Politicians’ Knowledge of Huge

Territories They Control

IF anything were needed to emphasise the PIM declaration, last month, that Papua and New Guinea are gravely handicapped by the Australian Parliament’s ig norance of their condition and their basic requirements, it was provided by that Parliament’s debate on the lerritories Estimates, on October 6.

Last year, Australia spent over E 4.000 in paying the travelling ex penses of various Parliamentarians tfho visited the Territories. The standard of the debate suggested that the nation’s guests were too busy making holiday and wassail :o study the Territories’ real prob lems; or they saw them only with ;he jaundiced eye of the party Dolitician. There was the usual Socialist outcry against the big employers who are supposed to lave enriched themselves by ex porting native labour; solemn warnings that unless something or )ther is done soon we shall have mother Mau-Mau in New Guinea; nuch babbling along party lines.

Mr. Roberton stressed the obvious acts that, if there is to be real sconomic progress in New Guinea, here must be security for private snterprise; and that there can be io such security under the Trustee hip system. But this brought no eply from the Minister.

The Minister, however, caught he limelight by denouncing as frivolous” and “mischievous” a laim by Mr. Keon (one of the few fiucated and thoughtful men in he Labour Party) that the Ad

ministration’s attempt to build up secular native schools, at the expense of the Mission schools, might lead to disaster. Mr.

Hasluck brought out the fact that, compared with £151,000 in 1949 (Socialist Government), the Missions’ schools were subsidised by £239,000 in 1953, and they will get £272,000 in 1954. In any event, the risk of a New Guinea Mau-Mau, under present conditions, is in finitesimal.

But, in another direction, Mr.

Keon may have something. The pro-native Hasluck policy envisages a great increase in village schools,

controlled by the new Village Councils; and Mr. Keon argues that the natives generally are not yet competent to exercise control over schools—it should be left, in a major degree, in the hands of the experienced missions, whose record in this field is so good.

Naturally, the Minister regarded the comments as unfriendly. He has just seen the inauguration, in Port Moresby, of the Education Advisory Board, to supervise the education of 500 European and 140,000 non - European children; and, although Missions are well represented thereon, the policy and plan are based on an ultimate non- Missions organisation.

As a contribution to the future of Papua-New Guinea, it was a barren, useless discussion.