Independence Movements in the Pacific His 502 Lecture

Independence Movements in the Pacific His 502 Lecture, Week 6 Lalita Sharma and Dr. Ryota Nishino Edited by Dr. Gary L. Kieffner

De-colonisation Movements around the World • Allied nations bankrupted by the Second World War • Colonial governments financially strained • But anti-colonial movements had emerged years earlier in some islands for example, the Viti Kabani Movement of nineteenth-century Fiji.

Twentieth-Century Decolonization Essentially three paths to full or partial national independence: • Full independence gained by pressure from within • Independence given by the former colonial powers • Territories given internal autonomy, but still attached to the metropolitan powers

many islands are still under colonial flags, Even Today • French Polynesia and New Caledonia under the French • Easter Islands run by Chile • West Papua initiative for independence against Indonesia

Why did Colonies want Independence? • Freedom from oppression • Freedom to exercise civil liberty • Local people making decisions at national levels and electing their own representatives • Nation would administer its own domestic and economic affairs • Nation would manage its foreign relations

• How easy was it for Pacific Islands to gain independence? Would the colonial powers just give it away?

Independence through Internal Pressure • Western Samoa • Vanuatu

Independence through Internal Pressure Samoa: • Divided into two colonies at the Washington Conference in 1899 • America took Eastern Samoa • Germans took Western Samoa

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • German rule was strict • Imported indentured labourers from Melanesia and China to work on plantations • The Germans did not permit those workers to mix with Samoans

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • Samoans organised to resist European colonial rule. The Mau movement wanted selfdetermination • Central leader was Namulau’ulu Lauaki Mamoe • “Samoa mo Samoa” – Samoa for Samoans • Germany lost Western Samoa to New Zealand in World War One

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • To its credit, New Zealand repatriated Solomon Island labourers and tried to cut out middlemen profiting from fish and copra production

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • No relaxing of colonial rule; Western Samoans resented NZ • Exclusion of local voices as Land was stolen • Changes to Matai titles and imprisonment • The Mau movement gathered further momentum from the earlier days

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • Many Mau members were former chiefs, successful Samoan-European business people, or other influential Europeans including plantation owners

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: several leaders led Mau, including: • Taisi Olaf Frederick Nelson, a wealthy business owner. His father was Swedish; mother Samoan • Judge W. A. Gurr, an American • A. G. Smith, an Australian trader • These three leaders were deported to New Zealand in 1927

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • New Zealand authorities arrested 400 members • Against the arrests and banishments, a petition was sent out to the League of the Nations in 1920

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • The petition stated Samoans wanted selfgovernment. It was signed by 8000 male adults, a surprisingly large number since there were only 9300 males throughout Samoa

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • Second World War, Samoans enjoyed exceptional by the Americans • Americans treated the Samoans better than the Europeans. Samoans who worked on American-run businesses were given good wages. They were also treated as equals

Independence through Internal Pressure Western Samoa: • After the Second World War, New Zealand was put in charge of Western Samoa • But Samoans sought self-government • In 1947 a Council of State was established with a mix of Samoan and European members • Issues: the Land the status of local Europeans • Samoa became independent in 1962

Independence through Internal Pressure Vanuatu (formerly, New Hebrides): • Jointly ruled by the British and the French • Two bureaucratic structures ran side-by-side: education, police and other administrative departments ruled together

Independence through Internal Pressure Vanuatu (formerly, New Hebrides): • New Hebrideans in the advisory council called for greater decision-making • This was ignored • In 1971 a pro-independence political party emerged: the New Hebrides National Party • In 1973 the party petitioned the United Nations for the end of the joint colonial rule and transition to independence and self-rule

Independence through Internal Pressure Vanuatu (formerly, New Hebrides): • Pro-independence movement grew stronger • Local elections were held: political parties vied for seats in parliament • In the parliamentary system there were 29 elected seats and 13 other seats taken by the Chiefs, the Chambers of Commerce, and the Co-operative Federation

Independence through Internal Pressure Vanuatu (formerly, New Hebrides): • The New Hebrides National Party changed its name to Vanuatu Pati and won 29 seats out of the 39 seats. • Vanuatu became independent in July 1980

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power • • • Fiji PNG Kiribati Tuvalu Solomon Islands

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Fiji: • In 1963, universal suffrage given • The legislative council had 37 members and a speaker, which included 28 members divided along the ethnic lines: 6 for ethnic Fijians (2 appointed by the Great Council of Chiefs); 6 Indian-Fijians (two nominated by the governor) and 6 Europeans (two nominated by the governor)

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Fiji: • Britain was urged by the United Nations to take immediate steps to transfer power back to Fiji

