The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 1933. BRITISH CONSTITUTION.

Hokitika Guardian, 5 April 1933, Page 4

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 1933. BRITISH CONSTITUTION.

The House of Commons recently .discussed the proposals brought forward by the Govei ninent in connection wn.li me new coi-Ltitution for India. There have been) many debates on India in tiie paot> few years, both before and since the Statutory Commission produced its report. This one mark's the beginning of a new phase, the only on.o, which 'can be linai. By whatever procedure the constitution for lndi<a is shaped, its final form must f,e given uy the Parliament of Great Britain, which alone can establish th© new authority. This position is not peculiar to India, comments a northern writer. If given Dominion statics, or any form of self-government within the Empire, the authorisation nritat come from Westminster. It lias been so with all the Dominions. The constitution of Canada jstands based on the British North America Act, the first of that series of , statutes by virtue of which 'self-government on the British model has bec;n planted in all quarters of the globe,. It is the same elsewhere. Though autonomy had flourished in Australia for many , years before, the Act which set up the Commonwealth was passed at Westminster and mad© effective by Royal proclamation. It is easy to establish. that in India Britain faces a problem more complicated and more delicate than in any other instance where selfgovernment has been granted or even approached. It is not the only one with such difficulties, however. Even in the ease of Canada, the great and original venture, the special position and claims of the French-Canadians had to be met. So well was it done that it has been said confidently within very recent times that if concrete proposals for secession from the Empire were made, among their strongest opponents would be the French-Canadians. The British North Americ a Act contains certain safeguards assuring them their language and their religion. Their position, they feel, would not be equally secure under a- Canadian Government not bound by the, present safeguards. In the establishment of the Union of South Africa there was a ll even greater obstacle of race and language. A number of times since that great experiment was launched there appeared to bo danger of a disastrous cleavage on racial linels. By a coincidence a political merger just affected is claimed to have sealed a unity not known before. Even when the federation of the Australian colonies was being negotiated the disposition of Yvestern Australia to ystand aloof created a difficulty. It was met by leaving the position to right itself, which it did before the new- constitution wias proclaimed. The examples combine to show that the Parliament at Westminster, the authority which lids conferred, and still must confer, selfgovernment, is not without experience in handling difficulties attendant on the grant. None of thorn, however, is a real guide for the treatment of India, for none of the problems compared in size v.a complexity with that which India presents. A congeries of races, religions, castes and tongues, India defies precedents and challenges the utmost resources of statesmanship.