Page:MALAYSIA BILL RHODESIA AND NYASALAND BILL (2) (Hansard, 11 Juli 1963).djvu/1

 Why let them come at all? Why not say to these people that the United Nations has no right to come and interfere in the internal domestic affairs of Southern Rhodesia, or of any other country? Of course, there are those who have tried to make out—I include the Front Bench opposite in this, though not today—that there was a danger to the peace of the world in Southern Rhodesia. This has never been true. I am sure that my right hon. Friend would tell the House that Southern Rhodesia today is a very peaceful country, far from being in the state suggested by members of the United Nations who have been anxious to interfere.

It is sad that my right hon. Friend should now be given the task of administering the coup de grâce, for that is what he is doing in introducing the Bill today. He has mentioned his concern about certain points, and I wish to mention mine about one or two aspects of the Bill. I am glad that there has been a good deal of discussion today about the civil servants. I am sure that there is no one in this country who has to pay the taxes that go towards the funds who would not gladly see the Government treat generously those civil servants who have lost their jobs. I was disturbed to learn—I suppose that it is somewhat ironic—that many of the civil servants who were seconded compulsorily to the federal service from the territories are now to be compulsorily seconded back, in some cases to Administrations in which they have little confidence. I hope that this will be borne in mind.

I hope that the Minister who is to reply will be able to say something about citizenship. In my view, there is good cause to suggest that citizens of the Federation should now have the opportunity to have duel citizenship, that is, citizenship of any one territory and British citizenship at the same time. There may come a time when these people will want to return to Britain, and I think that it would be most unfortunate if those who had gone out to give good service to the peoples in these territories found, on wanting to return to this country, that they were under the Commonwealth Immigrants Act, treated as people other than British subjects who had a right to return here quite regardless of that Act.

My noble Friend the Member for Hertford said that the Government must not give independence except to a majority Government in Southern Rhodesia. This seems to be a most strange argument when those who are demanding this outside are countries like Ghana, which really and truly cannot be regarded as a democracy by anyone in this Chamber. I am sure that the Africans in Southern Rhodesia today are a much freer and happier people than the Africans in Ghana, and I cannot understand the person who says that we cannot at this stage give full independence to Southern Rhodesia unless it has a majority Government. I hope that we shall not press them too far in demanding certain terms on which this shall be given. I feel that this is something which could well disappoint and embitter many people in this country.

I know that certain people today, including my noble Friend the Member for Hertford, have said that nothing but a majority Government in Southern 1492 Rhodesia is acceptable, but there are many relatives of Rhodesians in this country who know of the hard work put into building up that territory and who realise just how much it will depend in future on the remaining Europeans. If the Europeans are driven away by a further attempt to make them advance more quickly than they feel able to accept, I suggest that the very people on whom that territory depends will leave and that the Africans will be the people who will suffer.

The other point which worries me greatly is the question of Nyasaland and law and order. My right hon. Friend the First Secretary said this afternoon that law and order were being maintained in Nyasaland. This has been the Government's contention for the last two and a half years. During this time provincial commissioners, district commissioners, business men and tribal chiefs out there have constantly said that that was not so. I went out there for the first time in 1960. At that time Members on both sides of the House were disturbed when Chester Katsonga's house was burned down because he came to a reception for British Members of Parliament. We sent a telegram to my right hon. Friend the Leader of the House, as he now is, expressing our concern at the state of law and order in Nyasaland. We saw the Malawi Youth being trained and drilled very much like the Hitler Youth of pre-war days. We know the object of their training. We were disturbed on being told by the police that the Attorney-General did not give