“All Machinery Of Law In Use To Defeat Saboteurs”

Northern Advocate, 12 February 1940, Page 5

“All Machinery Of Law In Use To Defeat Saboteurs”

[Per Press Association. Copyright .l WELLINGTON, This Day. “The Government is not merely going to use—it is using all the machinery of the laW to defeat all the saboteurs, with what thoroughness you will soon see foi yourselves.” The Prime Minister (Mr. Savage) said this in a broadcast address last night on the subject of Democracy and its functioning in time of war. Setting out to answer the question, “Can Democracy take it?” Mr. Savage said that Democracy had no existence apart from the character and opinions of the people who lived under it. It was, in fact, the way they managed their affairs. War and adversity put it to a test, under which false Democracy was likely to collapse. New Zealanders would have to ask themselves how their Democracy would behave in its second 100 years. Sacrifices For All. After speaking of the present vital need for volunteer soldiers and his confidence that they would come forward in a steady stream, the Prime Minister said that sacrifice would not he restricted to service in the field, but would extend to all forms of civil life, the work, leisure and recreation of the people, to the luxury and even perhaps some of the necessities of everyone. This called for self-discipline, which was. in truth, the heart of his subject. The dictators thought that Democracy whs incurably self-indulgent and that people were incapable of sustained sacrifice without the rod of the master. No Evasions of Law. In the iight of experience, this argument was untenable, but Democracy \ had collapsed in some countries because people had lost faith in it, because there was weakness and slackness in public affairs. He personally had no love for coercion, but less still for anarchy. No self - respecting Government could tolerate tricky evasion of the law, as, for example, by the workmen who deliberately went slow, by anyone who held up production, or by the trader who faked his invoices to escape price restriction, or by the man who declared: “War is a fool’s business and I wash my hands from it.” Understanding Consent. Such people were not faithful to themselves, and Democracy throve only in an atmosphere of responsibility. i Mr. Savage went on to explain how | democratic government . represented ; the will of the people as expressed j through Parliament. I He also said that once the people’s i authority had been undermined by a i disaffected few, the stage was set for j the appearance of a dictator, who was j a product of society, and not of any particular people or race. Democracy sprang from understanding and consent. There was nothing in its nature that obliged it to be timid or weak. Carrying Out People’s Will. The Government of New Zealand | was carrying out what it knew to be j the people’s will and would not tolerate sabotage. The Prime Minister concluded j by urging his hearers individually ! to uphold Democracy by chalj longing assertions against it with j timely and vigorous argument, i One man, he said, by this means j might change the whole outcome of an | office or workshop, i He was confident that the country’s I morale would be upheld against ideological freaks, idlers, and others I who sought to undermine it.