Mr. Ward Thought It Subversive

But News of Evacuees' "Secession" Move Reached USA

F will be remembered that at the annual general meeting of the Pacific Territories Association, in Sydney, in June, 1944, certain mem bers moved that an appeal be made to Great Britain for the severance of Papua and New Guinea from Austra lian administration. Mr. R. W. Robson proposed an amendment namely, that an appeal should be made to the United States also. The amendment was defeated, and the motion deferred for consideration.

The proposal created a seven-day’s wonder in the Sydney press at that time. One of the least things Aus tralian Territories Minister “Eddie”

Ward said about it was that it was “subversive.” But it has not gone unnoticed that some of the out standing grievances that Territorian evacuees then had, have been rectified in the past year.

That news of the proposed secession reached the outside world is proved by the following extracts from an article by Robert Dean Frisbie. The

full article appeared in the “Evening

Sun/’ Baltimore, Maryland, USA, on

December 14. rE evacuated territorians, now in Aus tralia, are naturally protesting- at the reluctance of the Commonwealth Government to allow them to return. At the last annual meeting of the Terri tories Association it was moved that they submit to Great Britain a demand for severance from Australian administra tion; and at the same meeting Mr. R. w.

Robson, editor of “Pacific Islands Monthly,” moved as an amendment that their demand be submitted also to the United States. The amendment was de feated, 2 to 1, but even at that it is illu minating : anyone suggesting such an amendment two years ago would have been mobbed.

The New Guinea territorians naturally wish to return to their plantations, but only in a few cases has this been per mitted. Those from the Australian Ter ritory of Papua point out that when United- States troops have recaptured Japanese-occupied islands, the civil authorities have been invited to return to their duties, while in Papua the Army has been in charge since the end of

1942, albeit the Japanese have been driven out. The bitter feeling of the terri torial is expressed by Mr. Robson in the August issue of his news-magazine:— The Australian Government, being little better than an unco-ordinated gang of bumble-footed blunderers, allows bureaucracy to do what it likes with the Territories. . . .Mr. Leonard Murray (former administrator) is kept idle in Australia, .while an elaborate and ex pensive organisation, headed by a full major-general and sprinkled liberally with colonels, majors and captains, is having a pleasant time in the Territory, being in no way responsible to the Aus tralian Department, and enjoying the un checked authority and unlimited money available to the Army in war-time.”

This military administration is called ANGAU (Australian and New Guinea Administrative Unit), and is under the command of Major-General Morris. Some of its critics admit that there is an excuse for ANGAU in the Mandated Territory; but' they point out that the civil adminis tration should return to Papua, or at least the planters should be allowed to return.

Interdiction of indentured labour means to the planters (if They -are permitted to return) that they must import Asiatic labour (if they are permitted to do so).

Most South Pacific tropicopolitans believe that the indenture svstem is by no means slavery. An indenture is a contract that binds a person to work for a given period for a master, and likewise binds , the master in matters of wages, food, and so on.

To the submen of New Guinea this is a protection, as well as to the planters.

Because the system has been in use many years, the Fuzzy Wuzzies know exactly what they are doing when they put their crosses on the dotted line; and after they have done so they do not consider them selves slaves, but, conversely, free men who have, on their own initiative, con tracted to work for a certain period. Also, they consider themselves fortunate; and I believe that most observers will agree that a year or so in a labour gang be comes the high light in a native’s life.

It seems to this writer that, as free human beings, the Fuzzy Wuzzies have the right to hire themselves under the terms of any contract that pleases them.

We cannot force a man to be free by refusing to allow him to indenture him self, for in doing sd we trammel his free dom by our coercion. Freedom cannot be forced upon a person, for it ceases to be freedom when coercion is used.

I have written at length on this phase of the Fuzzy Wuzzie fracas because it is being used as a fulcrum to restrict the territorians’ return to their plantations, and to build up a fantastic socialistic state. It is certain that the evacuated territorians are fighting mad. Probably they will take their cause to England, and even to the United: States.