COURSE OF JUSTICE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24776, 28 November 1941, Page 6

COURSE OF JUSTICE

DANGEROUS TRENDS CLERICAL CRITICS CONDEMNED POWERS OF CROWN EXCEEDED (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Nov. 27. " We find, an attack on the even flow of justice made, I am sorry to say, by certain ministers of religion. It is becoming only too evident that there are some religionists who are doing a real disservice both to their denominations and to the State by fostering a spirit of antagonism to the civil law," said Dr O. C. Mazengarb, addressing the Justices of the Peace Association at a luncheon to-day. There was no real conflict between Divine, and civil law, he said. Conflict only arose when people sought to interpret the unrevealed law of God in a way,which conflicted with our duties as citizens of the world. Even when such conflict occurred, the obvious course was to ask the Legislature to amend the law so as to bring it into harmony with the presumed will of God. Warning to the Church • Unless churchmen confined themselves to their true province they might easily bring about a situation they might live to regret. Any movement that white-anted the law was quite capable of white-anting the Church itself. That had already happened in Europe. Personally, he did not regard the man-power tribunals with favour, he said. The/e was a simpler and more kindly way of dealing fairly with men who did not want to fight. Press reports of the proceedings showed that there was urgent need for a change in the law, but while the law was there these clerical critics should respect it and not criticise the tribunals, which had the unpleasant duty of endeavouring to penetrate into the real minds of the men. Orders-in-Council and Ministerial interference with the course of justice were also the subject of comment by the speaker, who said that students of history should be able to see an almost complete constitutional parallel between the wrongs of the Stuart period and the evils now becoming manifest in modern democracy. The proclamations, the licensing of monopolies, the irregular tribunals, and the interference with the course of justice all had their counterpart to-day. Powers of Legislators

It was becoming the fashion. Dr Mazengarb said, for the Crown's Ministers to issue their own interpretation of the regulations in the form of press statements, broadcast talks, and Government pamphlets. The work of the legislator was to make the law, not to interpret it. If the laws were wrong, change them by all means; but so long as the law was there let it be administered without fear or favour, lest public confidence in the administration of justice be sadly diminished. Dr Mazengarb also said there was a growing tendency in Parliament to oust the jurisdiction of the people's courts by setting up irregular tribunals, from which the only right of appeal was to the Minister himself, like Caesar. Instances were the Transport Act and the Industrial Efficiency Act. Under that bureaucratic system anything could be done behind closed doors, and the Minister could still protect by sheltering behind the official he appointed to make the report.