§ EARL WINTERTONMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the second Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ [The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government how many cases of assault upon British subjects have occurred in the Congo since the grant of independence to that country, what has been the nature of these assaults and what action the Government has taken in the matter.]
THE EARL OF HOMEMy Lords, Mr. Hodgeson, a British missionary, was killed by tribesmen in the northern pan of Katanga Province on November 23 with Mr. Knauf, a missionary from New Zealand. The barbarous attack on these two men has been the only case of fatal assault on British subjects. During the early part of this year two British subjects, Mr. Lipscomb and Mr. Gudge, were arrested and beaten in Stanleyville. Another British subject, Mr. Robinson, was similarly treated in Bukavu at about the same time. With the exception of Mr. Gudge, who received injury to one of his eardrums, none of these people suffered lasting effects from their maltreatment. I understand that all three are now well. There have been a number of cases of British subjects and British-protected persons being roughly handled in various parts of the Congo at various times, but the cases to which I have referred are the only serious ones.
In all these cases official protests were made by the responsible British consular officers to the local authorities. Her Majesty's Government also invoked the assistance of the United Nations in these and other cases where it seemed likely that British subjects might be subjected to arbitrary molestation or maltreatment. The United Nations authorities assured 951 us they would take steps to protect British subjects in these circumstances.
§ EARL WINTERTONMy Lords, in thanking my noble friend for his Answer, might I ask him if he would give consideration—and I do not ask for a definite reply to this point now—to whether it would not be advisable to approach the Heads of the various States in the Congo who have recently been meeting in Madagascar, asking them to do all they can to prevent the continuance of these attacks in future, since these gentlemen have shown themselves, I think, to be people of courage and wisdom, not only in devising a Constitution but in sternly rebuking Dr. Nkrumah?
THE EARL OF HOMEMy Lords, our consuls have been in touch, of course, with the Provincial authorities and their leaders. I think it is fair to say that the cases which I have quoted have not arisen out of any hostility towards the United Kingdom by local authorities, but through the failure of those bodies to keep order in this very large and difficult country, in which there is a lot of disorder to-day. Certainly, our consuls will keep in touch with the local authorities and leaders in the Provinces.
§ VISCOUNT ALEXANDER OF HILLSBOROUGHMy Lords, could I ask the noble Earl the Foreign Secretary a two-part question—whether he would agree that in this very chaotic and dreadful situation which arose in the Congo, had it not been for the intervention of United Nations forces, the position might have been far worse?
§ EARL WINTERTONThat has nothing to do with the Question.
§ VISCOUNT ALEXANDER OF HILLSBOROUGHAnd, secondly, in view of the weaknesses of the intervention they were able to make, the noble Earl no doubt has in mind consideration of what is the best type of intervention which can be made by the United Nations forces in any possible future cases of this kind. It seems to me that the whole matter wants very careful consideration.
THE EARL OF HOMEMy Lords, I agree that the chaotic situation there would certainly have been worse but for the intervention of the United Nations. Under the latest resolution passed by 952 the Security Council, the United Nations Force is instructed to keep the peace, and to keep order; and more forces, including a very large contingent from India, are being put at the disposal of the local commander. I would hope, therefore, that order can be more efficiently kept, although, as the noble Viscount himself said, this is a terribly difficult country in which to operate and many people live in very isolated districts. Nevertheless, I am quite certain that the United Nations Command will do all they possibly can to help us.
§ EARL WINTERTONMy Lords, may I ask one more supplementary: since the noble Viscount the Leader of the Opposition seemed to suggest that I was reflecting on the United Nations, may I say I was doing nothing of the kind but was merely asking that these outrages should be stopped as soon as possible?
§ VISCOUNT ALEXANDER OF HILLSBOROUGHMy Lords, I had no such thought in my mind.