740.00119 Control
(Italy)/7–3145
No. 1207
Prime Minister Tito and the
Yugoslav Minister of Foreign Affairs (Šubašić)
to President Truman1
Excellency[:] We take the liberty of
addressing ourselves to you in a matter which presses heavily
upon our peoples, with the conviction that it will draw your
attention.
On the 17th of July of this year, the government of Democratic
Federative Yugoslavia through their Minister of Foreign Affairs
sent a verbal note no. 1938 to the Embassies of Great Britain
and the United States of America in Belgrade. The content of
this note concerns the Civil Administration of that part of
Julian Venice which is now under Allied Military
Administration.
In the enclosed note we particularly stressed that the Agreement
of the 9th of June, 1945, which was signed in Belgrade by the
Ambassadors of the United States of America and Great
Britain2 and by the
Yugoslav Minister of Foreign Affairs, contains in its 3rd
article the following clause:
“Use will be made of any Yugoslav civil administration
which is already set up and which in the view of the
Supreme Allied Commander is working satisfactorily”.
This clause of the said Agreement rests upon the fact that the
territory which is now under Allied Military Administration, is
liberated territory, inhabited mostly by a population which has
given proof of its limitless devotion to the Allied cause, and
which is not merely occupied territory. The elevated principles
proclaimed by the great Allies during the course of the war not only command the respect of
democratic institutions in the liberated regions but also the
active help of the Allies in order to create and, where they
already exist, to develop these institutions.
During the sanguinary four years struggle against Fascism in
which, in addition to the Slovene inhabitants, Italians from
Julian Venice participated in great numbers, democratic
institutions arose and developed and attained their highest
degree only when Fascism was
[Page 1215]
crushed and the people had full
opportunity of building up their democratic administration.
With various measures undertaken by the Allied Military
Authority, the democratic development of Julian Venice was
brought to a stand-still. In abolishing some democratic
institutions, reinstating the legal order based on laws which
were in force up to the 8th of September, 1943, the decrees
issued by the Allied Military Authorities resulted in the
substitution of an administration based upon democratic
principles, by a regime in which fascist laws, fascist
institutions and fascist administrators prevail.
The Allied Military Authority in Julian Venice, inasmuch as it
was not satisfied with the work of particular organs of the
democratic institutions and democratic procedures of changing
those organs and, with the approval of the people, of appointing
to corresponding posts such persons as would most closely
collaborate with the Allied Military Administration.
Therefore, we propose that democratic elections be carried out in
this part of Julian Venice which is under Allied Administration,
whereby the organs of a civil administration would be chosen in
accordance with the democratic aspirations of the people.
It is with the greatest confidence that we await the Peace
Conference, which is to bring the final decision on the question
of Julian Venice. But, in the meantime, interpreting the wishes
of the people concerned—Slovenes as well as Italians—we should desire
that to this afflicted, heroic people be returned those
liberties which they won through their own sacrifices, so that
they may, pending the final decision of the Peace Conference,
live under a national administration of their own choosing and
creation, in close collaboration with the Allied Military
Administration.
We beg your Excellency to take this matter into consideration and
bring such a solution as will be satisfactory to the people of
Julian Venice.3
Please accept [etc.]
J B Tito
Dr Ivan
Šubašić
Belgrade,
July the
25th 1945.
[Enclosure]
No. 1938
Note Verbale
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Democratic Federative
Yugoslavia present their compliments to the United States
Embassy, and
[Page 1216]
have the honour to communicate, on behalf of the Yugoslav
Government as follows:
As known to the United States Government, at a Conference
held in Devin (Duino),4 following the Beograd [Belgrade] Agreement of June 9, 1945,
no agreement was reached regarding the Civil administration
in the territory of Julian March which came under Allied
Military Government, and so the matter was left to be
decided upon through diplomatic channels.
According to Art. 3 of the Beograd Agreement of June 9, 1945,
Allied Military Government will in the territory of the
Slovenian Littoral and Trst [Trieste]
make use of any Yugoslav Civil administration which is
already set up, and which in the view of the Supreme Allied
Commander is working satisfactorily.
The Yugoslav Government are confident that this disposition
of the said Agreement can be interpreted only to the effect
that Allied Military Government will make use of the Civil
authorities and ascertain from the practice during the work,
whether same fulfill their administrative duty
satisfactorily to the people who elected them. If the
Military Government get the opinion that certain organs of
the people’s Authority were not satisfactory in carrying out
their duties, they will be able to request the replacement
through democratic proceedings.
This interpretation was communicated orally by the Yugoslav
Government to the U. S. and British Ambassadors during the
Conference and before signing the Agreement of June 9, 1945;
same view of the Yugoslav Government in the premises was
pointed out also by Lieut. General A. Jovanović,
Representative of the General Staff at the Devin (Duino)
Conference.
This seems to be the only logical interpretation in view of
the following two facts:
- (a)
- That the status of a liberated territory was
recognised to the area in question;
- (b)
- That the Allied Countries the forces of which
occupied this territory are democratic
States.
