Bitapaka War Cemetery creates strong feelings

Caption: 1. Grave of an Unknown Solider at Bitapaka War Cemetery. 2. Bitapaka War Cemetery. 3. Entrance to Bitapaka War Cemetery.

I visited Bitapaka War Cemetery, not far from Rabaul, East New Britain province, last weekend.

This peaceful and beautiful cemetery contains the graves of over 1, 000 Allied war dead and the Rabaul Memorial commemorates those who have no known grave.

The cemetery is maintained by the Office of Australian War Graves, Department of Veterans' Affairs, on behalf of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

It is located near the site of the first Australian action of World War I when the Australian Naval & Military Expeditionary Force (AN&MEF) captured a German wireless station on September 11, 1914.

Each grave is marked by a bronze plaque set on a low concrete pedestal with 500 marked 'Known to God'.

As well as Australians, the cemetery contains the graves of Indian and British prisoners of war who were transported to New Britain by the Japanese as a labour force.

The peace of the setting and the enormous number of white crosses shocked me with the contrast.

It was here that I began to grasp the sacrifice made by those who give their lives for their country.

Bitapaka War Cemetery respects and honors those who made the supreme sacrifice for their people.

It also serves as a reminder that war kills, not just a few, but many hundreds of thousands, and on both sides.

Bitapaka – like other war cemeteries in Papua New Guinea – offers an opportunity to create goodwill amongst all the living so that the same tragedies may not be repeated.

It creates strong feelings of sacredness, tranquility, spaciousness, peace and beauty, and is immaculately maintained by devoted staff.

Bitapaka is a village in East New Britain which, in 1914, was the site of a German radio station and thus a target for the troops of the AN&MEF.

After landing at Kabakaul on the morning of September 11, 1914, troops from the AN&MEF were involved in a series of skirmishes with German forces, mostly local Melanesian troops, along the track to Bitapaka.

The radio station was finally secured at 7pm at a cost of seven Australians killed and five wounded.

One German and 30 Melanesians had died in the effort to defend it.

Bitapaka War Cemetery contains 1, 111 burials of WW11: 12 from the Navy, 1,042 from the Navy, 55 from the Air Force and two civilians.

Of these, 35 are British, 420 are Australians, one is a New Zealander, 614 are Indians, 34 are Fijians, two are Western Solomon Islanders, and five are Allies.

The memorial commemorates 1,113 Australian soldiers, 104 airmen and eight Papua New Guineans who have no known grave.

The Indian soldiers were prisoners of war from the Malayan Campaign, while the remainder of the burials and all the names on the memorial are of men who died in New Britain and New Ireland.

The cemetery also contains 28 burials of WW1: 27 Australian and one British.

The cemetery and memorial were constructed and are maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

 

Singsing at Vudal

Captions: Kampalap villagers from Siassi Island, Morobe province, leading graduating students at the University of Vudal in East New Britain province last Friday.

 

Vudal graduates urged to fight corruption

By LYTHIA SUITAWA

Graduates of the 12^th graduation of the University of Vudal have been challenged to develop anticorruption behaviours and habits.

The call came from tropical agriculture degree graduate Nason Gene, who spoke as student respondent during the ceremony last Friday.

Mr Gene said corruption was hindering the progress of tangible development in the country causing people to suffer and urged his fellow graduates to practice anticorruption habits at all levels of their professions.

He said nationalists often spoke of transparency and accountability and formulated strategies against corruption but these often did not address the root cause of the problem.

“We need to look at what builds a person and build into the system of a person from inside out. We need a change from inside out and that is to build in us now, a habit of anticorruption and get addicted to it,” he said.

“If we get addicted to anticorruption from within us, only then shall transparency and accountability transpire and we can move our country forward,” Mr Gene said. 

He told his fellow graduates that success would be within their reach if their characters were correct.

“The key to achieving it is not our personality, our temperament, our natural talents or even our present circumstances. The key is our character,” he said.

“If our attitudes and behaviours are correct, we can break through any barrier, overcome any obstacle, transcend any limitation and maximise any opportunity that comes our way.”

Speaking of the university they were graduating from, Mr Gene said it was one of the best higher education institutions in the country.

He added he was proud that the university was a well-disciplined institution.

“In fact, Vudal University is a better place to study without intimidation and discrimination of any sort towards our study, either from students (regionalism) or from surrounding communities,” he said.

He commended graduating students for their conduct during their time at the university and called on continuing and new students to maintain the same trend of discipline.

Mr Gene particularly mentioned the students’ approach towards the university administration when matters of concern arose.

“Students act professionally and where matters of concern arise, we practice professionalism in our approaches towards our administration, with understanding, and not take matters into our own hands,” he said.

