§ 17. Mr. COCKSasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can make a statement regarding the case of Mr. Geoffrey Fraser, a British subject, who was arrested in Berlin on 4th April; and what action His Majesty's Government are taking in the matter.
§ Mr. BALDWINMy right hon. Friend has already informed the hon. Member of the reasons given for Mr. Fraser's arrest and of the charge made against him. The following information regarding the case should be regarded as additional to that given in reply to the hon. Member's questions on 10th and 12th April:
On 13th April, Mr. Fraser was visited at the Moabit prison by His Majesty's Consul at Berlin, who found that he had no complaint whatever to make of his treatment at the hands of the authorities and that he was quite well and comfortable. He had written to a lawyer as regards his defence, and was informed that he could write to the Consulate at any time regarding his requirements. On 21st April, His Majesty's Ambassador at Berlin addressed a second Note to the German Minister for Foreign Affairs asking to be informed as soon as the precise details of the charge against Mr. Fraser had been determined and as soon as a decision had been reached regarding the tribunal before which this charge would be heard and the date on which the hearing would begin. On 26th April His Majesty's 489 Ambassador made further strong oral and written representations about this case to Baron von Neurath, who promised to investigate it at once.
§ Mr. COCKSIs it not a fact that this British subject has now been in prison for a month without trial and without any definite charge being made before a magistrate; and is it not time that the British Government made strong representations in order to see that justice is given him?
§ Mr. BALDWINI think the Ambassador in Berlin is pursuing the matter with all the energy at his command.
§ Mr. McENTEEWill the right hon. Gentleman lay a White Paper, to enable the House to know what correspondence has passed between His Majesty's Government and the German Government on the matter?
§ Mr. BALDWINI do not see any necessity for that at present.
§ 18. Mr. COCKSasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what steps he is taking in connection with the arrests in Germany of Mr. Wilfred Howard, Mr. W. Mann and Mr. Soumyendranath Tagore, grandson of Sir Rabindranath Tagore, three British subjects?
§ Mr. BALDWINI am informed that Mr. Howard has been sentenced to four weeks' imprisonment (of which he has already served about one-half) for having written statements libelling the German Post Office officials, and that he wrote at the time of his arrest to His Majesty's Consul-General anticipating this sentence and indicating his readiness to accept it. In these circumstances my right hon. Friend does not propose to take any further action in the matter. As regards Mr. Mann, I have nothing to add to the statement made on 27th April in reply to the right hon. and gallant Gentleman the Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Colonel Wedgwood), save that His Majesty's Ambassador reinforced his written representations by speaking personally on 26th April to the German Minister for Foreign Affairs, who promised to investigate the case at once. As regards Mr. Soumyendranath Tagore, I am informed that he was detained at police headquarters at Munich on suspicion of Communist activities in con- 490 nection with an alleged plot against the life of the German Chancellor, but His Majesty's Consul-General at Munich has now reported that he has been released and has left the country.
§ Mr. COCKSWill the right hon. Gentleman issue a warning to the German Goverment to be very careful before laying their hands on British subjects?