought, it has become necessary to issue to agricultural refugee communities who were supposed to be self-supporting large quantities of wheat for consumption, sowing and food for their animals. Under these circumstances, the Refugee Settlement Commission was obliged to inform the Greek Government of its financial position. The Government, in agreement with the Governor of the National Bank of Greece, informed the Commission that the Cabinet had decided on September 1st that, after the exhaustion of the available funds of the Refugee Settlement Commission, the Government would place at their disposal, in addition to the £1,000,000 already advanced, £3,000,000 more bv instalments as necessity arose until the IJfiie of the Refugee Loan.

■ S. d. N. 850 (F) + 850 (A) 12/24. Imp. d’Ambilly. — 2 — ’

By this decision, the Cabinet asked the Commission to issue, on the Government's account, wheat, barley and forage to districts which had suffered from the failure of the crops. Under this arrangement, the Commission has recently obtained a first advance of £200,000, which has enabled it to continue all the work which lack of funds might otherwise have compelled them to abandon. This assistance from the Government enabled the Commission to furnish, among other things, the following supplies : 16,000 tons of wheat for feeding newly settled refugees ; 6,500 tons of wheat for sowing ; 4,500 tons of barley and rye for food ; 13,500 tons of forage for live-stock ; 3,000 tons of barley and rye for sowing — of a total value of £650,000. The following amounts, which have been charged to the Government’s account, have been expended on 50,000 families of refugee cultivators whose crops had been destroyed, and on forage and barley for 32,000 draught animals : 12,050 tons of wheat for food; 3,800 tons of barley for animals ; 7,500 tons of forage for animals — of a total value of £250,000 approximately. From the following sums placed at the disposal of the Commission from the very beginning of their work — i.e. : £ Two advances by the Bank of England ...... 2,000,000 One advance by the Greek Government through the the National Bank of Greece...... 1,000,000 Temporary advance by the Greek Government on the £3,000,000 promised ...... 200,000

T o ta l...... 3,200,000

■— the following amounts have been expended until October 31st : £ s. d. For the Agricultural Settlement ...... 2,196,288 2 0 For the Urban Settlement ...... 297,719 10 4 Headquarter expenses (general expenditure)...... 18,349 7 2

T o ta l...... 2,512,357 5 8 Balance at the disposal of the Refugee Settlement Commission with the National Bank of Greece on 1 s t...... 687,642 14 4

Total (about) ...... 3,200,000 0 0 Rate of Exchange. Out of these sums £1,775,000 was changed into drachmas from January 1st to Octo­ ber 31st, 1924, at the average rate of exchange of 253.02 drachmas to the pound. The exchange was effected through the National Bank in five separate transactions.

A gricultural S e t t l e m e n t . From the time of the refugee immigration from Asia Minor in 1922 up to , the following number of agricultural families had been settled or partly settled by the Greek Government : In M acedonia...... 66,920 In the rest of Greece ...... 5,661

Total ...... 72,581 The settlement of these families was completed by the Refugee Settlement Commission, which provided them with seed, implements, etc. From January 1st to October 31st, 1924, the Refugee Settlement Commission settled : In M acedonia...... 29,954 In Thrace ...... 5,5001 In the rest of Greece ...... 8,203

Total ...... 43,657 We have therefore : Families settled From to December 1923 ...... 72,581 From December 1923 to ...... 43,657

Total ...... 116,238

1 The permanent settlement work in this area has shown no progress during the last three months, because th1 question of purchasing all Mussulman property by the State is not yet settled. As indicated in the following distribu­ tion tables, supplies of seed, implements, etc."were given to about 14,000 families who have cultivated the land but who cannot be considered as permanently settled until the definite solution of this question.

I houses constructed. In addition to the houses built by the Government before and the houses of Mussulmans subject to exchange — about 50,000 of the latter in Macedonia alone — the number of houses constructed from January till October 31st, 1924, is :

In Macedonia...... 5,872 In Thrace ...... 2,612 In the rest ofGreece ...... 653 Total ...... 9,137

Under construction...... 25,000 houses.

