Mills Now Working In Fiji

Sugar Deadlock Broken : All Mills Now Working In Fiji

The four Colonial Sugar Refining Co. sugar-mills in Fiji were in full operation, in mid-September, and the nine-months' war between the company and the Indian cane-farmers was over. Nevertheless, difficulties still lie ahead.

I EITHER side won a victory I worth boasting about.

The company finally got its 11s going, but under conditions lich probably will show little Dfit in the 1960 season, rhe growers will cut and sell ough cane at the 1959 price (con ied to them by the company in e June) to keep them off the jadline; but they will get noth r, to compensate them for the s they sustained when, instead beginning to cut on June 21, they lowed Messrs. A. D. Patel and iya into a wilderness of mean dess argument and screaming •y against the CSR. rhe company had planned to pro ce, between June 21 and early nuary, enough raw sugar to fill J quota of 199,000 tons allowed i under the international agree nt. Even that would have left a ge proportion of the cane stand : in the fields, unwanted and un-

Big Losses

Tow, with 21 months lost in jiment and idleness, it is doubtful ether the quota can be produced The growers stand to lose, not y the cane grown in 1959-60,

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surplus to requirements, but also the cane that should have been cut between June 21 and mid-September, but was not cut because they were led down the garden path by Messrs. Patel and Koya. However, with luck, the growers and the mills might put through the 199,000 tons quota by February 26, which would reduce losses generally.

There was excuse for the attitude of the growers in the first half of 1960.

They had planted up a lot of cane in good faith. Naturally they were resentful when they learned that the company not only could not accept all their cane, but proposed to purchase the 1960 cane at a lower price than that of 1959.

The company itself apparently had been misled by the world’s sugar situation; and it showed some appreciation of the grower’s feel ings in June when it agreed to pay the 1959 price, and made other con cessions.

On that basis, an agreement, and the commencement of cane-cutting, seemed possible in June, and again on July 24; but the bitter anti-CSR influence of the Patel group, although dwindling, kept the cane growers idle all through July and (except for Labasa) through August, until early September.

Patience Paid

During late August and early September, the Patel group tried repeatedly to induce the Governor to intervene between the CSR and growers. Sir Kenneth Maddocks conscientiously heard each plea— —showing so much patience that in the end he was sharply criticised for not showing the firmness and brutality that, in the opinion of many citizens, the Patel tactics really called for.

But patience paid off. While each argument was being carefully con sidered, the farmers were showing discontent and distress, and grow ing weariness with the Patel tactics.

The Government mobilised all reserves and some civilian volunteer troops, to protect growers who de cided to cut. (See p. 69 for a report on Labasa position).

Finally, Fijian growers, and con tract cutters on CSR-owned farms, began to cut cane for the mill at Ba, and on September 1 it began crush ing, with supplies coming in from all the areas, from Penang to Lautoka.

This was the break-throus Within 48 hours, the trickle of cs became a flood. Within 10 days, c! ting was in progress from Sigatc to Raki Raki. and all three in on Viti Levu were in operation It was overwhelming defeat for 1 Patel gang, and some of its me bers reacted in a very ugly w Certain “leaders”, in meetings cane-farmers, urged the farmers a final resort to destroy their ca and use their land for vegetal: and other subsistence crops.

Fearing arson and violence, ■ authorities alerted their gua everywhere.

The 1960 season’s troubles over, for the moment; but gr difficulties lie right ahead. E affected Indian groups almost c tainly will try to — • Interfere with cane-cutt between now and January. • Induce strikes among the m workers. • Discourage planting of cs for the next and following seasc • Wreck pending conferences discuss next year’s cane prices t conditions.

In these matters—especially last two—there is need for grea co-operation and clearer und standing between the Governme the CSR, and the organised ca; growers.

There also is need for r authority, or new laws, to curb ve ous union organisers whose activit while ostensibly for the good of wage-earners, are generally Ir sponsible and, at times, apparer subversive. The Fiji commur must be protected against th gentry—otherwise, the commur will take steps to protect itself.