BEN JACKSON | Bougainville 24
BOUGAINVILLE and Papua New Guinea were dealt a major blow with the sudden passing of Joseph (Joe) Maineke this week.
Joe was a very positive influence as a leader in Bougainville, particularly in the southern region where he worked within the Buin district office with a special focus on youth and sport.
He was also a leader in the Pacific football community and was highly regarded in his roles of president of the Bougainville Football Association and member of the PNG Football Association (PNGFA).
Joe was integral in the initiative to bring a football academy to Manetai in Bougainville as a high impact project for the future development of football amongst children in the region.
Continue reading "Big loss for Bougainville & PNG with death of Joe Maineke" »
MARTYN NAMORONG | Namorong Report
SO.... that 400 year old story book about a zombie has finally arrived in Papua New Guinea with a rousing welcome from part-time Christians and corrupt politicians.
I wonder what the man Jesus would think about spending thousands of kina on a junket trip to the United States whilst children beg for food on the streets of Port Moresby and Lae.
Yes there is theological basis for doing Him a favour once in while by pouring expensive perfume on His feet, but I think the man would consider the reverence shown towards a 400 year old foreign book a little bit over the top and nearly equivalent to idolatry.
Continue reading "I will be asking your foreign God for a refund on the bible" »
DANIEL KUMBON
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Award for Tourism, Arts and Culture Writing
“YOU have good mountains, beautiful scenery, good weather and many attractions which would pull people here but what you lack is a guesthouse.”
The scene: Sirunki, Laiagam District, Enga province. The speaker: A lone German traveller. The listener: Yasowa Kome, local councillor. The year: 1990.
This conversation with his guest prompted Kome to start a guest house even though Sirunki was a ‘no-go zone’ at the time due to tribal warfare and constant armed hold-ups at Aipanda, on the border of Laiagam and Wabag.
Continue reading "From the German doctor’s idea, a great project is born" »
JOHN KAUPA KAMASUA
“You are fearfully and wonderfully made” - Holy Bible
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
WHEN we think of the presence or absence of illness in the body, our minds inevitably turn to therapeutic medicine and the central role of medical science.
Therapeutic medicine has its place but increasingly there is a shift towards prevention, holistic health and the power of the body and mind connection.
Eastern medicine is given prominence with this shift, with the greater realization that the body is an amazing machine that in most cases heals itself.
An expatriate academic colleague in our school at the University of Papua New Guinea commented a few years back that many Papua New Guineans were dying young.
Continue reading "Pot-belly, egomania & a holistic view of a nation’s health" »
DAVID EPHRAIM
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
AFTER the signing of Covenant between Somare and God in 2007, a few years later we find ourselves with Speaker Zurenuoc removing parliamentary carvings in his holy crusade to remove evil from the state house.
Fast forward to now, and Zurenuoc returns with a 400-year old bible donated by a deceased missionary in the United States. Many thousands of Papua New Guineans brave the hot sun to welcome the holy book.
The idea that adapting Christian norms and practices will transform Papua New Guinea is not a new notion. These pastors in the photograph and others have been stating that since Independence.
Nearly eight years on, we arrive at a spiritual awakening that highlights a society weakened by cargo cultism.
Continue reading "That an old bible in parliament can transform PNG is a fraud" »
BOMAI D WITNE
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
THE office of the Speaker of Parliament in democratic countries including Papua New Guinea is a public office.
The notion of public office in democracies requires the office holder, such as the Speaker, to serve the public interest with high levels of transparency and accountability.
However, the action of the current PNG Speaker, Theo Zurenuoc, and his parliamentary committee in removing our ancestral lintels from the national parliament in the name of christening parliament is a crazy idea that amounts to dishonesty and disloyalty to our cultural heritage.
The speaker may as well consider removing one of the national goals and directive principles that stresses the need to protect cultural heritage. Such a parochial decision represents lack of understanding and appreciation for indigenous cultural properties on the part of the Speaker and his parliamentary committee.
Continue reading "Speaker must not use his position to promote parochial interests" »
BISHOP ARNOLD OROWAE | Catholic Bishops Conference
WITH the Pacific Games coming soon to Papua New Guinea, sport will be a topic of interest for many people. At this time we wish to offer a reflection on the value of sport and ways that we can all benefit.
