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Quinlivan, Paul
No. 59 –
Religious Harmony, Part
2 – The Debt Owed to Rev Percy Chatterton LMS
Those who were in Port Moresby fifty years ago would remember the
wonderful celebrations of the coronation. Villages along the Papua
coast had prepared for a whole year – some hiring outside help –
and, starting with the arrival of three long-boats, each rowed by
fifty men in neck-to-ankle uniforms, the first boat all in red, the
second all in white and the third, to complete the national colours,
all in blue, they put on a truly memorable show. Less well
remembered are the efforts of a small community of French Carmelite
nuns on Yule Island to create a work of art and, on an entirely
different plane, those of Reverend Percy Chatterton of the London
Missionary Society to prevent a bloody outbreak of inter-tribal war.
Before explaining these last two I must explain three other things.
The first is that to celebrate Mass, Catholic priests wear robes
(‘vestments’) which are often highly ornamented – so much so that
many which were created for special occasions have, over the
centuries, become priceless museum pieces. And the Carmelite nuns of
Yule Island embroidered special vestments for this occasion. The
second concerns this word ‘Carmelite’. Since 1452 – earlier for men
– it has signified an ‘enclosed order’ of nuns who isolate
themselves from the things of the world to devote themselves to
prayer and to doing such work as will provide food. It is not all
work and prayer however; they insist on having ‘recreation time’
each day and this includes the use of a library of non-religious
books. Unfortunately – as was the case in this instance – the books
are often out-of-date.
The third thing I must explain is that, whereas the bishops of
Samarai (who were all Australians) often stayed in Port Moresby, the
bishops of Yule Island (who were all Frenchmen) never caused a
ripple there. This explains why, when it was announced that Bishop
Sorin would lead the Moresby celebrations on behalf of the Catholic
community, many Moresbyites (including non-Catholics) were outraged.
Their antics meant (in addition to the results we shall see in a
later Snapshot), that instead of the Special Vestments being noticed
only by those attending Mass, they became a cause celebre. That was
unfortunate because they were not only special, they were
spectacular because, instead of restricting themselves to European
decorations, as everyone had done for centuries, the nuns had
decided to add a few Mekeo emblems because (‘luckily’, they thought)
they had an ancient scholarly book in their convent library which
had authentic sketches of such emblems. I put the word ‘luckily’ in
inverted commas because the motifs they added were not Mekeo at all;
they were actually the cultural inheritance of the Percy
Chatterton’s LMS adherents – Congregationalists, believers in ‘the
priesthood of all believers’. People who, by definition, are against
men being specially elevated as priests – especially when they
desecrate their sacred emblems!
The book the nuns had was a report, from the 1880s, of a scientific
survey of the western coastline of British New Guinea and the
drawings they had copied were clearly marked ‘Mekeo’. Unfortunately
however – as Percy himself makes clear at pages 38 and 39 of his
‘Papua, Day That I Have Loved’ (Pacific Publications 1974) – there
had been population changes in that area between 1870 and 1890 and
the area where the Delena Mission now is had, by 1900, become
occupied by the much more widespread Motu people. This means that
inter-tribal warfare could break out over a vast area so Native
Affairs advised the Administrator that preventative action must be
taken before word of the desecration spread. And, to cut a long
story short, I was ordered to go to Delena and ask Percy to use his
influence to restore harmony. I don’t know why I was chosen but I
cursed because, although I had never met Percy, my colleagues hated
and feared him. To them he was an ogre who wrote to the Minister –
or to Buckingham Palace – if anyone had a complaint and such letters
always brought a harsh letter from the Minister.
I spoke to Bishop Sorin and he said that, although he had known that
the nuns were working on something special, they had not given the
vestments to him until he was about to leave for Moresby and he had
not inspected them. And he arranged for me to be given the book
which the nuns had relied on so, with great trepidation, I boarded
the Government Trawler for Delena. Imagine my surprise when, after
looking at the book the nuns had provided, Percy was all sweetness
and light! Possibly it was because, marking the relevant page of
sketches, the nuns had placed a dignified letter expressing their
mortification that pain had been caused by what had been done with
the intention of giving pleasure to all lovers of Papua. Nobody
loved Papua as much as did Percy! Whatever the cause, Percy said he
would explain everything to his people and he was sure that they
would understand. It appeared his word must have spread quickly
because strife was averted. Although he did not cease his letters to
the minister I am happy to say that, from that day on, Percy and I
became firm friends. Indeed, when Percy had difficulties with
Administration officials at a Missions Conference (as he did at two
meetings when the Education Department wanted village Sunday Schools
included as ‘registered schools’ so that they could control the
qualifications of teachers) he moved a motion to appoint me Legal
Adviser to the Missions Conference and I had to attend!
