DEFAULTERS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXVI, Issue 152, 29 June 1945, Page 8

DEFAULTERS

RELEASE QUESTION

OPPOSITION PROTEST

Parliamentary Reporter. WELLINGTON, this day. Revocation of. the recent amendment to the National Service Emergency Regulations giving military defaulters the right to make application for immediate release from detention camps was sought in the House of Representatives yesterday by the Opposition. An amendment to this effect was moved by the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Holland when the acting-Prime Minister, Mr. Nash, moved that the House go into committee of supply to consider the Imprest Supply Bill. Mr. Holland's amendment gave rise to a debate which began early in the afternoon and continued until

late at night. The text of the amendment was as follows: "That this House being gravely dissatisfied with the action of the Government in giving the right to military defaulters to make application to revision authorities for their release from detention while our servicemen and servicewomen are still serving overseas, and while our prisoners of war remain unrepatriated, strongly recommends the Government immediately to revoke the National Service Emergency Regulations, 1940, amendment 17, which gives to military defaulters the right to make application for immediate release."

Mr. Holland said that though Parliament was to sit only a few days before the Gazetting of the regulations it was not given the opportunity of expressing its views.

Mr. Nash rose to a point of order, stating that two judicial tribunals were now sitting and discussion in the House might affect the judgment of those hearing the appeals.

After several members had spoken to the point of. order the Speaker, Mr. : Schramm, ruled that the regulations could be discussed by the House. Their effect and scope were proper subjects for debate so long as matter was not introduced tending to interfere with the judicial proceedings.

Soldiers Still Away

Resuming his Interrupted speech, Mr. Holland explained the procedure before the appeal boards, and said that though some conscientious objectors whose appeals had been disallowed had eventually gone away to fight, others had elected to defy the law and were committed to defaulters' camps as unadulterated shirkers. He and many others felt that those who.would not fight should have no right to enjoy the benefits which came to those who were fighting for other people (Opposition "Hear, hears").

Freedom had been preserved at the cost of millions of lives and New Zealanders were coming back to go into the Pacific and even to invade Japan. Under such circumstances could the Government expect the Opposition to sit back and not raise a protest against the privilege which was now being given to military defaulters? There was no appeal for soldiers, sailors or airmen, but only for a person who was a defaulter, and there was no defaulter who had not defied the law.

"This is the chance defaulters have been waiting for, and the decision was arrived at not after discussion in the HOuse, but by discussion inside a Government caucus," he concluded.

Mr. H. T. Morton (Nat., Waitemata), seconder of the amendment, said his chief objection to the regulation was that the Government was giving preference to defaulters over men at present in the Services. He had visited defaulters' camps and could not imagine any body of law breakers being treated with more consideration. Apart from the splendid conditions defaulters had had Christmas leave and about the time servicemen received an increase of 1/ a day in their pay the defaulters received an increase of 1/3.

The Minister of Supply, Mr. Sullivan, said that to the extent, that the Opposition 7 desired to prevent the release of shirkers, cowards and humbugs they would unquestionbably get the support of everyone. It was not the object'of the regulations or the intention of the War Cabinet or the Government that the regulations should be used to make possible the escape of such men. There was only one objective—to ensure that really genuine conscientious objectors should get the benefit originally intended by the House. He reminded the Opposition that the regulations still remained much harsher than those applied in the United Kingdom.

Right of Appeal in United Kingdom

Throughout the war there had been the right of appeal in the United Kingdom, and there had been 18,700 appeals from among 57,000 conscientious objectors, and more than 50 per cent of those appeals had been upheld. Until now there> had not been that right of appeal" in New Zealand. In the United Kingdom a defaulter was subject to three months' imprisonment, and after his release he could be tried again, but the sum total of all penalties could not exceed two years', imprisonment. In Australia defaulters got three months' imprisonment: In New Zealand a lot of objectors had been in detention camps for three years. In the United Kingdom nearly all defaulters were out working, and he had been informed that only 100 were confined. There were 10,000 defaulters working' on farms in the United Kingdom and others in various industries. Moreover there were no restrictions on their wages. Mr. W. A. Bodkin (Nat., Central Otago) said he wanted to ask members of the Labour party how they proposed to reply to the charge of the R.S.A. that they should do. the

! fair thing by members of a furlough party whose names had been pubin the Gazette. , ~,, Mr A. S. Richards (Govt Roskill) said that the regulations had been made to prevent the an injustice arid he could not under stand why so much fuss was being made about them. , Conscientious objectors had been in defaulters' camps for five. years, and had been denied British justice, declared Mr. W. T. Anderton (Govt., Eden) He questioned whether the criticisms of the Returned Services Association truly represented the views of the majority of its members and he challenged that organisation to take a vote on the quesThe amendment was lost by 38 votes to 31. One member of the Opposition, the Minister in charge of War Expenditure, Mr. Hamilton, and Mr. H. Atmore (Ind., Nelson) voted with the Government. Discussion concluded at 12.22. a.m. and after formalities in connection with the Imprest Supply Bill had been completed and the bill passed the House rose at 12.50 a.m.