HC Deb 13 March 1959 vol 601 cc1613-7

11.5 a.m.

Mr. Stonehouse

I am grateful to you, Mr. Speaker, for this opportunity of making a personal explanation to the House on the arrangements for my visit to Africa which has excited so much attention.

Towards the end of last year I was invited by the hon. Member for St. Albans (Mr. J. Grimston) to accompany him in his private 'plane to Kenya and the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. He was undertaking a purely business trip for six weeks and was good enough to offer me a spare set in his 'plane to enable me to undertake a political fact-finding tour of these territories. Unfortunately, the hon. Member for St. Albans was unable to make the journey owing to business commitments in Britain, and he informed me to this effect a few weeks before we were due to leave.

As certain arrangements had already been made for me in Kenya, Tanganyika, the Rhodesias and Nyasaland, I felt it important to make the visits as originally planned. As I have no private means, I was unable to finance the air fares personally. Various possibilities of paying for my trip were explored. I am associated with an economic research company called Independent Commercial Surveys, Limited, which has been set up with a view, not of personal profit, but to help to finance the Institute for Group and Society Development, a non-profit-making social welfare organisation of which I am chairman.

In January, this organisation asked me to undertake some economic research during my visit to Africa. In connection with this, an advertisement was inserted in The Times inviting discussion of assignments. Quite independently of this I was asked by "Christian Action" to submit a report to them on conditions in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. I was also asked by Reynolds News to write articles for that newspaper, it was then obvious that I would be fully committed in political fact-finding duties, and the idea of undertaking economic research work had to be shelved.

Sir Eldred Hitchcock, who had written from Tanganyika seeking advice on the research organisation, was informed in the one letter I write to him that I was fully committed on this particular trip. I did not contact him when I was in Tanganyika. In fact, I should make clear to the House that throughout my four-week tour I did not undertake any business activity whatsoever.

Whilst in Kenya, I was invited to speak to the East African Institute of International Affairs on "Democracy in Africa." This I accepted. When I arrived in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia, on Thursday, 19th February, I was invited by the Southern Rhodesian African National Congress to address meetings on the following Saturday and Sunday in Salisbury and Bulawayo on "The Labour Party's Colonial Policy." I accepted this invitation also. On Friday, 20th February, I fulfilled three interviews arranged for me by the High Commissioner for the United Kingdom, from whom, however, I received no official hospitality. I discussed with the High Commissioner the meetings I had arranged to address, and he said he wondered whether in view of the incidents which had just occurred in Nyasaland it would be wise for me to speak. I explained that I would be stressing non-violence and he agreed that this would be a good thing to do.

Before I left Salisbury I received a copy of the programme which had been arranged for me by the Northern Rhodesian Government. I still have a copy of this programme which is headed "The Secretariat, Lusaka" and gives details of my arrival at Lusaka Airport on Tuesday, 24th February, and engagements arranged for me by the Government every day during the succeeding week to Tuesday, 3rd March. The programme is quite detailed and concludes with the particulars of the 7 a.m. aircraft from Lusaka for Blantyre in Nyasaland. It is signed by Major D. M. Talmage for the Administrative Secretary to the Government.

I was pursuing this programme without hitch when at Kitwe on Saturday, 28th February, just after midnight, I was disturbed at the Government Rest House by the Chief Immigration Officer of the Federal Government, Mr. J. Wood. He read a statement from the Federal Minister for Home Affairs, Sir Malcolm Barrow, to the effect that as the Federal Authorities could not guarantee my personal safety and that as my visit to Nyasaland might lead to breaches of the peace, I should leave the Federation within twenty-fours hours. I replied that I would consult the Governor and higher authority through him. The Chief Immigration Officer then said, "If you do not accept this warning, I have authority here to declare you a prohibited immigrant."

