The Black Islands -- Spirit and War in Melanesia

Beautiful. Never heavy-handed, this says short pieces speaks volumes about dignity. Freedom fighters, soldiers, mercenaries, civilians, elders, children...all are respectfully depicted.

Election of Gordon Darcy Lilo as Solomon Islands PM (Articles Relating to the Election, That Is)

Check out these Canberra times articles of November 15th and November 16th for what you need to know about the election of Gordon Darcy Lilo as Prime Minster of the Solomon Islands.

Here are my takeaways:

1. "Australian officials have warned travellers to the Solomon Islands of possible unrest and disruptions after the Pacific island nation elected Gordon Darcy Lilo as Prime Minister."

2. "The Solomons has previously erupted in violence for political reasons, with parts of Honiara hit by arson and rioting following a 2006 election."

3. "The country is the third Pacific nation to experience political upheaval this week."

Nauru's got it's third leader in a week, due to corruption claims and a vote of no-confidence. In Papua New Guinea, orders came down for the arrest of the deputy prime minister and attorney-general on contempt charges, following their attempted ouster of the chief justice on charges of financial misconduct.

Oh, and here is an article from November 11th describing the run-up to the election.

Papuan Declaration and Violence: Two More Articles from Jakarta Globe

Two more articles on the violence following the Papuan declaration of independence from Indonesia.

Read:

Dozens Injured and 'Chaos' as Shots Ring Out.

Shots Fired in Response to Papuan Declaration of Independence?

Check out the headline from today's Jakarta Globe:  Indonesian Military Opens Fire Near Papuan Congress.

Want a nutshell? Basically:

"The report states that 'credible sources on the ground' have confirmed that at 3:30 p.m., soldiers opened fire on the gathering, held at a  field in Padang Bulan Abepura.

There are unconfirmed reports that at least one person has been killed and others injured.

The warning shots were fired in response to an alleged announcement by the Papuan Peoples’ Assembly (MRP) declaring the province’s independence from Indonesia...."

Typhoon Nesat (Pedring) Hits Manila

Typhoon Nesat (locally called "Pedring") is hitting Manila...right...now! Yup, at this very second.

Having been through hurricanes, IMHO this clip gives the real sense-experience much more than the typical "reporter on the jetty" videos. Sorry, btw, for the brief Slinky (???) commercial. 

Bainimarama and the UN's Figuring on Fiji

When Ban Ki Moon addressed the Pacific Islands Forum this week in New Zealand,  he became the first Secretary General of the UN to do so. Highlights include a spirited discussion of Fiji's place in the family of Pacific nations. (Hint: Fiji's getting a time-out.)

Also discussed -- The use of Fiji's troops in UN peacekeeping actions such as in Iraq. They were banned in 2009 due to "military strongman Frank Bainimarama" and his glacial movements toward democratic elections in that country. Since then, however...hmmm. Something's changed. Ban Ki Moon says Fiji's time-out may be close to an end.

Why was Fiji blackballed in the first place, when it's the government the UN has argument with?  Here's another hint, this time from The Age:

"When Britain granted Fiji independence in 1970, the Fiji army had only about 200 active troops.

Since then, more than 20,000 Fijians have been deployed in UN peacekeeping operations, building a robust military culture in the nation of fewer than 950,000 people.

Fiji has been under military rule since Bainimarama, the country's armed forces chief, seized power in a 2006 coup, its fourth since 1987.

His government had promised elections earlier this year, but Bainimarama said in Saturday's speech that they will not be held until 2014."

So the equation has been (up to now) figured this way: >troops used by UN = >troops in Fiji = >Bainimarama.

Apparently the equation is faulty.

Mining in Bougainville: The Taste of Mud

Here's a little taste of what's to come on this blog re: mining in Bougainville. Hint: It involves guns, helicopters, blockades, civil uprisings and well, lots of mud.

"To Bougainville" Becomes a New Verb

From: The Bougainville Crisis: A South Pacific Crofters' War

by Alastair McIntosh

Published in Radical Scotland, 44, Apr/May 1990.

