Coll 28/67 ‘Persia. Annual Reports, 1932–’ [‎131r] (261/644)

[12998] b 3
have complaints of injustices done to commandeered lorry drivers, unnecessary
difficulties caused to pilgrims, illegal arrests, detentions and expulsions, and, most
important of all, the almost complete paralysis inflicted upon British consular
officers by the refusal of practically all local officials, except the Governors, to
have any dealings with them, whether official or private.
7. The fact is that, however willing the Ministry for Foreign Affairs may
be, their word is not law with the other departments, nor is the word of those
departments law in the Eastern provinces. There is room for endless abuse and
misrepresentation, an advantage of which the authorities on the spot avail
themselves to the full to cover up their misdoings and shield themselves from the
Imperial wrath. In such circumstances it seems hardly reasonable to hope for
improvement until the root cause of the evil has been removed. The Ministry for
Foreign Affairs have more than once admitted that the real trouble is the absence
of any adequately educated class from which to draw for their minor officials,
most of whom are entirely ignorant—and ignorant, it may be added, with an
ignorance which makes them fierce both in the execution of the duties and the
misinterpretation of their instructions. Their zeal is the zeal of the murderers
of St. Thomas of Canterbury. Once the wrong is done, the protest lodged and
the report called for, these local officials have everything in their own hands. It
is a simple matter to produce a report which throws the blame on the innocent
victim of the accident. Skin-saving, even more than face-saving, is their trivial
round, their common task. It is to be doubted whether better conditions can be
hoped for until a more educated rank and file has grown up to fill these small
administrative posts, and until more rapid means of communication exist in the
remote parts of Eastern Iran.
8. These minor difficulties, where it has proved impossible to secure the
satisfaction which is obviously due, continued as thorns in the side of His
Majesty’s Legation throughout the past year. In wider issues it would be difficult
to trace any consistent policy on the part of the Iranian Government, beyond that
of getting all they can out of us. At the time of my arrival and for some months
afterwards, allusions were made to the desire of the Iranian Government to clear
up the various outstanding questions which had figured in the earlier treaty
negotiations. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Prime Minister and the Shah
himself mentioned this, and after M. Kazemi’s return from Geneva in March
he announced his definite intention of opening negotiations. Then came the
evacuation of Hen jam and Basidu. When I informed his Excellency of this step
on the 2nd April, he at once took occasion to make some preliminary observations
on the subject of general negotiations. It was then that he made his statement
of the Iranian views regarding Bahrein and the Arab rulers, adding that, in
return for so great a sacrifice, he expected to be met on two points, first, assistance
in the Iranian claims on the Iraq frontier and, secondly, recognition of their
pretensions to Tamb and Abu Musa Islands. After that date no further mention
whatever was made to me during the rest of the year of general negotiations.
For some weeks I was careful to miss no opportunity to emphasise the standpoint
of His Majesty’s Government in regard to the islands, and after May, or June
at the latest, no further allusion was made to those claims. It seems possible
that the Iranian Government are awaiting the final result of the long-drawn-out
negotiations on the Iraq frontier question in order to judge whether our assistance
has been adequate to justify the confirmation of M. Kazemi’s admissions.
9. In point of fact certain piecemeal progress was made in the course of
the year with questions which figured on the old draft treaty. The questions of
Hen jam and Basidu (articles 4 and 5) have been disposed of; that of Bahrein
(article 7) has been advanced by M. Kazemi’s declaration; the impending
agreement regarding the cession of lights and buoys should settle article 9. The
question of ships’ visits (article 3) seemed to be nearing a solution by the end of
the year, while that of the wireless stations (article 6) had been considerably
advanced by the decision to close the telegraph stations at Charbar and Hen jam
and, in due course, that at Task. This slow and careful progress with individual
questions would seem to be preferable to an attempt to revive the omnibus process,
and in any case it appears preferable to leave all initiative to the Iranians.
9a. In her relations with other countries the chief preoccupation of Iran
has been the frontier dispute with Iraq. This quarrel, which is entirely of Persian