CONTROL OF SAMOA.

Taranaki Daily News, 12 October 1921, Page 5

CONTROL OF SAMOA.

DOMINION'S RESPONSIBILITY. SCHEME OF ADMINISTRATION. IMPROVING THE CONDITIONS. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. In the House to-day the Hon. E. P. Lee (Minister of External Affairs) moved the second reading of the Samoa Bill, which, he said, was the natural consequence of New Zealand having accepted the mandate over Samoa. Part 1 of the Bill provided for the administration of Samoa by the appointment of an Administrator and the public service,, the members of the public service to be as far as possible selected from the public service in New Zealand. They would return to the public service here after spending a term in Samoa, an arrangement which, he thought, had many advantages. Clause 34 provided for the setting up of a Public Health Department—one of the most important features of the governmental scheme.

In Part 2 provision was made for the legislative government of Samoa, but all laws or ordinances made in Samoa must not be repugnant to the laws of this country. Some objection might be raised that Samoa was not given a representative Government, but the first difficulty, in this direction was the basis of the franchise. Was it to be British, or was it not ? The Treaty of Peace recognised that there were some peoples who could not govern themselves, and could best be governed under the laws of a mandatory country, and this was what was proposed in the case of Samoa. Part 3 set up a High Court of Western Samoa, but it was not proposed to give the right of trial by jury. Trials would be by judges appointed from time to time. Part 4 defined the relation of the New Zealand Supreme Court to Samoa, part 5 defined criminal offences, part 6 defined criminal procedure, and part 8 Crown suits. GAIN FROM GERMANS. Part 9 dealt with the land of Samoa. Land which was formerly the property of the German Government is now Crown land of New Zealand, and under the mandate land formerly the property of German nationals is also Crown land of New Zealand, and will be set off against our claims against Germany. Lands now held by New Zealand in Samoa would be valued roughly at £1,000,000. Native lands were held by New Zealand in trust for the natives, and he wished to make it clear that there was no intention whatever of taking lands from the natives.

Part 10 dealt with the marriage laws, and distinctly prohibited marriage between Chinamen and native women. Part 13 maintained the prohibition of intoxicating liquor in Samoa. Clause 363 provided for uniformity of time in Samoa and New Zealand.

The Minister then proceeded to detail to the House his experience during his recent visit to Samoa. Mr. Lee said he had it in his mind to invite a number of Samoan chiefs to New Zealand, so as to give them an opportunity of seeing us in our own home, aud in proving the friendly relations between them and us. Having accepted the responsibility of administering Samoa, he did not think New Zealand would be niggardly in providing efficient administration. He described improvements made in the matters of schools, hospitals, water supply and freezing works. All these he described as improvements, and he did not know of a single respect in which Samoans were worse off than before.

As soon as possible it was intended to greatly extend the medical services throughout the islands. Everyone knew the difficulty under which the community suffered because of hookworm. This was a trouble easily got rid of if Samoans could be induced to adopt sanitary habits, but that would take time. New Zealand’s object was to administer the country in the interests of the natives, and that, he thought, we were doing, and the only reason he could suggest why traders did not meet him when he was there and place before him concrete grievances was that they could only deal in general and" not concrete cases. CHINESE LABOR. Mr. H. E. Holland (Leader of the Labor Party) said indentured Chinese labor in Samoa was practically slavery. A Chinaman was not a free agent, and it was not desirable that they should be free settlers, because he had been informed that many of these men were the sweepings of the Hong Kong gaols. He complained of the inefficiency of some public officers, and quoted several correspondents to show that affairs in Samoa were not in a satisfactory state. It was true there was ascertain amount of dissatisfaction amongst British settlers, but amongst the natives the position was far worse, and his information was that unless things were mended there was grave danger of insurrection. Mr. G. Witty (Riccarton) agreed that we could not avoid taking Samoa over during the war, but he doubted the wisdom of retaining the islands. There ought to be a Pacific federation, of which Samoa would be part. If we held on to Samoa we would make a mess of it, as we had done of the Cook Islands. No Chinaman should be allowed in the islands; better they should go back to nature. Mr. W. D. Lysnar (Gisborne) said Chinamen were the solution of the labor problem. The Bill before the House in some respects exceeded the powers given by the League of Nations under the mandate, and | before it passed the consent of the League of Nations should be obtained to the variations.

Mr. E. J. Howard (Christchurch South) said it was our duty to train Samoans in the art of government, and to do this more responsibility should be given them in the government of their own country. The Bill did not do -this, but concentrated power in the hands of an Administrator. The natives were to be taxed, but it was taxation without representation, which was contrary to British principles. Mr. J. McCombs contended that the Minister’s statement that Samoan Crown lands were worth approximately £1,000,000 was something of an exaggeration, because before that could be the case they must be returning interest or the equivalent of interest on that sum. Indentured labor should be terminated at the earliest possible moment. Mr. Lee, in reply, contended that under the mandate New Zealand had power to pass this legislation, and in that statement he was fortified by the opinion of Sir John Salmond, one of the greatest constitutional lawyers in the world. The Bill regarded Samoa as an integral part of New Zealand, and therefore complied with the terms of the mandate. The second reading was agreed to on the voices.