Extraterritoriality, Right of
EXTRATERRITORIALITY, RIGHT OF
EXTRATERRITORIALITY, RIGHT OF. The right of extraterritoriality granted immunity to prosecution under the laws of a country to the nationals of another country; under most circumstances, the foreign national is tried according to the home nation's laws and courts. The system was established to protect Western nationals from judicial systems that were considered uncivilized and barbaric. While the system was meant to protect individuals, it was often abused to the benefit of Westerners.
The United States first sought this exemption from local jurisdiction in countries where the laws, customs, and social systems differed greatly from the Western norm. The result was that extraterritorial courts were set up to administer Western law. The Turkish suzerainties of Morocco, Tripoli, and Algiers were the first to sign treaties with the United States providing for modified privileges of extraterritoriality. According to a treaty of 1830, Turkey granted U.S. citizens exemption from Islamic law, which remained in effect until 1923. U.S. citizens also enjoyed consular jurisdiction in Egypt by virtue of the same treaty. From 1873 to 1949 the United States participated with Great Britain, France, Germany, and other powers in creating the mixed courts at Alexandria and Cairo to deal with conflicts arising among foreign nationals from differing countries.
As the United States came into more contact with Asian nations, it sought to obtain extraterritorial rights in other countries. In 1844 the United States gained the right of extraterritoriality in China (see Cushing's Treaty). The United States expanded its jurisdiction in 1863, by forming the International Settlement in Shanghai in cooperation with Great Britain. In 1906 the U.S. Court for China was established and centered in Shanghai as well. Additionally, the United States obtained similar rights in Japan in 1858. The United States received consular jurisdiction in Muscat (1833), Siam (1833), and Persia (1856).
As countries that had been obliged to grant extraterritoriality grew in strength, they sought to rid themselves of the inferior position implied by the privilege. The United States took tentative steps towards revoking the privileged status its citizens enjoyed. In 1889 the American government negotiated a treaty with Japan abolishing a consular jurisdiction, but the treaty was never submitted to the Senate. Finally, following Great Britain's lead, the United States signed a treaty with Japan in 1899 abolishing extraterritoriality. The situation in China was more difficult and, at the Washington Conference (1922), the powers provided for a commission to study the Chinese legal system and make a recommendation concerning the abolishment of extraterritorial rights. The commission finally met in Peking during 1926 and went no further than recommending improvements in the administration of Chinese justice. The United States finally relinquished its right to extraterritoriality in China in 1943.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Fishel, Wesley R. The End of Extraterritoriality in China. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1952.
Hinckley, Frank E. American Consular Jurisdiction in the Orient. Washington, D.C.: W. H. Lowdermilk, 1906.
Jones, F. C. Extraterritoriality in Japan and the Diplomatic Relations Resulting in Its Abolition, 1853–1899. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1931.
Moore, J. B. A Digest of International Law. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1906. Reprint, New York: AMS Press, 1970.
David R.Buck