The Catholic Church recognises sport to be one of the great institutions of our society that helps individuals realise their human potential and builds up the bonds of the community, fostering communal initiative and responsibility.
Sport contributes to physical and mental health and wellbeing. It teaches people, particularly young people skills and resilience. When youth become involved in sport, they devote their energies to teaming together in a healthy environment, forgetting about antisocial activities such as violence and crime.
Continue reading "Catholic bishops pronounce on sport (& Sunday mornings)" »
PHIL FITZPATRICK
WHEN I was transferred to the Western District in 1969 I assumed that my previous misdemeanors had simply caught up with me and I accepted my fate with no real misgivings.
Apart from the opportunity to get to some very out of the way places, there was another potential benefit to my banishment not readily available in my previous posting in the Western Highlands. That was the opportunity to patrol in boats.
I had spent many enjoyable days on the River Murray in South Australia as a boy pottering around in old clinker built boats around Swan Reach and Blanchetown.
These were the days before the carp invaded and muddied the water. In those days there were many native fish to catch, including giant cod.
Continue reading "The allure of those trusty old Papuan work boats" »
KEITH JACKSON
IN Sydney today, a Lowy Institute roundtable in Sydney is bringing together 26 Papua New Guineans and Australians to brainstorm the future of the PNG-Australia relationship.
The headline of the workshop is Papua New Guinea in 2015 – At a crossroads and beyond and two themes have been established to guide discussion: Challenges for the next generation and Fostering better relations in changing times.
I asked PNG Attitude readers for their thoughts on the broad topic and although at that stage I hadn't received detailed discussion points, readers were savvy enough to pitch comments at the target. (Contributors names are listed at the end of this article.)
I’ve organised this summary piece by distilling the essence of what readers said to incorporate the most thoughtful and insightful comments that seem to loom large in the PNG-Australia relationship over the next decade or so.
Continue reading "Envisaging the future of the Australia-PNG relationship" »
BISHOP ARNOLD OROWAE | Catholic Bishops Conference
IN 1991 the Papua New Guinea Parliament reintroduced the death penalty. Direct killing by the State became an authorized way to punish a criminal.
In 2013 the Criminal Code was changed to set out the acceptable ways to do it: to hang, suffocate, electrocute, shoot or poison someone with a deadly injection. The government argued that this is the best way to protect society from the repetition of terrible crimes.
When Malipu Balakau, a politician, was murdered in 1989 and when Kepari Leniata was burned to death in 2013, people reacted by saying that the killer deserved to be killed.
It is in response to this political legislation and this popular reaction that we, the bishops of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands, are addressing this letter in defence of life to the leaders of our nations but also to all those who want to do what God wants of us and to promote a genuine peace and order in our communities.
Continue reading "Evil of capital punishment: Bishops pronounce on death penalty" »
ARNOLD MUNDUA
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Government Award for Short Stories
A bulldozer constructing a logging road through Andru Johanna Forest near Kandrian exposed a rich deposit of rock. The heavy greyish-yellow rock glittered in the direct sunlight.
Immediately in the minds of everyone who saw it flashed the word ‘gold’.
Soon the discovery was trumpeted to every ear across Arawe territory and, within days, a gold rush was on and every able-bodied person from all walks of life rushed to the site located 50km into the interior of Melenglo Island, close to the base of the Whitman Range.
Continue reading "The true tale of the yellow rocks of Andru Johanna" »
ALLYN HICKS | Sydney Morning Herald
IN 1949 the Department of Territories, Canberra, posted a recruitment notice headlined "Papua New Guinea: careers with a challenge."
The advertisement called for "young men possessing initiative, imagination and courage, positions in PNG, one being that of Cadet Patrol Officer (CPO)."
To qualify, an applicant had to be male, between 18 and 24 years old, single and a British subject. The advertisement promised the CPOs "adventure, autonomy and an opportunity to make a difference".
Continue reading "Kiap, MP, planter & private eye, John Stuntz, dies at 87" »
MARTINEZ WASUAK
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Government Award for Short Stories
THE horizon gave out a blazing light which hit the window with force waking up the two lasses.
As they stretched their arms after a long sleep, the Digicel phone shrieked from underneath the desk taking away the last vestiges of their slumber.
“A new number calling,” Paddy screamed. Without looking, Daisy jumped to the floor and grabbed the phone with a stunning smile.
