Best Of Both Worlds For The Cooks

The Cook Islands continues to get the best of both worlds following recent talks between Premier Sir Albert Henry and the New Zealand Prime Minister, Mr W. Rowling. The Cook Islands, self-governing, can continue to rely on New Zealand's help and protection, and the people remain New Zealand citizens.

Sir Albert said after the talks that while NZ had a statutory respon sibility for the external affairs and defence of the Cook Islands, those responsibilities would only be exercised after direct consultations between the NZ Prime Minister and the Cl Premier. The responsibility in no way implied control, nor diminished in any way the sovereignty of the Cook Islands Government and Legislative Assembly.

The people of our nation retain the right to regard New Zealand as their own country even while they enjoy the benefits of self-government within the Cook Islands”, Sir Albert said.

Following the talks, a top-level government team from NZ was to go to Rarotonga to discuss and complete details of technical co-operation pro grammes. The expression “technical co-operation programmes”, which covers all aspects of financial and manpower aid, replaces what Sir Albert described as the misleading and often irritating term, ‘financial aid arrangements'.”