Pacific Report

Vanuatu To Have Own Army

Four hundred applications were received by Vanuatu’s Ministry of Home Affairs when it was made known that Vanuatu proposed to have a military force. Announcing this in October, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Fred Timakata said between 140 and 160 young men would be chosen to form the first company. Training was to begin by mid-October. Dis cussions were held on the final planning of training with Australian advisers who visited Vanuatu for the purpose. It has been agreed in principle that Papua New Guinean soldiers would assist in training, and that part of it may take place outside Vanuatu.

Okuk In Aircraft Purchase Row

The Papua New Guinea Transport Minister, lambakey Okuk, raised a political storm in October when he led a delegation to Canada and signed a contract to buy three de Havilland Dash 7 feeder airliners for the domestic fleet of the national airline Air Niugini. There were allegations from the parliamentary oppo sition, from some senior officials, and even from within the government that he had acted without authority in committing his country to the sl9m deal. The Prime Minister, Sir Julius Chan, later got Mr Okuk off the hook with a cautious statement that Mr Okuk had followed proper procedures and advice on behalf of the National Airlines Commission which held the initial responsibilities for such a deal. The final responsibility rested with cabinet as a normal procedure, Sir Julius said. Hawker Pacific, de Havilland’s representatives in Australia, confirmed that a formal sales contract had been signed. It was ‘a standard contract under good conditions’ the company said.

10Th Birthday Of Free Fiji

Fiji celebrated its 10th anniversary of independence on October 10 in the presence of Princess Anne and dignitaries from many countries. Background report, psl.

Australia’S New Aid Accord With Png

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser has announced that in iiture each year’s aid grant to Papua New Guinea will be calculated by applying to the previous year’s grant ($A232m in 1980-81) a formula which takes account of the inflation rate in Australia while providing for a 5% annual reduction in real terms n the level of the annual grant. The commitment is for five years rom July 1, 1981. Mr Fraser said that, as with the 1976 aid arrangements, the new five-year commitment would enable the D NG Government to pursue its economic and social develop nent policies with advance knowledge of the resources available 0 it from Australia, while also meeting PNG’s objective of ncreasing self-reliance through a gradual decline in Australian aid in real terms.

Abrupt Departure Of Gen. Barthelemy

Che Papeete newspaper La Depeche de Tahiti claimed in September that an official approach to French authorities by the Australian Government was behind the abrupt departure from slew Caledonia of General Jean Barthelemy, commander of Tench armed forces in the territory. La Ddpeche wrote: ‘lt will be ecalled that General Barthelemy cancelled an invitation to the Australian Consul in Noumea to attend an official reception, and n a letter to the consul accused Australia of having “directly )articipated in repressive operations’’ against French citizens of he island of Santo, in Vanuatu. The general’s fire was aimed at 1 former Australian officer, Lieutenant-Colonel lan Glanville, who vas part of the command structure of the Papua New Guinean orce charged with restoring order in Vanuatu.’ The paper also eported that French authorities had assured the Australian Bovernment that the general had acted entirely on his own nitiative, and that his letter to the consul who in fact eventually ittended the function without incident in no way represented he official French position. Two days earlier the paper had carried a report which sought to suggest that General Barthelemy’s departure was linked with the January 9 incident in vhich three young French soldiers died of heat exhaustion while >n exercises in New Caledonia (PIM Feb p 9). It said: ‘. . the :ommanding general in New Caledonia has been relieved of his

post, no doubt because he was considered responsible in his capacity of exercising overall command.’

Pints 50Th; Warm Words And Brickbats

PlM’s 50th anniversary in August is still drawing comment from here and there. Jack Smith, well-known Los Angeles Times columnist, wrote a long piece in September under the title ‘South Seas Beauty is Only PIM Deep’, in which he dwells in detail on aspects of the letters columns in our August anniversary issue, and on the Islands Press section, where he finds the ‘flavour of contemporary Islands life’. His tone was one of warm approval of PlM’s efforts. But in case we may succumb to the illusion that everybody loves us, the Noumea weekly Corail also chose to mark our anniversary with some editorial comment. The Corail editorialist confesses to having been a PIM reader for more than 36 years, and remarks: ‘I have found many very rewarding articles in this magazine. Unfortunately, I have also, and very much too often, come across a certain state of mind which is, to say the least of it, shocking for the French-speaking reader.’

From that the writer proceeds to reel off a long list of PlM’s alleged francophobic sins, ending with what he claims is the essential goal of its editorial policy: *. . . the French ought to be chased out of the Pacific. When only the English (Australians and New Zealanders) are left, all will be well.’ After reminding PIM staff that Australia and New Zealand were populated by expatriates (emphasis in Corail), the writer offers PIM staff some advice (also in bold type), while admitting that his points are a little‘simplistic’: ‘Sweep outside your own front door’, ‘Mindyour own business’, and ‘Don’t try to teach us lessons’. The editorial ends with an amicable salut and an appeal to PIM to come clean and admit that the way it treats the affairs of French speaking Pacific countries is ‘highly prejudicial to good relations between countries and especially between people who speak another language’. We’ll be perfectly happy to do so when the editorialist of Corail admits, for example, that his paper’s treatment of the Santo secession in Vanuatu was ‘highly prejudicial’ both to the unity of that struggling new nation, and to relations between New Caledonia and Papua New Guinea whose people do after all, ‘speak another language’.