"Potential and actual Bougainville-like situations abound throughout Melanesia...to the extent that a new verb, 'to bougainville' is gaining currency in situations where local people have found environmental, social or economic aspects of a development to be unacceptable and have taken direct action to block operations.

For instance, in 1987 after 20 years of land disputes and rainforest devastation, villagers exercising civil disobedience forced a Unilever subsidiary,  Levers Pacific Timbers, out of the Solomon Islands. But none better illustrates the consequence of ecocide than the Bougainville Copper Ltd (BCL) mine at Panguna.

The trouble dates back to 1963 when the parent company, Conzinc Rio-Tinto Australia (CRA), was granted a prospecting licence by the Australian colonial government to develop what Sir Val Duncan, chairman of Rio Tinto-Zinc, was to describe in 1969 as "the jewel in our crown".

Local people objected to the presence of geologists in their area, there having been no consultation with the elderly women who held land on behalf of the matrilineal clans.  Harvard University anthropologist, Prof.  Douglas Oliver, advised BCL they were dealing with a primitive and superstitious people, "who would probably get used to the company's presence".

Read the entire article on AlastairMcIntosh's site.

First Contact: New Guinea Highlanders Meet Europeans

Note: The video footage was deleted at source, again. Sorry! The conflict over copyright seems to continue, which is not surprising I guess given the age of the film (from the 1920's and 1930's) and also the many nations' jurisdiction (New Guinea, Australia, etc.) that might have a say in it. 

Below is the caption for the footage:

I posted this footage for the first time back in January. Since then the link has been discontinued due to conflict over the copyright.  Here it is again, with what seems to be (I hope, I hope) is a clear copy.

What I said in January: "Missionaries get credit and blame for colonization, but economic interests usually move the whole thing forward.  Check out this footage from the 1930's of Aussies brought to the highlands of New Guinea by the Gold Rush.  I found the Native's recounting their first sighting of white men -- as well as the memories of the white men on first encountering the Highlanders -- especially interesting.  

Of course, it wasn't only mineral resources the Europeans came for.  Since they'd arrived in the lowlands centuries ago, planters were king. If one was in possession of enough land, planted correctly, retaining enough cheap labor to bring it through the growing season to market, you stood to make a few coins."

What I say now: Who hasn't encountered this kind of breakdown between peoples? Add guns and fear and that's where the heartache starts.

Ban Ki Moon to Visit Solomon Islands

The United Nations Secretary General will tour the Solomon Islands this September.  His visit will be part of a larger trip schedule to Australia and New Zealand, where he will be attending The Pacific Islands Forum.  Ban Ki Moon will be the first UN Secretary General to have attended this meeting.  Radio Australia News has the story.

Moving Verse Novel Series to New Blog

Hi All,

Sensing a conflict between the Oceania posts and my (now transferred) verse novel articles, I've opened a new blog: The Novel in Verse.

Please cast your eyes there for upcoming articles, reviews and tutorials on Verse Novels and all things narrative. Please stay here at Oceans and Islands for more Oceania. 

Thanks! Have a good one.

Holly

Sunken WWII Ships -- Future Oil Spill?

"It was a defining moment of World War II. In February 1944, the US Navy attacked Japan's naval forces in the western Pacific.

 

After 48 hours, 200,000 tonnes of Japanese ships, aircraft, trucks and tanks were sunk, creating a haunting undersea graveyard.

Today, the site is a marine wonderland, attracting scuba divers from across the world. But it has also become a ticking timebomb, threatening a fragile Pacific paradise.

Within the rapidly deteriorating shipwrecks lurk tens of millions of litres of thick black oil which scientists say will be released in the next few years, destroying a pristine environment and the island's economy for generations to come." ~ Al Jazeera

Check out the 101 East broadcast above, or go to the Al Jazeera source website.

Plane Down: Crash Survivors Encounter Dani Tribe

In 1945 a US military plane crashed in the mountains of New Guinea. Of 21 on board, 18 were killed. The three survivors found themselves without food and water, unable to contact their base and harried by Japanese snipers. The Dani, a stone age people embroiled in their own war with a neighboring tribe, took them in....

