Analysis on the poem ‘Peaceful Village’ by Francis Nii

By Leonard Fong Roka

Introduction

The discourse explores the personality of the author as shown by the poem.  Firstly, the underlying reason as to why the idea of ‘Peaceful Village’ came about, will be explored. Then, we shall look at the real meaning that is being portrayed in the poem followed by cross-cultural interpretation and what; the general place in the society, Peaceful Village seems to stand on.

In most cases, a literature piece repeatedly intrigues the human mind as it is explored while reading it. So, this essay shall explore the impact, one can  perceive or look forward to in a frame of mind displayed by the author that is  in store for  future readers, as well as the present readership.

As a critic, one cannot deny, the fact that any piece of creative art has tremendous impact on each one of us. The sole reason of being a critic is because we feel the literary sting a poem, story; drama and so on is having upon us as individuals. That is why; we will look at the personal comprehension of the Peaceful Village.

(Peaceful Village is displayed on the pages for you)

The poem, Peaceful Village

Peaceful Village

By Francis Nii

Kunai hut, remember-me-ever

Wooden bed, forget-me-not

Roasted kaukau is always sweet.

Flowers keep smiling

Birds sing unchanged jungle melodies

While country kids dance free for joy

Waterfalls like silver crystals

Early rainbow kiss the dewy treetops

Kids hide and seek,

And mum and dad have endless honey moon.

No gang of boars, intrude.

Stay gentle village,

Peaceful promise land.

The author and the reasons for Peaceful Village

The first two lines of stanza one, and the last two lines of stanza two depicts that the narrator is a drifter of time; lost in a world that is in conflict with a standard Melanesian village life.

His adopted lifestyle, career or dreams have just failed him so he takes a retrospective wade through a pool of imagination, moaning his lost roots that he has impediments all around him to reach and turn on a new leaf. The crisis is well dramatized in the book, Dreadlocks in Oceania by John O’Carroll, in his essay ‘Exiles in the Park’. His words, reads: ‘Especially the end: one day he would take us back to the old kingdom and we will be united with our people. He refused to believe that already this was another incarnation. Things had become permanently unsettled (1997: 65). So, the point is that humanity to Peaceful Village was in a tangle.

Peaceful Village stands out as a poem of expressing these grievances to those still not affected by the new lifestyle—obviously, city life or broadly, cultural clashes—that is now inflicting negative impacts on the life of the narrator.

He tries to create a new world in his misery, as Chinua Achebe puts it: ‘…art [poem] is an effort to create a different order of reality…or second handle on existence’ (1988: 95-96). He creates this world as a raft to keep afloat in an ocean of injustice.

Intrinsic Meaning

Here, when exploring the symbols employed, this poem has double-sided impact—romance and the beauty of the rural life. Francis Nii doubles the two approaches to celebrate the problem. Using romance as part of the narrative is a powerful weaponry to attracting our readers to our cause.

His major character—first person singular, the ‘I’—is in a current that is sweeping him away against his will. He moans not to be neglected by the beautiful roots—the village life and so on; his heart sings praise in a biographical setting to the tranquillity and freedom that is also, being susceptible to negative changes if, the society is not conscious of its values that actually moulded us as Melanesians. Both worlds—the village and the narrator’s— are fighting for a pure atmosphere of existence—that is, the past.

There is, also another angle of approach to this poem and that is, from the past experience, we reconstruct our present lives then, predict the future for a better contemporary co-existence. Re-wording the words of the Bahama-born international motivational speaker, Dr Myles Munroe into the situation of Peaceful Village, this can be noted. To the Nigerians, he stated, ‘if you want to want a new Nigeria, you have got to go back to the old ideas. In the old ideas lies the redemption of Nigeria’¹. The idea is, in the past there is restorative change to one’s life.

The truth is that, we are a lost people fighting to save our culture that is also, under threat.

Cross-cultural nature

Peaceful Village outlines a situation that is experienced in many cultures of the Third World. People seek high standards of living through education, employment and never return home, but are consumed by the unpredictable spells of westernization.

