When Authoritarianism

Failed

Discontent within Tonga’s

government nursing service boiled over in January, after

simmering Tonga-style for

some nine years (PIM Mar p 6).

A mass resignation, on one month’s notice, of 168 nurses from Tongatapu and the other islands took effect at midnight on January 9. Five senior sis ters submitted resignations at the same time, but on the mandatory three months’ notice for their level. In a country where unions are il

legal and respectful submission

to authority is built into the cul ture, the nurses’ action posed

an unprecedented problem for

Cabinet and created flashpoint tension between partisan sup

porters throughout the King

dom.

The chronology of the crisis was: June ’79: The nurses submit ted a formal written request to the Prime Minister for a

thorough and impartial investi

gation of the whole nursing ser vice and for the removal of the chief nursing officer (Mrs ’Akosita Fineanganofo) whose

performance, they claimed,

had been adversely affecting

morale and efficiency since 1971 despite repeated com

plaints to authority.

August: The government appointed a committee of in quiry which sat for 26 days and prepared a 600-page report on the evidence presented.

Dec. 3: The nurses submitted a further letter with 173 signa tures asking for a definitive de cision on the report by December 10, including re moval of the CNO. Failing this their letter should be taken as formal notice of resignation to take effect on January 10, except where three months’

notice required.

Dec. 10: No reply received.

Jan. 9 ’80: a.m. The minister of health was reminded by the nurses that the resignations would take effect at midnight as previously notified. p.m. The prime minister met with the nurses’ representatives to request postponement but could give no guarantee of when Cabinet would review and act on the report.

Midnight: The nurses stopped work and radioed the outer islands in code to do the same.

From Penny Hodgkinson in Nukualofa

Jan. 11: Three theatre staff of Vaiola Hospital returned to assist with an emergency oper ation, then left again.

Jan. 13: The minister of health. Dr Tapa, in a denunci atory broadcast that shocked the Kingdom, declared the res ignations invalid and ordered the nurses back to work by 4 pm next day. Those who did not obey would, he said, be ‘driven out of the government

nursing service in disgrace’.

Jan. 14: Only three nurses obeyed the minister’s ulti matum.

Jan. 15: The ministry of

health began broadcasting

appeals for volunteers to assist skeleton hospital staffs.

Jan. 16: The nurses distri buted a brochure explaining their case to the public and presented a petition to His Majesty in Council.

Jan. 17: The Privy Council reviewed the crisis and referred it back to another Cabinet

meeting next day. A public pet

ition circulated overnight in support of the nurses and with over 6000 signatures was also sent to His Majesty. Catholic Bishop Patelisio Finau, in a personal letter to His Majesty, requested further review of the

nurses’ long standing griev

ances.

Jan. 18: Cabinet sat all day and late that night released an authorised national broadcast statement, summarising its ver sion of the history of the crisis, announcing its acceptance of a committee finding that all

complaints against the CNO

were ‘without foundation’,

and upholding her in her pos ition. It further announced that an expatriate expert in nursing administration would be quickly recruited to evaluate all facets of and current prac tices within the ministry of health nursing service, and gave a ‘second chance exten sion’ of the former dismissal deadline to 4 pm next day.

Jan. 19: Three nurses from Vaiola General Hospital and 12 from the various outer islands resumed duty. The re mainder stood firm, claiming: that the official January 18 broadcast had been denigratory in tone and incomplete in sub stance; that their resignations had not been declared invalid during the one month’s notice period; that the offer of a sec

ond independent investigation

underlined the meaningless and ‘face-saving’ nature of the earlier inquiry in which all three committee members and the secretary had been related by blood or marriage to the contentious CNO; that return ing to duty under that same

CNO, strengthened by official

Cabinet vindication, would create unbearable tensions and undermine what remained of

nursing efficiency.

Jan. 21: The ministry of health broadcast advertise ments, for Tongans or resident

expatriates with nursing ex

perience to fill vacancies in the Government service and rumours began to circulate that the government was also con sidering overseas recruit ments.

Jan. 23: Doctors at Vaiola Hospital sent an official letter to the Ministry of Health urg

ing a practical resolution of the crisis and advising that they would not be able to cope

much longer under existing

conditions.

At 9.30 pm on the night of January 24, the apparent dead lock was suddenly and dra

matically broken.

In a nationwide broadcast, the Prime Minister, HRH Prince Fatefehi Tu’ipelehake, revealed that the government had backed away from its for mer uncompromising authori tarianism, so that all concerned could work together in har mony and love for the good of the Kingdom. HM’s Govern ment had, he said, decided to transfer the CNO to another

ministry (foreign affairs), a

new CNO would be recruited from overseas, and a third ex gratia chance would be given to

all nurses resuming duty by

4pm on Saturday, January

26.

An official letter detailing the new offers was simul taneously delivered to the house where most of the nurses had been living together since the crisis began, and crowds of well-wishers began congregat ing outside to offer their con gratulations.

Amid tears of rejoicing and relief of tension, amid

emotional Tonga-style

speeches of gratitude to the government for its changed attitude and to the many sup porters who had supplied them with food and money, they voted unanimously to accept the Cabinet olive-branch and rejoin the service.

Thus Tonga’s first-ever major industrial crisis ended with valuable lessons for both sides. The nurses, and through them all Tongans, have learnt that unity, faith, strength of purpose and total belief in a cause can move mountains.

The government has learnt that a respect for human rights, and a realistic search for practical solutions, is far more effective than old-style hardline authori tarianism.

The prime minister resolved the 15-day crisis with a grace and dignity which obliterated earlier mistakes and won every Tongan heart. The nurses re sponded with a grace and dig nity to match, many returning to work as volunteers prior to

official resumption of duty.