GAOL SENTENCES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 30 September 1942, Page 3

GAOL SENTENCES

ON WAIKATO STRIKERS

SUSPENDED BY GOVERNMENT,

STATEMENT BY PREMIER

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day.. The issue of a proclamation conditionally suspending the sentences of one month's imprisonment imposed on each of some 180 Waikato miners, convicted of offences under the Strike and Lock-out Emergency Regulations, was announced yesterday by the Prime Minister, Mr Fraser. The conditions of suspension arc as follow: — (1) That such person will forthwith resume his former employment and diligently follow same. (2) That for the duration of the present war with Germany and Japan he will abstain from taking part in an/ further strike within the meaning of clause 2 .of the Strike and Lock-out Emergency Regulations, 1939. (3) That for the duration of such war he will not encourage any other person to take part in any such strike affecting any industry essential for the public welfare. The legal position is stated to be that any‘'further breach of the Strike and Lock-out Emergency Regulations by the sentenced miners will not only involve the operation of the suspended sentence, but also penalties for a second offence.

WAR EFFORT WEAKENED

“The Waikato coal mines dispute has caused the Government grave concern during the past three weeks, said Mr Fraser. “In peace time a strike is a serious and disastrous matter. During this period of war, with the enemy threatening our shores, being held back in fact in the Solomons and New Guinea, with the menace to our country and our people stayed but by no means removed, a stoppage of work in such an essential industry, and on such a scale, was a tragic ‘calamity, weakening our war effort and endangering our defence. It is, therefore, gratifying that, even after a most regrettable delay the commonsense of the men conceined reasserted itself so definitely as it did last Friday in the ballot decision to resume work and submit the matter originally in dispute to the appropriate disputes committee, as the Minister of Labour, Mr Webb, on behalf of the Government, had instructed at the commencement of the trouble.

CATASTROPHE PREVENTED.

“It was obvious to everyone that if the strike had continued not only the railways and shipping, already reduced by military needs to well below lhe country’s requirements, would have had to be further curtailed, but dairy factories, freezing works, fertiliser works, cement works and many other industries directly engaged in war work would have been, closed clown or seriously curtailed in then operations, while it would have been necessary to have drastically rationed das and electricity, The resumption of work in the "Waikato mines has prevented an industrial catastrophe Of great magnitude which would have d’recllv and disastrously affected our war effort, and the Government policy to this end has been successful.” Commenting on the decision of the Government following the publication of the Governor-General’s proclamation, conditionally suspending lhe sentences, Mr Fraser said: The. course now being followed was essential having regard to the requirements of the war situation and the most urgent need for coal and transport to move supplies to lhe theatre of war m the Pacific and to keep our war industries functioning. The attitude of the miners during recent weeks and before their decision to return to work amounted to a tragedy because ol its paralysing effect on war industries and on transport.

minister & magistrate

“The utmost efforts had been made by the Minister of Labour to prevent the development of the dispute, and later the magistrate, Mr Freeman, with wonderful patience, tact and ability, had striven to so shape the course of events that, on the one hand the law would be upheld and on the other coal production would be immediately resumed to meet the urgent national need which was by far the most important end to be achieved; it was only after the failure to achieve that most essential purpose that the magistrate was left with no alternative but to pronounce sentence. “It is a fair assumption,” said the Prime Minister, “that had the men, before the penalties were imposed, been willing to return to work under definite conditions, that would have been satisfactory to the Court, and the regrettable feature of the situation is that the miners made their decision to return to work after, instead of before, sentence.” Mr Fraser said the Government had approached the further development of the problem in the same spirit as displayed by the Court and, in view of the fact that there had been a general resumption of work, had agreed to recommend to his Excellency the Gov-ernor-General that the sentences be suspended on the conditions stated above. “On any breach of these conditions the remission becomes void and the sentences of imprisonment must forthwith be served,” added the Prime Minister. “The position therefore now is that the law is upheld, the men have returned to work, and coal production, .so vital to the war effort, has been fully resumed.” It is understood that arrangements are being made for the executive of the Coal Mine Owners’ Association and representatives of the Waikato Companies to meet the Prime Minister and the Minister of Mines this week for the purpose of discussing' the question of the operation of the Waikato coal mines"as a controlled industry under the War Regulations.