Witnesses Say Cooper Urged Self-Government

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29393, 21 December 1960, Page 17

Witnesses Say Cooper Urged Self-Government

MADANG, December 20

Four native witnesses testified in Madang District Court today that a former officer of the Papua and New Guinea Administration had put forward a scheme to get immediate self-government.

Witnesses told how the officer. Brian Leonard Cooper, aged 24, had suggested they could achieve this with aid from the Soviet Union.

Witnesses were giving evidence on the second day of the preliminary hearing of a charge of seditious utterance against Cooper. The hearing is expected to end tomorrow after evidence by two officers of the Commonwealth police. Cooper is charged that at Madang on or about September 15 he advised, spoke, and published seditious words. One witness told the Court that Cooper had said to a group of natives at a meeting in early September that Australia would be “frightened” to retaliate against the native uprising because of Russian and Chinese “threats.” Cooper had suggested the natives raise their own army and, if Australia wanted to fight. Russia and China would help. The witness, a co-operatives clerk, Kamod Tamen, later admitted under cross-examination that he believed it wrong to talk about self-government. Asked did he think he would be punished for such talk, Kamod replied: “Yes, and the Government could put me in gaol.” Two witnesses agreed with defence counsel that Cooper had told' meetings of native people they were not to harm European settlers in any rebellion. A native, Soamu Sigov, denied that he had been "planted” by police at a meeting between a group of natives and Cooper. He also denied he had been instructed to urge Cooper to say "inflammatory things." He admitted that within hours of talking to Cooper he had reported him to police. Soamu is the president of the Finschafen Native Local Government Council.

Earlier, two native witnesses had told of several meetings between Cooper and a group of natives near the office of the Madang Co-operatives Association early in September. One witness said Cooper had urged the group to rise against Australian settlers and proclaim self-government. Cooper had promised Russian aid in such a move, the witness said. Soamu told the Court that on September 15 he had gone with some other natives to a meeting with Cooper under a tree near the co-operatives’ office. Cooper had said to them; "You al] see there are plenty of plantations which white people are working on grounds belonging to you. They earn a lot of money for themselves, but you haven’t got any money. You are all educated enough and can run your own government if you can get rid of all the white people.” Soamu said that Cooper had told them to get all the white people together, but not to assault them. They were to get the native police to join the scheme and were to break into the stores for liquor and tomahawks.

They were also to tie up the European police and to destroy the a’-Strip.

Soamu said someone had then asked: “If we get rid of all the Government officers and all the Australians go back to Australia and we ourselves are the government. who can help us and look after us?”

Cooper had replied: "There are Chinese and Russians not far away. In the Congo, the native people fought the Europeans to get rid of them and today Russia has started to help them to construct things. “They are building factories and making machines and engines. They have also sent children to good Russian schools. It is my wish to see the children of Papua and New Guinea go to Russian schocls. Now, what do you think of this. When do you want to start?”

Soamu said he had told Cooper that there ere not many white people in the Finschafen area of New Guinea. His people would be able to “restrain them easily.” Soamu said he had then asked when all this was supposed to take place, but Cooper had nol replied. To Mr J. H. Staunton (for Cooper), Soamu said he had not aproved of Cooper’s idea, Mr Staunton: Why did you then tell him it would not be hard to restrain the natives in your district? Soamu: So he’d come out with some more of this talk. I wanted them to think I was on their side.

■ Had you been planted at this meeting by police?—No. I went on my own accord. You were asked to go along there because police wanted to hear what Cooper was saying?— No.

You were instructed to urge Cooper to say inflammatory things?—No. Mark Mark, chairman of the Madang Co-operatives’ Association, said Cooper had said at one of the meetings that he had visited Russia and China during his holidays.

During cross - examination Cooper asked for permission to question the witness. He put a suggestion that he had told one of the meetings that if Papua and New Guinea were self-govern-ing Russia would aid development by sending technicians and experts. He suggested he had not said Russia would come and rule the territory. Mark disagreed and claimed the defendant had said Russia would "look after us.” Mr P. Mallon. S.M.. adjourned the hearing until tomorrow.

Soccer Transfer.— The former New Zealand soccer forward. W Hume, has been signed up by Svdnev’s Hakoah Club for more than £lOOO. Hume was an international before he came to Australia two years ago to play for Gladesville. a prominent Sydney suburban club.—Sydney, December 20.