Trade or self-reliance ?

Press, 14 August 1976, Page 12

Trade or self-reliance ?

Sir, — The Third World countries of the world, notably China, Albania and Tanzania have embarked on a policy of self reliance. They see that it is best to haul themselves up by their own bootstraps, rather than to go in for much importing and exporting. So for instance China is self supporting in nearly every field. They suspect overseas trade as bolstering up the elite in a country. The ordinary people go without the necessities of life. Before China became sufficient in their own oil supplies, Western oil men said there were no deposits of oil in China and so it was imported. Likewise some- geologists said the mineral wealth of China was poor, and now it has been proved substantial. But the greatest sin of the last century was the importing of huge quantities of opium into China by the British. So let us cut out foreign trad-

ing and become more self reliant. — Yours, etc., P. J. ALLEY. August 13, 1976.