SOLDIER PRISONERS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 296, 10 September 1919, Page 6

SOLDIER PRISONERS

' AND CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOKS, , Remissions of sentences of imprisonment are to be made to some men who ! have incurred disciplinary punishments., ' while serving abroad. Sir James Allen made tho following statement on the subject in the House of Representatives 1 I vesreruay.' "Arrangements have already 1 ■ been made for men undergoing military ■ ' ' sentences in tho United Kingdom to be ' j returned to New Zealand, and, except in ■ ; spatial cases, to remit, the unexpired . 1 ! portion of their sentences on their a» •'rival in the Dominion.-.All New Zea- ! landers serving in His Majesty's Imperial I Navy and Naval Auxiliary Services arc, ' | with the exception of the. members of ', j the New Zealand Naval Forces, under . • the control of the Admiralty, and are, 1 i subject to the Imperial Naval Discipline ' I Act; any New Zealand legislation would not apply to them. There are no mem-. l fbers of the New Zealand' Naval Forces • j at present undergoing imprisonment." :: The position, regarding conscientious i objectors now undergoing detention he i I stated as follows:—"It is not possible-to I grant - a general amnesty to till soldiers I . at present undergoing imprisonment for ■ I offences committed overseas as these un, i ; fortunately include a small proportion of i , serious criminal cases, and it is not coni : sidered that the declaration' of _ 'peace 1 ! warrants complete remission in all i : cases. Whenever a soldier arrives in the ,' : Dominion as a prisoner his;case is care- ■ fully reviewed, and, wherever possible, [ he is given his freedom. 'In fact, ,at pre- ;' sent there is no soldier undergoing a sen-' ; > tenco of imprisonment in New Zealand [ ; for an offence committed on activo ser-' 1 ; vice overseas, but I am afraid there are , ; • a few'still to come oat whose cases'will' • not justify a complete remission. So ! far ais the military defaulters .-.ud shirk- ' era aro concerned, I may state"that while • ; orders have been given for the release of ' : all. those • who were classified •as boiia- | ! fide. religious objectors' by the special 1 : board, and those who were serving a sec--1 ' ond or third sentence for offences under 1 : the Military Serviee Act, tho" Qoyern- " ment does not at present intend to remit 5 tho sentences of thoso who refused ser--5 : vice for other reasons or to cease tho 3 ! prosecution of those, who have so far ' j evaded . arrest."