For example, once a person gets employed, he lives his village and pursues his career with utmost good faith and there is not much time for interacting with his culture and traditions. Gone with the wind, he is.

In the Pacific, every literature piece is readily acceptable because of our experiences in the colonial era, and people, today seem to be standing at the cross-roads and Chinua Achebe stated this clearly, ‘We lived at the cross-roads of culture. We still do it today; but when I was a boy, one could see and sense the peculiar quality and atmosphere of it more clearly’ (1988: 22-23). So, Peaceful Village has that flavour of calling to revive our degrading past; and of bringing back the spiritual realities of the pre-modernization country culture.

This is a shared problem throughout the Third World, especially, thus Peaceful Village has a place across cultures and peoples.

Impact

In our society, ‘modernisation’ is a change that no one person or state, can avoid; but, we have to cling onto our traditions that kept our kind of civilisation intact long before the arrival of Europeans. Loosing grip of our past is the problem depicted in Peaceful Village.

People are today, hotly pursuing higher education and culture that as created our present contemporary society. And in Peaceful Village, a critical reader shall identify the voice that is calling, that ‘All problems in the world are connected, however disparate they appear on the surface. There are no unrelated or unique problems. We isolate them from each other only because it is easier to deal with them separately (Dreadlocks in Oceania 1997: 162).

But, still Peaceful Village stands out to the intellectuals’ world simply in a voice of moaning irredentism, saying: ‘Without the past, you are nothing’.

Use of romantic symbols, attracts more young readers for amusement towards Peaceful Village that can breed reawakening.

Me and the Peaceful Village

The narrator in the poem is a lost person longing to be in the gone-world but just could not make it as he is trapped; not so free to decide his destiny, that is, to him deserting his present status shall have other negative consequences.

This is the situation in Papua New Guinea today. People have left looking for betterment in towns and ended up in the squatters. They cannot, for some, make it back since they had already become “no bodies” of their former society. For the employed, he cannot resign from his job in love of the village life, because, the culture he as adapted into will have far reaching impacts, example, job lost can affect his family income.

Society in itself, today, has turned into a hive of self-pitying shell. At the end of the tunnel there is light; but how, can one let go the beauty of one culture at the expense of the other? This is a failure!

Jeffery Febi, in his poem, Wings of Hope celebrated the good of airlines, but taking his words for our cause, it still sounds the trumpet. We are consumed today into a journey of no return (as stated), so we, from down there turn to celebrate the lost past as depicted:

O how they grace the skies,

And hope they bring to the many

A forgotten soul who, under

Cloud cover and thick jungles

Speak of dreams of hope.²

How our eroded past was high in beauty; and brought hope to forefathers, as we just feign that tranquillity from our rumble. Deep underground we seem to be, and looking up a long tunnel and admire the azure heavens that is, our past.

Summary

In the final analysis, this poem is bemoaning a lost chapter in life and call for the care of the value of traditional culture. It celebrates the common problems of all societies. With a little taste of romance, readership is apt to be bothered by its wishes and we cannot avoid that because of the problems depicted, they are considered worst in PNG.

Reference

·         ACHEBE, C., (1988), Hopes and Impediments, Heinemann International, Great Britain.

·         1-http://thenationonlineng.net/

·         2-http://jefebi-whispers.blogspot.com

·         Mishra, S. and Guy, E. (Eds). 1997. Dreadlocks in Oceania, Department of Literature and Language, University of South pacific, Suva, Fiji.

Our Bougainville Story Song

By Leonard Fong Roka

Facing north she curls her wade;

An elver in the serene Pacific

With a troop of family fading south

She labours in agony of leading

What is tomorrow?

She was cute

Elegant,

Innocent,

Supple,

Angel so violet, in the tranquillity of our sea

Our sea…the water of love

What is tomorrow?

Songs she sang

The voice she had

The breast she is bestowed with

Scent she travelled with

Captivated

Seduced and soothes

The rapacious and the hedonistic

In the west and the Redskin country

What is tomorrow?

To the rascal:

They is love

They is bushman

Bush woman

Uncivilized; empty

Heads waiting to be filled

Insane, and to be streamlined

Into perfection

This is tomorrow!

