Key Benefits:
Original text
(State on 26 July 2011)
Albania, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, the British Empire (with the South African Union, New Zealand, India and the Free State of Ireland), Bulgaria, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Spain, the Fi N Ireland, France, Greece, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Latvia O Nie, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Monaco, Panama, the Netherlands, Persia, Pol O Gne (with Danzig), Portugal, Romania, El Salvador, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, Siam, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Turkey and Uruguay:
Also wishing to give as much efficiency as possible to the repression of the circulation and trafficking of obscene publications;
Having accepted the invitation of the Government of the French Republic to take part in a Conference convened on 31 August 1923, in Geneva, under the auspices of the League of Nations, for the consideration of the draft Convention drawn up in 1910, and Comments made by the various States, as well as the preparation and signing of a final text of the Convention,
To this effect have been appointed as Plenipotentiaries:
(Following are the names of plenipotentiaries)
Having communicated their full powers, found in good and due form, and having taken note of the Final Act of the Conference and the Agreement of 4 May 1910 2 Agreed to the following provisions:
The High Contracting Parties agree to take all measures to discover, prosecute and punish any individual who is guilty of one of the acts listed below and accordingly decides that
Must be punished 1 The fact:
Individuals who have committed any of the offences under s. 1 shall be justiciable in the courts of the contracting country in which the offence has been committed, or one of the constituent elements of the offence. They will also be justiciable, when its legislation permits 1 , in the courts of the contracting country to which they are nationals, if found to exist, even though the constituent elements of the offence would have been performed outside its territory.
It is, however, for each Contracting Party to apply the maxim Non bis in indem 2 According to the rules accepted by its legislation.
The transmission of letters rogatory relating to the offences covered by this Convention shall be carried out:
Each Contracting Party shall make known, by means of a communication addressed to each of the other Contracting Parties, that of the aforementioned modes of transmission that it admits for the letters rogatory of that Contracting Party.
Any difficulties which arise in connection with the transmissions in Cases 1 and 2 of this Article shall be settled by the diplomatic steamers.
Unless otherwise agreed, the letters rogatory shall be drafted either in the language of the requested authority or in the language agreed between the two countries concerned, or it must be accompanied by a translation into one of those two Certified by a diplomatic or consular agent of the requesting country or by a translator/juror of the requested country.
The execution of letters rogatory shall not give rise to the refund of any fees or charges of any kind.
Nothing in this Article shall be construed as constituting, on the part of the Contracting Parties, a commitment to admit, as far as the system of evidence in law enforcement is concerned, a derogation from their laws.
Contracting Parties whose legislation is not, at present, sufficient to give effect to this Convention, undertake to take or propose to their respective legislatures the necessary measures in this respect.
Contracting Parties whose legislation will not now be sufficient, agree to provide for searches in places where there is reason to believe that they are or are being manufactured, for any of the purposes specified in the Article I or in violation of this article, writings, drawings, engravings, paintings, prints, pictures, posters, emblems, photographs, cinematographic films or other obscene objects and also to provide for seizure, confiscation and Destruction. 1
The Contracting Parties agree that, in the event of an infringement of the provisions of Article I, committed in the territory of one of them, where there is reason to believe that the objects of the offence have been manufactured in or imported from the territory of the The territory of another party, the designated authority, under the Agreement of 4 May 1910 1 , will immediately report the facts to the authority of that other party and at the same time provide it with complete information to enable it to take the necessary action.
This Convention, of which the French and English texts shall prevail, shall bear the date of this day, and shall, until 31 March 1924, be open for signature by any State represented at the Conference, of any Member of the League of Nations and of any State to be represented at the Conference. The Council of the League of Nations shall, for that purpose, have communicated a copy of this Convention.
This Convention is subject to ratification. Instruments of ratification shall be transmitted to the Secretary-General of the League of Nations, who shall notify the Secretary-General of the deposit to the Members of the League of Nations Signatories to the Convention, as well as to the other signatory States.
The Secretary-General of the League of Nations shall immediately communicate to the Government of the French Republic a certified copy of any instrument relating to this Convention.
In accordance with the provisions of Art. 18 of the Covenant of the League of Nations 1 The Secretary-General shall register this Convention on the date of entry into force of this Convention.
1 [RO 36 667]
As from 31 March 1924, any State represented at the Conference and not a signatory to the Convention, any Member of the League of Nations and any State to which the Council of the League of Nations has, for that purpose, communicated a copy, may accede to This Convention.
