WHITE AUSTRALIA

Hokitika Guardian, 27 May 1929, Page 7

WHITE AUSTRALIA

J;S POLICY DUOAiED?

A.i UliolLuvaA CJNaoL

SidNEY, May 16. '1 lie now Cli.nuse CAii&ul-Cuiiural in

.ui:,wa..ia, UiioiSe outspoken utterances

nuiu c.iUSuu WK.eopiX.au interest, la i.ruly rup-L-auiitat'.ve ol the i\ew China.

• J-c is typical oi llie student generaLi .n which u .es not indulge m Man..ariuosyue veimage; lie goes straight to tlie point in ini,, tang lie has to say. And tiiere are many Australians wiio •tie prepared w agree with him op to -.cimit, at least, that he is talking tvni.uoiiseiise. lie is here to see that •Vli-ne.se nationa s and Chinese trade are treated on a rec.prov-al footing.” .te lias i-ec-cived a. w-iiuorlul reception iiom his leliow-.O'UnLrymen, and no ivoncler I .r in Jus first speech, delivered in Sydney, lie complained abjut tiie treatment of Chinese, and said that .hey were not hogs or cattle and worthy of consideration and respect.

This man who Juts shown no tear in attacking in Australia tlie White Australia- policy is Air F. T. Sung. He went so far as to say in public that many Australians had told him that tlie AVliito Australia policy was not fair and that it wou.d sooner or later have to be modiued. He said that he found many people against tlie policy because of Australia’s small population and its failure in the past to do anything with its vast areas which contain only a handful of people. He had talked with many Australians about the unpopulated north, and they had told him that the climate suits the Chinese, who if they were a.lowed free entry into a we!l ih-fined area in the north, would, at llie end of ten years, change the country beyond recogntion. Tiio revenue which the local authorities and the Government would receive would lie immense, and the wealth of Australia would be immeasurably increased. It would he, the beginning of the golden age for Australia.

AVlien ho went to Ale’hourne Air Sung exhorted Australia to follow tiie example of America, which cultivated good relations witn China, and so increase trade relations. It spite of the strict clauses of the Immigration Act in the United States, both students and merchants, he said, could get into America without any trouble and stay as long as they liked. The United States Government had realised that unless Chinese merchants were given facilities for entering the country trade could not be increased in the natural way. Last year American trade with China had increased 51 per cent, over the previous year’s total. That was due to the fact that America had realised the importance of the Chinese market, which entailed tin-eat-ing tlie Chinese as any other nation would be treated. “If the White Australia policy -is modified,” he said, “to allow Chinese merchants to enter Australia and tc allow their families to accompany them, I can guarantee increased Australian trade with China. Chinesi merchants are only too eager to in crease the trade if the proper facilities are offered.” It appeared to liin that the Federal Government was noi sufficiently acquainted with the position in China and the trade possibilities. He hoped to do a great deal for the benefit of both countrie.