7 NOVEMBER 1931, Page 2

The East African Native • The long-discussed plans for closer

union in East Africa have come, not indeed to nothing, but to a good deal less than the Hilton Young Committee of three, years ago re- commended. The Select' Joint Committee which has -been reviewing the Hilton Young proposals and Sir Samuel Wilson's revision of them, has, as expected, declared -against any plan of integral union. Kenya, Tanganyika and Uganda are to continue to develop on their indi- vidual Ines, with contact and, co-ordination maintained by a Governors' Conference meeting at least twice a year and served by a permanent secretariat, and by the ap- pointment for all three dependencies in common of a Transport Adviser with extensive powers, a central road board and other joint technical bodies. The idea of a High Commissioner for East Africa is discarded. The demand of the Kenya settlers for an Unofficial majority on the Legislative Council is not conceded, and provision is made for fuller and progressively increasing native representation. The vexed doctrine of paramountcy is restated in terms which leave it clear that there must be no sacrifice of the natives' interests to those of the immigrant races. The recommendations as a whole commend themselves as a sound compromise between i he various schemes, taking full account of realities and full advantage of the possibilities of immediate progress in certain directions.

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