Let's Have Some Philanthropy

In The New Hebrides...

From a VILA correspondent One at least of the New Hebrides’ administering powers can be presumed to have wel comed the sharp rap delivered by Australia at the UN last month over lack of political progress in the condominium.

Britain has made it very clear in recent years that her aim in the New Hebrides is self-determination as soon as it is practicable, and it is evident that, if it were not for the French presence, the territory would have advanced at the same rate as Britain’s other Western Pacific ter ritories, the Solomons and the Gilbert and Ellice Islands.

At the same time, and especially since French Premier Pierre Mes smer’s visit in 1971 (when he was Minister for Overseas Territories), there has been less effort than usual by either of the partners to conceal the fact that there are major dif ferences of opinion in their plans for the territory’s future.

Australia is perfectly well aware of this so that when Australian UN delegate Richard Rowe told a de colonisation sub-committee in New York, “One would imagine that with their vast wealth of experience in colonial administration the admini stering powers would be steadily progressing towards the stage of self determination; such, however, seems not to be the case”, he was pointing up the recalcitrant attitude of the French rather than levelling serious criticism at “joint” policy.

The problem, as usual, is inten sified by the discreet nature of con dominium administration, not dis similar to that of marriage: the partners may fight like Kilkenny cats in private but prefer to present to the neighbours a picture of harmony, mutual respect and affec tion. As far as the New Hebrides partnership is concerned there have, of course, been rumours of divorce on numerous occasions but Britain has not yet gone home to mother and seems unlikely to do so now until the partnership has run its course.

What then of the French attitude?

Why are they so keen to stay in the New Hebrides and to maintain the status quo in the shape of that anachronistic and stultifying docu ment, the Anglo-French Protocol of 1914? The answer can only be surmised at since, though they have never denied their intention to stay, sugaring the pill more recently with worthy but non-committal assurances that political progress will follow

economic and social development, they have never said why.

It seems most likely that the key to France’s attitude is concern that self-determination in the New Hebrides would lead to demands for the same in other French Pacific territories, particularly in nearby New Caledonia, with its vast nickel resources, where the civil unrest of the 1950 s and the continuing existence of autonomist elements re quire a comparatively large military presence to maintain French peace of mind.

There is also, of course, a very natural desire to protect and advance the interests of French nationals in the New Hebrides, a desire that con tinues to regulate French admini strative thinking on almost all matters, social, economic, and, most of all, political. Hence the French reluctance to make more than the most minor amendments to the 1914 Protocol, the instrument which can hardly help but provide the best protection to expatriate interests since this is what it was drafted to do.

But the niceties of small-scale power politics are likely to fade in importance against growing political consciousness among the islanders themselves. Education, perhaps the greatest of all levellers other than time and the grave, is the fuel that is getting the vehicle of political progress in motion. At the moment, with British and French politely con testing control of the wheel and the

foot of one of them pressed firmh on the brake pedal, progress is naturally somewhat erratic; but Nev Hebrideans already have a toe on th( accelerator.

Unless the three parties can read a considerable measure of agree ment on the road to be travellei there will be an increasing risk of ai accident.

This is not to say that such ai accident is likely to happen in th near future. While political con sciousness is strong among younge New Hebrideans, particularly in th urban areas, it is far from genen among the islands’ population and i confused for older people by th existence of cult movements like Jo Frum and Na Griamel.

But, as has been seen in so man developing countries, political cor sciousness, once established, ca develop extremely rapidly, especiall where the people concerned hav such very real grievances as have th New Hebrideans: more than a thir of their land has been alienated t a few dozen Europeans, they ha\ second class status and a general) low standard of living compared 1 the other elements of the populatio (French, British, Chinese, Vietnan ese), and they have no citizenshi] indeed no country, since the cond< minium, being a “region of joh influence” hovers in a kind of limh on the borders of international te ritorial status and law.

Mr Rowe’s remarks at the U

and the critical posture being assumed :by Australia towards the New IHebrides’ administration are not altogether surprising. A socialist government can be expected to show a greater interest in the welfare of emergent peoples.

However, one also suspects an element of enlightened self-interest.

Countries like Fiji and Tonga have already demonstrated that they are ao longer necessarily susceptible to avuncular pressures brought to bear ly the great nations. Mr Whitlam’s government could have more than an eye on a future where Britain’s iresence in the Pacific will be at he aid level, rather than govern mental, and the goodwill of newly ndependent Pacific Islanders could )e vital to Australia’s strategic con liderations.

In the Western Pacific, at least, here is quite a lot of leeway to make ip. Melanesian memories are long ind their opinion of Australia at •resent is probably based largely on nemories of sandalwooders and •lackbirders, rough tough planters, ind traders, some of whom have nanaged to double their profits in he New Hebrides in the 1971/72 icriod when cyclones and low copra •rices have brought most people in he islands to their financial knees.

A little genuine philanthropy would ot be unwelcome.