'File 18/55 I (C 101) Bahrain Order in Council' [‎17r] (42/477)

Bahrain,
ft j jp ^
30 - 4 - 12.
S'V
Dear Sir Percy,
I have Juat received a copy of the isemi-final
drait of the order in Council A regulation issued by the sovereign of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Privy Council. ,and take thia opportunity of sending
you a note regarding juat one point in it.
• I «ould cftll your attention to para.8 (2),the definition of
Poreignera whom the Order appliea to.
The definition aeema to leave it entirely to the Shekh to
determine what Poreignera are to oe auoject to our juriadiction. .
Both oefore and aince writing hia letter ot 't-y. o(f
asking the Britiah Govt.to aaaume juriadiction over Poreignera
he haa very explicitly atated that among them are not included
the aaDjecta ot Arao Chiefs with whom he haa private "treatiea"•
Theae he claima the right to treat aa hia own aubjects. Thia
assertion haa never oeen accepted ,but neither haa it been categ-
-orically denied. The queation waa last dealt with in your letter
No•254- dated 29 — 1 — 11 to Knox.
I have just had another caae which I h^ve tided over without
entering into the matter.
It seems to me absolutely neceaaary if we are to avoid much
trouble in the future that the Order in Council A regulation issued by the sovereign of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Privy Council. decide the queati^
one way or anothsr for the future,either
1. oy asserting our entire juriadiction over all persons not
of Bahrain birth,
2.or oy, admitting the Shekhs contention out tflking steps to
define precisely its application.
Under the second alternative we should examine the alleged agree
ments D3tween Shekh laa and the other Chiefs,find if thetf are ack
-nowledged by the^reapective partie3,and then if suitable
iormally recognising them. At the same time we would lay down
Liii-i a*iy dispute arising out of them between two chief a ahould
be obligatarally referred to ua for final arbitration.
With the preaent toxt of th3 Order in Council A regulation issued by the sovereign of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Privy Council. I ajn perfectly
aure that we shall have much trouble. We should normally have
to take up the cases or any Arab foreigners,but at any stage in
ftiiy cajQ Shekh Is? would be able to step in and claim the men
as xi., proteges,and all wo could do would be to take hia word
for it as the decisive point in the O.in C. is the Shekh's
"agreement" or "consent". #
I have not had any time to think the thing out,but I am
not at all aure that we would lose anything by adopting the 2nd
alternative.
In haste.
Yours sincerely,
V. • n
I seud thla by Wlison.who will be aola to toll you or s fsw
minutes or oonvera»,tion we have hf d on the subject.
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