Lost in Shangri-La

Sailing in the Solomon Islands

Check out these beautiful blog posts from the Solomon Islands.  Gorgeous photos. 

First Contact: New Guinea Highlanders Meet Europeans

The video footage has been removed at source due to copyright issues. This has happened several times; each time I've restored the links, but as the blog grows it will be harder for me to keep track of them when they break.  

My best advice is for the curious to type First Contact: New Guinea Highlanders Meet... etc. into the search bar and see what comes up. Here's what you can look forward to:

Australian in khaki pointing to dead swine with a rifle: "We'll do to you what we did to the pigs."
New Guinea Highlander with spear: "Those pigs can't dodge like we can."

New Guinea Highlanders Meet Europeans: Part 2

(Footage removed at source, again. Sorry!)

I wish the footage was in better shape, but in many ways it adds to the eeriness of this piece. The music is hair-raising.  The sense that something utterly new and alien has appeared in the New Guinea Highlands is palpable.  "We thought we were the only people in the world," one old gentleman says.  I say: This footage is creepier than the last scary movie you saw.

First Contact: New Guinea Highlanders Meet Europeans

Missionaries get credit and blame for colonization, but economic interests usually move the whole thing forward.  Check out this footage from the 1930's of Aussies brought to the highlands of New Guinea by the Gold Rush.  I found the Native's recounting their first sighting of white men -- as well as the memories of the white men on first encountering the Highlanders -- especially interesting.  

Of course, it wasn't only mineral resources the Europeans came for.  Since they'd arrived in the lowlands centuries ago, planters were king. If one was in possession of enough land, planted correctly, retaining enough cheap labor to bring it through the growing season to market, you stood to make a few coins. 

No Betel Nut Arrests? What Do We Pay the Cops For, Then?

The gentleman in the above photo is a long-time fan of Betel Nuts. You can tell by those crimson teeth & gums.  The nuts do the staining, while the quick lime the nuts are served with go about their business eroding the teeth, causing fissures in the cheeks and tongue....

On the plus side, pesky tapeworms and other intestinal parasites find Betel Nuts personally offensive.  I bet you thought only western medicine could provide that kind of devil's bargain...am I right?

For those of you who just can't get enough Betel Nut news, here are two related stories from Solomon Times.

Check out this:

http://www.solomontimes.com/news.aspx?nwID=3620

and 

http://www.solomonstarnews.com/news/national/9872-no-betel-nut-arrests-over-the-weekend

Sample: "SO far no arrests have yet been made on betel-nut vendors along the streets of Honiara....

A spokesperson for the division told the Solomon Star that they were yet to arrest any street betel-nut vendors, however adding daily patrols were continuing with officers continuously cautioning the street vendors.

“There have been no arrests made over the weekend in relation to betel-nut sellers in town,” the spokesperson said.

“Cracking down on betel-nut is part of our day to day duties."

Note: The add on this blog had featured a beautiful pink cupcake with red frosting.  I was excited at the color synergy that was being set up with the Betel squish.  Then as soon as I posted, away went the cupcake.  Did the advertisers' theme engines trigger on "intestinal parasites," I wonder? 

Photo attribution: By Fcastello (Own work) [GFDL (<a href="http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html" class="external free" rel="nofollow">http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html</a>) or CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Happiest Place on Earth: Vanuatu

Montreal, my personal favorite place, came in #2.  How awesome must Vanuatu be to beat Montreal?  It's not a question of the awesomeness of the place, but of the people, I imagine.... Is Bougainville, after it's bloody civil war, anywhere near happy, despite its similar climate & culture? Doubt it.

Check out the article here:

http://vanuatu.travel/news/vanuatu-tourism-office/vanuatu-happiest-country-on-earth-again.html

Short Film: Crocodile Creation Myth from Melanesia

Creation myth fans -- check out how crocodile man and sago milk brought us into the world.  This is a beautiful short film.