LEAGUE OF NATIONS THE COMMITTEES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS CLASSIFIED U ST AND ESSENTIAL FACTS GENEVA 1945 PUBLICATIONS OF THE LEAGUE OF RATIONS POWERS AND DUTIES ATTRIBUTED TO THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS BY INTERNATIONAL TREATIES 48 pages. (Set. L.o.N. P. 1944.V.I) - 2 6 $0J>0 The League of Nations is not only a political institution but also an organ of inter national co-operation. In both capacities it has expressly or tacitly undertaken to perform a large number of tasks conferred on it by international treaties and agreements is addition to its obligations under the Covenant, the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation, and the Statute of the Permanent Court of International Justice, The present publication indicates which of these tasks will or may still have to be performed after the war if these treaties and agreements are to remain effective. It deals, inter alia with the duties which the League has assunked in connection with the various international loans issued under its auspices. LIST OF CONVENTIONS WITH INDICATION OF THE RELEVANT ARTICLES CONFERRING POWERS ON THE ORGANS OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS 160 pages. (Ser. L.o.N. P. 1945.V.1) 5 $1,25 Numerous conventions concluded during the period 1919-1939 confer variouf powers on the organs of the League of Nations, mainly on the Council. The conventions ia questioo comprise not only those concluded under the auspices of the League of Nations, but also some concluded independently of the League. The Secretariat presents a list of all these conventions and, in each case, quotes the text of the articles which confer powers on the organs of the League. Further, certain particulars are added concerning the conventions (date, place where the convention was concluded, its character, date of entry into force, names of the contracting parties, etc.). Annex to the Report mi the Work of the League for the Year 1942-1943. Work of the League of Nations in the Matter of International Conventions SIGNATURES, RATIFICATIONS AND ACCESSIONS IN RESPECT OF AGREEMENTS AND CONVENTIONS CONCLUDED UNDER THE AUSPICES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS Twenty-fait List. 197 page». (Ser. L.o.N. P. I944.V.2) 7 6 $2.00 LEAGUE OF NATIONS, PUBLICATIONS DEPABTMENT, GENEVA 2SS2L I f ï : £ ^ 1 o < * “ » - ■ C. 99. M. 99. „ ,5 . V. Geneva, September 20th, 1945. LEAGUE OF NATIONS THE COMMITTEES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS C l a s s i f i e d L i s t a n d E s s e n t i a l F a c t s Series of Publications of the League of Nations v. L E G A L 1 9 4 5 . V. 2. THE COMMITTEES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS SUMMARY Page INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................... 5 LIST OF T H E C O M M IT T E E S .................................................................................... 3 ESSENTIAL FACTS REGARDING THE COMMITTEES ..................................11 «2B. S.d.N . — 1250 (F.) 2500 (A.). 11 45. Im p. K. J. Wysi Erbcn AG., Berue. THE COMMITTEES OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS INTRODUCTION I. T h e Co m m it t e e s l is t e d The list set out below includes about forty Committees apart from the Sub-Committees connected with or appointed by them, most of w hich are also mentioned. The Committees existing in 1939 which, as a result of altered circumstances, have clearly lost their raison d'être have been omitted. II. Classification o f t h e Co m m it t e e s The Committees may be classified according to their origin, nature or purpose. A. Origin of the Committees. 1. The Covenant of the League of Nations made provision for two Commissions. 2. Most of the Committees owe their origin to a decision of the Council or of the Assembly. In a good many cases, both the Council and the Assembly took action in turn. Sometimes the decision of the organs of the League gave effect to a “vœu” or recommendation of an international conference. 3. Two Committees were set up under the terms of international conventions. B. Nature of the Committees. Apart from their purpose, the Committees of the League of Nations have certain characteristic features. I. As a rule, they are advisory bodies. They investigate and make proposals. They submit their opinions and proposals to the Council or Assembly, usually the former. Some of them take decisions themselves under certain conditions. This is so in the case of Committees set up under international con­ ventions; they are not, properly speaking, Committees of the League of Nations, but Committees to which the League lends assistance. This brings up the question of the powers conferred on organs of the League by international conventions 1. 1 See document C.100.M.100.1945.V. — 6 — 2. Some Committees consist of representatives of Governments In such cases, it is the country which is a member of the Committee and the individual sitting on the Committee represents his Govern­ ment, which gives him his instructions and replaces him as and when it sees fit. Other Committees—by far the most numerous—are composed of members appointed in an individual capacity (often experts or technicians) who are not responsible to the Government of the country of which they are nationals. C. The Purpose of the Committees. It is the purpose of Committees which is the most important consideration. 