R.S.A. Pledges Support For Yes Vote At Referendum

Chronicle (Levin), 23 June 1949, Page 8

R.S.A. Pledges Support For Yes Vote At Referendum

• __ WELLINGTON, June_22. Tlie Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, speaking at the Returned Services' Association eonference, announced that the Government proposed that 8000 18-year-olds be ealled up yearly for 14 weeks^ training in district carnps. They wollld theii be posted to the territorials for a fortnight's annual eamp and attend inuster parades of their units. They would spend seven vears in the reserve after which they wonld have no further obligation for training. There would be no compulsory direction of labour. The eonference pledged itself to support the Government 's prop.osals and work for an affirmative vote on compulsory military service.

The motion was moved by the president, Sir Howard Kippehberger, and seconded hv the Dominion vicepresident, Mr. H. B. Burdekin, and carriecl by aeclamation. ' Mr. Fraser began by expressing regret at having been- unable to attena the opening of the eonference and said it would have been courteous to have

postponed the resblution disagreeing with the holding of a referendum, untiJ after he had spokem However, he haa no objection to the eonference. expressing its opinions. The informing of voters of the faets necessary for them to make their decision, .was the responsibility of th'e Government and of those supporting the proposal, he said. He eould not uiiderstand ahyone saying that onee the referendum had been decided on, the public could not be informed. The poin't of differonce between himself and the eonference was on the question of the hiethod of attaining the same end but the Government had already made a deeision to hold tne rBfefendum/ thus it was for all -who siipported the proposal to advocatfi the affirmative. The advocacy should not be' excited but six months ago the intern'ational situation had been so dangerous that it had been likely to develop Into open 'hotilitiee. There had been an easing because of.-the stand at Berlin, the Western nations getting together, and the Atlantic Pact, He hoped the agreement in Paris this week would ensufe still further a period of peace and permanent peace, but utttil peace in the future was certain, each eountry must protect itself. Russia had said that • it would not attack anybody but although Russia did not want war, it had objectives which made war • possible. , There was unanimity in New Zealand. that the eountry should be defended and the question was how. An endeavour had heen made in 1938 to raise a volunteer force, without complete success. It' was only after the outbreak of war that there twere* considerable aumbers of volunteers and later compulsion became necessary. The Government knew from a close examination of the problem, that it was not possible to raise the necessary force by'a voiun-j tary system. The people would support the proposal f.or various reasons, including equity, -but o.ne of the most eogent was that men who had had peacetime training, would be better prepared to go into service on the outbreak of war than the men enlisted in the last war who had to be trained from the beginning., Much Inquiry Made. The Government, said Mr. Fraser, did not expect difficulty in maintaining naval 'and air forees for the Dominion. The problem was the land forces. It had gone to great pains to obtain from the authorities in England, its own General Staffa, the General Staff of the United Kingdoms and others, including members of the R.S.A., opinions as to whether in this era of atomic bombs, land forces could play the important part they had played previously. The Government had asked if the United States which, with Canada, controlled atomic energy, and Russia which already might have an atomic weapon, had abolished land forees and they had been forced to conclude that New Zealand must have a land force. Mr, Fraser denied that the Government desired authority to manpower workers in peacetime and said the trainees would not be used to iteep the processes of the eountry going, even it the Government had to take steps to provide the necessities of life to people who lacke/l them as a consequence ot the action of some section of the population. "The object of compulsory training will be to equip the young men of our eountry to take their part in the defence forces of the eountry," he said. A Government could not impose war conditions in peacetime but mnst see to training for war purposes. It would be possible "for the Government to use the powers it had under the National Service Regulations or Military Service Act but war regulations could not be enforeed indeflnitely and the Military Training Act had been framed so long ago that it would not meet present conditions. tfoe seheme that would be adopted would be the same as that which had been announced by the Minister of Defence for the establishment of an army, with the difference that there would be compulsory service. It could not be denied that compulsory military training would have an impact on industry but that was the price the eountry must pay for survival. "We'are living. in a world of stern realities and we must deal with them in a realistic way," the Prime Minister concluded, "You have given us a statement oi the position that is completely e.mvincing," said Sir Howard Kippenberger. "This association has gone on record that this question should not be settled by a referendum but that does not arfeet our desire to see that the armed forces of the eountry are placed on a sound footing." He then moved the seeond motion as ktated.