EMBARGO: 5:00 pm

FOR MEDIA SUNDAY, '20 SEPTEMBER, 1981

ELECTORATE TALK

The Commonwealth of Nations is a major international institution  and it has a capacity to make a. constructive contribution in  relation to issues of world concern and of concern to Australia. The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Melbourne will Â·   be the largest and most significant international conference ever  held in this country.  The fact that this meeting is being held in  Australia is a tribute to the contribution which successive  Australian Governments have made both in the Commonwealth and in

other international forums. The fact that this meeting is held  in Australia will enhance Australia's position in the world. .

The Commonwealth is a unique international organisation. It . approaches problem-solving through consensus and its discussions  are characterised by mutual respect, tolerance and informality. .  It operates on trie basis that quiet discussion and a genuine

meeting of minds away from the glare of publicity are more  productive than public disputation.

At the last Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, there was  the problem of Zimbabwe,which proved to be amenable t-o- Commonwealth ;   initiatives.  So that particular meeting had a quite dramatic  Â«  outcome and as a result Robert Mugabe will be coming to Melbourne

as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe. .

There will be no such outstanding single issue dominating, the  Melbourne meeting, but there are nevertheless issues of profound  and lasting significance for Australia which will be at the  forefront in the discussions. The meeting will be discussing in

a practical and specific way the problem of food, how to improve  production, storage and security of supply to those chronically  in need. We will be discussing energy supplies and also how trade  between developed and developing countries can be increased and  made more equitable. We shall be discussing how aid can be

increased and made., more effective and how the international financial  and monetary institutions can be improved to serve the interests  of the countries they, serve in a more satisfactory w a y .  The re'-awe-  many highly technical questions involved in all this, but behind  the technicalities lie very basic questions not only of morality  and humanitarian concern, but of stable development of peace  .and harmony between nations.  '  .

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The issues to be discussed affect not only the world in which  we live, but will also have an incalculable impact on the kind  of world in which our children will live. All these issues  Ã¢ÂÂ of development are particularly important for Australia, as Ã¢ÂÂ   Â· . Â·  Â·Â·_*Â· Â·

nearly all our neighbours are developing countries. .  .  .

The Melbourne meeting will be the first Commonwealth Heads of  Government Meeting in the Pacific region.. Many of the countries' .   of the region are small, and suffer from particular hardships,'  like remoteness,,small size, distance from markets and slender:  . -natural resources. Australia is aware that these countries . . .

should be. able to draw value from.the Commonwealth as do the .  . larger countries. These countries will not be forgotten in  Melbourne and I expect special attention to be given them at  the meeting. '  .....  -  .  Ã¢ÂÂ   Ã¢ÂÂ   .

The meeting will also examine the important area of Commonwealth Ã¢ÂÂ    functional co-operation - the practical programmes of co-operation  that form much of the substance of the Commonwealth's ongoing  business.  At. a time' when' the vast potential of the Pacific '

region in trade and economic terms is being increasingly recognised,  Australia can only benefit from the opportunity which this  conference offers for wide-ranging discussions of Pacific issues Â·   and for cementing further our friendship with so many Pacific

nations. .  Â·  .  Â·

During the conference an international spotlight will be turned  on Australia. Overseas journalists will not just report the  conference, they will also report on Australia, what they see of  it and think of its people, what their feelings are about Melbourne  and Canberra. .  .  .

The conference .is a. great opportunity for the city of Melbourne.. "  The impression of Australia that our visitors carry away with them,  will reflect the interaction they have had with Australians... .from all walks of life. , This conference is not therefore just

a matter for Government. It is a matter for all of. us to putÂ· Â·  Ã¢ÂÂ

our best foot forward for Australia. Melbourne will he Australia’s  Ã¢ÂÂ   front window during this meeting.  I am sure it is a. front window .   of which all Australians will be very proud.

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