Sir Julius Chan In Vanuatu

Symbolising the special link forged between the new nation of Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea, PNG Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan made his first visit to Vanuatu in September. While there he witnessed the departure of the 400 PNG Defence Force personnel who had shortly before restored Vanuatu Government control on the island of Santo. The troops arrived home to a heroes’ welcome in Port Moresby in late September.

Australia, Nz Up Vanuatu Aid

The Vanuatu government paper Tam Tam reported on September 20 that Australia had undertaken to give SAI2 1 / 2 m in aid over the next three years to meet a quarter of the country’s development budget. This sum is in addition to aid commitments already made. New Zealand has also indicated that it will increase its aid allocations to the country.

Dockers Boycott Moruroa

‘Dockers Boycott Moruroa’ announced the Tahitian daily Les Nouvelles on September 23. The newspaper reported that a dispute had developed in August over the health risks involved in loading a ship at Moruroa with contaminated waste material. The waterside workers, who are flown from time to time to the nuclear testing base in the Tuamotus to load or unload ships, finally agreed to do the dirty job but only after being granted a 60% bonus. But when a month later they were asked to make the trip again to load between 3 500 and 4 000 tonnes of contaminated scrap iron on the freighter Princess Judy they were offered only a 30% bonus which they flatly refused. Three days later the rival daily of Les Nouvelles, La Depeche de Tahiti, reported that this foolish attempt by the Tahitian dockers to extract more blood money had completely failed: the freighter had been loaded by army personnel of the CEP, the French nuclear testing agency.

Daniel Millaud Re-Elected To Senate

French Polynesia on September 28 quietly re-elected Daniel Millaud of the Teariki-Sanford Front Uni coalition to a further nine-year term in the French Senate in Paris. The lack of popular excitement is explained by the indirect method of election, and the purely decorative function of the Senate. The decisions of the 300-odd senators can be and usually are overruled by the nearly 500 deputies who sit in the French parliament proper. The

main advantage for French Polynesia in having a senator in Paris is that he is able to act rather like an ambassador or liaison officer, much needed to prod and harass top bureaucrates who tend to fall asleep on piles of important Polynesian files. In this capacity Daniel Millaud has done a good job since 1977, when he took over the Senate seat at the death of the much-loved nationalist leader Pouvanaa a Oopa, whose proxy he had previously been. Millaud received 177 votes as against 137 for the Gaullist candidate Jacques Teuira from the 322 Polynesian town councillors and assemblymen who make up the electoral college. Only one vote was cast for the candidate of the young la Mane te Nunaa party, which is still poorly represented at the municipal level. Marie-Therese and Bengt Danielsson.

‘The Father’ Lets Fly

A volcano known as the Father (Mt Ulawan) erupted in October on the Papua New Guinea island of New Britain, and some villagers left the area. An Air Niugini pilot who made two flights around the volcanic cloud said it was 100 km wide and as high as 12 000 m. ‘lt was massive, just unbelievable,’ said Captain Bob Askew.

New Papers Burst Out All Over

New papers seem to be bursting out all over the Pacific. In September a new tabloid, The Pago Pago Times, hit the streets in American Samoa. Its 24 pages contained a wide selection of local and overseas stories, and the issue seemed well supported by advertisers. However, there was no word on who is putting it out nor does it make any editorial comment. The paper is printed by Transpac Corporation of American Samoa. Jake King’s Samoa News is reportedly still out of action following the fire which razed the company’s premises some time ago. In New Caledonia, the opposition Front Independantiste has launched a monthly, La Tribune du Pacifique. While naturally highly political, La Tribune carries a page on available local entertainments, and staff gourmets give their opinions on Noumea (and other) restaurants. In Papua New Guinea, the recently established Niugini Nius weekender, based in Lae, has begun publishing in Port Moresby in an effort to get on the streets as fast as its daily competitor, the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. The birth of the weekly The Times of Papua New Guinea was announced last month (PIM Oct p 6). Not to be outdone, the Tongan community in New Zealand has just launched a paper of its own. Named Talanga (‘speak out’, or ‘discuss’ in Tongan) the fortnightly will be printed in English and Tongan. It will be distributed throughout New Zealand and in the Islands, according to one of its editors Will llolahia.

Three Koreans Die In Pago Riot

Three Korean fishermen have died as a result of clashes with Samoans in Pago Pago. The clashes follwed an incident in which two Koreans were ‘jumped’ and robbed by four Samoan men on October 8. One of the Koreans was thrown into the harbour where according to preliminary medical reports he drowned.

