Papuan Firms Sue
p. 10 · Read in the full issue
Commonwealth £37,740 Claimed
WRITS totalling £37,740/10/10 have
been taken out in the High Court of Australia by two Papuan firms. The firms are Steamship Trading Co., Ltd., and Sawmillers and Traders, Ltd., owned by the same people.
Steamship Trading Co., Ltd., claim for rental of certain buildings and premises occupied by the Government in Papua The amount claimed is £13,097/10/-.
Sawmillers and Traders, Ltd., claim £24,643/6/10, made up as follows: £22,956/3/- for certain timber cut and sawn at Port Romiliy sawmills, New Guinea; £326/17/4 for stone stocks taken over by the defendants; £760/6/6 for tim ber stocks taken over; and £6OO . for alleged loss sustained to a rubber nur sery, 30 miles from Port Romiliy.
The writs are issued against the Fed eral Government, the Minister for the Army (Mr. Forde), the Minister for External Territories (Mr. Ward), and the Production Control Board.
Many other claims against the same authority will depend upon the outcome of this action. Territorians generally will be grateful to Captain Fitch and his co-directors for forcing the long argu ment about Army liability to an issue.