Literature and Bougainville

Since the Bougainville conflict had come into place in 1988, efforts have been strained to appease or pacify the conflict, but still the killing, tears and division prevails. Governments of Australia, New Zealand, Solomon Islands and the United Nations entered but still we suffer from our own irresponsibility.

Because of this conflict I was age 19 in 1997 at Arawa High School doing Grade 7 and came across an inspiring English teacher, Mr William Mania from the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. He wrote poetry celebrating different parts of Bougainville he travelled to. He at times, came to read his poems to his us; they were very captivating, and ordered us to write more about Bougainville if we really loved our homeland.

I never personally came to love the art itself, but began to write poems without any intention to store them but as a fun thing. Later on after showing it around the class I would squeeze the paper and throw it away because William Mania was too better than me.

But, in the later months of 1997, I wrote a poem titled, Panguna for a class exercise. Mr William Mania took them away for correction. The next morning, to my surprise he called me into his office and told me my poem was the best! And also, he took my permission to write his poem based on my piece and what he created out of mind, was published in the Arawa High School 1997 Magazine. I was very pleased for myself. At least I was somebody, closer to my teacher.

Then Mr Mania left and a Kiwi ornithologist and author, Mr Don Hadden entered my world in 1999 as I was doing Grade 9. He gave me more on the value of writing. His words that I always remember is: ' writing is education to your trouble-torn Bougainville'.

He was right.

My first admiration of my writing was at UPNG in 2003 when I had a poem published in the UNIVERSITY NEWS. Many Bougainvilleans reacted very positively. So, I then came to realise that Mr Don Hadden was not speaking with experience. Through his stay in Bougainville, he saw how difficult it will be for my people to come to reach normalcy.

Bougainville recently only had few writers, namely, Leo Hannet, Matubuna Tahun and Regis Stella. Their contributions to Bougainville is great, but our peoples' accessibility to tasting real Bougainville literature is not so near.

Bougainville has to date, enormous levels of corruption, lawlessness and division. Who will help? PNG is trying and the ABG is trying but the progress is too slow and under the light of 'peace by peaceful means'.

To me, the flavour of nationalism in Bougainville has been dumped. Kept aside, but why did you fight? Why did Bougainvilleans die? It's all because the desire to be free.

As a lover of writing, I believe, Bougainville needs the literary front onboard quickly. That is to build, direct and spread the spirit of nationalism in the hearts and minds of our people. For Bougainville, being a 'true' nation, nationalism should be the driver of unity, respect and understanding so that our beloved island can reach its goals of nationhood as a united one people.