Commentary

Foint The Burns

■'mission Dodged

the problems facing the •ilony of Fiji, as the result of phenomenal growth of popu were discussed in the Re the Burns Commission. But jsarned Commissioners quite sly dodged away from the [important and embarrassing m_the question of giving the nts of Fiji a larger voice in government. table shows how the com aes have increased in the 20 oetween the 1936 and the 1958 ses:

3e the 1956 census, there has substantial growth in practic tl the communities. 3ever-increasing proportion of ..jians are changing from the immunal to the individualistic iof life, and now think for Elves 1 , An ever-increasing pro :i of the Indians are Fiji ;and literate in English, and themselves as British citizens, British privileges. There now ;ore than 8,000 part-Europeans ohink Euronesians a better in Fiji; and they are generally class of people, with qualities zenship at least equal to those other communities. ;s perfectly natural that all ipeople—now over 350,000, and ;ted by experts to number i) by 1968 will demand a and larger share in the con of their own affairs, oresent, they have only a small iity voice. The Legislative il has 32 members —speaker, ’icials and 15 non-officials — T the latter only six are elected, •ritish Colonial Office, through Governor, exercises supreme .. In these days of fervid nalism, that is a continuing, :ig challenge to all people who v e in the principles of sracy. at present, with the Fijians ising any political power they got in this Colony through

their chiefs; with the Indians aggressively in favour of majority rule; with the Euronesians virtu ally voiceless, the Chinese indif ferent and the Europeans exercising control of all activities short of ad ministration through their com mercial power—in view of these factors, a government based on democratic principles is simply im possible, no matter how attractive it appears in theory. Sir Murchison Fletcher found that out nearly 30 years ago, when he hurriedly re turned to the present Legco system, after trying out an elective system that would not work.

But the present rule by enthroned bureaucracy, no matter how just and efficient it may be, simply will not endure in this restless world, where community after community is plunging into independent nationalism, on a more-or-less adult franchise system, setting up un trained, fumbling, incompetent and often corrupt governments in place of the highly efficient —but now re jected—administrations from over seas.

The pattern never changes. Why should it be any different in Fiji, even although any disinterested observer can see that it would be impossible to apply a one-man-one vote system in Fiji without risking complete disaster?

The answer, of course, is a planned period of preparation for increasing self -government.

The Burns Commission had a look at the problem—and must have shuddered at what it saw. It cer tainly should have discussed the matter —after all, it has a most direct bearing upon the economic and social future of Fiji—but it hedged by saying; “Our terms of reference do not require us to comment on consti tutional or administrative matters . . .”; and “We do not consider that any change in the general constitutional position is desired hy more than a small minority of the population, nor do we think that the abolition of the Crown Colony system now would promote the development of the Colony and its resources.”

That conclusion probably is quite correct and justified; but—as former Governor Sir Ronald Garvey sug gests in a frank comment on the Report (see elsewhere), the failure of the Commission to show how and why it reached such a conclusion is definitely a weakness in the Report.

The Report is presented as a plan for the reform of the Fiji adminis trative system, so as to make pos sible rapid economic development

and the feeding of the growing population.

The fact that it must be accepted as a whole constitutes a challenge to the Fiji population—each com munity almost certainly will have something to say about it, demand ing modifications. This, in turn, will highlight the completely “un democratic” character of the country’s only house of public as sembly, the Legislative Council.

Surely, the present system probably will have to continue for a further period. But the Commission at least might have made an attempt to ex plain the governmental difficulties of multi-racialism, and to indicate how and when some measure of in dependent self-government may be introduced.

No one would suggest that the learned and experienced Commis sioners were blind to what is hap pening in the West Indies, in Africa, in Singapore, in British Guiana.

Their terms of reference were broad enough to include almost any thing they wished to introduce. ☆ ☆ ☆

Indonesia Has Lost

The Big Battle

THE Indonesians, in April, were outsmarted by the Dutch in the cleverest political trick in years.

For the last 10 years, Indonesia has been noisily demanding pos session of Netherlands New Guinea, It is part of Indonesia, she has shouted. The people are the same.

They don’t like the Dutch anyhow.

The Dutch are exploiting the country. It’s filthy Colonialism!

Indonesia has frequently sought to raise the issue in the United Nations in the hope of majority support. It hasn’t won support yet, but this year it has looked as if she might get it. The Afro-Asian bloc, the members of which usually break out in spots at the very men tion of the world Colonialism, have been more and more taking the In donesian viewpoint.

This, then, could be a crisis year on the West New Guinea issue. So what do the Dutch do?

After carefully laying their plans (establishment last year of the first Regional Council; the decision this year to establish a training school for future native Parliamentarians) the Dutch suddenly announce a target for independence, and the imminent foundation of a New Guinea Council with a native majority.

The target for independence to be sure, is a little bit woolly (it is, Mr. Toxopeus told the Dutch Par liament, “highly undesirable” to give an exact deadline, but the period the Dutch have in mind is “much shorter than one generation of man” and anyhow they are

ikj 19ĵlik6 po'bti 1956 ķl kjophirh m 97,651 148,134 an .. .. 85,002 169,403 ppean ,. . 4,028 6,402 iropeans . 4,574 7,810 iman ... 2,816 4,422 uese ., .. 1,813 4,155 ;r sanders .. 2,479 5,320 assified .. 16 91 r.tals .. .. 198,379 345,737

“working on a 10-year plan” in other W And the New Guinea Council (originally planned to be established in 1962) will now be set up about October this year, but only “if the Government gets its way”.

But there is enough surprise in the announcement, and enough in formation, enough action, to secure the reaction that Holland wants.