To Bougainville,

Education he brought

Money he poured

Curiosity and ecstasy he farmed

Emptiness he nurtured!

This is tomorrow!

Cocoa he pumped

Copra he injected

Barrenness still, he saw

So, mining he started!

This is tomorrow!

Panguna,

Our land they dug

Copper and gold they turn into money in London,

Canberra and Port Moresby…

Arawa they built

To house aliens so strange to our Solomon

Panguna they planned

To bucket Whiteman and Redskins

Oh Bougainville,

This is tomorrow!

Rich she was in the paper

But, roads got tar

Torokina saw no car

Rivers changed bridges day-in-day-out

Kongara was glued to dear mother tongue

A landowner was a scary mongrel in Arawa

Towns were owned by aliens

This is tomorrow!

This is tomorrow

Our land is theirs

Our towns are theirs

We fall in love with our economy and nation

In the media of high praises

Yet we dwell in the make-shift shelters

And slums

With hard earned K50 note

Collecting litter

In the streets

They tell us that is ours!

This is tomorrow!

This is tomorrow!

Rescue my Bougainville people

Liberate our Solomon island of Bougainville

To where it belongs;

Where our apical mothers left us, there is freedom

There is calm

Because the sea is Bougainville

The land is Bougainville

And the family, is Solomon

Oh Bougainville,

This was tomorrow

This is tomorrow

This will be tomorrow,

Free Bougainville!

BOUGAINVILLEANS NEED TO VOTE TALKING MPS

By Aloysius Laukai

A senior Bougainvillean Lawyer, JOEL MINISIPI NAVA says that Bougainvilleans need to vote talking leaders this round.
He says that with the coming national elections to be held in June this year, our people in Bougainville will again be allowed their democratic rights to choose leaders who will lead Bougainville in the future.

We Bougainvilleans need to understand that the coming national election is a very special one for us in Bougainville because we will be voting for 4 National MPs (Bougainville Regional, North ,Central, and South Bougainville) who will exert some influence at the National political level. These 4 MPs that we will vote for in the 2012 elections will play a major part for the Bougainville Referendum, weapons disposal, implementation of transfer of powers to Bougainville and Bougainville’s political future.

Therefore we need to vote for leaders who, apart from being knowledgeable in the above political issues, are also talkers particularly during National Parliament sessions.

Since 2005 up till now when Bougainville gained autonomy from PNG, the only Bougainville leaders who talked openly on Bougainville issues during national parliament sessions include the current President, Mr. John Momis and the current Governor General Sir. Michael Ogio.

National Leaders that we had thereafter, seemed to have been very silent in all Parliaments sessions though we had more on Bougainville issues and concerns to convey to PNG Government.

Although one or two of our current leaders may be seen as service deliverers, within their own electorates, that is not enough. Great Leaders are talkers and it is only through talking that they achieve something for their own people.

When a leader does not talk particularly when he is sitting among other leaders , other leaders may think that the people he represents are always satisfied and do not need anything. Also the general public will think that the leader is too shallow and does not understand the issues being discussed. Also people who do not talk are generally viewed as having low self-esteem and lack confidence in themselves.

There are National leaders in Bougainville who cannot even campaign for themselves because they cannot talk in front of the public. These leaders openly give public monies to people and institutions especially when election times are near. These are the leaders we need to avoid in Bougainville.

We, in Bougainville have so many issues (relating to Bougainville) to talk about during national Parliament sessions and if our leaders cannot talk openly, we will not achieve much on the issues of implementation of transfer of powers, referendum, weapons disposal.

The future of Bougainville is in our hands. We need to get good, talking leaders to Parliament. Let’s choose leaders who can talk.

Sourced from: http://bougainville.typepad.com/newdawn/page/2/

Micro-Analysis: Chinese Investment in Bougainville’s Bonus Peninsula

By Leonard Fong Roka

‘Never openly accept a kind gesture from a neighbour; scepticism is one’s stream of betterment for the long term benefit oriented or strategized visions and goals’

China is the only existing ancient civilisation in the world. It has the world’s largest population and the rapidly growing economy. All its political, economical and social influences are today fast shaping and streamlining the global systems and thoughts; regions and states and power networks in geopolitics.