Mr Gene said the graduands had witnessed many positive rehabilitative changes during their time at the University such as course reviews and diversification of academic programs that would benefit continuing and new students.

However, he urged the National Government through the university administration to better furnish learning facilities such as laboratories with equipment and materials that would improve student learning.

The student respondent also called for the involvement of students in research and publications, which he said would be an added bonus for students as well as build the reputation of the university.

 

Solomon Islands HC commends Vudal

By VERONICA MANUK and LYTHIA SUITAWA

Solomon Islands High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea Bernard Bata’anisia (pictured) has paid special tribute to the University of Vudal for its contribution to the human resources manpower of his country.

Speaking at the University of Vudal’s 12^th graduation ceremony as guest speaker last Friday, Mr Bata’anisia said his government was indebted to the institution for educating and skilling many Solomon Islanders who now hold senior and responsible positions in the country’s government and private sectors.

The contribution by the University was made between the 1960s and 1980s through its campuses in East New Britain and Oro provinces when they were still known as Vudal Agricultural College and Popondetta Agricultural College respectively.

Mr Bata’anisia said graduates from the then colleges continued to make an impact on the lives of the people and communities in Solomon Islands because the training they received had equipped them to better serve their people, communities and country.

One such graduate is Sir George Lepping, the second Governor General of the Solomon Islands, who graduated from Vudal in the late 1960s.

Mr Bata’anisia said visiting Vudal was a privilege because of the special relationship the institution had with his country.

“It is proper and fitting that I stand here before you here on behalf of the Government and people of Solomon Islands to say thank you to this institution which has done so much for my country,” he said.

“Thank you Vudal for contributing towards the manpower and human resources development of Solomon Islands.”

The High Commissioner said education and training had strengthened bilateral relations between Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea over the last 40 years and thanked the Government and people of Papua New Guinea for forging this relationship, particularly through the education grant assistance to Solomon Islands that had benefited many young Solomon Islanders.

Addressing the 125 graduands, Mr Bata’anisia challenged them to make good use of their qualifications in the environment they found themselves in after graduating.

“Your people, community and country will be watching you and demanding nothing less than total commitment and service in whatever field you are in,” he said.

The diplomat said like any country, Papua New Guinea had its own difficulties and challenges, and these could only solved by the country itself.

“Outsiders do not have all the answers to your challenges and problems but Papua New Guineans yourselves,” he said, when calling on them to take an active interest in the affairs and development of the country.

Mr Bata’anisia said he saw the role of the graduands as partners in nation building and urged them to contribute effectively to the country’s socio-economic development with the intention to make a difference for people and their communities.

“I urge you to remain faithful and strong to your beliefs and principals and to do what is right for the people and your communities,” he said.

The High Commissioner’s visit to the University’s ENB campus last Friday was his second one this year.

His first visit in July was to collect information on the University and begin dialogue on the re-entry of Solomon Islands students to the institution.

 

Government must support universities

By VERONICA MANUK

THE National Government must provide financial backing to universities if it is serious about contributing positively to the growth and national development of the nation.

Former Prime Minister and senior statesman Sir Rabbie Namaliu made these remarks at the 12^th graduation ceremony of the University of Vudal last Friday.

Sir Rabbie, who is Chancellor of the university, said universities could not continue to rely on the goodwill of bilateral partners or donors for their growth and expansion.

“The National Government must put money where its mouth is if it is serious about training skilled and professional people to meet the growing demands of both the public and private sectors,” he said.

He said the government must provide adequate financial resources to universities to ensure that they offered a standard of education and training that was recognised in PNG and internationally as well.

The Chancellor said this would attract well-qualified and experienced staff and students both locally and abroad.

Sir Rabbie said universities like University of Vudal needed proper libraries, proper laboratories, adequate resources with relevant information materials and computer friendly facilities.

For instance, he said the granting of a temporary license to universities by PANGTEL to pilot broadband for a short period was welcomed, but it was not a solution to the long tem demand.

“We would much rather see universities licensed to use this modern mean of communication on a permanent and sustainable basis,” Sir Rabbie said.

“It would improve the quality of teaching and learning immeasurable as well as research in this modern day and age.”

He said broadband would boost the capacity of the library literally overnight because staff and students would have access to sources of information including books from anywhere in the world.

The Chancellor said the Government had made a good start in the 2006 supplementary budget when it allocated K50million to the four state universities for maintenance and rehabilitation and this was appreciated even though University of Vudal and University of Goroka only received K4million each.

Sir Rabbie said as the youngest of the four universities, University of Vudal was striving to find its rightful place as an institution of higher learning and research after many years of training agricultural specialists not only in PNG but also in Pacific as a college.

