Evening star., 1946-01-11
Russians Attack
UN0SecretV Vote
After Defeat
American Delegates
Reported in Favor
Of Abandoning Rule
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
LONDON, Jan. 11.-RuSSia
launched an attack within the
United Nations Assembly today
on the secret ballot system under
which her candidate for Assem-
bly, president was defeated at
the first session yesterday.
Sentiment was reported develop
ing in the American delegation, too,
for abandonment of the rule under
which Paul Henri Spaak, Foreign
Minister of Belgium, was chosen
Assembly president, with the back
ing of Britain, and Trygve Lie, Nor
Wegian Foreign Minister, defeated
despite his support by Russia and
the United States. One reason ad-
vanced was that secrecy is undemo-
cratic.
Dmitri Manuilsky, Foreign Min
lister of the Ukraine, one of the three
U. S. S. R. delegations, moved that
hereafter all persons voted on for
UNO Office be nominated and dis
cussed from the floor Spaak was
elected without his name being
mentioned on the floor. Delegates
wrote h.s name on secret ballots.
Proposes Committee Study.
Action on the Soviet motion was
blocked, however, when Cuban and
other proposals came up and Spaak
observed that the Assembly was
trying to discuss three things at
once. He proposed that the ques-
ton be sent to the Legal Commit
tee, leaving the temporary rules IN
force. and Manuilsky accepted the
suggestion.
The Cuban delegate, Guy Perez
Cisneros, raised the issue of the
predominance of the big powers in
the assembly by demanding
sweeping change in the proposed
general or steering committee. The
committee as projected by the Pre-
paratory Commission would have IA
members, five of them big powers.
Perez Cisneros argued either for q
51-nation steering committee or a
limitation on its authority and a
rule against reelection of its men,
bers so as to restrict big-power
membership.
| Spaak, in his acceptance speech,
discussed the question by declaring
that the decision was made at San
Francisco last spring to give the
great powers dominant place in
the UNO, and "the system adopted
there must be accepted here"
Two Vice Presidencies Settled.
Reliable sources said the United
States. Soviet Russia, Great Britain,
France and China had agreed that
India and Venezuela should have
the two vice presidencies still to be
assigned The other five vice presi-
dencies automatically will go to the
five key powers.
Agreement also was said to have
been reached allocating the peace
agency's committee Craftsmanship
as follows: Political and security,
Ukraine; economic, Poland: social,
New zealnd; trusteeship, Uruguay;
administrative, Syria, and legal,
Panama.
Last-minute changes were pos
sible, the informants said, but were
not expected. The elections were to
be held after the Assembly heard
the Preparatory Commissions re-
port.
Delegates of the 81 participating
nations gathered early in historic
Central Hall on Westminster Square
for the second session.
The all-powerful 11-member Sc
curity Council-which will control
UNOs international police force"
probably will not be organized un-
til tomorrow, conference officials
said.
A fight loomed between Canada
and Australia for a seat on the
Council, to which the Economic and
Security Committee will be empow-
cred to make recommendations. The
two English-speaking nations sought
the place which has been allotted
to the British dominions.
| Five of the remaining 10 seats
will go to the key powers. The other
five, delegates said, would likely be
voted to Colombia and Mexico, as
representatives of South and Central
America; to Belgium for Western
Europe, to Poland for Eastern Eu-
rope and to Egypt for the Middle
East.
Press Farley Agreed On.
The Assembly agreed today to
consider a Philippine proposal for
calling Immediately an international
press conference to promote a free
press throughout the world.
The proposal was placed on the
supplementary agenda after DR..
Pedro Lopez, Philippine delegate,
protested that it had been omitted
from the regular agenda. The Sec
retariat explained that the pro-
posal had not arrived in time for
inclusion.
The Philippine proposal, which
will be submitted as a resolution,
calls for an immediate international
press conference under the auspices
of the United Nations Organization
Ito formulate principles and adopt
ways and means to insure and pro-
mote the establishment, operation
and movement of free press
4 ~,tA