[Distributed to the Council Official No.: C.658.M.272. 1930. VI. and Members of the League.] Geneva, December 15th, 1930. LEAGUE OF NATIONS INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF ENQUIRY IN LIBERIA COMMUNICATION BY THE GOVERNMENT OF LIBERIA dated December 15th, 1930 transmitting the COMMISSION’S REPORT Note by the Secretary-General : The Secretary-General has the honour to communicate to the Council and Members of the League a letter, dated December 15th, 1930, from the permanent delegate of the Republic of Liberia accredited to the League of Nations, enclosing the Report of the International Commission of Enquiry, which the permanent delegate of the Republic of Liberia has trans­ mitted to the Secretary-General on the instructions of his Government. Series of League of Nations Publications VI.B. SLAVERY 1930. VI.B.6. — I l l — LETTER FROM THE PERMANENT DELEGATE OF THE REPUBLIC OF LIBERIA TO THE SECRETARY-GENERAL OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS. (Translation.) Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Liberia Accredited to the League of Nations. L L 1072 Geneva, December 15th, 1930. Sir, With reference to my letters of September 16th and October 14th, 1929, February 8th and 15th and October 14th, 1930 1, I have the honour to submit herewith copy of the report on slavery and forced labour in the Republic of Liberia, which the International Commission of Enquiry, before which the matter was laid by my Government on April 8th, 1930, has presented to it after five months’ work. It will be seen from the report that the Commission of Enquiry finds : (1) That, although classic slavery carrying the idea of slave-markets and slave- dealers no longer exists as such in the Republic of Liberia, there are cases of inter- and intra-tribal domestic slavery and cases of the pawn system ; (2) That domestic slavery has always been disapproved of and discouraged by my Government, and that any slave who appeals to the courts for release or brings proceedings against his master for ill-treatment has always been declared free and emancipated ; (3) That there has been no evidence that leading citizens of the country have participated in domestic slavery, but that there is evidence that some Americo-Liberians have taken natives as pawns and have often criminally abused the system ; (4) That forced or compulsory labour has been made use of in the Republic of Liberia for public utility works (road construction, building of barracks, etc ) ; but that, in certain cases, labour recruited by County Superintendents and District Commissioners for public purposes has been diverted to private use on the farms and plantations of high Government officials and private citizens ; (5) That some of the contract labourers shipped to Fernando Po and French Gabun have occasionally been recruited under conditions of compulsion, bearing, in the view of the Commission, some slight resemblance to the slave-trade ; (6) That labour employed for private purposes on privately owned plantations has been impressed for this service on the authority of high Government officials ; (7) That the Vice-President of the Republic, the Honourable Allen N. Yancy, and other high Government officials, as well as County Superintendents and District Commissioners, have given their sanction for the compulsory recruitment of labour for road construction, for shipment abroad and for other work. In accordance with its terms of reference as laid down by my Government, which I previously submitted to you 2, the International Commission of Enquiry has formulated suggestions and recommendations to which my Government has devoted close attention. On receiving the report, my Government promptly issued decrees and a presidential proclamation dated October 1st last, introducing a number of measures and effecting certain reforms, among which I may for the moment mention the following : (1) Recasting of native policy, complete reorganisation of the administration of the interior of the country with the assistance and cooperation of foreign specialist officials. (2) Introduction of the policy of “ the open door ” ; abolition of the barriers between civilised and uncivilised citizens, and institution of absolute freedom of trade. (3) My Government has just asked the United States Government to appoint two special commissioners to assist and co-operate in reorganising the administration of the interior of the country. (4) All domestic slaves in native tribes have been declared permanently free and emancipated, domestic slavery in every form being abolished, declared illegal and prohibited under severe penalties. 1 Official Nos. C.446.1929.VI ; C.510.M. 170.1929.VI ; C.613.M.239.1930.VI ; Official Journal of the League of Nations, November 1929, pages 1682, 1683 ; 1766, 1767 ; December 1929, pages 1870, 1871 ; August 1930, pages 975, 976. 2 See my letter of October 14th, 1929, Official No. C.510^1.170,1929. VI, Official Journal of the League of Nations, December 1929, pages 1870, 1871. s. d. N. 975 (F.). 1.550 (A.). 