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A trial separation : Australia and the decolonisation of Papua New Guinea

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Iknew little of Papua New Guinea when my family and I arrived in 1972 from Idi
Amin’s Uganda. One colleague at Makerere University had told us about cargo cults1
and another had shown us Gardens of War,2 the photo-essay on the Dugum Dani in Irian
Jaya. These books portray cultural complexity and physical vigour, but no ‘modern’
politics or economics, so we were ill-prepared for the realities of Melanesian societies,
Australian rule and the interactions between them.

Formal political life focused on Port Moresby, a dusty town of 100,000 people in
a shadow that shielded it from the rains that drenched the rest of the country. It was
obviously the administrative centre, whose distinct segments illustrated social and political
relations in the dependent Territory. Along the Coral Sea coast and around Fairfax
Harbour lived the first-comers, Motu-speaking villagers, whose stilted houses and
walkways jutted over the water. They were the first to weigh the costs and benefits of interacting
with Europeans. British and Polynesian evangelists brought unfamiliar infections,
and later new therapies. Destroyed during the Pacific War, the villages had been rebuilt.
They were the first villages to be formed into local government councils and cooperatives;
and their young men and women worked in the first clerical and para-professional jobs
opened to Melanesians. Looking down on these villages were the homes of missionaries
and the hot little offices of public servants in Konedobu, the centre of administration.
The Owen Stanley Range largely isolated Port Moresby from the rest of island New
Guinea, whereas Fairfax Harbour allowed easy access for Australian shipping. Inland
from Konedobu and Korobosea Village was Boroko, a shopping centre and suburb for
middle-ranking public servants. Their houses were raised above the ground and were
cooled by ceiling fans and louvred windows. Boroko expanded as Port Moresby’s population
grew in step with the other Australian capital, Canberra. Inland from Boroko,
in June Valley and Waigani, new buildings foreshadowed an independent country:
the Administrative College, the university and offices for bureaucrats moving from
Konedobu. Around them clustered the houses of their staff and the squatter settlements
of migrants from the countryside, labourers, servants and their families.

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Ketersediaan

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Informasi Detail

Judul Seri

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No. Panggil

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Penerbit

Canberra : ANU E Press., 2012

Deskripsi Fisik

xiii, 228 Hlm.

Bahasa

English

ISBN/ISSN

9781921862922

Klasifikasi

NONE

Tipe Isi

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Tipe Media

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Tipe Pembawa

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Edisi

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Subjek

ILMU PEMERINTAHAN
DEKOLONISASI

Info Detail Spesifik

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Pernyataan Tanggungjawab

agus

Versi lain/terkait

Lampiran Berkas

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