PNG is a country where a lot of people think about the transition from tradition to modernity, and often a lot of that thought is not as nuanced as it could be in thinking through what tradition/custom is, was, and could be, just as modernity, development, and Western culture sometimes get one-dimensional readings. Narokobi’s concept of the “Melanesian Way” both cystallized a lot of what was in the air in post-independence PNG and refined it: he never gave in to simple dichotomies of town versus village and development versus progress. Although he was almost recklessly partisan about the joys of village life, he never gave in to Panglossian daydreams of rural utopias. Above all, his patriotism and love for country was never brittle or defensive.

PNG is a country which, let’s face it, has less and less members of the founding generation to remind it of what it was and could be. At the same time, the country has almost no bookstores with secular titles. Narokobi’s work deserves to be more than just a cliché. Luckily, there is enough bandwidth in PNG today that the Internet can be a library for people. It would be great if someone could put Narokobi’s work — all of it — online. And prepare a scholarly bibliography while they’re at it.

Having given social democracy and third-wayism a run for the first couple of decades of independence, PNG seems increasingly to be going in the other direction: privatization, business, and commerce are all the rage here. Mobile phone companies transform people’s lives. The 7,000 workers the upcoming LNG project is supposed to bring to the country is on everyone’s lips. Real estate prices are skyrocketing as freehold land becomes increasingly scarce. Cars clog the road and Moresby now has rush hours — a glut of white Toyota four doors running through the two blocks of Champion Parade Ground that constitute downtown Port Moresby. Neoliberalism is bringing benefits to people — at least in the short run. I’m concerned about the potential long-term effects of the near-abandonment of any confidence or hope in the government and civil service, but for now the obvious improvements to PNG are hard to ignore even if lefties like me worry about what may come later.

Bandwidth is unbelievably dear in Papua New Guinea. Moving packets over the Internet costs money, wireless is scarce and expensive, and cellphones need to be topped up constantly. After years of living in rural Papua New Guinea I can tell I am going to have to take a good hard look at how best to avoid hemorrhaging money turning kina into bits. Transport is also an issue — I am notoriously reluctant to drive in the states, and here in PNG with the backwards roads, reversed car controls, crazy traffic pattern, and the still-lurking issue of random events getting out of control, I just don’t feel comfortable trying to drive around myself. Luckily I have a wantok who drives a cab and my host family commute into work in a way that I can hop on to, but the fact remains that I have chosen a fieldwork topic that requires constant telephoning, emailing, and driving around when email, telephone, and driving are some of the biggest obstacles to me. Oh for an office with Internet and photocopying and a landline.

So all is good over here and I’ll try to post more as I have more to post and I figure out how best to access the Intarweb.

Some of the National’s reporting seems a bit off — Pakiru is described as “paramount chief” of the Tieni (there are no ‘paramount chiefs’ in Porgera) and Yarik, his home area, is listed as an ‘illegal settlement’. But there is absolutely no doubt of the fundamental legitimacy of Pakiru Pundi as a Porgera landowner and his deep involvement with Porgera over decades adn decades of time. The overall the drift of the article is clear — the story of mine, government and army arrayed against and oppressing ‘indigenous’ Porgerans hides a more complex, and probably more accurate account of a variety of forces, including multiple landowner groups, trying to deal with the growth of population in the valley as a result of, among other things, Engan colonization.

And this from the Post Courier: “Porgera locals to sue government”:http://www.postcourier.com.pg/20090501/news01.htm

Update 1 May 09 17:30:
Here’s a roundup of some more links. Some of these pages are being edited while live so sometimes the content changes.

Radio New Zealand: “PNG Denies Paper Report About Porgera Fires”:http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=46298

ABC: “PNG Villagers Allege Police Destroyed Homes”:http://www.radioaustralianews.net.au/stories/200904/2557368.htm?desktop

Dominion: “Indigenous Community Leaders Confront Barrick Gold In Toronto”:http://www.dominionpaper.ca/weblogs/%5Buser%5D/2632 (note how Ipili are now ‘indigenous’)

You can also listen to about 8 minutes into this broadcast of today’s As It Happens to hear an interview with Jethro Tulin: “As It Happens 1 May 2009″:http://www.cbc.ca/mrl3/8752/asithappens/20090501-aih-3.wmv — I have a (hand-typed) transcript if anyone wants it.

From the post: “Porgera up in flames”:http://www.postcourier.com.pg/20090430/news01.htm

I haven’t seen anything from Barrick yet, and have no news ‘from the ground’. I’ll try to comment more tomorrow.

p.s. in other news, “Joe Gabut has been assaulted by people from the Tari-Hides area”:http://www.postcourier.com.pg/20090430/news02.htm.

First, ABC’s main piece with an interview with Ila Temu:

“PNG Troops Deployed to Curb Highlands Lawlessness”:http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/pacbeat/stories/200903/s2505288.htm

As well as a shorter piece in the national from, I believe, 13 March 2009

“PNGDF Called Out To Curb Crime In Porgera”:http://www.thenational.com.pg/030209/nation31.php (scroll down)

They have an editorial as well: “Impose State of Emergency on Porgera”:http://www.thenational.com.pg/030209/lead_editorial.php from the same day.