12/30. Imp. du J. de G. — IV — (5) The pawn system has been completely abolished, declared illegal and prohibited under severe penalties. (6) The system of shipping labour abroad has been completely stopped and abolished, declared illegal and prohibited under severe penalties. (7) My Government has introduced a number of health measures. (8) My Government is engaged in devising a plan for giving effect to the other recommendations and suggestions made by the International Commission of Enquiry. I shall have the honour of submitting to you copies of the laws, decrees and proclamations of my Government regarding these measures. I may state incidentally, that certain high Government officials, including the President, Sir C. D. B. King, and Vice-President Yancy, have resigned. Further measures will doubtless be taken, for my Government is firmly resolved : (a) to take account, as far as possible, of all the recommendations and suggestions of the International Commission of Enquiry ; (b) to make every effort to stamp out every vestige of domestic slavery, the pawn system, and forced labour, except for public works allowed by the Convention abolishing forced labour adopted by the International Labour Conference in 1930 ; (c) to take steps to promote the intellectual, moral, social and economic development of the country. It may also be worth while to recall that my Government has long since ratified the Slavery Convention of 1926, and has unreservedly accepted the Convention abolishing forced labour adopted by the International Labour Conference in June 1930, although that Convention was not accepted by all the members represented at the Conference. I may be permitted to allude here to what other Governments have said at the Assembly of the League and at the last two International Labour Conferences : (a) it is very difficult to uproot in a brief period of time immemorial customs and traditions which have been part of the social system of native tribes in Africa ; (6) on certain African tribes forced or compulsory labour seems in many cases to have an educative effect, and, generally speaking, forced or compulsory labour is sometimes indispensable for public works—as was indeed admitted by the last International Labour Conference. By hearing a number of witnesses, the Commission of Enquiry learned of isolated facts, chiefly referring to the years 1919 to 1928 ; but these facts cannot be taken as representing a general rule, and seem to have only a relative value, because, as the Commission admits, it was working at an unfavourable period, when the subject uppermost in the public mind was the presidential election campaign ; for at such a time the most insignificant fact in any country may become an electoral weapon for one political party or another. The Commission has referred in its report to the extraordinary power of rumours, the existence of intrigues and secret manœuvres, the forging of documents, etc. Is the Commission quite sure that none of the witnesses it heard was swayed by political motives or influenced by the election campaign ? Furthermore, as the Commission's difficulties were aggravated during three months by the rainy season, it is to be feared that difficulties were also encountered in ensuring the impartiality of witnesses. Far be it from me, however, to depreciate the great merits, the remarkable value of the Commission’s work, and my Government’s appreciation ; on the contrary, I desire to offer a tribute to the Commission and to express once again my Government’s appreciation and profound gratitude to its members, especially Dr. Christy, the member appointed by the Council of the League, and Dr. Charles Johnson, the member appointed by the United States Government, for the often difficult and delicate work they so successfully accomplished. On the other hand, I am compelled to point out that a certain section of the Press, which is systematically hostile to the Republic of Liberia and is always on the lookout for sensational stories, has not hesitated to seize upon this present enquiry as an opportunity for misleading the public by statements contrary to the truth. Out of a large number of cases I will mention only one. Several great dailies, which have the reputation of being well informed and enjoy a certain degree of authority, have gone so far as to tell the public that this Commission was set up in Liberia at the request and on the initiative of the British Government. I have no idea where and when the British Government took the initiative in the matter, but I do know that that same British Government has always been, in the community of nations, one of the Governments that have displayed most respect for the sovereignty and independence of other countries, especially small countries. As I had the honour of doing during the discussions in the Sixth Committee of several Assemblies of the League of Nations, I would pay tribute here to the British Government for its campaign against slavery, a campaign which has earned the sympathy, appreciation and gratitude of all mankind.