HC Deb 31 March 1960 vol 620 cc1504-5
40. Mr. Stonehouse

asked the Prime Minister what reply he had given to the letter received by him from Chief Hosea Kutako of the Herero tribe in South West Africa asking the support of Her Majesty's Government for the case against South Africa which the Herero tribe has placed before the United Nations.

The Secretary of State (or the Home Department (Mr. R. A. Butler)

I have been asked to reply.

As was recently reported in the Press, Chief Hosea Kutako addressed an open letter to King Baudouin, President de Gaulle and my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister about conditions in South West Africa and the policies of the three Governments within their respective territories in Africa. The contents of the letter have been noted and it has of course been acknowledged.

Mr. Stonehouse

Would not the right hon. Gentleman agree that this appeal from the Herero tribe chief is now significant and urgent in view of the declaration of the state of emergency and the imposition of a repressive, military dictatorship? Is not this a matter on which, as South West Africa is a Mandated Territory, the United Nations ought not only to talk but to act?

Mr. Butler

The position is that at its recent session, the General Assembly adopted a resolution inviting the Union Government to enter into negotiations with the United Nations through the United Nations Committee on South West Africa or any other committee the Assembly might appoint. I have no information on the outcome of this proposal.

Mr. Brockway

Would the right hon. Gentleman suggest that this is an internal matter for South Africa? Is not it an act of aggression by the Government of the Union of South Africa that they should have taken possession of this Mandated Territory? Can we have a promise that Her Majesty's Government will support in the United Nations the claim of South West Africa to be regarded as a Trusteeship Territory?

Mr. Butler

This story has a long history behind it. It is a matter of which the United Nations is already seized, and what I am clear about is that we cannot take over the duties of the United Nations.

Mr. Gaitskell

Could not the right hon. Gentleman make clear that this is not a matter solely within the internal jurisdiction of the Union of South Africa, since it concerns a Mandated Territory, and the United Nations has not only taken cognisance but appointed a committee of inquiry?

Mr. Butler

This is a matter of fairly wide-ranging significance and a matter of which the United Nations is already seized. Therefore, pending the development or the working of the machinery now set in motion, I do not think that I can usefully add any more.

Mr. Marquand

Would not the right hon. Gentleman say that he has not yet sufficient information? Would he undertake to get information as soon as possible, and make a further statement?

Mr. Butler

I cannot go further than I have, because I cannot take over the duties of the United Nations and its committees. Regarding the obtaining of information, I will certainly consult my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary about whether we can be informed of how the situation stands.