PRISONERS OF WAR

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 62, Issue 88, 24 January 1942, Page 6

PRISONERS OF WAR

THE SENDING OF PARCELS. n AS SOON AS NOTIFICATION JAPAN WILL FORWARD NAMES. (P.A.) WELLIINGTON, This Day. Reassurance to next-of-kin in regard to the forwarding of clothing to men taken prisoner is contained in this week’s statement by the Prisoners of War Inquiry Office. There are permanent arrangements whereby a clothing parcel is sent through the High Commissioners’ Office, London, to every man as soon as it is officially notified that he is a prisoner. Considerable stocks are held there and the moment a manj is officially notified in Geneva as a prisoner both the High Commissioner and the New Zealand Government are notified. A second quarterly parcel is also sent from the High Commissioner’s office so that a parcel sent from -New Zealand would probably be the third. The Inquiry Office has received through the Government information that the Japanese Government has declared itself ready to transmit to the International Red Cross agent at Geneva information concerning any prisoners, and also to exchange similar information concerning interned noncombatants as far as it possibly can. A Prisoner of War Bureau was established in Tokio on December 27. Stress is again laid on the fact of tobacco not being permitted in parcels. What can, or cannot, go in parcels is decided by the detaining Power ahd not by anyone in the British Empire. Experience over many months has proved that practically all the names that have come over radio sources have already been notified officially as prisoner of war, but next-of-kin, knowing of cases not officially notified, are requested to communicate with the Inquiry Office. Next-of-kin are requested to destroy all parcel instruction sheets except the last one, that is, dated January, 1942, which have been forwarded to them.