JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXIII, 6 December 1940, Page 3

JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

“GOVERNMENT HAS NO QUARREL WITH THEM STATEMENT BY PRIME MINISTER [From Our Own Parliamentary Reporter] WELLINGTON, sth December. The statement that the Government had no quarrel with Jehovah’s Witnesses as such and that he hoped it would be possible to come to an arrangement that would enable the organisation to worship in a normal way like other churches and not infringe the regulations was made by the Prime Minister (Mr Fraser) in the House of Representatives last night during the debate on the war regulations. Other speakers also referred to the organisation. Mr F. W. Doidge (National, Tauranga) said that the Jehovah Witness publication was just pitiful rubbish and he marvelled at the mentality of the people who read such nonsense. It was not suppressed in Australia. Mr J. A. Lee (Democratic Labour, Grey Lynn): It is not subversive. Mr Fraser said that in normal times all that the Government was concerned about in respect to people’s faiths was that there should be no breach of the peace or conduct likely to bring about such breaches. The ordinary laws of the country dealt with such matters, and the Government was not concerned except with the administration of the law. When a country was at war, however, it was essential that the people should be united and that there should be an absence of sectarian warfare. He had taken it upon himself to appeal to various denominations to use their influence to avoid anything that was likely to lead to recriminations, animosity and hatred. He held no brief for any church, and while the war was in progress all sectarian warfare should be eliminated as it cut across the country’s war effort. All sections of the public were together in the war and going into the trenches together and dying together.

As far as Jehovah’s Witnesses w’ere concerned he was hoping that the At-torney-General could come to some arrangement with them. He did not doubt their sincerity and he did not quection their right to worship according to their conscience. The Government had no quarrel with Jehovah’s Witnesses as such, and he hoped that something would be done whereby the organisation could worship like other churches in a normal way and not do anything a ainst the regulations. Mr Lee said he had read Jehovah’s Witnesses’s literature and a good deal of it seemed fantastic, but he could not rea- 1 in it anything subversive. Although he thought the Prime Minister was right in stating that nothing that would provoke an open conflict between groups of people would be allowed, and anything calculated to create a breach of the peace should be prevented, at the same time he considered it was up to the Prime Minister and the Attor-ney-General to discover the means whereby these people could express their viewpoint and even win converts if they desired. They were entitled to that under such conditions that would prevent an open breach of the peace. Mr Fraser asked Mr Lee if he would tolerate people pushing their pamphlets or. to others and using gramophone records to denounce certain churches. “I would say straight out,” replied Mr Lee, “that there should be a discussion with these folk and that they should be given the opportunity to. refrain from conduct calculated to provoke a breach of the peace.”