Sir Shridath’s allegiance 'with new Commonwealth’

Press, 7 August 1981, Page 2

Sir Shridath’s allegiance 'with new Commonwealth’

PA • Wellington The allegiance of the Commonwealth Secretary-Gen-eral, Sir Shridath Ramphal, lay with the “new Commonwealth,” and no argument of principle would override that allegiance, said the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) yesterday. Mr Muldoon was replying in a statement to an article published this week in “The Times." The article, headed “How Muldoon let the side down,” summed up Sir Shridath’s.

view of the Springbok controversy. Mr Muldoon said that apart from the insulting headline, “which may have been put on the article by the newspaper,” the text was an “unfortunate combination of hypocritical platitudes and downright mis-statements.” He had received the full text of the article. “The Secretary-General well knows that the Gleneagles obligation was to discourage sporting contacts and not to prohibit them,” Mr Muldoon said.

"This view was reiterated by the Australian Prime Minister, Mr Fraser, immediately after Gleneagles and as recently as last month by the British Foreign Office, both in the meeting of Commonwealth High Commissioners and subsequently in a public statement. “New Zealand is not in breach of its Gleneagles obligations and the Commonwealth Secretary-Gen-eral lets himself and the Commonwealth down by continuing to claim that we are. “One typical misleading

statement is. ‘As military forces are now called in to facilitate the tour.’ .The Secretary-General knows very well the extent to which the forces are being used. Unfortunately, many of his readers will be misled and doubtless that is his intention. “The Secretary-General’s allegiance lies with the new Commonwealth and it is apparent that no argument of principle will override that allegiance.” Ramphal article, Page 5