“Govern Or Get Out!”

Authoritative Voice on ANGAU and Papua

Written for “PIM” by a Former Member of Papuan Public Service

RECENTLY, in a Boston (USA) publi cation, there appeared under the heading of “What Will We Do With the Marshalls?” the following pregnant paragraph: “Military occupation in Mandated Ter ritory has no precedent, as the mandate is a new thing in the modern world.

Under international law, a military occu pation, during wartime, is not supposed to initiate any changes, unless required by the necessities of war. Once order is restored, the rule for the civilian popula tion is ‘business as usual.’ ”

In principle, does not the final sentence now apply to the Territory of Papua— although it is an integral part of the Commonwealth? A Commonwealth mili tary force remains in occupation after order has been restored.

Were the matter tested in the Courts it almost certainly would be ruled that the continued contumacy by the military, in continuing to completely occupy the Ter ritory, under the guise of ANGAU. is an illegality.

The obvious course for ANGAU is to vacate Port Moresby as its headquarters, and occupy Lae, the formerly-decided-on capital of the Mandated Territory of New Guinea. Portions of the Mandated Ter ritory are still in enemy hands —Bougainville, Rabaul, Wewak, etc.—although well bottled up.

PAPUA, on the other hand, has been free of enemy occupation for about U years, with a very remote chance of its being re-occupied by the enemy in this war. That one or two garrisons, or supply stations, will still be necessary, is

a safe but they would not feature in the administration of the Ter ritory, which again would become civil.

'yn’ERE ANGAU to-day gracious enough T? to permit every former resident to return, and even to admit new comers, it could not lawfully govern them, it not having been invested with the necessary powers, as laid down under the Constitution of the Territory of Papua (Papua Act, 1905-24) which pro vides. inter alia, for the possession of the Public Seal, which most certainly should not be held by ANGAU.

Furthermore, whatever “changes it initiated” during occupation which should be solely for the purpose of resist ing. and driving the enemy from the Ter ritory—must come to an end “once order has been restored.” Its continuance of occupation after this happening does not permit it to exercise functions which were relegated to the properly constituted civil administration, which It ousted.

Nor can it legally repeal any laws and regulations relating to natives which were enacted by that Administration, or insti tute laws and regulations of its own “once order has been restored.”

Consequently, ANGAU can do no other than twiddle its thumbs and preserve order where necessary—or die of ennui.

It does not even have the legal power to dispense justice outside its own mili tary orbit. Not all “the authority” of the Commonwealth (except that might is right) can alter this condition. It would require an Act of Parliament to perfect it.

Although rights of transfer are on broad lines they do not go so far as to

furnish an open cheque without a limit.

Transfer is a means and not an end.

THERE is this about it, however: that were the military in Papua an invading conquering force, it could substitute laws and regulations for the populace. But ANGAU, as its appella tion denotes, never was such a force; it simply assumed protective guardianship.

That responsibility ended positively with the eviction of enemy forces, about the end of 1942, when “the rule for the civilian population was ‘business as usual.’ ” By retaining possession of the Territory, ANGAU assumes a dog-in-the manger attitude, and behaves against the best interests of the Commonwealth as a whole which, to give it its due, it has worthily protected.

Cannot it now come off its high horse and, in short, rest sweetly on its laurels, with the reflection of veni, vidi, vicit It would be most unwise for the Army authorities to remain in “administrative” possession “for the duration,” because that' period may be much longer than generally is anticipated. It would mean that, in the long interval, the Territory would slowly be strangled into a state of unconsciousness.

THE whole matter has to be looked at along broad lines, in the common interests of the Australian taxpay ers, and subscribers to loans. Papua, in 1925-26, totalled its imports and exports with £1,120.147. It should be capable of repeating this record, if given the chance, and so becoming less of a burden to the Commonwealth.

At this juncture, 1944, the production of the Territory is confined to the littoral between Daru, in the west, and Abau, in the east—a distance of only 500 miles, out of 1,728 miles on the mainland. This does not include 1,936 miles on the adjoining islands, which latter, of con siderable number, have an area of about 2.754 square miles.

These islands, between 1921 and 1926, in fishing products alone (beche-de-mer, pearl-shell, pearls, trochus-shell, turtle shell and shell NED yielded £161,233 in export value; copra, gold and gums (£5,275) being excluded. Total exports for those years were: Gold, £145,442, and copra, £713,519.

Such pearl-shells, gold and gums Aus tralia requires very badly just now. But the exiled residents of those islands, and of the east and north-east coast of the mainland, are debarred from returning to the Territory.

ANOTHER important matter ,is that the island of Samarai —the former warehouse for these exports—was razed in 1942, to baulk the Japanese, who twice had bombed it, and is no more now than a convalescent retreat for some members of the Forces.

Is it going to be re-established as an entrepot for the whole of the north, north-east, east and south-east divisions, or is another site to be selected?

Without something immediatelv being done, the valuable products of all these large magisterial divisions will have to remain sick and feeble, and they will represent a national loss of hundreds of thousands of pounds.

This is a good example of how a part of the Territory is already being strangled, when there is no necessity for it—not even a vestige of commonsense. rpHERE is the probability of newcomers JL to the Territory, such as ex-Service men, who may well be appalled at the prospect of nerhaps having to wait until the end of the two wars before they can ffo (or return as civilians) to Papua, to try their luck and help to again put it on its economic feet.

A cruel wrong is being done to exiled residents who. most of them no longer young men, are refused the opportunity to try and restore their fallen fortunes.

If the Commonwealth is going to play an important part in the Pacific Islands at its doors, it will have to do better than what is going on in Papua now—or else it will earn an unfavourable reputa tion abroad. Both Parliament and the Army will have to take the blame.

If Australia really aims at socialising the Papuans, it ought to be urged to leave well alone, because 60 years of trial and error have provided a common mean in regard to the natives who were insis tentlv told bv the late Sir Hubert Mur ray that in their callings they were “free agents.” Must we break faith with the Papuans who have been extolled for their aid in a national crisis?

Rudvard Kipling describes his meeting with Theodore Roosevelt, not long after ttsa had acquired the Philippines; and Roosevelt was inclined to advise England on colonial administration.

“His views on Egypt were sound,” writes Kipling, “and his text was ‘govern or get out.’”

ANGAU cannot “govern,” because it has not the necessary constitutional powers, so there is no alternative for it.

The present stalemate should be ended without delay. It is not only ludicrous but chaotic in practice, and in principle. True Australians may Well blush for it.

Mr. Lloyd Smythe, who spent his youth in Suva, and who recently graduated in Science at Sydney University, has announced his engagement to Miss Jill Haynes, only daughter of Mr. and Mrs.

L. T. Haynes, of Cremorne, Sydney. Mr.

Smvthe is the eldest son of Mr. and Mrs.

H. E. Smythe, of Suva, who are at present on vacation leave in Sydney.