AID POLICY QUESTIONED

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33513, 19 April 1974, Page 13

AID POLICY QUESTIONED

The future of the Cook Islands was being determined by the Government and commercial interests of New Zealand and not the people of the Islands, the president of the New Zealand I Diversity Students' \.-sociation (.Mr .1. Crichton) said in Hamilton yesterday.

Speaking at the Waikato University graduation ceremony. Mr Crichton said that every nation had the right to absolute independence, not just apparent political independence but economic independence as well.

economv which has come to need more and more aid in order that it will not slip backwards." Mr Crichton ■'aid thai his argument was with the type ol aid given and not with the aid itself. “Aid must be given as altruistically as possible, fot projects lhe recipient country has already decided it needs. It is preferable for aid to-government basis, given out of a genuine spirit of con cern for fellow human beings in need and not with a view to supporting a foreign policy objective, or making a lew bob on the side.” This implied a high level of critical appraisal on the part of recipient governments that these criteria were met.

“The Cook Islands is an excellent example of a dependent economy. an

New Zealand's overseas aid policy must promote selfreliance amongst nations, lot aid that encouraged depend ence on the donor country was worse than useless. “It must be as divorced as possible from considerations of foreign policy or commerce on the part of the donor." Mr Crichton said.