Waria Syndicate’s
pp. 69-71 · Read in the full issue
[?]Ormal Appeal
[?] Australia
Waria Syndicate’s Claim
JHE German-Swedish-American group called the W a r i a Syndicate—of which Mr. H. R. ahlen, of Hamburg, a German iw Guinea pioneer, is the moving Lrit—is pressing on with its claim developmental and other rights er a large area of the south stern part of the New Guinea linland section of the Trust rritory of New Guinea.
Phis area lies generally southward the Salamaua-Wau line, and rthwards of the Papua-New linea border. It includes all the iria River district, but not the »robe goldfield. between 1912 and 1914, Mr. ihlen and associates formed the iria Syndicate and prepared a mal application to the German vernment for important mining i agricultural concessions over area. The application was ,nted by the German Govern nt, and the grant made formally the Syndicate, just before the break of World War I. iter World War I, when all rmany’s oversea colonies were Dosed of to the occupying Powers ler League of Nations Mandates, Waria Syndicate challenged the it of the Versailles Conference iispose of its concession in NG. he property of all German sub s was “expropriated” or sold; 1 the proceeds therefrom were lited to the war damages bill ch the Western Allies had in sd that Germany must pay. The ria Syndicate argued that it was rnational in character, and its its could not be thus disposed of. be argument has gone on for 30 'S. Mr. Wahlen, in the ’Twenties, t to Australia and personally Prime Minister Bruce; but did get very far. [E tenacious Mr. Wahlen would not give up. After years of fighting, he finally succeeded getting the attention of the British Prime Minister, Mr. mberlain, in 1938—this was the ! when Mr. Chamberlain visited lich and was trying to induce semi-lunatic Hitler to stay at e and behave himself, e have before us a copy of a ter written by the British sign Secretary, to the German >assador, dated June 21, 1938, rein it is explained in detail any obligation to the Waria licate under the agreement e in 1914 rested upon the Ger-
Aus^rallan^verifmenf 104 Th° n the nUcatfon tw Im ' rights which the German Government possessed in NG were abrogated under the Treaty of Versailles
argumentapparentfy ffiXt W
Syndicate rights*
theVwe e “W ° f “ “
FhJllv « pSJfm Sf’ . „
heSSf ° lain L 9 ame formally before the New Guinea Commis-
He^uled 1 ’
14 SsfShJf nffpr t d Februa P Wp nf tbp mt ° i th i e Qofl? in fi ral ■ ° rdl I nance of nSI y hpn!mn 5? mineral s in New Gumea became the property of the
GoTCramellt of New Guinea; and the Waria Syndicate’s Cl The °Svndicat. st ? n<l ' t „? h does . not a “ e P‘ J ll5, 1 * various official
" mor°e ““than* once
rightT" 11
« an a PP eal to the Australian Govern ment, either directly or through the High Court of Australia- and a mOVe has been made to r^tain the services of one of Australia’s most hi^hl y skilled constitutional lawyers.
Movement in such matters always is slow; but there may be interest ing developments during 1956.
Mr. J, Nixonwestwood, who has en connected with trade and corn ice in the South Pacific Islands r the past quarter century, de rted from Wellington, NZ,inJan ry for London, where he will have
his headquarters for a time. He has connections with the big British organisations interested in cocoa, and it is possible that he will make an early visit to cocoa-producing areas in Gold Coast and Nigeria.