THE PRESS SATURDAY, AUGUST 3, 1985. South Pacific Forum

Press, 3 August 1985, Page 18

THE PRESS SATURDAY, AUGUST 3, 1985. South Pacific Forum

The South Pacific Forum meeting, which will begin in Rarotonga tomorrow and end on Tuesday, will have two major matters before it. One is the question of New Caledonia; the other the question of the establishment of a nuclearfree zone in the South Pacific. Both matters have the potential to affect the whole of the South Pacific, including New Zealand. In many international gatherings the outcome of the decision has only an indirect effect on New Zealand; in the South Pacific Forum practically every decision is of direct relevance. Sometimes the decisions taken have an importance that is mainly economic. All the usual problems of shipping, communications, and economic development will receive attention at the meeting, but the political problems cannot — and should not — be avoided.

The New Caledonian issue is one of the timing and form of independence of New Caledonia from France. Since the last South Pacific Forum meeting France’s intentions towards New Caledonia have become plainer; but there have also been incidents on the island in which people have been killed. The main groups seeking complete independence from France are looking to this year’s South Pacific Forum to take some decisive action to support their cause. The two actions they are seeking are the admission of people from New Caledonia as observers and a recommendation that the issue of New Caledonia should be referred to the United Nations committee which deals with decolonisation. The decision on whether to grant observer status will come down to legal decisions about whether New Caledonia qualifies for such status, and if it does, then who the representatives should be. There are precedents for granting observer status to countries which are not fully independent. The Federated State of Micronesia is the only group with observer status at this year’s meeting. Making New Caledonia an issue in the United Nations is a much more difficult political question.

Last year the New Zealand Government was firmly opposed to referring New Caledonia to the United Nations. This year, because France has made some advances towards independence, the issue is not as clear cut. If the decision were taken to refer the question to the United Nations, then France will undoubtedly oppose any United Nations discussion on the ground that it is an internal French affair. The issue would certainly become ope of East-West debate. In the

rhetoric which invariably accompanies such debates the Kanaks and any others favouring independence would certainly be championed by the Soviet Union; and the United States would almost certainly oppose any Soviet interest in New Caledonia. The issue is a complicated one. The Kanaks do not form a majority in the country. The South Pacific Forum would appear to be a better group in which New Caledonia should be discussed. Yet the South Pacific Forum has to be seen to be fair and the main independence groups have, already decided what they want out of the forum, and this goes against what some forum members will see as the’ best way of dealing with the problem. A wrong move could polarise the whole of the South Pacific on East-West lines. The United Nations may not be able to bring the issue to a satisfactory conclusion, so reference to the U. N. might bring the South Pacific the worst of two worlds. A draft treaty to establish a nuclear-free zone in the South Pacific has been prepared and will be presented to the heads of Government at Rarotonga. The treaty will prohibit the possession of nuclear weapons, the stationing of nuclear weapons, the testing of nuclear weapons, and the use of nuclear weapons. The treaty, if accepted, would be recognised in international law.’ It does not attempt to prohibit the transit of ships or aircraft that may be carrying nuclear weapons and it leaves to individual countries the decision of whether to admit warships to their ports or aircraft to their airfields. The effect of the treaty, provided the nuclear powers become signatories, would be to freeze the situation as it is. That would be a notable achievement. Some of the anti-nuclear groups in New Zealand wanted a treaty which attempted to exclude ships which may be carrying nuclear weapons from the area. However, after conferring with the Government officials responsible for helping to draft the treaty, all except one major group decided not to oppose it. They were influenced by the' fact that a treaty that went further would be stillborn — not only as a result of opposition from the nuclear powers, but of opposition from many members of the South Pacific Forum as well. The treaty cannot be enforced by the South Pacific Forum members; they can seek the agreement of the nuclear powers. France will almost certainly not agree, but the others might. It would be a small step towards making the world a safer place.