ENEMY PROPERTY.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 21 September 1925, Page 7

ENEMY PROPERTY.

REPORT OF PUBLIC TRUSTEE

An account ot the administration o, enemy pioperty in -U'w Zealand under ti.o \ei sallies treaty oy tne i. none ir us tec is embodied m an annual lcporc by tlie .Public trustee, ine report states inter alia: considerable progress has been made during tne past year towards-the finalisation ot tlie matters outstanding in connection with this work, but tor various leasons. le.erred to at iengtn in otner portions ol tne present report, r do not anticipate that tfie end oi tne duties entrusted to me arising out oi tfie various peace treaties wifi be reached for at least another twelve months. Tne stage lias, fiowever, been reacned wne u practically no additional claims and no .rresff notifications or pioperty subject to the rights of retention and liquidation conferred by tfie various Re ace Treaties are being received, and it only remains to secure tne disposal of tlie outstanding matters

’lnis object is difficult —indeed, impossible—of speedy attainment so far as the enemy property is concerned, on account of the nature of the remaining property and interests involved, and, in the case of the Clearing Office claims, by reason of the iact that the Treaty provisions do not provide any adequate means for securing the final disposal of contested claims. Thus in regard to the outstanding Clearing (Jit ice claims by Gejman nationals against British nationals resident in New Zealand, a considerable number ox these claims, forming a large portion of the outstanding claims, have been contested by this Office upon very good grounds, and it is considered that in these cases the claims could hot be established. In some cases the contests were made a.s fong as four years ago Tlie German Clearing .Office have failed to withdraw these claims or to forward advice of the grounds upon which the claimants maintain the claims in face of the contests. As, however, the cases of the German claimants are not prejudiced by the delays which have occurred, the claims cannot be disregarded, but must be treated a.s still subsisting. If tlie New Zealand Clearing Office were to secure tlie power of rejecting the claims, with the proviso that the claims should become unenforceable if not litigated before the Anglo-German Mixed Arbitral Tribunal within a prescribed period thereafter, the speedier termination of the Clearing Office work, so far at least as concerns the outstanding German claims, could bo anticipated. 1 refer in another portion ox this repoit to certain proposals under dicussion which, if ultimately adopted, are expected to secure the at. tainment of this object. It is only fair to admit that during the mist year the German Clearing Office has * shown a growing tendency to deal expeditiously with communications despatched from this Office. The result of this is reflected in the large reduction whic’h has been made during the past year in the number and value of the outstanding Clearing Office claims.

The total amount credited to the German Liquidation Account up to March 31, 1925, in respect to German property rights and interests in the Dominion was £185,187 9s Bd. Six credits, totalling £6OB 12s 8d have, with the (oiiouirenre of the German aut: orities. been withdrawn from tin 1 iq.dilation Account. • The total of the .■ash amounts held but riot yet credited to the Liquidation Account is £79,-j.->7 8s 4d and the property not yet liquidated is valued at £36,890. Claims by New Zealand Nationals against. German Nationals under the Treaty of YeroaiHes. —Claims lodged in New Zealand totalled 171. Claims indeed with the London representative if 'the Now Zealand Clearing Office totalled .15. t-e total value being £53,- .?•! 8s Sd. Claims withdrawn totalled £M ! ,833 15s 9d. Balance, being claims still under action, amounted to £ll.10 ; 7a 31<I.

Claims by German Nationals against New Zealand Nationals under the I'ieatv of Versailles totalled 1,466 involving £210.177 Is 10d. Claims dealt with wer • valued at £188,705 14s 6d caving 324 claims still under action of a total value of £21.171 7s 4d. The total of the claims against the Russian Government, or persons, firms, and companies resident in Russia. registered with the New Zealand Clearing Office, or with the High Commissioner for New Zealand in London as representative of tbe- New Zealand Clearing Office. was now 015,234 18s 6d.