A message for Anzac Day- Lest We Forget!

A very touching poem sent to me by my mate Paul Oates. This elegy marking ANZAC Day is written by talented poet Jim Brown. Jim lives at 12 Adrian Court, Heathmont. Victoria 3135. He has recorded the poem on CD (the recitation is by Jim) and it’s available for $25 from the foregoing address or contact Jim by sending him an email jimbrown@stanza.alphalink.com.au

 

Anzac on the wall

 

I wandered thru a country town, 'cos I had some time to spare,

And went into an antique shop to see what was in there.

Old Bikes and pumps and kero lamps, but hidden by it all,

A photo of a soldier boy - an Anzac on the Wall.

 

"The Anzac have a name?" I asked. The old man answered "No,

The ones who could have told me mate, have passed on long ago.

The old man kept on talking and, according to his tale,

The photo was unwanted junk bought from a clearance sale.

"I asked around," the old man said, "but no one knows his face,

He's been on that wall twenty years... deserves a better place.

For some one must have loved him, so it seems a shame somehow."

 

I nodded in agreement and then said, “I'll take him now."

 

My nameless digger's photo, well it was a sorry sight

A cracked glass pane and a broken frame - I had to make it right

To prise the photo from its frame I took care just in case,

Cause only sticky paper held the cardboard back in place.

I peeled away the faded screed and much to my surprise,

Two letters and a telegram appeared before my eyes

The first reveals my Anzac's name, and regiment of course

John Mathew Francis Stuart - of Australia’s own Light Horse.

This letter written from the front...  my interest now was keen

This note was dated August seventh 1917

"Dear Mum, I'm at Khalasa Springs not far from the Red Sea

They say it's in the Bible - looks like a Billabong to me.

 

"My Kathy wrote I'm in her prayers...  she's still my bride to be

I just can’t wait to see you both, you're all the world to me.

And Mum you'll soon meet Bluey, last month they shipped him out

I told him to call on you when he's up and about."

"That bluey is a larrikin, and we all thought it funny

He lobbed a Turkish hand grenade into the Co's dunny.

I told you how he dragged me wounded, in from no man's land

He stopped the bleeding closed the wound with only his bare hand."

"Then he copped it at the front from some stray shrapnel blast

It was my turn to drag him in and I thought he wouldn't last.

 

He woke up in hospital, and nearly lost his mind

Cause out there on the battlefield he'd left one leg behind."

"He's been in a bad way Mum, he knows he'll ride no more

Like me he loves a horse's back, he was a champ before.

So Please Mum can you take him in, he's been like my own brother

Raised in a Queensland orphanage, he’s never known a mother."

 

But Struth, I miss Australia Mum, and in my mind each day

I am a mountain cattleman on high plains far away.

I'm mustering white-faced cattle, with no camel's hump in sight

And I waltz my Matilda by a campfire every night

I wonder who rides Billy, I heard the pub burnt down

I'll always love you and please say hooroo to all in town".

 

The second letter I could see, was in a lady's hand

An answer to her soldier son there in a foreign land.

Her copperplate was perfect, the pages neat and clean

It bore the date, November 3rd 1917.

"T'was hard enough to lose your Dad, without you at the war

I'd hoped you would be home by now - each day I miss you more"

 

"Your Kathy calls around a lot since you have been away

To share with me her hopes and dreams about your wedding day.

And Bluey has arrived - and what a godsend he has been

We talked and laughed for days about the things you've done and seen"

"He really is a comfort, and works hard around the farm,

I read the same hope in his eyes that you won't come to harm.

Mc Connell's kids rode Billy, but suddenly that changed.

We had a violent lightning storm, and it was really strange."

"Last Wednesday, just on midnight, not a single cloud in sight,

It raged for several minutes, it gave us all a fright.

It really spooked your Billy - and he screamed and bucked and reared

And then he rushed the sliprail fence, which by a foot he cleared"

 

"They brought him back next afternoon, but something's changed I fear

It's like the day you brought him home, for no one can get near.

Remember when you caught him with his black and flowing mane?

Now Horse breakers fear the beast that only you can tame,"

 

"That's why we need you home son" - then the flow of ink went dry-

 

This letter was unfinished, and I couldn't work out why.

Until I started reading, the letter number three

A yellow telegram delivered news of tragedy,

Her son killed in action - oh - what pain that must have been

The Same date as her letter - 3rd November 17

This letter which was never sent, became then one of three

She sealed behind the photo's face - the face she longed to see.

And John's home town's old timers - children when he went to war

Would say no greater cattleman had left the town before.

 

They knew his widowed mother well - and with respect did tell

How when she lost her only boy she lost her mind as well.

 

She could not face the awful truth, to strangers she would speak

"My Johnny's at the war you know, he's coming home next week."

They all remembered Bluey he stayed on to the end.

A younger man with wooden leg became her closest friend.

And he would go and find her when she wandered old and weak

And always softly say "yes dear - John will be home next week."

Then when she died Bluey moved on, to Queensland some did say.

I tried to find out where he went, but don't know to this day.

 

And Kathy never wed - a lonely spinster some found odd.

She wouldn't set foot in a church - she'd turned her back on God.

John's mother left no Will I learned on my detective trail.

This explains my photo's journey, of that clearance sale.

So I continued digging, cause I wanted to know more.

I found John's name with thousands, in the records of the war.

His last ride proved his courage - a ride you will acclaim

The Light Horse Charge at Beersheba of everlasting fame.

That last day in October back in 1917

At 4pm our brave boys fell - that sad fact I did glean.

That's when John's life was sacrificed, the record's crystal clear

 

But 4pm in Beersheba is midnight over here......

So as John's gallant sprit rose to cross the great divide,

Were lightning bolts back home, a signal from the other side?

Is that why Billy bolted and went racing as in pain?

Because he’d never feel his master on his back again?

Was it coincidental? same time - same day - same date?

Some proof of numerology, or just a quirk of fate?

 

I think it's more than that you know, as I've heard wiser men,

Acknowledge there are many things that go beyond our ken

Where craggy peaks guard secrets neath dark skies torn asunder,

Where hoofbeats are companions to the rolling waves of thunder

Where lightning cracks like 303's and ricochets again

Where howling moaning gusts of wind sound just like dying men

Some Mountain cattlemen have sworn on lonely alpine track,

They've glimpsed a huge black stallion - Light Horseman on his back.

Yes Sceptics say, it's swirling clouds just forming apparitions

Oh no, my friend you can't dismiss all this as superstition.

The desert of Beersheba - or windswept Aussie range,

John Stuart rides on forever there - Now I don't find that all

strange.

 

Now some gaze upon this photo, and they often question me

And I tell them a small white lie, and say he's family.