Due to its locality in the Pacific, Oceania has being experiencing its impacts and Bougainville is no exception, China’s rise, is an attraction.

This paper, intends to look into the much debated Chinese investment on Bougainville from a micro-analytical level. Highlights shall come from Bougainville’s historical economic successes and the impacts of the Bougainville crisis. It also, should consider the great untapped economic potentials of the island and political changes that, I know attracts investors, in the long run.

Furthermore, it should provide the general view of Chinese investment trends in the world and the region. There are also, risks and benefits that ought to be discussed where Bougainville is concerned. 

Bougainville is the largest and the resource rich island of the Solomon archipelago. From the 1960s it hosted one of the world’s largest open-pit mines with Panguna as said by BCL chairman, Peter Taylor (2011), “processed 50 million tonnes of ore per annum with a 20 year lifespan still existing before it was shut down” (pg 3)¹ and of which, “the [PNG] national government received 20% of the profits and gave back to Bougainvilleans, a 0.5% share” adds on by Wikipedia². According to the Australian documentary film, Bougainville, Our Island Our Fight, the island is made up of proposed mines yet to be tapped into. Beside also, Bougainville was the largest cocoa-copra producer for PNG. Scales, Craemer and Thappa (2008) wrote: “It produced from 1979-1989, an annual average of 15 600 tonnes of cocoa and an annual average range of 10 000-20 000 tonnes of copra” (pg 31)³.

These years of traceless fortune was rocked by the Bougainville conflict from 1988 when the islanders asked for a K10 billion compensation and political independence. Bougainville suffered an economic setback. It is a setback that shall take time and effort for Bougainville to retain its old status of power in the region but in direct contrast to the controversial terms of referendum dictates.

During the conflict, economically Bougainville was on stand-still. All infrastructure destroyed and economic activity death. But as the peace process began, economic activity took a slow pace parallel to the pacification process; all owned by Bougainvilleans, which is a positive step towards ‘true’ independence with an empowered Bougainville people.

This pace of economic come-back, though, poses doubts on the ‘bias and myopic’ terms of referendum that states, ‘…referendum be held: no earlier than 10 years and, in any case, no later than 15 years after the first election of the autonomous Bougainville Government [and ignorantly, based the terms on: (1) weapons disposal, and (2) good governance’ (“Agreed Terms of Referendum,” 2001)⁴.

To most Bougainvilleans, the Peace Process was bias or short sighted because the leaders upon signing it did not take into consideration the need to solve internal conflicts. These are questions such as, ‘If you remove a gun from a combatant then, what do you give back to complement him with?’

It by-passed an important aspect of the crisis, that is, the people were in a ‘post crisis’ environment and such solution must not be rushed but addressed the situation step-by-step in a manner that the cause of the conflict is address to the best interest of the people.

The leadership, rather focussed on the ‘fast tracking’ of self-determination and the general political settlement.

To this, the Autonomous Bougainville Government had being knocking on Chinese door for assistance to built its economy to a better position towards obvious nationhood or as a means of paving ‘full belly no conflict’ climate on the island.

With this note, though the island has now having a populace of ‘hungry bellies’ in the economic light. But, Bougainville has a potential economic capability in the Pacific region.

This is an attraction for any profit oriented or resource hungry foreign investor that its own backyard just can’t provide for. 

In 2010, after taking office as president of Bougainville, Mr John Momis engaged the ABG into pursuing a strategy of getting Chinese investment onto Bougainville. To President John Momis’ words in Radio Australia (cited in Keith Jackson & Co: PNG ATTITUDE, 2011), “In response to that, the Chinese have been coming to Bougainville to look at a number of potential economic projects one of which is the proposal to set up a Special Economic Zone on the northern tip of Bougainville Island including eventually, I suppose, the building of the Buka Passage Bridge to connect Buka Island with Bougainville”⁵.

