Planters To Return To Papua

Army-controlled Plan to Stimulate Rubber and Copra Production

THE first step in the return of the civil population to the Australian Pacific Territories was taken in mid-February, when Canberra announced that “owners of rubber and copra plantations in Papua might be permitted, under certain con ditions, to return to manage their pro perties.”

Soon afterwards, a circular sent out from Canberra announced that the fol lowing were the terms and conditions of the arrangement:— “After consultation with the Com mander-in-Chief, General Sir Thomas Blarney, the Commonwealth proposes that an organisation should be established to control the industries of Australian New Guinea (the Territory of Papua and the Territory of New Guinea), with a view to the greatest possible development of the resources of those areas, especially rubber and copra.

“The plans that are now in contem plation provide for the control of in dustries in the Territory by a Board consisting of a representative of the Commander-in-Chief and three civilian members to be selected and appointed by the Government, and for the owners of plantations to be permitted to return to the Territory to work their properties sub ject to the following conditions: — (1) Subject to the approval of the Minister for External Territories in consultation with the GOC in each case, owners of plantations will be permitted to return to the Territory as civilians to run their plantations either personally or by their ap proved representatives. (2) Owners and their representatives will be ..subject to the supervision and direction of the Board and their continuance in the Territory will be at the absolute discretion of the GOC, New Guinea Force. (3) Leases have been suspended by the National Security (External Terri tories) Regulations. Each suspen sion will continue and the land covered by any lease which is re occupied by the lessee will, from the date of re-occupation, be held upon conditions to be determined by the Minister, which will be com municated to you as soon as possible. (4) Recruiting of native labourers for owners will be arranged by the Army, stores will be obtained by the owners by purchase from the Board, and produce will be sold on plan tations to the Board at a price to be approved by the Minister of External Territories. (5) Owners will pay the Board the cost of placing native labourers at plan tations and thereafter the owners will pay the wages of the native labourers and all expenses in con nection therewith. (6) Native labourers employed by owners will be subject to inspection by representatives of the Army. (7) Plantation personnel at present enlisted in the Forces who are re quired by the owners may, with the approval of the GOC, New Guinea Force, be demobilised or given leave without pay from the Forces and be made available to the owners to work on the plantations as civi lians. Thereafter wages and all expenses in connection with such personnel will be paid by the owners.

(8) Expenses in connection with per sonnel sent to the Territory by the owners will be a matter for the owners. (9) Owners will be responsible for all costs, including running and main tenance of plantations, insurance and war damage insurance on their properties. (10) Owners of rubber areas that have not yet reached the tappable stage will be given the same treatment as owners of producing areas.

Where such owners do not elect to care for their plantations, the Board will undertake this and the cost will be a charge against the estate. (11) Any plantations not being worked to the satisfaction of the Board may be taken over and worked by the Board.

“It is proposed that the foregoing plans should be put into operation forthwith, and I shall be glad to know whether you would desire to return to the Territory or to send representatives there on the

conditions outlined. If so, please furnish me with particulars of the staffs you re quire and indicate whether the persons concerned are at present in the Forces.

“If you wish to submit any obser vations in the matter, I shall be glad to receive them at a very early date. (Signed) J. M. FRASER, Minister for External Territories.”

Plantation-owners were invited to apply to the Department of External Territories, Canberra, for permission to return. It was emphasised that the time had not arrived when civilians generally could return.

THE whole Departmental set-up has been strongly criticised. It is seen as a concession reluctantly granted by officialdom, under the pressure of the need for copra and rubber. The deter mination to do everything through the Army, even to the supply of plantation stores, shows that private trading is officially tabu for a long time to come.

There is to be no interference whatever with the Kingdom of the Brass Hat.

Planters have shown an inclination to criticise the plan, and fight; but they have been advised to accept it and get back to their plantations, and do their fighting, if any, from there. Officialdom rides high to-day; and it is quite liable to turn sour and cancel the present plan.

The planters’ chief concern is to get home. After that, let them say their piece. Officialdom can keep them inde

finitely in Australia; but it will not be so easy to dig them out of their planta tions and return them to Australia.

Local Committees To Act

LOCAL committees of review have been appointed to advise the War Dam age Commission regarding war damage in New Guinea and Papua, said the Controller-General of the Commis sion, Mr. W. J. Hitchcock, in Sydney on March 6.

Each committee consists of four mem bers—the Administrator of the Territory, an experienced loss assessor, a real pro perty expert, and a person with local knowledge of the particular locality.

There are 15 committees, seven for New Guinea and eight for Papua.

Mr. Hitchcock said it was difficult to assess damage and deal with claims

where the enemy was still in occupation, but it was the policy to consider claims even in these cases, provided they were substantiated by independent evidence.

Army reports and declarations by persons with first-hand knowledge of damage in any particular case were accepted in support of claims for compensation.