To be Headquarters of

Future Of Soomons

Hcwp

IT was officially announced in Lon dnn and c-nva in a ncmct St, when the ot the Governor of Fiji and High Commissioner for the Western Pacific expires early in 1952, the two positions will be separated.

The headquarters of the HCWP will be established at Honiara, in the Solomon Islands; and a resi dent High Commissioner for the Western Pacific will have charge of the British Solomons, the Gilbert and Ellice Colony and the British side of the New Hebrides Condo tninium.

It is reported, unofficially, that official connection with the pro tected Kingdom of Tonga will be maintained through Fiji. Nothing has been said about Pitcairn Is land, which is a long way from Honiara.

So Transfer To Australia

(From Our Honiara Correspondent) |N an address from the Honiara 1 radio station on September 2, the visiting Minister of State for Colonial Affairs (Mr. Dugdale) de- Glared that “a greater future awaited the Solomons.” It was not

intended to transfer the Protec torate to Australia, or anyone else.

Britain had no intention of desert ing the Solomons. This did not mean that the Solomons would be made into a fortress. It meant that the Protectorate would sever all connection with Fiji and become to the Secretary of state for the Colonies.

He recognised BSI needed more help in economic development, par ticularly in encouragement of the timber industry and of crops other than copra; and that more schools and hospitals were needed. While the Colonial Office would do everything possible to help, shortage of build ing materials and trained staff, par ticularly teaching staff, was world wide, and must hamper any rapid expansion of medical and educa tional services. The Colonial Office was keenly interested in local prob lems and intended to wipe out the idea, prevalent in some quarters, that the Solomons were a forgotten land.

Accompanied by the Resident £°™“ sa i° ne £ Mr. H. G Gregory Smith, Mr. Dugdale spent about a week touring the Solomons, visiting the Russell Islands, Western Solo mons, Auki and Tulagi. He met most of the Europeans and the leading traders and natives and visited various institutions and was warmly entertained.

This is the RAAF crash-boat which went [?]ut from Manus, New Guinea, and caught [?]he Japanese shell-poachers red-handed.

The District Commissioner. Mr. Tom Aitchison (hatless), who directed opera-

tions, is second from the right. This photo was taken when the boat carried Minister P. C. Spender (in panama, on right) around Manus.