§ Mr. Juddasked the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a statement on the arrest of Desmond Francis in Rhodesia and his subsequent deportation to South Africa.
§ Mr. George ThomasMr. Francis is a South African citizen who was working in Zambia. On 2nd January he crossed the frontier into Rhodesia to make an enquiry and was detained under the Southern Rhodesia Emergency Powers Regulations. We regard this detention as having been illegal. On 19th January Mr. Francis was deported to South Africa. As my hon. Friend knows, we were not in a position to remedy the detention or to prevent the deportation. We are in contact with authorities in South Africa on behalf of Mrs. Francis, who is British.