23
Treaty Series No. 881
Rights and Duties of States—Convention Signed
at Montevideo, December 26, 1933
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
WHEREAS a convention on rights and duties of
States was adopted by the Seventh International Conference of American States
at Montevideo, Uruguay, and signed on December 26, 1933, by plenipotentiaries
of the United States of America with a reservation which the delegation of the
United States of America had presented to the plenary session of the conference
on December 22, 1933, and by plenipotentiaries of Honduras, El Salvador,
Dominican Republic, Haiti, Argentina, Venezuela, Uruguay, Paraguay, Mexico,
Panama, Guatemala, Brazil with a reservation, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Colombia,
Chile; Peru with a reservation, and Cuba, the English and Spanish texts of
which convention are word for word as follows:
CONVENTION ON RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF STATES
The Governments represented in the Seventh
International Conference of American States:
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Wishing to conclude a Convention on Rights
and Duties of States, have appointed the following Plenipotentiaries:
[Here follow the names of plenipotentiaries.]
Who, after having exhibited their Full
Powers, which were found to be in good and due order, have agreed upon the
following:
ARTICLE 1
The state as a person of international law
should possess the following qualifications: a) a permanent population; b) a
defined territory; c) government; and d) capacity to enter into relations with
the other states.
ARTICLE 2
The federal state shall constitute a sole
person in the eyes of international law.
ARTICLE 3
The political existence of the state is
independent of recognition by the other states. Even before recognition the
state has the right to defend its integrity and independence, to provide for
its conservation and prosperity, and consequently to organize itself as it sees
fit, to legislate upon its interests, administer its services, and to define
the jurisdiction and competence of its courts.
The exercise of these rights has no other
limitation than the exercise of the rights of other states according to
international law.
ARTICLE 4
States are juridically equal, enjoy the same
rights, and have equal capacity in their exercise. The rights of each one do
not depend upon the power which it possesses to assure its exercise, but upon
the simple fact of its existence as a person under international law.
ARTICLE 5
The fundamental rights of states are not
susceptible of being affected in any manner whatsoever.
ARTICLE 6
The recognition of a state merely signifies
that the state which recognizes it accepts the personality of the other with
all the rights and duties determined by international law. Recognition is
unconditional and irrevocable.
ARTICLE 7
The recognition of a state may be express or
tacit. The latte: results from any act which implies the intention of
recognizing the new state.
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ARTICLE 8
No state has the right to intervene in the
internal or external affairs of another.
ARTICLE 9
The jurisdiction of states within the limits
of national territory applies to all the inhabitants.
Nationals and foreigners are under the same
protection of the law and the national authorities and the foreigners may not
claim rights other or more extensive than those of the nationals.
ARTICLE 10
The primary interest of states is the
conservation of peace. Differences of any nature which arise between them
should be settled by recognized pacific methods.
ARTICLE 11
The contracting states definitely establish
as the rule of their conduct the precise obligation not to recognize
territorial acquisitions or special advantages which have been obtained by
force whether this consists in the employment of arms, in threatening
diplomatic representations, or in any other effective coercive measure. The
territory of a state is inviolable and may not be the object of military
occupation nor of other measures of force imposed by another state directly or
indirectly or for any motive whatever even temporarily.
ARTICLE 12
The present Convention shall not affect
obligations previously entered into by the High Contracting Parties by virtue
of international agreements.
ARTICLE 13
The present Convention shall be ratified by
the High Contracting Parties in conformity with their respective constitutional
procedures. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uruguay shall
transmit authentic certified copies to the governments for the afore-mentioned
purpose of ratification. The instrument of ratification shall be deposited in
the archives of the Pan American Union in Washington, which shall notify the
signatory governments of said deposit. Such notification shall be considered as
an exchange of ratifications.
ARTICLE 14
The present Convention will enter into force
between the High Contracting Parties in the order in which they deposit their
respective ratifications.
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DOCUMENTS
ARTICLE 15
The present Convention shall remain in force
indefinitely but may be denounced by means of one year's notice given to the
Pan American Union, which shall transmit it to the other signatory governments.