Thus, born was the proposed Bonus Special Economic Zone (SEZ) on the northern-most tip of the mainland, Bougainville.

Artist impression of Bonus SEZ (actnowpng.org)

So, what is a SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE? A special economic zone (SEZ), according to Wikipedia, is a geographical area that has economic and other laws that are more free-market-oriented than a country’s typical or national laws. “Nationwide” laws may be suspended inside a special economic zone⁶.

In regard to this, Chinese investors had continuously visited Bougainville led by agent Jason Fong to set out the frame work of the proposal.

The blog ACTNOW!, stated that ‘the SEZ would involve cocoa, estimated to net an annual revenue of K1.5 billion for Bougainville, and marketed mainly to China⁷’. The Post Courier Online further adds, that it will be ‘a sophisticated large urban area with a variety of modern city buildings including a trade centre, an overhead bridge linking Kokopau and Buka Island, a sport complex, a shopping mall, a six lane road and many more fountains and gardens and solar-panel thatched residential areas⁸’.

As it seems, Bougainville ought to be a developed region with a high standard of living for the people. All these would be attained with one single Chinese investment project on Northern Bougainville. Copra, mining and other known Bougainvillean resources are not mentioned, but only cocoa would change Bougainville, economically.

With this Chinese investment earning the said K1.5 billion per annum for the island of 175 160 (2000 census)⁹ people, there is high probability that the per capita income per head would be so high creating a consumer society in high demands of goods and services.

Such a single-handed agricultural development with sound leadership on the island, should be the foundation of other agricultural drives in such areas like rice farming, poultry and so on to leap making Bougainville self-reliant.

It is from a well established agricultural sector that we move into down-stream processing to add extra value to Bougainville exports so as to increase export earnings. According to ‘Rostovian take-off model’ of economic growth, economies need to depend on raw material exports to finance the industrial sector¹⁰. In this developmental strategy, there is a strong power-base that is, the agricultural sector.

A competitive agricultural sector paves a strong domestic Bougainville economy.

An economic miracle as it seems, however, Chinese strategies are much controversial across the globe. According to the blog, EASTASIAFORUM, Feigenbaum (2011, para.8) claims that Chinese strategies are hardly uniformed. Nor have they proved to be uniformly successful¹¹. This shows that, even Chinese firms are not uniformed to their activities. Negative repercussions, thus ought to be planned for in Bougainville. And with Bonus, when the project is solely, Chinese, long term or short term benefits are also unpredictable since the local human resource sector is not fully developed and also, Bougainville is still trying to break free from the post-crisis stigma with difficulty, so recovery must be a ‘process’ and not a ‘miracle’ as the Bonus project is.

In summary, China is a determined power with experience and a population capable to dominate the world. Undeniably, the Pacific is its political, economical or social ‘floor-mat’ and so, it so challenges Taiwan and the west diplomatically for dominance.

Natural resources supply is what China sniffs the world for to sustain her industrialisation. Bougainville, which has a record mining and other natural resources thus, looks good for her. Entry into Bougainville is what China needs, then establish herself up into the other sectors.

Though, for are economically struggling Bougainville, China seems a positive partner, the great secrecy of Chinese investment strategies and outcomes makes the future much doubtful, without a firm or strong political system or government in place, Bougainville shall, repeat the Bougainville Copper Limited experience whereby, the people and the island get nothing in return but just the positive media portrayal.

So, thinking big, but starting small is the strategy suitable for Bougainville.

References

1. http://www.m-cam/sites/www.m-cam.com/files/PeterTaylors/SPEECH-MADANG2017-05-11.pdf

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Bougainville

3. http://www.ausaid.gov.au/publications/pdf/Bougainville_market_chain_report_Feb08.pdf

4. http://www.coverge.org.nz/pma/boupja.html

5. http://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2011/06/chinese-investment-readies-for-bougainville.html

6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_economic_zone

7. http://www.actnowpng.org/content/chinese-push-sez-laws-bougainville

8. http://www.postcourier.com.pg/20110608/news02.html

9. http://www.trueknowledge.com

10. http://en,Wikipedia.org/Rostow’s_stages_of_growth

11. http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2011/03/09/china’s-risky-investment-game

  

Leadership Problems to Chaos: personal perspective

By Leonard Fong Roka

Bougainville is part-and-puzzle of the Solomon chain of islands in the South Pacific, but, enslaved by the impacts of colonialism under the rule of Papua New Guinea which, is in fact one of the big but unstable democracies in the Oceania region.