Allied Military Government do not comply with dispositions of
the Agreement signed in Beograd on June 9, 1945, which will
be seen from the following:
(a) They expressively [expressly] stated in their first
Proclamation5 that all
laws which had been in vigour until September 8, 1943 would
[Page 1217]
again be
effective. Since the organisation of Authorities too, is a
matter laid down by laws, through this Proclamation there
were reinstated all Authorities organised to Mussolini’s laws, and which
were effective up to September 8, 1943 in that territory. At
the same time that means a formal abolition of those Civil
authorities which were not organised on the grounds of
Mussolini’s laws,
but which were built up by the population of that territory
during its democratic fight side by side with United
Nations, in opposition to Fascist laws and in opposition to
the form and contents of Fascist Authorities.
If there had been an intention of compliance with the Beograd
Agreement, it should have been expressively emphasised in
the Proclamation that all laws concerning the organisation
of Civil Authorities and their functioning were considered
void since Civil Administration had been taken over by
National Committees recognised by Allied Authorities.
(b) Allied Military Government
deprived People’s Courts of their authority of judging and
passing of sentences immediately after assuming control over
the area. Owing to their character Military Authorities seem
not [to] be adequate to enquire into personal qualities of
judges having the confidence of an overwhelming majority of
the population over which they exercise judicial
Authority.
(c) With a number of practical
dispositions Allied Military Government completely paralysed
in their work the Departmental National Liberation
Committees (Pokrajinski
Narodno-oslobodilački odbor), and all its dependent
organs.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Democratic Federative
Yugoslavia have the honour to draw the attention of the
United States Government to the fact that the reinstatement
of hated laws which were effective until September 8, 1943,
caused a dissatisfaction and incitement among the
people.
These same people which rose into fight with the parole [sic] of destroying Fascist laws and
Decrees which are nothing but an instrument by means of
which Fascism is oppressing people and keeping them in
chains; which suffered heavy sacrifices in blood and
torments in their fight for democratic liberties; these
people had now to witness how Allied military Authorities
are reintroducing laws which they had overthrown through
their fight.
At the beginning of exercising their authority Allied
Military Government abolished and dissolved the National
Militia, the executive branch of the existing Civil
Administration’s Section of Internal Affairs.
With such a decision Allied Military Government acted in
contravention of the Beograd Agreement of June 9, 1945 since
they had had no time, in fact they had not even tried to see
whether or not the work of the National Militia was
satisfactory: on the other part they completely unabled [sic] the people’s Authorities to work
successfully since without their executive branch they could
not carry out their duty intrusted to them by the
people.
[Page 1218]
We beg leave to point out that therewith the portion of
Julian March under the jurisdiction of Allied Military
Government has been placed in a position which is worse than
that one of occupied enemy areas where Police Units of
existing Civil Authorities are effective for the purpose of
maintaining public order and are also allowed to wear light
arms while on duty.
The Yugoslav Ministry of Foreign Affairs [wishes?] to
emphasise as follows;
- (1)
- The Yugoslav Government are very much interested
in the life and destiny of people living in the
territory of Julian March owing to the fact that a
great majority of the population in that territory
are of Yugoslav nationality, i. e. conationals not
of an occupied country, but of Jugoslavia, an allied
country, while the majority of the remaining part of
the population consider the new Yugoslavia as the
country towards which they tend economically and
culturally. This has been proved also by the fact
that the population of this territory took a most
active part in the fighting against the Italian and
German Fascism under the Command of Supreme
Headquarters of the National Liberation Army of
Yugoslavia, suffered in that fight great sacrifices
for the victory of freedom loving people, and built
up in the same fight the National Liberation
Committees as the only organs of a democratic Civil
Authority possessing the full support of the
population.
- (2)
- Through the denial of a Civil authority having the
full confidence of the people it is just this
population who had [suffered?] for the Allied aims
which is now being placed in a position even worse
than that one of the population of occupied enemy
countries: therewith a dissatisfaction has been
caused among the people of the Julian March and also
among the people of Yugoslavia, which could only
hinder good allied relations between our two
countries, while it is the greatest desire and
endeavour of the Yugoslav Government to deepen and
to fasten our allied relations.
The Yugoslav Ministry of Foreign Affairs are confident that
the United States Embassy will communicate the view of the
Yugoslav Government to their Government, and that the United
States Government will give necessary [instructions?] to
their military authorities that the Agreement of Beograd
signed on June 9, 1945 be interpreted in this spirit, and
that it be particularly borne in mind that in question is an
area of a special character to which the status of a
liberated territory has been recognised in a Memorandum of
Allied Force Headquarters Representatives of June 16,
1945,6
which was also the tendency of the Signers of the Beograd
Agreement of June 9, 1945.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Democratic Federative
Yugoslavia avail themselves [etc.]
Beograd, July 17th,
1945.
