CENSORSHIP CODE

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 277, 19 August 1944, Page 6

CENSORSHIP CODE

Chamber Of Commerce View The opinion that in view of the recent decision of the Full Court, the censorship in New Zealand should now be used only for reasons of security, was expressed at a meeting of the AVeliipgton Chamber of Commerce by the president, Mr. F. Wilson. In Australia some tew months ago, he said, a voluntary arrangement had been made ns between the Commonwealth Government and the newspapers, which made it possible tor the Press to keep (lie public informed on all subjects on which the free people of a democracy should be kept posted, while at tile same time preserving (nose, vita! aspects of the war effort on which silence must be observed. , Mr. N. S. Hunt stud that in the debate in the House of Representatives on the subject of censorship, members of the Government from the Prime Minister down had made strenuous efforts to cloud the issue by dragging in their grievances, both real and fancied, in relation to the behaviour of the so-called “Tory” Press. A more generous approach to the proposition would have been more in line with what wns indicated, and he hoped the Government would realize that it was the mood of the people of New Zealand, to have done with censorship of a political nature. Censorship for reasons of security had the unqualified support of all. but censorship for political purposes was unlikely to find public favour