1. Committees concerned with the League of Nations itself (Supervisory Commission, Committee on the Allocation of Expenses, etc.). It would seem that these Committees are destined to disappear with the League itself. 2. Committees the purpose of ivhich may be of interest to the new International Organisation. These Committees may be divided into two categories: (a) Some Committees are set up for one limited purpose. They are called upon to study a particular question; for instance, the Committee for the Study of the Legal Status of Women. Such Committees have, as a rule, reached a more or less advanced stage in their work. (b) Some Committees—the majority—though confined by their terms of reference to a particular domain, have a general competence in regard to that domain (e.g., the Economic Committee, the Fiscal Committee, the Health Committee, and the Advisory Committee on Traffic in Opium). These Committees may also have work in hand relating to one or other of the subjects falling within their general terms of reference. III. T h e M e m b e r s o f Co m m it t e e s The last list of members of Committees of the League of Nations was published on February 28th, 1939 (document C.74.M.35.1939). Since then it has undergone many changes : States represented on a Committee in their capacity as Members of the League have ceased to belong to the League ; members of Committees have resigned or have died and new appointments have been made in certain cases only. The term of appointment of members of Committees, which is — 7 — usually three years, would normally have expired in 1940 or the follow ing years. The Council, however, by a Resolution adopted on D ecem ber 14th, 1939, prolonged all appointments to the technical committees until further notice. As stated in the Report on the W ork o f the League during the War, submitted to the Assembly by th e Acting Secretary-General,1 some Committees have thus been enabled to s it in recent years. 1 Document A. 6. 1946. — 8 — L IS T O F COMMITTEES Part I.—COMMITTEES OR ORGANS CONCERNED WITH THE FUNCTIONING OF THE LEAGUE ITSELF I - Page 1. The Supervisory C o m m issio n ............................................................................................n 2. Committee on the Allocation of E xpenses.....................................................................12 3. Special Committee on Contributions in A r r e a r s .......................................................13 4. The A uditor and D eputy A u d i t o r ...................................................................................14 5. Administrative Board of the Staff Pensions F u n d .................................................. 15 6. Board of M anagem ent of the Staff Provident F u n d ......................................... 7. Investments Committee of the Staff Pensions Fund and of the Staff Provident F u n d ........................................................................................................................17 8. Investments Advisory Committee for the Endowment Fund of the League L ib ra ry ..........................................................................................................................................18 II. A dm inistrative T r i b u n a l ..........................................................................................................19 Part n.—COMMITTEES SET UP UNDER INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS 1. The Permanent Central Opium Board provided for by Article 19 of the Geneva Convention of F ebruary 19th, 1925 ............................................................ 20 2. The Supervisory Body provided for by the Convention concerning Nar­ cotic Drugs signed a t Geneva on Ju ly 13th, 1 9 3 1 ...................................................21 Part HI.—COMMITTEES SET UP UNDER RESOLUTIONS OF THE COUNCIL OR THE ASSEMBLY FOR PURPOSES WITHIN THE COMPETENCE OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS Head I — Po l it ic a l o r Ge n e r a l Qu e s t io n s Chapter I.— Commissions provided for by the Covenant. 1. The Perm anent M andates C o m m issio n ..........................................................................23 2. The Permanent Advisory Commission for Military, Naval and Air Questions 24 Chapter II.— Commission set up by the Assembly. The Commission of E nquiry for European U n io n ............................................................26 — 9 — Head //.—INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION OUTSIDE THE POLITICAL SPHERE Chapter I.— Unification of Law. Legal Questions. Page ] The International Institute for the Unification of Private L aw ........................ 28 , -pjjg Committee of Experts on Assistance to Indigent Foreigners and the Execution of M aintenance O bligations a b r o a d .........................................................30 3 The Committee for the Study of the Legal Status of W om en .............................31 Chapter II.— Communications and Transit.