Queensland Premier Blames Communists

Chronicle (Levin), 19 March 1948, Page 5

Queensland Premier Blames Communists

(N.Z.P.A.-

-Rewber,

Copyright)

Received Tliursday,F7.iO p.m. BRISBANE, Mareh 18. "Yesterday's fracas ivas plifined as is evident by the fact that three memhers of the legal proi'es.sion . aecompanied the procession with writing' pads and pencils in their hands," said the Premier (Mr. Hanloii) in Parliament today. No .body of men organised in military formation and armed with stieks should be allowed to take possession of a eity street." He added that the Solicitors olaim ed tliat they were there to take ihe names oi: those who were hit and who did the hitting. He was satisfied the poliee iised every ef- > l'o rt to paeii'y and disperse the illegal procession. Opposition members called "Hear, hear, " when he said the Hovernment tnisted the poliee to seo that noh'ody should take unlawl'ul eontrol of the eity. "One of the marehers (J. Orayson) who was injured,. was hit by a civilian, not the poliee, eontinued Mr. Hanlon. . "The ra'pidity with which 1 ong telegrams of almost unil'ofm text from Communist eentres in Dar-

win, New South Wales and Vietoria arrived in Brisbane shows that these messages were prepared and ready to be sent before the disturbance took plaee*. " He read a poliee report stating that the procession carried a hlack eoffin and numerous plaeards nailed to hardwood stieks 31 i'eet long and oue inch square, roughly sawn and writh sharp eorners. The report alleged that these pieees of timber were intendcd as weapons. The report also claimed that when the men attemptcd to force their way through the poliee cordon they wero incited by a barrister, Max Julius. During the disturbance two detectives foiind the;-,Contmiin,ist jfarlianieYt^iyaii,. fYed Paterspn, . injiired - and he. told them; that while walking alongside the. procession on tlfel foofpath he' Was hit from behihd. As an aet of charity the detectives drove him with his eonsent to the ambulanee station. ' 'Brisbane1 was fefiS'C "t'oday with poliee posted at strategie points while the sinkers held a meeting. No further disturhanees have been rejiorted. ' With most of the 'New South Wales eOalmines already > iclle inJ protest against the poliee; aetion in Bi'ishane powerful unions are eonsidering a nationawide stoppage. Meetings in ro any eentres today condemned the attitude of the Hanlon (rovernment to the strike and demanded the repeal of Queensland's anti-pieketing laws. The Miners' Fedei'ation threatens a general stoppage and the miners' president (Mr. I. Williams) has ivarned that "if the strikehreaking. legislation is not repealed a Commonwealth-wide dispute seems imminent. " Only - nine New South Wales mines are working and the output loss is estimated at 40,000 tons. • The .. fi1 ed eral ;.e^xeejit i ve of the. Waferside* Wo^kers ' Federation has been inundated with protests, some demanding a 24-hour nationwide stoppage. The Meihourne district committee of the Amalgamated Engineering Union has asked the Common-vA-ealth Council to extend the Queensland strike to other States. The South Australian ironworkers are holding a series of half-liour protest stopwork meetings.