Prelude to Bandung

Mrs. Rameshwari Nehru, a cousin of India's Prime Minister and a dear old lady whom everyone likes, took her idea to Indian leaders. Why not, said she, collect cultural, religious and scientific dignitaries of Asia into one grand "nonpartisan" conference to promote the cause of peace and brotherly love? The idea came to her, or was put to her, at last year's Communist-run Stockholm conference for "the reduction of world tension." Cousin Jawaharlal and leaders of his Congress Party gave their consent. Invitations went out to the capitals of Asia. and Indian President Rajendra Prasad agreed to welcome the delegates to New Delhi. The Congress Party's tough anti-Communist Bombay Boss, S. K. Patil, rounded up a delegation to participate in the proceedings. The press began touting the affair as an official precursor to the impending 29-nation Asian-African conference at Bandung, Indonesia.

But when the delegates streamed into New Delhi last week, a Red-tinted film of disillusion settled about Mrs. Nehru's meeting. Most of the bona fide artists, scientists and priests could not speak English, the official conference language, but the delegations from Moscow, Peking and the other Communist capitals were all big coveys of English-speaking propagandists, each ready to spout like shaken-up soda pop the moment the meeting opened. S. K. Patil came in from Bombay with his Congress delegation, took one look at the Red assemblage and withdrew in anger. "It is just another front organization with the Communists running the whole show," he snorted. Questioned about it in Parliament, Prime Minister Nehru sharply withheld his endorsement from the meeting. The Indian public generally shunned the convention gallery.

Mrs. Rameshwari Nehru got one opening-day opportunity to welcome the delegates ("Seeing you here is like a dream") and speak up for Cousin Jawaharlal's Pancha Shila--"five principles of coexistence." Then the Communists pushed the well-intentioned to the back of the stage and took over. "It's all very confusing," murmured one of Mrs. Nehru's friends. One by one, Communist speakers rode roughshod over the U.S. Kuo Mojo, one of Peking's loudest guns, vowed that Peking will not rest until it has conquered Formosa from the Nationalists. "It is a part of China just as Long Island is a part of the U.S.," he said.

The next performance of the Communist road show will be at Bandung this week, where the audience will be delegates who, in theory at least, represent more than half the world.

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