or something

Slowly to independence, or something

Thousands of Micronesians voted on June 4 to select the 42 dele gates to the constitutional convention to be held in early 1975, despite the fact that an independent, united Micronesian state seems further away than ever.

Of the three districts—the Mari anas, Carolines and Marshalls—the Marianas are now well along in their discussions with the United States for separate Commonwealth status and the threatened Marshallese boy cott of the election was partially successful.

Only ten delegates stood for the nine available Marshallese seats at the convention, turn out of voters was very low, and in two of the districts no one stood at all. None theless, an election of sorts was held and the Marshalls will be represented at the 1975 convention along with delegates from the Marianas, Yap, Palau, Truk and Ponape. The Mar shallese boycott was due to the fact that the Marshalls legislature wants to keep its political options open.

Although the convention is, under the circumstances, unlikely to be like others that have preceded self government in most Pacific terri tories, United States Ambassador Barbara White, appearing before the UN Trusteeship Council on June 5, professed herself well pleased with what was going on in the TT. It was, she said, an impressive example of democracy in action, which she had seen at first hand on a recent visit to the territory.

She told the Trusteeship Council that the United States policy was to strive for a unified Micronesian state consisting of the Marshalls and the Carolines in free association with the US.

Meantime, the Marianas (exclud ing, of course, Guam) had just ended the fourth round of talks with the United States over its future status. The US delegation was led by special US Ambassador F. Haydn Williams and the Marianas delegation by Senator Edward Pangelinan.

During discussions the delegations reaffirmed the basic decisions reached in earlier sessions that the future political relationship between the Marianas and the US would include the establishment of a common wealth of the islands under US sovereignty, but with maximum in

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ternal self-government and the right to draft and adopt its own consti tution and establish local courts to administer local laws.

Tentative agreement was also reached on specific areas of land to be retained for military purposes by the US and on a seven-year plan of US financial help to the new govern ment of the Northern Marianas (which, some hope, could begin to function as early as July 1976). The tentative agreement is for SUSI3.S million per year, made up of SUSS million to help meet cost of govern ment operations; SUSI.S million for economic development loans, one third of it going to small farmers and fishermen and co-operatives, and SUS 4 million a year to capital im provement projects.

In addition it was expected that a wide range of services and assistance under regular US federal pro grammes will be available to the new government.

Although the fine detail of what is meant by the term “free associa tion with the United States”, which is the aim for Marshalls-Carolines, has never been spelled out, what the Marianas are aiming for already has a precedent. The Caribbean island of Puerto Rico has had US Common wealth status since 1952. It has its own House of Representatives and a Senate, chooses a resident commiss ioner to sit in the federal House of Representatives in Washington who has, however, no vote. Puerto Ricans are US citizens and are sub ject to nearly all US laws except those covering internal revenue.