detention, as provided for under article 16, were also grounds for granting him immunity from the criminal jurisdiction of the receiving State or the transit State and ensuring that he was not obliged to give evidence as witness. Without the provisions provided for in paragraphs 1 and 4 of draft article 23, the sending State would suffer considerable injury because its messenger would be forbidden to continue his mission so that he could be available to the courts of a transit State or a receiving State. Functional necessity required the inclusion of the provisons set forth in those two paragraphs and that, of course, implied that the sending State assumed responsibility for punishing its courier for any misdeed he might have committed in the territory of the transit State or the receiving State. 10. Justifiably called the "key provision", draft article 36, on the inviolability of the diplomatic bag, gave rise to a number of questions and conflicting concerns which could not be easily reconciled, as was evident from the drawbacks to the compromise formula presented in paragraph 142 of the report (A/39/10). The unification of the law applicable to all types of official bags implied a choice between the regime of inviolability as codified in the 1961. Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the regime of the 1963 Convention on Consular Relations. Not all States parties to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations were necessarily willing to have their official communications, which were protected by that instru~ent, treated with the uncertainty affecting their communications with their consular posts, the volume of which was generally less than that of diplomatic communications. Real or supposed abuses should-not cast doubt on the principle of the inviolability of the diplomatic bag, on which protection of the confidentiality of official communications depended. Indeed, the validity of a 
**Analysis**
The text appears to be discussing international law and diplomacy, specifically the protection of diplomatic bags and couriers. It mentions treaties and conventions, such as the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the Convention on Consular Relations. The language used is formal and technical, suggesting a focus on international relations and law.

**Category**
International relations, Law