POWER USURPED

New Zealand Herald, Volume 82, Issue 25202, 15 May 1945, Page 5

POWER USURPED

GERMAN COMMANDERS CLARIFICATION NEEDED POSITION OF DOENITZ (Reed. 5.3 ft p.m.) LONDON, May 13 Urgent inquiries have been addressed by Londoners to relevant authorities to clear up the confusion !ibout the position of Doenitz, who persists in speaking and acting as if lie were the accepted head of the German State, says the dip'omatic correspondent of the Times. The situation is as anomalous as it is dangerous. Field-Marshal Busch's broadcast over the Flensburg radio announcing that he had taken over command of Schleswig - Holstein brought matters to a head The correspondent points out that Busch claimed that he was acting under Doenitz's orders, but only in agreement with the British. The view is widely held that Busch and Doenitz, in usurping power in this fashion, are already seeking to establish a regime with which the Allies will have to deal, and there is a strong feeling that they should be put in their places. The incident reinforces the need for clearing up the position of the German leaders in Allied hands. The spectacle of Goering posing for his photograph disgusted many people. Busch's announcement that he was controlling the German military and civilian services in North-west Germany was both misleading and inaccurate, says Renter's correspondent with the Second Army. The Germans have control over the forcee in a restricted sense, in which the German Command must 6ee that British orders are carried out. Bjisch's proclamation is typical of the misrepresentation now going on throughout Germany in order to support the new myth about the German Army. Heard on all sides and propagated with gusto by the Germans, who cannot believe themselves beaten, is that the Nazi Party betrayed the Army and led it to defeat against the wishes of the generals. The current belief is that the Army still lives, and its mission against Bolshevism is still the mission of all Europe. HIMMLER AT LARGE

ARREST REPORT DENTED NOT CAPTIVE OF BRITISH LONDON, May 13 A 8.8.C. announcer, speaking from Field-Marshal Montgomery's Headquarters, says ""that Himmler is still at large. There is no truth in the rumour that he has been handed over to FieldMarshal Montgomery's forces, but it is almost certain that he is still at large in the area occupied by the British Second Armv. Officers of the German High Command told the announcer that they had seen Himmler recently and that he was guarded by S.S. troops. He is most probably in some area not yet taken over by British troops. An Associated Press correspondent at Supreme Headquarters said earlier that Doenitz arrested Himmler just before the surrender negotiations and held him until he was handed over to the Allies. After the denial of Himmler's arrest by Supreme Headquarters the Associated Press correspondent explained that the report that Himmler was in Allied custody came from an officer who had just returned from the front. Renter's Paris correspondent says the Associated Press report caused concern among Supreme Headquarters officials, who took the unusual step of summoning all correspondents by klaxon, which is normally reserved for important military news. There was a delay after the correspondents had gathered because one American press representative was not present. He arrived after a special summons by telephone.

KING OF BELGIANS NOT DIPLOMATIC ILLNESS (Rerd. 5.35 p.m.) LONDON, May 13 Reuter's Brussels correspondent says that M, van Acker, Prime Minister of Belgium, told the press that King Leopold was really ill. It was by no means a diplomatic illness. King Leopold, in a letter to his brother, the Regent Prince Charles, stated that his health after his captivity would not allow him again to take up the Royal duties, therefore he asked the Regent to carry on.