Greymouth Evening Star. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1945. “SOFT PEACE”?

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 September 1945, Page 4

Greymouth Evening Star. WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1945. “SOFT PEACE”?

gOME of the -U.S.A, and Australian’ newspapers that a week or two ago ! were belauding General MacArthur as one of the greatest military commanders and administrators in history, are, to-day, hounding him down, because of his alleged velvet-glove policy towards the Japanese. It is understandable that the dis-, closures of Japanese brutalities and savagery towards captives and internees arouse considerable indignation and desire to punish speedily the. guilty, but it is easier to demand such retribution from far-off home centres than it is to achieve in Tokio and elsewhere in the Ear EastCan it be doubted that General MacArthur, with his own personal experiences in the Philippines and in the campaign since, is any less angry with the Japanese brutes than are his critics? Give him a fair deal.

General MacArthur has not the personal charm of, say, General Eisenhower, and he has long had severe critics in and out of the U.S.A, forces. He has, to-day, a tremendous task, and will be fortunate to avoid mistakes. He thinks it is wise to hasten slowly, meanwhile, and whether he is right or wrong in this, it must not be forgotten that the responsibility is his. and that thousands of Allied lives are in his keeping, What happens at r lokio will have repercussions at Singapore and other bases. Those who condemn Him for placing safety before vengeance, for the time being, should reflect on. the whole situation. The occupation forces landed so far are few compared with the numbers of Japanese soldiers still armed and equipped. It seems common sense for MacArthur to play a waiting game, until he is in a position to defy all circumstances. He may be using the Japanese more than they are alleged to be using him. The commander on the spot must be trusted, and whilst White House remains calm, lesser-' informed circles should not become impatient. It is no new thing for the U.S.A, to bo lenient towards a defeated foe, Germans as well as Japanese being -said to be thus favoured. Reference to this attitude was recently made by Air. C. Sawyer, U.S.A. Ambassador to Belgium, when attending the dedication ceremony of the Malmedy Avar memorial, erected by the Belgians to 120 American soldiers vdio were machinegunned by S.S. troops when taken prisoner during the Ardennes breakthrough in December. “My fear is that we will too easily forget the devastation brought on Belgium and the Avorld by the German nation" ” he said. “1 served in France during the last war, and with the Army of Occupation in Germany, when I observed a curious phenomenon. Within a few z months after hostilities there spread among American soldiers a feeling of resentment and ill-will towards our recent Allies, and a feeling of tolerance, if not outright friendliness. towards the Germans. This was explained as partly due to normal psychological reaction from the furious hatred of Germans that had moved us, partly to normal irritations bound to arise among several Allies. Strange to say, within two months of the end of hostilities in this second war I see repeated evidences of a recurrence of the same state of mind. Ultra-sentimentality towards a defeated enemy must be contrasted with the other extreme of exacting wholesale immediate vengeance. Between the two attitudes, what justice that is practicable will pio bably develop, in Japan as well as in Germany, but irritating delays seem to be inevitable.