PLEA FOR REFUGEES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 18 October 1939, Page 5

PLEA FOR REFUGEES

MADE BY THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT ADDRESS TO INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE. GREAT TASK MAGNIFIED BY WAR. By Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright. (Received This Day, 9.20 a.m.) WASHINGTON, October 17. President Roosevelt today urged the Inter-Governmental Committee on Political Refugees, which represents six countries, to speed up its present task of helping 300,000 homeless people because, “when this ghastly war ends maybe not one but ten to twenty million will enter the problem.” He asked the committee to 'start a “serious, expansive effort” and to survey and study the geographic and economic problem of resettling several million people. President Roosevelt announced that active settlement was beginning in Dominica and the Philippines and said he hoped these projects would be the forerunner of many similar moves by other nations. The President observed that the possible field for new settlements covered millions of miles in Africa, America, Australia and New Zealand and continued: “The problem now transcends any racial or religious division. It is not enough to indulge in horrified humanitarianism, empty resolution, 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 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 wo begin the undertaking the quicker we will contribute something to the establishment of world peace. Out of the dregs of the present disaster we can distill some real achievements for human progress.” Continuing, President Roosevelt said he realised that Britain and France were “engaged in a major war and < can be asked to do little more than , give a continuance of their sympathy ( and interest. That means that upon ; neutral nations lies the obligation to ] humanity to carry on the work.” He ■ urged adoption of the most modern methods, saying: “Up to now we have j been working on too small a scale. We have failed to apply modern engin- | eering to our task.” ; The committee is beginning a two- j day conference, at which it will draft < recommendations for the next plenary | session of thirty-two member nations. :