DISMANTLING POLICY

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25924, 3 October 1949, Page 7

DISMANTLING POLICY

OPPOSITION BY WEST GERMANY ALLIES WARNED ABOUT CONSEQUENCES (Rec. 7 p.m.) BONN, September 30. The West Gorman Parliament voted almost unanimously to-day to ask the Western Allies to halt the dismantling of German factories. It approved a Social Democrat motion which described the dismantling as an expression of "an unforgiving attitude," and asked that the Allies recheck the dismantling list to determine what plants could be removed from it and to stop in the meanwhile present and contemplated dismantling. The Chancellor (Dr. Konrad Adenauer) appealed to the Allies to "grasp the nettle boldly and end dismantling in time to prevent it from becoming a breeding ground of a new nationalism.” Dr. Adenauer said that after the First World War the Versailles Treaty became the best basis for reckless nationally propaganda. He appealed to the Western Powers not to allow dismantling to develop into an issue of the same kind. With goodwill, a solution must be possible which would meet legitimate claims for reparations without such harmful effects on the German people. Mr Fritz Henssler. a Ruhr trades union loader, said that the Allied dismantling policy was a "Satanic invention to prevent competition.” The argument of security in favour of dismantling was “too often abused as a pretext by selfish interests.” Mr Hugo Paul (Communist) linked the dismantling policy with Britain's export campaign. “If the British use tanks and machine-guns to carry out their programme, all German men of goodwill must reply by joining together in a national front' of resistance,” he added.