The Wanganui Chronicle WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1939. A PEACE CONFERENCE PROPOSED

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 32, 8 February 1939, Page 6

The Wanganui Chronicle WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1939. A PEACE CONFERENCE PROPOSED

T'HE Council for Social Justice has endorsed Mr. Savage’s sug--1 gestion that a Peace Conference be called. The suggestion, while excellent in motive, is ill-timed, for there is no reason for believing that it would be fruitful of good results. It might prove to be the reverse. The world to-day is suffering from the policy of Nationalism. In New Zealand at the moment it goes by the name of isolation, but it is the same spirit 'which has broken up the world economy in an endeavour to establish national economics. Such efforts have left the world very much the poorer and the Havenot Nations, as they may conveniently be called, have decided to improve their positions by belligerency. Had a more liberal policy been possible—that is to say, had the nations been able and willing to trade with each other—then the acute position which has developed would have been very much easier than it is to-day. Mr. Savage’s present policy in respect to the New Zealand economy is the very policy which has brought about the present world condition. He could hardly stand in the position of Satan reproving Sin and appear a convincing advocate. Japan, Germany and Italy have each decided, for the time being, to absorb their economic strength in equipping themselves with instruments of attrition, their own peoples are being subjected 1o increasing strains and stresses and privations, and under this continual psychological, spiritual and material coercion they arc becoming the poorer, and now they are showing signs of becom-

ing restive. It is essential for their rulers, for the time being, to divert public attention from the results of their policies of accumulating arms and munitions, or in General Goering’s historic phrase, preferring guns to butter. A Peace Conference would give to the dictator States a splendid platform from which to make claims against the democracies, to describe all opposition as the machinations of the Jews and their influence, and to make to the world a magnanimous offer of allowing the Jews to depart if the democracies will reimburse them for the properties of which the dictators have despoiled them. While the people of the dictator States continue to support their leaders—and it is idle to say that they do not do so—then there is no will to peace with the dictator States. The support of dictators will be forthcoming until experience has taught the citizens of such States that success is not to be attained by the methods which arc being pursued. Hitler can say with truth that he has won two wars without firing a shot. Mussolini can say that he has won an empire at very little cost in blood and treasure to his own people, and he has been the deciding factor in the Spanish struggle. These look to be very real gains, and time will be required before it becomes clear that such gains are illusory. AV hen the truth is apparent it will then be necessary for the democracies to be magnanimous, to bring about by their own initiative a better atmosphere, and to show plainly that there are real rewards to be had from international co-operation. It is unfortunately true that French opinion was too unbending, it feared too much, it had not faith hut in arms, and by such a policy it raised up Hitler and brought the Third Reich into existence.

The pursuit of peace can best be achieved by informing public opinion as to the true nature of international relations, of allowing one country to sell io another country, so to raise the standard of living to its highest possible level—the standard of living cannot he advanced by putting international trade into reverse, as is now being done in New Zealand—and of having enough faith in the doctrine of international amity to withstand the shocks of an economic depression without jettisoning the system which has made possible the high standards of living to which a considerable portion of the human family has become accustomed.