Melanesians
p. 28 · Read in the full issue
take over
From a Honiara correspondent The first meeting of the Solomon Islands Governing Council this year took place in March. This is the sixth time the council has met in its present form since the constitution was changed at the beginning of 1970. Already there is a notable absence of expatriate government officials on the floor of the council.
They have been discreetly relegated to the sidelines thus removing them from direct confrontation with elected members on suspected and often imagined failings of their relative departments. Left to explain the actions of the administration are the ex-officio members, the chief secre tary, finance secretary and the at torney general—the latter mainly there to clarify points of law. Much of the donkey work of explaining government policy now rests on the shoulders of the committee chairmen —elected members approved by the High Commissioner with the virtual rank of a cabinet posting.
Other changes are on the way. At the beginning of the year a select committee on constitutional develop ment began sounding out public opinion on whether the existing con stitution was meeting the needs of the Solomons, whether changes should be made, or a brand new constitution was needed. So far the intelligensia have had a bash and they have been joined by some of the more educated Solomon Islanders in the public service and private sector. The prob lem basically remains getting the opinion of the people in the villages, who are not given to expressing opinions on this type of issue—pro bably because most of them have only a hazy idea what the present constitution is all about anyway.
With only fellow members facing each other across the floor it is ex pected the fireworks this time will be limited to parochial issues such as feeder roads, shipping and better social services.
But there was unexpected trouble at the beginning of the meeting when Govco discussed the Land Develop ment Bill, designed to give the gov ernment control of the kind of land speculation and unsatisfactory development seen elsewhere in the Pacific. Members became suspicious when they learned custom-owned land was not excepted from the bill, and rejected it. Amendments may be made.