autonomy plan

France's new autonomy plan for F Polynesia

The French Secretary of State for Overseas Departments and Territories, Mr Olivier Stirn, announced new autonomy proposals for French Poly nesia after a meeting in Paris early in March with members of Poly nesia’s territorial assembly.

He said the French Government was proposing revision of the terri tory’s statute to provide for greater autonomy for local government, the creation of a consultative economic and social council and increased judi cial and economic powers for town ships.

The government also announced a subsidy of 13 and a half million francs for New Caledonia as part of a new aid programme for France’s overseas territories.

Mr Stirn said: “We want to estab lish regular and frequent consultation so that there will no longer be any misunderstanding or power conflict between the state and the territory,”

He added that he would meet the assembly representatives in Paris again in May to prepare the text of the revised statute, which will be sub mitted to the Territorial Assembly be fore it is presented to the French Parliament.

Mr Franz Vanizette, chairman of the Territorial Assembly, an Indepen dent, said that apart from the Gaullists who had not yet adopted a position, all members of the assembly wanted the Polynesian Prime Minister to be chosen by election. At present, the French-appointed governor func tions as Prime Minister with the help of a secretary-general and five elected representatives.

Mr Stirn said the meeting also dealt with the economic problems of Tahiti and the other French Poly nesian islands. The islands face a loss of jobs with the run-down of France’s Pacific Experimentation Centre, which carried out the now discontinued French atmospheric nuclear testing programme.

But according to Mr Vanizette, this would at first mainly affect Frenchmen who would be sent home.

Other problems under discussion were air and sea transport, the sup ply of technical equipment, modern isation of farming and the civil ser vice, Mr Stirn said. He added that France was considering increasing the share it pays towards the salaries of public officials.