Draught animals distributed1. In Macedonia...... 32,098 In Thrace ...... 1,755 In the rest of Greece ...... 1,836 Total ...... 35,689 Ploughs distributed2. In Macedonia...... 20,805 In Thrace ...... 1,016 In the rest ofGreece ...... 1,371 Total ...... 23,192 Seed grain distributed. In Macedonia...... Oke® 6,880,850 In Thrace ...... » 748,510 In the rest of Greece ...... » 155,909

Total ...... » 7,785,269 Forage distributed. In Macedonia...... Oke7,815,937 In Thrace ...... » 1,334,304 In the rest of Greece ...... » 280,289

Total ...... » 9,430,530 Subsistence Grant. The granting of all means of subsistence either in kind or in money has been organised on a new basis. Certain families had received help for a sufficiently long period to be wholly or partly self-supporting. Our Departments have therefore been instructed to avoid indis­ criminate grants to all refugees and to consider the particular needs of each family. To those families which have become self-supporting the grant has been discontinued or partly reduced.

Vine-growing. Vine-growing has developed considerably among the refugee population, and as the State Nursery Garden in Macedonia was unable to supply the increasing demand, the Refugee Settlement Commission has voted a sum of £10,000 for the importation of American vines from France. This sum will be increased if necessary.

Cultivation by Tractor. In all districts except Macedonia, cultivation by tractor was carried out by the Refugee afettlement Commission departments directly. The work, however, shows hardly any advance, because work on the land cannot be resumed before the autumn rains. For Macedonia,"where tractors are mostly in use, the Refugee Settlement Commission has signed an agreement with two contractors who are undertaking to work twelve tractors supplied by the Refugee Settlement Commission at a price of 30 drachmas per stremma.

H ' Besides the live-stock allotted by the Commission in Macedonia, the State had distributed before Januarv 1924 the following : (1) 39,935 animals from requisitions. (2) 15,782 from the army after the demobilisation of 1922. (3) 903 from the Ministry of Agriculture. A total of.. . . . 56,620 animals were allotted among the refugees in Macedonia, which accounts for the compa­ ratively small number of live-stock distributed by the Refugee Settlement Commission. .. . Ye, wish to add that owing to sickness, the number of livestock available for allotment was considerably diminished. 1 Ploughs were also allotted by the Ministry of Agriculture before January 1924. * 1 oke = 1280 gr. — 4 —

Water-Supply (Macedonia — Thrace). The Refugee Settlement Commission has considered plans for the water-supply of the different settlements and is discussing the installation of two drills which will work mainly in Thrace, where the water question is most acute.

Activity of the Refugees. A visit to any colonisation centre would amply prove the activity and vitality of the majority of the settlers. If the spring drought had not ruined the cereal crop, most of the refugees would have been self-supporting. On the other hand, about 40,000 families of tobacco-growers have quite recovered financially after this year’s harvest and need practically no help of any kind. A proof of this is that the National Bank, which advances no loan before ensuring through its various branches the reliability of the borrowers, has already advanced to agricul­ tural settlers a total of 125,000,000 drachmas. This sum will be furthei increased. The results of the enquiry conducted in connection with this loan by the Bank were communicated to the Refugee Settlement Commission and are summed up in the following remarks : (a) The refugees keep faith with the Bank and any third party concerned. (b) They are active, honest and mindful of their liabilities. (c) They have introduced new methods of cultivation as well as improving some of the methods already in use. (d) They have increased the productive capacity of the districts where they have settled.

Inabilities of the Settlers. Owing to the failure of the corn crop, it was considered impossible to claim the amounts due. Nevertheless, in parts of Macedonia, Thrace and Euboea, where the harvest was only partly ruined, and in the case of the tobacco-growers, some refugees have already come of their own accord to pay back part of their debts. When collected, the payments for these debts are recorded in special accounts in accordance with the provisions of the Organic Statutes and they will be used for the repayment of the loan. All organisers dealing with the financial side of the business are constantly impressing upon the settlers that everything advanced in kind or money is regarded as a loan, to be repaid by instalments. A circular issued to that effect says : “ It is only under this condition that the Refugee Loan will be granted and the advances made. The strict adherence to this condition is an obligation of honour resting on the Refugee Settlement Commission, the refugees themselves and the Greek nation. This must be clearly understood and impressed upon the refugees. Moreover, the staff must be very cautious in incurring expense, and the refugees should curtail their demands so as to avoid any unnecessary charges. ”

Health Statistics. This is one of the most acute problems of the refugee question, especially in Macedonia. The following figures are quoted from the statistics kept since last June :

