International Law Or Annihilation In Next Two Decades

Wanganui Chronicle, 25 May 1948, Page 4

International Law Or Annihilation In Next Two Decades

(P.A.) Wellington, May 24 It was highly probable that there would be another world war within the next two decades' unless something were done about a world government to introduce the reign of law into international relations, the Chief of Air Staff, Air Vice-Marshal Nevill. said in an address to the Hutt Valley Junior Chamber of Commerce. In such a war, Air Vice-Marshal Nevill said, we were pretty certain of being able to annihilate ourselves. He hoped the development of aviation and education and the reform of our social institutions would make it possible to avoid this catastrophe. Our political institutions and ideas all belonged to the pre-sc:entific era, and while we all wanted to take advantage of science we also wanted to defend a social idea that belonged to the period before the stage-coach. The theory of absolute national/ sovereignty did not fit into the modern world—it would be just as sensible to go back to the old walled cities of the past. Modern nationalism and the atomic bomb were the greatest dangers to civilisation. What was wanted was not scientific inventors but social inventors and thinkers. This situation had been partly produced by the aeroplane, which was also one of the most potent factors in its solution. It was writing the final chapter in the shrinking of the world in Europe today. Aviation could not take notice of international boundaries and, given rein, it would develop international friendship and encourage the grouping of nations such as was seen in Europe. Air Vice-Marshal Nevill praised the work of the International Civil Aviation Organisation, which, he said, had introduced an age of progress and law in the air which took about 3M years to develop on the sea. He described It as an outstanding exunple of international co-operatic n . Answering a question, the speaker said no one would say the flying-boat had passed its usefulness for transport. A larger type of flying-boat could be pressurised and fly at high levels.