After the expiration of this period the Convention shall cease in its effects
as regards the party which denounces but shall remain in effect for the
remaining High Contracting Parties.
ARTICLE 16
The present Convention shall be open for the
adherence and accession of the States which are not signatories. The
corresponding instruments shall be deposited in the archives of the Pan
American Union which shall communicate them to the other High Contracting
Parties.
In witness whereof, the following
Plenipotentiaries have signed this Convention in Spanish, English, Portuguese
and French and hereunto affix their respective seals in the city of Montevideo,
Republic of Uruguay, this 26th day of December, 1933.
RESERVATIONS
The Delegation of the United States of
America, in signing the Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, does so
with the express reservation presented to the Plenary Session of the Conference
on December 22, 1933, which reservation reads as follows:
The Delegation of the United States, in
voting "yes" on the final vote on this committee recommendation and
proposal, makes the same reservation to the eleven articles of the project or
proposal that the United States Delegation made to the first ten articles
during the final vote in the full Commission, which reservation is in words as
follows:
"The policy and attitude of the United
States Government toward every important phase of international relationships
in this hemisphere could scarcely be made more clear and definite than they
have been made by both word and action especially since March 4. I have no
disposition therefore to indulge in any repetition or rehearsal of these acts
and utterances and shall not do so. Every observing person must by this time
thoroughly understand that under the Roosevelt Administration the United States
Government is as much opposed as any other government to interference with the
freedom, the sovereignty, or other internal affairs or processes of the
governments of other nations.
"In addition to numerous acts and
utterances in connection with
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the carrying out of these doctrines and policies, President Roosevelt,
during recent weeks, gave out a public statement expressing his disposition to
open negotiations with the Cuban Government for the purpose of dealing with the
treaty which has existed since 1903. I feel safe in undertaking to say that
under our support of the general principle of non-intervention as has been
suggested, no government need fear any intervention on the part of the United
States under the Roosevelt Administration. I think it unfortunate that during
the brief period of this Conference there is apparently not time within which
to prepare interpretations and definitions of these fundamental terms that are
embraced in the report. Such definitions and interpretations would enable every
government to proceed in a uniform way without any difference of opinion or of
interpretations. I hope that at the earliest possible date such very important
work will be done. In the meantime in case of differences of interpretations
and also until they (the proposed doctrines and principles) can be worked out
and codified for the common use of every government, I desire to say that the
United States Government in all of its international associations and
relationships and conduct will follow scrupulously the doctrines and policies
which it has pursued since March 4 which are embodied in the different
addresses of President Roosevelt since that time and in the recent peace
address of myself on the 15th day of December before this Conference and in the
law of nations as generally recognized and accepted."
The delegates of Brazil and Peru recorded the
following private vote with regard to article 11: "That they accept the
doctrine in principle but that they do not consider it codifiable because there
are some countries which have not yet signed the Anti-War Pact of Rio de
Janeiro of which this doctrine is a part and therefore it does not yet
constitute positive international law suitable for codification".
[Here follow signatures.]
AND WHEREAS the said convention, as signed,
was duly ratified by the United States of America, and the instrument of
ratification of the United States of America embracing the aforesaid reservation
made by its delegation at the conference, as follows:
[Here
follows text of the reservation made by the delegation of the United States of
America, printed above.]
was deposited with the Pan
American Union on July 13, 1934,
AND WHEREAS,
the said convention has been duly ratified also by the Dominican Republic,
whose ratification thereof was deposited with the Pan American Union on
December 26, 1934, on which day the con-
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vention, pursuant to a provision in Article 14 thereof, entered into
force between the United States of America and the Dominican Republic;
Now, THEREFORE, be it known that I, Franklin
D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, have caused the said
convention to be made public to the end that the same and every article and
clause thereof may be observed and fulfilled with good faith by the United
States of America and the citizens thereof subject to the reservation
aforesaid.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my
hand and caused the Seal of the United States of America to be affixed.
DONE at the city of Washington this
eighteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord
one thousand nine hundred and thirty five and of the Independence
[SEAL] of the United
States of America the one hundred and fifty-ninth.
FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT
By the President:
CORDELL HULL
Secretary
of State.