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                   but the stronger members of it add to their emoluments by obtaining goods and
                   services from the State, for which they do not pay, and by claiming ownership of
                   waste land required for development purposes and then selling it to (lie State at
                   exorbitant rates.
                       4.  Immediately after Abdullah al Salim’s accession the Political Agent
                   suggested to him that he should appoint a successor but lie asked that the matter
                   should be allowed to rest. The “great ’’ Mubarak succeeded by assassinating his
                   rivals but since his time on the death of a Ruler the family have selected the
                   successor. Hitherto the choice has been a fairly obvious one but the situation is
                   not quite so clear at present. Abdullah al Mubarak has succeeded in acquiring a
                   position which leads to his often being regarded as the heir presumptive, and in
                   1951 the Political Agent recommended that lie should be given His Majesty’s
                   Government’s support as such, but this suggestion was not approved by the
                   Political Rcsident.O He is the son of a Georgian slave and Fahad al Salim who
                   also almost certainly aspires to the accession has negro blood in him and is very
                   black. If these are both pa; i over because of their slave origin Jabir al Ahmad
                   would appear to be the most likely candidate. At present the question is entirely
                   an open one and Her Majesty’s Government are in no way committed but should
                   the present Ruler abdicate or die at an early date the fact that Abdullah al
                   Mubarak and Fahad’s brother Subah al Salim command rival police forces may
                   create a dangerous situation.
                       5.  There has been no important change in the Treaty position vis-a-vis Her
                   Majesty's Government since 1928. In 1935 it was proposed to take up the question
                   of substituting for the series of letters and informal undertakings which govern
                   relations between Her Majesty's Government and the Ruler of Kuwait a compre­
                   hensive treaty on the lines of the Qatar Treaty of 1916.0 The Political Resident,
                   however, thought that the proposal would be viewed with suspicion by the Ruler
                   and that owing to His Majesty’s Government’s failure to resolve the date gardens
                  question, the Iraqi smuggling problem and the Saudi blockade it would be dilficult
                  to press him in the matter.O The proposal was accordingly dropped and so far as
                   is known has not since been renewed. So far as the secret Bandar Shuwaikh
                  Agreement of October 15, 19070 (Appendix A (i) & (ii)), is concerned the opinion
                  was expressed in the Historical Summary of Events for 1907-280 that although the
                  payment of rent under it was terminated in 1922 it did not appear that the agreement
                   was abrogated and that the reciprocal pledges, so far as they were not affected by
                  other subsequent instruments, presumably remained binding. It would appear that
                   this opinion was correct as in 1931 when the customs duty was raised to 4J per
                   cent, and the Ruler's attention was called to the tenth article of the agreement,
                   which restricts the duty recoverable from British merchants to 4 per cent., he made
                   no attempt to deny the validity of the article and stated that he had ordered the
                   Director of Customs not to recover more than 4 per cent, duty from British
                  subjects.!*) In 1936 when the customs duty generally was raised to 5 per cent, it was
                   left at 4 per cent, for British subjects. In 1942 the Ruler raised the duty to 61 per
                  cent, and applied the increase to British subjects. The 1907 agreement was not
                  formally invoked but the Ruler was informed that His Majesty’s Government
                  agreed to the increase provided he agreed that in accordance with previous practice
                   no further increase in duty should be applied to British subjects without the consent
                  of His Majesty's Government.!’) The Ruler then undertook in writing to consult
                   His Majesty’s Government before making any further increase (Appendix B). It
                   may be noted that the 1907 agreement is not one-sided and that His Majesty’s
                   Government promised that “"the town of Koweit and its boundaries belong
                   to ... the Shaikh of Koweit and to his heirs after him, and that all Shaikh
                   Mubarak’s arrangements in the matter of customs, &c., and his arrangements at
                  the present day shall remain in the hands of Shaikh Mubarak-as-Subah, ruler of
                   Koweit and his heirs after him.” The agreement amongst other things gives Her
                   Majesty's Government the right of pre-emption over Warbah Island which the
                  Iraqis are anxious to acquire (paragraph 59 below). The extent to which the
                  present Ruler would regard the agreement as binding is uncertain.
                      (3) P.R. to F.O. 1941/34 of September 29. 1951 (EA 1941/30 of 1951).
                      ft LO. to "'a CU.d. of October 2. 1935 (E 5942/19/91 of 1935).
                      (•) Asia. Various Paper 1902 to 1912.
                      ft mPwFOat PEif 3<5i?/423of July 17. 1942 fE 4290/2658/91 of 1942).
                      ft LO. to F.O. EM. 2048/43 of April 29. 1943 (E 2490/252/91 of 1943).
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