HC Deb 25 July 1958 vol 592 cc75-6W
Mr. Fletcher-Cooke

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what advice he is offering to British organisations and individuals invited to the Seventh World Youth Festival in Vienna next year.

Mr. Selwyn Lloyd

These festivals are designed to exploit young people for the purposes of Communist propaganda. They are stage-managed by Communist-controlled organisations solely concerned to advance the aims of the Soviet Government. I recognise that members of youth or student organisations in this country may have wished to see in these occasions some opportunity of reaching across this barrier of political intention and establishing a genuine contact with Communist youths. Nevertheless, after careful consideration I must express the hope that no organisation in this country will have anything to do with the forthcoming festival. I understand that the Austrian Youth Federation, representing all the main non-Communist sections of the Austrian student and youth movements, both political and non-political, has issued a statement denouncing the next festival and calling on their members not to participate.

I also hope that all organisations in this country will keep in mind that even the sending of an observer is enough to involve them with the sponsoring organisations and is likely to be advertised throughout the world as proof that the Communist sponsoring organisations themselves are respectable.

I recognise, however, that a number of individual young people, who have no Communist sympathies and who are aware of Her Majesty's Government's views, will go to this festival, whether from curiosity, a desire to practise foreign languages, or in the hope of establishing fruitful personal contacts with the young people of the host country or other countries. My advice is that if these individuals go they should, in their own and in the national interest, acquaint themselves thoroughly before they go with the nature of these festivals and with those international issues which divide the free world from the Communist world. They should also be familiar with the facts about their own country so that they can counter misrepresentations. Finally, they should make it quite clear that they represent themselves only.