26 Epidemiological and Vital Statistics Report. Monthly. 26 No. 1. Technical Preparatory Committee for the International Health Conference No. 2. International Health Conference, New York, 1946 No. 3. First session of the Interim Commission No. 4. Second session of the Interim Commission No. 8. Expert committees of the Interim Commission No. 10. Provisional agenda for the first World Health Assembly (with documents and recommendations) No. 11 Expert committees of the Interim Commission No. 12. Supplementary report of the Interim Commission No. 14. Reports of the Executive Board, 1st and 2nd sessions No. 15. Reports of Expert Committees to the Executive Board No. 16. Annual Report of the Director-General to the World Health Assembly and to the United Nations 1948 No. 17. Report of the Executive Board, 3d session No. 19. Reports of the Expert Committee and other Advisory Bodies to the Executive Board No. 20. Financial Report 1 Sept.-31 Dec., 1948, and Report of the External Auditor. U.S. Public Health Service. The First World Health Assembly: Reprint No. 2894 from the Public Health Reports. Vol. 63, No. 43, Oct. 22, 1948. 26 Separate editions in English and French. Transport and Communications Central Commission for Navigation of the Rhine 15 rue de Juiss, Strasbourg, France ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT The Central Rhine Commission was set up in accordance with the provisions of the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Its present aspect is the result of modifications which came about through the Convention of Mainz in 1831, the Convention of Mannheim in 1868, and the Versailles Treaty in 1919. In essence, the basis of the modern character of the Central Rhine Commission is the Convention of Mannheim of 1868. Although the Commission functioned without interruption up to the outbreak of World War II in 1939, its activities were restricted after 1936 as a result of the denunciation of the waterways provisions of the Versailles Treaty by Germany in November of that year and the simultaneous withdrawal of Germany from the Commission. From 1937 to 1939 the Commission functioned without the participation of Germany and was unable to exercise its jurisdiction in German territory. It was reorganized on a provisional basis in December 1945 following informal discussions among representatives of the British, French, Belgian, the Netherlands, and the United States Governments and an exchange of notes between the United States and the United Kingdom, which indicated agreement of the above-mentioned countries to the re-establishment of international machinery to regulate navigation on the Rhine River.1 This exchange was one of the results of the proposal made by President Truman at the Potsdam Conference when he urged that the nations take immediate steps to establish provisional international commissions for each of the principal international waterways of Europe. It is expected that the present status of the Commission will be maintained pending negotiation of a peace treaty with Germany. 1 See Basic Texts and Publications, p. 267. $42727-50—18 265 MEMBERSHIP There are six member governments of the Central Rhine Commission, all of whom have equal status and an equal voice in the present provisional organization-Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Germany's interests are provisionally represented by the delegations of the three occupying powers-France, the United Kingdom, and the United States. PURPOSES, POWERS, AND FUNCTIONS The purposes of the Central Rhine Commission are to insure that the navigation of the Rhine and its mouths shall be free to vessels and nationals of all nations for the commercial transportation of merchandise and persons, and, more specifically, to act as an impartial organization concerned with the assurance and maintenance of adequate technical conditions permitting the full navigability of the river. For example, the Commission can recommend the construction of works technically necessary for the improvement of navigation conditions and has the power of review over construction projects proposed by any riparian state which may affect the navigability of the stream. Similarly, the Commission is responsible for adequate policy regulations for navigation on the river and serves as a high court of appeal on litigation involving navigation on the Rhine. STRUCTURE The present organization of the Central Rhine Commission consists of a president, a secretary general, a small secretariat, and a few technicians. This group conducts the activities of the Commission between meetings. The present secretary general is M. Walther. The Commission itself holds four meetings during the year at Strasbourg, at which meetings all six members are represented, together with their technical aides and assistants. Decisions are arrived at on the basis of a majority of the members present and voting. French is the official language of the Commission. FINANCES Budget. The 1948 budget was 11,400,000 