Post-War Problems

Book Review:

and Rice Production

Report of Institute of Public Relations

ALTHOUGH the tenth conference of the Institute of Pacific Relations was held in September, 1947, papers of the conference were published only in December, 1949. As might b$ expected, the intervening two years showed some developments that were not bargained for in the earlier year, but as the 10th con ference was devoted to a consideration of reconstruction in the Far East, and as that area has continued in a state of flux, the conclusions reached then were not too wide of the mark.

Although reconstruction in the south west Pacific was included in the survey, as far as the published papers are con cerned, this area seems to have been treated as a minor affair. However, ade quate consideration was given to the problems of Southeast Asia, an area that is of vital interest to the Southwest Pacific.

Consideration of Southeast Asia, while more or less diagnosing the cause of the troubles that have intensified in Indo nesia and Malaya in the past two years, throws some light on the rice shortages that have been felt in Southeast Asia and Oceania generally.

Burma, it is stated, suffered the greatest destruction of any country in the area due to scorched-earth policies and two major campaigns which covered the whole country. Burmese cities were almost completely destroyed and the communi cations system suffered badly. In the rest of Southeast Asia there was some bombing of cities but most destruction was done to communications, particularly to railways. Junks and river boats were also targets for destruction.

One result of this destruction of com munications was the difficulty of distri buting food—mainly rice. There appeared to be no rice shortage within Burma but inadequate distribution in the north of the country at times has caused near famine. For the same reasons surplus rice production has not been properly distributed in Siam and Indo-China.

DAMAGE to irrigation works in Indo nesia had serious consequences for rice production and in Indo-China collapse of the dyke systems on the Red River caused flooding. In Burma failure to maintain dykes and drainage systems let salt water infiltrate the rice lands of the Delta.

In Indonesia the Japs ordered 50 per cent, of the rice crop to be handed over to them and this led to a sharp decline in production. Japs slaughtered great numbers of oxen and water buffalo for meat in all these rice producing countries leaving insufficient beasts to work the land.

Central Burma has been beset by bandits and these have been encouraged by Com munists for political reasons. This dis order caused cultivators to leave their

holdings.

As a result of these various forms of war damage and conditions arising out of post-war developments, exports of sur plus rice, before the war one of the sources of national income, fell away, in some instances, to nothing and non-rice growing countries of the Orient and Oceania found themselves without their chief item of diet. Chief country in this category was Malaya where rice was severely rationed after the war.

Export of rice from Southeast Asia be fore the war was between six and seven, million tons per annum; in 1946-47 it had fallen to li million tons.

As well as dealing with Southeast Asia, the report of the conference discusses problems of reconstruction in Japan, China, and Korea and devotes chapters to industrial development, international economic problems, education and tech nology.

Copies of the report are $1.35 and may be obtained from the Institute of Pacific Relations, 1 E, 54th St., New York 22, NY.

Mrs. W. R. Cahill, of Wagol plantation, Madang, New Guinea, accompanied by her sister, Miss Therese O’Brien, arrived in Brisbane recently en route to Sydney and England.