Whitewash For

Mr. Casey

Apologises

Whitewash For Soekarno

AUSTRALIAN External Affairs Minister Casey has an evident desire to go down in history as the Peacemaker in Asia. This be came more than usually suspect in February when he made a public apology to Quisling Soekarno, of Indonesia.

The affair started when Senator Rankin (Country Party, Vic.), said that Soekarno’s “gang of pro-Jap anese Quislings wanted to thieve New Guinea.”

The Senator’s choice of words was not in the best Diplomatic tradition, but everyone knew what he meant, and most of them endorsed it.

Mr. Casey then announced: “This remark is wholly unjustifiable, and the Australian Government repudi ates it in the strongest terms.

“I would ask President Soekarno and the Government of Indonesia to accept the profound regrets of the Australian Government that any such offensive and unjustified re marks were made.”

People with a better memory for recent events than Mr. Casey know that what the Senator had to say about the Indonesian gang was sub stantially correct —he reminded Mr.

Casey that when the Japanese took Singapore, Soekarno had sent them a cable of congratulations. The Senator had a lot more to say—about Mr. Casey’s personal habits, which was uncalled for and left Rankin open to criticism.

The Senator was on pretty safe ground in his name-calling of a senior member of his own Govern ment —he is one of fhe Senators due to retire in mid-1956 and is not seeking re-election.

The Indonesia Ambassador to Australia, then weighed in with his explanation; The Indonesians were so anxious to rid themselves of the Dutch that they instituted a “pretentions collaboration” with the Japanese.

This piece of information might have been easier to swallow if, shortly afterwards, two announce ments had not been made simul

taneously: That an Indonesian mission was seeking financial aid in Russia; and that they wanted more assistance from Australia under the Colombo Plan, particularly in the field of education.