Since the 1960s, Bougainvilleans resisted the rule of Papua New Guineans and the development of the Panguna Mine in Central Bougainville that, as Bougainvilleans should say, was purposely built to finance the newly independent state of Papua New Guinea and its ‘Redskins’ (Bougainville’s term for Papua New Guineans). As, one of Bougainville’s political icons, Martin Miriori wrote in 1993, that Bougainville and its people were Australia’s independence gift to PNG.

The resistance was there, but the uncreative Papua New Guinea leadership ignored it, by offering the people of Bougainville the provincial government system, that I should refer to as puppet-like in nature. It just did not satisfy the Bougainvillean desire for progress; but instead, brought harm and relegation to the natives. Squatter settlements, crimes against the natives and denial of access to economic and social benefits pouring out of Bougainville developmental projects like the Bougainville Copper Limited was unbearable, as I saw it.

Bougainville Militants

That long history of intimidation by Papua New Guinea was released from the hearts and minds of Bougainvilleans in late 1988 in the form of armed confrontation. The late Francis Ona, as I remember toured a couple of places in the Kieta district, in the early months of the year, telling the people that, things were seriously wrong with the Panguna mine and the Landowners. One of these meeting places was Piruana Sub-Parish, east of Arawa where my father attended and later was talking about it.

Beside Francis Ona’s campaigns, there were also various little groups that were holding meetings, in finding ways to eradicate the posing threats by the Redskins of the slums that encircled the town of Arawa and all urban centres. Matau’neri Naving was one that my father was in, and the list goes on. This group was based at Piruana, as well. But, its operations were done by legal means, that is, they were pressuring the Provincial Government to address the issue of concern.

All these resistance movements were autonomous in their actions, timing and approach. But, the significant factor behind them was that, Bougainville allowed them to happen, though, they had no central leadership; but had common ambition and inspiration from early secessionists, like Father John Momis (now ABG President) at the heart.

So, how actually the crisis started in 1988? As I have already stated, the crisis was sparked and intensified by a number of independent incidents that were not actually, political.

The protest marches and declaration of independence for Bougainville in 1975, was all planned and executed by leaders like Moses Havini from Buka, Michael Aite from Paruparu and many more with the backing of popular figures like John Momis and Leo Hannet, from or at the village of Dupanta in Onove just west of the Panguna Mine that was marked with feasting. After this gathering, they then marched through the Panguna mine and Arawa and also ended up declaring independence on the  1 September 1975.

Ten years later in 1988, two weeks before the Francis Ona’s walk out from the BCL-PNG-Landowner meeting at Panguna, just below the Dupanta village, the Tumpusiong valley people were protesting against the uncontrolled tailings disposal, though the tailings pipeline was just completed. This protesting people were led by local politicians, Wendelinus Bitanuma and Martin Miriori.

The Tumpusiong protesters brought all BCL equipment (that regularly station and work on the tailings river banks) from their resting areas along the Kavarong River (Java to Whiteman) and assembled them blocking the Panguna-south Bougainville highway at Kavarongnau, which was the home of the brothers, Martin Miriori and late Joseph Kabui.

Whilst, all these were going on at Panguna, areas around Aropa, Toniva, Kieta and Arawa on the east coast, were struggling with the squatter settlers, not regularly, but spontaneously. Thus, all these uprisings had no common binding factor. Not centrally controlled, in terms of leadership.

Francis Ona, after walking out of the Panguna meeting immediately left for the jungles saying, ‘well the war has started’ upon hearing the Tumpusiong protesters struggling with police led by Commander, Luke Pango.

