The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Echo. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1920. THE TROUBLE IN FIJI.

Auckland Star, Issue LI, 3 February 1920, Page 4

The Auckland Star: WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News and The Echo.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1920. THE TROUBLE IN FIJI.

For the eeute that lack* assistance. For the icrony that ncedt reeUtanct, For the future in the distance, And the goo* thmt we can. do.

For some time past tliore has been considerable unrest amongst the Indians in Fiji owing partly to the high cost of living and partly to the immense losses amongst the Indians during the epidemic of 1918. In regard to this latter complaint the Indians do not seem to have any ralid ground for discontent. Fiji lost about seven per cent, of its total population during the epidemic, and the greatest loss was amonget the Indians, but this was not due to any lack of care on the part of the authorities— rather was it due to the habits and conditions of life of the Indians themselves. The native iFijians aleo loot heavily, a fact which goes to show that the disease was far more deadly amongst the coloured population than amonget the white. But the moment it made its appearance the medical department did everything possible for the Indians, and many white people lost their lives in attending to them; ateo, after the outbreak was over orphanages were established to take charge of any Indian children who might be deprived of their parents. Aβ regards the cost of living, ifr would appear that the Indians have more cause for complaint. Pood generally is dear in Fiji—butter, for instance, is 2/1S per lb—and meat is not onljr dear, but often hard to get. The. same applies to eggs and most of the staple articlee of diet. 'But even here the Fijian Government did what it could, especially in regard to rice, which is the Indiana' main food. Rice was" .selling retail at nincpence per lb, but as this price was considered prohibitive for Indians with large families, the Government made special arrangements 'by which it imported large quantities of rice, and in many cases sold it to the, natives at threepence a pound. Clothing is dear if a good article is required, but in regard to lower qualities it is considerably cheaper than in Xew Zealand; nor is clothing a very 'heavy item of expenditure with most Indians.

Probably the real cause of unrest is to be found in many of the evils which existed under the indenture system, and which still partly anrvivc, although all indentures were cancelled at the beginning of last January. The authorities are quite wise in taking every measure of precaution, eeeing that the Indian population outnumbers the white by ten to one, and also there might toe a danger of discontent spreading to the Fijian natives, ■who are more numerous than the Indians. Fiji 'has no white constabulary to maintain order, and has to rely on » body of native Fijian police. The IFijians ac a whole are very -well disposed towards the British Government. They are almost entirely under the domination of their c!/efs, and the chiefs are thoroughly loyal to the present constitution; but it is not wise to depend too much on any native population when discontent ie rife amongst coloured people, and for some time past the authorities have not allowed any gathering of more than forty natives to take place without a special permit. As far as can be judged, the main centre of discontent is in Suva and the surrounding districts. The large sugar mills at Rewa, some twelve miles out of Suva, are lying idle owing to the strike, and if the trouble spreads to the I/autoka district it is likely to have a serious effect on the already short sugar supplies of New Zealand. The Indians say that the ipricc they get for sugarcane is not sufficient to pay them, and already it is reported that large tracts of land have been diverted from the growth of sugar-cane to other more profitable products. There is no reason to suppose that any really serious trouble is threatened; but the dispatch of the Tutanckai with a number of members of the Xew Zealand Permanent Force is a wise precautionary measure, since Fiji ha« no permanent force of its own, and only native police on which to rely. A commission has been appointed to inquire into the price of foodstuffs and ■wages generally, and doubtless prompt steps'will be taken to remedy any real grievances from which tne Indians may be found to be euffcring. k ~Jk