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Agreement Amending the Agreement Establishing the South Pacific Commission of 6 February 1947 [1964] PITSE 1 (6 October 1964)

AGREEMENT AMENDING THE AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING THE SOUTH PACIFIC COMMISSION OF 6 FEBRUARY 1947

[Canberra Agreement]

(London, 6 October 1964)

ENTRY INTO FORCE : 15 JULY 1965

Depositary : Government of Australia

THE GOVERNMENTS of Australia, the French Republic, New Zealand, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America;

DESIRING to provide for the accession of the Independent State of Western Samoa and the possible accession of other States to the Agreement establishing the South Pacific Commission, opened for signature at Canberra on 6 February 1947, (hereinafter referred to as "the Agreement") as amended by agreements signed at Noumea on 7 November 1951, and Canberra on 5 April 1954;

CONSIDERING that the Kingdom of the Netherlands has withdrawn from the Agreement pursuant to Article XIX, paragraph 62, thereof;

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article I

The preamble to the Agreement is amended by deleting there from the words "the Kingdom of the Netherlands".

Article II

Article II, paragraph 2, of the Agreement is amended to read as follows:

"2. The territorial scope of the Commission shall comprise:

(a) all those territories in the Pacific Ocean which are administered by the participating Governments and which lie wholly or in part south of the Equator and east from and including the Australian territory of Papua and the Trust Territory of New Guinea; and Guam and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; and

(b) all the territory of any State, the Government of which accedes to this Agreement pursuant to the provisions of Article XXI, paragraph 66."

Article III

The first sentence of Article III, paragraph 4, of the Agreement is deleted.

Article IV

The first sentence of Article IV, paragraph 6, of the Agreement is deleted and the following sentence is substituted in lieu thereof:

"The Commission shall be a consultative and advisory body to the participating Governments in matters affecting the economic and social development of the territories within the scope of the Commission and the welfare and advancement of their peoples."

Article V

Article V, paragraph 14, of the Agreement is deleted and the following provisions are substituted in lieu thereof:

"14. The decisions of the Commission shall be taken in accordance with the following rules:

(a) each of the participating Governments shall have the number of votes set out below. Each participating Government shall transfer one of its votes to the Government of each territory which shall cease to be administered by it and shall be admitted to the Commission as a participating Government.

Australia 5 votes

(in respect of itself and its territories)

The French Republic 4 votes

(in respect of itself and its territories)

New Zealand 4 votes

(in respect of itself and its territories)

The United Kingdom 4 votes

(in respect of itself and its territories)

The United States 4 votes

(in respect of itself and its territories)

Western Samoa 1 vote

(if it accedes to this Agreement)

The number of votes assigned to each of the participating Governments and the total number of votes may be altered by the unanimous agreement of the participating Governments;

(b) only senior Commissioners shall be entitled to cast the votes referred to in subparagraph (a) of this paragraph;

(c) procedural matters shall be decided by a majority of votes cast;

(d) decisions on budgetary or financial matters which may involve a financial contribution by the participating Governments (other than a decision to adopt the annual administrative budget of the Commission) shall require the concurring votes of all the senior Commissioners;

(e) decisions on all other matters (including a decision to adopt the annual administrative budget of the Commission) shall be taken by two-thirds of all the votes referred to in subparagraph (a) of this paragraph."

Article VI

Article XIV, paragraph 49, of the Agreement is deleted and the following provision is substituted in lieu thereof:

"49. The expenses of the Commission and its related bodies shall be apportioned among the participating Governments in such manner as the participating Governments may unanimously determine."

Article VII

Article XXI of the Agreement is amended as follows:

(a) The words "the Kingdom of the Netherlands" are deleted from paragraph 65.

(b) A new paragraph 66 is inserted to read as follows:

"66. The Government of the Independent State of Western Samoa and the Government of any independent State all the territory of which is, immediately prior to independence, within the territorial scope of the Commission as defined in Article II may accede to this Agreement, if it is invited to do so by all the participating Governments, by depositing an instrument of accession with the Government of Australia. This Agreement shall enter into force for each acceding Government upon the date of the deposit of its instrument of accession. Such Government shall thereupon be deemed a participating Government for the purposes of this Agreement other than those specified in Article XIX, paragraph 62. The Government of Australia shall notify the participating Governments of the date of deposit of each instrument of accession to this Agreement."

(c) Existing paragraphs 66 and 67 are re-designated as 67 and 68 respectively.

Article VIII

Only the English and French texts of the Agreement and of the agreements amending it shall be regarded as authentic.

Article IX

The Governments of Australia, the French Republic, New Zealand, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America shall become parties to this Agreement by (a) signature without reservation, or (b) signature ad referendum and subsequent acceptance. Acceptance shall be notified to the Government of Australia. This Agreement shall enter into force when all the abovementioned Governments have become parties to it.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, being duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Agreement.

DONE at London this 6th day of October, 1964, in the English and French languages, each equally authentic, the original of which shall be deposited in the archives of the Government of Australia. The Government of Australia shall transmit certified copies thereof to all other signatory Governments and to the Government of Western Samoa.

[Signatures not reproduced here.]