NG Living Conditions

Sir Alan Burns Was Amazed at NG Living Conditions

CIR ALAN BURNS, who was a member of the UN Trusteeship

Council delegation which inspected

the Pacific Trusteeship territories

earlier this year, was interviewed by New Commonwealth (which incor porates Crown Colonist ) on his return to London. Sir Alan, a former

Governor of the Gold Coast, evidently

did not think much of New Guinea.

The following, published in October

Issue of New Commonwealth, tells

vhy.

A SKED to describe unusual features in c\ the systems of administration. Sir Alan, speaking from long experience n British Colonial territories, said he found nothing new or strange in the Dolicies that were being pursued in the rrust Territories by the Administering Uithorities. “It was in the methods by vhich the various Administering Authori ses carried out the accepted policies that : found the greatest differences.

“In the American Trust Territory, for example, although a form of ‘indirect •ule’ had been established this had re ulted in no economy of staff or reduction n the costs of administration. On the ;ontrary, remembering the chronic short ige of staff in most of the British Colonial erritories in which I have served, the lumber of American officials (mostly laval officials) in the American islands ippeared to me to be extravagant.

“While admiring what the US Govem nent is doing, and the officers carrying ut the work, I was left with the uncom ortable feeling that perhaps it is doing do much for the people, and is not in isting that the people themselves should 0 more towards their own development.

“New Guinea, under Australian trustee hip, is probably less developed than any ther comparable territory in the world, lany of the tribes are extremely back ward, and some are not yet under control.

“For its size, New Guinea is well pro ided with airfields, and air services along tie coast and the interior of the ter itory are regular and frequent. The otential wealth of New Guinea must be Dnsiderable but it can never be developed ithout roads, which are practically non xistent. A country can be opened up by ir communications, as has indeed been roved in New Guinea, but it can never b effectively developed without road (or lil) transport, and I should be inclined ) make road construction the first priority 1 New Guinea.”

It was surprising to learn that the liv ig conditions of Australian officials in ew Guinea are very bad. Some improve lent in their salary scales has recently sen approved (“not a moment too soon good men are to be retained in the ervice”), but Sir Alan thinks it will robably be a long time before they can be Bcently housed. “Making all allowances )r the destruction caused by the war, n insufficient effort seems to have been lade by Government to build proper aarters for its officers. I can imagine ie consternation (if nothing worse) of n official from Nigeria or the Gold Coast he were asked to inhabit one of the puses occupied by Australian officials in ew Guinea. Having myself stayed in ime of these houses, I speak from ex erience.”

VESTERN SAMOA, under New Zealand trusteeship, he said, presents a dif ferent picture. The country has an

intelligent, friendly and hospitable people who, on the one hand, are asking for self-government (or, at any rate, for a greater control over their own affairs), and, on the other, are determined to main tain their traditional customs and an aristocratic form of local government which, as Sir Alan put it, “would strike

the believer in the sanctity of the ballot box as the antithesis of democracy.”

Much of the time that the leaders de vote to long-drawn-out ceremonies and oratory could, he thought, “be more ad vantageously spent.” But the people are happy—far happier than those in some more highly developed democracies.

Mrs. Rachael Carr, wife of the late Mr, Robert Carr, formerly a well-known planter of Ba, Fiji, has been ill recently in Sydney. She is staying with Mrs. C.

G. H. Simpson, Crescent Street, Hunters Hill.