“Yes, and you are?” said Daisy.
“Hams Weramba from the University of Papua New Guinea. I got your number from someone and would like to be your phone friend.”
Continue reading "Just a few words to ruin a loving relationship" »
MARLENE DEE GRAY POTOURA
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Government Award for Short Stories
WORLD War II came to the Pacific Islands when Moini was working as a policeboy in the highlands of Papua New Guinea,
Moini was physically able, a tall and muscular man, and the Australian Army recruited him along with many other fit Papua New Guineans. They were given shotguns and sent out on patrol with the Australian soldiers in the rugged terrain of the highlands.
One morning, Moini’s platoon came under Japanese fire as it crossed a one log bridge over a fast flowing river.
Continue reading "The black angel" »
RAY JOHNSTON
The Rich Girl, The Poor Girl, The Coastwatcher And Me: Anecdotes And Reminiscences From The Collected Papers Of Justin Bornmann by Ray Johnston, Available from Smashwords, $US4.99, Published April 2015. ISBN: 9781310434945
MY new book has just been released. It’s about the Coastwatchers of World War II PNG and the tribesmen who fought beside them armed with nothing more than shotguns and spears.
The story of secret operations behind the lines in Japanese-occupied New Britain will resonate with people connected with Papua New Guinea.
Some of you may recall my earlier book about the fall of Rabaul in 1942 which was, as with this new book, drawn from the experiences of real people and based on history.
But be prepared for more than a rollicking ride down memory lane, because here contemporary stories about the international black market in timber and children orphaned by war and disease are interwoven with events inspired by true stories from the war.
Continue reading "On the trail of a man known as The Coastwatcher" »
JIMMY AWAGL
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
I want to share my heart with you
At our last time to see each other
We will not again hug each other
We will not again smile at each other
We will only our missing each other
Since time will determine our love
Distance will separate us like a wall
Influences will sway us like a wind
Commitments will evade us like a wave
Desire of knowledge will chase us like a dog
Continue reading "A lover’s final words" »
KEITH JACKSON | Private Diaries
WE arise before dawn and we see the dark shape of land - the Aegean Sea is funnelling into the Dardanelles, just a narrow strait but with a name that triggers an emotional response in most Australians.
In the half-light we can see silhouetted on the rocky clifftop that marks the strait’s entrance four soaring columns of a massive monument and an oversized Turkish flag.
At about this time on 25 April 1915, 60,000 Australians and 18,000 New Zealanders traversed these waters to be landed on Gallipoli’s precipitous and lethal shore.
Continue reading "Dawn passage through the Dardanelles on MV Nautica" »
PAUL KEATING

Extract from Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of Paul Keating PM, by Don Watson, published by Random House....
Keating strode gracefully to the microphone [at Bomana War Cemetery] and began: "This is ground made sacred by the bravery and sacrifice of those who lie buried here." It did have a ring to it.
Later that morning he delivered the big Anzac Day address outdoors in Moresby. It was mildly inflammatory. The Anzac legend binds Australians and "defines us to ourselves", he said. But legends "should not stifle us. They should not constrain us when we have to change". Anzac did not "confer on us a duty to see that the world stands still". John Curtin understood this when, after Singapore fell, he turned to the US. "We know that Australia can go and Britain still hold on. We are therefore determined that Australia shall not go," he said.
For Keating, the young men who fought and died in New Guinea and other parts of Asia and the Pacific fought for "the future they believed their country held". That night all the journalists I spoke to except a very drunk one said what a good speech it was. The drunk one said it was "shit".
Continue reading "1992 Anzac Day speech by Paul Keating at Ela Beach" »
MICHAEL DOM
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
I do not know what made them go,
Those brave young blokes so long ago,
Those faithful sons you sent to war.
Was it glory, mateship, honour;
For freedom, from violent foe?
And when they fell, so far from home,
Did their souls rest whence they had roamed?
Does God forgive you their horror?
I do not know.
Continue reading "I do not know" »
PETER COMMERFORD
IT was my first time in Papua New Guinea, or ‘The Territory’ as it was known before independence.
It had been a roller coaster couple of weeks for me, beginning with the first blast of hot air as the cabin door opened after we landed at Jackson’s Airport, Port Moresby.
This was followed by the exhilaration of realising I had actually arrived to teach in Papua New Guinea.
