GESTAPO BUSY IN FRANCE

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLVIII, Issue 21576, 12 February 1940, Page 11

GESTAPO BUSY IN FRANCE

Strong Drive Against Agents

United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright (Received February 11, 6.30 p.m.) LONDON, February 10. The Trades Council passed a resolution protesting against the French Government’s action in imprisoning the Communist secretary of the Paris Trades Council, Henri Renaud. The British Council described it as political persecution. • Before the decision to hold a secret session of the French Chamber, the Prime Minister (M. Daladier), saying that there were still many spies, disclosed that during searches the police found a Gestapo questionnaire to German agents in France asking the strength of the police force, who were M. Daladier’s friends and enemies, the attitude of the French people towards England, details of France’s Arab and coloured troops, and whether the Chamber had confidence in M. Daladier and so forth.

Eleven members of the Chamber, who denounced the Communist party when it was banned, refused to take part in the secret session so that they could not be accused of giving away information if anything leaked out. The Gestapo activities in France, referred to by M. Daladier, are now’ the subject of comment in the French newspapers.

“L’Oeuvre” states that numerous letters, u’ith heavy black mourning borders, have been sent out, bearing an inscription to the effect that the French are dying for the English, who never fight their wars themselves.

The French police are making a new’ drive against Communists. Twentythree persons have been arrested during, the last twenty-four hours. They are believed to have been concerned in an attempt to reconstruct the Communist Party in France. A message "from Stockholm states that the police arrested 200 leading Communists in a series of raids in Stockholm, Boden, Goteborg, Malmo and other cities and towns. The arrest of Communists followed the discovery that Russia had sent money for anti-Swedish activities.