"You must be proud of him." they say - I tell them, one and all,

That's why he takes - the pride of place - my Anzac on the Wall

 

Nature celebrations in Teptep today

The forests of Yus are critical habitats for Huon (or Matschie’s) tree kangaroos, an endangered species that is one of Earth’s unique creatures

Celebrations will take place today in Teptep village, Morobe province, to mark the creation of Papua New Guinea’s first conservation area, to protect an important area of pristine tropical forest.
Guests of honour include Acting Prime Minister Dr Puka Temu, Minister for Environment Benny Allen, Minister for Defence Bob Dadae, Governor for Morobe Province Luther Wenge, community leaders and partner representatives.
A traditional singsing, or celebratory gathering, honours the recent landmark decision by the PNG government to approve the Conservation Area – rewarding more than a decade of work by local communities in collaboration with conservation biologists from the Tree Kangaroo Conservation Program (TKCP) based at Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, USA and Conservation International (CI), as well as PNG Department of Environment and Conservation, Morobe provincial government and the Kabwum district.
Named for its three main rivers – the Yopno, Uruwa and Som of the Kabwum district, Morobe province – the YUS Conservation Area covers 187,800 acres (76,000 hectares or 760 square kilometers) of tropical forest stretching from coral reefs off the northern coast to the 4,000-metre peaks of the western Saruwaged Mountains.
A hallmark of modern conservation, the new protected area offers multiple benefits for both wildlife and people.
The lush forest ecosystem teems with life and provides countless resources that sustain the 10,000 villagers living in the surrounding YUS region.
In particular, the forest is critical habitat for Huon (or Matschie’s) tree kangaroos (pictured above), an endangered species that is one of Earth’s unique creatures with a bear-like head, strong arms for climbing and marsupial pouch.
“By creating the country’s first national conservation area, the PNG government and people have taken a step forward for both Papua New Guinea and conservation worldwide,” says Environment Minister Benny Allen.
“I congratulate the YUS community and its partners on their efforts and hope others will follow their example.”
Woodland Park Zoo’s Tree Kangaroo Conservation Programme (TKCP) has worked with YUS landowners and the PNG government for more than 12 years to establish the YUS Conservation Area, which is the first to be declared under the PNG Conservation Areas Act of 1978.
TKCP is supported by CI, National Geographic, and BMU (German Ministry for Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety) through KfW (German Development Bank) as part of the International Climate Change Initiative.
The new protected area also represents the first time that more than 35 indigenous villages of the YUS region have come together in joint action to protect their forest homeland and the wildlife and ecosystems so vital to their culture and sustenance.
“What we have accomplished here is more than just an act of environmental preservation – it’s a model for sustainable community-based conservation that works,” says Dr Lisa Dabek, field conservation director at Woodland Park Zoo and Director of the zoo’s Tree Kangaroo Conservation Programme.
“The protected area will contribute to long-term efforts to preserve critical forest habitat and wildlife, and at the same time looking after the welfare of the local communities. We call it the ‘healthy village, healthy forest’ approach”.
While the land remains under local ownership, villagers have formally committed to prohibit all hunting and development such as logging and mining within the land that has been pledged to the conservation area.
Previous declarations of Wildlife Management Areas in PNG have been less restrictive, allowing logging, mining and other development activities.
Woodland Park Zoo and CI understand that conservation should address the needs of the local people as well as protecting habitat and species, so are working with community leaders to increase access to education, college scholarships, teacher training, health clinic improvements, midwife training, and other investments to support sustainable and healthy village life.
“The conservation area will help the people of YUS better manage their natural resources,” said Karau Kuna, Jr, a PNG national and GIS mapping coordinator for TKCP. “The YUS Conservation Area is part of PNG’s contribution to the worldwide community in the fight against global warming and other environmental issues we are all facing.”
Partners in the years of effort that culminated in creation of the YUS Conservation Area include the YUS communities, TKCP and its international staff, CI, the Morobe provincial government, PNG National Executive Council and PNG Department of Environment and Conservation.
TKCP and CI will continue to work with the PNG government and local communities to seek creation of additional conservation areas in the country, using the YUS Conservation Area as a model.

Massive costs of cleaning Port Moresby

THE National Capital District Commission has been spending a massive K4 million every year on cleaning waste and filth caused by people’s irresponsibility and lack of appreciation for their city.
Of this, close to K840, 000 has gone into the clean up of waste, stains and rubbish in public places, bus stops, shopping frontage and mini markets alone.
NCD Governor Powes Parkop mentioned this last month when he revealed the financial burden the NCDC has been bearing every year to rid Port Moresby of its never-ceasing litter.
“Every year NCDC spends over K4million on cleaning our filth and collecting our waste,” he said.
Breaking it down, Mr Parkop said every month, the city authority spends these monies on cleaning and collecting the following type of waste in the city:
- K79,925.00 on cleaning city markets, totaling K 959,100.00 per year;
- K52,308.75 on cleaning settlement waste (even though many do not pay our garbage rate), totaling K627,705 per year;
- K26,640 on collecting school waste, totaling K319,680 per year;
- K85,458.00 on domestic waste collection, totaling K1,025,495.00 every year;
- K16,650.00 on sanitary/septic waste collection in settlements and some parts of our city, totaling K199,800 per year;
- K46,295.88 on commercial and industrial waste collection, making it K555,550.56 every year;
- K10,656.00 on collection of medical waste, bringing the total to K127,872 per year; and
- K42, 360 on operating Baruni Dump, totaling K508, 320 every year.
“These monies could be spent on better things for our city and our people such as schools, clinics, streets lights, upgrading and sealing of roads, better parks and gardens, recreational and sporting facilities and better markets,” said the Governor.
Mr Parkop was replying to critics of the buai ban who said it was not worthwhile to ban betel nut.
But the Governor said the benefits of the campaign were immense and far outweighed the practice of selling buai in public places.
“Most of these wastes in pubic places are caused by betel nut vendors and their clients and plastics from shopping and sealing on manufactured goods,” said Mr Parkop.
“The choice is therefore clear for our people to make.
“If we take responsibility for our action, we can drastically reduce the amount of money the Commission spends on cleaning up our filth and rubbish and use this money for other useful purpose to benefit our city and its people.
“Since, our people have failed to live up to this sense of responsibility, NCDC as the municipal government of our City must compel our people to take responsibility for their action.
“This is one of the main reasons the Commission has banned the sale of betel nuts in public places.
“If our people want a better future for our country and our children, it is these little things that we need to solve before we solve the bigger challenges and problems,” he said.

