Nutshell

In A Nutshell

THE radio supervisor in Tonga’s Telegraphs and Telephones De partment left by the Hifofua for Niuafo’ou on September 2 to estab lish a radio station on the island. The old radio station was totally destroyed by volcanic eruption in 1946, and the whole population had to be evacuated to Tongatapu and Eua.

A few years ago the island was re-settled by a few hundred of the original inhabitants, but until now they have had no means of communi cating with Tongatapu or the outside world except by an occasional mail steamer and the Aoniu.

Niuafo’ou is about 400 miles from Tongatapu. Its chief claim to fame is its tin can mail service. * * * • The Fiji Bowling Association is inviting the Commonwealth Games controlling committee to hold its 1966 lawn bowls tournament in Fiji.

The invitation, being sent through the Fiji Amateur Sports Association, was decided upon because Jamaica, host for the 1966 Commonwealth Games, will be unable to cater for lawn bowls.

Fiji for some years has staged a South Pacific bowling carnival which this year attracted nearly 200 over seas entries. * ❖ * • Three days after the Tonga Broad casting Commission announced re cently that its popular request session was open for new requests, nearly 2,000 letters containing requests were received from Tongatapu alone.

The session has attracted interest all over the Pacific, and so many re quests for records were received that there was a “ban” on them for some time. * * * • Under the provisions of a bill recently introduced in the New Zealand Parliament, Niue will have its first elections by April 15, 1966.

The island will have a fully elected Legislative Assembly of 14 members—one from each of 14 villages. They will be elected by secret ballot under a system of

universal suffrage for terms of three years.

The Resident Commissioner will also be a member of the Assembly.

The present Assembly is appointed by the Commissioner. * * * • The P-NG Department of Forests will plant 140,000 teak seedlings on 230 acres in the Oroboroa Valley, near Brown River, Port Moresby area, in December.

This will be the biggest planting area of teak trees in the area. About 1,000 lb of teak seeds from Rabaul were sown at the Forest Nursery, Brown River, in July. In 40 years, the trees will be used for com mercial timber. * * * • A Japanese company is in terested in the possibilities of a cultured pearl venture in the Vavau Group of Tonga. Tonga’s Premier, Prince Tungi, discussed the matter in Japan during a recent visit, but no other details have been announced.

Prince Tungi also had discussions with a company developing a process which turns sawdust into fuel. * * * • The Protestant Church of Tahiti became autonomous on Sunday, Sep tember I—exactly 100 years after the Societe Evangelique de Paris took over the Protestant missions in Tahiti from the London Missionary Society.

The London Missionary Society sent out the first Protestant mission aries to Tahiti in 1797 in the ship Duff. They were the first missionaries to any island in the South Pacific. * * * • The Cook Islands Legislative Assembly has unanimously disso ciated itself from statements made in a petition to the United Nations by Mr. Ronald Syme of Rarotonga ( PIM , Sept., p. 21). In a resolution passed in September, the Assembly dissociated itself from Mr. Syme’s statements on economic, social and political conditions in the Cook Islands and denied his claim to ex press the views of the entire popu lation.

On a petition to the United Nations by Mr. Julian Dashwood, the As sembly resolved that Mr. Dashwood was to be commended “for his ob vious interest in the future develop ment and welfare of the Cook Islands”. * * * ® Norfolk Island’s long-awaited electricity extension along Queen Elizabeth Avenue to Middlegate was completed by visiting Department of Civil Aviation technicians in August.

• The Hotel Taaone, one of Tahiti’s most beautiful hotels, was three parts destroyed by fire on August 29. ♦ * ♦ • A new wharf at Gizo, BSIP, to accommodate local ships, was ex pected to be in use at the end of September. It replaces a wharf built about 10 years ago. * * * • On Wagina, in the Western Solomons, two village sites—one of 16 acres and one half this size—have been cleared for settlers from the Gil berts, and work is now under way on a third site. Eventually some 200 families will be accommodated in the three villages. It is expected that it will take about two years to complete clearing a large area which will be planted with coconuts. * * * • The P-NG Department of Posts and Telegraphs will issue two stamps next year—probably in March—to commemorate the first common roll elections in the Territory. The stamps will be of 5d and 2/3 denominations.