Month1 settlers Births Per mille Deaths Per mille Marriages Per mille J u n e ...... 302,398 447 1.48 393 1.30 480 1.55 July...... 310,792 441 1.41 438 1.41 390 1.23 Aug...... 320,499 491 1.53 772 2.4 298 1 Sept...... 345,281 475 1.37 1,080 3.12 367 1

Table of Deaths according to Age.

llea^hs^ Ff2'yrs^old' t0 3-10 yrs. 11-20 yrs. 21-40 yrs. Over 40 yrs. June ...... 393 75 44 55 83 136 J u ly ...... 438 86 66 59 98 129 Aug...... 772 168 124 93 156 231 Sept...... 1,080 207 202 110 179 382

Of the diseases causing death, malaria comes at the head of the list, the number of deaths being as follows :

In June, out of 393 deaths, 95 from malaria i.e. 24 % In July, » » 438 » 140 » » i.e. 32 % In August, » » 772 » 320 » » i.e. 41 % In September, » » 1,080 » 493 » » i.e. 45 %

1 It should be noted that the months here shown are those in which the mortality would normally be lowest. — 5 —

Moreover, the deaths the cause of which was not diagnosed are mostly due to the effect of malaria. If the total of those deaths is added to the above figures the number is doubled. It is not only the heavy death-rate which gives rise to anxiety, but also the general t- debility due to malaria. This is aggravated by the poor diet of the refugees, and makes them unfit for work. . The bad health of the adult population has brought about a decrease in the birth-rate. There are villages where there have been no births during the last year. The State has established in the central parts of Macedonia several hospitals and dispen­ saries. Unfortunately, the available resources are inadequate, partly owing to financial difficulties and partly because, for malaria, hospitals are of little use unless measures can be taken to prevent the disease. This is only possible by a plentiful supply of quinine. The health question is being seriously considered by the Refugee Settlement Commission, which has approached the Government to ask for support in improving the conditions of refugee life. The Refugee Settlement Commission is willing to make a direct contribution toward the solution of this problem, which affects the productive capacity of the settlers. Further, such action would be inîperfect accord with the recent revision of the Geneva Protocol, by which the Refugee Settlement Commission is entitled to dispose of its funds on a wider basis.

Land. The lands assigned so far to the Commission towards the 500,000 hectares for which provision is made in the Geneva Protocol show the following figures (these are approxi­ mate, but in any case not below the real figures) : State land ...... 25,000 hectares Requisitioned or expropriated land ...... 40,000 » Land of exchangeable Mussulmans ...... 220,000 »

Total ...... 285,000hectares.

36,000 hectares have up to now been transferred in full proprietary rights in favour of the Commission and this allotment will continue, the main obstacle to its prompt conclusion being the absence of a land survey Registry. The system on which to establish a complete land Registry is being studied by the Government. As a matter of fact, the refugees are already established on 280,000 hectares, a figure which practically coincides with the 285,000 hectares referred to above.

Revenues of Transferred Land. The Refugee Settlement Commission has come to an understanding with the Ministries concerned for the transfer of the revenues of peasants working on State land and of the “ exchangeable” Turks working on estates transferred to the Refugee Settlement Commission, and for the deposit of these revenues at the National Bank on behalf of the Refugee Settlement Commission. Care is also taken to deduct from the areas transferred to the Refugee Settlement Com­ mission, all land that is allocated to native tenants (colons), who, according to the new agricul­ tural law, have rights over a certain area.

Scope of the Refugee Settlement Commission’s work. Bank for Refugees. The Refugee Settlement Commission realises that it is part of its duty to provide produc­ tive work for all refugees who need it. It was decided to settle the rural communities on the land and advance to them the necessary live-stock, implements, etc. This will secure their livelihood. But for the urban elements it has not been and will not be possible for the Refugee Settlement Commission to provide any other help except housing. They must therefore be considered as only partly settled, but it has been proved that, once provided with housing Seccommodation, they can generally find work for themselves. When the loan has been issued, the whole programme of rural settlement will be put into execution and at the same time the Refugee Settlement Commission will extend the scheme'of providing houses for urban refugees according to the funds available. The Government has by legislative Decree established a Refugee Bank for the advance of . loans to the urban settlers. Its capital consists of all urban properties belonging to exchangeable ’’ Mussulmans. The Government is also handing over to the Bank those agricultural “ exchangeable properties ” which are not to be transferred to the Refugee Settlement Commission, as for instance certain forests, pastures, meadows and fisheries. AH the land capable of cultivation which includes areas that are now being used as pas- jjtures has been transferred to the Refugee Settlement Commission. On the other hand, pasture tena is necessary both for stock-breeders and for the upkeep of the animals of each community. This applies in a less degree to wood-cutting in the forests. In order to have these areas clearly defined, the Refugee Settlement Commission is coming o an understanding with the Government so as to avoid anv difficulties over the 500,000 ectares which have to be handed over. - 6 —

