Master Charges Crew

With Assault

From Our Own Correspondent MADANG, January 22.

CAPTAIN THOMAS, master of the MV Mar ova, recently laid charges of assault against six members of his native crew. He alleged in the Madang District Court that the ships bo’sun and five other native crew members attacked him while the ship was at sea be tween Madang and Bogia on the New Guinea mainland coast.

District Magistrate Ormsby com mitted the bo’sun for trial on a charge of assault. Four other natives were sentenced to six weeks’ gaol, and the fifth was discharged, as he gave evidence that he had tried to restrain the other natives.

In the December issue of PIM a similar occurrence was reported from Kavieng, when the Master of the MV Mainiro charged members of his crew with assault.

It is noticeable that the word “mutiny” does not appear in either of these cases—the crime is called “assault.” This is another of the Territory’s legal relics —in New Guinea a native crew member can not be charged with mutiny because he is not signed on ships’ articles.

New Guinea must be one of the few, if not the only country, where such a law exists.