EXPANSION BY JAPAN

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 15, 11 October 1937, Page 11

EXPANSION BY JAPAN

Attitude in Dutch East Indies The oplnion that Holland looked to Great Britain and the United, States to take a stand against Japan if she showed any sign of extending her activities to an extent that would endanger the Dutch East Indies, was expressed by Mr. Tan Eng Djin, a tea and rubber producer from Java, who is in Christchurch during a visit to the Dominion. In an interview he said that it would be difficult for the Dutch to defend their own colonies, but it was considered that Britain would not favour the Japanese taking control of the Dutch East Indies as they would provide a stepping-stone for further expansion. Britain, however, had the Singapore base nearly completed, and was strengthening Heng Kong. e Mr. Tan, - who is of Chinese ancestry, said that the Japanese conquest of Manchuria had not proved a success in providing an outlet for colonists. The cold climate did not suit the Japanese, and the few settlers were retired soldiers. But to take the northern provinces would be the first step in the attempted conquest of China, which would be necessary if the Japanese were to become the rulers of the Pacific. The attacks by Japan had done a great deal to unite China during the last five years, he said. He thought that one of the motives in attacking China was to divert attention from the bad conditions existing in many parts of Japan. Referring to *ava, Mr. Tan said that there were many Chinese among the population, but they were mainly descendants of those who had arrived some generations ago. At present the Clfinese Government could not give assistance to those wha wished to go-to the Dutch East Indies, and there was a tax of 150 guilders (£20) on each Chinese entering. Japanese goods were largely imported, and they proved a boon to the native workers who could not afford goods manufactured i'n Europe. "When asked vrhat he thought of the restrictions on Asiatics entering New Zealand, Mr. Tan said that the country needed more people, hut the standard of living had to be kept up, and he realised that it was preferable to have British immigrants. He said that he had been told that it would be difficult for him to enter New Zealand, and. that it would be necessary to pay the poll tax, but he had found that this impression was quite wrong, and that, coming as a tourist, he had been offered every facility.