The Three Communities In Fiji

An Outstanding Political and Administrative Puzzle

From Our Own Correspondent.

Suva, Oct. 20.

THE proposal to alter the constitution of the Fiji Legislative Council by the sub stitution of Nominated members for the present Elected members, if not exactly engaging undivided public attention amongst the Colonists themselves, at least continues to occupy a large proportion of the space in the “Fiji Times.”

Naturally, the champions of liberty are always the more vocal section of any British community, and it is’ therefore, only natural that, apart from the known editorial views, the columns of the Hon.

Alport Barker’s paper express only the viewpoint of that section which opposes any change in the present method of the election by the Europeans of representa tives in the Legislative Council.

There, too, are detailed reports, writ ten in excellent English, of meetings of the self-styled Indian Association of Fiji, at which similar protests are made against the loss of the right to elect Indian re presentatives.

The outside observer may well think that when Europeans and Indians alike voice a common protest, the community as a whole share the same views, and that there is unison, if not exactly harmony, in

their voices. Thus, there is some real danger that the true worth of their views may be overestimated in Downing Street, half the world away from Suva; for free dom of choice of one’s representatives is a cry that appeals naturally enough to British democracy.

However, with traditional caution, the Colonial Office has deferred its decision on the proposal (which originated with the Indian Elected members) until such time as the wishes of the community as a whole can be more accurately measured.

Just how that measuring is to be done is a difficult problem.

THERE are the three well-known ele ments in the mixed population of Fiji—Fijians, Europeans, and Indians, each with differing interests and stan dards. In the Legislative Council there are at present six Europeans, three In dians, and three Fijians, selected from the respective communities.

In the ’eighties, or thereabouts, when Indian immigration to Fiji commenced, the Indians were promised a status in Fiji which would be no whit inferior to others of His Majesty’s subjects. If nothing else be done meanwhile, it is at least a foregone conclusion that within the near future the numbers of the re presentatives must be revised, so that each element has equal representation in the Council —in other words, the num ber of European members must be re duced to four.

There are none so blind as those who will not see, and, whatever views it may be expedient to express at this juncture, it seems inevitable and natural that the next demand from the Indian community will be to join with the other two com munities in electing common representa tives, instead of community representa tives as at present.

The Fijian population is 90,000, its de cline having been arrested and turned into a very slight annual increase. The European population is stationary at about 4,000 to 5,000. But the Indian population, which jumped from 60,000 to somewhere about 85,000 between 1921 and 1934, is -increasing by leaps and bounds.

Thus, it is easy to forecast the section of the community from which all the Elected members of Council would be drawn in not very many years to come.

Quite apart from the disadvantage of having no European representatives to express the views of the European com munity, there are practical difficulties in applying the principle of a democratic Common Roll to the Fijians, more es pecially the upsetting of their present structure of government by the Elders.

THERE is, however, another factor in the problem —one which affects the Europeans only, and which is not gener ally apparent to them as yet.

In the early years of the present consti tution of the Legislative Council, the European members (amongst them Mr.

M. Hedstrom and Mr. H. M. Scott) advo cated the extension of the franchise to men of mixed blood, provided that their fathers were Europeans, and this was carried into effect. Mr. Eyre Hutson (then acting as Colonial Secretary) considered that at some future date the half-caste vote would create serious embarrassment in the elections, since the half-castes of European fathers were henceforward clas sed as European voters, and their sons would, in due course, be entitled to claim in their turn, the right to vote as Euro peans. To-day, the number of half-caste voters is increasing rapidly, and, in certain of the European electorates, it is only a matter of time before they will be the dominant factor. In the Suva district, for example, there are estimated to be now about five half-castes entitled to the vote for seven whites.

It looks, therefore, as though the time is fast approaching when, in any case, the electoral power of the white European is doomed to be swamped, either from within his community or without. Most Europeans who have some degree of re sponsibility, and some stake in the Colony’s future, incline to the view that they would do well to insure themselves against the prospects of complete loss of representation by delegating to the Go vernor the duty of selecting a proper num ber of Fijian, European and Indian mem bers to express the views of the three communities in the Legislative Council.

YVTHEN all is said and done, the direct ** responsibility of the Government of Fiji rests upon the Governor, appointed by the Colonial Office, and ruling by virtue of his majority of Civil Servants in the Council. The others are there merely to advise the Governor as to their own per sonal interpretation of the opinions held by the colonists. Even though those community representatives were selected by the Governor, and not elected by the people, it is derogatory to the communities themselves to suggest that members so selected would be afraid to oppose their views to those of the Governor. On the contrary, it is but reasonable to suppose that their views would show a breadth of vision and an impersonal detachment sadly lacking, at times, under present conditions.

It is clear that both Europeans and In dians in Fiji are divided on the question of Elected v. Selected Members, but for differing reasons, at heart. Mr. Malcolm McDonald, in London, will be faced with the problem of deciding what is in the best interests of Fiji and the Fijians, for whom he is the trustee. The only safe forecast is that his advisers, the officials of the Colonial Office, will take a long time to come to a final decision.