This accession shall be effected by means of an instrument communicated to the Secretary-General of the League of Nations 1 , for tabling in the archives of the Secretariat. The Secretary-General shall notify the members of the League of the Convention, as well as the other signatory States, of the deposit immediately.
1 After the dissolution of the League of Nations, the General Secretariat of the United Nations has been entrusted with the functions mentioned here (FF 1946 II 1181 1187 and s.).
Ratification of this Convention, as well as the accession to this Convention, will result, in full law and without special notification, at the same time as acceding to the Agreement of 4 May 1910 1 , which will enter into force on the same date as the Convention itself, throughout the territory of the State or the Member of the League of Nations ratifying or acceding to the Convention.
However, the previous provision does not derogate from s. 4 of the said Agreement of 4 May 1910, which remains applicable in the event that a State prefers to act upon accession to that Agreement only.
This Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the receipt of two ratifications by the Secretary-General of the League of Nations.
This Convention may be denounced by written notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the League of Nations 1 The denunciation shall become effective one year after the date of its receipt by the Secretary-General and shall have effect only in respect of the Member of the League of Nations or the State denouncing it.
The Secretary-General of the League of Nations 2 Shall bring to the knowledge of each of the Members of the League of Nations Signatories of the Convention or adherents to the Convention and of the other signatory or acceding States any denunciation received by it.
The denunciation of this Convention shall not result in full, simultaneous denunciation of the Agreement of 4 May 1910 3 , unless expressly mentioned in the notice act.
Any Member of the League of Nations or a signatory or acceding State may declare that its signature or accession does not involve either the whole or such of its protectorates, colonies, overseas possessions, or territories subject to its sovereignty or To its authority, and may subsequently accede separately in the name of any of its protectorates, colonies, overseas possessions or territories excluded by that declaration.
Denunciation may also be carried out separately for any protectorate, colony, possession of an overseas territory or territory subject to its sovereignty or authority; the provisions of Art. XII shall apply to such denunciation.
The Secretary-General of the League of Nations 1 Shall hold a special collection indicating which Parties have signed the Convention, which have ratified it, acceded to it, or have denounced it. This list may be consulted at all times by the Members of the League of Nations or other signatory State or acceding State. It will be published as often as possible.
1 See note to art. IX.
Any disputes which may arise between the Contracting Parties concerning the interpretation or application of this Convention shall, if they cannot be resolved through direct negotiations, be referred for decision to the Court Permanent International Justice 1 . If the Parties between which a dispute arises, or one of them, were not to have signed or accepted the signing protocol of the Permanent Court of International Justice 2 , their dispute shall be submitted to the Permanent Court of International Justice at the discretion of the parties 3 , or to an arbitration.
1 The Permanent Court of International Justice was dissolved by resolution of the Assembly of the League of Nations of 18 April 1946 (FF 1946 II 1186) and replaced by the International Court of Justice (RS 0.120 ).
2 The Permanent Court of International Justice was dissolved by resolution of the Assembly of the League of Nations of 18 April 1946 (FF 1946 II 1186) and replaced by the International Court of Justice (RS 0.120 ).
3 The Permanent Court of International Justice was dissolved by resolution of the Assembly of the League of Nations of 18 April 1946 (FF 1946 II 1186) and replaced by the International Court of Justice (RS 0.120 ).
If five of the signatory or acceding Parties request the revision of this Convention, the Council of the League of Nations shall convene a Conference to that effect. In all cases, the Council will consider, at the end of each five-year period, the advisability of convening this meeting.
In witness whereof, The aforementioned plenipotentiaries have signed this Convention.
Done at Geneva, on September 12, thousand nine hundred and twenty-three, in two originals, one of which will be deposited in the archives of the League of Nations 1 And the other will remain in the archives of the Government of the French Republic.
(Suivent signatures)
1 See note to art. IX.
The International Conference for the Suppression of the Circulation and Traffic in Obscene Publications, convened at the invitation of the Government of the French Republic, met in Geneva on 31 August 1923 under the auspices of the Society of Nations.
The Conference was convened pursuant to the following resolutions adopted on 28 September 1922 by the Third Assembly of the League of Nations:
The names of the plenipotentiary delegates, alternate delegates, technical advisers or experts, as well as those of the countries which the plenipotentiaries represented, are contained in an annex to the present Final Act.
Mr Gaston Deschamps, delegate of France, was called, by acclamation, to serve as President of the Conference.
Sir Prabhashankar Pattani, Delegate of India, was appointed as Vice-Chair.