Later, a group of Koreans armed with lead pipes and knives set out to avenge the death. They were greeted by a barrage of rocks hurled by Samoans living in Pago Pago village in a battle which lasted nearly two hours. Police and chiefs were called to quell the violence. Twenty-five Koreans and one Samoan were treated at the hospital. On October 10 the bodies of two more Koreans were found floating in the harbour as a result of the riot.

The crews of 15 fishing vessels are reported to have resigned.

The effect on the tuna industry, if a full-scale strike were to occur, would be catastrophic. The canneries accounted for 90% of the territory’s 1978 exports of $U5146.5 m. The Korean fishermen are the industry’s main suppliers. Police plan a full investigation, including a charge that some policemen joined in the rock throwing. Joseph Theroux in Pago Pago.

Fiji’S 632 000

Fiji’s population should be close to 632 000, if latest available growth figures have been maintained. Figures issued by the Bu reau of Statistics in Suva show that at the end of June 1979 it was estimated that the population was 618 979, an increase of 6993 in six months. Of the total, exactly half were Indians and 45% Fijians. Since the last official count in 1976, it was estimated that the Fijian population had grown slightly more quickly than the Indian, with an annual growth rate of 2.1 %, com pared with 1.9%.

New Caledonia’S 139 600

New Caledonia’s statistical service has released figures on the estimated population of the territory at January 1, 1980.

Melanesians numbered 60 500 (43.3%), Europeans 49 700

(35.6%), Wallisians and Tahitians 17 600 (12.6%), and Others 11 800 (8.5%). Estimated total population was 139 600 The statistical service commented: The Wallisian population is recording the strongest rate of absolute increase. This is due to a very high birthrate which broadly compensates for a nega tive migratory balance (more departures than arrivals). The Melanesian population, subject to only few migrations, is also registering a strong increase. The European population figure is showing some decline because of the many departures for metropolitan France. Moreover, its relatively low birthrate is not making up for the particularly numerous departures occurring in some years.’

Trust Territory’S 120 000?

A massive census operation is underway in the US Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The programme does not include the Northern Marianas, which earlier was covered in the US census programme. The Marshalls, Kosrae, Ponape, Truk, Yap and Palau are covered in this year’s count. Last official census taken in the Trust Territory was in 1973. The population figure for the territory, Northern Marianas not included, was then about 97 600. Estimates are that the 1980 count will be about 120 000 (Northern Marianas again excluded).

Population Mission In Pacific

A mission from the United Nations Fund for Population Activities has been visiting Fiji, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Tonga and Western Samoa. The mission held talks with governments to determine possible assistance in matters related to family planning, family health, worker migration, employment, popu lation stability and the problems of relating rural with urban development. The mission has yet to prepare a full report following its Pacific visit.

Two Presidents Claim Damages

President Amata Kabua of the Marshall Islands is claiming damages of sl2 million from the Pacific Daily News of Guam, its owners and several of its present and previous employees. The action joins another for $7 million which has already been initiated by President Hammer Deßoburt of Nauru. The two presidents claim they have been defamed in articles written by Cisco Uludong and Paul Addison and published in the Daily News. Uludong and Addison are among the named defendants.

The published articles dealt with allegations of a secret political loan to finance a campaign concerning the future political status of the Marshall Islands.

Defection From Png Opposition

A long-established national political figure in Papua New Guinea, Sir Tei Abal, has defected from the opposition to join the government of Sir Julius Chan. Sir Tei was once parliamentary leader of the United Party when it was the biggest single party in the PNG national parliament, but the party split several times during troubled politics over the past two years. On one occasion he led a splinter group which enabled Mr Michael Somare to remain in office as Prime Minister, but his defection has taken him away from Mr Somare who is now opposition leader. Sir Tei said his decision was the wish of his electors.

Cancer Therapist In New Trouble

Dr Milan Brych, the unorthodox cancer therapist who was forced to close his clinic in the Cook Islands after the change of government there in 1978, is facing a series of charges in the US state of California. He has been charged under Californian law with having provided unauthorised cancer treatments and is also facing charges of grand theft and of conspiring to commit grand theft. He has been released on bail of SSOOO pending his trial.

After he was forced out of the Cook Islands Dr Brych attempted to establish a cancer clinic in the Australian state of Queensland, but was refused permission following a protracted political controversy.

Neck And Neck In Popularity

Mr Michael Somare and Sir Julius Chan are still running neck and neck in personal popularity as national leaders according to a poll published in Papua New Guinea recently. But the poll also indicated that Mr Somare’s Pangu Party was much more popular than the Peoples Progress Party of Sir Julius. The poll was carried out in Port Moresby by Human Resource Development, an independent research organisation, and was published in the newly-established PNG weekly newspaper The Times. Mr Somare was the foundation Prime Minister of PNG but lost office to Sir Julius in a parliamentary no-confidence vote earlier this year.