The Future of Port Moresby: Earth Day Art Contest winners announced

One of the winning entries in the Earth Day 2009 Art Contest

NCDC Governor Powes Parkop and US Ambassador Leslie Rowe are pleased to announce the winners of the 2009 Earth Day Art Contest.
The theme of the contest is “The Future of Port Moresby,” and contestants submitted many inspirational designs for their vision of the future of their city.
The art contest winners are Imelda Marie Takesi (0-4 years); Breach Robilliard, Oule Memehere, Oudin Lagaia (5-11 years); Jerry Tsinabi, Elisa Napu, Timothy Charles (12-17 years); Frank Aep (adult).
The honorable mentions are Vincent Maso and Yoni Donia.
Prizes will be awarded on April 25 during the Earth Day cleanup of Ela Beach.
The goal of the Earth Day event is to raise environmental awareness and promote a sense of responsibility and pride in the beautiful natural environment of Port Moresby.
This year’s event includes the local art contest and a trash cleanup of Ela Beach and the Sea Park.
Everyone is welcome to come join in the fun of Earth Day.
The celebration will be on Saturday April 25th on Ela Beach from 8.30am to 12pm.
There will be a trash cleanup of Ela Beach and the Sea Park from 8.30am to 10am.
Bring the whole family and enjoy the local art display, face painting and a drama performance by Watete.
NCDC City manager Leslie Alu, US. Embassy Chargé d'Affaires Paul Berg and Governor Powes Parkop will speak about Earth Day and the beautiful environment of Port Moresby.
Following the remarks there will be an awards presentation to the winners of the Earth Day Art Contest.
This is the third Earth Day celebration in Papua New Guinea and it is the 39th anniversary of Earth Day.
Earth Day is celebrated in 174 countries simultaneously by people of different ethnicities, religions and cultures.
Sponsors of this year’s contest were: Air Niugini, Trukai, City Pharmacy, NBC, Daltron, St John’s Ambulance, Coca-Cola, KK Kingston, Theodist NCDC, the US Embassy and PNG Gardener.
To learn more visit http://www.earthday.net/ .
All are welcome to help keep Port Moresby clean and green by joining the festivities on the “Dei Blong Mama Graun” at Ela Beach.
For more information, contact Christine Nixon at (675) 3211455, Ext. 2104

Earth Day to be celebrated in Port Moresby

World Earth Day falls today, Wednesday, April 22, 2009.
However, the United States (US) Embassy and the National Capital District Commission (NCDC) have collaborated to celebrate the annual ‘Earth Day’ event this Saturday 25, 2009.
This is a world event celebrated in 174 countries with the aim to raise environmental awareness and promote a sense of responsibility and pride in the beautiful natural environment of Port Moresby, as stated by Grace Maribu, Acting Manager of the Division of Public Relations with the NCDC.
This will be the second year to celebrate this event as it is an initiative of the NCD Governor, Powes Parkop, in line with the vision of making Port Moresby the best city in the South Pacific region by way of cleanliness and beauty.
This year’s event will include the clean-up of Ela Beach.
Ms Maribu says they are extending the clean up to the Sea Park if they get a big number of volunteers.
She said that last year, they got close to 500 volunteers, and is hoping that this year the number would increase.
“The Governor is calling on Port Moresby residents to use this opportunity to show you care for our city, and for parents to bring along school-aged children because this is an educational exercise that will help our children will become more conscious of their responsibilities to the environment,” Ms Maribu said.
She added that last year there were about 10 business houses that took part in the clean-up and hoped that this year there would be more than 10 business houses taking part.
Other events during the event will be face painting, drama presentation by Watete Theatre Group, and the presentation of awards to the winners of the Art Competition.
The art contest was launched about five weeks ago, especially for children to submit environmental art.
All the submissions were judged last Friday.
Ms Maribu is happy to announce that this event has received a lot of good sponsors, like
Air Niugini, giving the major prize for ticket for two to a choice of destination within PNG for the winner of the art contest; Daltron with prizes for the art competition as well;
Coca-Cola who will be providing the water and drinks during the event; Theodist with face painting; Trukai Industries; plus other generous sponsors.
The NCDC hopes to make Port Moresby the leading city in physical attractions, and this event is one way of making people aware of that.
Ms Maribu said the Governor had in line many new and exiting development plans for the city, as well as to redevelop reserves and parks in his beautification programme.
Thus, they have started off at Ela Beach because it is the most-used recreational area.
They have already constructed a volleyball court and a recreational theatre at the Ela Beach, and are now looking at redeveloping the jetty and the aquarium, as well as the Paga Ring Road and the business area there.
NCDC has engaged PNG Gardener Justin Tkatchenko in its beautification programme, with his work complementing the betelnut ban.
Ms Maribu said the privilege given to the informal sector especially the betelnut and cigarette sellers, had been taken back from them because of their irresponsibility.
She said there would be other designated areas to sell these products, thus, not hindering the progress in keeping the city clean.

Remembering the old Black Cat Trail

Wild flower along the Black Cat Trail

Lionel Aigilo pushes up the mountain

Lionel Aigilo (left) and SolomonJawing show off an American WW11 gun

Komiatum villager with smoking sticks on Mount Tambu

Komiatum Niukem along the infamous Black Cat Trail

Heni Denbis (front) of Morobe Tourism Bureau and Lionel Aigilo

Councillor's house at Komiatum

Climbing up to Guadagasul

Climbing Mount Tambu with panoramic views of the valley and ocean at Salamaua

Children bid farewell to visitors at Mubo

A landslide in the mountains between Salamaua and Wau

An infamous WW11 icon of Papua New Guinea is the old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, Morobe province. Walk with me on the Black Cat...

On Remembrance Day, July 23, 2003, a small group of us honoured the day as well as the 60th anniversary of Salamaua, by trekking the old Black Cat Trail from Salamaua to Wau.
It was a five-day walk which started in Salamua on July 22 and ended in Wau on July 26.
Our thoughts were with the many soldiers and carriers of WW11 who lost their lives on this treacherous path in 1942 and 1943.
The old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, Morobe Province, makes the Kokoda Trail seem like a Sunday arvo stroll in the park.
This is because it is not an established trail like Kokoda, on which hundreds of trekkers regularly tread, but a forgotten World War 11 course that passes through some of the toughest and most-hazardous terrain in the world.
Leech and snake-infested jungle, moss -covered rocks and fallen tree stumps, precarious cliff crossings, and potentially-dangerous river crossings make the Black Cat arguably one of the toughest tracks in PNG and the world.
It is recommended only for the very- fit and experienced trekker.
Some Australian soldiers have described the Black Cat as the hardest walk they’d ever done.
The Lonely Planet guidebook quotes a local expat as saying the Black cat is “suitable only for masochists and Israeli paratroopers”.
For those interested in WW11 history, the Black Cat Trail in the place for you, starting from the old gold mining town of Salamaua which was scene of some of the heaviest fighting of the war.
Old graves around Salamaua, which date back to the gold mining days, as well as Japanese tunnels and anti-aircraft guns, line the hill overlooking the isthmus.
Massive bomb craters from WW11 along the Black Cat Trail indicate the ferocity of the battles here in 1942.
The area also has magnificent flora and fauna.
Many soldiers and carriers of WW11 lost their lives on this treacherous path in 1942 and 1943.
Skin Diwai is a detour from the main Black Cat Trail – which continues on to Bitoi and eventually Wandumi village outside Wau - and is now the preferred choice of locals.
Skin Diwai was the site of a major Australian base during WW11 and is littered with live bombs, ammunition, other war junk including boots, and even the wreckage of a DC3.
For those interested in war history and relics, as well as untouched forests and flora and fauna, the Black Cat Trail is for you.

