MISSING SOLDIERS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 7 June 1943, Page 2

MISSING SOLDIERS

EVERY EFFORT TO DETERMINE FATE MADE BY THE ARMY AUTHORITIES. ASSURANCE BY PREMIER. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, June 5. “Relatives of soldiers who have been posted missing’ in the Middle East can be assured that the New Zealand Army authorities make a thorough and continuous effort to trace all missing personnel,” the Prime Minister (Sir Fraser) stated today.

The work, Mr Fraser said, was undertaken by the casualty section of the overseas base ahd no source of information that might even remotely be of use was overlooked. When a soldier was posted missing, the following routine steps were taken: — (a) Medical returns were checked to make suite the man missing was not in hospital. (b) The returns of the Graves Registration units in the field were checked. c) Units were required to hold a court of inquiry to decide whether a soldier was to be posted missing, or believed prisoner, killed, etc. '(d) A further court of inquiry was held for the same purpose after the lapse of three to six months, while meanwhile units were instructed to forward Any information that bright come to hand. (e) The casualty section kept available complete particulars about every man, and every soldier making inquiries was questioned for information about men missing from his or other units. (f) All escapees were personally interviewed about information regarding men on the missing list.

(g) Checks were made with International Red Cross lists. (h) The International Red Cross had been requested to instruct camp leaders in the various prisoner of war camps in Italy to prepare rolls of New Zealand personnel for the purpos'd’ of checking. (i) Periodically a notice was published in the “N.Z.E.F. Times” requesting information about missing men. Mr Fraser added that, apart from this routine procedure, further steps had recently been taken in an endeavour to obtain additional information about missing men. Complete rolls of missing men had been issued to units with a request foi’ information about men of these Units or those closely associated with them in the campaigns in Greece and Crete. The rolls had also been published in the “N.Z.E.F. Times” with the same request. Any information received was passed on to the next of kin.