World hunger

Press, 6 December 1989, Page 22

World hunger

Sir,—lt is a pity that the Prime Minister’s sudden desire for “participatory democracy” coincides with my conclusion that attempts to contribute to the Government’s “democracy” are an. utter waste of time. Some time ago I wrote to two Ministers suggesting that rabbits should be tinned and given to those overseas suffering from acute protein deficiency. My only reply has been via the newspaper statement (November 22) that “4000 tonnes of poisonous carrots are to be dropped, on Waitaki properties next winter as part of multi-million dollar rabbit control.” In the absence of direct replies, I can only guess at which tenet of the Government’s strange economic philosophy requires rabbits to be poisoned and wasted rather than given to those whose children are growing up mentally deficient through lack of protein. Perhaps the Government feels that any humanitarian or common-sense action would place its whole doctrinaire policy at risk. — Yours, etc., MARK D. SADLER. November 30, 1989.