French francs, while the 1949 budget was estimated at 16,320,000 French francs. Members' Quotas. Expenses are shared equally by the six members. Each member's share of the 1948 budget was 1,900,000 French francs. The respective shares of the 1949 budget are 2,720,000 French francs. UNITED STATES RELATIONS Authorization. United States participation in the Central Rhine Commission results from an exchange of notes in 1945 between the British and the United States Governments and is pursuant to the President's powers to conduct the foreign relations of the United States. Payments. The United States contribution is paid from funds appropriated to the Department of State. Its contribution for 1948 amounted to $6,230, the equivalent of 1,900,000 French francs (at the rate of 305 francs to $1) and for 1949, to $8,559, the equivalent of 2,720,000 French francs (at the rate of 318 francs to $1). Agencies Chiefly Concerned. The Department of State is the United States agency primarily concerned with the activities of the Central Rhine Commission. Participation. The United States has participated continuously in each of the meetings of the Central Rhine Commission since December 1945. RELATIONS WITH OTHER INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS The Central Rhine Commission exchanges observers and documents with the Inland Transport Committee of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and with the Permanent International Association of Navigation Congresses of which it is a member. BASIC TEXTS AND PUBLICATIONS U.S. Department of State. Central Commission of the Rhine: Arrangement providing for Participation by the United States of America, Effected by Exchange of Notes Signed at London October 4 and 29, and November 5, 1945. Treaties and Other International Acts Series 1571. Washington, Government Printing Office, 1947. Pub. 2730. 60 Stat. 1932. Central Commission for Navigation of the Rhine. Rapport Annuel de la Commission Centrale pour la Navigation du Rhin. Strasbourg. Protocol de Seance. Quarterly. Strasbourg. Inter-American Radio Office Calle Cuba, No. 64, Habana, Cuba ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT The Inter-American Radio Office (OIR) was established under the Inter-American Radiocommunications Convention signed at Habana, December 13, 1937.2 This convention and the Office were an outgrowth of the increasing need for an inter-American agreement for collaboration in the field of radiocommunications. Under the terms of the Habana Convention, the Second Inter-American Radio Conference was held at Santiago in January 1940. This 3 3 conference resulted in an Inter-American Radiocommunications Agreement which was a revision of the Habana Arrangement. The third conference was scheduled to take place in Rio de Janeiro in 1943 but was postponed until 1945 because of the war. When it was held, its activities were regarded in part as preparatory planning for the World Telecommunications Conference scheduled for 1946. The Inter-American Telecommunications Convention signed at the conclusion of this Conference proposed the reorganization of the OIR and the establishment of an office to be called the Office of Inter-American Telecommunications (OIT) with an extended field of operations including all types of telecommunications. The Inter-American Telecommunications Convention of 1945 is to come into effect upon the ratifications or adherences of at least five states and will supersede as between contracting parties, the 1937 Convention. To date there have been no ratifications. The Fourth Inter-American Radio Conference, Washington, 1949, asked the Cuban Government to consult all the American governments regarding the membership and support of the OIR, and to circulate the views received in order that the government may decide upon steps to obtain the maximum mutual benefit from the OIR. MEMBERSHIP The countries maintaining membership in the OIR are as follows: Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Newfoundland, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and the United States of America. PURPOSES, POWERS, AND FUNCTIONS The functions of the OIR are advisory, consultative, and informational. They include preparatory work for conferences, issuance of publications of conferences, the publication and circulation of technical information including exchange of data relating to frequencies, interference, et cetera, as well as treaties and other information relating to inter-American radiocommunications, and the submission of an annual report. The functions of the OIR were further clarified in Declaration I of the Radiocommunications Agreement of 1940, which recognizes the limits of the authority of the Om. Under the terms of the North American Regional Broadcasting Interim Agreement of 1946,3 the OIR also serves as a central point for the exchange among the governments of that region of notifications of frequencies registered for broadcasting. 3 See Basic Texts and Publications, p. 270. |