The Sun 42 Wyndham Street, Auckland, N.Z. MONDAY, JUNE 20, 1927. THE TROUBLE IN SAMOA

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 75, 20 June 1927, Page 8

The Sun 42 Wyndham Street, Auckland, N.Z. MONDAY, JUNE 20, 1927. THE TROUBLE IN SAMOA

FOR a long time past the Administration of Western Samoa has been the subject of extremely vigorous criticism on the part of a section of the residents. It may at once be stated that the Administration has not sat down under this criticism; indeed, it appears to have acted with a subjugating activity that must have caused its critics as much astonishment as they now show resentment. Whether this policy is altogether justified is open to doubt. Meantime it has apparently secured the full approval of the Minister in charge of island affairs. ft is alleged by those whom the Minister brands as ‘agitators” that the natives are denied the representation in the government of Western Samoa they were promised under the Mandate, so much so that 30 districts out of a total of 33 have repudiated the status of the Faifules, or chiefs, selected by the Administration to sit with the Europeans on the Legislative Council. The treatment accorded to sacred and hereditary chiefs for some time past is declared to have been “brutal.” Under an Ordinance to Control Certain Native Customs (Samoan Offenders Ordinance, 1922, passed by the Samoan Legislative Council), powers are given the Administration to order any Samoan, chief or otherwise, to leave any village and reside in any other place in the group which may be specified, and those who disobey the order may be imprisoned and deprived of their title or titles. Already, it is declared, “sacred and hereditary chiefs have been arrested, arraigned and condemned without trial of any sort, deprived of their titles, taken from their family homes and banished to other districts.” Others, it is alleged, have been “dragooned into submission or silence.”

As against these accusations, it has to be admitted that under the administration of Sir George Richardson, W estern Samoa has vastly improved in many respects. As far as the Administrator is personally concerned, there can be no doubting his zeal for the welfare of the natives; and there are those who have no hesitation in declaring that it is because he has most vigorously opposed those Europeans who have sought to exploit the natives for their own mercenary ends that his administration is now so bitterly assailed. In support of this, the Minister received a petition from the Faipules, favouring the Administration and asking that certain Europeans who were “endeavouring to foment dissatisfaction” should be made to cease their interference. But here the question must be asked: “ What is the native weight of these Faipules ? Is it true, as has been stated, that their representation is disowned by 30 out of 33 native districts?” Mr. Nosworthy asserts that the agitation against the Administration is not prompted by any regard for the real interests of the natives and that the Citizens’ Committee will he held responsible for consequences. Wlien he made this announcement in Suva, the Minister was in possession of a wireless message from Mr. Coates, stating that the Samoan regulations had been so amended that the Administration was empowered to order any person to leave Samoa if it were satisfied the person were disloyal or “likely to be a source of danger to the peace, order and good government of the territory.” In other words, deportation without trial! Not only may the natives he ordered from their homes under the Ordinance previously referred to, but, under the new ukase, either Samoans or Europeans may be shipped out of the country if they open their mouths in criticism of the Administration. Desirable as it may be that there should exist adequate powers for good government, this is altogether too much of a good thing. Such methods do not “go” in British communities, for they are foreign to British justice. The view of the Minister in regard to Western Samoa cannot be accepted as the final word. The Government should without delay appoint a Royal Commission to make an impartial investigation into the trouble. If it does not do so, there will be such an outcry in the Pacific that the League of Nations will take a hand, and Western Samoa may be lost to New Zealand and to the Empire. ALL FOR £6 A WEEK JJERE and there, a few enthusiasts may be satisfied with the II radio entertainment that is let loose on the air throughout Aew Zealand, but they must he as rare as white blackbirds. The majority has no other experience than discontent and a great deal of exasperation. And it is large enough now to deserve more consideration from the broadcasting authorities than they hitherto have been disposed to give. Possibly their aim has been too much in the direction of preparing for big dividends at the expense of quality and first-class service. What ever the fault has been in the initial stages of broadcasting in this tolerant country, there is no doubt at all about the results. These have been extremely unsatisfactory and marked with mediocrity. Of course, some allowance must be made for the fact that radio broadcasting is still a new thing and, in its development nature, inseparable from a large measure of discontent among listeners. That which pleases one listener may be anathema to another. But there is at least a common demand for merit. This, the broadcasting company has failed to meet. It has attempted to provide variety, but has succeeded only in supplying a hotch-potch of inferior stuff. Discontent at last has found expression in a declared loss of confidence in the company. Wellington listeners have become so tired of their mediocre fare that they urge Auckland listeners to join them in forming a Dominion* Radio Listeners’ Council. The scheme is tentative, but if it holds any promise of improvement at all it should be given ready support. Anything that may tend to raise the standard of merit and influence the commercial company to better service for the money it collects is to be welcomed. But it really is not surprising that the company fails to please its customers. Its latest application for an announcer for the Auckland radio station explains its failure. A superman is sought. He must have a glorious voice; he must have a thorough knowledge of the English language and speak it with the charm that would wile birds from the bush; and he must have a rare initiative. And for all these qualifications the company will pay the munificent salary of £6 a week! No wonder the broadcasting company scarcely; has a friend in the country.