The Plight of the Solomon Islanders

Solomon Islanders

Letter to the Editor BITTER letters from old friends in the Solomons make me glad that I finally withdrew my in vests and activities from that >enighted British Protectorate some rears ago. I should say that, in 3SI under to-day’s conditions, pri rate enterprise is more heavily lugged than in any other Pacific territory.

Distributing trade is a Govern ment monopoly. It started right iter the war, when the Govern ment began buying curios from the tatives with American trade goods, nd selling the curios to the Ameri ans at a profit of from 100 to 00 per cent. Now it has become tie Government Trade Scheme.

Scheme” is right. It is reported hat the Scheme makes a profit f £60,000 per annum for the Gov rnment; but still the Government i reaching out for more and more loney, to finance an Administra on that is so top-heavy it is fan istic.

Let me recount the taxes to-day, impared with pre-war, when con itions in the Solomons were at last tolerable.

Income Taxation —Pre-war; none, b-day, very heavy.

Residential Tax —Pre-war, £l.

To-day, £2.

Copra Export Tax —Pre-war, 5/to 7/6 per ton. To-day, about £6 per ton.

Shell —3o/- per ton. To-day, from £6 to £lB per ton, according to market price.

Timber —Now a high export tax.

My friends describe the waste in many places. Pre-war, small ships.

Government and private, were uusally repaired at Tulagi. Now there are no facilities at Tulagi, and the ships are sent to Suva or Syd ney. Why?

The Government takes all and gives nothing. It is sheer exploita

tion of private people, who have nd real voice in the Administration. 1 It is claimed that there is alsd exploitation of the natives. Take the case of Vanikoro. An Ausr tralian Company has the concession to cut the valuable kauri pine there] and it pays the Government royalty on same. It always was clearly understood that a portion of thid revenue would be passed on to the Vanikoro natives, as is done in other Territories. But the Government has collected very many of pounds from the Co., and has paid to the natives only £35 Aus, per family per year—or did up to 1951.

One reads a great deal here in Australia about what the South Pacific Commission is doing for the Islanders. Perhaps it could justify some of its heavy cost in exam-* ining the plight of the white Islanders in the Solomons —and those unfortunate black Islanders in Vanikoro.

I am, etc.,

Ex-Solomonite.

Sydney.

EDITOR’S NOTE—We belief that all our correspondent says is true. But maybe it would be wise to exercise patience a little longer What with the Cinderella condi-j tions of pre-1940: the Japanese inj vasion; and the queer policies imj posed by the British Socialist ad ministration in 1946-51, the Solomon! have had a real hiding, in both an administrative and economic sense But a new set-up, with a new policy and a new team, has jus! taken over. We are encouraged to hope for changes.