§ 19. Mr. Dribergasked the Secretary of State for War what information he has received concerning the treatment of British Service men taken prisoner in Korea.
§ Mr. HeadAs the hon. Member knows, I have no official information. The letters from these men to their relatives, of which some 600 have been brought to our notice, have in nearly every case stressed that treatment is reasonably good; suitable clothing and accommodation are provided; and the food is enough to exist 203 on. I know that the whole House will share my hope that, if the current armistice talks result in an exchange of prisoners of war, these statements will be found to be correct.
§ Mr. DribergCan the right hon. Gentleman say whether he has any evidence at all tending to support the extremely alarming stories issued in Korea last week by a senior American officer, alleging that many thousands of prisoners, including 10 British prisoners, had been killed by their captors; further, is it the case that that story was subsequently more or less repudiated and, if so, was it not extremely irresponsible to issue it at all?
§ Mr. HeadI have myself been considerably alarmed by this report. I have endeavoured to make such inquiries as I could regarding British personnel. I can inform the House that from the information which is at present available to me there is no indication and no information which suggests that this applies to British personnel or that any British personnel have been massacred.
§ Major Tufton BeamishCan my right hon. Friend say what progress has been made by the International Red Cross in their efforts to obtain accurate information from the Chinese Government about British prisoners of war in Chinese hands?
§ Mr. John ProfumoIn view of the fact that the recent announcement about atrocities is obviously causing the deepest concern to the families of British prisoners in Korea, would my right hon. Friend make representations through the appropriate channels so that no announcement will in future be made which affects the lives or safety of allied or British serving men in Korea without prior consultation with the senior British representative in Korea?
§ Mr. Ivor Owen ThomasHas the right hon. Gentleman any information about the report which appears in this evening's London papers to the effect that there is evidence of 600 deaths by atrocities among prisoners of war?
§ Mr. HeadI would rather not comment on this report so far as it concerns American soldiers, but where British soldiers are concerned I can inform the hon. Gentleman that there is so far no confirmation that it applies to them.