Commentary

'Oui' Wins! What's Next

In French Oceania?

WHAT is going to happen now in New Caledonia and French Oceania (or Polynesia), where political events have moved to a series of crises in the last year or two?

The unwieldy Fourth Republic was swept away in the referendum of September 27-28; and the Fifth Republic of France will be built upon the De Gaulle Constitution, accepted by an overwhelming popu lar vote.

De Gaulle remains in charge while the changes are made. By the year’s end, the effect of the new Constitution should be dis cernible in the South Pacific.

Will it bring unity and peace, or new tensions and clashes?

The weakness and incompetency of the Government of France since 1945 opened the door to political developments in France’s South Pacific Territories which never should have been permitted.

There were grave social injustices in those Territories, which called urgently for reform; but France’s blundering Socialist politicians, seeking those reforms, introduced the common roll to classes in both Territories which were incapable of exercising the powers and privileges thus given to them. Paris, trying to wipe out one kind of social injus tice, created another. The new Leftist Administrations, brought into being by the common roll, im posed intolerable conditions upon the Rightist classes, and directly caused the recent revolts in New Caledonia and Tahiti.

What now? If the common roll system (Loi Cadre , in other words) is withdrawn, the disfranchised elements will be actively resentful, and their natural, active resent ment probably will have to be con trolled or suppressed by police.

If the common roll remains, per mitting rule by the Leftists, it is most unlikely that Leftist leaders Lenormand and Gerusalemy —no matter how honestly they try—will be able indefinitely to keep their followers off the necks of what they regard as the rich and privileged.

It may be taken as certain that the new Government of France is not going to permit Red or extreme Socialist rule in its South Pacific Territories, whether the common roll remains or not.

The original, stupid and almost irretrievable error actually was made in Paris, when political power was given to classes who are not yet capable of exercising power.

Many months will pass before we

shall see the new pattern of politi cal life in the French S. Pacific countries. It will be a time of un easy waiting.

The Isolation of

Fertile Bougainville

ALTHOUGH the very large island of Bougainville is coming into prominence as the P-NG Terri tory’s most promising field of investment its cocoa-growing potential has been described as “fabulous” —it now is the Territory’s most isolated section.

The withdrawal of the useful coastal Catalina service has left most of the large District dependant on irregular coastal services by small ships—the DC3s cannot go beyond Sohano, in the northwest.

It was officially stated in July that a new airstrip at Reboine (near Kieta) would be completed within eight months, to allow land planes to give central and southern Bougainville a regular air service.

“At the present rate of progress”, wrote Mr. Jim Joyes, from Iwi, Bougainville, in September, “the darned strip at Reboine will never be completed.”

If development of Bougainville’s cocoa-lands is accelerated as expected the Australian powers that-be may be induced to move more rapidly in the provision of an air service.

Growing Need for a

S. Pacific Union

PROGRESS is slow —but there is mounting evidence that more and more of the South Pacific’s more thoughtful men are in favour of the creation of some sort of Federation or Union among the Territories of the South Pacific, so that they may jointly consider where they are going, politically, and how they are going to travel.

“Some form of closer association will have to come,” writes a leading Pacific Islands Administrator, ‘There must be much more thought and discussion in the Whitehalls of the Pacific.”

There has been some discussion in English journals lately about the fate of the “smaller Territories” in tomorrow’s world—a good article in the Economist, and a series in the New Commonwealth. Many problems seen by the writers are also problems in the Pacific.

In the London Times of August 5 there is a long article by Mr. Harry E. Maude—one of the South Pacific’s best-qualified commenta tors —on social and political progress in this area, and the urgent need

for an authoritative survey.

“One problem alone may compel action,” writes a valued PIM corres pondent. “That is the necessity of obtaining adequate developmental capital. It may not exist in well endowed Papua and New Guinea, but it is a growing trouble in most other Territories.

