My telegram 368. [1] Refugee Committee.

The Rapporteur's Report was adopted for forwarding to the Economic
and Social Council on 1st June, when the Special Committee
adjourned in accordance with paragraph 8 on the Economic and
Social Council resolution of the 16th February 1946. [2]

2. As indicated in earlier telegrams several points of principle
have remained unresolved, and the lengthy report which will go to
the Economic and Social Council contains many reservations and
explanations inserted at the request of various delegations. The
report is not unsatisfactory in that it does establish the
existence of a practical refugee and displaced persons problem, to
a large extent defines the limits within which any international
refugee organisation will have to operate, and lays down many of
the details and principles in accordance with which refugee
assistance will have to be conducted. The difficulty is that in
practically every important respect in which the conclusions of
the committee were reached by vote the countries of origin i.e.

U.S.S.R., Byelorussia, Ukraine, Poland and Yugoslavia, formed a
standing minority and there is no guarantee anywhere in the
document that these countries will co-operate effectively when it
comes to the point.

3. The main recommendation of the Committee (on which, however,
the United Kingdom Government has made a reservation on its
position-see Dominion Office telegram D.555 [3]) is for the
establishment of a specialised agency to be known as the
International Refugee Organisation with the essential functions of
(a) Facilitating the return to their country of origin of those
persons who desire to return, and
(b) Facilitating the re-establishment of other persons in
countries of temporary residence, emigration to and re-
establishment in other countries of individuals or family units,
and as may be necessary and practicable within the resources which
may be available and subject to the relevant financial
regulations, investigation, promotion and execution of projects of
large scale settlement.

4. I have assumed throughout discussions that the main Australian
interest in this question is in connection with any eventual plans
for resettlement and the principal statement made by the
Australian Delegation dealt with this point. On present showing it
seems likely that there will be a long interval before any
international agency is in a position to approach Governments with
significant resettlement proposals. In the meantime however the
further discussions which will take place on the constitution and
functions of the International Refugee Organisation will be of
some importance to us in as much as Australia as a potential
receiving country will presumably be asked to contribute to the
operational as well as the administrative costs of the
organisation. With this in mind I spoke in favour of deletion from
the report at this stage of the financial provisions which seemed
vague and unsatisfactory to a degree. Though the provisions were
voted in by a majority, our position in this respect is therefore
left open. Another point which may be of importance to us is the
constitution of the Executive Committee of the general Council of
the organisation. Here the Australian vote was cast in favour of a
minority amendment designed to confine representation on the
Executive Committee after the first year to those countries which
contribute to operational costs of the organisation.

5. Copy of the final report is being for-warded immedately by air-
mail. [4]