Basic HTML Version
---------------=~~------~====~--------~~
Death Knell for SEATO Sounded
MANlLA:
In
ajoint commu–
niqut issued here at the COn·
clusion ofa recent four-day
VISII
by Thailand's Premier Kuknt
Pramoj, the Philippines and
Thailand caUed for the phasing
out of the Southeast Asia
Treaty Orga.nization (SEATO).
lronically. the death knell of
the organizatioo was $ounded at
the very site of its birlh
21
years
ago this mon1h. Formed at the
initiative of lhe United States as
a military bedge against lhe ad–
vances of communism, SEATO
carne into being here in Sep–
tember
1954
wilh the signing of
the Manila Pact by the U.S..
Britain. France, Pakistan. Aus·
tralia, New Zealand. Thailand.
and the Philippines. France and
Pakislan later wilhdrew.
SEATO has been largely
moribund for severa! years and
has been frequently labeled a
"paper tiger" by its critics. lts
act ivities for tbe past severa!
years have been primarily in the
nonmilitary sphere.
"Reviewing the role of
SEATO." the communiqué read
in part, "and noting that it
has
served its purpose com–
mendably, the two leaders
agreed in principie that lhe or·
ganization should be phased
out to make it aocord witb lhe
new realities'• - a reference
to
thc communist take-overs ln
Cambodia añd Soulh Vietnam.
No time límit was establisbed
for formally terminating tbe
alliance.
The two leaders reallirmed
their views that foreign military
bases in the region - meaning
American ins1allaúons - were
"temporary in cbaracter." But
tbey also noted the necessíty of
conúnuing "the good relaúons
we have had with the great
powers of tbeworld."
American officials in Wash–
ington have indicated that the
U.S. is willing to dissolve tbe
SEATO alliance
if
lhe Philip–
pines and Thailand wish to do
so, but noted that tbe U.S. has
not as yet received a formal
proposal from either of lhe two
INDEPENDENT MOZAMBIQUE
FACES AFRICAN REAUTIES
SALISBURY, Rhodesia: On
June 25. aner more than 6ve
centuries of Portuguese colonial
rule, the soutbeasl African terri–
tory of Mozambique reverted
10
black rule
as
lhe independent
"People's Republic of Mozam·
bique." Samora Mache!, long·
time leader of the anti-Portu·
guese guerrilla organization
FRELIMO - the Front for lhe
Liberation of Mozambique -
assumed tbe reins of power as
the new naúon's lirst presidenl
Macbel and lhe new militant
leadersbip of Mozambique
bave pledged to pursue a rigid
Marxist patb for lheir primarily
agricultura! natioo of
7.3
mil–
I
ion people. They have reaf–
firmed
their support
of
''liberation" movements
in
the
neighboring white-ruled nations
of Rhodesia and South Africa
and have indicated. tbe pos:sible
application of econom1c sane·
tions againstthose nations.
The realities of eoonomics.
however. may dampen lhe new
regime's ideological
aidor.
Mo–
zambique's wobbly eoonomy is
beavily dependent on lhe pow-
WEEK ENDING SEPTEMBER 6,
197S
countries for diSSOiving the Ma–
nila Pact. Marcos and Pramoj
also agreed during tbeir lalks
tbat, with the demise ofSEATO,
the AS$0clation of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN) should
be strengthened. ASEAN, a re–
gional grouping formed in
1967
to foster economic and olher
types of nonmilitary coopera–
tion,
is
composed of the. Philip·
pines. Thailand, Indonesia.
Malaysia. and Singapore.
Tite demise of SEATO,
coupled w1th the formal recog–
nition of communist China by
numerous Southeast Asían na–
úons. has been 1nterpreted by
some observers as confumation
of lhe so-called domino theory
that !be faU of any country to
communism will inevitably
topple other neighboring non·
communist states. But most ob–
servers believe
it
is roo soon to
,
judge whether these devel·
opments represen! an irrever–
sible trend toward communist
domination of
all
Asia.
-ColinAdair
erful South Afriean industrial
machine and on
t~t
traffic to
and from Rbodesia.
About
85%
of landlocked
Rhodesia's trade has been ftow–
ing tbrough Mozambique's
ports of
Louren~
Marques and
Beira - providing Mozambique
witb considerable amounts of
needed foreign currency. For
FRELIMO to stop this traffic
would deliver
a
strong blow to
Rhodesia - already suffering
under an economic blockade -
but it would also create serious
ecoóomic problems for Mo7.am–
bique, unless she is com–
pensated by sympathetic black
African nations for the resullant
loss of revenue.
