WARMEST WISHES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 66, Issue 68, 31 December 1945, Page 2

WARMEST WISHES

PRIME MINISTER’S MESSAGE

RESPONSIBILITIES OF PEACE (P.A.) -WELLINGTON, December 20 “I extend to all the people of New Zealand my warmest wishes for a prosperous New Year. Our people have earned happiness,” said the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser) in a New Year message.

“The conclusion of the war has made 1945 one of the most historic years this country has known. The very victory which brought us such thankfulness and joy brought, too, new tasks and new responsibilities. We were, fortunately, spared the devastation of war within our own shores, but it is only since the end of hostilities that we have known how directly we were threatened. Japanese plans for the invasion of Now Zealand were discovered, and the people learned, for the first time, how (bin was the line of defence in the South Pacific. “Our New Zealand men who served in tne battle zones in all parts of the world, on land, at sea, and in the air, have earned for our Dominion a foremost place among the free nations of the world. To them and to all who served and worked and produced at home, we owe a debt which words alone can neither express nor repay,“As New Zealanders we have the right to feel proud of the part that our Dominion has played, along with the great nations of the world, in the years of war. We are now called upon to play an equally responsible and effective part in the complex task of international reconstruction and the stabilisation of peace. As we enter the first New Year of peace, the nations of the world are making an effort to build a structure which will preserve us from a repetition of the horrors of the last six years. New Zealand has a duty not only to herself but to the Commonwealth and to the world to ensure that no effort on her part is spared to ensure the success of this tremendous task.

Removing Causes of War

“One aim of the conference of the United Nations at San Francisco, which 1 was privileged to attend, was to establish international security by removing the danger of aggression. It was recognised that this was only part of the task. Nations to-day recognise that their responsibility extends to removing the economic and social causes of war. At various conferences before San Francisco and at San Francisco, there has been continuous development of international collaboration toward reconstructing a stable and beneficial world economy. “The best devised system of security against aggression would be useless if another poison brew of war were allowed to generate from economic frictions between the nations. Economic warfare, depressions, hunger, poverty, and despair—these are the conditions that undermine democracy and love of peace; these are the conditions that made possible the opportunities for tyrants and aggressors who led the world into this war; these are the conditions that nations and the people who make nations must succeed in conquering if they are to avoid plunging into another cataclysm. The United Nations have, therefore, been striving to create co-operation for mutual welfare among the nations. These efforts will be extended in a series of conferences in the coming year.

“Here, at home, the rehabilitation of our servicemen and servicewomen in civil life is one of our paramount duties in the period of readjustment which we have entered this year. No effort of which we as a nation are capable must be spared in rewarding them for the sacrifices they made and in making up to them the opportunities they have lost. There is cause for satisfaction in the work which has already been accomplished in this direction. it must take a foremost place in the year ahead. Much can be done, and indeed much lias been done, by departmental organisation, but the successful rehabilitation of our returning soldiers, sailors, and airmen must always depend largely on the co-opera-tion and spirit of the people. .

Eyes To The Future

“We must now turn our eyes to the future. The readjustment of our national life from war to peace is a task of great moment for every one of us —-it is for us to use wisely that freedom to guide our own destiny for which so many of New Zealand’s sons fought and died. “Already we have made important advances. In the Legislature the session of Parliament which concluded a few weeks ago was one of the longest and most important for many years. Such measures as those providing for a minimum wage, a minimum family income, and universal family allowances provided the legislative framework within which a society, free from want, can be built. It is true that our social services and benefits are equalled nowhere else in the world, but it must be remembered that the whole of the structure already built to ensure freedom from want depends on the maintenance of the highest possible level of production. This means conscientious and efficient work by everyone in every walk of life and harmony in industry. Again r desire to express my gratitude for the splendid efforts of the whole country during the six years of war and to offer everyone best wishes for prosperity in the New Year of peace.”