Other letters: French nuclear testing in the Pacific

From The Fiji Times in Suva PEOPLE of the Pacific worried about the French tests should con sider the following: • order the French ambassadors in their respective countries to pack and leave; • place a trade embargo on all French goods; • not service ships and planes; • stop all sporting activities with the French, including the South Pacific Games; • cancel all military and naval joint exercises previously planned; • make a joint submission to the

European Community voicing our

concern for the abhorrent French action in disregarding the wishes of Oceania; and • make a submission to the United Nations for an immediate decolonisation of the French colo nial out-posts of New Caledonia and French Polynesia.

The Kanaks and others have been

fighting for this for a long time. If these island nations become inde pendent and have self-rule then the French presence will automatically be reduced.

Handing a petition to the French Ambassador on Bastille Day will not carry much weight and will probably end up in the waste paper basket anyway. More positive action is called for.

John Leonard Dass

Lautoka, Fiji From The Solomon Star in Honiara THE city of Newcastle is Australia’s seventh largest city. It is located on Australia’s Pacific coast about 150 kilometres north of Sydney.

The people of this city have been outraged recently by the decision of the French Government to reintro duce nuclear testing in the Pacific.

Newcastle is the capital of the

Hunter Valley region of Australia in which great wine-making, world class manufacturing and essential rural production take place. It is also a centre of learning and a city proud of considerable improvements to our environment.

To have all these threatened by what we regard as a totally unneces sary action of another nation is most unwelcome.

The response of Newcastle peo ple has been one of anger and out rage that has led the City Council to take action on their behalf.

We know that we are not the only people distressed by this awful deci sion and we are aware of the consid erable effort being made around the world to have the decision reversed.

We would be pleased to hear of any action you may be taking on this matter and we urge you to consider joining with us on this approach.

John McNaughton

Lord Mayor, Newcastle.