§ 5. Mr. Chapmanasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will make a statement about the disorders which occurred in Mauritius on 1st May; and what reply he has sent to the request of the Social Democrat Party that a commission of inquiry be set up.
§ Mr. GreenwoodI am glad to say there have been no further incidents since 818 those referred to in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Kingston-upon-Hull, West (Mr. James Johnson) on 18th May. I am satisfied that no case has been made out for a commission of inquiry into these incidents, and I am asking the Governor to advise the Secretary-General of the party concerned accordingly.
§ Mr. ChapmanBut since there is a considerable danger that allegations and counter-allegations between the parties on the origin of this trouble will be a very unhappy background to the constitutional discussions in September, will my right hon. Friend reconsider the idea of an inquiry, on the strict understanding that it should work and produce its findings well in advance of those September discussions?
§ Mr. GreenwoodIt would be undesirable at the present stage of constitutional development in Mauritius for there to be a period of recrimination between the parties as to the responsibility for incidents of this kind, and I must, therefore, decline the suggestion that an inquiry should be held.
§ Mr. J. AmeryIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that, while we naturally regret the disturbances which are troubling the island at the moment, we welcome the prompt and, as it proved, effective action which the Government took to restore calm in the Island?
§ Mr. James JohnstonMay I draw my right hon. Friend's attention to the fact that there is no such party as the Social Democrat Party in Mauritius, that Mr. Duval, the self-styled leader, only masquerades as leader and is, in fact, the vice-leader or deputy-chairman of the Parti Mauricien, which corresponds to a badly behaved Conservative Party in the United Kingdom?