Earth Day falls on April 22

Earth Day - April 22 - each year marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970.

Among other things, 1970 in the United States brought with it the Kent State shootings, the advent of fiber optics, "Bridge Over Troubled Water," Apollo 13, the Beatles' last album, the death of Jimi Hendrix, the birth of Mariah Carey, and the meltdown of fuel rods in the Savannah River nuclear plant near Aiken, South Carolina - an incident not acknowledged for 18 years.

 It was into such a world that the very first Earth Day was born.Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment and force this issue onto the national agenda.” "It was a gamble," he recalls, "but it worked."

Earth Day 2009, April 22, will mark the beginning of The Green Generation Campaign, which will also be the focus of the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day in 2010.With negotiations for a new global climate agreement coming up in December, Earth Day 2009 must be a day of action and civic participation, to defend The Green Generation’s core principles:

•           A carbon-free future based on renewable energy that will end our common dependency on fossil fuels, including coal.

•           An individual’s commitment to responsible, sustainable consumption.

•           Creation of a new green economy that lifts people out of poverty by creating millions of quality green jobs and transforms the global education system into a green one.

Australia woman trekker dies on the Kokoda Trail

A sad story from the Kokoda Trail in the lead-up to ANZAC Day next Saturday…

 

A WOMAN from Victoria, Australia has died during a family pilgrimage along the Kokoda Trail ahead of ANZAC Day, The National  reports.

Samantha Killen, 36, of Hamilton in the state’s southwest, was just one day into the arduous trek with her father, brother and a friend when she collapsed last Friday morning.

It was believed she was suffering from dehydration, but the cause of death remained unclear yesterday.

Ms Killen, who worked at the ANZ Bank in Hamilton, had a daughter and son aged under five. They are with her husband Deon.

A relative yesterday declined to comment because the family was still too traumatised.

Like many other Australians, the Killen family was attempting the 96km walk to commemorate the loss of more than 600 Australian soldiers in some of the fiercest fighting of World War II.

Ms Killen’s group reportedly hoped to finish the walk in time for Anzac Day this Saturday.

A spokesman from the Australian foreign affairs and trade department confirmed that a Victorian woman had died while walking the trail.

“Consular officers from the High Commission in Port Moresby are providing consular assistance to the woman’s relatives and a friend who were accompanying her on the track,” he said.

Former executive officer of the Kokoda Track Authority Warren Bartlett had heard from one tour guide, Dik Knight, that the woman was one of about half a dozen hikers seen to be struggling last Friday morning.

“Everyone was in really bad condition,” Mr Bartlett said.

“Apparently, the woman while having breakfast, complained that she felt dizzy when she got up.

“She sat down but she got up again and continued walking but collapsed and died along the track.”

Mr Knight, who was walking in the opposite direction, believed he had been talking to Ms Killen at the Va’ Ule Creek campsite and her group the night before she died and they seemed in good spirits.

When Mr Knight last saw Ms Killen’s group, they were preparing for the eight-hour trek up the demanding Ioribaiwa Ridge.

Black Cat Trail war relics

WW11 plane wreck at Skin Diwai

Live bombs at Skin Diwai

Live ammunition at Skin Diwai

Australian WW11 soldier's boot found at a dump at Skin Diwai

The old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, Morobe province, is one of the history of the gold rush days as well as WW11. War relics, including live bombs, abound to this day. In thus series of articles on WW11 icons in Papua New Guinea in the lead-up to ANZAC Day, we look at the war relics of the Black Cat Trail...

The thick jungle between Salamaua and Wau, Morobe Province, is littered with relics from World War 11.
Students of history as well as WW11 enthusiasts would not be disappointed at what is there to be seen.
Live bombs from 1942 and 1943 are prolific along the old Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau.
Villagers told me of huge unexploded bombs in the jungles and rivers that they avoid like the plague.
Australian and PNG bomb experts have yet to defuse these bombs.
In 1997, during the El Nino, bushfires sparked off by dry bushes detonated WW11 bombs as terrified villagers fled.
Huge bomb craters from WW11 testify to the ferocity of the battles along the trail between Salamaua and Wau.
At Skin Diwai – a major Australian base during WW11 - locals showed me unexploded bombs, live ammunition, Australian army boots, as well as the bush covered wreck of a DC3 supply plane.
All along the Black Cat Trail, you can see the helmets of Australian, US, and Japanese forces that fought here in WW11.
Those dark days of WW11 are well and truly over but their legacy lives on in the jungles between Salamaua and Wau.
The jungle also conceals many secrets of the gold mining days of the 1920s and 1930s.
Local lore has it that somewhere between Wau and Salamaua lays the wreck of a gold – laden plane.
Whether true or not, the fact is that locals avoid the thick jungle, saying that it is masalai (spirit) place where dark forces await unwary human beings.

Salamaua

Salamaua Point
Salamaua isthmus

Salamaua as seen from the hill overlooking it

A Japanese WW11 gun at Salamaua

In the build-up to ANZAC Day, we continue to feature WW11 icons of Papua New Guinea, and this time shift to Salamaua, Morobe province, one of the most-famous places in Papua New Guinea because of its colonial, gold rush, and WW11 history...

