REGRET EXPRESSED

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 66, Issue 46, 4 December 1945, Page 4

REGRET EXPRESSED

■ INCIDENTS IN JAVA APPEAL BY RED CROSS (N.Z. Press Association —Copyright.) (Rec. 2 p.m.) BATAVIA, Dec. 3. The Indonesian Prime Minister, Sjahrir, expressed his regret to the Allied Commander-in-Chief, Sir Philip Christison, for the happenings that took place at Tjakutig, Bekasi and Ambarawa, which resulted from a misunderstanding between the occupation troops and the people. Thus are explained away the massacre of the crew and passengers of the crashed Dakota,, at Tjakung Kekasi and the shooting of women internees at Ambarawa. It is undersaood that Dr. Van Mook is leaving Batavia on December 5 tor Holland, where he will report on the Indonesian situation to the Home Government and make recommendations for future action in the Indies. The Dutch Red Cross hopes to move 50,000 civilians to Australia of an estimated 200,000 it would like to evacuate from the Netherlands East Indies, stated a Red Cross official. He added that the nerves of civilians had reached breaking point. Hundreds will collapse mentally and will attempt, suicide unless evacuation is hastened. The Red Cross had appealed to the United States for help. A London message says that in the House of Commons to-day the Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs Mr Hector McNeil said that he had instructed the British Ambassador at the Hague to seek the views of the Dutch Government as soon as possible on the whole subject of the evacuation of civilians from. Java. Mr McNeil was replying to a question as to what steps were being taken to meet the appeal by the chairman of the Batavian Red Cross. He said the appeal had not yet reached him, but he had received a copy of another appeal addressed to the-Lieu-tenant-Governor on November 26 by members of the women’s camps in Batavia regarding the evacuation of women and children and aged and sick from Java.

Manifold Difficulties ' Mr McNeil added that it was not yet clear how many persons were involved. Meanwhile, the Government wasi urgently investigating certain possibilities relating to reception areas and shipping facilities. Major Lloyd George said the immediate danger was that a very large number of these women and children were apparently in the interior and it was not a question of getting them outof the country as much as of getting them to a safe part under British protection. About 200,000 were in danger of being kidnapped and butchered. The Batavian Red Cross was concerned lest some terrible tragedies occur if immediate action wa.si not taken. Mr McNeil said the difficulties were manifold, but the Government was seriously concerned with the project, and would not easily be halted. Mr G. Nicholson (Conservative, Surrey) remarked that Britain, as a whole would firmly support any definite and determined steps to rescue these people, and would never forgive any half-heartedness or lack of decision. Mr McNeil replied that there would be i>o half-heartedness.