In accordance with the above-mentioned resolutions of the Assembly of the League of Nations, the draft Convention prepared by the International Conference held in Paris in 1910, accompanied by a questionnaire, had been communicated on 1 Er November 1922 to all states. The replies to this questionnaire were transmitted by the Secretariat of the League of Nations also to all States and submitted to the Conference.
At the beginning of its work, the Conference decided to take the draft Convention of 1910 as a basis for discussion and, after a thorough review of this draft and the replies to the questionnaire, as well as the changes that had taken place since 1910 in the International situation, the Conference unanimously agreed that a new Convention should be drafted which bears the date of 12 September 1923 and which is followed by this Final Act.
The Conference resolved to incorporate in this Act the following declarations, indications and wishes:
1. First of all, she wishes to pay tribute to the Government of the French Republic and to thank him for the initiative he took, in 1910, to convene an International Conference to explore ways to combat traffic and Trafficking in obscene publications. It highly appreciates the value and importance of this happy initiative, without which the issue has not reached the maturity that it currently offers and which has resulted in much less difficulty in reaching an agreement between a very large Number of states.
2. Close a close examination of whether it was possible to include in the Convention a definition of "obscene" Which was acceptable to all States, the Conference had led to a negative and recognized conclusion, such as the 1910 Conference, which should be reserved for each State to give to that word the meaning which would appear to it to be correct.
3. The Conference considered it useful to indicate that the legal principle Non bis in idem, Referred to in the second paragraph of s. II of the Convention, must be understood in the sense that it is desirable that, except in exceptional cases, the individual who will justify having been permanently tried in a contracting country and, in the case of conviction, having suffered or prescribed his or her sentence or Obtained his pardon, cannot be prosecuted for the same fact in another country.
4. In the general opinion of the Conference, offences of supply, surrender, sale or distribution of obscenities should be considered more serious, when committed against minors. It did not seem, however, that the Convention should contain a provision in this respect. 5
The Conference expresses the wish that each piece of legislation will increase the penalty if the offer, delivery, sale or distribution of obscenities is made to young people. It is up to each piece of legislation to specify the exact age below which it is necessary to protect young people.
5. Most of the delegations present at the Conference did not believe it possible to incorporate into the Convention the provisions proposed by the French Government concerning incitement to abortion and contraceptive propaganda. The reasons given in support of this view were based on the fact that, in the absence of instructions on such a sensitive subject and did not appear, moreover, to relate in a rather intimate manner to the subject matter of the Conference, the delegates were not in the That, on the other hand, the examination of the question, because of its complexity and the differences of opinion that it was still likely to raise, would have included a very long debate for which time was lacking.
Nevertheless, all delegations would like to say that they recognize the high value of this issue and its social and moral gravity. The wish has been expressed that, one day comes when circumstances allow us to consider the possibility, of an international agreement for the common defence of the States against a social scourge which motivated, by the Conference of 1910, the declaration "All delegates from all the countries participating in the Conference were unanimous in pointing out the danger that this immorous propaganda will cause nations to run away from the very sources of life." However, the delegates from Great Britain and Australia had reservations about the vote on this international agreement.
Some delegates pointed out that, as such propaganda can be considered obscene in itself, the terms of art. I apply perfectly.
6. The French delegation explained that the French legislation distinguishing between printed matter and the book, which is placed outside the ordinary printed matter and governed by a law other than the law on outrages to good morals, was in A consequence of making a reservation with respect to the printed matter referred to in s. I of the Convention.
It also stated that it should exclude the operations referred to in para. 3 of Art. I all those who, like the exchange and the loan, would be made between individuals.
The Belgian delegate observed that, by virtue of a constitutional rule concerning the crime committed by the press, when the author is known and domiciled in Belgium, the publisher, the printer or the distributor cannot be prosecuted.
For their part, the delegates of Sweden and Denmark, invoking the laws on the bookshop in force in their countries, made known that they, too, had to make a reservation about the term "printed matter" used in art. I.
7. Wishes have been expressed that the laws of the various Contracting States should, where appropriate, be amended in such a way that the obscene book enters into the printed matter covered by s. I of the Convention and all the facts referred to and reprimed by this Convention apply to the obscene book and other printed matter.
8. The Conference inserted at the end of the Convention an article providing for the necessary arrangements for the revision of the present Convention, should the experience demonstrate that such revision is desirable. To this end, the Conference requests the Council of the League of Nations to consider, at the end of each five-year period, whether it is desirable to convene a Conference to review the Convention.
