The Centennial of the Mandate for Palestine
and its continuing importance in international law
In November 1920, delegations from all over the world came to Geneva for the first general assembly of the League of Nations.
The British delegation stays for a week in the Beau-Rivage hotel. Lord Balfour, who is present, writes on hotel stationery a draft which will become the mandate for Palestine.
As a direct consequence of the San Remo resolution, the mandate for Palestine was signed on July 24, 1922 in London and took effect in 1923.
A Genevan William Rappart affixes his signature to the mandate as general secretary of the mandates.
The scope of the mandate for Palestine in the process of creating a Jewish national home is central. Without this mandate, the establishment of this home would have been impossible.
The objective of the event
Commemorate this important stage in the history of the League of Nations in connection with Geneva and one of the most significant events of the 20th century, the creation of the State of Israel.
Raise awareness of the essential implications of the mandate for Palestine from the point of view of international law and justice. More specifically, the presentation during the conference will focus on the centrality and the international, legal and political links between the San Remo conference (1920), the Balfour declaration (1917), the Paris Peace conference (1919), the pact of the League of Nations (1919), the Mandate for Palestine (1922), the Charter of the United Nations ()1945-1948, the birth of the State of Israel (1948), the possession of territories of Israel ( 1967) and the annexation of the territories by Israel (1980).
It is essential to publicize the historical facts that support the legal territorial claims of the Jewish people and the State of Israel with respect to the territories that have been covered by the Mandate for Palestine.
A hundred years ago a mandate was signed, where are we today? The organizers wish to give the opportunity to the guests, to understand the global process which was the establishment of the Jewish national hearth in Palestine as well as the role of Geneva and Geneva personalities in this process.
About the speaker
About the speaker
Dr. Jacques Gauthier is an internationally renowned lawyer. He lives in Toronto and is married with four daughters. He obtained a doctorate at the Graduate Institute of International Studies of the University of Geneva (now the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies) in 2007 on the theme “Sovereignty Over the Old City of Jerusalem”.
He devoted several years of his life to completing a dissertation of considerable size (1300 pages) and extremely well documented. This thesis allowed him to rediscover all the treaties, sometimes forgotten, which participated in the foundation of a Jewish national home in Palestine. This work has been requested by various governments and state entities.
Knight of the Order of Merit of the French Republic (2000) and Knight of the Legion of Honor of the French Republic Award – Canadian Antisemitism Education Foundation, (2020), Dr Gauthier has organized and participated in multiple conferences around the world to present the elements of his thesis and particularly with regard to the Conference of San Remo and its great importance regarding the sovereign rights of the Jewish people and the State of Israel.
These presentations focused on historical facts and their legal implications.
The results of this research allowed Dr. Jacques Gauthier to present his work at the following events and entities:
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Beijing conference organized by the central party of China as vice-chairman of the Center for Rights and Democracy of Canada (November 2009);
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European Parliament in Brussels (June 2011);
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Leaders of the Senate of the Republic of Italy in Rome (July 2011);
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Member of British Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London (July 2011);
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Representatives of the United States Senate in the capitol in Washington (September 2011);
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Members of the Japanese Parliament Tokyo as part of the celebration of the 92nd anniversary of the San Remo e 1920 conference (April 2012);
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Lawyers and Officials of Israel's Ministry of Justice in Jerusalem (October 2013);
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Members of the House of Lords assembled at the Palace of Westminster in London to commemorate the 99th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration (November 2016);
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United nations ambassadors from different nations gathered at an event in New York (June 2017)
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Conference organized in Jerusalem by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Heritage Affairs of Jerusalem (November 2017);
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Conference organized in Jerusalem by the Ministry of Heritage Affairs of Jerusalem (November 2018).