I then took the Federal officials to the house of the District Commissioner and read to him details of the statement, of which he had no previous information. The following day I continued my tour and was the guest of the Senior Provincial Commissioner at Ndola. On Monday I flew to Lusaka and met the Governor, Sir Arthur Benson. He said he could make arrangements for me to fly from Lusaka either to Salisbury or to Dar-es-Salaam on my way out of the Federation. I replied that I considered it my duty as a Member of Parliament to visit Nyasaland, particularly as the Governor, Sir Robert Armitage, had not directly withdrawn the invitation to me to stay with him. The Governor told me that the Secretary of State for the Colonies had sent a message advising me not to go to Nyasaland. This was presumably in reply to a cable of protest I had sent to the Secretary of State on the previous Saturday, in which I asked the British Government to take responsibility. At that time I had also sent a cable of protest to the Leader of the House of Commons. I have not yet received a reply to this.

During my conversations with the Governor of Northern Rhodesia, up to 12 midnight on Monday, neither of us was aware that a special debate had been arranged for Wednesday evening. I explained to the Governor that although I was prepared to accept direction from the Secretary of State or from himself, as these actions could be questioned in the House of Commons I could not accept advice which would put me in the position of accepting the effect of the Federal prohibition order.

Earlier in the evening I had booked a telephone call to the Leader of the Opposition, but this had not come through by the time I left Government House. I took the call later at an hotel at 1.30 a.m., Rhodesian time. The Leader of the Opposition told me of the debate which had been arranged and advised me to return for it if I could not continue my journey to Nyasaland.

During Monday night I also received a telephone call from the Daily Herald correspondent in Blantyre to the effect that at a Press conference that afternoon the Governor of Nyasaland had announced that full official facilities would be available to me if I visited Nyasaland. Four-and-a-half hours later I went to Lusaka Airport to catch the first available 'plane out of Northern Rhodesia. My ticket to Blantyre was accepted by the Central African Airways and I was given a boarding card, which is still in my possession. My case was also weighed and taken to be placed on the aircraft.

I had intended to continue on this aircraft to Salisbury on my way to London for the debate if the Governor had sent instructions to the airport at Blantyre that I was not to stay in Nyasaland, but before I could proceed further I was approached by Mr. Wood, the Federal Chief Immigration Officer, who informed me that a state of emergency had been declared in Nyasaland and that the plane to Blantyre had been cancelled.

He said that arrangements had been made to fly me in a Piper Apache aircraft to Dar-es-Salaam. I said I wished to consult the Governor and to make further inquiries. Mr. Wood and his assistant, Mr. Wicks, then took me by the arm and pushed me towards the tarmac. I appealed to the Territorial Police, in the persons of a superintendent and inspector, to intervene. They refused, although I made it clear that I wished to consult the Governor who was responsible for law and order in the Territory. The Federal Immigration officers then made no other suggestions to me regarding transport and I was, in fact, compelled to board the Apache aircraft—a four-seater 'plane—which took off by 7.30 a.m. I was not allowed to consult any Northern Rhodesian Government officials.

At Kasama Airport, Northern Rhodesia, which was the first stop on our route, I was handed a copy of a cable received from my right hon. Friend the Member for Llanelly (Mr. J. Griffiths) which asked me to return in time for the debate the following day. Through the District Commissioner I sent a further cable to the Secretary of State for the Colonies protesting at my deportation from the Territory. At Mbeya, Tanganyika, which was our next stop, I consulted the Provincial Commissioner, who was at the airport, regarding the possibility of diverting the aircraft to enable me to reach Nairobi in time to catch the London-bound plane. After consultations with the pilot, this was judged to be impossible.

When the aircraft arrived eventually at Dar-es-Salaam at 5.30 p.m. there were no plane connections available to enable me to get to London in time for the debate. Through the Governor of Tanganyika on the following day, 4th March, I sent a cable to the Secretary of State for the Colonies further protesting at my eviction from Northern Rhodesia and giving details of what had taken place.

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