9. For the purposes of applying s. XVI of the Convention, the Conference recommends that the Secretariat of the League of Nations be periodically instructed to prepare a questionnaire on the trade in obscene publications and to send it to all authorities designated by the Agreement 4 May 1910 6 As regards those states which have not designated authorities themselves, the questionnaire will be sent directly to their governments.
The information provided in the questionnaire will include the number of offences prosecuted, their nature and the outcome of the proceedings, the nature of the offences reported to the authorities of other States, as well as general observations on the intensity and Nature of the intended trade.
10. The drafting of the new Convention conforms to the most recent precedents in the field of general international conventions developed by Conferences held under the auspices of the League of Nations.
11. The provisions adopted provide for the possibility of signing the Convention until 31 March 1924 and acceding thereto after that date. The Secretary-General of the League of Nations is requested to take the necessary measures to that end.
12. The Conference decided that the new Convention and this Final Act would be established in two originals, one of which would be deposited in the archives of the League of Nations and the other in the archives of the Government of the French Republic, already Depositary of the original of the Agreement of 4 May 1910 7 However, for the sake of convenience, it acknowledged that all other diplomatic instruments relating to the Convention would be deposited in the archives of the League of Nations.
The Conference also decided that authentic copies of this Final Act would be communicated to all States represented at the Conference, to all Members of the League of Nations and to any other States that may be designated by the Council Of the League of Nations.
The Conference requests the Council of the League of Nations to communicate, at the same time as an invitation to sign or accede to the Convention, copies of the Convention to all members of the League of Nations who are not represented at the Conference. The Conference and any other States which the Council may designate.
In witness whereof, The delegates to the Conference have signed this Act.
Done at Geneva, on September 12, thousand nine hundred and twenty-three, in two originals, one of which shall be deposited in the archives of the League of Nations 8 And the other to the archives of the Government of the French Republic.
(Following are the names of the delegates)
| States Parties |
Ratification Accession (A) Declaration of succession (S) |
Entry into force |
||
| Afghanistan |
10 May |
1937 A |
10 May |
1937 |
| South Africa |
11 December |
1925 |
11 December |
1925 |
| Albania |
13 October |
1924 |
13 October |
1924 |
| Argentina |
3 October |
1936 A |
||
| Australia |
29 June |
1935 A |
29 June |
1935 |
| Norfolk Island |
29 June |
1935 A |
29 June |
1935 |
| Austria |
12 January |
1925 |
12 January |
1925 |
| Belarus |
8 September |
1998 S |
25 December |
1991 |
| Belgium * |
July 31 |
1926 |
July 31 |
1926 |
| Brazil |
19 September |
1931 |
19 September |
1931 |
| Bulgaria |
1 Er July |
1924 |
7 August |
1924 |
| Cambodia |
30 March |
1959 A |
30 March |
1959 |
| Canada |
23 May |
1924 A |
7 August |
1924 |
| China * |
24 February |
1926 |
24 February |
1926 |
| Hong Kong |
10 June |
1997 |
1 Er July |
1997 |
| Cyprus |
May 16 |
1963 S |
August 16 |
1960 |
| Colombia |
8 November |
1934 |
8 November |
1934 |
| Congo, Kinshasa |
May 31 |
1962 S |
30 June |
1960 |
| Cuba |
September 20 |
1934 |
September 20 |
1934 |
| Egypt |
29 October |
1924 A |
29 October |
1924 |
| El Salvador |
July 2 |
1937 |
July 2 |
1937 |
| Spain |
19 December |
1924 |
19 December |
1924 |
| Fiji |
1 Er November |
1971 S |
10 October |
1970 |
| Finland |
29 June |
1925 |
29 June |
1925 |
| France * |
16 January |
1940 |
16 January |
1940 |
| Ghana |
7 April |
1958 S |
March 5 |
1957 |
| Greece |
9 October |
1929 |
9 October |
1929 |