Something dramatic is certainly happening to NNG politically, and Indonesia’s friends, who don’t really give a hoot about the rights of In donesia’s claim to West Irian, will now be assured there is to be no hated Colonialism in New Guinea, which is all they do care about.

Indonesia may now continue to abuse the Dutch, as Indonesian Am bassador to Australia, Dr. Helmi, did in Port Moresby in April, and say she is sceptical of Holland’s real intentions, but it won’t do any good.

After all, nobody really believes that the Dutch have made the plans they have for Netherlands New Guinea because of altruistic motives for the natives. The Dutch don’t want NNG for themselves, but it’s a principle with them that they don’t want Indonesia to have it, and the best way out of the situa tion is hand it over to the New Guineans just as soon as they can be made to take it.

What has Indonesia now got to offer Netherlands New Guinea that is better? According to Dr. Helmi she is not even offering unification of the two halves of the island.

Indonesia must realise she has lost this round. What’s more, short of actual war, she has probably lost the whole fight for West New Guinea. ☆ ☆ ☆

More Than Time

For Action in P-NG

THE Netherlands’ neat piece of political planning (see above) has got Australia into a dilemma, too but the Dutch couldn’t help that!

For several years they have been attempting to get Australia in terested in the problem, and to re alise that if there is to be peace m New Guinea the two portions of the island must work together. Aus tralia has realised it, of course, but m public it has preferred to sit on the fence rather than antagonise Indonesia. But Indonesia is going to be antagonised anyhow, so better now than later.

Thanks to the Dutch decision, Australia is now faced with the fact that two parts of New Guinea are F™S edmg at widely different speeds, and the chances are that in e JJL mds Rf change in the next West BarS Wlll blow cold from the What does Australian Territories abouti- Hasluck have to say about this? His normal practice on controversial subjects is to say abso

lutely nothing at all, but such has been the critical reaction in the Australian Press to the latest New Guinea political situation that in April he felt compelled to make a statement defending P-NG’s rate of progress, and also commented that “various proposals” for changes in the Legislative Council “have been under close consideration for some time”.

This last piece of nonsense, in New Guinea and elsewhere, was greeted with something in the nature of derision, as it deserved.

For various proposals for changes have been “under consideration” at least since 1953, when a select com mittee of P-NG Legco was set up to make them, following criticism that Legco was lopsided.

That criticism has grown year by year, and it was a vital part of the large scale uproar in New Guinea last year when the three elected members resigned in dis gust.

They issued a statement which said quite clearly that they were protesting “against the undemocratic use of the official majority” to pass the tax laws, and “in objection to the lack of sufficient representation of the people of the Territory in their Legislature”.

Mr. Hasluck, in his public utter ances, has remained unmoved.

Yet PIM, in its issue of April, published before Mr. Hasluck’s un informative “under consideration” statement was made, reported that recomposition of Legco was planned for this year, and that the natives will be given a greater role. It re peats that report in this issue (p. 19) with additional information.

The fact is that recomposition is the Minister’s present intention, as well he knows. Then why all the hedging? Why doesn’t he say quite clearly that Legco is to be recon stituted, but that he can’t release the details—but that he can give us an idea of the lines he’s working on.

Why, in fact, couldn’t he have said that last year—or the year be fore?

Was there ever a Minister more secretive than Mr. Hasluck, who gives the public less credit for in telligence? Is he still a member of the diplomatic corps, rather than a politician appointed to do a job that is as much the public’s busi ness as his?

Does he honestly wonder why his stocks are so low in Papua-New Guinea? In some ways, he’s incredible!

The same secrecy surrounded his income scheme; it still sur rounds his plans for P-NG liquor reform, storing up trouble for him.

One of the problems of P-NG is summed up in another context on p. 59 of this issue, by a widely ex perienced British Colonial Admin istrator, Sir Ronald Garvey. Refer ring to the Burns Commission’s Re port on the future of Fiji, Sir Ronald says:

“I infer that the Commission fallen into the error of thii that public opinion should g the speed of the constitutiona vance, “I believe this to be a prol error, and the crux of a good of the trouble we have expert in many of our overseas territi and I fear that some day FiJ suffer from the fact that the ernment has failed to retail initiative which it now has 1 lationship to the developmei the Constitution.”

The Dutch Government ms working very fast, but nobody suggest it is not taking the initi or that it has less chance of cess than its ultra-cautious Guinea neighbour.

How To Write An

Official Statement

OVERNMENT statements, i South Pacific as elsewher inclined to be composed special kind of public service ji which often has little meaning not at any time any human fe Thus the official statement in " the Government of the Kir of Tonga announces that the vessel Teiko and her entire of 22 are now presumed la sea is worth recording as a rei able example of how one Gc ment at least has not yet cons its heart to the archives anc gotten the file number. It ss “The sympathy of all will t tended readily to the relative; dependents of a crew which so fidently set out from Nukuala a voyage to introduce a important development for Kingdom in the sphere of mercial fishing, and for whic people of the Kingdom are endowed by tradition.

“It has been said that th». of a nation’s worth can be in its ability to face disaster courage and with faith in the; Here in Tonga, we have been s many of the calamities expert by others, such as the ravag war, and extensive loss of lifi property from natural occurr such as hurricanes and earthqj and for this we should be thankful, “It appears, however, that a;j all nations, we must expect measure of sorrows as well as; of joy and happiness, and thr this time, whilst commendfi the Almighty the souls of our beloved brethren, who were o Teiko, we should also seek assistance to give us courae face the future and to contin strive to obtain for ourselves for our children, the means wH to harvest the crops of thr which have been placed there- God to be gathered by thost; voyage forth upon the deep.’*'