HOME SERVICES

Evening Post, Volume CXL, Issue 49, 27 August 1945, Page 6

HOME SERVICES

RELEASE ON PRIORITY BASIS

Plans for, the release of personnel in the home establishmentst'are already in operation and r,provide for the progressive release of th<& members of these organisations, on a priority basis, from every type of unit throughout the country..

The main group of releases is to in-

elude those personnel whose release has already been recommended by Armed Forces Appeal Boards or manpower officers, those who have completed four years' service, married men with families, and men over 35 years of age. As establishments are reduced, also, surplus personnel employed are to be released, and men and women in vital industrial groups are to be given the opportunity of returning to their trades or professions. Compassionate and hardship grounds will be given every consideration, j particularly if recommended by the man-power authorities. It is realised, however, that it will not be possible immediately to effect the release of all personnel included in the main group, as some will be key men who may be required to continue service for a period in order to instruct a certain number of replacements. Some unavoidable replacements will be made from men now in the 16th Reinforcements —men who, for a large part, have had little or no service—in order to give priority in release to the long-service and married men who have been carrying on so long. MOBILISATION CAMPS' FUTURE. The primary function of the mobilisation camps at Papakura, Trentham, and Burnham has finished. They will no longer be required for the training of reinforcements for overseas, and staffs will therefore be reduced accordingly and the camp staffs cut down .to the small groups necessary to care for and maintain the buildings and equipment in a satisfactory condition for peacetime requirements. Some members vof the instructional staffs, however, especially those with ovei;seas experience, may be retained in the meantime for service with the Army School of "Instruction, which will continue to operate for the time being. The releases of personnel in industrial groups are to be applied, as a general rule, in the following order of priority:—Farmers, shearers, musterers, dairy factory workers, sawmillers, coal.miners, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, painters, bricklayers, and plasterers. THE W.A.A.C. Generally speaking, members of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps will be retained only for those duties for which they are usually more suitable than men; for instance, typists, clerks, camp hospital and dental duties, cooks and waitresses. Troops overseas, servicemen in hospital in New Zealand, and personnel in such units as still exist locally will continue to receive the benefits of the Army Education and Welfare Service, but jn other directions the activities of this branch will be greatly curtailed. It is expected that the internees' camp will shortly be closed, but the prisoner-of-war camp at Featherston and the Polish children's camp are to be retained for the present. THOUSANDS ALREADY OUT. The extent to which the home Forces reduced their strength even prior to the end of hostilities in Europe is not generally appreciated by the public, as these reductions have been gradual, and, for security reasons, were not given very great,publicity at the time. In May, 1943, there were approximately 40,000 personnel (including reinforcements) on home service in New Zealand. A year later this total had been almost halved, and by May, 1945, under 16,000 were stationed here. At the end of last month there were only approximately 10,000 Army personnel in New Zealand, exclusive of those who were in training in anticipation of taking part in operations overseas.-' . FORCE FOR JAPAN. New Zealand, as has been announced, as to send a small, force to take part in the occupation of Japan. No announcement has yet been made as to the composition or method of recruitment of this force, :but it is considered likely that, a call will be made for volunteers, both from the overseas forces.and men in reinforcementdrafts in this country. Should the response not be sufficiently enthusiastic, it will be necessary to post men to the force, and the logical pool for personnel for such posting would be the residue of the 16th Reinforcements, consisting of those men who are left after the priority releases have been effected.