[?]ew Voting Powers

[?]Iversal

[?]Jff Rage

[?]ew Voting Powers For French Colonials

FEW laws (Loi Cadre) which I came into operation recently in French Colonies are designed ■ decentralisation of administra n. shifting the responsibility for :h colony’s interior development m Metropolitan France to the al Governor and a “ministry” >sen partly by the Governor and tly by the local Consul-General. )ne of the most far-reaching jets of the Loi Cadre is likely be the introduction of universal frage; Europeans and non •opeans over 21 will have equal tits —the only bar to voting will a criminal record—according to Noumea Correspondent, tow this will affect New edonia’s rather uneasy electoral «m is not known, i new constitution for New edonia was proposed in 1951 ler which for the first time ives were to be represented on Conseil-General. A double roll I proposed—the natives voting the 9 native members and the opeans voting for the 16 opean members. bwever, before the 1952 elections E place, the common-roll became ve issue. he Colony split on it and for year there was no Conseil ieral; a deputation of French uties visited Noumea in tember, 1952, and some com nise was made. An election on mon-roll basis was held the wing February in which the ist Lenormand party which aded the 9 native members— ted a healthy majority.

Imost half the voters on that ,sion were natives, but they had have certain educational ifications, is not clear whether, under new laws of universal suffrage, sational qualifications will come the matter at all. The last lable population figures give )peans as 21,788; natives as U; and others as 7,700. ijor C. A. Swinbourne, owing 1-health, has resigned from the idency of the Pacific Islands ety, Sydney, where he has 1 yeoman service over many s. He has been undergoing ital treatment, and slowly re nng his health. He formerly well known in the adminis ve service in Fiji and Western fic High Commission. son was born on May 18, at G & EIC, to Capt. and Mac Addie.