Living at Wards Strip Teachers’ College for the next four weeks for ‘Prac’ [practice teaching] was an incredible experience.
Continue reading "Anzac Day at Bomana War Cemetery, Port Moresby, 1970" »
CAROLINE EVARI
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
Dedicated to all who fought for their country
and to those who lost loved ones in war
Soldiers on guard on both sides
With weary hands on rifles
They watch their enemies
Bullets in exchange
Bombs sweep over
Flames and smoke rise in splendour
Swords and shields
Come clashing
Arrows of bitterness fly high
Continue reading "The battlefield" »
KIRSTIE CLOSE-BARRY & VICTORIA STEAD
| Australian Policy & History
DURING this one-hundredth anniversary of the ANZAC landings at Gallipoli, narratives of war and nationhood are in high circulation in Australia.
Despite its location on the other side of the world, many consider Gallipoli the ‘birthplace of the nation’. It was here, many believe, and various governments have told us, that Australians first spilt their blood for the benefit of the nation: Gallipoli was our baptism of fire.
Others, though, have sought to draw our attention to battles fought later in the twentieth century and on terrain closer to home. These should indeed figure in our national narratives, although not only for the reasons that are often given.
Continue reading "Higaturu hangings complicate Australia’s national narrative" »
HON PETER O'NEILL CMG MP | Prime Minister of PNG
THIS week there are thousands of men, women and children from Australia and New Zealand visiting Papua New Guinea as part of the Anzac Day commemorations.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of when the Australian and New Zealand soldiers went ashore on the beaches of Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I.
In Papua New Guinea we reflect upon the significance of Anzac Day, and join with our brothers and sisters to pay homage to those who served to protect our land in World War II.
Continue reading "We remember those who died defending our land" »
JOHN KAUPA KAMASUA
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
EVERYONE has a story, and stories tend to be connected through an intricate web of linkages. Our world is a stage full of stories.
But some stories are never told; they remain in the background or are lost down the passage of time. I sometimes wonder that, if there are no stories, there will be no histories, no legacies and maybe no future.
Some stories demand to be told. Amos Nepehi’s is one of them.
Amos caught my eyes some years back when I started teaching at the University of Papua New Guinea.
Continue reading "A story demanding to be told: Meet Amos Nepehi" »
BUSA JEREMIAH WENOGO
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
INFORMAL economy is defined as that part of an economy that is not taxed, monitored by government or included in gross national product (GNP).
Informal activities occur outside the bureaucracy and may transgress its rules. They may avoid certain obligations but also forgo some of the benefits of conformity with the requirements of bureaucracy.
The informal economy plays a critical role in income and employment generation and mitigating poverty in developing economies. Without the informal economy, it is likely that socio-economic pressures will drive many people to destitution.
Despite the contribution of informal and subsistence agriculture to the PNG economy by way of providing employment and income to almost 85% of the population, especially women, very little has been done to promote it.
Continue reading "Giving a voice to the informal economy is vital to PNG" »
AUSTRALIAN HIGH COMMISSION IN PNG
AUSTRALIANS and Papua New Guineans will gather at services and ceremonies around PNG to commemorate Anzac Day tomorrow.
The Returned and Services League of Australia (Port Moresby Sub Branch) will hold a dawn service at Bomana War Cemetery in Port Moresby starting at 4.30am and says everyone is welcome to join in the ceremony.
Services will also be held in Alotau, Madang, Kokopo, Rabaul, Isurava, Lae, Kimbe, Wewak, Popondetta, Kavieng, Tabubil, Bulolo and Manus.
Continue reading "Australians and Papua New Guineans to mark Anzac centenary" »
MONALISA KAS
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
Was it just a fight? Or something more
You hurt my heart, and I hurt yours.
Is this fairness, or is it not?
Because you walked out
And I heard no more
Days led to weeks, and now to months
Agonising dead silence
And developing distance,
Digging a wide deep trench
So far it has stretched.
This feels so wretched!
Continue reading "We move on" »
ROWAN CALLICK | The Australian
RIO Tinto’s review of its controlling stake in Bougainville Copper, now in its ninth month, is considering the options not only of a trade sale but also of giving its shares away, possibly to a charitable trust.
A year ago the mining giant gave away its 19.1% shareholding in Northern Dynasty, owner of the Pebble copper-gold project in Alaska, to two Alaskan charitable foundations.