U r b a n S e t t l e m e n t .

Athens-Piræus area. Population. This is the most important area of the whole group of Urban Settlements. Its population, which is to-day 80,000, will reach 100,000 as soon as the 3,624 new rooms are occupied in January 1925.

Sale of allotments. The predominant fact about the actual financial position of the Urban Settlements in this area is the capacity for absorption of these two towns, Athens and the Piræus, which has exceeded all expectations. Another point worth mentioning is the increasing value of the soil on which the settle­ ments are built, the property rights of which were transferred to the Refugee Settlement Commission by the Greek Government. The sales of land are taking place gradually as requests are received and the total in pounds is entered in a special account according to the Geneva Protocol.

Industries. 13,200 sq. metres of land were sold during the last three months by the Refugee Settlement Commission for industrial buildings where most of the workmen are refugees. The carpet industry, practically unknown in this country before the 1922 disaster, has developed considerably since the inrush of carpet workers from different centres such as Smyrna, Ouchak and Sparta.

Collection of rents in the Athens-Piræus area. Since the Refugee Settlement Commission has gradually instituted a system of rent-collection from the settlers who till then had not been paying for their rooms and shops. Up to October 31st, 1,172 leases had been signed and this measure will be applied in the provinces. This measure will be greatly extended. A special service has been started for disposing gratis of rooms to destitute families.

Supplementary works. Important works are being carried out in the settlements of Athens-Piraeus. The plan for water and electric light supply has been completed and tenders are still being received. Two schools have been built in Byron and Ionia Settlements as well as the Ionia Dispensary.

Provinces-Volo. The supplementary works will be finished on December 1st, when all the houses will be occupied. The Refugee Settlement Commission has altered its previous decisions (see the Quarterly Report June-August) and has come to the conclusion that the Settlement should be enlarged by the addition of 200 new rooms after taking into consideration the industrial and commercial resources of the town.

Edessa and Eleusis. The construction and settlement work has been completed.

Thrace. The construction of houses during the last three months has begun and the first lot will be available at the end of 1924.

Crete. In Heraclion a contract has been concluded for the construction of 900 rooms for the refugees from Alikarnassos, who are mainly sailors and fishermen.

Further proposals. The Refugee Settlement Commission is planning the erection of new Urban Settlements in small provincial centres so as to avoid overcrowding in Athens and Salonica. — 7 —

Changes in the Committee and Staff. Dr. Alfred Bonzon, who was appointed temporarily in the place of Mr. Morgenthau, lias presided over the Committee during the absence of Mr. Campbell from July ‘26th to September 24th and from October 24th up to the present moment. Mr. Campbell was replaced on the Committee for these periods by Colonel Cunliffe-Owen. After the resignation of M. P. Argyropoulos, his post was temporarily filled by M. Adossidis &nd later by M. Eustathopoulos, who was appointed a member of the Committee on September 27th and took up his duties on October 10th. On August 23rd M. Adossidis was appointed Secretary-General. Colonel G. B. Pears, Executive Secretary, having resigned on August 25th, the post was abolished and the duties were included in those of the Secretary-General.

Salaries. During last August the National Assembly confirmed the decision of the Government to raise the salary of all State employees to twelve times the pre-war salary. Following this measure, the Refugee Settlement Commission is considering a propor­ tionate increase in the salaries of its staff, so as to maintain a fair comparison between these two classes. On the other hand, the Refugee Settlement Commission has decided to continue the extra grant to all Government officials in its service, which grant, however, will have to be diminished and will be a percentage of the existing salaries. The continuance of the p-ant is necessary because the greater part of the work is carried out under difficult conditions, especially in Northern Greece, and the remuneration should be adequate.

