§ 46. Mr. Swinglerasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies in how many Colonies has a state of emergency been declared; and in how many Colonies have additional British troops been required in the period since he took office.
§ Mr. LytteltonSince October, 1951, states of emergency have been declared in Kenya, British Guiana, the Buganda province of Uganda, the Northern Region of Nigeria and in the First Division of Sarawak. Additional British troops have 1961 been sent to Kenya and British Guiana. The states of emergency in Nigeria and Sarawak have ended
§ Mr. SwinglerIs not the right hon. Gentleman aware that millions of people in this country are deeply disturbed about this trend of affairs, because they believe that we should offer the Colonies something better than military measures? Is it not high time that the Government now produced some constructive proposals to deal with the situation?
§ Mr. LytteltonStates of emergency are declared in order to restore public law and order, which is the first duty of the Government.
§ Mr. AlportWill my right hon. Friend say on how many occasions states of emergency in defence of Colonial Territories were declared during the period of office of the previous Administration?
§ Mr. LytteltonYes, Sir. Between 1946 and 1951, states of emergency—in addition to the Federation of Malaya and Singapore—were declared 'in Aden in 1947 and 1948, in the Gold Coast in 1948 and 1950, in Grenada in 1951, in Jamaica in 1946, in Nigeria in 1949, in Trinidad in 1947, and in Uganda in 1949.
Miss LeeCan the Colonial Secretary find some corner of the Colonial Empire where the coloured people have not been driven to terrorism by despair, and will he carry out an enlightened policy which attends to their basic needs of food, shelter and a job?
§ Mr. LytteltonI can only describe the hon. Lady's supplementary as a gesture of suggestio falsi and suppressio vera.