The Future Of Australian

New Guinea

Directions in Which There Should be Early Planning

By “Old Territorian”

THE first step, to settle legal and other questions, would seem to be an announcement by Australia that the Mandated Territory, for which we are now fighting, and spending our youth and blood, will become an integral part of Australia.

This, if done, should remove most of the arguments against Papua and the

Mandated Territory being incorporated as one Territory, or State. The only objection to such a step would come from those officials of the former Administra tive Services, who take the short-sighted view and who would be actuated only by personal ambition. Jealousy over senior ity, etc., would arise. But these are petty matters, when contrasted with the bigger issue at stake—which, as I see it, is the retention of NG for Australia.

The next step, logically, should be to determine the form of the future ad ministration. In this we, the former residents of both Papua and NG, must make certain that we are properly repre sented and that our views receive the consideration to which our long experi ence has entitled us.

If a Legislative Assembly is decided upon, then it should be in such form that the non-Administration members should be at least equal in numbers to the official party—leaving the Adminis trator or Governor with a casting vote.

The election of non-official members should be by voting of all residents, with a member for each district—and not, as formerly, by nomination of the Adminis trator.

The question of representation in the Federal Parliament is a difficult one, and probably would be better left alone until such time as the country was settled. A possible step might be the appointment, by voting of all districts, of a non-voting member of the Australian House of Re presentatives, with the same position as that of Mr. Blain, in the Northern Ter ritory.

The old basis, of each of the large trading companies automatically having a representative in the Assembly, also the Missions and the oil companies, etc., is quite unsound, to my way of thinking, and definitely an obstacle to the proper development of the country.

The questions of land titles, adjust ment of wages of labourers indentured at the Jap invasion, trading rights, etc., bristle with difficulties, because most of the records were held in Rabaul. Sala maua and Lae, both Government and companies’ records, appear to have been lost, and will probably not be available in the future.

Selection Of Administrator

THE problem of selection of an Ad ministrator, or Governor, will be difficult. We have seen the bad results of purely political appointments in the past, and it is to be hoped that any future appointment will be made on a new basis.

The main requirements, in my view, are that the man selected shall be picked purely for his ability to handle the job.

He should be entirely free from politics or political control, and he should have had wide experience, in NG or elsewhere, of handling the questions that will arise in the future. He should have unques tioned ability in administration, in the narrower sense of the term, and he must have a “presence,” a definite personality, otherwise he will not be respected by the natives.

• “Australian New Guinea” is now apparently the official name for “the Territory of Papua and the Mandated Territory of New Guinea.”

The office of Administrator should be as free as possible from the control of the Department in Canberra. In the past, Canberra has exercised a tight hold over the Administrator, and allowed him small exercise of authority. Nearly all main questions were settled in a Depart mental office, over 2,000 miles away, often by Departmental heads, or by politicians who had no knowledge of the country other than that gained by the perusal of reports.

It is the old question of delegation of command. In a business, or in the Army, you try to select the right man for the job; and then, if you are going to have success, you leave it to him as much as possible to justify your selection, by trusting him and giving him a free hand.

Involved in this question is that of remuneration. The Administrator’s sal ary should be sufficient to maintain the dignity of the office; and, in order to get the right man, should be equivalent to what a man who possesses the required qualities would be paid in a high execu tive position in commercial life. The inadequate salary previously paid was one of the reasons why, when civil ad ministration was first instituted, the Mandated Territory lost the services of Colonel Tom Griffiths, who, in the opin ion of many of us old-timers, was one of Australia’s outstanding administrators.

More Power For Do’S

AS regard the running of districts by the District Officers —the same re strictions crippled them, as hap pened between the Administrator and Canberra. All important district matters had to be referred to Rabaul, and were often decided by officials who did not have the intimate and personal know ledge of the particular problem which was possessed by the man on the spot.

