prehension,
howeve
“Tecan
see
much as the United States and Japan
how
fought cach other ia
our Jand might be imporeant to your
Jand and for Jand that neither nation
Defense people in the case of actual
war,” one Ponapean polinenn rald me.
“Bue ld ont see why you should have
unfiniited access te it just because same-
owned,
understandably
hold both countries accountable for
damage to it, Only the vear before dase,
after interminable negotiations, the wo
thing might happen.” Tn the fall ot
1969, General Lewis Walt, Assistant
Commandant of the Marine Corps,
visited
Micronesia,
hoping
toe
select
area; because United States relations
with Okinawa and the Philippines, al-
ready somewhat frayed, might unravel
further, the General knew such an
area might be needed. Ao large and
{"Che United States Congress authorized an additional gwventy million dol-
thinly, settled Palauan isliuid called
Babelthuap looked promising, and for
Jars to pay Micronesians for damage
done after the American takeover, but
just how and when and to whom this
a while negotiations to lease a portion
of it seemed to be proceeding nicely,
But juse as the General thought everything was almost arranged, the istrict
legislature of Palau passed resolution
declaring that the Marines would not
be welcome, Vhe blame for the turn‘down was at firse wrongly assigned to
a Peace Corps Jawyer then mn residence; a colonel in Wale’s entou rage
had heard the lawyer denounce the war
money sta be paid remains uncertain. )
Japan was alsa granted a concession:
Pheretofere, ships fying its flag were
forbidden to put inte Pruse ‘Verritory
Ports except in emergencies; when
their share has been paid they will be
able to sail inte the harbors of Palau
and “Vrek for provistoning. Some Jipanese had already availed themselves of
other Micronesian harbors as used: ship
dumps. Some months back, a decrepit
in Vietnain, and that made hint suspect
in. Marine eyes. Phe actual reason was
thar the Palauans whose land would
have been taken weren’t satished with
the proposed rental terms. Above all
else, Micronesians prize what little sot
they have, and when it comes to the
there by adopting Mieronesian children
and buying property in their names—
have been trying for nearly iwentys five
years to determine just who has title t
what. Not long age, the adaunisey LLLOn
of the “Pruse Leerritory embarked on a
land survey.[twas a formidable undertaking 5 there are, incall che “Vrust “Per-
HIN
yess
ilieateenis,
twenty-nine
Hert
Its
brvawd-
SUttes,
Mierone-
one
heyAS
1s
1972,
VISITE,
Wites
wath
Thitt upset. those
ee
PYopose¢
Pernt
othe rites
Vile renestins
and avhia Uke
to draw wheat they resound as meuin
who
favor Independence,
ful paratlels between avo kinds of
dogs--one fat and sleek hut on a leash
~
ad
tat
-
el: tle
partnership’
Heuit
land. Most of the claims that Miicronestans have ledyved accunst their oc
cuplers da this century have deslt with
the use, or HIstise, of them land. Pres-
at
OpcMstic
el, in the CORLTS( of oa
thar Afteronesia cites
cdgeable old chicts have estimated that
it has two hundred thousand parcels of
04
ta
Despite our Defense Departinent’s ine
thousand four handred acres and seven
thousand
first
terest in the “Cruse Verritory, it comes
wader the lege jrvisdiction of our De.
partment oof the Caterior, and in tle
spring’ of [969 Seceeuary WV alter Fliek-
munally to famubes or chins, “Phe whale
has only
Powas
Due hardly NVedle considers it renliscic.
hundred thousand small private parcels
remain, many of them belonging com~-
4
may
join their
Chamorro cousins on Gruam in ain ex-
panded) United States Verricory. [In
March, 1971, the Marianas District
legislature voted unanimously to secede
from the “Prust Territory, “ by farce of
.
ag
arms, if necessary,
but nebody has yet
tried to implement the resolution,
Karlier, Saipan had held a referenduin
and,‘votwd to-afiliate with Guam, The
only trouble Was that Guam, which
cherishes its distinctiveness in the region,
forthwith held a referendum of its own
and voted against union, In 1969, the
Congress of Micronesia, a bicameral
legislature embracing the cnure Trust
Territory, which began functioning in
1965, chose from its ranks a luture
Political Status Comunission to look mito
the question of Micronesia’s politcal
destiny. After inspecting, among other
areas, Puerto Rico and the Virgin [s-
?
the
cammission
recommended
weice from the airstrip, “Phe crew none
chalantly stepped ashore and, a few
munutes: bate
boarded AR accompany
iar boat ane steamed casiay, Note
sit, people who were supposed
to know told ine that the ishimders
might be ready to cerese their right of
self-derermunation in 1969. Now the
cight thousand acres, and even though
sixty per cent of thar total lias been proclaimed public tand, an esturated four
pletely so that. they
out exacny whit that meant. Phere
bag
ritory, just four hundred and forty-
Many Saipanese, for example, want to
pull out oof the “Prust TPerritery come
self-governing state in free association
doned ship, and around Kalonin the
tuess is that while the Ponapeans sare
holding the broken vessel some JapaThose Insurane
|
s company os helding
the
‘
mitted to own dand, but who, ina tew
instances, have wangled a foorhold
But when it cames to the fucure there
are complications within complications.
that leads tte Kolonia, the capital of
tempo wis naracde to salvage the aban-
cans in Micronesia who are not per-
secable future,’ a much travelled one
told ine, “St would be bke sending a
SIN-Ved reald child to New York alone.”
lands,
Ponape, ran hard aground a short dis-
Territory report has stated, “contraversy is rife and ubtquiteus.” Amerie
Nicronesians are fond of such analogies,
“Tf we got independence in the fore-
Japane se fishing boat, after deftly shak-
Inge eS wa’ through the tricky channel
disposition of it, as one recent “Prust
Districts
Micronesians
countries Anally consented ta make an
evegraiid paymMent—a payment, that is,
involving no admission of guilt about
anydhineg—of ten milion dollars. Japan
seemingly had the better of the batgain:
The United States promised to pay the
entre stam a cash, and te collect Japan’s share at some unspecified date in
the vague form of goods and services.
'same acreage that, if its propmetors concurred, could be used asa training
Yap
Micronesia on
the other mangyand scrawny but free.
that Micronesia eventually become “a
with the United States.’ No ane spelled
followed several lengthy meeungs be-uween the commission and representa
l tives of the Nixon Aduinistrauion, the
jupshot of which was chitin the suaimer
of 1970 the United States urged Alicropres to adape the status of a common-
wealth. The Congress of Mlicronesia
| rejected this as unacceptable, and there
| has been a stalemate cver since. Lhe
upshot of the most recent rennad of
‘talks, held tn Hawaii this pase October,
was to decide ta hald more talks. Vhe
United States is certainly in
no hur
to rock this particular boat, and Washington has too many other things on its
nund to give a dich priority to the prob-
lems of Saipan. Waleer Plickel tras
quated Henry Kissinger as saying,
slightly inaccurately, “Uhere are only
ninety thousand people out there, Who
gives a damn?” Sa bfe drifts along out
there, and the dew strains at the leash.
The Congress of Mheronesit more
miatlhy meets every summer, frist de erisIreture metably deltoreat Prom via i Hite
cd States Congress in that among its
members there was tavul chis bist session
notion sinecle lawyer. (Phere are only
three NMicronesian hasevins anywhere}
up of busimessien ane trial!
pvlade