VICTORY PARADE

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVI, Issue 65, 14 September 1943, Page 6

VICTORY PARADE

PLAN FOR SATURDAY MAY NOT EVENTUATE Though plans have progressed to a certain stage for a Victory Parade on Saturday next,' there was at the time of going to press toda/ some doubt as to whether they would come to fruition. A meeting was to be held this afternoon to decide the position. ■ • An earlier announcement indicated that the Government proposed to organise the spectacle in 24- of the large centres, and leave it to the local bodies elsewhere to arrange similar demonstrations. It was also stated that Saturday had been proclaimed a public holiday in recognition of the occasion. IDEA CONDEMNED

WAR NOT WON YET P.A. CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. Strong opposition to the Government's proposal .to hold a Victory Parade in each city and town on Saturday, which has-been declared a public holiday, was expressed by the Mayors of boroughs and chairmen of local bodies in the Christchurch metropolitan district at a meeting yesterday, and representatives of organisations which would be-concerned in the arrangement of such a parade in Christchurch were stated to have expressed disapproval also. The meeting decided to send the following telegram to the Prime Minister (Mr. Fraser), Mr. J. Fletcher (chairman of the Victory Parade Industrial Committee, Wellington), and the Mayors of Auckland, Wellington, and Dunedin: The Mayors and chairmen of localbodies of the Christchurch metropolitan district are unanimously opposed to a demonstration on Saturday. Christchurch has already officially recognised the surrender of Italy. Among our reasons are that the war is far from ended and Italy not yet occupied. The Minister of Supply has publicly declared that the petrol situation is acute, yet it is proposed to use thousands of gallons of petrol throughout New Zealand. Further, all the associations contacted declared that it is impossible to carry out 'the programme submitted by Saturday.