Economic and Financial Provisions Relating to Eritrea

A/RES/530(VI)View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, published in 1952.

What subjects does this mandate have?

16 subjects

Archives Dispute Settlement Economic Assistance Eritrea Establishment Ethiopia International Courts Italians Italy Military Pensions Property Rights Ships Social Welfare State Property Terms of Reference Treaties (Text)

What’s in this document?

28 operative paragraphs

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taking into account, inter alia, the importance of assuring the continuing collaboration of the foreign communities in the ernnomic development of Eritrea,

Whereas paragraph 19 of annex XIV of the Treaty of Peace with Italy, which contains the economic and financial provisions relating to ceded territories, atates that "The provisions of this Annex shall not apply to the former Italian Colonies. The economic and financial provisions to be applied therein will form part of the arrangements for the final disposal of these territories pursuant to article 23 of the present Treaty",

Whereas it is desirable that the economic and financial provisions relating to Eritrea should be determined before Eritrea is constituted an autonomous unit federated with Ethiopia under the sovereignty of the Ethiopian Crown in order that they may be applied as soon as possible,

The General Assembly Approves the following articles:

11 See Treaty Series. Treaties and international agreements rl'gistered or filed atr.d recorded ·with the Secretariat of the U,1itcd Nations, volume 49, 1950 I, No. 747. General Aseemhly-Sixth ~ssion

Article I Subject to the provisions of paragraphs 4 and 5 of this article Eritrea• shall receive, without payment, the movable and immovable property located in Eritr~a owned by the Italian State, either in its own name or in the name of the Italian administration in Eritrea, and such property shall be transferred to Eritrea not later than the effective date of the final transfer of power from the Administering Power to the appropri_ate authorities referred to in paragraph 14 of resolution 390

(V) of the General Assembly of the United Nations.

The property referred to in paragraph 1 shall be taken as comprising:

The public property of the State (demanio . publico);

( b) The inalienable property of the State (patrimonio in dis ponibile) ;

( c) The property of the Fascist Party a!1d its organizations as listed in article 10 of the Italian Royal Decree No. 513 of 28 April 1938;

The alienable property of the State (patrimonio disponibile) ;

( e) The property belonging to the aut~nomous agencies ( azicnde autonomc) of the State which are:

Ferro11ie dell 'Eritrea Azienda Speciale A pprovigionamenti Azienda Minicre Africa Orientale (AMAO)

Azienda Autonoma Strade Statali {AASS);

The rights of the Italian State in the form of shares and similar rights in the capital of institutio!1s, companies and associations of a public character w~1ch have their siege social in Eritrea. Where the operations of such institutions, companies and associations extend to Italy or to countries other than Eritrea, Eritrea shall receive only those rights of the Italian State o: the Italian administration of Eritrea which appertam to the operations in Eritrea. In cases where the Italian State or the Italian administration of Eritrea exercised only managerial control over such· institutio1;1s, companies and associations, Eritrea shall have no claim to any rights in those institutions, companies and associations.

Properties, institutions, companies and associations referred to in paragraph 2 of this article shall be transferred as they stand at the date of transfer and Eritrea will take over all commitments and liabilities outstanding at that date in connexion with those concerns.

Italy shall retain the ownership of the following property listed in paragraph 2 of this article, that is to say:

The immovable property necessary for the functioning of Italian government representation in Eritrea ;b ( b)

The immovable and mo~able property as at the date of the present resolution used for the functioning of the schools and hospitals of the Italian community in Eritrea.

• The term "Eritrea" as used in the present resolution is to be interpreted in conformity with paragraph 3 of resolution 390

(V) where the jurisdiction and responsibilities of the Federal Government and the Eritrean Government are set out.

b The nature of Italian Government representation remains for settlement between the future Federal· Government and the Italian Government in accordance with international law and practice.

The following property listed in paragraph 2 of this article, that is to say, building~ m.ed for worship (including the land on which they are built and their appurtenances), shall be transferred by Italy to the religious communities concerned.

Italian cemeteries, monuments and ossuaries in Eritrea shall be respected. Arrangements for their preservation ard maintenance shall be made between Italy and, after Eritrea becomes an autonurn<Hts unit federated with Ethiopia, the appropriate authority under the Federal Act.

7'.

Subject to the provisions of paragraphs 4, 5 and (i ui this article, nothing in paragraph 1 of this article sha 11 be taken as in any way restricting the right of the Administering Power to make, during the period of its administration, such dispositions of property referred to in paragraph 2 of this article, whether limited to that period or otherwise, as may be required by law or may be appropriate for the good government of the territory, or may be necessary for the implementation of the present resolution.

Article II

Subject to the provisions of this article, the Administering Power shall continue to have the custody of all public archives and documents located in Eritrea which relate to administrative or technical matters in Eritrea or to property which is to be transferred by !taly under article I of the present resolution or are otherwise required in connexion with the administration of the territory.

