ROOSEVELT PLEA

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20071, 18 October 1939, Page 5

ROOSEVELT PLEA

BIG TASK AHEAD MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WIDER WORK URGED DUTY OF NEUTRALS (Elnc. T»»]. Copyright—United Press Assn.) (Rccd. Oct, 13, 10.30 a.m.) WASHINGTON, Oct. 17. President Roosevelt to-day urged the inter-Governmental committee on political refugees, which represents six countries, to speed up its present task of helping 300,000 homeless because “when this ghastly war ends maybe not 1,000,000 but 10,000,000 to 20,000,000 will enter the problem.” He asked the committee to start “a serious expansive effort” to survey and study the geographic and economic problem of resettling several millions of people. Mr. Roosevelt announced that active settlement was beginning in Dominica and the Philippines and he hoped the projects would be the forerunners of many similar moves by other nations. The President observed that the possible field for new settlements covered millions of miles in Africa, Americh, Australia and New Zealand. Above Divisions “The problem now transcends any racial or religious division,” he continued. “It if not enough to indulge in horrified huinanitarianism, empty resolutions, golden rhetoric or pious words. We must face it actively if the democratic principle, based on respect for human dignity, is to survive and if the world order resting on the security of the individual is to be restored. “We hope and trust that the existing war will terminate quickly. . . • The quicker we begin undertaking the quicker we will contribute something to the establishment of world peace. Out of the dregs of the- present disaster we can distil some real achievements ror iiuman progress.” Continuing, Mr. Roosevelt said that he realised that E l.::n aqd France were “engaged in a major. war and car. be asked to do little more than give the continuance of their sympathy and interest. That means mat upon the neutral nations lies the obligation to humanity to carry on the work.” He urged the adoption of most modern methods. “Up to now we have been working on too small a scale,” he said. “We have failed io apply modern engineering to our task.” The committee is beginning a twoday conference at which it will draft recommendations for the next plenary session of the 32 member nations.