Land Bd. Building Site

Allocations Cause Rabaul Discontent

Prom Our Own Correspondent

Rabaul, Aug. 28.

rE first batch of 24 building blocks recently has been put up for tender in Rabaul, NG, and the Land Board has recom mended that 16 out of the 24 be allocated to Chinese tenderers. The local Land Board consists of the District Commissioner, Mr. J. K.

McCarthy, Mr. Don Barrett, MLC, and the Secretary for Lands, Mr.

D. E. Macinnis.

Some months previous to this, the Board had met a representative gathering of Rabaul residents and during the discussion the question of zoning of residential blocks had been brought up. The Board was not in favour of zoning.

Mr. G. Achun, a spokesman for the Chinese people, was asked whether the Chinese wanted to live away from their shops and among the Europeans and after some thought he said perhaps six of them might but for the most part, the Chinese preferred their neigh bours to be Chinese. The Europeans present, mostly representing the Chamber of Commerce, were

strongly in favour of zoning.

When the Board’s recommenda tions were made public in August, the Chamber called a special meet ing at which all members attended.

That meeting decided to send a deputation of two to Port Moresby to protest against the Board’s recommendations. Messrs. J. L.

Chipper (vice-president) and J. R.

Brelaz were chosen. Their instruc tions were that if Moresby did not give then a hearing then they must fly to Canberra, Both men are now back in p, a baul and a meeting is called for Monday, September 21, to hear their r gp o rt. .'.

It is anticipated that no further

significant action will be taken un less Moresby confirms the recom mendations of the Land Board.

It is difficult to guess what rule applied when making the allo cations. Most of the European tenders are known to have been higher than the Chinese, and most of the Chinese who have been recommended for blocks already have building sites, houses and other property here. In one case (“perhaps the best block in the town,” according to Mr. Chipper) a Chinese business woman received preference over an ex-serviceman who already had permissive occu pancy of the block. One company tendered £l5O, another £125, the Chinese woman tendered £9O, and the present occupant £5O. The Chinese woman got it.

The Chamber is emphatic that its protest is not anti-Chinese, but anti-Administration, because of its disregard of the public’s wishes.

They ascribe the Chinese tenders, not to a desire to live among Europeans, but to sheer land hunger.

Editorial Note

The P-NG Secretary for Lands announced some months ago that, in future, local Land Boards would include one unofficial member chosen from the District in which the Board was currently sitting— that member, presumably, to repre sent citizens’ interests. Mr. Barrett evidently is that member.

He is also the elected Member for New Guinea Islands in the P-NG Legislative Council and at the May session of that body he brought before the House the lag m Rabaul Land Board sittings and the allocation of building sites, etc.

At the next session he can scarcely ask questions relating to local Land Board deliberations as he would, m effect, be asking them of him self.

It is understood that the building sites in question are not freehold land and, in the past, the housing shortage in Rabaul town can be attributed partly to the non availability of such building sites.

If our correspondent’s facts are correct, it is hard to see what method has been employed in the August allocations—unless it is one based solely on the population figures of the respective European and Chinese communities. If this is the method, then the calling of tenders (in the belief that the land will go to the highest bidder) seems a complete waste of time.

TraveHers returning south from Tahiti by TEAL aircraft in August reported a number of serious robberies that had taken place at gie popular Les Tropiques hotel, Faaa. Papeete police are working on the case but robberies have con tinued.