So, the war started, but without any managerial strategies to guide the whole operations; where to stop? Who to recruit to fight, and so on was not prepared for. Thus, any abled man entered, that is, migrated to the Panguna area to join the militants’ movement. The ‘good’ and the ‘bad’ went in to fight.

All small bands of men from all over the Kongara area joined in, in support of the Panguna people with their cause. But most of all, young men got involved out of anti-Redskinism that for so long had kept them imprisoned in their own land.

This was well demonstrated at the killing of Redskin settlers at Lake Momau in the Tumpusiong’s west. Here, a young girl offered herself for sex to be spared, but, a shotgun barrel was placed into her vagina and a shot fired by the Bougainville rebels.

Anti-Redskinism and the Panguna mine conflicts (actually, family originated) combined together and gave birth (resurfaced it) to nationalism and the fight to attained Bougainville independence. But, as I saw it, the issue of independence came in because there was wide spread support to the militant activities and the complete withdrawal of the PNG government in 1990 that was followed by the blockade of our island.

Leadership was the problem. Francis Ona lacked the charisma of politically influencing and controlling, first his fighters, then the Bougainville people. He denied them by hiding from them at his Guava village.

Immediately, after the 1990 ceasefire, his loyalist barricaded his village and kept him guarded. To see him, people have to cross checkpoint after checkpoint. Or, witch doctors have to screen you if you had good intentions to see the ‘Founder’ as he was called, then.

He was not allowed, for unknown reasons to be in the public places. Thus, we the Bougainvilleans who thought that freedom was now at our disposal, were now lost. Lost because the figure, Francis Ona who the society saw as the liberator of our island was now hiding for no one reason.

Power of keeping law and order was nowhere to be felt on the streets of Arawa and the Kieta area as are whole. Ona kept secret in his mountain home of Guava. The society reached chaos, during the weeks of the first 1990 ceasefire signed by Sam Kauona and Leo Nuia.

What was happening, in terms of leadership? Immediately, after the ceasefire all the militants were ordered to station at the Panguna Township. They did just that, ate in the BCL mess facilities and ordered to protect all properties. Accept, Ona and certain BRA seniors were given ex-BCL cars to use for their operations.

But, just after a few weeks of order, Francis Ona, gave orders to remove all BCL cars and other things of value to him, to his Guava village. Conflict erupted. BRA men from other areas saw these developments and began to grab whatever, that was of interest to them, especially cars. When possible gains of war were depleted in Kieta, they went on to other districts, like Buka Island in the north. Bougainville was now out of control and the leader was not prepared for the outcomes of his own actions.

A period of warlords was born. Each BRA commander ruled his own men based on their respective village areas, outside from the Panguna. No one was in Panguna for it was deserted as men began to pursue their own interest.

In fighting amongst the BRA groupings was also present. A well known incident was the killing of the Bazaar-Brothers in 1991. Here, 7 brothers from Kongara, who were the first group to capture Police weapons, were rounded and killed at Camp 5 along the Port-Mine access highway.

The reason was power struggle. Ona was not there for the men who had sacrificed defending his mission.

Each BRA commander was his own decision maker and implementer. To this, the innocent Bougainvilleans lost their lives as the anarchy spread like fire. The then, united Bougainville was gone—divided by greed, terrorism and disorder.

First published version link: http://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2011/07/how-the-bougainville-freedom-movement-broke-down.html

Dancing In a Redskins’ Arawa

By Leonard Fong Roka

Ami’au listened attentively to the sound of crushing dried leaves and twigs littering the forest floor.  ‘Is this another silly wild dog wandering about?’ she wondered.

‘Bekenenu, is it you there?’ she called out to her husband she had just left further uphill inspecting their cocoa plot.

Not an answer came so she ignored the strange sound that was now gone and lowered her body into the hole she had dug tracking the huge yam tuber.

Now, a heavy foot was approaching her, crushing the dried leaves of the galip-nut and cocoa trees that hosted her yam. She ignored it. But exhausted with constrained back, she dragged her head carefully out and spotted through her armpit; it was no black foot but rather, a muscular red skinned feet of a New Guinean about to attack her. A rapist!

