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ELLIOTT ELLIOTT
ELLIOTT ELLIOTT
OPTICIANS OPTICIANS
P••a PIERN•••F
Piccadilly Arcade Perth
John fllioR qSr. Ex-i1)WW - Bros Siudeal Tel.
Tel. B7908
87908
PERTH,WEDNESDAY,APRIL 4, I.M.
NO. 2,174.
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SEVENTY-S ECOND YEAR.
*What the British Press Thought of the Crimean Disposal of Pola nd "Profound Disquiet ... Considerable Anxiety . Conscience of Nation Stirred . . Unilateral Action With Implied Ultimatum by Soviet— "Poland Will Become a Russian Fiet" "Daily Mail," of February Alastair Forbes:
20,
by
"The interested party in this case , Poland, was not even consulted. Her legal Government was informed of this "fait accompli" in circumstances ex , ceedingly reminiscent of those in 1939, when Benes was woken from his sleep to learn of the Anglo-French betrayal. One may well blush for British honour, but one's chief anxiety on this score has nothing whatsoever to do with one's personal attitude to Poland, or to any particular group of Poles. It is for Europe that one grows anxious when solutions are accepted, which sooner or later, l:i:mry must reject and which already are ensuring that Europe's living standards must remain at depression level for many years. Iam reliably informed that the Polish question was side-stepped by the Big Three themselves and left to the less tender mercies of foreign secretaries. Stettinius, it appears, just sat and smiled and the ' strong hand' of America was only used for backslapping and waving to photographers. It really is very difficult to understand how the free• dom of elections, and what is just as important, the freedom of speech and person of all those politicians emigre orotherwise, who have the righ, tto live and work in Poland, can be- formed sinnp1v by broadening an illegal and foreign Power-sponsored body like Lub• ]in." "Manchester Guardian." The " Manchester Guardian" of February 23: "The part of the declaration which must be closely examined is that pro• v-iding for a new Provisional Government and free elections. In the circumstances, Poles are justified in asking fi ,r little name satisfaction. For instance, it would seem strange for a new Government to be reorganised under the presidency of Rierut, who has no elective right to that position and who hay publicly attai•ked London Poles and their supporters in Poland indiscrimin• ately as traitors and Fascists. Either a new and impartial President must be chosen, or a commission of three, "Before the exiles return thev must be satisfied that not only are they in
For Value and Service
no danger of arrest and per•rcution their followers themselves, but that are also free to enjoy the benfits of liber ation. Clearly no election can be free and no government democratic if Lublin Poles continue to monopolise the Polish press and radio for their own brand of propaganda. And not only must the Polish press be free, but the press of the world must have free access to Poland. It can be safely said that no matter how free elections were no one would believe them to be so, if Allied correspondents were forbidden to report on them." "Time and Tide." "Time and 'hide" of February 24: "Profound disquiet is felt in England at the arbitrary settlement of Poland's fate. Although propaganda coming from obvious quarters is at work to represent this very general feeling as purely Tory reaction, this is far from being the case. There is very considerable anxiety in Labour ranks and among all those to whom the principles of free choice and independent govern• ment are dear. Whatever the outcome of their interview it is notable that Greenwood has thought it important to see Arciszewski. The conscience of the nation is stirred, not merely about the specific question of Poland: even those markedly unsympathetic to the Polish cause itself record Poland? fate as adisastrous omen for the future settlement of Europe and w wnL1 Peace," "Spectator " "Specotor" of l-ebruarr.23: "The crux of the debate, as is both inevitable and obvious, will be the agreement reached about the future of Poland. The fundamental fact about the Polish situation is that Russia, by whose armies the Germans have been driven out of Poland, intends to incor. porate territories cast of the Curzon Line. Such is the situation that has confronted Churchill. and Roosevelt from the first, and nothing is gained by anv attempt to disguise it. "What is wrong about the decisions is that they are based on unilateral ac. ti, ,n with implied ultimatum in the background by Russia. Whatever may be said, the Yalta decisions including
