COLONIAL ADMINISTRATION

Greymouth Evening Star, 14 July 1943, Page 5

COLONIAL ADMINISTRATION

EDUCATION AND ECONOMICS.

RUGBY, July 13

It will not be until after the reconquest, that the full story of Malaya can be told, said Colonel Stanley, making his first detailed statement, as Secretary of State for Colonies.

He added: “It will be a story fuller and truer than that which gained currency all too easily at the time of the catastrophe. Soon, I hope to have that opportunity.” He described the educational advance and economic development by which in fulfilment of our trusteeship, we hoped to prepare the various colonies for self government. “If self government is to be achieved, colonial universities and colleges will have to play an immense part.” Steps must be taken, urgently to reduce mass illiteracy. The report of the Advisory Educational Committee would . shortly be presented to the House. Success could not be achieved except by the fullest, use of new methods, such as the cinema and broadcasting. The problem of mass illiteracy could not be solved except by expenditure of large sums, and it required a community well as a government effort.

Dealing with plans for economic development, Col. Stanley said: Unless we succeeded in giving the colonial peoples a reasonable standard of life, talk about self-govern-ment was humbug. The passage of the Colonial Development Welfare Act provided a new opportunity for development. It was impossible to over-estimate the part that air transport would play in the development of the Empire after the war. We should start with some advantages. He hoped shortly to set up a colonial economic advisory committee to deal with the broad policy of economic development on general lines. He concluded that he felt no inclination to apologise to the Colonial Empire when the critics must admit that’ we have brought millions of people security for life and property, and an evenhanded justice they had never known before. INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION RUGBY, July 13. Replying to the Commons debate on colonies, Col. Stanley made an important statement of Government policy regarding international cooperation in the administration of colonial territories. He reminded the House of Mi’ Churchill’s statement last March, that while the Government was convinced the administration of British colonies must continue to be the responsibility 01. Britain it was its policy to in close co-operation with neighbouring and friendly nations. . He continued: It is realised that such co-operation is not only desirable but essential, under present circumstances of modern conditions of transport. The British Government would, therefore, welcome the establishment of machinery which would enable such problems as security, transport, economics, and health, which transcended the boundaries of political units, to be discussed and solved by common efforts. "What His Majesty’s Government has in mind is the possibility of establishing commissions for certain regions. The commissions would comprise not only States with colonial territories in the region, but also other States which have in the region a major strategic or economic interest. While each State would remain responsible for the administration of its own territory, such commission would provide effective permanent machinery for consultation, so that the States concerned might work together to promote the well-being of colonial territories. An important consideration in designing the machinery of each commission will be to give the people of the colonial territories the opportunity to be associated with its work.” It was on such lines the Government was anxious to collaborate with other countries. The commissions could be set up only as the result of consultation with other countries, especially the British Do-, minions.