Evening star., 1949-09-04

Enrico Coriadini's editorials
of 40 years ago are posing
problems for the United Nations
General Assembly today.
The assembly will begin dis
cussions soon to determine the
fate of Mussolini's prewar
African empire. The colonies
involved are Eritrea, Italian
Somaliland and ibia.
Much of the credit for Italy's
drive for African colonies is
due to the nationalist movement
headed by Coriadini. a popular
journalist of pre-World War I
days. He saw in 1taly's develop
ment of a colonial empire a
solution to the country's eco
nomic and population problems.
He stirred Italy with impas-
stoned appeals to retrieve the
once-Roman lands as part OF
the nations heritage.
The Italian colonies in Africa.
however, proved a drain rather
than a help. BY 1914. Italian
settlers in all the colonies
totaled only $500, while 285,000
had emigrated to the United
States in 1907 alone. Since
then, Italian immigration has
been small and the colonies have
not provided either the pro-
ducts or the resources to pay
for their expansion. And Mus
solini's 1885 venture in ETHIOPIA
hurt, too, since it involved Italy
in a difficult international situa-
ton.
Failed to Agree
Sumner Welles. in his Guide
to the Peace" said: Her colo
nies are important neither for
her nor for any other country:
their disposition is almost a
Psychological matter of italian
pride"
Britain, having occupied the
colonies during World War II,
now administers all of them on
a temporary basis except the
Fezzan. France administers this
tiny corner of Tripolitania, one
of the three parts of Libia. The
other division of Libia Is Cl-
renaica. .,.
The Assembly spent six weeks
on the problem at Lake Success
in April and May this year. but
failed to reach agreement when
the so-called Bevin-Sforza plan
was rejected. The U. N. debate
disclosed that there were almost
as many opinions as there were
delegates on what should be
done with the colonies. The
basic initial lineup. however,
was along these lines:
Russia wanted all the col
onies placed under collective
U. N. trusteeships with special
commissions responsible for
them under the Trusteeship
Council.
The Western powers wanted
them placed Under the admin
istration of individual coun-
tries responsible to the Trus-
teeship Council.
The Arab countries generally
wanted independence for the,
colonies either now or in the
immediate future.
Bevin.Sforza Plan
There also was a wide diff.
ference of opinion as to which
countries should be named to
administer the colonies II they
were placed under the trustee
ship system.
The United States and Brit
ain favored this distribution:
Britain to administer Ciren-
aica, Italy to administer Ital-
ian Somaliland, Ethiopia to
annex Eastern Eritrea and
France to administer the Fez-
zan. They later agreed to an
Egyptian plan to incorporate
Western Eritrea into the Anglo
Egyptian Sudan.
France originally supported
Italy's claims to a right to ad-
minister all the colonies under
U. N. trusteeship. Most Of the
Latin American countries also
advocated giving Italy respon-
sibility for ruling all or most OF
the colonies.
In the midst Of the debate
ut Lake Success Britain'S For
eign Minister Ernest Bevin and
Italy's Carlo Sforza mat IN