‘Oiiiiii, Bekenenu! Bekene…nu, ere’rengkong mosika¹,’ she screamed hysterically for survival.

They rolled holding onto each other down hill under the consoling shade of the cocoa trees. Ami’au had her muscular body determined for liberation from her New Guinean rapist struggling to strip her.

She, as they hid a rotting bole, removed the infiltrator’s sweat ridden palms and yodelled: ‘Help! Someone help!’

‘Where are you?’ Bekenenu called.

‘Here!’

To Ami’au’s freedom, the Redskin darted off as the sound of running feet crushing dried out cocoa leaves littering the ground grew clearer as Bekenenu swiftly approached the scene angrily to attack.

‘Did the infiltrator of Solomon touch you?’

‘No,’ Ami’au sobbed in shock.

Bekenenu tracked the foreigner with his bush knife down Kirokai Creek but withdrew early in fear of been killed by the defensive strangers of the land.

‘Did you see or talk sense to the Redskins?’ old Taruko asked, with sympathy as Bekenenu returned with sweat freely rolling down his balding face.

‘Ee, send me not into the red ants’ camp for I shall return to Doko’toro as a firefly, uncle,’ Bekenenu sniffed brusquely as he sat on the mat of dried leaves.

Taruko eyed the couple thoughtfully. With the sun burning above their heads, their anger and self pity was the magnesium burning in the night sky.

The Redskins’ town below was booming with heavy traffic. Taruko’s aged eyes were locked to the great Arawa General Hospital. Slowly, his blinking eyes released the hospital and crept up Siopa Place (street) and settled at his feet.

‘This was our land when I was a child,’ he said, wiping off tears, ‘but today it is the Redskins’ land, not yours.’ The couple listened like children adsorbing every bit of parental advice. The grey haired prudent one sneezed and continued, ‘ When their government muddled us and impenitently begin the Panguna mine, planes and ships bring them day by day into our land. Here they make money to build their country that is so far away across the sea.’

‘Really true,’ Ami’au spoke after a long silence, ‘all schools in this town belong not to us, all is for these foreign rapists, looters and terrorist of Bougainvillean harmony. At Toniva, Kieta, down here, at Loloho and Panguna, it is they who roam with absolute freedom as we are the dogs having our tails glued to our bellies. In our mountains we dwell’

‘That’s why I often say always don’t be a lone bird in the tree for a sick dog to harm you. This race of people is parlous to our Solomon ways,’ Taruko said, and unskinned an areca-nut to ease his mind. ‘You are children, I saw that fading sun before you, as this town was developing the Whiteman feared not a Bougainvillean, but rather was afraid of the Redskin that raved their ways in the night like the bats.’

The trio climbed—a troop of defeated warriors—up the Sirovii brae for the ridge so infested with swaying orange trees. Like those fruit trees, fear was snarling and scurrying in the air they breathe into their lungs for Bougainville was not theirs.

Taruko spat reddish betel nut phlegm into the bush with a sigh and calmly called out to the couple, ‘As long as the New Guinean is on your land, there will be fear and tears.’

1. Red skinned dog

The Diwai Man’s Ablution

by  Leonard Fong Roka

Down the concrete blocks they march,                                                             

Combed…

Brushed…

Buttoned… and tucked, like all they diplomat at Waigani.

Debate they is, in tongue of the whitefella,

Fluency…

Confidence…

Advancement… and determination so bright like morn.

Gone are the norms of the progeny…

Gone are the dreams…

Gone, the formulas of magic that kept the land alive…

Gone the old man’s insights of health…

Grandpapa, had him yard shining before him garden belching…

And you, oh, necktie man?

I laugh at you!

You rest and refresh with you fingered nostrils

Rot suffocates you…

Dirt adorns you…

Passers laugh at you…

Yet you no heed as you is professional…a social dastard!

You are a professional…

With professional lawns?

Professional loo styles?

Professional peeing?

Oh, you is public mimicry; laughable stock!

Uncivilized African baboons

Perfumed, you crotonise…and later rinse

In a stinging loo and tub…

Oh poor fool!

My home is civilized…                                                                

Then a university!