Some Women May

Return to Papua Certain Mandated Territory Planters, Too

SEVERAL women residents of Papua, now living as evacuees in Australia, have received letters from the De partment of External Territories stating that consideration will be given their applications to return to certain areas of Papua in the near future.

Nothing official -has been received from the Department by the Pacific Territories Association or any of the bodies inter ested in Territories affairs, but it is known that several women have received these notifications, and that applications will be considered only from women whose husbands have already returned to the Territory as planters under the con trol of the Production Board, or from women who, prior to the evacuation, were operating- their own plantations.

No children will, of course, be permitted to return: women will be required to pay their own fare and they will also be required to sign a set of “conditions.”

The conditions, it is understood, are those under which planters returned in 1943 (they cover purchase of goods, stores, plantation labour, the acknowledgment of the supreme authority of the military authorities, etc.).

There has been considerable agitation on the part of planters for the return of their wives—particularly in view of the fact that women missionaries were per mitted to return and that there are in Papua, great numbers of nurses and other female Army personnel. The reason for keeping these women out of their own Territory all these months is obscure; so also is the reason behind the demand that, should their applications be approved, they pay their own return fares. Whatever the technical rights and privileges of the Commonwealth Govern ment, to return these evacuees at Gov

eminent expense would at least have been ®,^' n ?P^ het 1 ic gesture to men and women who have already lost so much.

Territorians who have hoped that civil administration in Papua could not now be long delayed, may feel it wise to pause and consider: as the Commonwealth is embarking on the lengthy procedure of receiving applications” from a few chosen women, perhaps the Government does not even yet contemplate the return of Papua to civilian control for a long time to come. * [LATER:In response to a telegram from the PTA, the External Territories Dept, has verified the fact that applications to return will be considered from certain women from Papua.]

Some Ng Planters May Go

IT is known also that some planters from the Mandated Territory have received notification from the Exter nal Territories Department that applica tions will be considered from planters in accessible areas of the Territory for return under similar conditions to those under which Papuan planters returned in mid-1943.

It should be noted that in both the case of the women evacuees of Papua and the planters of the ex-Mandate, there is no definite promise that any par ticular person can return at will—it is merely stated that “applications will be considered.”