ENEMY ATROCITIES

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2970, 6 January 1917, Page 8

ENEMY ATROCITIES

• ■' RUMANIA'S PROTEST. A protest has been sent by tho Rumanian Government to neutral States against the bombardment hy German aeroplanes of several towns of Rumania in violation of Articles 25, 26, and 27 oftlie Regii'.ment annexed to tho fourth Hague Convention. .

After alluding to the many other

. crimes against humanity and the laws Wwar committed by tho enemy, the protest says:—German aviators cease neither day nor night from dropping bombs on the city of Bucharest without having succeeded in causing any other results than the lulling and injuring of more than 250 innocent' victims, ..of whom., 0yer..200 were' women -and children, and among tho remainder

several nnvalids and infirm people, for -more than 58 bombs have been dropped i on hospitals, asylums, and almshouses. Tho same fact is repeated nearly daily in various open towns of the country,, Tho representatives of. foreign Powers present in the capital of the kingdom have been in a position' themselves to vouch for this, and must have informed their Governments of.it, thus exposing these repeated, violations of the i laws of war. The Rumanian Government believes it is entitled to hold Germany directly "responsible. It is, in fact, .■German aeroplanes which fly over our towns. It is under tho orders of German commanders that the hostilo armies on the two fronts are operating against us. Now. as Germany is one of tho signatory Powers to tho Haguo Convention, she cannot repudiate tho responsibility which falls upon her for \ this contempt of those laws of justice which T international conferences havo

framed with the object of reducing to a strict minimum-, tbo evils of war. by assuring fnirncss ; in fighting, bv limiting it' to the belligerent armies, by safeguarding the civil populations- who are unable, to defend themselves, institutions of culture and of beneficence,

and monuments of art. which arc the

fruit of pacific work mid-civilisation, against a destruction which is useless from the point of view of the results of the war. We think it is in the general interest, as .well' as in that of neutral States, tliatfthis manner of waging'war elionld be denounced by all those who

hold in honour regard for light and respect for treaties. That' is why tbo ■Rumanian Government protests with tho greatest possible cnergv againsttho renrehensiblo act's to which it has just called attention, and which, moreover, anart from and also for the very reason of tlieir abomination, are of a nature to lead to dangerous counter arts and to sow amongst the peoples feelings of hate n,nd' of vengeance on which it is impossible to found anything lasting and of utility to, humanity.