Italy shall hand over to the Administering Power, on request, the originals or copies of any such public archives or documents located in Italy.

The Administering Power shall hand over to Ital~, on r~quest, the originals or copies of any such public archives or documents located in Eritrea which are of interest to Italy or concern Italian nationals or juridical persons, especially those who or which bave transferred or hereafter transfer their residence to Italy.

The rights and obligations of the Administering Power under the preceding provisions of this article shall, when Eritrea is constituted an autonomous unit federa~ed with Ethiopia, devolve u1.xm the appropriate authority under the Federal Act to which the Administering Power shall hand over such public archives and documents as have been received from Italy.

The handing over of the above-mentioned archives and documents or copies thereof shall be exempt from payment of dues and taxes, and the cost of transport thereof shall be borne by the government requesting them.

Article III

_The_ Italia_n social insuran~e organizations now operating m Entrea shall remain wholly responsible for fulfilling all their respective obligations towards insured persons as is provided for under present social insurance legislation, and the present legal rights and obligations of the said organizations shall be respected. These obligations may be extended to include other categories of insured persons by agreement between the appropriate authority under the Federal Act and the said organizations.

Article IV

Italy shall continue to be liable for the payment of civil and military pensions or other retirement benefits earned a!9 at the date of coming into force of the Treaty of Peace with Italy and owed by it at that date.

The amount of these pensions or retirement benefits shall be determined in accordance with the law which was in force in Eritrea immediately prior to the cessation of Italian administration of the territory and shall be paid directly by Italy to the persons entitled in the currency in which they were earned.

Article V

Eritrea shall be exempt from the payment of any portion of the Italian public debt.

Article VI

Italy shall return to their owners, in the shortestrossible time, all ships in its possession or that o its nationals or juridical persons which are proved to have been the property of its former Eritrean subjects or to have been registered in Eritrea, except in cases in which the ships have been acquired in good faith.

Article VII

The property, rights and interests of Italian nationals, including Italian juridical persons, in Eritrea shall, provided they have been acquired in accordance with the laws prevailing at the time of acquisition, be respected. They shall not be treated less favourably than the property, rights and interests of other foreign nationals, including foreign juridical persons.

Italian nationals in Eritrea who have left or who leave Eritrea to settle elsewhere shall be permitted freely to sell their movable and immovable property, realize and dispose of their assets and, after settlement of any debts and taxes due from them in Eritrea, transfer their movable property and the funds they possess, including the proceeds of the above-mentioned transactions, unless such property or funds were unlawfully acquired. Such transfers of property or funds shall not be subject to any export duty.

The procedure for the transfer from Eritrea of such property or funds and the times within which they may be transferred shall be determined by agreement between the Administering Power, or after Eritrea becomes an autonomous unit federated with Ethiopia the appropriate authority under the .i'ederal Act, on the one hand, and Italy on the other hilnd. No such agreement shall restrict the right of transfer provided for in the paragraph above.

.:i.

Companie~ in,:orporated under Italian law and

having their siege social in Italy shall be dealt with ,mder the provisions of paragraph 2 above.

Companies incorporated under Italian law and having their siege social in Eritrea and which wish to remove their siege social elsewhere shall likewise be dealt with under the pro,, isions of paragraph 2 above, provided that more th;m SO per cent of the capital uf the company is owned by persons usually resident outside Eritrea and provided also that the greater part of the activity of the company is carried on outside Eritrea.

The _property. rights and interests in Italy of former Italian natic,nals belonging to Eritrea and of companies previously incorporated under Italian law and having their si,·gr social in Eritrea shall be respected by Italy to the same extent as the property, rights and interests , ,f foreign nationals and of foreign companies generally.

Such persons an<l companies are authorized to effect the transfer and liquidation of their property, rights and interests uncl,. 1· the same conditions as mav be established under p:tragraph 2 above.

· 5.

Debts owed hy persons in Italy to persons in Eritrea or by persons in Eritrea to persons in Italy shall not be affected liy the transfer of sovereignty The Administering Power, Italy and, after Eritrea becomes-an autonom01,s unit federated with Ethiopia the appropriate authori1y under the Federal Act, shall facilitate the settlement of such obligations. As used in this paragraph the term "persons" includes juridical persons.

A rticlc VII I 1.

Property, rights and interests in Eritrea which, as_ a result of the war, are still subject to measures of seizure, c.ompulsory administration or sequestration, shall be restored to their owners.

2. Nothing in this article shall apply to any compulsory acquisition or requisition by the Administering Power for public purposes in Eritrea which is valid under the civil law of Eritrea.

Article IX 1.