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Fiji: Two major political powers by the 1960 s: • Federation Party supported by Indian-Fijian farmers and workers • Alliance Party represented ethnic Fijian Chiefs, ethnic Fijian people, civil servants, ‘part. Europeans’, Chinese, ‘mixed-race’ people and Indo-Fijian business people

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Fiji: Constitutional conference in London, 1965: • Ethnic Fijians given 14 seats; Indian-Fijians 12 seats • The third category of seats, the general electors: Europeans, ‘part-Europeans’, Chinese and ‘mixed-race’ people given 10 seats

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Fiji: • Negotiations 1969 -1970: seat allocation in the House of Representatives (the lower house), and the Senate (the upper house) • Seats divided by ethnicity; the same number for both Indian-Fijians and ethnic Fijians • Senate members were appointed: 6 by the Great Council of Chiefs; 7 by the PM; 7 by the leader of the opposition; and 1 from Rotuma

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Fiji: • The British had to deal with the legacy of the mess that it had created during the colonial era: the difficult questions of ethnic divisions and of the re-settlers’ positions

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • Before World War Two, the Solomon Islanders wanted to carry on with subsistence farming • The British imposed a head tax to force the Islanders to work on plantations • During the war, the Islands were battlefields • The British set up indentured labour systems to get the Islanders to work on military industries

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: 3 founders of the Maasina Rule: • Jonathan Fifi'i • Nori Nono’oohimae • Aliki Nono’oohimae • They worked at the Solomon Islands Labour Corps on Malaita Island, which supported the World War Two effort in 1943 and 1944

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • At work, they were treated as equals by American soldiers who were also critical of the racist assumptions held by the British and the Australians, and their explanations for colonialism • The three men got together and planned to challenge colonialism

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • They gathered ancient oral village laws and traditions and wrote them down, turning them into written laws • They encouraged local villagers to collectively farm so the crops were evenly shared amongst themselves rather than taken for the colonialists’ profit • This revived and re-organised Chiefly power

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • By 1946, local villagers supported their movement en masse. It was now known as ‘Maasina Rule’ (Brotherhood Rule) • Refused to pay taxes to the British • Refused to work on plantations • Equal wages and improved work conditions • Boycotted recruitment to the British military

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • British response was mostly dismissive • The British held negotiations to hear the Islanders’ demands and grievances, but did not do much to improve them • They also arrested those engaged in the movement and suspended a planned strike

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • After the war, the British took charge of the Solomon Islands as a protectorate • Relented a little, but still stuck to the ‘carrot and stick’ approach • Improved work conditions • Breach of labour contract reduced from criminal to civil offence

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • The movement lost its momentum by 19481949 • Villagers who refused to pay tax were arrested and gaoled. • This meant fewer people to produce food. So, the leaders were released from prison

Independence Nurtured by the Colonial Power Solomon Islands: • 1950 s: the British let Solomon Islanders take part in the civil service • Legislative and Executive Councils established in 1960 and Solomon Islanders gradually given the vote to elect councillors • 1960 s and 70 s were a turbulent time • They finally became independent in 1975

Internally Self-governing States • Self-governing status, but they still have strong ties with the former colonial powers • The line between dependence and independence is blurred. In some areas they are independent, in some others they are not

Internally Self-governing States Niue: • After the Second World War, moved gradually towards independence • Fono Ekepule, an elected Legislative Assembly, replaced the Island Council that had been appointed by a governor from New Zealand • Legislative Assembly could now make new laws, change old ones and make its own financial decisions

Internally Self-governing States Niue: • But Nieuans knew that they were not wealthy enough to be independent • Niueans wanted to come and go to NZ and live there as long and often as they wished because many did seasonal work there, and remitted extra money back to their families in Niue

Internally Self-governing States Cook Islands: • After the Second World War, New Zealand gave control over to the Cook Islanders • To look after their own finances and policies • The Cooks were given ‘free association’ with NZ. and could declare full independence if and when they want to

Internally Self-governing States Cook Islands: • From 1965, the Cook Islands ran its own domestic politics • But its foreign policies and defence tied to New Zealand’s • 1980 s: Cook Islanders more political independence from NZ. Now able to form alliances with partners of its choice, such as the United States

Internally Self-governing States Cook Islands: • Have their own parliament • Laws passed by the NZ government do not apply in the Cook Islands • But the Cook Islands still have a ‘special relationship’ with NZ

Conclusions • Movements towards independence accelerated in the 1960 s • Independence was granted after negotiations between the colonial authorities and the local leaders • Many of the Pacific Island nations adopted European-style parliamentary systems with modifications that suited local demographic conditions