Pacific Islanders Protection Act
The Pacific Islanders Protection Act (PIP Act) was a series of laws passed in the United Kingdom that was made to protect the indigenous populations of the Pacific Islands from kidnapping and blackbirding (a practice involving the coercion and forced recruitment of Pacific Islanders for labour). Under these laws, British ships were prohibited from kidnapping or coercing Pacific Islanders into recruitment.
History
[edit]The act was first drafted as early as 1861, more than a decade before 1872.[1] Later, on June 27, 1872, the act was finally passed[1] and received a royal assent from Queen Victoria.[2] On 35 and 36 Vict., chapter 19, it was stated that the act does not override an act already passed by the Legislature of Queensland.[3] The 1972 Act, also known as the Kidnapping Act, included measures for preventing blackbirding, such as stricter licensing procedures and patrolling British-controlled islands. It was unlawful for British vessels to carry native labourers absent a licence granted by a governor of any of the Australasian colonies.[1]
Section 3 of the 1872 Act stated that British vessels cannot carry labourers from one island to another, even within the same group, unless the master has given a bond for £500. Later, the government proposes removing the £500 bond requirement by amending Section 3 since the bond was expensive for small-scale British planters and settlers in the New Hebrides.[4]
The law passed in 1872 was eventually expanded and amended with a new law on August 2, 1875.[2] The two acts were intended to be read as a single body of law.[2] On August 2, 1875, the Pacific Islanders Protection Act (38 and 39 Vict., chapter 19) also received a royal assent from Queen Victoria.[2] This act gave the Queen the power to establish courts of justice and exercise jurisdiction over British subjects in the Pacific Islands. The Pacific Islanders Protection Acts of 1872 and 1875 were later repealed by Schedule 2 of the Criminal Code Amendment (Slavery and Sexual Servitude) Act 1999 that was adopted on August 24, 1999.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Parnaby, Owen (1957). "Aspects of British policy in the Pacific: The 1872 pacific islanders protection act". Historical Studies: Australia and New Zealand. 8 (29): 54–65. doi:10.1080/10314615708595097. ISSN 0728-6023.
- ^ a b c d "Notice of Rebuttal of Claim of Title to Land and Claim of Right" (PDF). 2022. pp. 2–4.
- ^ "Pacific Islanders Protection" (PDF). June 27, 1872. pp. 2–3.
- ^ "The Pacific Islanders' Protection Act, 1872". Hansard. February 21, 1907. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
- ^ "Criminal Code Amendment (Slavery and Sexual Servitude) Act 1999 (Act No. 104) AUS-1999-L-67458". International Labour Organization. Retrieved December 17, 2024.