N.Z. View About New Guinea

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30395, 20 March 1964, Page 11

N.Z. View About New Guinea

(N.Z. Press Association— Copyright*

PORT MORESBY, March 19.

The people of Papua-New Guinea would decide the pace of the territory’s development towards eventual self-government, New Zealand’s permanent representative at United Nations, Mr F. H. Comer, said today.

“The administrative powers can be pushed around but noone can bully the representatives of the territory,” he said.

Mr Corner said he was touring the territory for “general familiarisation.” The United Nations Committee on Colonial Territories was mainly interested in decolonising territories, particularly in Africa where racialism was involved, he said.

Australia’s role in PapuaNew Guinea was given “sympathetic consideration” at United Nations where there was a “realisation of the enormousness of the problem.”

“The fact that no racial issue has arisen over New Guinea has helped these people’s attitudes,” Mr Corner said. Mr Corner said the native observers sent from the territory to United Nations were regarded, to some extent, as “stooges” of the Australian administration. Mr Corner said he felt that

they would be more highly regarded now that a general election had been held in the territory.