Both Sides of the Street

The Economic and Social Council stole few headlines from its noisy twin, the Security Council. But Ecosoc, which had proliferated into eleven subsidiary agencies (to consider everything from health to hunger, from a free press to free trade), was having its own hot debates, its own clashes between the big powers.

On the hotly disputed question of whether expert delegates to the commissions should be able to speak for themselves instead of their governments, Russia last week was working both sides of the street. Eleanor Roosevelt had held out for experts who could freely give their own views. Russian Delegate Nikolai I. Feonov disagreed, said that only if delegates are "representatives of their governments can useful work be done," otherwise the commissions would be mere "discussion clubs." Russia carried the point; by a vote of11-to-5 Ecosoc decided that members of all council commissions should sit as government representatives.

But four days later Nikolai Feonov insisted that the World Federation of Trade Unions, a non-governmental body claiming to represent 66 million workers in 56 nations, should be permitted to take part in all Ecosoc activities with all privileges of a member state, except that it would have no vote. The council, more consistent than the Russians, defeated the proposal, 12-to-5.