in Papua

Civil Administration in Papua Restoration Early in 1945

AFTER a delay of which there has been no explanation—except the indifference of the Australian Gov ernment towards all Pacific Territories matters—the Cabinet Sub-committee set up to deal with Territories administra tion met in Canberra on Friday, Septem ber 8, with Mr. Ward as chairman,- No official report was but, within the next tw’o days, various news papers published the following, as news from Canberra: .

Civil administration will be restored in the Territory of Papua early in 1945.

The administration of the Mandated Territory of New Guinea will remain the responsibility of the Army.

The Port Moresby branch of the Com monwealth Bank will soon be reopened.

The laws of the Territories will be con solidated and re-printed.

Special steps will be taken to ‘ meet the needs of 2,000 Chinese who have been liberated from the Japanese; and appro priate supplies, including food and cloth ing, will be provided for them.”

A plan for supplying Papua and New Guinea with labour, as an alternative to indentured native labour, is being pre pared. There will be stricter Government supervision over labour. Labour members are dissatisfied with the present system.

Another meeting of the Cabinet Sub committee will be held on Friday, Sep tember 15.

The foregoing statements were “un official,” but they appear to have been supplied to the reporters by Mr. Ward.

How their publication in this form created a situation that is as confusing as it is baffling is explained in an article on page 3.