TOWN HALL AND LABOUR

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 180, 19 April 1918, Page 7

TOWN HALL AND LABOUR

0 THAT REFUSED APPLICATION . Finance committee criticised. ; When the correspondence was being called over in the usual way at tho rneoting of the City Council last evening, Councillor J. E. Fitzgerald arrested tho . attention of his colleagues over the mat- ■ ter of tho refusal of tho I'inanao Committee to let the Town Hall to tho {Labour Representation Committeo for the purpose of holding a meeting to protest ■against tho prolongation of Parliament. .Councillor Fitzgerald wished to know .what had actuated tho Finance Commit- - tee in coming to a decision which showed discrimination against a section of tho community whioh was at present without representation, fyi tho council. ' Tho Mayor said that neither he nor the committee had shown, discrimination against any section 1 , of the community. ' .He was an advocate of freedom of speech. :• long as it conformed to the wellbeing of the country, and he had 110 regrets for what had boen done, flis motive Was an ondoavour to eliminate .anything in tho nature of strife or what might causa strife at a time Use the present. He did not say that-this meeting would havo engendered strife, but there was the chance that hostile resolu- - .tions may have been passed which would not have been for tho good- of tho country or helpful to the boys who were fight- . ing for us overseas.. The matter had been very carefully considered by the committee, which was not unanimous.; , Councillor Atkinson did not agree with .tho decision. Though he was with them on general principles, he had nis Houbts. on '"legal , technicalities'."' . "I want to put this to '.the council, said Mr. Luke. "What would havo been the position had a resolution been carried reflecting on the fixod policy of tho country or on the Military Service . (Act, which is: so helpful in bringing about the great conquest in view? -As long as the war lasts my influence will • lie on the side favouring the best government of the country. 1 do not .deny the right of free 6peecn. There are other halls where the_jneeting could have been held.- 1 am a broad-minded man, and . have.not given evidence of any uarrows jiess. Ac the recent election 1 .in-. structed tho Town Clerk to give permis- ■ sioii for any of the candidates to hold meetings at any street corners so long as they did not block the traffic of the city, - I acted in thß best interests of the.community, and were the question to arise I woulil be bound to act in the same way again.'-' ■ ■ .. . ' ' - • Councillor Fitzgerald said that the Mayor's explanation had not convinced him that the committee had done the ; right thing. He entered an. emphatic. ' 1 protest against .the action of the Finance -Committee in discriminating as it had done, and so preventing free . speech in the best interests of the government ot ' .the country. Because a hostilß resolution was feared the Town Hall had been refused- the representatives ot (Labour, which bad ' responded nobly to.the call of Empire. For any man to say 1 that there was no necessity for criticism 1 ,was to fail to. recognise his duty to the Empire. He would ask the Mayor to read the English journals, which were ' full of frank, healthy criticism, and to realise that changes had been made in , 1 the highest positions. 1 The Prime Hin-. ister was changed, and high 9 s changed every day. yet here in New Zealand a large section of the community ,\vere refused the use of their. own Town and he desired.on their behalf; to enter a strong protest. Councillor W. Hildreth. disagreed with the- action of the committee. As it was 1 not in the letter, he did not see on what s - grounds they imagined that .a 1 resolution - (was to be passed about Webb.. If they .wore only going to- discuss the prolongation of Parliament, there were plenty of other halls at their disposal. He thought that a great deal more harm had been 'done" than if they had been allowed to {hold the meeting in the Town Hall. The .committee should have granted the use jof the hall. - 1 In the opinion of Councillor W. H. • ißennott the, committee. had committed ijan error, of judgment. ..The. Mayor .was | jan engineer, and knew what , would hapj (pen if an engine's safety-valve were tied 'Jown. He'thought the committee's action had added a real grievance to a {fancied one, as no harm-would have been Jone the community or the Government ihad the meeting been held. *' Councillor A: 11. Atkinson. said that jlhe had been in absolute agreement in general eentiment with his colleagues on ifhe issue of questions which might have at the meeting, but said that the Mayor v;as misleading when he referred jjto Ms attitude as being caused through ■''legal technicalities." There 'was_ absolutely. no room for technicalities—it was jtlio balance of policy on one side or the jother. He could not agreo with' Councillor Fitzgerald that perfect freedom of .speech was needed throughout the Empire. Nevertheless, it was, in his judgment, an improper thing to refuse the Request of tho Labour, Eepresentation ,'Committee. The actual purpose- of the .(meeting was to protest against prolonging the life of-Parliament, and he could no harm in the recording of such a i (protest. In a democratic country such |jas this it would be an unprecedented /jstep in timo of peace and a drastic step lin time of war to attempt to prevent >£uch a discussion. He ijas a hundred ' jier cent, in favour of extending the life <,of Parliament, but he could not approve such action in order to. stop free I V- 1 _

I speech. As to tho tilings suggested as passible nt tlio meeting, tlicy hud laws capablo of dealing with olfences committed, and lie did not seo how attacks on the Administration at such a meeting could bo ruled out as irrelevant. The committeo had no right to set itself up as censor of such points unless it had knowlcdgo that tho law was going to be broken. As ono not unacquainted with strife— l illicit ho had tried desperately to avoid—he kuew of quito a number of questions containing tho elements of strife. If, for instance, a meeting was held on tho liquor question, tho City Council could not refuse tho use of the Town. Hall. Speaking mora broadly on tho matter of tho right of free speech, ho reminded tho council that the minorities of txi-day wero tho majorities of tomorrow, and it was not for majorities to suppress tho rights of minorities, even if it wero done in tho name ot democracy. Counoillor Castlo disagreed with tho action of tho committeo, which seemed, to have regarded Labour as a mad dog which they must muzzle. Who was it that had granted the uso of tho l'.all to another body? He referred to the Protestant Political Association,' which was stirring up so much strifo in tho community. Labour should bo allowed tho uso of tho hall to discuss questions which seriously affected them. Councillor M'lvonzio asked whether it was right that tho hall had been granted at first. Tho Mayor: "Incorrect, councillor!" Counoillor M'Kenzie held the opinion that the Labour people had tho right to use the hall as well as any ether institution. Councillors J. 0. Shorland and W. H. P. Barber also disagreed with tho action of the committee. Tho Mayor said that the hall :iad been lot twice ; before to the P.P.A., and the admission was by ticket. He was u.uder no compliment to that body, as they' had spoken strongly against the Mayor of Wellington, so he was no "curly-headed boy" with them. He hoped that the three-quarters, of the committee -would take kindly the drubbing which had been given them. Councillor Fitzgerald: Very gracefully expressed! Can I tako it then that they (the Labour Committee) should make 'further application? '. The Maj'or: There is no reason why they should not make another applica-, tion.