Salamaua, Morobe Province, played a pivotal role in the history of Papua New Guinea.
World-famous Salamaua Point, scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of World War 11 in PNG, on September 11 in 2003 marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture from the Japanese.
This jewel in Morobe’s crown, an icon that time has forgotten, is now more or less a forgotten ghost town.
In 2002, Kokoda celebrated its 60th anniversary with commemorative ceremonies in both PNG and Australia, which rekindled interest in its history.
What many do not know is that the Japanese launched their attack on Port Moresby over the Kokoda Trail from Salamaua, and when the attack failed, turned the port into a major supply base.
It was eventually attacked by Australian troops flown into Wau.
Japanese reinforcements failed to arrive and the town was taken in September 1943 in what has become known as the Battle of Salamaua.
Salamaua – the “town of gold”- has never regained its shine.
The Australians recaptured Salamaua in September 1943 but by then, it was too late, as places like Lae and Port Moresby had taken its glory.
Veterans in both Australia and PNG have called for similar recognition to be accorded the battlefield of Salamaua as it marked the 60th anniversary of its recapture in September 2003.
It was the main port and airstrip for the goldfields of Wau and Bulolo during the gold rush days of the 1920s and 1930s.
It was headquarters for the all-powerful New Guinea Goldfields Ltd, had its own shops liked the famed Burns Philp, New South Wales and Commonwealth banks, named streets, hospital, bakery, theatre, bars where characters like the legendary Errol Flynn once strutted his stuff before becoming a Hollywood legend, and was a famed port of call for swashbuckling gold miners from all over the world.
It was here that expeditions into the undiscovered hinterland – including the famous exploration into the Highlands of New Guinea by the Leahy brothers and Jim Taylor – were launched.
Rivalry between Salamaua and Lae for the capital of New Guinea following the demise of Rabaul in the 1937 volcanic eruption was legendary.
But for all that Salamaua has contributed to the development of PNG and the world – through the millions in gold that was taken out - it is one of the greatest ironies that it is now a forgotten backwater, left to the mercy of the vast Huon Gulf which threatens to swamp its narrow isthmus any moment, despite repeated calls for a seawall to be built.
Development is limited despite efforts by the Morobe Provincial Government, there is little economic activity, and the price of outboard motor zoom has skyrocketed recently contributing to massive inflation.
The people, to this day, are resentful at the mining companies that made millions from their land and left them with nothing, and at both being made victims of a war that was not their doing.
Never mind that these days its beautiful bathing beach and coral reefs are havens for people from Lae – mainly the expatriate community - who have built weekend houses on the peninsula to get away from the traffic, phones, and bustle of the city.
The discovery of gold at Edie Creek above Wau in 1926 sparked off a gold rush of massive proportions, which led to the development of Salamaua as capital of the Morobe District.
The rigorous walk between Salamaua and Wau took up to a week, the flamboyant Errol Flynn writing of how the gold fields had to be approached from Salamaua by 10 days’ march through leech-infested jungle, in constant fear of ambush, and at night wondering “whether that crawly sound you heard a few feet away might be a snake, a cassowary or maybe only a wild board razorback…I have seen Central Africa, but it was never anything like the jungle of New Guinea”.
Lae was but a “company” town and was very much a satellite of Salamaua.
Salamaua sprang up before Lae and because it was the administrative and commercial centre of the District and also the port for the goldfields, it continued to dominate its sister across the Huon Gulf right up till WW11.
Shipping interests refused Lae as a port, probably because they had already established themselves at Salamaua before Lae developed.
The powerful New Guinea Goldfields Ltd – following a dispute with Guinea Airways – purchased its own plane and established its own aerodrome on Salamaua in 1929.
The government also resisted pressure to have Lae built up as the chief town of Morobe District, and at times, even affirmed its preference for Salamaua by stubbornly refusing to use either the aviation or shopping facilities at Lae.
Following the disastrous volcanic eruption in Rabaul in May 1937, a protracted and bitter debate over the merits of Salamaua and Lae ensued, when Australian minister for territories W.M. Hughes – who in his days as prime minister had been responsible for New Guinea coming under Australia’s mandate - chose Salamaua as both port and capital.
Hughes was accused of being bribed by Burns Philp and New Guinea Goldfields, the Australian government was accused of apathy and irresponsibility in its attitude towards New Guinea affairs, and the Pacific Islands Monthly and Rabaul Times led the anti-Hughes and anti-government debate.
It became a matter of great controversy that that Canberra press corps, which had been faithfully reporting new developments for six months, in December 1938 produced a satirical newspaper Hangover containing a parody of the controversy under the title “Lae off Salamaua: Capital crisis causes crater cabinet confusion”.

The article reads: “A new crisis has arisen overshadowing the budget, the coal strike, and Hitler. Alarming tensions were created when the Prime Minister received the following urgent message from Mr Hairbrain, M.H.R: ‘Lae off Salamaua, Joe! Natives hostile!’Mr Hairbrain’s message has created the profoundest sensations in Federal political circles. It is feared that the natives may try to make capital out of it. The situation is fraught with grave possibilities and impossibilities. Mr Lyons summoned cabinet immediately. ‘Wow!’ said the Prime Minister as he staggered from the cabinet room after the tenth day with the problem apparently nearer no solution. ‘That’s it!’ yelled a chorus of weary ministers. ‘Why the hell didn’t we think of Wau before?’ Mr Hughes collapsed. The crisis had passed.”
Rabaul, however, continued to remain as capital of New Guinea until 1941 when renewed volcanic forced the transfer to Lae in October 1941 right up to the Japanese invasion in January 1942.
War, however, had begun in the Pacific with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour on December 7, 1941.
Rabaul was bombed on January 4, 1942 followed by Lae, Salamaua, and Bulolo on January 21.
This was the beginning of the end of Salamaua’s ephemeral reign as the “town of gold”.
To go into detail about the long and bitter fighting that took place between Salamaua and Wau in 1942 and 1943 would fill pages.
Many hundreds of Japanese, Australians, as well as Papua New Guineans were killed in the two years of fighting.
To this day battlefields like Salamaua Point itself, Mubo along the famed Black Cat Trail between Salamaua and Wau, The Pimple, Green Hill, Observation Hill, Bobdubi Ridge, Komiatum Ridge, Nassau Bay, Tambu, Mount Tambu, Ambush Knoll, Orodubi, Salus Lake, Lababia, Davidson Ridge, and Roosevelt’s Ridge bear the scars of those bloody battles.
Briefly, the Japanese landed at Lae and Salamaua on March 8, 1942.
The New Guinea Volunteer Rifles and survivors of the 2/22nd Battalion from Rabaul destroyed all military supplies and withdraw into the hinterland where they observed the Japanese build-up.
In May, Kanga Force, which included the 2/5th Independent Company, was airlifted into Wau to operate as a guerrilla force against the Japanese in the Markham Valley.
On June 29, Kanga Force raided Salamaua inflicting heavy casualties and capturing the first Japanese equipment and documents taken by the Australian Army.
On August 31, a strong Japanese group arrived at Mubo but with the Japanese on the offensive along the Kokoda Trail and at Milne Bay, reinforcements were not available for Kanga Force until October when 2/7th Independent Company joined.
The 3rd Australian Division slowly fought its way towards Salamaua in a series of exacting and grim battles from April to August 1943 in a campaign largely overshadowed by the Papuan campaign the preceded it and by the capture of Lae that followed.
The Salamaua campaign was designed to screen the preparations for the Lae offensive and to act as a magnet to draw reinforcements from Lae to Salamaua.
The capture of Lae, the centre of the Japanese defensive line in New Guinea, was the allied target after the defeat of the Japanese in Papua.
General Sir Thomas Blamey, the Australian Commander-in-Chief, directed that Salamaua be starved out after Lae was captured.
On August 26, 1943, Major General Savige and his 3rd Division headquarters were relieved by General Milford and his 5th Division headquarters.
The 5th Division conducted the final operations around Salamaua, which was occupied by the 42nd Battalion on September 11, a week after the Lae offensive opened and five days before the 7th and 9th Australian Divisions entered Lae.
The legendary Australian cinematographer, Damien Parer, captured some of these dramatic moments for posterity in his famous works “Assault On Salamaua” and “Frontline At Salamaua”. Following Kokoda’s 60th anniversary, many Australian veterans of Salamaua also want their battlefield to be accorded the same recognition, as it too had its 60th anniversary in September 2003.
The same call has been echoed by old men in the Salamaua villagers – many of whom have died without being justly compensated – who served as carriers for both Australians and Japanese during WW11.
Maybe then, at least for a day, Salamaua will rise again.