No. 60
‘Ma Scannell’s Place’, ‘The Bomb Boy’s House’ and an
explanation
I feel that I should explain a previous reference to ‘Ma Scannell’s
Place’ (Snapshot 42) because I do not want anyone to think I was
disparaging the lady. On 6th November 1952 I was sent to Wewak to
conduct a prosecution in the District Court. Police usually did this
but mine was a very special mission because, while I was busily
engaged cleaning up the backlog of cases in the New Guinea Islands,
the PNG police on a remote out-station on the mainland complained
that all the Europeans in their area – the Kiap (John Pearce
Cahill), the Medical Assistant (William Mervyn Creighton) and George
Gilbert (whose occupation I forget) – were ‘out of control’. The
complaint was immediately investigated and, as a result, all three
were charged with multiple rapes. In those days rape and murder
charges against Europeans had to be heard by an all-White jury
despite the complaints by the judges – and the Crown Law Office –
that such trials brought the administration of justice into
disrepute, as we shall see in a later Snapshot. Despite the fact
that Andy O’Driscoll produced overwhelming evidence, Cahill and
Gilbert were acquitted but Creighton, the weaker of the three, was
convicted and safely moved to gaol in Australia.
The fact that the two stronger characters were free to go wherever
they liked was seen as presenting a grave danger so I was sent to
Wewak to see if I could get Cahill and Gilbert convicted of ‘common
assault’. If I could do that – and there was an abundance of
evidence available – they could be immediately deported under the
Expulsion of Undesirable Persons Ordinance. There was, however, a
very clear danger for me, too, because unpleasant undercurrents had
been reported right, left and centre and I was glad that, as at
every other place I had gone, I would be billeted in a private house
because nobody would seek to harm me in somebody’s home.
When I arrived at Wewak, however, I was met by the District
Commissioner who, personally, took me to Ma Scannell’s Place,
explaining that he had received strict instructions from Moresby
that I was not to be billeted in any Administation Officer’s home
during my stay. He added that both Cahill and Gilbert were spending
a lot of time at the Sepik Club so I should avoid it. There was
nothing I could do but go where I was put but I resented it. My
first reaction was based purely on the fact that I find it almost
impossible to barge in and talk to people, even those with whom I
have been friendly for years. If there is a ‘duty’ to do so,
however, shyness does not apply so the fact that I had always been
billeted had been sheer bliss. Being deprived of this was hurtful
and, as I thought about it, I felt that it was an ‘interference’.
Then, as I stewed waiting for the evening meal, I began to ask why
such an instruction would be given. Was it because Moresby was
afraid I might soft-pedal the prosecution; that my host, being a
Kiap, might suborn me! This really riled me, not so much because it
was offensive to me but because it was a blanket insult to men and
women I had generally found to be good, decent people. So I seethed
with rage! But there was more to come!
After the evening meal, two of my fellow guests introduced
themselves as professional crocodile shooters ‘in for a week’ to
join a friend (for whom they had brought an extra gun, which they
showed me) so that the three could go on a croc shoot that evening.
But the friend suddenly could not make it and they wondered if I
would like to take his place. Realizing that sitting lonesome and
wallowing deeper and deeper into resentment would not be good for
the clear mind I would need in the morning, I said ‘Yes’ and off we
went to the swamps at the bottom of Wewak Hill. After a time,
however, I got separated from them. It was very scary, just me in
the middle of a tree-filled crocodile-infested swamp but, luckily, a
Vanimo policeman named MOI had seen me go off with the two shooters
and had followed me. Quietly he led me out to safety and then he let
forth a tirade of pidgin. An hour earlier I would have said that I
did not understand a word of pidgin but I understood him perfectly
and my resentment at Moresby’s instruction grew.
The combined weight of my woes became such that, instead of being
gracious when, on my return to Moresby, I was being congratulated
for getting Gilbert and Cahill deported I expressed pungent views on
the interfering ‘instruction’ and I pointed out that I had come to
the Territory to prevent the news of the scandalous backlog of
unheard cases leaking out. Also, if there was ever a repetition of
the instruction which put me in Ma Scannell’s Place I would pack my
bags and catch the next plane back to Australia. I was given an
absolute assurance that it would never happen again! That is why, in
No. 42, I said: ‘when I was put into Ma Scannell’s at Wewak –
something I had been guaranteed the previous year would never happen
again – I was sure that we were only overnighting there on our way
to Manus’.
There are two other matters I should mention here. The first is that
‘Sepik Robbie’ was waiting for me when the court rose on the first
day. He said he had heard what had happened to me the previous night
so I should know about ‘the secret centre of life in Wewak’. He took
me to the Bomb Boys House which was a wonderful institution created
over the years by four or five Bomb Disposal Experts of the
Australian Regular Army in their own home. I inhabited it, with a
wide variety of other Europeans, when not working in court. The job
of these men was the locating, and removing, of the dangerous
explosives which were an essential ‘fact of life’ in that area. When
the Catholics were building their giant cathedral their first task
was not the drawing up of the plans but the clearing of the
adjoining ground on which thousands of people would congregate for
the Opening Ceremony. Architect’s plans could be got anywhere but
the adjoining area was completely overgrown and, since everyone knew
that bombs were a basic fact of life, the first priority was putting
the area on the list for the Bomb Boys to deal with. The spirit of
these men who diced with death every day was wonderful and I would
like to pay tribute to them.
