Presbytery Supports Petition On Aid

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32011, 11 June 1969, Page 16

Presbytery Supports Petition On Aid

A petition urging the Government to increase its non-military overseas aid was commended by the Christchurch Presbytery last evening.

The petition, which is being circularised by the Action for International Development Committee, asks the Government to increase the aid to at least 1 per cent of the national income by 1973.

Supporting Action for International Development are the international relations committee of the Presbyterian General Assembly, the National Youth Council, the Student Christian Movement and the Newman Society. The City Churches Youth Committee is assisting with the promotion of the petition in Christchurch.

Since the Presbytery received the original request for support, parish ministers had received copies of a letter signed by the Moderator of the General Assembly (the Rt Rev. I. W. Fraser) and

the convener of the assembly’s international relations committee (the Rev. Dr G. R Ferguson) strongly recommending the petition. The two ministers said that the petition could be recommended with confidence and it was responsibly undertaken.

The Presbytery authorised the A.I.D. Committee to call on sessions to invite people to canvass the petition and to help as assistants in a possible house-to-house collection of signatures on Saturday. With the petition is a pledge form that petitioners will be asked to sign undertaking to give 1 per cent of their personal incomes to overseas aid through ap proved voluntary giving agencies.

The support of clergymen was also sought for an open letter to the Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) from the Rev M. A. McDowell, of Sumner, opposing New Zealand’s military involvement in Vietnam. Dr McDowell’s letter says it is not just or justified for New Zealand to continue to give armed support to perpetuate the regime in Saigon which does not represent the feelings of the South Vietnamese people at the conference table. The steering commitee of the Presbytery agreed to the distribution of Dr McDowell’s letter and left the de-; cision on whether to sign to the individual minister. :