WRIT FOR LIBEL ISSUED

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25307, 6 October 1947, Page 6

WRIT FOR LIBEL ISSUED

ACTION AGAINST LABOUR NEWSPAPER From Our Own Reporter

WELLINGTON, October 5. *A writ# for libel against the Labour daily newspaper in Wellington, “The Southern Cross,” is being issued on behalf of Mr Randolph Churchill. This ’ was announced by Mr A W. Flett, of Auckland, who is accompanying Mr Churchill on his New Zealand tour. The writ relates to comment in a leading article published last Wednesday.

SOVIET UNION AND PEACE STATEMENT BY TRADES COUNCIL REPLY TO MR, CHURCHILL The Canterbury Trades Council last week considered a resolution passed by the Christchurch branch of the Railway Tradesmen’s Association, requesting it to take steps to have “Mr Randolph Churchill’s warmongering propaganda terminated at' the earliest moment.”. Yesterday a statement was issued on behalf of the council by the president (Mr John Roberts) and the secretary (Mr A. B. Gsant). • The Canterbury Trades Council considered that Mr Randolph Churchill would be more profitably engaged assisting in the productive process essential for Britain’s recovery, said the statement. Mr Churchill accused the Soviet Union of warmongering, when it was known to every thinking person that the Soviet Union had consistently advocated and worked for world peace. Recently, Dr. J. W. Burton, president of the Australian Methodist Conference, told delegates at the seventh ecumenical conference ht Springfield, Massachusetts, that Russia was disciplined, regimented and patriotic, with a strong, determined, ruthless people, and that the world would crash unless jealousy, suspicion and ill-will could be replaced by trust and understanding. Mr Churchill was "not assisting to engender trust and understanding. Dr. Burton also criticised the United States attitude towards Russia as hysterical.

“United States Hysteria” It was this hysteria that was being assisted by Mr Churchill, continued the statement. Mr Churchill had said that the US SR, came into the Japanese war only because of .the atom bomb. Mr Winston Churchill, the father of Randolph, quoted in the press cables of August 17. 1945. denied that the use of the atomic bomb had hastened Russia’s entry into the Far Eastern war. “My understanding with Stalin for a considerable time past had been that Russia would declare war against Japan within three months of the