The 1948 Nauru riots occurred when Chinese labourers employed on the phosphate mines refused to leave the island. At the time, Nauru was dominated by Australia as a United Nations trust territory, with New Zealand and the UK as co-trustees.
Chinese labourers were first brought to Nauru in 1907 by the Pacific Phosphate Company, at which time the island was a German protectorate.[2] They became the preferred source of labour for the phosphate mines, as they were regarded as better workers than the Nauruans, were willing to sign three-year contracts, and, unlike Pacific Islanders, were willing to live on the island for the duration of their employment.[3] The Nauruan and Chinese communities had little contact, and their separation was encouraged by the company and the German administration. The Chinese were blamed for a series of disease epidemics which saw the Nauruan population reduced from 1,550 in 1905 to 1,250 in 1910.[4] By 1914, there were 1,000 immigrant workers on Nauru, half of which were Chinese and the other half Caroline Islanders.[5]
During World War I, Nauru was occupied by Australian forces and subsequently became a League of Nations mandate. Phosphate mining was taken over by the British Phosphate Commission (BPC), a joint venture of Australia, New Zealand, and the UK. The BPC discontinued the recruitment of Caroline Islanders, as the islands had come under Japanese control, and attempted to replace them with workers from Australia's other mandate, the Territory of New Guinea. However, the experiment proved unsuccessful and by 1924 the Chinese were the only remaining foreign labourers.[5] By this time, the Australian administration's Movements of Natives Ordinance 1921 had introduced formal racial segregation.[6] Subsequently, "the three communities, European, Nauruan, and Chinese, lived isolated and self-contained existences reinforced by the ordinances of the Administrator".[7]
Chinese workers signed contracts directly with the BPC, which were translated by a Chinese liaison officer appointed by the British administration in Hong Kong. The contracts included free travel, accommodation, food, clothing and medical care.[8] The labourers were not permitted to bring their families, and the majority of their wages were sent back to China. They were not allowed to become permanent residents of Nauru, but an estimated 20 percent chose to renew their contracts each year.[9] Few Nauruans sought work with the BPC, but those that did received a higher minimum wage.[10]
Most Chinese labourers were evacuated prior to the Japanese occupation of Nauru in 1942, but the 180 that remained were treated harshly and given reduced rations compared to the Nauruans.[11] After 1944 many Chinese died of starvation. Australian administration was restored in September 1945 following the end of World War II.[12] The BPC immediately sought to resume mining, and by June 1948 the Chinese population stood at 1,400.[13]
RiotsEdit
On 7 June 1948, several hundred Chinese workers refused to board a ship waiting to return them to China. They alleged that the Chinese interpreters would not pay out their share of contributions to the community funds. One of the labourers threatened an interpreter and assaulted a messenger from the administration, at which point the police were called and attempted to arrest him.[14] The other labourers then barricaded themselves in their compound and armed themselves with spears, clubs and axes.[1]
The island's administrator Mark Ridgway declared a state of emergency and dispatched an armed riot squad comprising 44 Nauruan policemen and 16 European volunteers to the Chinese compound. In the subsequent fight, two of the labourers were shot dead and 16 were wounded.
The police arrested 49 of the workers, who were taken to the island's gaol. There, two were bayoneted to death by a Nauruan constable, who alleged they had been attempting to escape.
AftermathEdit
The August 1948 edition of Pacific Islands Monthly accused the Australian government of "great official secrecy" over the riots. It noted that the state of emergency had been suspended on 18 July.[1]
InquiryEdit
This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (May 2021)
ReferencesEdit
^ abc"Nauru riots". Pacific Islands Monthly. Vol. XIX, no. 1. 1 August 1948. p. 10.
Viviani, Nancy (1970). Nauru: Phosphate and Political Progress(PDF). ANU Press.
