Christchurch Bars Pacifist Meetings

Northern Advocate, 30 January 1940, Page 6

Christchurch Bars Pacifist Meetings

1 Per Press Association. Copyright ] CHRISTCHURCH, Tin's Day.

By ten votes to four the Christchurch City Council decided last evening not to allow pacifist meetings to continue.

This decision was reached after three deputations had been heard, and after a long debate in which every councillor present spoke. The deputations were from the Combined Pacifist Committee, to which "a previous permit had been issued asking for a continuance of the permit, the Christchurch Returned Soldiers’ Association, opposing tho permit, and the City police officials. The representations of the police were heard in committee.

Council’s Responsibility,

The Mayor (Mr R. M. McFarlane) emphasised during the debate that the council’s responsibility was the preservation of order.

He pointed out that, in the event of a riot such as was likely to develop from a meeting like the one last Friday, he would be called on to read the Riot Act. Mr McFarlane claimed that there were influences in the community which would use the pacifist to break down the Empire. He would prefer British capitalism to Nazi's or Communists.

For all its evils, British capitalism had not destroyed labour and the workers, or taken away freedom.