Rio owns 53.38% of the Papua New Guinea mine, closed by conflict in 1989, that still contains copper and gold worth more than $50 billion, as well as possessing a recently reconfirmed exploration licence.
Continue reading "Rio Tinto’s window opens for Bougainville Copper exit" »
GEORGE KUIAS
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
BROTHER John Curry was serious, tough and would scold at boys when angry. He was one of the two expatriate Marist brothers that taught us at St Xavier’s provincial high school on Kairiru Island in East Sepik Province.
Br John (pictured with me at right) was also a humble man who strictly apportioned the hours given to him; one would not see him wasting time on unnecessary things. He taught us religious education while the other expatriate, Br Paul Johnson, an engineer by profession, taught practical skills.
Continue reading "Br John & Br Paul - memories of my schooling come back to life" »
JIMMY AWAGL
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Government Award for Short Stories
IN the morning the sun’s rays descended the cliff wall of the Gerel range into the gorges of Giai Nigle village.
The birds and cicadas whistling their morning choir to mark a new day in the life.
Munomo awoke up in her old cane bed, rubbed her eyes and peeped across to the other side of the mattress and saw handsome Kerenga sleeping without a blanket and stretching his legs towards the fireplace.
Continue reading "How Kerenga came to give Munomo to his big brother" »
BOMAI D WITNE
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
His quest for evolution of humanity society and ethics - Socrates
His disciple loved him for who he was and what he learned - Plato
Socrates and Plato influenced him - Aristotle
Together they laid a foundation for modern ideals
His quest to be radical, to serve humanity to the cross - Jesus
Her quest to be his disciple among the poor - Mother Theresa
His quest to have, lived and share peace - Mahatma Gandhi
His quest for the freedom, he landed in prison - Mandela
Together they laid a foundation for freedom’s ideals
Continue reading "Past, present and future" »
ISO YAWI
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Government Award for Short Stories
I have seen many Papua New Guinean women harassed by Asian shop owners. Most victims never report this for fear they will lose their employment or that the community will look down on them. This is a story derived from my observations….
BELINDA, a 35-year old widow from Siassi in Morobe, lived in Kamkumung settlement in Lae with her three sons: Tim, the first born, in Grade 9 at Busu Secondary School and Vince and Damen both in Grade 5 at Omili Primary School.
Belinda was employed at an Asian-owned shop in Top town. She went to work faithfully each day and did everything her Asian boss asked her to do. She worked hard and, as the only bread winner in the family, supported her family, her husband having died three years before.
Continue reading "Harassment" »
MONALISA KAS
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
For instance!
She has heard, and she now fears.
What will it be? When tomorrow nears.
She can't do anything, except be in tears.
Truly! Thin, frail and old with all her years.
Does she pose these dangers?
Look at her! Stupid, dumb villagers.
Did you think she can cause all this damage?
She can hardly walk, a wooden stick as her crutch.
Please, please fellow women, don't be each other's nemesis
Stand up for what is right, for goodness sake!
Stop this old time madness.
Continue reading "Stop sorcery killings" »
JIMMY AWAGL
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
FAR from scaling new heights, the culture of reading – especially among students at learning institutions in Papua New Guinea - is declining. Why is that so?
In traditional Melanesian society, of course, we’d never heard of books. All we knew was our oral history, passed on from one generation to another – which is still the case today.
Only through the introduction of modern education did we come to know about books and their importance in learning and in transmitting culture.
And we responded to books with enthusiasm – but nowadays, at primary and secondary level, this newly-acquired reading culture is dying out.
There are four reasons. Firstly, teachers are not doing enough to promote reading and talking about books and other literature. Most teachers are text book or resource book-oriented, literature is another country, and they impart this attitude to their students.
Continue reading "Reading culture is declining in PNG educational institutions" »
BEN JACKSON | Bougainville 24
AS a revived Arawa Bulletin continues to deliver news to the people of Bougainville, an archived issue of a previous magazine from 1973 reveals that the issues haven’t changed much over 40 years.
Issue No 29 of the Arawa Bulletin, published on 2 March 1973, features a news item from John Momis, back then the Bougainville Regional Member of the House of Assembly, the pre-independence legislature under the Australian administration of Papua New Guinea of that era.
“The people of Bougainville must define their goals and how to achieve them before deciding on their political future,” Momis told the Arawa Bulletin.
