Letters

Solomons

Education

1 refer to the 'tropicalities' section (p. 25) of the March. 1978. issue of PIM dealing with Education in the Solomon Islands. 1 agree in general with the tenor of your comments with regard to G.

E. Saunder's article in Melbourne Studies in Educa tion 1977. As far as I can see it relied solely on the Educa tion for What 0 Report, ignor ing among other things the archives available in the Solomons, the developments in the Legislative Assembly and the submissions to the Educational Policy Review Committee (EPRC).

However, while I agree that the involvement of the Islan ders with the EPRC meant that the people of the Solomons were incorporated into the decision-making pro cess. the importance of many submssions from Europeans and the role of certain Churches should not be un derestimated. Yet to see the Education for What? Report as a political statement and not to see the EPRC as a political instrument is a failure to realise that the two are inextricably intertwined, the rejection of the White Paper No 2 of 1974 was a political decision (even taking into consideration the possibility that the rejection was related in part to a clash of European-M el anesian values) as was the acceptance of the 1975-1979 policy. The same may be said for the 'Eight Principles’of Develop ment (and education is an im portant component) and perhaps even 'the Melanesian Way’ has become a political slogan!

Those who are interested in education in the South-West Pacific in general, and the Solomons in particular, may be interested in my recently completed doctoral thesis at the University of New Eng land, Armidale, entitled Op tions for the Development of Education on the Solomon Islands: A Critical Analysis.

Copies are lodged with

MECA in Honiara, the old Controlling Authorities of Education in the Solomons, the Western Pacific Archives in Suva (the Solomons section at present in transit to Honiara), the Methodist Overseas Mission in Auck land. and the Mitchell Libr ary in Sydney. Part 11, Chapter 1, is closed for reasons of copyright. Papers on attempts at educational reform in the Solomons by W.

C. Groves (1938-1939) and F.

N. Ashley (1930-1938) are to be found at these sources also.

Hopefully aspects of the thesis will be published soon but readers may be especially in terested in Part HI of the thesis which deals with the 1973-1974 phase of educa tional reform plus an analysis of future trends.

Bruce S. Palmer.

(Lecturer in Department of Education.) Bendigo College of Advanced Education.

Vic.

The Coral

Route

The article in the December issue of PIM (p 42) on the TEAL Coral Route between Fiji and Tahiti recalled to mind a trip that I made on the Solent flying-boat in 1957.

I had arrived in Papeete in March. 1957. on the Matson liner Mariposa as a member of a team of biologists from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington. DC. After spend ing six weeks collecting speci mens in the principal islands of the Society Group and on two of the Tuamotus we were scheduled to leave for Fiji and then home by the TEAL Coral Route.

At that time the plane arriv ed on the morning of every other Thursday and three days later, early on Sunday morning, the flying-boat took off again for Fiji. The little motor-sailer Mareva that our group had chartered was moored close to the old wooden post-office (long since replaced by the present modernistic concrete struc ture), and I well recall seeing on those Thursday mornings, when the plane arrived, the crowds gathering in front of the post-office and waiting tor the clerks to sort the mail that had been brought in from the: plane. It was a great fortnightly social occasion! when people from out of towm came in, most of them on bicy cles, and met and gossipedl

with friends from Papeete.

When the doors finally open ed there was a great rush to get inside and much jostling before everyone obtained their letters or packages.

Twice during our stay, early on Sunday morning, I walked to the commercial dock to watch the departure of the launch that took the passengers out to the flying boat moored in the lagoon. I saw friends leaving with heavy hearts, and bidding tearful farewells to friends and vahines they were leaving behind. Nevertheless there was a gay. informal party-like atmosphere to these depar tures with champagne corks popping and couronne- laden passengers stepping into the launch carefully holding champagne-filled glasses.

We ourselves left on a lovely May morning, depart ing from the dock in the launch after saying our good byes to friends we had made during our stay. The take-off from the lagoon, with the water spraying the cabin win dows was a novel experience.

As the plane turned westward we looked down on Tahiti and Moorea bathed in the morn ing sunlight with a mixture of a sudden awareness of their enchanting beauty and of regret at leaving these lovely islands.

At eleven, the plane landed in the magnificent lagoon of Aitutaki where a launch took the passengers to the islet of Akaimi. In a small thatch roofed resthouse we were served orange juice and a sandwich. Some of us wan dered over to the ocean-reef side of Akaiama. With the plane refuelled we took off again and late in the afternoon we landed in Satapuala bay on Upolu. By VW bus the passengers were driven to Apia where some of us were lodged at Aggie Grey’s, and the others were put up at the White Horse Inn. On my last visit to Apia a few years ago we, of course, stopped in at Aggie’s but I was unable to find the White Horse Inn where I had stayed some 20 years earlier. Can some reader tell me what became of

this hostelry?

