Page 62 - Gulf Precis (III)_Neat

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CHAPTER XIV.
The Frenoli Flag Question, 1863—98.

(i) Early History.
210. Tho origin of the practice of granting French Flags to owners or
masters of Arab vessels of the Oman and Zanzibar coasts and of tho claim to
the oxoroise of French protection over such persons is far from clear.
211. Tho only subjects of tho Sultan who could legitimately claim French
protection are such as are actually in their service under article 4 of the Frauco-
Maskat Treaty of 1841, which provides:—
“Tho subjeots of Sayid Sneed bio Sultan, the Sultan of Mnskat, actually in tho service
of tho Frooob shall enjoy tho samo privileges, which are granted to tho French themselves,
but if Booh subjects of His Highness shall be convicted of any crimo or infraction of tho law
they shall be disoharged by tbe Frenoli, and delivered over to the authorities of the place.”
212. Article 6 of the same treaty provides for ox-territorial jurisdiction in
case of French subjects, which howover is excluded in caso of Maskat subjects
referred »to an article 4 in criminal oases. It does not appear lhat for Maskat
subjects holding French flags, the French authorities have over claimed the full
status of French subjects (by naturalization) or any higher station than that of
being their protdgGs.
213. Though in theory the French authorities have never apparently de­
fined the position of these protdgds under international law, in individual cases
they have asserted a jurisdiction over them which tho British Government
exercises over subjects of the protected Native States in India. As to tho latter,
the Government of India in 1866 laid down tho principle (Foreign Department
letter No. 104, dated 3rd February i860) :—
“The subjects of any Native State b^und, as Kutchis, to have no relations with Foreign
Powers, are morally entitled to bo admitted in Foreign territory to all the privileges whioh the
natives of India enjoy in the same localities and the Sultan of Maskat and the subjects of
Kutch, residents in bis dominions, seem neither of them to entertain any doubt on this point.
His Excellency in Council conceives that there can be no obstacles to Political Agent at
Maskat exercising the samo authority in respect of Kutchis as in respect to British subjects.
The Political Agent should be authorised to act in accordance with this opinion.”
214. The French Flag Question attracted attention of the British Govern­
ment as early as 1863, from which year we shall trace its history. The practice
of granting French flag had begun probably earlier, and though it was
brought to notice of Her Majesty’s Government in 1863 and occasionally after­
wards, and it frustrated to a great extent the British Crusade against slavery,
it does not appear to have been for several years objected to.
216. There are two or three points that should be distinguished in studying
this important question :—
(1) the right of granting flags and papers to Maskat and Zanzibar
subjects and exercising protection over them on the high seas;
(2) the right of exercising protection over such persons in the Maskat
and Zanzibar territorial waters (a) to the extent of Police, (6) to
the extent of ear-territorial civil and criminal jurisdiction ;
(3) the right of British cruisers to search vessels flying the French
flag—
(a) on the high seas,
(b) in territorial waters of Maskat and Zanzibar.
216. When in the middle of the 19th century the British cruisers vigorously
prosecuted search of every Arab vessels, flying the Arab flag, on the presump­
tion that they were engaged in slave trade, an European flag was eagerly
sought as affording protection from the inquisitorial visits of our cruisers The
British Indian ships were of course entitled to fly tho British flag under a pass
obtained from the British Consuls at Zanzibar and Maskat. But the grant of