Lyttelton Man ’Phones Panama; Brother Safe

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30338, 14 January 1964, Page 13

Lyttelton Man ’Phones Panama; Brother Safe

Although at present safe in the American zone, Mr E. W. (Ted) Scott, New Zealandborn executive editor of “The Panama American” said in a telephone conversation with his brother in Lyttelton last evening that he wanted to return urgently to Panama. He did not say why he wanted to return.

According to Mr Alan Scott, a Lyttelton hotel keeper, his brother told him things were very bad and that there was firing along the Canal Zone by Panamanians using rifles and machine guns. Mr Scott said his brother said that the Panamanians were “really after me” this time, and that he had cleared out from the Panamanian side to the American zone two days ago. With him went his nephew. Mr Scott Francis, formerly of the “Evening Post,” who now works on the “Panama American.” Another New Zealander on the staff of the same newspaper, Mr Rees Smith, formerly of Nelson, is safe in Caracas. Mr Scott’s wife is an American citizen and lives in the canal zone but he himself lives in Panama. Earlier Mr A. Scott had booked a telephone call to his brother but had been advised that the earliest time was 2 a.m. There had been many delays because of the crisis.

Mr E. W. Scott, who went abroad 38 years ago, was expelled from Castro’s Cuba where he had been correspondent and commentator for the National Broadcasting Company of New York. He returned to New Zealand in April, 1962, for a holiday. He stayed for most of the time with his brother at Lyttelton. In January, 1963, he returned to Central America and rejoined the “Panama American.”