The second fact is that, three months after the events I have
described, the South Pacific Post reported (13 February 1953) that
an appeal by Williams Mervyn Creighton against his conviction for
rape had been upheld by the High Court in Australia. I have not read
the judgment but, since it was a jury trial, I assume that the
appeal was on a procedural matter and not on the facts.
No. 61 –
The First Congress of the Public Service Association
(PSA), 1955
Part Two – Roll-call of Participants
I said, in No. 53 (March 2003 Una Voce), that this was ‘one of the
most important events in TPNG history’ and, since there are several
reasons why this is so, priority must be given to the listing of
those who flew in and spent the whole of Saturday 26 and Sunday 27
November, 1955, attending it. They were:
| NAME |
REPRESENTING |
NAME |
REPRESENTING |
Mrs J Sutherland
Mr H Evans
Mr M Ford
Mr C Day
Mr R Lansdowne
Mr A Clarke
Mr JS Womersley
Mr H McKenzie
Mr F Reitano
Mr V Poole
Mr E Neilsen
Mr G Toogood
Mr D Owner
Mr WA Lalor
|
New Britain
New Ireland
Eastern Papua
Western Papua
Sepik
Madang
Lae-Finschhafen
Wau-Bulolo
Manus
Bougainville
Highlands
Native Affairs
Education
Law
|
Dr H White
Mr CW Thomas
Mr A Tronson
Mr J Palmer
Mr W Jones
Mr V Bloink
Mr J Finn
Mr K Tracy
Mr H Triggs
Mrs E Anderson
Mr W Conroy
Mr H Croft
Mr L Mutch
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Health
Health
Treasury
Police
Lands
Printing Office
Forests
Forests
Customs and Marine
Agriculture Stock and Fisheries
Agriculture Stock and Fisheries
Public Commissioner’s Office
Public Commissioner’s Office
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Also in attendance for the whole
Congress were, naturally, the Members of the Executive:
Mr Ruri B Brannan President
Mr S Pearsall Vice President
Mr W Briskey Vice President
Mr R Thomson Secretary
Mr CJ Lynch Treasurer
Mr P Quinlivan ‘Observer’ and Editor
No. 62
Coroners in TPNG – Part One – Complaints to the Minister
I have been reading Paul Hasluck’s ‘A Time for Building’ (Melbourne
University Press, 1976 and, for reasons which I will give in a later
Snapshot, I am concerned that he says, on page 185: ‘Another subject
that attracted my attention in this period was the casualness about
the holding of inquests into the death of any native’. He relies,
firstly, on statements made to him by various Kiaps in ‘outlying
districts’ in the early 50s – and I hope that those Kiaps have put
the record straight. He then gives an instance where several natives
were killed in an explosion causing him to send a ‘sharp minute’
dated 20 January 1955 (see page 185). I can speak about the
‘explosive’ case because the Assistant Administrator, Rupert
Wentworth Wilson (who was appointed in 1954 from Canberra), wrote
scathingly about the Coroner, Syd Elliott-Smith (in whose home I
stayed for much of the four or five months of the Telefomin
Investigations) and Syd wrote to me for advice. Parenthetically, I
was touched by the very pleasing comment at page 32 of the last
issue of Una Voce that I was ‘the Kiaps’ counsel and champion’. I
replied by quoting the following from an English case ‘re Prince
(1884) 12 QBD 247 at 248’: ‘It would be intolerable if he (the
coroner) had power to intrude without adequate cause upon the
privacy of a family in distress’. The facts of the Sepik case were
that a group of teenagers in the middle of the area being cleared by
‘The Bomb Boys’ caught some fish and decided to eat them. Scouting
around for something to hold up the container in which the fish were
to be cooked they found a bomb and built a fire around it. The bomb
exploded, killing two of them. The incident was fully investigated
and there was no disputing the facts. A deputation of relatives of
the boys called on Elliott-Smith and explained that they were
suffering ‘great shame’ because ‘everybody’ knew that you do not
touch anything metal for fear it might explode, and building a fire
around what was clearly a bomb was pure madness! They pleaded with
him not to increase their ‘shame’ by holding a public inquiry. Since
he had only been in the area a short time Elliott-Smith then had
inquiries made as to whether ‘everyone’ did, in fact, know what the
relatives said they knew, and he satisfied himself that what they
said was true. So he decided that the holding of a public inquest
would only impose additional ‘shame’ on the relatives. In other
words, so far from showing ‘casualness’, as the Minister claims, the
case is a classic example of great care and attention.
-ooOoo-
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