PROTEST VOICED

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 28, 3 February 1939, Page 11

PROTEST VOICED

BROADCASTING BAN.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS SESSION. REINSTATEMENT REQUESTED. A- meeting" which filled both the upstairs and downstairs portion of the Town Hall aiul overflowed into the gallery and on to the stage last evening passed a resolution protesting against the banning of the sessions of Mr.K. H. Melvin, the well-known commentator., on international affairs from Station IZB, and requesting the Minister of Broadcasting, the IU. Hon. M. J. Savage, to reinstate them. The solo intcrjector at the meeting was ejected prior to the resolution being put. ; The principal speaker was Mr. Melvin, who replied to statements by Mr. Savage, giving reasons, for the imposing of the ban, and drew attention to the evils of censorship. Mr. I>. A.' Singer presided. Mr. Singer said tliat communications had come from all parts of the country, and they represented the views of many thousands of people for the just cause which, he believed, those present assembled to uphold.

At the outset, -Mr. Meiviil stressed tho fact tlint the meeting was alisteners' one. Ho only -wished that Mr. Savage was present to hear all .Uijit was said. There' was 'not .in liis (Mr. Melvin's) mind a scintilla of criticism of Mr. Savage. or his Government. The purpose of the meeting was to do as -Mr. Suvnge had always done—to make- perfectly clear the wish of the people.

Mr. Melvin went on to refer to tlie official reasons given by Mr, Savage for banning his session. Ho himself was not concerned with statements made in certain newspapers and magazines, he said, but he had believed- that representation's by the Gorman Consul,, Herr Kamin, had some bearing on the ban. The reasons for this assumption, lie explained, were that when a deputation consisting of four members of Parliament, and three, representatives of the sponsor of the banned . programme waited on .Mr. Savage in December, the Prime Minister had made it clear that the position was such as to make it necessary for him. to curtail and not extend facilities for expression on the air. "Tired of Apologies." Mr. Savage had said he was tired of being placed in a position where he had to apologise to the German Consul for statements made against the German administration, and lie intended to see in future that he was not placed in a similar position. Already, ho said, he had had to'apologise for a statement made by one of his Cabinet colleagues. The German Consul had even complained to him that someone had torn the name-plate off the door of his consular premises. The German Consul had said in tlio Prime Minister's office that Germany's internal affairs were her own business. "From that." said Mr. Melvin, "I left the Prime Minister's ollicc with the definite impression that German consular protests had been responsible for the ban on our session," However, he added, he had accepted Mn. Savage's assurance that these deductions were* not correct. He did so gladly, for he would abhor the position where any foreign Power would ever have such an important. influence on New Zealand's domestic affairs. His owii statement was offered to Mr. Savage with the assurance that it had never been his purpose to discredit him or the Government for which lie had worked loyally. /

Referring to Mr. Savage's suggestion that his stories were' drawn from "inspired propaganda," Mr. Melvin said he was sorry the Prime Minister had said what he had, for. in so doing lie Was discrediting an ally. His position conoerning Mr. foreign policy actually was exactly that of Jfew'Zealand's High -Commissioner, Mr. Jordan. In his opposition to the English Conservative party policy lie had reflected the views of the Labour party in England, Australia and Xcw Zealand, and, in his plea for a strong democratic front against Fascist dictatorships, lie could claim to voice the overwhelming opinion of the Dominion and every other free country. "Completely Misinformed." Touching on Mr. Savage's comment that he (Mr. Melvin) could not possibly have tlie facts, tlie speaker said ho could only conclude that Mr. Savage had been completely misinformed regarding liis sessions. Mr. Melvin quoted from comments made by him during the recent European crisis and claimed that these acquitted him of the charge of using "inflammatory dope." Mr. Melvin traced the effects of censorship in foreign countries, and dealt with the establishment of the international convention' concerning the use of broadcasting., in the cause of peace. That convention, said Mr.

Melvin, appeared admirable, but in practice it was only a method by which censorship 011 comment 011 international affairs crept in through the back door, for each Power had to censor the scripts of its broadcasters to eliminate any unfavourable comment 011 the policies of the other signatories.

Mr. Melvin quoted extensively from a statement by Mr. 11. G. Wells, in attacking censorship ill Australia. Mr. Wells had said . . . "Xo country can be a democracy while it allows censorship of thought. It 5b utterly ridiculous to daily a man the freest access to every type of thought that exists in tlie world." • "So Mr. Wells; so Mr. Melvin," • concludcd the speaker.

The resolution passed was moved by Mr. F. H. Hildreth, representing the' Xew Zealand lJisablcd Soldiers' Welfare Association, and seconded by Mr. Owen Bayly, and read as follows: "That this meeting of Auckland citizens, believing that the right to free speech is the essential liberty of the people, and that the disseminating ot' information 011 foreign affairs, as presented by Mr. Melvin in his broadcast session 'History Behind the Headlines,' is of outstanding national advantage for the purpose of improving international relations and preserving peace through knowledge aiul understanding, protests to the Minister of Broadcasting against the banning of ''History Behind the Headlines,' and respectfully requests that the reinstatement of the session be authorised immediately."