STATEMENT BY BRITAIN

Marlborough Express, Volume LXXVI, Issue 240, 12 October 1942, Page 5

STATEMENT BY BRITAIN

JUSTIFICATION DURING BATTLE REPRISAL AC'TS FORBIDDEN.

P.A. Gable.

RUGBY, Oct. 10.

In order that the true facts of the controversy about tying the hands of prisoners of war may be clearly put before the public, the following statement has been issued by the British Government. "In the Dieppe raid an order was issued without authority to the effect that, wherever possible, the hands of prisonersl of war were to be bound so that they could not destroy their papers. On the complaint of the German Government, the War Office at once, and before there had been time to make an inq.uiry, issued a statement that if any such order had been issued it would be countermanded, because they considered such an order might be held to imply that, irrespective of the circumstances, the hands of prisoners of war should be bound. On inquiries being made, no evidence was found that any of the prisoners brought back from Dieppe had had their hands tied. But the existence of the order came to light and it was countermanded. "The raid on Sark was carried out by a party of ten officers and men. Seven of the party captured five Germans. The hands of the Germans were tied in order that their arms might be linked with their captors. No orders, written or otherwise, had been, issued, but the prisoners had to be taken past German occupied barracks on the way to the boats and precautions were therefore necessary. In spite of the precautions, four of the five Germans broke away shouting and had to be shot to prevent them raising the alarm. v "The Geneva Convention contains no statement about tying the hands of prisoners, but prescribqes humane treatment. The question at issue is therefore what constitutes humane treatment. Clearly this differs according to the circumstances. There is a wide difference between what is appropriate to a prisoner in safe custody and a prisoner in the course of a battle. It is to be observed that the actions complained of by the German Government occurred during a battle, but that they have themselves taken action to tie the hands of prisoners of war far removed from the battlefield as an act of reprisal. Acts of reprisal against prisoners of war are specifically forbidden by the Geneva Convention. ' ' HOPE OF CHECKING COMMANDOS. The Manchester Guardian suggests that it is possible that the Nazis hope to check our commando raids, but it is more likely that they are anxious, knowing the reputation they have gained, to spread the impression that our methods are brutal and their own conduct not worse than ours. Authoritative circles, however, incline to the former view and consider that the commando and other raids have shaken the Germans severely. An Italian broadcast threat of reprisals against British prisoners of war for the alleged shooting by Australians of a surrounded Italian working party in the Western Desert on September 30 is the subject of comment ,by the Australian Army Minister, Mr Forde, who states that no official report has been received to substantiate the allegations, but adds that he will have reasonable inquiries made. ACTION IN BRITAIN. The Evening Standard reports that 107 German officers and 1269 men were put in handcufls at noon to-day. The Daily Mail says Britain is maintaining close contact with Canada, and Mr Churchill personally telephoned Mr Mackenzie King. A large proportion of German prisoners, including members of the Afrika Korps, are interned in Canada. It is learned in London that the Swiss representatives have not received instructions from Berne to investigate the conditions of the German prisoners held in Britain nor to interrogate them. Meanwhile, Italy and Germany are flooding the world with talk of reprisals. The Daily Mail points out that the German efforts to secure a labour force of 150,000 from France have failed. If a consider able proportion of the 90,000 British prisoners in Germany could be used, most of the Germans' desired labour force would be made up. The launching of reprisals against prisoners may therefore be planned to incite Britain to serious retaliation which could be used to probe that all international restrictions on the use of eaptives have gone by the board. The Times diplomatic coiTespondent says the Italian announcement strongly suggests that the reprisal measures were prepared well in advance and were concerted between the senior and junior Axis partners. The enemy 's attitude defi.es norma! standards of analysis. Seldom has the ruthlessness and evil force against which we are fighting more clearly shown its face.