Jap Criminals,
p. 21 · Read in the full issue
Manus,
And Dr. Evatt
rE trial, at Manus Island, New Guinea, of 90 Japanese accused of war crimes, which commenced in June, 1950, ended in April. Of the 90, 32 were acquitted, 13 were sentenced to death, and the remainder to imprisonment.
Of the 13 condemned, the sentence of one was commuted. The other 12 were to be hung, in April, in a secluded place in Manus. The other convicted men are being used as labourers on the naval base in Manus.
The old Army camp, which was used for so long by the War Crimes Trial Unit (which has now returned to Australia) has already been taken over by the Works and Housing Department, which plans to accommodate there no less that 200 Euro peans and 400 native labourers. This very large staff is being employed on the main tenance or rebuilding of the naval base.
It will be remembered that the United States (which built here the largest naval and air base in the South Pacific) offered to occupy and maintain the base, at its own expense, if Australia were agreeable.
The offer was haughtily rejected by Aus tralia’s “Foreign Affairs Minister,” Dr.
Evatt, on the ground that Australia would not surrender an inch of her territory. The Americans, without another word, with drew; and now Australia is struggling with the colossal task of trying to maintain the base.
Meanwhile, Dr. Evatt has been clawed very serevely in the Australian general elections of April 28. At the moment of this writing, he is only 200 ahead of his
opponent (a woman) in the Barton seat, where he used to have a 14,000 majority.
That is what Australia thinks of him.
Miss Maureen Costello, of Suva, Fiji, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dan Costello, was in Sydney in May en route to the United Kingdom where she will stay with her cousin Mrs. J. Bray, who before her marriage was Peg Costello, daughter of
Mr. and Mrs, Pat Costello, of Suva, The trip to Britain is a 21st birthday present to Miss Maureen from her parents.
Mr. A, Cowley, of Nukualofa, Tonga, was 92 years old on May 5. In an early issue of the PIM we shall publish some thing about the life, and the remarkable literary ability, of this very old and highly esteemed resident of the Tongan Islands.