LABOUR LEADER SPEAKS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 244, 15 October 1925, Page 10

LABOUR LEADER SPEAKS.

OPPOSED TO COMMUNISTS.. QUESTION OF CENSORSHIP (By Telegraph.—Press A esociatton.) """ INVERCARGILL, Wednesday. . Mr. H. E. Holland, Leader of'th« Labour party, addresed a lar<_ audien in the Municipal Theatre to-night whp he expounded the policy of his party on the lines of previous addresses. He isceived a very attentive hearing. The speaker made reference to the recent prosecution of Communists _t Auckland, for having certain literature in their possession. He did not know the nature of the literature on which t_i'» prosecutions were based, but neither he nor his party endorsed the Communist attitude, which was opposed to that of Labour and the Socialist movement. His party, however, most certainly objected to the censorship of historical, scientific and economic literature, and also to the partisanship with which the laws Were administered in this connection. If a censorship existed; and while it existed, it must apply equally to all parties, but it had beeu found that while the Government was busy prosecutin. others for allegedly seditious literature the Reform party's own organisation was circulating blasphemous literature and circulating it with the dishonest intention of making it appear that the Labour party was responsible for the matter published, while the party's officers responsible for the publication were accorded immunity from prosecution. Had the same or similar matter been issued by the Labour party or anyone connected with it, prosecutions would have followed immediately, ft was a grave reflection on justice admiais. tration that no action had been taken against the persons guilty in this in. stance. Air. Holland deprecated the sectarian question being introduced into elections and said tbat religion was a matter for the private conscience, every man woman and child being allowed to think religiously in his or her own wit. He claimed that Labour was the legitimate successor to the old Liberal-Labour regime, and that it came to the electors in the name of the most progressive section of the intellects in New Zealand. The day that Labour marched on to tie treasury benches it would commence to write new laws for New Zealand in the interests of every man, woman and child. At the close Mr. Holland received I unanimous vote of thanks and confident! in the party which he leads.