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7 Nations Sign Refugee Pact; 4 Others Urge Special Bodies to Handle Problem; Poland Balks

February 11, 1938
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Seven governments today signed a convention for the regulation of the legal status of German refugees at a public session concluding a five-day intergovernmental conference. The convention goes into effect in March.

The signatories are Britain, France, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway. All made reservations regarding the sections dealing with social relief and regarding the application of the convention to colonies and protectorates.

Four additional countries — Cuba, Switzerland, Sweden and Czechoslovakia — signed a codicil recommending the establishment of a special commission in each country to deal with questions respecting refugees and to cooperate with organizations for refugee assistance.

Poland refused to sign either the convention or the codicil. The Netherlands representative, before signing, made a declaration stressing the need of an international organization to deal with emigration of refugees and announcing that the Netherlands was raising the question at the September session of the League of Nations Assembly. The proposal was supported by Great Britain, Spain, Belgium, Poland and Switzerland.

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