§ Sir E. Graham-Littleasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will now give further details of the present position of 13 Buganda deportees from Uganda; whether he is aware, as evidence submitted to him demonstrates, that the wives of these deportees have not been informed of the reasons why their husbands have been deported and the have not been allowed open court trial; and if he will rectify this position.
Mr. Creech JonesThe position of the Uganda deportees is reviewed every quarter by the Governor. As a result of the last two quarterly reviews in November and February, four of the deportees have been granted a conditional release. There are still II deportees at Moroto in Uganda and two in the Seychelles. As I stated in my reply to the hon. Member on 30th October last, all the deportees have been informed of the reasons for their deportation and both they and their wives are aware that they are permitted to have their wives and children with them if they so desire. Some wives, children and servants actually accompanied them at the time of their deportation. In my previous answer I also informed the hon. Member that the deportations were carried out as a security measure and that their purpose is preventive and not punitive. In this connection I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my predecessor on 7th November, 1945, to my hon. Friend the Member for Harrow, East (Mr. Skinnard). I am sending the hon. Member a copy of this reply. I shall not be in a position to make any further statement until after the next quarterly review in May.