CONSTABLE’S THREAT TO ARREST PRESSMAN: BAN ON INTERVIEWS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22825, 21 December 1948, Page 8

CONSTABLE’S THREAT TO ARREST PRESSMAN: BAN ON INTERVIEWS

NEWS DELAY INQUIRY

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, Dec. 20. Evidence of a threat by a constable to arrest a pressman following an incident at Cowem’s mill during the recovery of the bodies in the Kaka disaster on Mt. Ruapehu was given today before the commission which is inquiring into the alleged obstruction of the press in the area of the crash.

• When the hearing was resumed Lieutenant-Colonel C. L. Pleasants, camp commandant at Waiouru. who was in charge of Army personnel at the scene, continued his evidence. Knew Nothing of Alleged Message

To Mr. W. E. Leicester, counsel for the New Zealand Journalists’ Association, Pleasants said it was reported to him that two reporters were in the Cowern’s mill area. He thought that was a reasonable number of pressmen. He knew nothing of the message purporting to have come from the Prime Minister's Department and Constable Phillips at no time mentioned the latter to him.

Phillips had told him he, Phillips, had authority to control the area originating from the Prime Minister’s Department. At no stage did any question of the pressmen enter witnesses’ mindHe did not know that passes for pressmen were not available till 11.30 a m He had told the police at 9 a.m. that passes were to be made available, but the reporters were not ■ specifically mentioned. He had told the reporters to go to Ohakune till the passes were ready for them. ’ It was not his function to provide news to pressmen, and he took no steps to assist them to gather news. He informed the press that all information was to go to Air Traffic Control and not to the press. He did that on his own authority as was current service practice. Statement Denied Pleasants said he did not say the news had to go to Mr. Nash, but the press had suggested that to him. The reporters asked him only of news of the Army’s actions. He decided to give no news coming through his radio link. The press were critical of the actions of the Army. The first intimation he had that the press regarded the action as if a state of war was in existence was when he read the newspapers. He was not present at Cowern’s mill when the incident between a policeman and a reporter occurred. He thought the reporter was threatened with arrest for being abusive and not for being near the radio van. It was he who directed that news be withheld until the court of inquiry into the crash was held. He did not realise that he might be withholding information for several weeks on that account. He thought he would only be withholding unreliable information. His direction was not sanctioned by anyone. It was his own action. He understood that his actions had resulted in a complaint either to the Police Department or to the Prime Minister’s Department.

Mr. Leicester: “If a prbssman named ■ Hetherington gives evidence that an i Army officer refused to allow him to interview returning civilians, saying, ] ‘We have our instructions. We can do nothing about it. We have our instructions from Lieutenant - Colonel i Pleasants, and he has his from higher : up—very much higher up.’ Can you throw any light on that remark? , Soldier Mistaken Witness: I would say that the reporter concerned had mistaken a soldier in his attempt to get an interview with a civilian. Pleasants added that he had given no instructions, except those regarding - service personnel who were in all sorts of clothing, and the reporters might have made the mistake of attempting to interview a serviceman and was stopped. He agreed that a pressman had protested that he was prevented from interviewihg a civilian. Captain Cyril Edward Slade-Jones, in charge of Army personnel at Horopito, said that at Cowern’s mill on the . Saturday morning most of the people without passes were refused admission, but certain pressmen were admitted to the mill without passes. He' was present when an incident took place near the wireless van at the mill involving Constable Ruscoe, who had told him that he had threatened to arrest a pressman with whom he had ’ had'a slight altercation, and that if there was any more of the same sort 1 of abuse he would put the threat into i action. < Witness said this story was enlarged upon, like many others, into a story that pressmen were refused per- i mission to look at the mountain. ] Mr. T- P. Cleary, for the Crown: Did ; you give any instructions that pressmen were not to interview civilians?. Witness: No, sir, another twisted story. Instructions From Higher Up Witness said he did not know by name the pressman named Hetherington, but it was probably correct. He had told the reporter about instructions from higher up, but it depended on what it was in reply to. Slade-Jones said that at one stage he thought he would have to put the radio truck out of bounds. Reception was bad. . There were a number of people around the van including civilians, and a message about to be relayed was confidential. He thought the remark was made to Ruscoe that pressmen and others of “all sorts” were asked to keep away from the van. No restrictions were placed on reporters interviewing .others in the yard, and he received no instructions to this effect from anyone. He said he decided not to give information out “for the very good reason that people in uniform do not speak to the press.” The direction not to talk to the press he considered all embracing. He told reportei’s not to hang around the van. He remembered instructing pressmen not to interview men in uniform. Ho thought the stories had been twisted by pressmen. It was not true, as stated by a reporter Cleveland, that he directed that no members of the search parties were to be interviewed. It was possible it was true that he told a New Zeaalnd Herald reporter Whitfield not to interview people in the yard, but ii was meant to 'apply to army personnel. Clash With Reporter Constable David Irwin Ruscoe said he told people to get away from the radio van as the noise and talk were making things difficult for the radio operator to take down messages. The men did not take much notice, especially one man with a mate. He understood that the man ran a paper at Ratihi. The man had asked him what authority he had and he replied that he was working under the instructions of the Army who were working in conjunction with the police and he represented the police. The man had said that the way things were being run would make anyone think there was a war on. Witness asked if the man had a pass to enter the area The man replied: "Why? This is private property.” Witness told him that he was liable to be arrested if he had not a pass and refused to keep away from the radio van The man did not produce a pass and witness did not know who he was, but heard afterwards that he was a pressman. Witness denied that he told McMillan, an Auckland Star reporter, that he had received instructions from Welling that no man was to approach the mountain as he had not received such instructions. McMilan was not stopped by him from doing anything he could please. He knew that McMillan was a pressman At no time had he told pressmen to move on, and that if they wanted interviews they-could go up the track. Not at any time had he received instructions requiring him to withhold information from the press.