October 16, 2023
1948, nauru, riots, occurred, when, chinese, labourers, employed, phosphate, mines, refused, leave, island, time, nauru, dominated, australia, united, nations, trust, territory, with, zealand, trustees, datejune, 1948, 1948, locationtrust, territory, naurucaus. The 1948 Nauru riots occurred when Chinese labourers employed on the phosphate mines refused to leave the island At the time Nauru was dominated by Australia as a United Nations trust territory with New Zealand and the UK as co trustees 1948 Nauru riotsDateJune 7 1948 1948 06 07 LocationTrust Territory of NauruCaused byExploitation of Chinese labourersPartiesChinese labourers on Nauru Administration of NauruLead figuresMark Ridgway Administrator Eddie Ward Minister for External Territories Number200 300 labourers 44 Nauruan constables16 European volunteersCasualties and losses4 dead16 wounded49 arrestedState of emergency declared effective on 7 June rescinded 18 July 1 Contents 1 Background 2 Riots 3 Aftermath 3 1 Inquiry 4 References 5 SourcesBackground EditFurther information Phosphate mining in Banaba and Nauru Chinese labourers were first brought to Nauru in 1907 by the Pacific Phosphate Company at which time the island was a German protectorate 2 They became the preferred source of labour for the phosphate mines as they were regarded as better workers than the Nauruans were willing to sign three year contracts and unlike Pacific Islanders were willing to live on the island for the duration of their employment 3 The Nauruan and Chinese communities had little contact and their separation was encouraged by the company and the German administration The Chinese were blamed for a series of disease epidemics which saw the Nauruan population reduced from 1 550 in 1905 to 1 250 in 1910 4 By 1914 there were 1 000 immigrant workers on Nauru half of which were Chinese and the other half Caroline Islanders 5 During World War I Nauru was occupied by Australian forces and subsequently became a League of Nations mandate Phosphate mining was taken over by the British Phosphate Commission BPC a joint venture of Australia New Zealand and the UK The BPC discontinued the recruitment of Caroline Islanders as the islands had come under Japanese control and attempted to replace them with workers from Australia s other mandate the Territory of New Guinea However the experiment proved unsuccessful and by 1924 the Chinese were the only remaining foreign labourers 5 By this time the Australian administration s Movements of Natives Ordinance 1921 had introduced formal racial segregation 6 Subsequently the three communities European Nauruan and Chinese lived isolated and self contained existences reinforced by the ordinances of the Administrator 7 Chinese workers signed contracts directly with the BPC which were translated by a Chinese liaison officer appointed by the British administration in Hong Kong The contracts included free travel accommodation food clothing and medical care 8 The labourers were not permitted to bring their families and the majority of their wages were sent back to China They were not allowed to become permanent residents of Nauru but an estimated 20 percent chose to renew their contracts each year 9 Few Nauruans sought work with the BPC but those that did received a higher minimum wage 10 Most Chinese labourers were evacuated prior to the Japanese occupation of Nauru in 1942 but the 180 that remained were treated harshly and given reduced rations compared to the Nauruans 11 After 1944 many Chinese died of starvation Australian administration was restored in September 1945 following the end of World War II 12 The BPC immediately sought to resume mining and by June 1948 the Chinese population stood at 1 400 13 Riots EditOn 7 June 1948 several hundred Chinese workers refused to board a ship waiting to return them to China They alleged that the Chinese interpreters would not pay out their share of contributions to the community funds One of the labourers threatened an interpreter and assaulted a messenger from the administration at which point the police were called and attempted to arrest him 14 The other labourers then barricaded themselves in their compound and armed themselves with spears clubs and axes 1 The island s administrator Mark Ridgway declared a state of emergency and dispatched an armed riot squad comprising 44 Nauruan policemen and 16 European volunteers to the Chinese compound In the subsequent fight two of the labourers were shot dead and 16 were wounded The police arrested 49 of the workers who were taken to the island s gaol There two were bayoneted to death by a Nauruan constable who alleged they had been attempting to escape Aftermath EditThe August 1948 edition of Pacific Islands Monthly accused the Australian government of great official secrecy over the riots It noted that the state of emergency had been suspended on 18 July 1 Inquiry Edit This section is empty You can help by adding to it May 2021 References Edit a b c Nauru riots Pacific Islands Monthly Vol XIX no 1 1 August 1948 p 10 Viviani 1970 p 33 Viviani 1970 p 36 Viviani 1970 p 37 a b Viviani 1970 p 56 Viviani 1970 p 54 Viviani 1970 p 55 Viviani 1970 p 57 Viviani 1970 p 58 Viviani 1970 p 62 Viviani 1970 pp 78 79 Viviani 1970 p 82 Viviani 1970 p 88 Viviani 1970 p 100 Sources EditViviani Nancy 1970 Nauru Phosphate and Political Progress PDF ANU Press Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1948 Nauru riots amp oldid 1167732509, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
