ENEMY ALIENS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23662, 22 May 1940, Page 8

ENEMY ALIENS

CALL FOR INTERNMENT WIDESPREAD SUPPORT AUCKLAND INCIDENTS PRO-GERMAN LEAFLETS Letters and telegrams from all parts of New Zealand have been received by Mr. Allan J. Moody, chairman of the Auckland Hospital Board, warmly endorsing his recent outspoken appeal for the internment of all enemy aliens. An Invercargill writer said that unfortunately the Government did not seem to realise that without national securitv there could be no social security. "There can be no doubt that there is a hidden danger in this country," Mr. Moody said yesterday, "and New Zealanders should awaken the Government to its full responsibility." Among the letters he received was one from a Remuera resident who had charge of a table outside the Church of Christ polling booth last Saturday. Early in the day five well-dressed young men of the refugee class, carrying Communist colours, came and went, the writer said, and throughout the day were followed by others, some of them young women. Between 25 and 30 of them assisted in the Auckland West by-election, and from time to time passed derogatory remarks about the Allied cause. The day before the election they circulated leaflets from door to door, and one of the main points was to demand immediate peace with Germany. Issues in the Crisis "This is a very grave state of affairs," the letter continued, "and I hope public men will use all their power to have these so-called poor refugees put away, so that our men going overseas will rest assured all is well at home."

Mr. Moody said his statements appeared to liave aroused considerable interest) and ho hoped that the full fighting spirit and force would he khulled among public men all over the country to change the attitude of the politicians, who administered "only a soothing syrup" and avoided the real issues in a grave crisis. "I am convinced there is something in the talk about a Fifth Column in New Zealand," be continued, "and I am equally convinced that unless something is done about enemy aliens in our midst this column may become emboldened by the inactivity, and almost stupidity, of some of our public men. There are unmistakable signs now that the public is preparing to demand stringent measures; that it is not satisfied with the present state of affairs. Policy in Australia "I have a very strong suspicion that the authorities in Wellington are fully acquainted with the activities of Nazi supporters in Auckland and elsewhere. If that is so, the public is entitled to know what the Government intends doing about them. It is a matter of comment here that right in the early stages of the war our nearest neighbour, Australia, took the matter in hand and immediately adopted the course of interning all enemy aliens, while in England they have taken rigorous measures to circumvent the menace. "The matter is now in the hands of the public to combat the Fifth Column and the white-anting tactics of enemy agents. I think the publicity given the matter will at least show our troops abroad that we are mindful of our duty to them, and that we are not letting them down. The sooner Parliament meets, the better. There must be men in the Labour Party who are dissatisfied with what is being done, and one can only hope that, when Parliament opens, their judgment will not be trammelled. On the subject of enemy aliens, parties and creeds do not count. Only the Empire matters."