Political Body

Move In Fiji To

Form All-Race

A steering committee re

presenting members of Fiji’s

Fijian, Indian, European and

Chinese communities has been set up in Fiji to form a multi racial political alliance of

organisations and individuals.

rPHE committee was appointed at a meeting held in Suva at the end of November. It was attended by Ratu K. K. T. Mara, Ratu P. K.

Ganilau, Ratu E. T. Cakobau, Ratu G. Cakobau, Semesa Sikivou, Messrs.

J. N. Falvey, R. G. Kermode, R. A.

Kearsley, F. A. Archibald, C. D.

Aidney, A. J. Moore and C. P. Singh (all members of Legislative Council), M. V. Pillay, J. S. Singh, Ayodha Prasad, and K. S. Reddy (National Congress), Dr. S. A. Sahib, and Messrs. M. H. Khan (Minority Party), W. Yee, P. K. Seeto, L. Yee, B.

March (Chinese community), A.

Lateef and Vijay R. Singh (in dependent).

Ratu Mara presided.

A statement issued after the meet ing said it was agreed that the desire of the peoples of Fiji to progress peacefully and steadily towards in ternal self-government within the British Commonwealth, always main taining and strengthening the link

with the Crown, and the promotion of goodwill, understanding, harmony and tolerance between the various races should form the corner stone of the alliance.

The report of the constitutional conference held in London recently was unanimously accepted.

The statement went on: “The unanimous feeling of the meeting was that political harmony was essential for Fiji’s economic and political pro gress.

“It was agreed that the time had now arrived when it was necessary to create a political organisation where men and women of goodwill of all races could make their contribution in shaping the political destiny of Fiji.

“The steering committee is to draft a manifesto and a programme is to be placed before a general meeting of the delegates ... as well as other groups and persons who are believed to be interested in the creation of an alliance.

The steering committee consists of Ratu Mara, Mr. Vijay Singh, Mr.

Yee, Mr. Falvey, Mr. Ayodha Prasad Mr. Kearsley, Semesa Sikivou and Dr. Sahib.”

Referring to land in Fiji, the state ment said: “An indication of the will ingness of the representatives to face problems frankly and dispassionately was their attitude to the land question.

“Although this was not discussed at the London Conference, the meet ing accepted the view expressed by Indian representatives that one of the most important factors in the peaceful political and economic development of Fiji was the provision of legisla tion which would give agricultural landlords and tenants a fair deal and would resolve amicably the present difficult situation.

It was agreed that a main plank of alliance policy should be the in troduction of legislation to ensure a fair deal for both agricultural land lords and agricultural tenants.” •In late December, divers were still trying to assess the damage to the Bank Line freighter Crestbank which went aground at Gizo, British Solomon Islands, on December 19.

The ship was carrying 3,000 tons of lead and 2,000 tons of copra when she went on a reef. She was refloated on Christmas Day with the aid of salvage experts from Sydney and Melbourne, and it was thought that repairs might have to be made on the spot before the ship could sail for Australia for an overhaul. The Crestbank came to grief almost exactly a year after another Bank Line ship, Southbank, was totally wrecked at Washington Island.