Four new stamps will be issued in February featuring traditional New Guinea carvings. They will be in lid, 2/5, 2/6 and 5/- denomina tions. * * ♦ • Crowley Airways Ltd. hoped to take delivery in Honiara at the end of September of a De Havilland Dove aircraft, which will operate an internal service in the BSIP. The plane has seven passenger seats, and it is hoped tc Install two more.

• Officers of the Department of Civil Aviation made an aerial inspec tion of Misima Island, east of Milne Bay, in September to find a suitable site for an airstrip to take planes up to DC-3’s.

Nearly 5,000 people including European miners, planters and traders live on Misima. A ship brings food and su*- lies only once a month. * * * • At present there are 92 Cook Islanders, 27 Niueans and three Tokelau Islanders studying in New Zealand under scholarships from the New Zealand Government. The number has more than doubled since 1960. Students granted scholarships since the scheme started in 1946 now total 183. * * * • The Commonwealth Depart ment of Works will invite tenders from Australian and overseas com panies for the construction of an underground hydro-electric power station near Sogeri, about 25 miles from Port Moresby. The Minister for Works, Mr. Freeth, said in September that the station would be built in a chamber to be excavated out of solid rock 500 ft below the Laloki River. Plant and equipment would be lowered down a vertical shaft in the rock and operating staff would descend by a power operated lift.

The station would augment the electricity supply to Port Moresby and was expected to be commissioned by the middle of 1967. ❖ * * • Results of a census held recently in Central District No. 1 in the New Hebrides show that its total popula tion is now 12,125, made up of just over 9,500 New Hebrideans, nearly 2,200 French citizens, and 451 British subjects. The French tally in cluded 542 Vietnamese. The British subjects included 86 Fijians, Tongans and Samoans.

Central District No, 1 takes in the islands of Efate (the site of Vila), Tongoa, Nguna, Emau, Tongariki, Emae, Makura, Pele, Buninga and Mataso. The estimated New Hebri dean population of these islands in 1959 was 9,160. $ • The BSIP Land’s Department is surveying the Waimasi area, San Cristoval, into plots of eight to 10 acres to cater for the overpopulated islands of Santa Ana and Tikopia. A preliminary study has also been made of the Nukufero settlement in the Russell Islands, and other areas are under consideration.

• Doctors are still unable to pro vide treatment for the mysterious fatal disease called kuru, which afflicts the Fore tribe of the Eastern Highlands of New Guinea.

Dr. F. D. Schofield, director of Medical Research in Papua-New Guinea, said this in a paper presented to the Western Pacific Regional Com mittee of the World Health Organisa tion in Port Moresby in September.

Once the disease was physically manifest, death was inevitable, he said. ♦ * * • The first step in the establish ment of an Administration staff college in Papua-New Guinea was taken on September 9 with the official opening of class accommoda tion six miles out of Port Moresby.

When the staff college is built a short distance away, the newly-opened property will become an annexe. This is now occupied by 10 students who are training as court officials. * * * • On August 30 and September 2, explosions and rumblings from the volcano on Ambrym Island, New Hebrides, were heard at Lamap, Malekula, and on Pentecost. Lopevi is also still active, but more moderately than it has been recently.

The former inhabitants of Lopevi, now settled on Epi and Paama, have been warned that it would be dangerous to return permanently to the island. They are continuing to cultivate gardens and cut copra there, staying for short periods while work ing on these jobs. • Societe Hebrida has opened the first self-service general store in the New Hebrides. It is in the main street of Vila, opposite their old shop which is now a bulk store.

The self-service store is equipped with ultra-modern shop furniture from Belgium. Its surface area is over 2,000 square feet. ❖ * * • Australia’s Minister for Terri tories, Mr. Paul Hasluck, will open a 164-bed hospital at Daru, P-NG, on October 12. Thq hospital was built by the Administration at a cost of £250,000. * * * • One hundred and eighty Aus tralian tourists will visit Port Moresby on October 7 in the ship Kuala Lumpur on her return from a cruise to Japan.