The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1944-03-27


Mr.. Churchill has just told the
House of Commons, that the At
lantic Charter should be clarified.
Many questions have arisen unoer
it which weigh heavily on the con-
science of honest men. Because
there has been no way of obtain
ing an authoritative Interpretation
in concrete cases, the charter is
tending to become an instrument
of dissession and of demoraliza-
ton.
Yet it was intended to be the
charter of good and lasting
peace. 1t can still be that, but only
if the nations which signed it have
the candor and the moral resolu'
ton to clarity it.
The Atlantic Charter is a decla.
ration of eight principles made by
President Roosevelt and Prime
Minister Churchill on Aug. IA, 1941.
Four and half months later, on
Jan. /, 1912, it was embodied ir
what is known as ga joint declara.
ton by united nations" and is an
organic part of the grand alliance
for the conduct of the war and fol
the making of peace. There is nc
doubt that the Atlantic Charter is
solemn agreement duly signed
and sealed.
The eight general principles are
not, however, always self-evident
and men, even the men who wrote
them, and the men who subscribed
to them, may and do differ hon
estly as to how in certain cases
they are to be interpreted anc
applied. This is no cause for dis
may or embarrassment. Any code
of conduct, the Ten Command
ments, the Bill of Rights, Wilson's
Fourteen Points, has to be inter
preted continually if it is to be
applied to ali concrete cases as
they arise.
There are already fair number
of such concrete cases where ar
Interpretation of the Atlantic
Charter is needed but none is to
be had. Some of these cases have
been posed by governments, others
by responsible but private citizens
in the course of the discussion o.
the settlement of the war.
Here are a few cases which cal
for an Interpretation of the char
ter. Many more will arise as we
come near the actual settlement o.
the war.
l. Though the United States ha!
as yet made no formal claim, there
will be every disposition to claim
the annexation of the Pacific
Islands obtained by Japan under
are we violating the first principle
mandate from the League OF Ma
tons. If we ask for these islands
of the charter which says that we
"seek no agrandizement, terri
torial or otherwise? If we OBJ
tain title to these islands, shall WI
have violated also the second prin
ciple of the charter which say!
that we "desireT to see no territori
al changes that do not accord
with the freely expressed wishe!
of the people concerned? Who are
the people concerned? Are they
the natives on the islands and how
do they freely express their wish
es?
2. 1t has frequently been said
and the Chinese generally believe
that in accord with the charter i
is the obligation of Great Britain
to surrender Hongkong. VIVA
principle of the charter can be in
voked to alter a title validated
long before the charter was adopt
ed? Can the inhabitants of Hong
kong be transferred from British
to Chinese sovereignty withou
first ascertaining their ''freely ex
pressed wishes?"
3. Do the principles OF the char
ter apply to our enemies? 1t ma
been said in the British Par]ia
ment that they do not. The char
ter is certainly not compact witt
our enemies. But is it not a com
pact binding our own consclences
Most of us will believe that it is
But we believe also that prior, tt
the unconditional surrender o
their enemies, the United Nation
have the right to amend the char
ter, formally and avowedly.
If this is the correct view, the
is it not advisable to make for
NAL declaration of amednment n
later than in the armistice term
imposed at the time of uncondi
tional surrender? Otherwise,
may be impossible without violat
ing the charter and being put NOR
ally on the defensive by our enc
mics to create an adequatel.
strong Poland or even to polic
Germany against her rearmament
4. The question raised by the Sc
viet.Polish territorial dispute is,
seems to me, whether the charte
is retroactive. From the Russia
4 point Of view, the disputed terri
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