PAN-AMERICA CONFERENCE DIVIDED

Grey River Argus, 3 April 1948, Page 5

PAN-AMERICA CONFERENCE DIVIDED

On Imperialism And Other Matters

(Received April 2, 9.40 p.m.). BAGOTA (Columbia), April ’X. The Pan-American conference is now in progress here. Guatemala asked for a special commission to be set up to study practical methods for ending in the western hemisphere the colonial rule of European Powers. The United States Secretary of State, General G. C. Marshall, addressed the conference to-day. He made an appeal to the Latin American nations to help tire United States to build world peace, and to aid in a European recovery. At the same time, however, he held out .little hope of the American Government affording any aid to the American republics which have been anxious for increased credits top developmental programmes.

General Marshall said that if the Soviet Union’s genuine cooperation could be secured, then world recovery and peace would be assured. He added: “In planning a European recovery programme, the United States will continue to give careful consideration to the interests of the countries that are represented; at Bogota, but the United States cannot continue to bear alone the burdens on its own economy”.

General Marshall offered the following general programme to the republics:— (1) American support, in the World Bank, for long-term development loans. . „ (2) More authority for U.S.A. Ex-port-Import Bank to lend money to the States of Latin America. (3) A liberalisation of the taxes on the American capital- that is invested in foreign countries. The Argentine Foreign Minister, Senor Juan Bramuglia, followed General Marshall. He dashed cold water oh a move to have the conference present a solid front to the Soviet. “We did not come here to attack the consequences, but to combat the causes of Communism”, Senor Bramuglia said. He warned that America must not return to a colonial econmic system, under which they were used only as the providers of raw materials. Senor Jorge Garcia Granados (the Deputy Leader of the Guatemala delegation), said Guatemala wanted a special commission to investigate “practical means of ending European colonial rule in the Western Hemisphere”. This proposal was in addition to a resolution already on the conference agenda, condemning the existence of the European colonies as “contrary to peace and security”. Senor Granados said the earlier resolution would do little more than place the various American republics’ views on record. The new proposal would take the colonial problem one step further. Guatemala considered that all the Latin American countries directly interested in the problem, and possibly some others, should form the proposed commission. Senor Juvenal Hernandez, head of the Chilean delegation, said . Chile’s claims to British possessions in the Antarctic were “irrefutable”. He said: “Chile proclaims her overwhelming respect for law and order and her constant practice of international justice. No nation has the right to suspect our loyalty to these principles, and for that reason we have faith that, the problem of sovereignty which a friendly Power has placed before us in the Antarctic will be settled by judicial means which will definitely confirm our irrefutable title to these possessions”. Senor Hernandez did not elaborate on his remarks, which indicate that Chile, will submit her claim to the International Court. The United States is expected to oppose Guatemala.