Please wait. Contacting image service... loading

Article text

Communist
Emblems
Ban Is:
IrnposM
By Govt.
EXHIBITION of Com
munist flags or other
e m ble m s at meetings
throughout, the State has
been forbidden by the
State Government.
Chairmen of meetings will be
warned .to this effect by a respon
sible police officer.
The Government's decision was an
nounced last night by the Deputy-
Premier. Mr. Bruxner.
He hod previously examined a re
port and recommendation , of the
Commissioner of Pohce, Mr. MacKay,
and had consulted with the' Premier,
Mr. Mair, who Is at Albury. ' v
Bruxner's Statement
Mr. Bruxner issued . the following
statement:—
"In view of. the disturbance' at a
Communist meeting In the Domain
on December 24, and In order to pre
vent any recurrence of a more serious
nature, the Government has author
ised the Commissioner of Police to
detail a responsible police officer to
be In attendance before any meeting
is held anywhere, and to warn the
chairman of the meeting that the
exhibition of Communist Sags or
other, emblems Is offensive to the
great mass of nomilatlon. and that
such exhibition will be followed by a
prosecution under the Vagrancy Act,
1002, and that such officer shall im
mediately take possession of tho
flags.
"Whilst not desirous of preventing
free public discussion, the Govern
ment will not tolerate disloyal and
Insulting statements being made; nor
will it acquiesce In the flying of flags
and emblems which are repugnant to
the citizens, of .this country, and, in
consequence, likely to Incite tbem to
moke trouble."
Hughes' View
The Federal Attorney-General, Mr.
Hughes, said yesterday that he hod
received a request from the Deputy-
Leader of the Country Party, Mr.
Thorby. that the Federal Govern
ment should take action to control
the Communist Party's propaganda.
"All I can say now." said Mr.
Hughes, "Is that the Government ex
pects at a time like this that every
citizen, both In speech and action,
will conduct himself In such a fashion
as not to Impair the efforts of the
Commonwealth Government to en
sure the defence and security of
Australia.
"As the result of. its charter, free.-
dom of speech In Australia is as wide
as the world, but with reservations
which sensible and patriotic citizens
must realise.
"Standing for liberty, we do not In
tend to allow sedition or subversive
propaganda to undermine the foun-
?auons on wmcn our UDerty is based. '
Glebe Protest
Glebe branch of the Unemployed
and Relief Workers' Union has pro
tested against the "action of those
who attempted to use a small section
of the military to stifie free speech."
The branch called on the Prime
Minister to honor his statement of
September 6 that it would be "a
tragedy if we fought for freedom and
free belief, and won the war but lost
the thing for which we were fight
ing."
The meeting stressed that it was
not concerned with the Communist
Party as such, but with keeping Aus
tralia free in its full sense— preserv
ing not only freedom of thought, but
freedom to express such thoughts by
all sections of the working class.
$