| Guatemala |
25 October |
1933 A |
25 October |
1933 |
| Haiti |
26 August |
1953 |
26 August |
1953 |
| Hungary |
12 February |
1929 |
12 February |
1929 |
| India |
11 December |
1925 |
11 December |
1925 |
| Iran |
28 September |
1932 |
28 September |
1932 |
| Iraq |
April 26 |
1929 A |
April 26 |
1929 |
| Ireland |
September 15 |
1930 |
September 15 |
1930 |
| Italy |
July 8 |
1924 |
7 August |
1924 |
| Jamaica |
July 30 |
1964 S |
August 6 |
1962 |
| Japan |
13 May |
1936 |
13 May |
1936 |
| Jordan |
11 May |
1959 A |
11 May |
1959 |
| Lesotho |
28 November |
1975 S |
4 October |
1966 |
| Latvia |
7 October |
1925 |
7 October |
1925 |
| Liberia |
16 September |
2005 A |
16 September |
2005 |
| Luxembourg * |
10 August |
1927 |
10 August |
1927 |
| Madagascar |
10 April |
1963 A |
10 April |
1963 |
| Malaysia |
August 21 |
1958 S |
August 31 |
1957 |
| Malawi |
July 22 |
1965 A |
July 22 |
1965 |
| Malta |
24 March |
1967 S |
21 September |
1964 |
| Mauritius |
18 July |
1969 S |
12 March |
1968 |
| Mexico |
9 January |
1948 A |
9 January |
1948 |
| Monaco |
11 May |
1925 |
11 May |
1925 |
| Montenegro |
23 October |
2006 S |
3 June |
2006 |
| Myanmar |
13 May |
1949 |
13 May |
1949 |
| Nigeria |
26 June |
1961 S |
1 Er October |
1960 |
| Norway |
8 May |
1929 A |
8 May |
1929 |
| New Zealand |
11 December |
1925 |
11 December |
1925 |
| Pakistan |
12 November |
1947 |
12 November |
1947 |
| Paraguay |
21 October |
1933 A |
21 October |
1933 |
| Netherlands |
||||
| Curaçao |
13 September |
1927 |
13 September |
1927 |
| Sint Maarten |
13 September |
1927 |
13 September |
1927 |
| Poland |
8 March |
1927 |
8 March |
1927 |
| Portugal |
4 October |
1927 |
4 October |
1927 |
| Czech Republic |
December 30 |
1993 S |
1 Er January |
1993 |
| Romania |
7 June |
1926 |
7 June |
1926 |
| United Kingdom * |
11 December |
1925 |
11 December |
1925 |
| Bermuda |
23 May |
1927 A |
23 May |
1927 |
| Gibraltar |
3 November |
1926 A |
3 November |
1926 |
| Falkland Islands |
23 May |
1927 A |
23 May |
1927 |
| Suble-Vent Islands |
3 November |
1926 A |
3 November |
1926 |
| Windy Islands (Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Dominica) |
3 November |
1926 A |
3 November |
1926 |
| St. Helena and Dependencies (Ascension and Tristan da Cunha) |
23 May |
1927 A |
23 May |
1927 |
| Russia |
July 8 |
1935 A |
July 8 |
1935 |
| San Marino |
April 21 |
1926 A |
April 21 |
1926 |
| Solomon Islands |
3 September |
1981 S |
7 July |
1978 |
| Serbia |
12 March |
2001 S |
April 27 |
1992 |
| Sierra Leone |
13 March |
1962 S |
April 27 |
1961 |
| Slovakia |
28 May |
1993 S |
1 Er January |
1993 |
| Sri Lanka |
15 April |
1958 A |
15 April |
1958 |
| Switzerland |
20 January |
1926 |
1 Er February |
1926 |
| Tanzania |
28 November |
1962 A |
28 November |
1962 |
| Thailand * |
28 July |
1924 |
7 August |
1924 |
| Trinidad and Tobago |
April 11 |
1966 S |
August 31 |
1962 |
| Turkey |
12 September |
1929 |
12 September |
1929 |
| Zambia |
1 Er November |
1974 S |
24 October |
1964 |
| Zimbabwe |
1 Er December |
1998 S |
18 April |
1980 |
| * |
Reservations and declarations. Reservations and declarations are not published in the RO. The texts in English and French can be found at the United Nations Internet site: http://untreaty.un.org/ or obtained from the Directorate of Public International Law (DDIP), International Treaty Section, 3003 Berne. |
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1 RO 42 219. This approval took effect on 1 Er Feb 1926, day of the coming into force of the PMQ. 1925 on the repression of trafficking in women and children and the repression of the movement and trafficking of obscene publications [RO 42 9. RS 3 193 art. 398 al. 2 let. M], currently replaced by CP (RS 311.0 ).
2 RS 0.311.41
3 [RO 36 667]
4 RS 0.311.41
5 See art. 197 hp. 1 CP (RS 311.0 ).
6 RS 0.311.41
7 RS 0.311.41
8 See note to art. IX of the Convention.
9 RO 1972 734, 1982 1308, 1986 1332, 2002 2729, 2006 4643 and 2011 3573. A version of the updated scope of application is published on the DFAE website (http://www.dfae.admin.ch/traites).
