Commentary

irazy Politics

i the Northwest

♦EHIND Brunei is Indonesia; and * the threat of Indonesia to the ure security of Australia now is owing steadily.

That is another way of saying that donesia is a menace to the whole the South Pacific, because Indo sia is the southward-pointing spear ad of Asian anti-European national i; and Australia’s influence— icther Australia likes it or not—is minant in the South Pacific.

The Indonesians, a chattering, dis ited, non-aggressive type of Malay, ver have been regarded very iously by the West—and there is reason now why they should ther us, except that they number arly 100,000,000, and they are be ; actively encouraged by anti ;stern factors to dream in terms of pire. The Philippines Republic is ng similarly encouraged.

The sudden outbreak of pro-Malay >ellion in the tiny, oil-rich, British rtected State of Brunei is part of : pattern. In territory, Brunei is eligible. But it is of vital impor ice to Britain, because the volume oil produced there is, next to nada, greater than that in any other tish country.

Britain has three territories (North rneo, Brunei and Sarawak) in rneo, lying right alongside Indo ;ian Borneo; and Britain now is ming the new Federation of llaysia, which will throw those ee little countries into one admini ative unit, with Malaya and Singa *e. The Government of Brunei, ich traditionally is directed by a tan, has accepted the Federation a; but the underground agents of mmunism had no difficulty, jarently, in creating an organisation fighting nationalists in Brunei, fhe British will suppress the revolt hey cannot afford to jeopardise ir oil supply—and the next 'elopment, probably, will be a yell m Djakarta, that God’s chosen itector of the Malays, President jkarno, demands freedom for the vn-trodden serfs of Brunei. \nd let no one be surprised if ishington supports President Soe no in this!

Some commentators see something my in the picture of poverty cken Indonesia reaching out for pire in New Guinea and in Borneo; the dream is being actively en

couraged—each for its own diplo matic purpose—by the Communist Powers and the United States.

President Soekarno, ever since the Bandoeng demonstration in 1955, has seen the world in three political divisions—Western, Communist and Afro-Asian—with himself as leader of the Afro-Asians. He plans a re gional alliance covering East Indies, part of Southeast Asia, Borneo, Philippines and New Guinea.

Normally, the world would ignore Soekarno, and leave him to fry in the economic desert he has created for himself in Indonesia.

But Americans and Russians, each fearing that the other may get an advantage there, keep pouring “aid” funds into Djakarta. And, it was an nounced only in December that Aus tralia had given Indonesia £lOO,OOO for some technical project under the Colombo Plan, although it is apparent that Australia, sooner or later, will have to check the thrusting Indo nesians in the centre of New Guinea.

It’s a crazy world.

No Trade Without

Communication

SIX months after it happened, the pros and cons of the 1962 New Zealand trade mission to the Pacific Islands are still being argued in New Zealand and in some of the Pacific Islands—including Tahiti (see p. 29).

Traders and NZ’s own Trade Corres pondent there are of the opinion that whatever good was done in Tahiti at the time of the mission’s visit has subsequently been undone by “com plete lack of shipping” between NZ and Papeete.

Perhaps a fairer comment would be “lack of adequate use of the faci lities” by importers and exporters, be cause shipping does exist between these two points. Some follow-up liaison work in this department is in dicated.

Tahiti’s drive for tourists means that the Territory is in the market for food to feed them and New Zea land’s meat, butter, cheese, eggs and dairy produce are well liked in Tahiti.

About 150-200 tons of freezer cargo from NZ is imported each month— and most of it reaches Tahiti the long way round by Matson vessels which drag it all the way from Auckland to the American West Coast, then all the way back to Papeete.

The Matson liners’ refrigerated,

food-carrying capacity is limited and there is little room for expanding ex ports through this medium.

The New Zealand Shipping Co., whose vessels call at Papeete, has shown little or no interest in carrying freezer to Tahiti so long as it can get cargoes right through to Europe.

It might reconsider this attitude if it could get priorities to the main mail wharf at Papeete but the French authorities are unlikely to grant any thing of the sort, especially when it is at the expense of their own ship ping lines.

Tahiti, which had about 700 tourists five years ago, an expected 10,000 in 1962 and more on the way, will increasingly be in the market for temperate-zone foodstuffs and other commodities. As things stand at the moment, Australia is in a better posi tion to deliver the goods, and the opinion amongst traders in Tahiti at present is that NZ trade cannot ex pand until NZ does something about providing better shipping facilities.

One indication that the market is there is the fact that luxury goods— including flowers, strawberries, cherries, etc. —are being airfreighted to Papeete from NZ in increasing consignments.

Everything being equal, French Polynesia would probably rather buy from NZ than from Australia. In 1961, NZ imports from French Poly nesia amounted to 148,438,000 Pac.

Fes.—mostly for phosphate. Aus tralia, in the same year, imported goods only to the value of 13,691,000 Pac. Fes. In 1961 French Polynesia imported goods valued at 51,319,000 Pac. Fes. from NZ but goods to the value of 74,977.000 Pac. Fes. from Australia.

Discussions on Norfolk's

Political Future

THE Administrator of Norfolk Island, Major-General R. H.

Wordsworth, and members of the Norfolk Island Council, have recently been engaged in a series of meetings aimed at getting agreement on a form of Government for the island accept able to both the Federal Government and to local people. The meetings have been confidential.

Some Norfolk Islanders believe that if agreement is reached it might be decided not to go ahead with the referendum which had been pro mised.

Whatever it means, people with the interests of the island at heart will hope the talks result in a long period of political peace and progress for Norfolk.