Shrinks To Three-Mile Limit

Jap Pearling And

Fishing In Sw Pacific

Australia's Continental Shelf

Shrinks To Three-Mile Limit

The Australian Government has had second thoughts over its claims in regard to the Continental shelf —and the private wars of fishermen and minor Governments against Japanese “poachers” have had to be called off.

WHEN the Australian Fisheries Act came into force on Jan uary 1, the nation’s press as sumed, wrongly, that, like the Pearl Fisheries Act which has been in force for a couple of years, it em powered the Government to regu late all fishing activities as applied to free-swimming fish.

A day after the Act came into force, and while a Catalina aircraft from Port Moresby was searching for a native canoe, two Japanese tuna vessels were sighted, one 30miles off-shore in the Gulf of Papua, and the other 50 miles south of Samarai.

The press immediately classified these vessels as “poaching” and took the line that the Government must do something about it, and smartly.

Just why the Commonwealth Gov ernment did not then explain that it had no power to interfere with foreign shipping, unless it was with

in the old 3-mile limit, is not known.

It was not until two weeks later that an explanation of the Act came from External Affairs Min ister Casey, by which time Queens land fishermen were talking of tak ing guns in their boats and at tacking any Jap vessels they sighted within the area. A great deal of heated comment appeared in the press on the Government’s failure to take action. In effect, Mr. Casey said that oysters, trochus, and beche-de-mer attached to “our continental shelf” are one thing; and that free-swimming fishes are quite another.

The Pearl Fisheries Act does em power the Government to control shell-fishing by foreign vessels. The Fisheries Act only empowers con trol of Australian fishermen, the legal view being that free-swim ming fishes are not necessarily “our” fish. In short, the old 3-mile limit still stands.

One letter in the Sydney Mor, Herald, reminded readers of occasion shortly before World II when the owners and crev 3 Japanese vessels arrested off Northern territory coast, sued and obtained in Darwin Cc heavy damages for wrongful ar as the Commonwealth was un to prove that they had been in the 3-mile limit, and in fact t was evidence that they had 1 forced by bad weather into the j tion where they were arrested In London, in December, repl to a question in the House of C mons, the Foreign Secretary “Her Majesty’s Government always refused to accept in print claims to territorial waters of r than 3 miles, and have reserved right to uphold any British intei prejudiced by such claims.”

Jap Pearlers For Darwi

LESS entangled in legalities more heated has been the action in Darwin and in s Trade Unions in the South to announcement that the Gov ment has given approval for hiring of 135 Jap divers by x tralian Master Pearlers at Da: and Broome.

Those who should know, inclui the Commonwealth Fishi Division, are satisfied that only

troductlon of these divers can je the MOP industry, and further, at their employment can mean rich source of dollars for Aus ilia. rhe divers will come in under aw bond, will be compulsorily re flated, will be permitted to work [y as divers and tenders in the irling industry, and are not re icing any existing labour of equal labilities. )pponents to the move have de red that they will boycott all rwin firms and organisations ich deal with pearlers using Jap our.

Lustralian Workers’ Union mem s and others have suggested that i introduction of the Japs will iermine the White Australia icy and break down working iditions; that the Torres Strait mders, employed in the industry :e the end of the war, are the st pearl divers in the world.” All which is nonsense.

Ithers say that all Jap pearl »rs are spies—and that Japanese ing boats that sneak in close to itralian and Islands shores are nding and charting rather than ing. fter their activities before and ir World War 11, what more is re for the Japs to learn about seas or our approaches? ome believe that it would be ;er to let the Australian pearling istry die altogether, than to w 135 Japanese work for Aus ian master-pearlers—in other ds. it would be better to let Jap rling fleets reap all the shell and ars from the Arufura Sea, in d of being smart enough to em r them to do the same thing for tie plain facts are that the Jap se are the best pearlers in the id and the best fishermen. is unlikely that Australians will ver overcome their prejudice gainst the Japa n e s e—and is not to be wondered although it has yet to proved that the Jap in war is »e than any other Asiatic in But in any discussion on Japan Japanese these sober facts have e considered: There are 85 million people in in and they are increasing at rate of one million per year.

Japan lost Korea, Formosa and ’acme possessions after the war the Japanese home islands can uce sufficient food to feed (in poorest possible manner) only ullions.

Japan must import food to e up the deficiency and in order Ip this, must export goods to for it; but Most countries restrict the im tion of “cheap” Japanese goods.

Hungry people are easy targets communism. (Over)

ILEARLY something must be i done by the Western nations to help Japan out of her dilemma ind even the most rabid Trade lionist would probably agree that would be better to trade with her m fight her. (Australia sold i million worth of wool, etc., to Dan in 1953, and bought goods in ;hange worth £5 million). And nething might also be done in i matter of fisheries, t was something like an inter zonal impertinence for Australia 7ho has done little to exploit i fisheries off her own coast and iclutely nothing to exploit them her SW Pacific Territories —to im every fish that swam over the itinental Shelf, which in some es, means 300 miles off the coast ’here is no doubt that this in pretation of the Fisheries Act ; what was originally intended — there has been some swift back filing in recent weeks partic rly since this Continental Shelf Dry was shown to cut right across tain’s own policy in the matter, ru. too, claims a Continental ilf and recently arrested Greek ilers which she claimed were passing in the area, although y were at least 200 miles from coast. This caused indignation Britain, where Sir Anthony Eden firmed Britain’s policy of a 3i limit). should not be necessary to point to readers that none of the ve observations condone the iah-dog tactics of Jap ships that e raided P-NG trochus beds and 's, or landed on Islands and ested natives, stolen their pos ions, and generally made them es unpleasant. That is one thing it for ships to fish 30 or 50 miles our coasts, is another.