Independence, Commonwealth

membership for Tonga, 1970

The Kingdom of Tonga will join the British Common wealth with full independence next year. King Taufa’ahau announced this to the Tongan Legislative Assembly in Nukualofa in November.

He said the visit of Queen Elizabeth to Tonsa next March would have a special significance for Tonga, because it would be the last by a British reigning monarch under the Treaty of Friendship and Protection which has been in force between Britain and Tonga for 70 years.

King Taufa’ahau said that between now and the next session cf the Legislative Assembly, Tonga and Britain would take the final sten in completing arrangements for full indepen dence agreed noon when the Treaty of Friendship was revised in 1968. [Under that revision. British controls were reduced, and a new section was added to permit the two nations to cancel the sections in the treaty referring to remain ing controls. It is the cancellation of this section that King Taufa’ahau was referring to.]

High Commissioners

He told parliament that once steps had been taken to com plete Tonga’s entrance into the Commonwealth, the Commis sioner and Consul in England would become the High Com missioner for Tonga, and Britain’s Commissioner and Consul in Tonga would become High Com missioner for the United King dom.

He added, “Preparations are now under way for this step, which will probably include an exchange of letters and formal calls by representatives of the two governments. . . .

“Tonga’s political position as a result of the forthcoming change will be the same or better than when His Majesty King Tupou 1 ruled the nation, and for the first part of the reign of His Majesty King Tupou II before 1900.

“Since this will be the case,

we will be able to observe com pletely the clauses in the con stitution in the kingdom concern ing foreign affairs and our con tacts with other nations of the world.

“I am satisfied that the road upon which we are about to travel is the right one. Although there will be responsibilities which we will have to shoulder and there will be problems which we will have to solve, we will not feel discouraged.”

It can be expected that follow ing full independence Tonga will seek to join the South Pacific Commission as one of the mem ber governments.

King Taufa'ahau.