—Portrait of the Week
rms, stored up over the paperless days of Christmas (though New York's three-week news- paper strike has come to an end), poured out in a torrent. Lord Mountbatten became Defence Supremo, fighting flared up in'Cuba, the President of the World Bank went to Cairo to mediate in the financial negotiations between Britain and Egypt, the West sent Notes rejecting Mr. Khrush- chev's proposals on Berlin, the Governor of Cyprus seemed to have accepted the Christmas truce offer by EOKA, the Coal Board announced that another 2,500 miners would shortly become redundant, and Chrislophers Chataway and Brasher an- nounced their engagements. The pound was freed and the franc devalued; God save the mark. rms, stored up over the paperless days of Christmas (though New York's three-week news- paper strike has come to an end), poured out in a torrent. Lord Mountbatten became Defence Supremo, fighting flared up in'Cuba, the President of the World Bank went to Cairo to mediate in the financial negotiations between Britain and Egypt, the West sent Notes rejecting Mr. Khrush- chev's proposals on Berlin, the Governor of Cyprus seemed to have accepted the Christmas truce offer by EOKA, the Coal Board announced that another 2,500 miners would shortly become redundant, and Chrislophers Chataway and Brasher an- nounced their engagements. The pound was freed and the franc devalued; God save the mark.
*.
THE DEVALUATION of the French franc (by roughly 17 per cent.), and the still more overdue creation of a 'heavy franc' to replace the repulsive heaps of aluminium coin and soiled paper circulating in France was coupled with the announcement of increased taxes, decreased subsidies and other austerity measures in France's novel campaign for 'severity and truth.' The measures seemed likely to knock some of the shine off President de Gaulle's popularity, but King Stork was clearly in a determined mood. At the same time, most European currencies were made externally con- vertible and the European Payments Union wound up. The British travel allowance stayed where it was, and prices began to rise across the Channel.
*
LORD MOUNTBA1TEN was appointed, after months of rumour and War Office politics, to be Chief of Defence Staff, in succession to Sir William Dick- son. The appointment, widely and wrongly regarded as one up to the Navy and one down to the Royal Air Force, had long been foreshadowed. The rocket age, and indeed the rockets themselves, pushed once again into the headlines when the group which had spent Christmas • in prison for demonstrating at the rocket site at. North Pickcn- ham refused to give an undertaking that they would not repeat the operation, and seemed likely in consequence to spend some time yet behind bars.
SIX MORE Greek Cypriots had their death sentences commuted to lifi imprisonment by Sir Hugh Foot. There was no official intimation that the security forces would cease their operations in response to EOKA's offer of a truce, but the Governor's action, and the general slackening of activity on the island, seemed to indicate that the offer had been accepted. At the same time, a more hopeful atmosphere was growing up around Cyprus in general. More and more reasonable statements started to come from both Athens and Ankara; it only needed one from the Colonial Office to con- firm the reports that a round-table conference would shortly be held. Anyway, nobody was killed in the island over Christmas.
*
A THOUSAND PEOPLE were reported to have been killed in renewed fighting between the forces loyal to President Batista of Cuba and the followers of the rebel leader, Fidel Castro. Reports are con- fused and contradictory. It was not possible to ascertain whether the planes with which his forces were bombing the rebels were the British ones mentioned in the House of Commons just before the Christmas recess, but American public opinion veered sharply against Batista after the violent arrest at Havana airport of two American school- teachers who were alleged to have spoken in uncomplimentary terms of the regime.
Previous page