 

University of Vudal's new restaurant is opened

Captions: 1. Sir Rabbie officially opens the Kairak Restaurant at the University of Vudal.2. Guests at the Kairak Restaurant.

By VERONICA MANUK

THE University of Vudal’s Kairak Restaurant was officially opened last Friday by University Chancellor Sir Rabbie Namaliu.

The opening coincided with the University’s 12^th graduation ceremony which saw 125 students receiving various qualifications and awards.

Sir Rabbie, who unveiled a wooden plaque bearing the restaurant name, said its establishment was a welcome initiative by the University as it continued to expand.

The opening was witnessed by Solomon Islands High Commissioner to PNG Bernard Bata’anisia, University Vice Chancellor Professor Philip Siaguru, Registrar Henry Gioven, invited guests, staff and students.

The restaurant is located at the University’s Kairak Vudal Resource Training Centre (KVRTC) and according to Professor Siaguru it was set-up to raise funds to sustain the centre’s Integrated Agriculture Training Program.

Kairak Restaurant complements KVRTC’s guesthouse, which is frequently used by visitors to the University and Kerevat plateau.

Catering services for various functions such as luncheons, parties, birthdays, conferences and workshops are available.

Patrons have the option to dine-in or take-away.

 Those that do choose to dine-in, will do so in a beautiful room painted with murals depicting life in East New Britain.

A variety of dishes are available at very reasonable prices. For more information call 983 9144 or 983 9736.

 

A young man with a 'green' ambition

Caption: Graeme Ross of Alele Farm Fresh Produce (right) with his protege Elizah Kone at last Friday's University of Vudal graduation.

Young Elizah Kone from the Chimbu province, who graduated with a diploma in tropical agriculture last Friday from the University of Vudal in East New Britain province, is eagerly looking forward to making a big contribution to the industry.
He has been sponsored by major agricultural company Alele Farm Fresh Produce since Grade 12 at Yawe Moses Secondary School in Chimbu in 2004.
Alele general manager Graeme Ross last Thursday walked down to Popondetta from the mountains of Northern province, jumped on a plane to Port Moresby, and then got on another to Rabaul to see his protégé graduate.
Mr Ross has big plans for the young man, including further training in Australia, so that he can hopefully become Papua New Guinea’s first certified seed inspector.
He is already well-versed in extension work, Potato Late Blight and quarantine, among others, as a product of Alele.
“Alele has sponsored me for three years,” a beaming Mr Kone said at Vudal.
“During my practical breaks, I’ve been working with them, especially in extension.
“We’ve been training farmers on Potato Late Blight.
“We’ve also been teaching farmers about quarantine measures.
“Most of our training has been on safety.
“This has been taking place in the rural areas where most of the farmers are.
“The major achievement for me has been helping to bring back the potato industry into the country, after the Potato Late Blight disease.
“I’ll be going down to Tasmania to be trained as a certified seed inspector because we don’t have a certified seed inspector in the country.
“After that, I’ll be concentrating on tissue culture, because right now we can’t afford to import seeds into the country and bring in disease.
“Graeme Ross has put a lot of trust in me and I can’t let him down because I see that his aims and visions are for the majority of people in the villages, who have no access to government services.
“We are supposed to be collaborating with government agencies like National Agriculture Research Institute, Fresh Produce Development Agency, and National Agriculture Quarantine Inspection Authority; however, because we don’t get the full support we need, that’s when the problem comes in.
“I see that what we are doing is more than the government agencies because we are reaching people in the very-remote areas.”
Mr Ross recalled that Mr Kone’s father approached him in 2004 to sponsor his son for agricultural training
“We sponsored him 100%,” he said.
“He had high marks and management capabilities.
“He has an outgoing attitude and was very keen on agriculture.
“His father worked with Chemica in chemical marketing.
“Through his training process, we had always kept him conversant with the company’s development programme.
“We want to promote him into new developments for agriculture at farmer level.
“That shows that we want to him into as much training as possible.
“Our priority at Alele is to do away with chemicals and try to find natural means of controlling environmental problems, such as pests and others.
“What we would like to see is him experienced in all aspects of commercial vegetable production, including overseas training, so that he will be able to contribute meaningfully to fruit and vegetable production in the future.
“We would like to help a lot of young people, and one of the ways we’re doing that is through practical training of students.
“As a private sector, we call on other private sector agricultural industries to support practical training for students with organisations such as universities.
“We’re very enthusiastic about PNG’s agricultural industries, especially in the food industries, which are very important developments within the economy.
“We have found that the dedicated students appreciate the exposure to the practical workforce.
“We also have an interest to see how these students progress in their lives.”