The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1926-06-25
THE LAUSANNE TREATY
From Friends Peace Committee.

|
Shall the United States ratify the
Lausanne Treaty 4? This question
is causing much discussion. The
Democratic platform contains an
naturalization plank, and the
i Republican Administrator is urging
ratification. Yet the opposition to
the Treaty includes Republicans as
well as Democrats; and some prom
inent Democratics are associated
with Republicans in working for
ratification. One hundred and nine
Bishops of the Episcopal Church
have come out in signed statement
opposing ratification, while The
Churchman, one of the leading
Episcopal weeklies, denies the right
of the Bishops to speak for the
Church in this question. Most o.
the American missionaries, school
teachers and business men in Turkey
favor ratifying the treaty.
The Lausanne Treaty was signed
on August 6, 1928. 1t was nego-
tiated at conference held at
Lausanne, Switzerland, between Tur-
key and some of the Allied and
Associated Powers. The conference
was held because the revolution
which changed Turkey from weak,
sprawling, corrupt empire into a
small, sturdy, independent republic
under Mustapha Renal, made the
Treaty of Sevres unavoidable. The
Treaty of Sevres was imposed upor
beaten Turkey by the victorious
Allies, following the World War
Turkey fought on the side, of the
Central Powers, and was defeated
The Treaty of Sevres obviously
could not be applied to nation
entirely different in area, organiza.
ton, spirit and strength from the
Turkey defeated in the World War
After the new Turkish Republic hao
succeeded in freeing it's territory
from Greek and other foreign
troops, ending its victorious effort il
the capture of Smyrna and Con
stantinople in 1925 new treat.
was needed. The Lausanne Confer
ence was called accordingly.
, The United States did not declar,
war on Turkey, so was not part,
to the Treaty of Sevres. Strict,
speaking, therefore, the Unite,
) States did not need a new treat.
, with Turkey. However, the Trea
+ ties of 1880 and 1874 were just a
+ inapplicable as the Treaty of Sevres
. so the Turco-American Treaty O
: Lausanne was negotiated in 1928
at the same time as the treaty be
tween the Allies and Turkey.
The principal feature OF tn
Treaty is the abolition OF tn
capitulations. These agreements
= dating from 1880, have freed for
= eigners in Turkey from the juris
diction of Turkish courts and laws
Intended originally to protect Euro
peans from the injustices of tn
Turkish legal system under tn
Sultan, they have become a mean
;. Of injustice in their turn, and
symbol of what the rest of tn
world is coming to look ON a
white arrogance" The rest O
: the Treaty provides for the right
of commerce and industry, and TO
the maintenance of American relig
.ous and educational institutions i,
Turkey.
The abolition of the capitulation
probably explain the support Ameri
can missionaries In Turkey are Civ
ing the Treaty. Missionary worl
,, has become almost impossible whel
the nation which sends out mis-
sionaries insists on special rights TO
its citizens which enables them t,
take advantages of the native in
habitants. At any rate. the mis-
sionaries who live in Turkey ar,
strong for the Treaty.
The opposition to the Treaty i,
based largely on the fear that i
will not protect the Armenians.
is sad but true that the religious
masssacres in the Near East have
not been all one one side. While
the Turks have deported thousand.
of Armenians, often with horrible
cruelty and bloodshed, the crueltie'
practised by Armenian troops wher
Armenians and Russians invaded
Turkey during the war remain 6
vivid memory to many Turks. The
way to peace is not to remember
old wrongs and hatreds, but tC
create better conditions.
The Armenians now have a home
land, the Republic OF Armenia, {
member of the federation of nations
called Russia. Russia and Turkey
have now made a treaty of non
aggression, and Russia has protected
Armenia from invasions since 1920,
Fhe Armenian Republic is now
lrmly established, and has already
received 4S8,0O0 Armenian refugees
g. II. IN -.