WORLD AFFAIRS: PACIFIC ISLANDS

Grey River Argus, 18 February 1949, Page 7

WORLD AFFAIRS: PACIFIC ISLANDS

By “Criticus” | Published by arrangement with the

“Standard” Wellington.]

The seventh Pacific science congress which has just been held in New Zealand has directed out attention to the islands of the Pacific. When I look back over the series of articles I have written over the years in this column I can find articles on Europe, Asia, America, Africa; but the Pacific islands have rarely seemed worthy of comment. And yet, we here in New Zealand, above all, are South Pacific islanders and our position as the-largest, richest and most advanced of these islands makes our country a sort of trustee for the interests of the peoples—white, mixed and coloured—that populate the islands in the largest water mass of the globe. Moreover, New Zealand herself is a colonial power that controls a large number of islands in the Pacific.

It should be our responsibility to show the world how an enlightened working class movement can lead to the improvement of the lot not only of the people “at home” but also of the various races and peoples that by historical accident are connected with our fate.

Although this ought to be the case, how many of us in the Labour Movement know anything about the island possessions of New Zealand. This article cannot fill this gap. But it should stimulate you to take an active interest in island affairs in the future.

IN THREE GROUPS New Zealand’s island territories fall into three groups: United Nations trust territories —Western Samoa; territories administered by New Zealand on behalf of Britain—the Tokelau Islands and the Antarctic Ross Dependency; and, finally, islands that are annexed by New Zealand the Cook Islands arid Niue Island. Nauru Island is administered jointly by Bntain, Australia and New Zealand, and falls, therefore, into none of the three aforementioned groups. The history of Samoa is probably best known arid needs little further comment. Samoa which had originally been administered by Germany was entrusted to New Zealand after the first world war. The post-war New Zealand Government which had tried to suppress the native self-gov-erning institutions in Samoa met with fierce resistance on the part of the people of Samoa.

Only when Labour came to power was it possible to improve political conditions there. The Labour Government recognised the Mau, the native representative institution and by this act it has won over the Samoans.

EVOLUTION NOT EASY Recent developments under United Nations auspices are pointing towards an ever-increasing trend of independence of the native population. There can be little doubt that the evolution from a state of almost complete tutelage to that of well-nigh complete self-government is not an easy task and it is, therefore, understandable if there will be some difficulties and abuses ahead of the Samoan people. But this should not deter us from keeping on giving them all the help we can in teaching them to help themselves. The Tokelau Islands are situated some 300 miles to the north of Samoa. As their population is very small (below 1400 compared to some 72,000 Samoans) they are administered by the Administrator of Western Samoa. More complicated is the situation in the Cook Islands. Professor Beaglehole, who has recently visited this island group, is reported to have said to the Pacific science congress: “New Zealand talked a lot about autonomy for 1 the Cook Islands but showed no intention of doing anything about it except by long-drawn-out progressive steps. The natives were now beginning to stir from a very long sleep. New Zealand’s policy in the Cook Islands was a curious mixture of the British and French colonial system. Political control was balanced rather uneasily at the moment between the further development of self-governing institutions and the proposed representation in the New Zealand Parliament.” . For the person not versed in island affairs it is, of course, difficult! to appraise the weight of Professor Beaglehole’s remarks. But that we should interest ourselves in these islands more than we have done in the past appears to be undoubtedly justifiable.

COOK ISLANDS What do we know about the Cook Islands? The Cook Islands were proclaimed a British Protectorate m 1888 and 1901 they were annexed by New Zealand. The effect of annexation was that, these islands became an organic part .of New Zealand which would give them New Zealand constitutional rights.

Yet' they have no Parliamentary representation. Seeing their distance from New Zealand this is understandable. The nearest New Zealand port is Auckland, over 1600 miles away.

The Cook Islands, practically all scenes of wondrous beauty and many of great abundant fertility, are strung out over a distance of over 800 miles. The southern Cook Islands around Rarotonga have a population of some 14,000 inhabitants; the northern group around Penrhyn Island is poorer, and for that leason carries only a population of some 2000 souls. The Cook Islanders are of the same stock as the Maoris.

SIMILAR TO MAORIS They live according to customs very similar to those of the early Maoris and they have the same innate capacity for civilisation and selfgovernment. ' . The Cook Islands had their own Parliament shortly after the British Protectorate was established. This Parliament worked exceedingly well and during its ten years of existence passed 68 Acts to regulate health, security, land tenure, currency and so forth. Since 1904, however, this form of Government was replaced by one in which resident agents became chief administrators and the place of the native became less and less important in his own country.

Recently there have been attempts on the part of the New Zealand Government to reverse this trend and to hand back responsibility to local island councils which have partly an elected membership.

Economically also the New Zealand Government has been subsidising the islands by spending some £240,000 on them during the last five years. Health, education and transport are the main problems in the islands anart from the difficulty of .and tenure and adjustment of private trading interests with those of the native fruit growers. However successful New Zealand administration has been, Professor Beaglehole shows us that we can never do too much. Labour can only maintain its strength if it sticks to its gospel of social justice, irrespective of colour or creed.