Port Moresby's building boom

Captions:  1. Rimbunan Hijau's Vision City Waigani. 2. NASFUND's Harbour City. 3. Nambawan Super's commercial property in Downtown Port Moresby. 4. Steamships Trading Company's commercial property in Downtown Port Moresby. Pictures by AURI EVA.

Buildings are springing up everywhere in Port Moresby – and other cities in Papua New Guinea such as Lae -  as demands for high quality accommodation, in anticipation of the country’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, soar.
Many recently-completed high rise buildings have given the capital a new look, as if reaching out for the skies.
There is an ever-increasing need for accommodation and business space stimulated by a steady economic growth in the last four years.
The forecast boom is anticipated to involve major commercial and residential construction and is expected to continue for a number of years.
Building projects will comprise upmarket apartments and residential complexes, office and embassy refurbishments, as well as new schools and hotel renovations.
High security fence systems are also in big demand in Papua New Guinea.
In recognition of the growing building sector, The National newspaper will run a Building and Construction Supplement on Thursday, April 23, 2009,   to showcase building, construction and hardware products from participating companies to key industry decision makers.
Don’t miss Thursday’s paper.

Air Niugini clarifies Falcon jet buy

NATIONAL flag carrier Air Niugini has defended its decision to enter into a commercial arrangement with the National Government over its acquisition of a French-made Falcon regional jet, The National reports.

Air Niugini chief executive officer Wasantha Kumarasiri said in a statement last week that the decision to buy the aircraft was a commercial opportunity to provide the Government with an executive jet charter service of the highest standard.

The jet, which is currently going through final equipment installation in the United States, is being financed through a five-year loan re-payment arrangement through French Export Finance.

It will be repaid at an attractive interest rate, contrary to media reports of an immediate full payment in cash.

While pricing remained a matter of “commercial confidentiality” under the purchase agreement, Air Niugini regarded it as “an excellent value”, Mr Kumarasiri said.

He said Air Niugini would operate the small pressurised regional jet aircraft, not an ultra-long range jet, under its registration, with its pilots flying the plane to several of the country’s ports and all its international destinations.

“The aircraft can make direct flights from Port Moresby to Perth (Australia), Auckland (New Zealand), Nadi (Fiji), Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Japan, China and several other countries within the region.

“Flying far is also possible with several technical stops to refuel the aircraft,” he added.

“Domestically, the aircraft is able to fly to several ports, either unrestricted or twice a month, to those that are currently being serviced by the Fokker 100,” Mr Kumarasiri said.

Meanwhile, on the domestic front, Air Niugini has also clarified that there will be four additional flights between Madang and Wewak, making a total 15 flights a week.

The additional flights started last Friday with others scheduled for every Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

 

NARI Agricultural Innovations Show 2009

The National Agricultural Research Institute is preparing the annual Agricultural Innovations Show for 2009 to be staged at its Sir Alkan Tololo Research Centre at Bubia, Morobe, on May 5.

This will be the third year of this ‘information exchange and knowledge sharing’ event in which partner and collaborating organisations in agricultural and rural development will be invited to display and exhibit their innovations and improved technologies and interact with farmers and the general public.

The theme for this year’s occasion will be ‘Adapting PNG Agriculture to Climate Change’.

All NARI research programmes throughout PNG will demonstrate and disseminate many of their new and improved research innovations, technologies and information.

Among them will be research activities and outputs on food crops, emerging food and cash crops, stallholder livestock and resource management issues.

Farmers will have the opportunity to see live plant specimens and learn from posters and other publications.

For more information contact Seniorl Anzu on email seniorl.anzu@nari.org.pg .

 

National Small Scale Mining Training Centre to be opened in Wau

The Mineral Resources Authority (MRA) and the European Union (EU) will officially open the National Small Scale Mining Training Center (NSSMTC) in Wau, Morobe province on May 7, 2009.

The establishment of the NSSMTC is an important initiative of the MRA/EU, to train and equip small scale miners nationwide with skills and knowledge on all aspects of small scale mining.

These include laws governing artisanal mining, simple mining and processing techniques, health and safety issues, and business and investment advice.

The opening of the facility is an important event to support the small scale mining industry and rural communities that rely on this multi-million Kina sector.

There are over 60, 000 small scale miners throughout Papua New Guinea who collectively generate more than K250 million annually.

 This money goes directly into the pockets of small scale miners.

Undoubtedly, this facility will contribute towards wealth generation amongst our small scale miners which will improve their livelihoods.

Pacific Freedom Forum Media Alert

Members of PFF Pacific Freedom Forum and PIJO Pacific Islands Journalism Online are urged to sign our petition supporting freedoms of speech in Fiji.

 

Signing the petition is open to members of the media - and anyone else who supports freedoms of speech in Fiji - a hub for 20 island states and territories across the Pacific.

 

As announced last week by PFF, the petition "Support Free Speech for a Prosperous Fiji" is aimed at all Pacific Islands leaders, not just those in Fiji.

 

Signing the petition is a reminder for regional leaders when debating options for the troubled republic - that freedoms of speech are fundamental to futures of any successful society - not an optional extra.

 

PETITION BACKGROUND:

 

"Information is power. Gagging, censorship and detention of the Fiji news media by the interim regime in Fiji robs all citizens of feedback surrounding debate on national futures; and leaves the leadership itself uninformed about how to best achieve its goals of ending racist laws and corruption."

 

PETITION:

 

"We, undersigned, support free speech for a prosperous and free Fiji. We come from all walks of life and all regions of the world to call on Pacific leaders at all levels to stand up for the front-line role of news media when warning of threats to human rights, suggesting options, and negotiating outcomes with peoples of Fiji."

 

FURTHER INFO ON PFF

 

www.pacificfreedomforum.blogspot.com

 

PETITION LINK

 

http://www.gopetition.com/online/26992.html

...

