Future Of Certain
p. 11 · Read in the full issue
Pacific Territories
THE Governor of Fiji and High Com missioner for the Western Pacific, Sir Alexander Grantham, is ex pected to visit Australia shortly.
It is understood he will confer at Canberra with representatives of the Australian Government with reference to the Australian-New Zealand plans for the formation of a South Seas Regional Com mission. It is proposed that the Com mission, as part of UNO machinery, should act as a co-ordinating authority covering the administrations of all Terri tories in the South-west and South central Pacific.
A report from Canberra says that “the South Seas Commission Conference, pro bably in October, will be attended by representatives of Britain, United States, France, New Zealand, Australia and Portugal.” Is the omission of Holland an error bv the reporter or the Minister?
It is indicated by certain signs that South Pacific Territories which are to be held at the disposal of UNO, probably through the medium of the South Seas Regional Commission, include: ■ Mandated Territory of New Guinea. ■ Condominium of the New Hebrides. ■ British Protectorate of Solomon Islands. ■ Mandated Territory of Western Samoa.
Sir Alexander Grantham, as High Com missioner for the Western Pacific, is, of course, directly interested in the plans for the Solomon Islands and New Hebrides; and, through his governorship of Fiji snd supervision over the Gilbert and Ellice Islands and Tonga, he is indirectly in terested in Regional Commission pro posals.
It is not expected, however, that the Anzac plans for a South Seas Regional Commission will take definite shape until UNO has dealt with the subject of trustee ship—and that may be some considerable time.
At the moment of this writing, the fate of UNO is really being decided by the 21 nations which are squabbling in Paris at what some humourists have called “The Peace Conference.”