“Three of the Bougainville MHA’s (Lapun, Bele and Momis) have never said we do not want a referendum (on secession). I believe it is the right of the people to decide their own future.
Continue reading "Old Arawa Bulletin shows big issues don't change much" »
FR JOHN M GLYNN | WeCare News
I would not care to guess how many young people like these are on the streets and in the settlements and market places around our city.
I am currently supporting nine young people through school. One boy is the sole support of his father who was blinded by a shotgun blast in a shoot-out with police some years ago. He raises chickens for sale while attending a technical education school.
There are also girls in Grade 8, Grade 9, Grade 11 and Grade 12 at high school. Only two of them live with their mothers. The others are without any supportive family.
I have been paying for hostel accommodation for three of them while the others fend for themselves, living with the families of school friends and moving every now and then to another family.
Continue reading "Kids on the street bear the scars of dysfunctional families" »
KEITH JACKSON
NEXT Tuesday, in Sydney, the Lowy Institute is convening a roundtable for what it terms “a select group of experts and professionals, who have deep interests in the future of Papua New Guinea, to harness their knowledge and develop a fresh perspective on PNG’s future”.
Along with a bunch of Papua New Guineans and other Australians, I’ve been invited to participate in this event – entitled PNG in 2015: At a crossroads and beyond - which will “canvass innovative ideas to guide Australia’s engagement with PNG”.
The Lowy Institute will use outcomes from the discussion to “contribute to the conversation around PNG’s future and improving people-to-people relations between Australia and Papua New Guinea.”
Continue reading "In which I ask readers to contribute to a roundtable...." »
JOHNNY BLADES | Radio New Zealand International
THE mood for more autonomy is growing among Papua New Guinea's provinces.
While the call for more devolution of powers from central government to the provinces is not new, PNG's continued development struggles mean more provinces are talking about autonomy.
And, throwing a cat among the pigeons, PNG's opposition leader Don Polye has now proposed the idea that PNG's four main regions could be given autonomy.
The growing skyline of the capital Port Moresby reflects PNG's unprecedented economic growth of the past decade. It's been forged mainly through a boom in the mining, oil and gas sectors.
Continue reading "The mood for provincial autonomy grows in PNG" »
BETTY BANNA
THE Department of Education in Papua New Guinea is interested in receiving children’s stories from PNG writers.
The Department of Education publishes collections of writing – called School Journals – that are suitable for children from Grade 3 to Grade 8.
Written and illustrated by PNG nationals, the School Journals are distributed free to primary schools throughout PNG.
The Department of Education is looking for a variety of different types of texts to include in the School Journals.
The texts can be stories, legends, non-fiction articles, personal experiences, poems, plays, photo stories and instructional articles.
Continue reading "Education Department looks for talented children’s story writers" »
JOHNSON MAKAEN
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Government Award for Short Stories
SAMAR woke up startled. She thought she was dreaming but she wasn’t. Before she could figure out what was going on, all hell broke loose.
The rustic door to her tattered bush-hut gave way to an earth-shattering blow as if hit by a ferocious whirlwind.
Samar’s blissful slumber had suddenly turned into a living nightmare. Now seated bolt upright, her mind was fully awake and in overdrive, fuelled by adrenalin.
She could sense something horrific unfolding before her eyes. It wasn’t a dream. It was real and her heart was gripped with terror.
Continue reading "Sanguma" »
JIMMY AWAGL
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Paga Hill Development Company
Award for Writing for Children
ONE sunny Friday morning, Sussie, just seven years old, was tasked to look after a pig.
She was told to look after the heavily pregnant mother pig while her elder brother and sisters went to school.
Sussie took her small grass knife, a spade, some firewood and a small bilum (string bag) filled with kaukau (sweet potatoes) which she would cook while looking after the pig. She went all the way to where her pig was tied and began to dig a pit for the mumu (stone oven).
Instead of looking after the pig, she was carried away with the desire of making a mumu and prepared the stones to cook the kaukau.
She was so engrossed she did not notice that, not so far away, the pig gave birth to six fat piglets.
Continue reading "The day our beloved dogs ate the pork meat" »
LEONARD FONG ROKA
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
BOUGAINVILLE’s move to its own time zone late last year, an hour ahead of Papua New Guinea, has provided an unexpected boon for some provincial public servants.
