CHILDREN IN AIR RAIDS

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23586, 13 March 1942, Page 6

CHILDREN IN AIR RAIDS

ANXIETY OF TEACHERS

“As teachers we cannot be interested in the safety of the children we minister to only during the time that they are at school,” states an editorial article in “National Education.” the journal of the New Zealand Educational Institute. “Dispersal plans are complete, and when the Government’s plans for shelters have been fulfilled, that side of their welfare should have been provided for to our satisfaction. “But there remains the much broader issue, fraught with considerably more danger. Teachers everywhere cannot feel confident at the present moment that once the children are dispersed according to plan they will be any better off than if they had remained at school during the raid. They will want to .know what has been done through the local E.P.S.* to ensure for them the maximum degree of safety. What is to happen to the children during the actual raid after they have been sent home from school? Have they shelters to go to or will they be free to roam wherever their panicstricken little feet lead them? What happens to mothers and children in a night-raid when fathers are away as wardens, fire-watchers, or Home Guardsmen? The lives of these children are supremely valuable to this Dominion and a high standard of protection must be demanded for them.

“Dr. Beeby’s statement to the executive and the Hon. Mr Mason’s announcement through the press are particularly welcome, as they are the first, authoritative pronouncement on this most important subject. But the allied questions relating to community protection which embrace women as well as children are left just as much unanswered as ever. It seems quite impossible to get a clear idea of what is expected of women and children in an actual raid. “A clear and definite set of instructions which can be easily understood by everyone, which will be technically as effective as it is possible to devise and which will be uniform for all districts of equal vulnerability is urgently required. There is only one body capable of formulating and giving such a set of instructions—and that is the Government. The matter is urgent and it is to be earnestly hoped that immediate action will be taken. We regard these children as being the Dominion’s greatest potential asset, and teachers cannot be blamed for demanding for them protection, at least as adequate and as effective as that provided for business property.”