Up Front

with the Editor

Freedom of speech is a basic free om, in the Islands as elsewhere. And ou can’t have free speech unless ou also have a free Press, and a ree Press, as Churchill said, “is the nsleeping guardian of every other ight that free men prize; it is the lost dangerous foe of tyranny.”

It’s surprising, when I come to link of it, that the people who pro uce the Press in the South Pacific ave never in their history got igether to discuss their mutual aims nd responsibilities—until last month, md it’s not surprising, when I come ) think of it, that it was an American istitution that initiated the idea and len made the get-together possible.

Americans are good at taking iternational over-views and then cting on them, usually generously, he East-West Communication )enter could not have got any :>ecial advantage from the heavy xpense of arranging the South acific Editors’ Conference in Suva, ut it certainly was a worthwhile xercise for all the participants, who ame from New Guinea, the Solo ions, Fiji, Western and American amoa, Tonga and Tahiti.

Newspapermen the world over ave common attitudes, and there 'as never any doubt of the social access of such a meeting. But South acific editors have something else i common—the special problems of üblishing news and comment in a eveloping area, where governments -ill have a strong influence because f the weakness of free enterprise.

John Fitzgerald, managing editor f the “Papua New Guinea Post courier,” noted: “We must be ritical but where in a more aphisticated society we might be smpted to ‘give ’em hell’, here we lust be constructive rather than ex losive. Undoubtedly we could push ur sales on a scale unprecedented i the Pacific Islands. But it would e short-term only. . . . People taking le first, gingerly steps towards ecision-making can be so easily rightened into ineffectiveness if they re told publicly that what they are oing is wrong. Too often this esults in a lasting bitterness towards he critic, who often uses the Press

as an outlet. The Press in turn suffers, even if it is unfairly.”

King Taufa’ahau of Tonga put it another way, although the king him self wasn’t there. He probably never even heard of the conference at which something he said earlier was quoted at length, and anyway he was well on his way to England in a copra ship.

He said “absolute freedom of the Press is the absolute aim,” but he thought that in Tonga this had to come by stages, “by evolution rather than revolution”. He made these points: “The first aim of a Tongan news paper should be the same as any other newspaper: to disseminate responsibly-gathered and written information. And the first duty of a newspaper is public information.

Because Tonga’s only newspaper (the "Tonga Chronicle”) is financed by the Tonga government, government officials may be nervous of it. . . .

Such nervousness is understandable.

These views are only held because they are not used to newspapers making comments on public affairs.

Had they experience in a country where a free Press is the rule rather than the exception, they’d find govern ments in that country tend to develop a hide about as thick as a rhinoceros, and newspaper, radio and television criticism simply bounces off. This attitude has not yet developed in Tonga. But I think it will come.

“Tonga is a very small country, and the opinions people have about them selves are dependent on the opinions others have of them. I think people in Tonga tend to be over-sensitive to criticism. Instead of examining the substance in criticism and trying to profit from it, if that is possible, they think that criticism is a personal affront. This is quite the wrong attitude. We can all profit from criticism. Where you are dealing with human affairs and things that affect the lives of people, you must expect people to react differently, because they are individuals.”

Henry Raraka, editor of Honiara’s lively little monthly newssheet, the "Kakamora Reporter”, observed that his paper was not worrying the

government because the circulation (700) was so small, but he would be interested to know what would happen as the circulation grew.

Colonial rule, he said, suppressed the Press because the administration was the regulator of all matters and it kept at bay anything that was “contrary to regulations”. Any local with an education was also sure to be a government employee, and thus his mouth was kept shut.

“In such a situation,” said Raraka, “one could hardly be in a position to develop a Press destined to reveal local aspirations as well as to dis seminate views, news, ideas and opinions.”

The lack of trained people to man the Islands newspapers, and worse, the lack of people to train as a result of the government “corner” on the short supply of suitably educated people, is one of those problems that all the editors who met in Suva had in common.

“From the point of view of pro duction,” said John Fitzgerald, “we would be able to produce the [New Guinea] daily newspaper using a completely-native production staff, from compositors right through to distribution. And it would be a paper with few mistakes. But from an editorial viewpoint, if we used all local staff it would be a newspaper that would be unprofessional, probably libellous in many areas, lacking flair—and certainly late!”

When the editors’ conference broke up it resolved to do something to help meet the common problems. It agreed to establish a South Pacific Press Association, and appointed a committee to go into the details. One of its aims will certainly be to find

way to help train South Pacific urnalists, “drawing on all available sources and always with the aim : fostering and preserving a free ress ”

Already the committee thinks it ight be able to organise crash traing courses, with tutors moving from ea to area, putting inexperienced cal journalists through the ropes.

M Ichael Somare, Papua New

Guinea’s Chief Minister since e National Coalition came to power April and quickly began to move e country towards self-government, is been doing a competent job in fficult circumstances.

Those (in the government oppoion) who are critical of what they :lieve to be a panic dash towards dependence, naturally are stirring e pot and this doesn’t make any

easier Mr Somare’s task in vigorously attacking a whole range of problems that just have to be tackled. At the same time, the coalition’s success also attracts the usual share of backslappers, sycophants and riders-on-thebandwagon, and this type of adulation also doesn’t make Mr Somare’s task any easier.

Myself, I wish Mr Somare would curb what appears to be a tendency to sound off in public without choosing his words. His naturally forthright style and easy fluency are very attractive, but when translated from the informality of a Press conference into cold print, some of his comments are better unsaid.

As New Guinea’s national leader, his words are analysed carefully, especially outside the country, and no man with his responsibility can risk international incidents arising from

a chance, or off - the - cuff remark.

I have in mind such international matters as the West Irian refugee problem, and the border with Queensland (which is exciting some of the islanders). But on home front party-political matters, which with out doubt he is fully equipped to comment on, it is nevertheless t hair raising to read of him saying, “It is high time the elected leaders of this country gave some guidance to the people, and if Matt Toliman and his gang are not prepared to give some guidance, that’s bad luck!”

Opposition Leader Toliman and his party represent a substantial oppo sition that almost formed a govern ment, and his choice of words to describe them is not likely to assist the cause of harmony in a country that is going to need it in large

lumps.

Stuart Inder.