Lae War Cemetery

Continuing our series on WW11 icons in Papua New Guinea as ANZAC Day falls next Saturday. This time we visit the Lae War Cemetery...

The Lae War Cemetery is one of the major WW11 cemeteries in the country apart from Bomana (Port Moresby) and Bitapaka (Rabaul).
Immaculately maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, the Lae War Cemetery contains 2,818 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 444 of them unidentified.
The majority, over 2000, are from Australia with others from Great Britain, India, and Papua New Guinea.
They now rest peacefully in a picture of tranquility in the tropical greenery of the Botanical Gardens.
At dawn on ANZAC Day each year, the Lae community comes together to remember the many men who gave up their lives, to protect their countries and their people.
A visit to Lae would not be complete without a visit to the cemetery, which is located next to the Botanical Gardens in the centre of Lae.
It is also a very emotional and moving experience.
In the early months of 1942, Japan enjoyed a crushing superiority in the air, and it was Lae and its neighboring airfields that were the objects of the first Japanese attack on New Guinea.
Lae and Salamaua were bombed on January 21, 1942, by 100 planes, but the land forces did not enter the territory until March 7, when 3,000 Japanese landed at Lae.
There were landings too at Salamaua, followed on July 21 by further landings at Buna and Gona on the east coast in preparation for a drive through the Owen Stanley Mountains across the Papuan peninsula to Port Moresby.
The vital stage of the New Guinea campaign dates from that time.
Lae became one of the bases from which the southward drive was launched and maintained until it was stopped at loribaiwa Ridge, a point within 60 kilometres of Port Moresby.
Lae War Cemetery was commenced in 1944 by the Australian Army Graves Service and handed over to the Commission in 1947.
It contains the graves of men who lost their lives during the New Guinea campaign whose graves were brought here from the temporary military cemeteries in areas where the fighting took place.
The Indian casualties were soldiers of the army of undivided India who had been taken prisoner during the fighting in Malaya and Hong Kong.
The great majority of the unidentified were recovered between But airfield and Wewak, where they had died while employed in working parties.
Of the two men belonging to the army of the United Kingdom, one was attached to 219th Australian Infantry Battalion and the other was a member of the Hong Kong-Singapore Royal Artillery.
The naval casualties were killed, or died of injuries received, on H.M. Ships King George V, Glenearn and Empire Arquebus, and the four men of the Merchant Navy were killed when the S.S. Gorgon was bombed and damaged in Milne Bay in April 1943.
Before the First World War, north-eastern New Guinea and certain adjacent islands were German possessions, and were occupied by Australian Forces on September 12, 1914.
Several cemeteries in New Guinea contain the graves of men who died during that war.
There is one such grave in Lae War Cemetery, brought in from a burial ground where permanent maintenance could not be assured.
The Lae War Memorial, which stands in the cemetery, commemorates more than 300 officers and men of the Australian Army, the Australian Merchant Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force who lost their lives in these operations and have no known grave.
Casualties of the Royal Australian Navy who lost their lives in the south-western Pacific region, and have no known grave but the sea, are commemorated on Plymouth Naval Memorial in England along with many of their comrades of the Royal Navy and of other Commonwealth Naval Forces.

Location Information :
Lae is a town and port at the mouth of the Markham River on the Huon Gulf. Lae War Cemetery is located adjacent to the Botanical Gardens in the centre of Lae.

Historical Information:
In the early months of 1942, Japan enjoyed a crushing superiority in the air, and it was Lae and its neighbouring airfields that were the objects of the first Japanese attack on New Guinea. Lae and Salamaua were bombed on 21 January 1942 by 100 planes, but the land forces did not enter the territory until 7 March, when 3,000 Japanese landed at Lae. There were landings too at Salamaua, followed on 21 July by further landings at Buna and Gona on the east coast in preparation for a drive through the Owen Stanley Mountains across the Papuan peninsula to Port Moresby. The vital stage of the New Guinea campaign dates from that time. Lae became one of the bases from which the southward drive was launched and maintained until it was stopped at loribaiwa Ridge, a point within 60 kilometres of Port Moresby.

LAE WAR CEMETERY was commenced in 1944 by the Australian Army Graves Service and handed over to the Commission in 1947. It contains the graves of men who lost their lives during the New Guinea campaign whose graves were brought here from the temporary military cemeteries in areas where the fighting took place. The Indian casualties were soldiers of the army of undivided India who had been taken prisoner during the fighting in Malaya and Hong Kong.
The great majority of the unidentified were recovered between But airfield and Wewak, where they had died while employed in working parties. Of the two men belonging to the army of the United Kingdom, one was attached to 219th Australian Infantry Battalion and the other was a member of the Hong Kong-Singapore Royal Artillery.
The naval casualties were killed, or died of injuries received, on H.M. Ships King George V, Glenearn and Empire Arquebus, and the four men of the Merchant Navy were killed when the S.S. Gorgon was bombed and damaged in Milne Bay in April 1943.
The cemetery contains 2,818 Commonwealth burials of the Second World War, 444 of them unidentified.
Prior to the First World War, north-eastern New Guinea and certain adjacent islands were German possessions, and were occupied by Australian Forces on 12 September 1914. Several cemeteries in New Guinea contain the graves of men who died during that war. There is one such grave in Lae War Cemetery, brought in from a burial ground where permanent maintenance could not be assured.

The end of an era? PINA drops iconic convention title and goes with Pacific Media Summit.

Be part of one of the biggest media event in the Pacific, the Pacific Media Summit 2009, and tap the unparalleled opportunities for learning, knowledge sharing and networking the two-day conference and pre-summit workshops provide.

The first Pacific Media Summit in 2009, which has been scheduled on 26-30 July in Port Vila, Vanuatu, will promote a dynamic mix of content and format to enhance knowledge sharing and participation.

The Pacific Media Summit will gather some of the best minds and emerging media leaders to examine the issues of the conference theme, “Breaking Barriers- Access to Information”.

Expected to converge at the Summit are more than 200 CEOs from public and private media networks, media experts, consultants and academics as well as senior officials of development institutions representing over 25 countries worldwide.

The Pacific Media Summit will feature plenary sessions covering a wide spectrum of topics and issues such as the challenges facing media freedom in the region, battle to recruit and attract the right people.

Other topics include Climate Change and food security, new media, future plans for media assistance, Freedom of Information and how the Pacific is faring with the MDGs and the ripple effect from Global Financial meltdown.

There will be pre-summit workshops as well.

Another highlight of the Summit is a CEO roundtable discussion on recruiting, attracting and retaining qualified people amidst the fast changing and competitive media landscape within and outside Asia-Pacific.

The full Summit content and other conference details are available at www.pina.com.fj

Be among the media professionals and leaders at the Pacific Media Summit 2009, which embarks on another milestone, as it will be held in Vanuatu.