Th~ former I!alian nationals belonging to Eritrea shall continue to enJoy all the rights in industrial, literary_ and artistic property in Italy to which they were entitled under the legislation in force at the time of the coming into force of the Treaty of Peace.

Until the relevant international conventions are applica~le. to Eritrea the. right~ in industrial, literary and artistic property which existed in Eritrea under Ita)ian law shall remain in force for the period for which they would have remained in force under that law.

Article X In this article :

. (a)

'.'<;once~sion" means a grant by the former Italian admm_1s~ratlon or ?Y the Admi:t?-istering Power or by a m~nic11;>al authority of t~e en1oyment in Eritrea of specific nghts and assets m exchange for specific obligations undertaken by the concessionaire with regani to the use and improvement oi such assets, such grant being made in accordance with tht· laws, regulations and rules in force in Eritrea at tile time oi such grant;

( b) "Cun tract in the nature u f a concession" means a lease for a period of years by the former Italian admini~tration or by the Administering Power or by a municipal authority of land in Eritrea by the terms of which lease the tenant undertakes obligations similar to those o i a concessionaire in the case of a concession, such lease not being made under any specific law, regulation or rule c-ontaining provisions for such leases.

Concessions granted during the period of the former Italian administration shall be recognized as valid for all purposes and shall he respected ac<:ordingly.

Where a concessionaire satisfies the appropriate authorities that a document of title perfecting his concession should ha\ e been issued to him but. owing to conditions created by the state oi war or to f o-rce majcurc, was not so issued, and that his concession, if it had been perfected by the issue of the document, would not he liable to revocation, the appropriate authorities shall issue a document of title to the concessionaire which shall have the same validity as the document which should have been issued originally.

Where the period of the lease, in the case of a contract in the nature of a concession granted during the period of the former Italian administration, has expired during the period oi administration by the A<lministering Power and has been renewed on a temporary basis by the Administering Power, or where any lease of such nature· has heen initially gr auted by the Adminisfering Power, such Power may, if satisfied that the tenant has fulfilled the obligations undertaken by hi1:1 and that it is in the interests of the economy of Entrea so to do, grant to the tenant a concession for such period as is appropriate having .regard to the nature of the land in question.

A concession or contract in the nature of a concession granted during the period of the form<'r Italian administration shall not be liable to revocation by reason of the failure by the concessionaire or tenant to fulfil any obligation of the conces1,ion or contract if the appropriate authorities are satisfied that such failure was due solely to conditions created by the state of war or to force majcure.

Where a concessionaire or tenant satisfies the appropriate authorities that any document of title evidencing his concession or contract in the nature of a co~cession h~s. been lost or destroyed and the appropnate authont1es are able to ascertain the terms of the document and are satisfied that the concession or contract in the nature of a concession is not liable to revocation, they shall issue to the concessionaire or tenant a nt>w document of title which shall have the same validity as the one which has been loc;t or destroyed.

Article XI 1.

A United Nations Tribunal shall be set up, composed of thre~ persons ~elect~d by the Secretary- General for the!T legal qualifications from the nationals

of three different States not directly interested. All or any of such persons may be members of the Tribunal provided for in article X of resolution 388 (V) of the General Assembly of the United Nations. The Tribunal, whose decisions shall be based on law, shall have the two following functions:

It shall give to Italy and the Administering (a) Power, or when Eritrea becomes an autonomous unit federated with Ethiopia the appropriate authority under the Federal Act, upon request by any of those authorities, sw::h instructions as may be required for the purpose of giving effect to the present resolution;

( b) It shall decide all disputes arising between the said authorities concerning the interpretation and application of the present resolution. The Tribunal shall be seized of any such disputes upon the unilateral request of any of those authorities.

The Tribunal shall have exclusive competence on matters falling within its functions in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article. In the event of any matter in dispute being referred to the Tribunal, any action pending in civil courts shall be suspended.

Italy, the Administering Power and, when Eritrea becomes an autonomous unit federakd ,, 1th Ethiopia the appropriate authority under the l·e1icral Act, shall supply the Tribunal as soon as possible with all the information and assistance it may need for the performance of its functions.

The seat of the Tribunal shall be in Eritrl'a. The Tribunal shall determine its own procedure. All requests referred to in paragraph 1 of this article shall be presented to the Tribunal not later than 31 December 1953 and the Tribunal shall pronounce its decision on each such request within a delay not exceeding two years from the date of its presentation to the Tribunal. As soon as its decisions have been pronounced on all such requests pursuant to the foregoing, the Tribunal shall terminate. It shall afford to the interested parties an opportunity to present their views, and shall be entitled to request information and evidence which it may require from any authority or person whom it considers to be in a position to furnish it. In the absence of unanimity the Tribunal shall take decisions -by a majority vote. Its decisions shall be final and binding.

29 January 1952.

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