Evening star., 1945-03-11
End of Secrecy Held Vital
To San Francisco Parley
Unfavorable Action in Senate Possible if Some
Facts Are Withheld and Leaks Bring
Distorted Picture of Agreements
Bv Constantine Bro,yn

By Consfan
The conference Of the United Nations
to establish a charter for world Sc
curity organization will start with the
usual speeches of eternal friendship and
good will six weeks hence.
San Francisco will be another Tower
OF Babel. Delegates from all parts of
the world, representing the original Al
lies and those who joined at the 11th
hour in order to obtain an invitation
to this momentous ~gathering, will be
present.
The reaction of the representatives of
the various nations at that parley is
of relative importance. The Big Three
have made up their minds that the Sc
curity organization must be adopted
and will brook no major opposition from
the minor nations which will endeavor
to introduce an occasional amendment
or voice some short-liyed resistance to
some of the clauses which they may
not approve wholeheartedly. The small
nations can say much but do nothing.
They must jump on the band wagon or
risk continued isolation without as
sistance from the only source which can
help them-the Big Three-in which
case they could become the prey of any
greedy neighbor.
The major consideration concerning
the American Government now is how
the new treaty will be received by the
people of the United States This is OF
vital Importance because ratification of
the action at San Francisco depends on
33 members of the Senate, ,sWho can pre-
vent it and whose voices will be ad-
justed to what their constituents say
and think
Start Radio Series.
Hence, the State Department has in
augurated series of radio broadcasts
to enlighten the American people on the
blessings of the forthcoming world char
ter. These broadcaSts, made exclusively
by advocates of the agreement, even
tually will be assisted by other means
of propaganda which will last until after
the debates in the Senate are over
The State Department is fully aware.
however, that the greatest influence in
molding the public mind will be exer-
cised by the American press.
Under these circumstances, it will be
difficult to prevent its representatives
from having free access to all the
available sources of information, as was
the case at Dumbarton Oaks, where the
newspaper reporters were kept away
from the Georgetown mansion by mill
tary policemen. 1t was oficially ex-
planned to the aroused Washington cor
respondents that since the meetings at
Dumbarton Oaks were purely explora-
tory. they could not be admitted freely
to the conference grounds and had to
be satisfied with a very thin menu for
their readers daily fare.
2 Later some of the highest ofiicials ex-
planned on the record that the Ameri-
can Government was fully in. favor OF
admitting the newspaper reporters to
the conference but the Russian delega-
ton objected and even went so far as
to threaten to leave the conference II
the American method of keeping its
people informed were adopted. Ameri-
can officials had a hard time convincing
their Soviet colleagues to permit even
the publication of the official handouts,
extremely reduced in size and sub
stance.
Different at San Francisco.
The situation is expected to be differ
ent in San Francisco for two reasons:
The conference will not be restricted to
three powers, as was the case in Wash
ington, and, the main outline of the
agreements already has been decided
on by the Big Three at Yalta.
The several hundred conferees on the
West Coast will be confronted with final
decisions regarding the principal points
of the security organization and will be
allowed to discuss some incidental de-
tails which will be of little consequence.
The Big Three are arguing that since
the main responsibility for the reor-
ganization of the world will fall on their