A popular Pacific destination, Port Vila offers a special city with a mix of Pacific tradition, particularly Melanesian history and culture that will enrich the Pacific Media Summit 2009.

Registration with the PINA Secretariat by contact Matai Akauola pina@connect.com.fj

The programme will be posted soon on this site.

The scourge of sorcery in Papua New Guinea

It is one of the greatest paradoxes that in this day and age, supposedly the ‘Computer Age’, Papua New Guineans are still living in the ‘Stone Age’.

A paradox too, when Papua New Guineans like to call ourselves “Christians”, however, cannot shake off the ancient and satanic obsession with sorcery.

Papua New Guinea cannot take its place in today’s modern world if this primitive belief continues.

The numerous sorcery-related killings in Papua New Guinea where innocent men, women and children are killed is even worse than the Salem witch trials of 1692 and 1693, where the suspected witches were hanged.

Viewed by many to be the result of a period of factional infighting and religious hysteria, the witch trials of Puritanical Salem Village, Massachusetts, led to the executions of 20 people—15 women and five men—and the imprisonment of approximately 150 accused witches.

The witch hunts of Papua New Guinea in 2010 make the Salem witch trials look like something out of a child’s fairy tale story.

Here, suspected sorcerers – mainly old men and women – have their heads chopped off, are burned alive, tied to and dragged behind moving vehicles, tortured with hot metal rods, pushed off cliffs, drowned in rivers, shot, buried alive, and worse.

And yet, the silence of the government and the churches on this issue, has been deafening.

Papua New Guineans do not openly want to talk about sorcery with outsiders, however, the reality is that the belief is prevalent.

And it is getting worse by the day!

Just pick up a newspaper any day and you’ll find a shock-and-horror story of some gruesome sorcery-related killing.

I have had numerous experiences with beliefs in sorcery all over the country (but do not want to go into the details), and sad to say, many university-educated so-called “Christians” still hang on to this pagan belief.

Last Friday, The National reported of members of a clan living near Mt Hagen, Western Highlands province, admitting they were wrong to murder a father and his son whom they suspected of sorcery.

Members of the Moge Kimnika clan, peace mediators and relatives of the deceased met in Mt Hagen as members of the clan expressed remorse for last February’s killing of two of their own.

Plak Doa and his son Anis were attacked and tied up, placed inside their own house and burnt to death last Feb 8 at Ban village.

Clansmen had accused them for the death of community leader Pora Mel through sorcery.

Police said the clansmen had tied them up and burnt them because that was the only way to remove the “evil spirit” in them.

At the time, police were prevented from entering the village by heavily-armed men.

More than two months after the gruesome killing, the Moge Kimnika clansmen admitted they were wrong, and publicly apologised to the relatives of the deceased.

Police estimate that half of all murder cases in 2008 were sorcery-related.

Police spokesman Superintendent Dominic Kakas says police are voicing their support of any initiative to try to curb the rising number of sorcery-related murders in the country.

He says at the moment, sorcery-related killings are difficult to prove, under the country’s current British Common Law system.

“The number of killings related to sorcery is quite high,” Mr Kakas said.

“And in fact, last April, prompted the commissioner Gari Baki to actually initiate moves to bring about a collective effort towards addressing this issue.

“Now he made a number of suggestions perhaps one would be to look at a court specifically for sorcery and related issues.”

Supt Kakas says many people are superstitious in PNG, which also makes it difficult to collect evidence in such cases.

A lack of faith in Western medicine is also fuelling this resurgence in sorcery and witchcraft in PNG.

Age-old beliefs in black magic and evil curses are back with a vengeance in jungle-clad mountain valleys which were unknown to the outside world until the 1930s.

The revival is being fuelled by the spiralling HIV/AIDS crisis and the collapse of health services, sapping villagers’ faith in Western medicine.

Barely-educated villagers living in remote mountain valleys are blaming the increasing number of AIDS deaths not on promiscuity or a lack of condom use but on malign spirits.

A report by Amnesty International last September found there was a “conspiracy of silence” surrounding the murders.

 “The police do little to penetrate this silence. Very few sorcery-related deaths are investigated and the perpetrators are rarely brought to justice,” the report concluded.

Belief in magic is ubiquitous throughout Papua New Guinea, where more than 850 languages are spoken by 5.5 million people.

In the highlands they are known as sangumas and can assume the form not only of humans, but animals such as dogs, pigs, rats and snakes.

When Papua and New Guinea were separate Australian colonies, colonial patrol officers known as “kiaps” and their native auxiliaries suppressed sorcery killings.

 But since independence in 1975, the old ways have gradually undergone a gruesome renaissance along the spine of saw-toothed peaks which divides PNG in two.

And the frightening thing is that children are now witnessing these things, with the belief in sorcery and witchcraft being passed on to the next generation.

Authorities appear helpless to intervene although the Government has ordered a parliamentary commission to spend a year investigating ways to prevent witch-hunts, which arise from a tragic combination of tribalism, underdevelopment and superstition.

“When dozens of people have been killed, it's clear that the Government is not doing enough to protect its own citizens and maintain the rule of law,” said Apolosi Bose, of Amnesty International.

The objective existence of black magic is enshrined in Papua New Guinea's 1976 Sorcery Act, which permits white magic but punishes the black variety with up to two years in jail.

The country's police force is poorly-trained, poorly-resourced and riddled with corruption, so witch-hunters have a good chance of escaping punishment.

“People often don't trust the police or the judiciary and instead blame events on supernatural causes and punish suspected sorcerers,” Mr Bose said.

The Constitutional Review and  Law Reform Commission (CLRC) and the Public Prosecutor’s office have pointed out that there is no effective enforcement of the Sorcery Act 1991, resulting in a good number of people brutally murdered in sorcery-related cases.

Commission chairman Joe Mek Teine and acting public prosecutor Jack Pambel separately said there was a need to immediately review and amend the Act.

“Sorcery accusations and killings is a very serious issue facing our society, where innocent lives have been lost,” he said.

“Reviewing the Sorcery Act is on the agenda of my commission.”

He said sorcery-related killings were not serious in the colonial days, however, sorcery accusations and killings had become worse today.

“The situation warrants us to immediately make amendments to the Sorcery Act and implement it,” Mr Mek Teine said.

Mr Pambel said there was no effective implementation of the Sorcery Act.

“Whether the Act is being implemented or not is a question that has to be looked at,” he said.

A couple of weeks ago, I talked with former kiap, John Fowke, about the numerous social problems – including sorcery - facing PNG.

“Look at life and the future straight in the eye, and begin to keep pace with the rest of the world, PNG,” he said.

“Social history and ancient customs belong in the school curriculum, in museums and story-books, not in the management methodology of a modern nation.”