Illegftianate Russian Claim "Stripped of all verbiage. the Yalta agreement looks like altogether an excessive British and American acquiescthat on Poland have been taken and ence in a -wholly illegitimate Russian they must stand. The essential ques• claim to impose upon Poles - government primarily chosen by Russians, tion now is whether the ' strong, free, independent and democratic Poland The Baltic State's were ' hors d'oeuvres.' which the three statesmen at Yalta pro. Poland is the main dish. What is f cssed to desire, will be, in reality, free the main dish. What is happening to and independent and democratic, Poles is a large-scale addition of the though it is a fact that Britaifi and fate that has already overtaken the America have committed themselves to Baltic Republics when their fate, althe principle of Poland's freedom and though it could not be prevented, independence and that a complete could, at any rate, have been much agreement exists in both countries as more bluntly disavowed. But Westto what adjectives, ' free and independern passivity and even readiness to justify what was clone, was an encourent,' mean is something at least for Poles and their friends to build on. agement to those who framed the pol"If they prefer, instead, to proclaim icy of Kremlin, suggesting that if they in advance that the committee consistput sufficiently bold front on a matter, ing of \lolotov and British and Amerithey could take Poland as well. It is can Ambassadors at Moscow charged simple to merely write as though it with bringing a new Polish Natnonal were some justification for Soviet polGovernment into being is so much eyeicy that Poland is a back area of the wash and that Poland will become a Red Army operations, as France and Russian fief, in spite of all that Britain Pelgium are of the allied armies, withand America may say, then they need out our making that pretext for imposing governments on France and Belnot be astonished if they alienate much guim, or arresting French Maquis and British ,and American sympathy that would othertwise be with them. What denouncing them as German collabora- • is imperative, if a free and independtors. That ,would be the fate of men ent Poland is to take shape within like George Bidault if he had belonged to the Polish Resistance Movement inwhatever frontiers, is that, first of all, as strong and representative Provincial stead of to the French. Government as possible shall be SelectPolish Casualties. ed by the Allied Committee of three, here is no praise too high for the and next, that the elections which are dignity and loyalty displayed during to follow shall be uninfluenced by any the past fortnight by the Polish armed external pressure, or persuasion, whatforces in the west which owe allegiance ever." to their betrayed government and, in "The Tablet." particular, by the Second Corps tinder The "'1'nblet" cf February 21, in an the command of Anders in Italy. The article entiled " The Partition Second Corps is mainly composed of men from Eastern Poland, whose homes "Churchill will have to defend Yalta are in territories now being handed to before the llouse of Commons, many Russia; homes which most of these of whose members are rightly and nat, men who have fought so hard and orally shocked, because the Prime Minwell• through five and a half years ister seems so blandly unconscious how they will never see againFew of unprecedented in our history is the line those from territories given to Russia, of conduct he has followed towards the or from territories given to Lublin, will Government of Poland. Ile has put )rant to return, even if they have an his name to documents which deal w'th opportnnitv,. instead, they will have the whole future of an ally, the comto start life afresh in a strange land position of government and both its mild usually without womenfolk. No eastern and western frontiers, without peopue have paid the price in human even mentioning the government of life comparable to that paid by Poles. that Coantrv, although that govern. "It is only during the past few ment deserves not onl}• hull diplomatic months that the Western - Allies, with recocoition. but special consideration due to a tried ally in war and is a their much greater populations have equalled Polish easualty lists in battle, government to which all Polish forces and the Western Allies have been subserving by the side of nur own forces iceted to social engineering. Countlook. It has been treated as though ing the casualties in the west up to it did not exist, while certain private last October and in the Home Army Poles most important of them profesup to last March, Poles had lost SRG.7W sional Communist acents ready to men killed since the outbreak of war, work in any comtry they are sent no. compared to 926,900 from the entire were mentioned by name in the Yalta British Empire and 361,100 from the document as presenting a hasis on United States. in the same period, If which to Ireild a n ew , Polish Govern. (Continued on Back Cover.) ment.
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