Regulations for Internal Working. These regulations have been drawn up and will be considered shortly. In the meanwhile a Staff Department and a Purchases and Supplies Department have been organised to ensure more regular working.

Bookkeeping Service. The Staff has been reinforced for the more rapid concentration of its financial control and the posting of transactions at the different Colonisation Services. A special control office has been established in Athens and some new members of the Staff of the National Bank of Greece have been detailed for this purpose.

Audit. A State Financial Inspector and an Auditor from the National Bank of Greece have been appointed for the audit prescribed J)y clause XVII of the Organic Statutes. Their report will be published, together with the balance sheet of the Refugee Settlement Commission at the end of the current year.

Protocol Modifications. The Greek National Assembly on October 24th ratified the revision made, on the proposal of the Greek Government, of Articles 1 and 2 of the Geneva Protocol (signed on September 29th, 1923), also Articles 12 and 15 of the Statutes, of which the whole text is shown in the Official Journal of the League of Nations. The Bill of ratification was published in the Greek Official Gazette No. 272 on October 30th, 1924. Amongst these revisions, we would mention those which grant increased powers to the Commission (Article XV), and authorise it to contribute in a certain measure towards the establishment of schools in refugee villages, and towards the organisation of a hygienic system, for improving the health conditions of the people established in these villages. * * * We have attempted to give an objective view of the situation but it may be well to give •a few examples to illustrate the position. We might take these examples from the tragic side : shortage of houses, lack of drinking- li^'ater, effects of disease, the story of misery and death. The figures and statistics of this report have already given an insight into these stern realities. But our duty is to give a businesslike record of the facts, and we will therefore take our .examples from the land problem and its commercial aspect. Few can realise the difficulties involved in this question for everyone in Greece and tiie number of conflicting interests in which the Government and the Commission have to work. For instance, here is a large estate which was perhaps the only source of revenue to its proprietor. He had it cultivated by “métayers”. According to the terms of the new Agricul­ tural Legislation, the large proprietor must give way to the small proprietor, and now, since fethe events in Asia Minor, there are four parties to claim their share in his land : the owner, Bwho naturally tries to keep as much as he can ; the “ métayer ”, who would like to keep for ■himself all the land he used to cultivate ; the small farmers who want their portion ; and — 8 — finally, the refugees who, destitute of everything, claim a large share upon which they have perhaps already established themselves. The Seven Sages of Greece would not be too many to unravel this tangled skein, and there are in addition countless minor difficulties. There is no public register of property and the lands for allocation are disputed ; moreover, equal areas, especially in this country, are not of equal value and the difference in price between land for tobacco, olive groves, vineyards and for other uses is immense. Time only will 1 prove which are the real agricultural settlers among the refugees, viz, those who know how j to make the best use of the land. It is easy to imagine how sharp the conflicts often'^are between these various groups, all of them incited by real need, and a few unpleasant incidents I are bound to occur. However, it is better to look beyond these incidents which all try to avert, and to take a view of the whole situation. Impressive it certainly is for, despite much friction, a fair and peaceful settlement is in the end obtained. The agricultural problem in Greece will not be solved by seizing lands by force. It will be solved by an adjustment of all legitimate interests and where the Gracchi, who had a simpler problem to solve, failed, it is our conviction that the Greek Government will succeed, although at the cost of painful sacrifices from all concerned. In this question of the division and re-division of lands, as in many others, the Greek Government and the Refugee Settlement Commission are called upon to work in the closest contact for the good of the refugees. A realisation of this fact has forced the Government and the Commission to settle where the work must be done in concert and where, on the other hand, matters must be left to their separate responsibility, but of course in any case on the basis of the Geneva Protocol. Two plenary Conferences between the Government and the Commission laid down the basis for these agreements which are now on the point of being drawn up in proper form. Nothing will help the Commission more than the prompt success of the great Refugee Loan, which will ensure the necessary funds, provide a guaranteed investment, and effect a service of the greatest value in the cause of humanity. The financial structure of Greece is, as a distinguished economist said, so ‘elastic’ that we may look with great confidence to the future. Greece, though burdened writh a tremendous load, will yet be able to absorb the flood of refugees. Those who help her to set her house in order, will be helping a State which regularly acquits its international financial obligations. The Acting Chairman :

(Signed) A l f r e d R o n z o n .