The DO’s must be given fuller powers and wider authority and then, if the right men are selected, they will be able to relieve the Central Administration of a lot of detailed work and, at the same time, obtain better results.

The legal side of the District Ser vices certainly needs readjustment. I think that there should be one law for the white man and orffe for the native.

The native, in his own dealings, is simple and direct—cause and effect are what appeal to him. Punishment should fol low crime without delay; and the long, written procedure of the Australian Courts is entirely unsuitable because it is not understood by natives.

The native has his own standards of crime and punishment in his own village life, and crimes which are heinous to us, are often trivial, by his ideas, and

vice versa. To illustrate what I mean, I will quote an experience of a friend of mine.

Remarkable Case Of “Justice”

ABOUT 15 years ago, in the Kavieng district, a boy broke into his store, and stole £lO. Through native information, he traced the boy, who con fessed to him that he was guilty. He took the boy before the Magistrate in Kavieng, and was told that the latter would hear the evidence. This was taken down, and the native pleaded guilty. Because it was over £5, the Magistrate had no power to decide the case and it was remanded to Rabaul. My friend had to leave his business and, with accused and witnesses, attend Rabaul. In the Rabaul Court, the evi dence taken in the lower Court was not admissable. The accused was advised to plead not guilty, which he did. The interpreter provided knew only the Rabaul type of Pidgin, which differs in many ways from Kavieng Pidgin, and even then he knew only the house-boy Pidgin, and not the real native type. At the conclusion of the trial, the Rabaul Magistrate gave a lengthy interpretation in plain English, which was then badly turned into Pidgin by the Court inter preter. This dissertation dwelt upon the goodness and nobility, etc., of English justice, and how it was employed to see that the natives got a fair trial. It then ended by saying that because there was reasonable doubt, the charge was dis missed.

Needless to say, the only person more surprised than my friend was the accused. From the time of the theft to the dismissal of the charge, two months were occupied, by which time the mat ter had faded from the minds of the natives. When they heard the result, they just couldn’t understand English justice, and asked my friend if we had passed a new law which permitted them to steal,

Summary Punishment

WHAT is required is greater power for the man on the spot, the District Officer, and a system of summary and, where necessary, corporal punish ment.

Bulaminski, who was the German DO at Kavieng 30 years ago, is still remem bered with awe and respect by the natives because of his firmness and jus tice. He dealt with matters summarily, and without delay. His sentences might have been harsh, but they were impartial and not vindictive; and, in most cases, punishment—usually corporal—took place on the spot, as soon as sentence was pronounced.

The natives understood and appreciated this; and, during Bulaminski’s regime, crime in New Ireland was negligible.

As a result of the contrast between the German and Australian types of justice, the natives of New Ireland have often asked me how we beat the Germans in the war—because, as they said, the Ger mans were strong men and we were weak.

With them the word “strong” means “stern but just,” and to be termed a “strong fella man” is one of the highest compliments the natives can pay.

Stop “Dummying”!

ANOTHER matter requiring considera tion is the limitation of the total permissible amount of land to be held by any one individual, firm, mission, etc.

As a result of dummying when the plantations were sold to returned soldiers

after the first war, and owing to the depression, with subsequent foreclosures, by 1939 the big trading firms and the missions between them held the bulk of the plantation and trading rights.

This was a bad thing for the Territory, and for the natives, because the firms paid very low wages to their overseers.

Large numbers of people with no stake or interest in the country were intro duced. They often stayed only for two terms and then were found not of a suit able type. The reputation and status of the white men suffered accordingly.

I would suggest private ownership by large numbers of people, who would be independent of the firms, and who would bring in their families, and become permanent residents. This is essential, and would be of great help in the control and development of the native races.

There are many other problems to be considered, and I would welcome an interchange of ideas with any who are concerned about our future. The fore going, however, should indicate the lines upon which I and some of my friends are thinking. And it is only by con structive thinking and discussion that we can evolve a concrete scheme for pre sentation to the Government when the future is being decided.