Micronesia Elections

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30569, 12 October 1964, Page 13

Micronesia Elections

(til. Press Assn.—Copyright)

NEW YORK, Oct. 9. The United States today reported to the 24-nation special Committee on Colonialism that the first General Elections to the Congress of Micronesia the trust territory of the Pacific Islands will be held on January 19,1965, the “New York Times” news service reported.

The congress will comprise a house of delegates with 12 members, and a general assembly of 21 members. Dwight Dickinson, of the United States delegation, noted the changes as evidence of the progress made by the Micronesians toward self-government The first regular session of the congress is scheduled for July, 1965, he told the committee, and the electorate will include all residents of the! trust territory who are 181 years of age or over. To meet the economic and: social problems involved in, the area, which covers 700'

square miles and includes 2100 islands scattered over 3 million square miles of ocean, Dickinson said. President Kennedy obtained from the United States Congress in the fiscal years 1963 and 1964 a doubling of the annual appropriations to 15 million dollars. President Johnson had obtained an appropriation of

17.5 million dollars for the 1965 fiscal year. An important aspect of Micronesian development will be the teaching of a common language—English—so that the inhabitants of the islands may have a means of effective communication. It will now be taught to all children from the first grade.