THE REPUBLIC OF COLL

What would it be like if Coll was a country in its own right? A member of the Commonwealth with observer status at the UN, a one ship navy, a government, Prime Minister, Civil Service, Houses of Parliament and so on.

Ridiculous? Maybe, but that is exactly the situation that a small group of islands on the other side of the world finds itelf in. Tuvalu (still shown on most maps as the Ellice Islands) is composed of nine tiny coral islands, some little more than strips of sand in the ocean, with a population of around 9000. With a total land area of only 26 square miles in total it is comparable in size to Coll, only Tuvalu is a country in its own right. The parliament has twelve members; the Prime Minister's hobby is fishing in his home-made canoe. Perhaps Coll could go independent after all...

Last week I met the Prime Minister when he was visiting Fiji. I had previously spoken to him in Funafuti, the capital, which is about the size of Tobermory. He asked me if I was a tourist. Tuvalu doesn't have many, apart from an Italian couple who come back year after year. People don't always take Tuvalu seriously the fact that its main export earner is sales of postage stamps to collectors doesn't help the image - but it is a real country in its own right.

The Prime Minister told me that his main worry is rising sea levels. The whole of his country is as low lying as Tiree, and the highest point is a 10 foot high bank of shingle on the beach thrown up by a big storm. Any rise in sea level would have a drastic effect. "I lie awake at night and hear the waves and I feel frightened" he said.

The small size of the country was also emphasized by a conversation I had with the Attorney General, who is a 28 year old Australian volunteer lawyer. He was very concerned that the country's only Doctor had borrowed VSO's bike and given it to someone else, and the Doctor was saying he couldn't get it back. "I'll get the police onto it if you like," said the Attorney General, but I disappointed him by saying that it wasn't worth it, the bike was on its last legs anyway. At the same time 'the news at home was filled with scandal about the Scott Report and the alleged role the Attorney General of the UK had taken in misleading parliament over Arms to Iraq. Perhaps Sir Nicholas Lyell should spend more time dealing with missing bikes.

So could the Community Council on Coll declare an independent state. Tuvalu has managed it - albeit with a few more people - a despite a few hitches along the way and the odd worry about inundation thanks to global warming, is doing very well. The Republic of Coll, maybe not as far-fetched as it sounds!

Steve Price -Thomas Working with YSO based on Suva.