People

Dr James Maraj, 51, vice chancellor of the University of the South Pacific since 1975, has resigned to take a senior position with the World Bank in Washington. Dr Maraj, who was born in Trinidad, West Indies, was seconded to the USP from London where he was director of the education division of the Commonwealth Secretariat. He is regarded as one of the Caribbean’s most outstanding citizens and has a nomination as ‘Pacific Person of the Year’ in 1979 to prove it, plus a British Council Dis tinguished Scholar’s award. In 1950, while at the University of Birmingham (UK), he became the first graduate to obtain a double first class honours de gree in psychology and edu cation. To that he added a PhD and, in 1980, an honorary doc torate (DLitt) from the Loughborough (UK) University of Technology. Three years after his appointment to the USP, Dr Maraj was made honorary professor of edu cation.

Charles T. A. Black, general manager (Pacific) with Burns, Philp and Co, retired on March 31 after 35 years with the group. He joined as a clerk with the Trustee Company in 1946; became manager of the South Sea department in 1971, a director in 1973 and general manager (Pacific) in 1977. His successor is W. H. Reynolds, for the past 10 years general man ager (Personnel). Before joining Burns Philp, Mr Reynolds was with personnel and marketing divisions of Australian and in ternational companies. Says Mr Reynolds: ‘The Pacific region faces a period of great develop ment and I am sure that Burns Philp will continue to play the significant role it has played in the past. My background in personnel will, I am sure, enable the company to make the very

best use of the enormous pool of talent available in the Pacific region.’

Colin McDonald, head of the Papua New Guinea and South Pacific branch of Australia’s department of foreign affairs since 1979, succeeds R. J.

Greet, as Australian High Com missioner to Fiji and Tuvalu.

He joined the service in 1959 and has served in Tokyo, Port Moresby, the Hague, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and New Delhi.

Judge Harold Burnett, who is chief justice of the US Trust Territory High Court, has a final job to do before resigning as chief justice, and that is to set up, as required by law, the new Supreme Court of the Marshall Islands. When that job is done, Judge Burnett will move into a new seat, the part-time one of chief justice of the Marshall Islands. Hawaii attorney John C. Lanham was originally ap pointed to the position but resigned before taking over.

Judge Burnett will also be living in Hawaii.

New Zealand Police Inspector Lindsay Todd, 37, of Auckland, has been seconded for two years to the Cook Islands to take over as police commissioner from Inspector Jim Butterworth who has returned to Wellington. Mr

Todd joined the force in 1962, served as a constable in Auck land and Whangarei, trans ferred to Auckland in 1970 with a sergeant’s stripes, and became an inspector in 1977. For six months in 1979 he was on a course at the Royal New Zea land Air Force command and staff college at Whenuapai, and since then has headed the Auckland search and rescue and civil defence sections.

R. T. M. Rose, managing direc tor of the P & O Australia Ltd in Sydney, will retire at the end of this year after 12 years as chief executive. Deputy Man aging Director B. W. Baillie moved from Brisbane to Sydney in February, obviously to be groomed for the top job.

After nearly seven years in Sydney with Island agents Nelson and Robertson and be fore that with Brcckwoldl and Co Pty Ltd, David Hunt- Sharman has moved to Mel bourne as regional export mar ket manager of SPC Ltd.

The new Australian Govern ment Trade Commissioner to Papua New Guinea, Colin E.

Hook, took up his duties at the Australian High Commission in February. Mr Hook has pre viously served in Manila, San

Francisco, Nairobi and Johannesburg. One of his first duties was to organise Austra lia’s largest yet trade display, held at the Islander Hotel, Port Moresby, from March 30 to April I. More than 20 Austra lian companies displayed a range of fittings and equipment for the office and home.

John Paul, brother of Marshall Islands Finance Minister Atjang Paul, was attacked by a shark at Encwelak Atoll. His left arm was savaged by the shark, but he escaped further injury and was taken by plane to Kwajalein and then to Honolulu where surgeons were expected to repair severed nerves in his arm. Full recovery is ensured.

Harry Waalkens, a New Zea land lawyer, has joined the Tonga Crown Law Department as Crown Prosecutor, replacing Laki Niu, who has gone into private practice in Nukualofa.

After graduating from Auck land University with an LLB and a BComm, Mr Waalkens worked as a barrister and solici tor in Auckland for two years, followed by six months in Eng land.

Eeon Thorpe, adviser to the Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu, has returned to Aus tralia on completion of a two year term. In addition to his church work, he served as secretary of the Porl-Vila Ro tary Club.

John Holloway, commissioner of police in Solomon Islands, has retired and returned to England after 17 years in the Solomons police force. He joined from England in 1964 as assistant superintendent. His successor, Deputy Com missioner Frederick Soaki, 41, is the first local man to hold the post. He became a policeman by accident. He wanted to be a teacher, but the Teachers’

Training College'was full when he qualified to enter and, after being told he would have to wait a year for entry, he joined the police force. He was born on Tikopia Island in the Eastern Islands Province. A police ranker for 15 years, he was

Dr James Maraj

promoted to superintendent in 1975, and deputy commissioner in 1979. In 1978 he was awarded the Colonial Police Medal for Meritorious Service.

Bernd Getter, who is stationed in Port Moresby as West Germany’s ambassador to Papua New Guinea, was in Honiara in February presenting his credentials as West Germany’s ambassador to Solomon Islands to Governor- General Sir Baddeley Devesi.

His task, he told Sir Baddeley, was to promote relations be tween the governments and peoples of West Germany and Solomon Islands in all fields.

Andre Garneau, 42, a Canadian lawyer with the Canadian Gov ernment for the past 16 years, has taken up his post as parlia mentary counsel in the Western Samoa Attorney-General’s office. Part of his salary is being paid by Canada. His last post in Canada was as assistant sec retary to Cabinet for legislation and parliamentary planning.

Sir John Crawford, chancellor of the University of Papua New Guinea in 1972 and now chan cellor of the Australian National University, Canberra,

has been named Australian of the Year for 1981, a distinction bestowed on him for his leading role in the ‘North-South dia logue’

Tuvalu Minister of Finance Faati (Henry) Naisali covered several thousand kilometres in February and March and it’s hoped that his travels will add money to his government’s coffers, which are far from full.

His first call was in London for discussions with the govern ment over unfinished financial business with the former Tuvalu Government, and expectations of more aid from Britain. Then he went to Brussels to see the European Economic Com munity, which has several schemes in operation for help ing the South Pacific Islands.

Nearer home, in Hong Kong and Singapore, he had talks about the employment of Tuvaluans there, especially Tuvaluan seamen whose chances of obtaining work de pend largely on Hong Kong and Singapore shipping firms.

Fred J. Eckert, new US Am bassador to Fiji, Tonga, Kiribati and Tuvalu (PIM Mar p 33) who has arrived in Fiji with his family.