A security guard of an Autonomous Bougainville Government office facility in Buka Town has complained that public servants are abusing their responsibilities before his eyes.
“I’m always the first in this office,” he told me as the clock reached 10 am in an empty office. “All these work stations remain empty most of the time.
Continue reading "Bougainville public servants take advantage of new time zone" »
BUSA JEREMIAH WENOGO
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
PNG Chamber of Mines & Petroleum
Award for Essays & Journalism
FOR anyone following the development of Gordons Market over the years, it may seem as if the problems arising in and around it are never ending.
Gordons Market was at one time the best managed and well-kept in Papua New Guinea. The city council was able to enforce laws and regulations effectively, unlike today when rampant lawlessness has significantly tarnished its reputation.
Growing up in Port Moresby, I have many fond memories of the once glorious market.
Continue reading "Tackling the urbanisation problem is central to a livable city" »
JOHN KAUPA KAMASUA
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Paga Hill Development Company
Award for Writing for Children
KANAGE, originally from Kubalea in East Sepik Province, went to Maprik town to visit family members on his mother’s side.
He had heard stories of how crocodiles would swallow whole chickens and goats, even pigs. Kanage was curious and, after he bribed them with cigarettes and betel nut, he managed to convince his friends to take him to a crocodile farm.
It was a Friday and many people were there to see the crocodiles. There were so many it was difficult to count them. They continuously moved among themselves, some diving under water and emerging in different parts of the big pool.
Continue reading "A brush with death & trickery at the crocodile pool" »
JIMMY AWAGL
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
Some days ago we met for the first
Our thoughts entangled in common thirst
We admired one other like a glowing bower
We loved each other like a blooming flower
Our hearts to each other we gave
Our emotions sparkled as a radio wave
Continue reading "Love comes within time" »
PETER KRANZ
BIBLIOMANIA can be a symptom of obsessive–compulsive disorder which involves the collecting or even hoarding of books to the point where social relations or health are damaged.
Bibliomania is not to be confused with bibliophilia, which is a love of books and not considered a psychological disorder.
Other abnormal behaviour involving books include book-eating (bibliophagy), compulsive book-stealing (bibliokleptomania) and book-burying (bibliotaphy).
And now we learn that the Speaker of the Parliament of Papua New Guinea, Theo Zurenuoc, is to receive a 400-year old bible which is being donated to PNG.
Continue reading "Top delegation to US to get bible that ain’t as advertised" »
PAUL WAUGLA WII
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
After a long journey
Thru the hill country of Holk
An old country folk
Came to rest upon a rock
In the twilight hour
The laughter of merry youngsters
In the village square below
Reverberated through the hill country
In the night air.
Continue reading "The sweet fragrance of youth" »
CAROLINE EVARI
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Award for Tourism, Arts & Culture
I used to feel annoyed whenever my grandfather, Dogura, took out his kundu and started chanting his old songs.
The beat of the ancient kundu was just noise to my ears. I could not understand why he loved it so much.
He would tell the little children in the neighborhood to round up the oldies to chat with him over a plastic of betel nut and five minutes later they would all be chorusing one of their favourite tunes while Dogura majestically beat his kundu.
Not every old man in the neighbourhood had a kundu. Dogura treasured his more than he did his grandchildren.
Continue reading "Dogura & his kundu – a connection with a receding past" »
JERRY TELUASA MORUS
An entry in the Crocodile Prize
Kina Securities Award for Poetry
I had a dream
Me, my family, we lived on
I lived long to see them grow, married and bear
Then I heard you calling
I raised my hands to take it in
You told me, son, a ninambial must come true
Aniokaka will birth soon
Lihir nitel a city
A peketon is here now
The waves of change are upon us
They will depart for distant lands soon
Continue reading "Dying for a cause (The Lihir Destiny)" »
ROSS PEAKE | Canberra Times | Extracts
WORKING in Papua New Guinea was a life-changing experience for Robyn Hendry.
But it wasn't the much-publicised danger of urban Port Moresby that transformed her – it was a much more positive factor, one that she brings to her new role as Canberra Business Chamber chief executive.
"I went to Papua New Guinea because my husband got a job he wanted to take there and we had an agreement that if I could get posted there with my company, we'd go," she says.
Continue reading "PNG was a life-changing experience for Robyn Hendry" »