DISSATISFACTION IN FIJI

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23702, 9 January 1939, Page 9

DISSATISFACTION IN FIJI

THE SHIPPING FACILITIES LACK OF PASSENGER ROOM Considerable dissatisfaction has existed for some time in Fiji with the shipping services between that colony, New Zealand and Australia: and attention has again been focused on the matter by a motion tabled during the recent session of the Fiji Legislative Council by Mr Alport Barker. Mr Barker moved that there should be a reduction of £1 in the annual subsidy of £SOOO paid by the colony to one shipping line. He stated that the object of the motion was to call attention to the poor services which Fiji was receiving in return for that subsidy. The Government could not accept the motion, as it was bound by the existing contract until next September, but the Governor, Sir Harry Luke, promised that the matter would be brought *o the notice of the head office of the company. A correspondent writing from Fiji reviews shipping facilities which have existed in the colony over a period of years. In 1909. he said, there was direct communication with Sydney twice monthly, with Auckland direct once monthly, with Auckland via Samoa and Tonga once monthly, and with Sydney via Brisbane once monthly. In those days the single first class fare from Suva to Sydney was £lO. Now it was necessary to travel via Auckland, and the fare was £25. Increased costs had doubtless justified an increase, but the increase from £lO to £25 had made travelling very costly. ■ Better Off In 1912 In 1912 passengers between Fiji and Australia had a direct service every foi’tnight by either the Levuka and the Atua or the Tofua, and an intermediate service every four weeks via Auckland by the Canadian-Australasian Line. At the present time passengers to either New Zealand or Australia had a fortnightly service to Australia via Auckland by two lines, so that actually there were fewer opportunities now than in 1912.

The stoppage of the former extensive banana trade with Australia by Australian legislation was responsible for the end of the direct service with Australia as it meant that the ships had no return cargo from Fiji. Up until this year services from America were important from the point of view of the carriage of mails. Now, with the inauguration of air mails, all English first-class mail came via Sydney. Another point the correspondent made was that existing services had insufficient accommodation for passengers from Fiji to New Zealand and Australia. The principal sufferers were residents of Fiji. It was definitely difficult to secure accommodation under existing conditions. Shipping companies definitely preferred to carry through passengers from America rather than keep space for those who would be on board for a few days only. Accommodation Not Guaranteed

Until the vessels left Honolulu It was, as a rule, impossible to discover whether room was available. The companies would note the name of an intending passenger, but could not guarantee accommodation until a few days before the vessel was due in Suva. Very often when accommodation was available it was in the second or even the third class, and then sometimes consisted of a shake-down.

For people wanting to leave Fiji, the favourite months were October to February, the hottest months. The same difficulty confronted visitors to Fiji in the months of July, August and September, though, in many cases, they had been issued with return tickets. The position had been accentuated during the greater part of the present year by the large number of Jewish refugees travelling. Fiji' was making a definite effort to develop its tourist trade, particularly with New Zealand and Australia. A journey of a week from Sydney and of fewer than three days from Auckland took people from winter to a delightful climate. Difficulty of passenger accommodation would not do anything to help a tourist traffic. Fiji residents endorsed the principle of supporting British shipping, but they admitted that they had benefited by foreign services. They considered that some of the existing ships were too old and too slow to maintain their time tables.