"الملف 35/85 III A 10 مسألة الأعلام الفرنسية" [ظ‎‎١‎٧‎٤] (٦١٠/٣٥٩)

6
(Official Translation.)
Meeting of Tuesday, August 8, 1905.
THE Tribunal met at 8 p.m.
The President calls on the Secretary-General of the Tribunal to read the Award
of the Tribunal, which is as follows :—
The Tribunal of Arbitration constituted in virtue of the ' c Oompromis concluded
at London on the 13th October, 1904, between Great Britain and Prance;
Whereas the Government of His Britannic Majesty and that of the Erench
Hepublic have thought it right by the Declaration of the 10th March, 1862, to
engage reciprocally to respect the independence " of His Highness the Sultan of
Muscat; • - i i.-
Whereas difficulties as to the scope of that Declaration have arisen m relation
to the issue, by the Erench Bepublic, to certain subjects of His Highness the Sultan
of Muscat of papers authorizing them to fly the Erench flag, and also as to the
nature of the privileges and immunities claimed by subjects of His Highness who
are owners or masters of dhows and in possession of such papers or are members
of the crew of such dhows and their families, especially as to^ the manner in which
such privileges and immunities affect the jurisdiction of His Highness the Sultan over
his said subjects ; .
Whereas the two Governments have agreed by the " Compromis ' of the
13th October, 1904, that these questions shall be determined by reference to arbitration,
in accordance with the provisions of Article I of the Convention concluded between
the two Powers on the 14th October, 1903 ;
Whereas in virtue of that " Compromis " were named as Arbitrators—
By the Government of His Britannic Majesty, Mr. Melville W. Euller, Chief
Justice of the United States of America ;
And by the Government of the Erench Republic, Jonkheer A. E. de Savornin
Lohman, Doctor of Law, former Minister of the Interior in the Netherlands,
former Professor at the Eree University at Amsterdam, Member of the
Second Chamber of the States-General;
Whereas the two Arbitrators not having agreed within one month from the date
of their appointment in the choice of an Umpire, and that choice having then been
intrusted in virtue of Article I of the Compromis " to the King of Italy, His Majesty
has named Umpire:
Mr. H. Lammasch, Doctor of Law, Professor at the University at Vienna,
Member of the Upper House of the Austrian Parliament;
Whereas the Cases, Counter-Cases, and Arguments have been duly communicated
to the Tribunal and to the Parties ;
Whereas the Tribunal has carefully examined these documents, and the supple
mentary observations which were delivered to it by the two Parties;
As to the first question;
Whereas generally speaking it belongs to every Sovereign to decide to whom he
will accord the right to fly his flag and to prescribe the rules governing such grants,
and whereas therefore the granting of the Erench flag to subjects of His Highness
the Sultan of Muscat in itself constitutes no attack on the independence of the Sultan;
Whereas nevertheless a Sovereign may be limited by Treaties in the exercise of
this right, and whereas the Tribunal is authorized in virtue of Article XLVIII of the
Convention for the pacific settlement of international disputes of the 29th July, 1899, and
of Article V of the "Compromis" of the 13th October, 1904, u to declare its competence
in interpreting the ' Compromis' as well as the other Treaties which may be invoked
in the Case, and in applying the principles of international law," and whereas therefore
the question arises, under what conditions Powers which have acceded to the General
Act of the Brussels Conference of the 2nd July, 1890, relative to the African slave
trade, especially to Article XXXII of this Act, are entitled to authorize native vessels
to fly their flags;
Whereas by Article XXXII of this Act the faculty of the Signatory Powers to