Barely one hundred people attended an "Operation 21" teach-in held at Victoria last Monday.

The "teach-in" coincided with Anzac Day, the arrival of the Queen Mother, and a spell of cold, wet weather.

Four speakers spoke for a period covering about three hours. They were the Rev. Dr. Ian Fraser of Volunteer Service Abroad, Professor B. M. Niculescu and Mr. W. J. Hall, both of Victoria University, and the Rev. H. C. Dixon, national secretary of CORSO.

A number of other speakers were either unavailable or withdrew before the teach-in.

They included Professor K. M. Buchanan, who was unavailable, and Dr. W. B. Sutch and Mr. J. S. Manikiam, both of whom withdrew.

Chairman Mr. J. Shallcrass told the meeting that he hoped they would act as ambassadors of the discussion which took place. The attendance had fluctuated from 55 when the meeting began to 82 during the third speech.

Mr. W. J. Hall

"We are halfway to '1984,' and Orwell's increasingly prophetic novel is coming to be confirmed in detail."

MR. W. J. Hall, of the VUW Asian Studies Centre, told the "Operation 21" teach-in this last Monday. He was speaking on "a way to grow more food" in relation to India's current problems.

"To the extent that the food problem in Asia is solved. New Zealand will be free." Mr. Hall said. "On the solution or lack of solution of the problem of world food supply. New Zealand's future will depend."

Speaking from his personal experience of India. Mr. Hall said that the average Indian today has barely half the amount of food at his disposal that his parents had The average ration available is only two-thirds the adult ration and while millions of children did not need more than this, they were not available for production of it.

He saw four strategies which might solve the problem—economic, social, and administrative revolutions, and external aid.

But only administrative revolution seemed likely to succeed. "The dynamics of a Marxian situation are missing in India (unlike Vietnam)," he said. Land is being handed out in small parcels. The farmers now work for the village moneylender instead of the landlord. Over two-thirds of India's farmers are in debt to village moneylenders.

Attempts by the Indian Government to improve farming yields under the national Community Development programme, and later under a decentralised scheme tried in Rajasthan, had encountered this problem. Increased yields meant merely more for the moneylenders and the farmers had no incentive to work.

He proposes a pyramidal system of bureaucracy, internally disciplined by reinspection at each level, with a credit system for farmers financed from taxation previously levied. The farmers and the moneylenders would be included in this scheme.

"But I don't really think it will be adopted," he said. "It will. rather, be Orwell's '1984'—bombs and terror."

Prof. Niculescu

Free Help to poorer nations has, beyond a certain point, a blighting effect on national and personal development. Any feeling of indebtedness by underdeveloped nations to others should be replaced as soon as possible by a position of mutual benefit.

These Points were stressed by Professor Niculescu, speaking on "the economics of hunger" at Monday's teach-in.

Today two-thirds of the world's population is suffering from hunger or malnutrition. Predictions are sharply opposed regarding the situation say. twenty or thirty years hence.

Some forsee large-scale famine and death by starvation. Others, such as Professor Simkin of Auckland consider that with the application of today's knowledge, ten to twenty times the present amount of food could be produced.

Professor Niculescu felt that this figure could be affected by difficulties in applying agricultural knowledge in areas of diverse conditions.

Food, though basic, is not the only necessity. Along with it, the underdeveloped nations need medical care, housing, clothing and education. He pointed out that even these things will be foregone in some measure by people to obtain additional "pleasures" in life, such as smoking, jewellery or spices.

The problem of help for underdeveloped nations is not just one of food but involves a much wider range of many goods and services, said Professor Niculescu.

Though there are some stagnant societies in parts of Africa and Asia, on the whole attempts are being made to reorganise production. These can be either internal, as in China, or there is the possibility of outside help.

Help is obtained from other nations in the form of tools, knowledge, encouragement of trade in return for necessities, and raw materials. Aid given so far has been largely on the basis of capital equipment and technical knowledge, apart from food. This forms a major portion of international help and is the only large-scale raw material aid given.

China, for example, receives a great deal of food though this mostly on a trade basis. India, in the present exceptional famine conditions, is receiving an exceedingly large amount of food.

He felt that if free help were to be given, gifts of food should be combined with technical aid. In this way a strong, well-organised technical understructure would be developed to enable India to move more quickly into the whole field of increased production

To cater adequately for the whole population would take thirty or forty years, taking into account an annual 2 per cent population increase and the fact that under-nourished people cannot work so hard.

Consciousness of world responsibility for the less privileged communities was considered a generally accepted consequence of increased solidarity among nations.

This emphasizes the widening gap between rich and poor nations.

Communities asking for help should ensure that it is temporary and should have a sense of urgency to rectify the situation for otherwise handouts could induce apathy.

As soon as India's present pressing needs are covered. Professor Niculescu said, measures such as greater private investment and a freer flow of population will be necessary.

Rev. Dr. Fraser

Critics of overseas projects often forget that we are aiding people, not statistical units. Dr. Ian Fraser told the "Operation 21" teach-in last Monday.

Dr Fraser, who represented Volunteer Service Abroad, spoke of this organisation's activities and of the part which the churches play in dealing with problems of hunger.

He said that the introduction of visual-communications such as television brought a new realisation of poverty to underdeveloped countries.

Speaking of prejudices, which he said were serious hindrances to development, he pointed out that a man's purpose in living is frequently his religion.

Man will give up material pleasures for a cause he believes in, he said. Thus, the Indian peasant believes in feeding sacred cows, and we must respect this belief.

He compared the case of a person suffering from lung cancer, who is not refused medical aid merely because he smoked cigarettes which, he should have known, could give him cancer.

Dr. Fraser also dealt with the aid projects of Volunteer Service Abroad, particularly education and economic self-help.