The following morning we were driven back to Satapuala very early through a beautiful tropical morning enhanced by a magnificent sunrise, past villages with the people begin ning to stir about their fates with morning activities. At seven we left Samoa and at

eleven we came down in Laucala Bay and our flight was over.

I am grateful to George Lynch for evoking these memories from my first visit to the South Pacific, and I hope that my brief account may.recall to some readers those pre-airstrip days of Tahiti, when, between the Bights of the flying-boat and the arrivals and departures of tour boats or Messageries Maritimes liners, Papeete reverted to a rather quiet tro pical town.

Harald A Render

Bethesda, Maryland, USA.

C’Est Si Bon!

Readers of your magazine may study every month arti cles dealing with the life of the English-speaking islands of the South Pacific. But the in formation offered about the French-speaking islands ap pears to me to be incomplete.

In fact, your readers could even get an incorrect im pression about the life of the people of Wallis and Futuna.

French Polynesia, and New Caledonia that is. an in correct impression of the lives of 300 000 people. I am therefore taking the liberty of offering some facts about their situation.

Certain people are irritated by the fact that these French territories have not yet acced ed to independence. This situ ation arises from the fact that in none of them has a majority yet appeared in favour of changing their status in the direction of independence.

This is the case in French Polynesia. New Caledonia and Wallis and Futuna. The most recent elections held in March have again confirmed this situation.

The standard of living in these territories is high: for example, in New Caledonia, gross national product amounts to more than SA4 740 per head of popula tion. For many years now the French Government has been granting these populations financial aid of more than AS2OO million per year. In spite of the general economic crisis, which has also affected these countries, the level of employment remains high. In New Caledonia the annual in flation rate is only 6.5% . and salaries remain at a level which may stand comparison with the level in Australia.

There are 34 000 wage-ear

ners and 4 000 unemployed persons in the territory.

In these French territories there are some 100 000 pri vate and commercial motor vehicles and more than 50 000 television sets, a few thousand of which are colour sets. Television was introduc ed 13 years ago and costs the inhabitants nothing. On the other hand, the transmissions to the territories cost France SAI2 000 a day. In the even ing TV viewers can see by satellite, like most Australians and New Zealanders, up-to the-minute world news.

Young people of the English-speaking Pacific Is lands must stay in their coun tries because the doors of Australia and New Zealand are closed to them. New Caledonians and Tahitians on the other hand may find employment in France because they are full French citizens.

Three scientific institutions in New Caledonia and Tahiji employ 400 persons, half of them locals, and three scien tific research vessels, all financed by France, sail the South Seas.

The 200-mile exclusive economic zones of these ter ritories are now protected by French naval and air forces based in Papeete and Noumea.

Noting the content of this letter your readers will no doubt appreciate why the op tion of independence, in one or other of these territories, has not yet gathered as much support as may be the case elsewhere. In their present status, they benefit from a high degree of social progress, and they see no reason why they should change this status which, incidentally, provides them with wide powers over local and budgetary affairs.

The technical progress from which the French people benefit due to their country’s industrial and scientific capacities is also of great benefit to Caledonians. Walli sians and Tahitians.

May this situation endure.

Noumea.

H. Wright

High-Handed

When the government of the Gilbert Islands met for the first time after the election of February 1, this year, one of the first pieces of business dealt with was about the post ot Governor. In a unique ac

tion for a colonial country the Gilbertese Government pass ed unanimously a motion re questing the British Govern ment to retain the present Governor in office until inde pendence.

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has rejected this re quest outright.

This high-handed action of the British Government has happened just before the Gilbert Islands gets its inde pendence. Why must this young country continue to re ceive orders from its colonial masters in this tactless manner right up to independence?

Clearly the Gilbertese Government had strong reasons for wishing Governor Smith to remain in office until independence. Is it not possi ble for Whitehall to recognise the unanimous wishes of this government at this late stage in the colonial game?

It is this type of thoughtless action which high-lights the colonial status of the Gilberts and the ugly role of colonial master, of the British. A num ber of expatriates living in the Gilberts are embarrassed by the way the British Govern ment has behaved on this mat

ter.

R G Brown.

P R Dreaver,

King George V School.

Tarawa.

Infertility

I read with interest your in formation concerning my sec ond visit to the Solomon Is lands in the issue of PI M (Feb. p 5, A problem in the Solomons).

On the second visit I had the privilege of visiting more centres than on the first and the women came forward in greater numbers at each centre, possibly because they learned that I was a woman doctor (gynaecologist). It would appear that infertility is no more frequent than in other similar countries, but it is highlighted by the obvious fecundity and joy of parent hood apparent in the majority of the community.

The Australian Aid to Developing Countries Bureau, now part of the Department of External Affairs, sponsored my visits and the great pleasure in mak ing so many Solomon Islands friends will remain with me.

Del Puflett (Dr)

229 Macquarie St,

Sydney.