Anolher consideration for tbe
ART 8UCHWALD
Down
the
Drain...
(continued)
LONDON: No self-respect·
ing American newspaperman
can visit London without doing
a "ls Brita1n gotng down !he
drain?" column The English
pound is being anacked, the
miners are in revolt. the Labour
govemment has lost control and
tbe papers (when they ·are
printed) scream ••crisis,"
"shock." ..strike." "protest...
The real problem for
m~
is
that
1
have been visiting Britain
for
26
years, and every time
1
come here it's "going down. the
drain."
The beadlines are always the
same. and if you believe them
the entire country will be under
water in
two
months.
An Englisb fnend of long–
standing with whom l was shar–
ing sorne strawberries at
Wimbledon told me, "You
know. we are going down the
drain."
"You told me that
20
years
ago,"
r
reminded him.
"Oh. yes. but this time it's se–
rious. We've lost the wiiJ .to
work, inJlation is at an all-time
high and there
is
going
10
be a
very bad mango crop this year."
"But tbe restaurants are
crowded, tbe hotcls are full of
tourists, the streets are packed
with ears. How do you explain
that?"
"All of you have come over
here to watcb us go down lhe
drain."
·~at's
not true.''
1
said de.
fensively. "lf lhere is one thing
we don't waot, it's for England
to go down the drain. Wbere
would our public television get
its BBC documentaries if you
went down the tube?"
"The drain - not the tube,"
he cautioned me. "You must
take my word for it. lt's bope·
new rulers or Mozambique is
!he fact tbat more than
75%
of
ber foreign excbange earnings
comes from South Afriea. Of
primary irnportance in
thjs re–
gard a.re the
100,000
Mozambi–
cans wbo are employed in
South African gold mines. send·
ing borne wages in gold totaling
nearly
S120
milllon ayear. The
return bome of lhe Mozambi–
can mine worker1 would not
only deprive Mozambiq
u
e of
valuable foreign exchange, but
would also rocket unemploy·
ment in southern Mozambique
to intolerable levels.
Fioally, Mozambique's giant
new Cabora Bassa hydro-elec·
trie
dam on tbe
Zambezi
River
is slated to transmit some
SO%
less. Even Prime Min ister Har–
old Wilson can't save us."
"1 can't believe that. Wilson
seems to have che
situation
in
band. And don't forget you now
bave oil in the North Sea."
"But we can't get it out in
time. Our major fear is that as
we sink down we'U meet the oil
coming up and we'll drown in
our
own
petrol."
"Yet
if
wbat you say
os
true,
wby are there so many Arab
sbeiks in london now?"
"Tbey're bere to take out
their money just before we go
down the drain. Every time
things get bad lhey come here
to sell their pounds, and thut
weak.ens our money which
makes it easier for us to go
down lhe you-know-where. Be·
sides, they can do other things
in london that tbey c:m't do at
home."
"like wbat?"
1
asked bim.
"Watch tbe British Open
Golf Toumament on telev¡–
sion."
"1
forgot about that.
1
nollce
tbat for lhe lirst time lhe British
are not blaming lhe Amencans
for going down tbe drain. Why
is tbat?"
"We've got the Common
Marketto blame now. lt's much
more fun to blame lhe French
for our troubles than the Yanks.
But we are very upset with your
Eric Sevareid."
' 'Why is that?"
J
said.
"Hedida broadcast in Amer–
ica in wbicb be said England
was sleepwalJúng toward obliv–
ion. He compared us to tbe
Titanic, drinktng and laughing
as we were beading toward lhe
iceberg.
1
don't think that
was
very nioe- do you?"
"But you more or less have
just told me the same thing."
"1 know. lt's one lhing for the
Britisb to say we're going down
lhe drain. But it's an cntirely
ditrerent matter for
an
Ameri–
can to point it out to the rest of
the world. After
all,
it is our
drain."
of its electrical output to South
Afriea - meaning additíonal
millions of dollars of precious
foreign excbange for Mozam·
bique.
It
is believed. con·
sequently. that Mozamb1que
will honor its contract with
Soutb Aírica despite its dishke
of her racial policies.
All factors considered. many
believe that Mozambique will
be forced by circumstances
10
pu rsue a more moderate policy
toward the white south thnn
FRElfMO's unrestrained ídeo–
logical enlhusiasm would other–
wise dictate. But on the
unpredictable African conti–
nent,
national
policies
haven't aJ.
ways been tempered by reality.
- Me/vin Rhodes