07 t'
ASIAN TOUR 1967 LA OS
PRESS CONFE2RENCE GIVEN BY TIM PRIMEl MINISTER,
MR. HAROLD HOLT AT VIENTIANE 2ND~ APRIL, 1967
Ladies and Gentlemen:
There will be a joint coiimnunique released by the
Prime Minister of Laos and myself, the terms of which we
agreed on. That will be distributed to you later, maybe
by the time we finish here.
I don't know that I need to go into detail on it
because it deals with a number of items which you would
predictably expect to find in this communique the fact
that we had a very frankc and friendly exchange of views on
the situation in Laos and on international questions of
common interest, this was particularly the case of course
in our discussions in the Cabinet Room, althoujgh I have had
opportunities additional to that of talking with the Prime
Minister and also some very interesting discussions a little
earlier today with His Majesty -the King, who of course keeps
himself very fully informed on all that is happening inside
his own country. In the Commiunique you viill find the Prime Minister
expressing feelings of gratitude of the Lao Government and
people for the positive and constructive aid given by Australia
and in particular its substantial contribution to the
maintenance of the stability of the KIP.
One aspect which has interested me very much while here
has been to learn how vital to the economic wellbeing of the
country and its capacity to engage in work of development
is the stability of this currency fund or the stability
of the currency assisted by this fund to which Australia is
one of a group of contributors. At a distance it is not
easy to understand why so much importance was attached to
this in this country but both the Prime Minister and the King
are emphatic that this is vital to the wellbeing of the nation
at this time, although of course they hope that, notwithstanding
the state of war which is being imposed on them by a foreign
country and part of their territory being held in enemy hands,
they still aspire to exploit the natural resources of the country
in order to become progressively self-sufficient.
And the Prime Minister of Laos reaffirmed in conclusion
in the Communique the policy of neutrality which the Royal
Government desires to pursue in accordance with the Geneva accords
of 1962. There is, perhaps, an aspect of the Communique which
I might elaborate to a degree for you because it will, I think-,
amplify what Ii~ aid very briefly last night when speaking about
what has come to be known as the new colonialism. The process
of support, whether defence support or of economic assistance,
which some free world countries have given to those under
threat or actual aggression, the economic assistance which they
have given them in order to better their way of life, has become
I* course and understandably an object of attack by those who
hold a very different philosophy and who see the future of the
world in very different terms from those which we hope for
ourselves. .0 0/. 2.
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But all the propaganda seems to me to run the one
way, and I think it not inappropriate, and certainly it could
fittingly be said in this country, that the interpretation
which we in Australia, and I believe, people of good will
everywhere, place on these processes of military support and
economic aid that interpretation can take in reality and in
all sincerity a very much more commendable aspect.
Nowi I can illustrate that in relation to this country
and as from Australia. Such aid as Australia gives is given
without any conditions attached. We make no loans any funds
we make available are made available by way of grant, they
require no obligations on the part of those who receive the aid.
And you may well ask has not Australia some self-interest in this
nmatter, as indeed other countries which give their aid either
the military kind or of an economic kind. And of course we have
a self-interest in this sense, that we are looking towards a
world order in the future.
The progress towards that may be painstakingly slow,
and at times difficult. VWe may have our setbacks but if we are
working together for that better world order, then those of us
who are more favourably placed by reason of a wealth of natural
resources or the prosperity we have managed to create ourselves,
if wie can give assistance along the road to better standards and
greater security to others, then not only are we able to do
something useful and indeed valuable and helpful fox' them, but
we are helping to build the better kind of world in which I
believe most people in the world today, certainly people of
good will and of thoughtfulness, wish to see established.
Here is a country in w~ hich vie find, as I said last
night, both the ravages of nature and the ravages of man
which have held back its development and the standards of its
people. It is led by men of intelligence and courage. But
its progress will be painfully slow unless it can look to others
to help botn in securing its national integrity and identity
but also in enabling it to make better progress along the road
to a better standard of life.
This is a very strong reaction which has developed
within me as I studied, even in the brief time here, the
circumstances of' this country, have pondered over what we
and others are trying to do to help and have thought of this
against the background of these propaganda attacks. The new
colonialism, I would allege, is the policy line which denies
the underdeveloped countries of the world means of a modern
techinological assistance which would have them chained to the
age-old enemies of mankind down through the ages, of ill-health,
disease, illiteracy, poverty, lack of' national security,
instability in a financial sense these are things which so
many people of the world have had to live with down through
the centuries, and those who are charged today with being
neo-colonialists are, with good will and of sincere purpose,
trying to improve this situation. So I must throw back in the
teeth of those of the propagandists their charge. They are
the people who, by denying these opportunities and this security,
would be keeping chained to the past, not merely a colonial past
of a superior power, but a colonialism in the sense of these
deficiencies of the past the ill-health, the illiteracy and
these other matters of which I have spoken.
Now, you wouldn't expect me in two brief days here
to attempt to comment, nor would it be proper for me to do so,
about domestic matters of this country, but there may be sorie
other matters you would like to put to me by way of questions,
and I invite you to do so. o/ 3&
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Q. Mr. Prime Minister, do you think that your two days her'e
have brought home to you the need for action to correct these
deficiencies? That means do you see a need for Australia to do
more about it, and so are we going to do so?
P. M. Australian aid has taken particular forms which have
been sought of use by the Government here and I stress the fact
that this particular kind of aid is helping to keep the currency
strong we regard as of vital importance. As you will be aware
Australia has an aid programme which extends over many countries,
some of the Colombo plan countries and others who are not covered
by the Colombo plan.
Contrary to the experience in several other aid-giving
countries of the world, our aid donation is on a rising curve,
where as it has either been relatively static or has tended to
recede in some of the industrialised countries which have been
looked to as large aid givers. So that Australia can rightly
claim that, considering that w., e have our own problems of
developing the continent, that today we have a substantial
contribution to make to security problems of the area and actually
double our defence programme over the period of the l--st four years,
that we ourselves are still a capital importing country.
The fact that -we rank amongst the first four or five
countries of the world in per capita aid giving, I think establishes
our good faith. Just what total provision vie shall be making for
aid in the period immediately ahead will be resolved when -we come
to consider the other requirements of the Budget. But wie shall be
doinc, what wie can to help this and other countries who have been
in receipt of aid from us.
Q. Mr. Prime Minister, I wonder if you like to say, on the
results of your visit, your trips thus fa-r, if you see co-operation
between Australia and the countries of South East Asia extending
from aid and economic ties into the political field?
P. M. . Well, there are some instru~ mentalities of course already
in existence which enable close co-operaction in various fields.
There is ASPAC, there is a kind of co-operation which a group of
us evidenced at the Manila Conference, there is the positive economic
development which the countries who are covered in the scope, either
as contributors or as beneficiaries, of the Asian Development Bank.
These are all, I believe, significant developments
occurring over a comparatively short period of time. And I find
a growing disposition on the part of leaders of governments in
the countries of this area. to work more closely together to build
friendships one . iith the other. Whether they are of one pa-rticular
school of thought, or whether they belong to a particular grouping
of nations in their foreign policies, or whether, as in the case of
Cambodia and Laos, they are countries whose neutrality has become
internationally recognised, there is still amongst them all this
disposition to co-operate more closely together.
Just what forms that takes will vary and in some of
the directions I have mentioned. It may be there is roori for
others. We have yet to see for example, clearly what will emerge
in Indonesia, and I would expect it, with the very rapid and quite
dramatic growith of the trade of Japan that Japan would be found
taking a more active role in political developments in the area.