“International sources and Funds cannot be bothered with the petty size of the individual projects re quired in the numerous and diverse Islands Groups; and some form of Pacific Development Board is needed to channel and administer funds —not unlike Eisenhower’s lately-proposed Middle East Board.

“The South Pacific Commission could perhaps be used for this— although I personally doubt it.”

West N. Guinea Issue

Is Becoming Urgent

FORMAL announcemens from The Hague about Dutch New Guinea place, squarely, in Aus tralia’s lap. responsibility for the future administration of the South west Pacific Territories, which com prise Melanesia.

The Netherlands Government wants to get rid of Dutch New Guinea, which it regards as a financial drain, and an embarrass ment in relations with Indonesia.

The Dutch Socialists, who help to keep the Government in office, favour a UNO Trusteeship—pre sumably, to be worked in con iunction with Australia’s NG Trusteeship.

The Netherlands Premier —whose good judgment we commend strongly—is against the creation of another Trusteeship; but he is in favour of some plan under which West New Guinea can be handed over to Australia, to be administered in conjunction with Papua and Trustee New Guinea.

Mr. Hasluck —a fid a score of other impractical idealists —says Australia is in New Guinea to help Brown Brother to a higher standard of life. That is palpably untrue.

Australia is in New Guinea be cause these Southwest Pacific Islands must be held as a sort of screen against Asia’s 1,500 million people. Why else is Australia spending £l4 millions per annum there? If Europeans do not hold these Islands, they surely will be occupied by Asians, in great num bers, to our early undoing.

If Australia wants to spend money and energy on colonial development and social uplift, she has within her own borders sufficient tasks and obligations to keep her and all her money fully employed for a long time.

She would not be in New Guinea if her own security and the security of all the European countries in the South Pacific — were not involved. And the con siderations which send Australian men and money to Papua and New

Guinea apply equally to Dutch New Guinea, Solomons and N. Hebrides.

If it were not for Asia’s hungry, looming millions, Australia need not concern herself with Holland’s wish to get out of West New Guinea, nor with Indonesia’s rather silly eager ness to get in.

Indonesians, occupying West New Guinea as Indonesians, would not be any real menace to Aus tralia. But Indonesians, politically inept and economically distraught, could be a real danger in New Guinea, because they would be simply the stooges of Communist Asia, providing Asians with a quick and handy corridor through into the South Pacific.

Already, talks are going on be tween the Netherlands and Aus tralian Governments. The residents of Papua and New Guinea, and the private commercial interests already established there in strength, may awaken one morning to a fait accompli—to a new set-up estab lished over them by the top poli ticians and Canberra bureaucrats, without consulting anyone outside governmental circles.

If there are to be far-reaching changes, it is essential that the opinions and the wishes of the non official classes of Papua and New Guinea—as well as the Australian people—be ascertained. Under exist ing conditions—as shown at the last sitting of the P-NG Legco—they are simply forced to accept whatever Canberra’s little czars think is good for them.

Tiny Isle Has Two

Governors in Two Weeks

PITCAIRN Island, loneliest out post of the Pacific Islands, and under Fiji rule, has been get ting more gubernatorial visits in one month than it had enjoyed in the previous hundred years.

Gov ernor of Fiji, Sn- Ronald Garvey, on his way from New Zealand to London via Pananifi, made a three-hours call JJjS? Se P ter nber— and was taken a a canvas a sfing n Stom>y Weather ' in

M^oCeiPS IlkW

the same route, also called there a couple of weeks later.

The liner Athenic, on which <?ir Kenneth is travelling has hnri mechanical troubles. Ind h he ?ot reach Fiji on October 28 as had been planned. ’ i These rare ’ odd visits to isolated p . laces - by travelling Gover nors, give point to a recent com mentary on South Pacific IslarSs administration namelv it iq qh surd that a series of pefagoes a^ ea t a Part from &ew the Unitin 11 be fl tted into snfit ,£ ted Kln gdom, should be split up among no less than ir separate governments 16