South Seas Regional Commission

Now Being Urged Upon United Nations by NZ and Australia

T r E formation of a South Seas Regional Commission , whose object apparently is to co-ordinate the administrative policies and mach inery of the various South Pacific Territories, is being urged by the Governments of Australia and New Zealand.

It was provided in the Australian- New Zealand agreement signed at Canberra on January 21, 1944, that Ministers should confer, on matters of mutual interest, at Canberra and Wellington alternately. The first of

these conferences was held at Wel lington between November 1 and 5, 1944.

According to the official report (fust received) many matters were discussed, one of which was the future control of South Pacific Territories.

Extracts from official statements, deal ing with the latter matter, are as follow :

Scope Of Agreement

riTHE Agreement contemplates inter- A national arrangements for future security and welfare in the South west Pacific, arrived at on the basis of discussion and consultation be tween all powers concerned, said Rt.

Hon. H. V. Evatt (Australian Minister for External Affairs).

Division of responsibilities for de fence and the maintenance of security bases; mutual facilities in such bases; the disposal of enemy territories; changes in the system of control in particular territories; the policing of agreed areas; measures to promote native welfare and economic develop ment in Pacific Territories—all these matters are treated in the Agreement as matters for settlement through consultation between all Governments concerned.

The one thing we have consistently claimed is that, in this region, which is more directly vital to us than to any other nation, and where our des tiny lies, these things should be determined only after full prior con sultation with us. . . .

It is urgently necessary to provide machinery for the promotion of human welfare in all parts of the world. But we feel a special re sponsibility for non-self-governing Territories in the region in which we live and in neighbouring regions. We feel that great constructive work can be and should be done by the Govern ments responsible for Territories in the South Seas and in the South-east Asia region to provide for mutual assistance, exchange of information and collaboration in problems, such as health, transport, economic develop ment and native welfare.

Commission’S Constitution

11TE endeavoured to give a lead in this matter of regional colla boration by proposing in the Austra lian-New Zealand Agreement the establishment of a Commission to advise the various Governments re sponsible for Territories in the Pacific Islands. Here in Wellington, we re examined our proposals relating to the South Seas Regional Commission with a view to the establishment of the Commission in 1945.

In the Agreement we had suggested the purposes of the Commission, and in Wellington we proceeded to con sider what should be the general form of the organisation, and what steps might be taken to bring together the

other Governments concerned, and get the Commission established as a going concern.

On the present occasion we decided, so far as our two Governments were concerned, that the South Seas Com mission should consist of represen tatives of all the Governments and Administrations in the region, and that there should be a permanent secretariat, as well as research and functional bodies established by Governments on the advice of the Commission.

We considered that provision should be made for associating with the work of the Commission existing re search and functional bodies, and that, in order to provide a suitable forum for the discussion of Pacific Islands problems, there should be held regularly a South Seas confer ence which might comprise nominees of the Governments represented on the Commission and of international organisations concerned with welfare problems.

We would think it appropriate that among these nominees there should be representatives of scientific bodies, missionary bodies, and native peoples.

We also considered that, wherever practicable, native peoples should be' enabled to take part in the work of the Commission and its agencies.

We are hopeful that there will be early action to set up the South Seas Commission. The greater part of the area concerned has never been oc cupied by the Japanese and the enemy has been thrown out of much of that part of the area which he occupied in 1942. The war, however, has dis turbed the economic and social life of the main Pacific Islands, and the problems of rehabilitation and post war development are already urgent.

Since there are three other Govern ments with territorial interests in the area concerned, Australia and New Zealand are about to consult with the other Governments as to the con stitution and establishment of the Commission.

While Australia and New Zealand feel that they have a special re sponsibility in this South-west Pacific area, in which they are the two main representatives of Western civilisation, they do not approach South Seas problems in any exclusive spirit what ever. ' Their objective is the fullest and friendliest co-operation between all powers and all administrations in the region.

An International Body

THE Wellington conference (said Mr.

Fraser, Prime Minister of New Zealand) gave consideration to the means of achieving the objectives of colonial welfare set out in clauses 28 to 31 of the Australian-New Zealand Agreement, in which it is declared that “in applying the principles of the Atlantic Charter to the Pacific, the doctrine of ‘trusteeship’ (already applicable in the case of the Man dated Territories of which the two Governments are mandatory powers) is applicable in broad principle to all colonial Territories in the Pacific and elsewhere, and that the main purpose

of the trust is the welfare of A\e native peoples.

We feel that there should be set up, as part of the general international organisation, an international body analogous to the Permanent Mandates Commission, to which colonial powers should undertake to make reports on the administration of their colonial Territories. This body should be em powered to visit dependent Territories, and to publish reports of its delibera tions. We believe that this is a natural implication of the spirit of “trusteeship” for dependent peoples, and, for our part, we are willing to subscribe to a general undertaking to that effect as regards both colonies and Mandated Territories.

“Specific Objective”

QUITE apart from this system of international supervision of colonial administration, which we be lieve should be binding on trustee States (whatever arrangements they might make for regional collaboration with other trustee States) we are anxious to promote a Regional Com mission as a means by which the Governments and Administrations of the South Seas area may pool their experience and collaborate in joint schemes with a view to furthering the welfare of the dependent peoples and their social, economic and political development.

It is part of our proposal that re presentatives of the dependent peoples

should be associated wherever pos sible with the regional body, its secre tariat, and with any of the welfare

and research agencies which might be brought within its framework.

The establishment of this South Seas Regional Commission is one of the specific objectives of the Australian-New Zealand Agreement which we have endeavoured to further by our discussions.

In the Australian-New Zealand

Agreement we proposed that in addi tion to representatives of Australia and New Zealand, there might be on the Commission representatives of the Governments of the United Kingdom and the United States of America, and of France. We are ready for our part to enter into early consultation with the other Governments concerned and to exchange views upon the form of the Commission.