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Papua New Guinea: The eastern half of the island of New Guinea--second largest in the world--was divided between Germany (north) and the UK (south) in 1885. The latter area was transferred to Australia in 1902, which occupied the northern portion during World War I and continued to administer the combined areas until independence in 1975. A nine-year secessionist revolt on the island of Bougainville ended in 1997 after claiming some 20,000 lives. -- CIA World Factbook: Papua New Guinea Area of Papua New Guinea: 462,840 sq km slightly larger than California Population of Papua New Guinea: 5,420,280 July 2004 estimate Languages of Papua New Guinea: Melanesian Pidgin serves as lingua franca English spoken by 1%-2% Motu spoken in Papua region 715 indigenous languages many unrelated Papua New Guinea Capital: Port Moresby Papua New Guinea Articles and Links MSN Encarta reference Governments on the WWW links Travelocity Free Real-Time Airline Flight Tracking |
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The New York Times, March 30, 1919:THE PHENOMENON OF CANNIBALISMWhy Certain Savages Are Fond of Human FleshObservations Made of the Horrible Custom in New Guinea That cannibalism is still practiced in British New Guinea after over thirteen years of sovereignty is no reflection on the Lieutenant Governor and his magistrates, says the Bishop of New Guinea. With an area of 90,000 square miles on the mainland and 300 islands in proximity, and a force of 150 Papuan police, it is wonderful that it is limited to so few districts. It is safe to prophesy that in five years' time it will be unknown within this portion of the Empire. It is just four years ago since I was first brought face to face with this gruesome practice. Scene, the northeast coast, 150 miles away from any Government station... In front of us a native grass hut with the skull and other bones of a victim of a cannibal feast hung up as spoils of war over the door, and the "consumer" justifying his action in the limited vocabulary that we possessed in common. He was a big-framed man, with nothing but a piece of cloth round his loins, a garment hammered out of the bark of the paper mulberry tree. He had a portentously big mouth, and he showed this to its full extent with a splendidly sound set of teeth and a tongue blood-red from the juice of the betel-nut. He then stroked his gullet up and down with one hand, as with the other he pointed to the remains of his vanquished foe hanging over the door of his hut. "The Government says it's wrong, and the missionaries say it's wrong, but it is very good!" This was his plea for cannibalism. He knows better now, does my village friend... WHITE VICTIMS The year 1901 was marked by a heavy roll of victims to cannibalism. Whether the number exceeded those of previous years may be questioned. Each year, at any rate, we know better what is going on. Still, the fact that there were four white victims marked last year unenviably. In February a party of diggers were making their way inland to the Yodda gold field, over some desperate country that experience alone can help one to realize, when they were cut off by a crowd of savages. Two were killed and eaten, another, a German, got away, but died a day or two afterward of exhaustion. The remains of the unfortunate men were found, and a party of their mates went out into the district and made horrible reprisals... JUST A BAD HABIT But why do these cannibal feasts take place? Is it pure savagery, or is it a natural craving for animal food which cannot be satisfied in any other way?... It is, in fact, not easy to get materials for a definite conclusion at all. When natives are in the cannibalistic state we are not sufficiently in touch with them to know their language and discuss it thoroughly. By the time we are able to converse fluently with them they have abandoned the practice, and when this habit is once given up I know nothing that the Papuan is soon ashamed of, and being ashamed of, does not care to discuss. Besides, he is not accustomed to think out the reasons for doing a thing, and probably never had a reasoned reason, or thought why he did it, till we asked him. All we can get out of the villager, in answer to the question why he eats man, is such replies as: "It's flesh," "It's very good," or "It's our custom..." CHILD CANNIBALS The Papuan rebounds from severe agriculture, and goes on a raid. Having raided and killed, he consumes, as a natural consequence, because the "flesh is very sweet." He eats it as he would eat pig. It is smoked on the fire and dismembered in just the same way. Then it is wrapped round in green leaves and tied up with bine and carried home in little parcels on poles. The pole is balanced on the man's shoulder, and the little bundles decorate the poles on each side of the man's shoulder. The boys and girls eat it at once. Their parents put it before them, and they really do not inquire if it is pig or man. They eat it just the same... The idea that it is due to the natural craving for flesh meat is not borne out by my New Guinea experience, for the river district, where cannibalism is most prevalent in that land, is the area where native pig does most abound. The rivers have only to be somewhat flooded, and the pigs are driven on to the higher ground, where they are easily speared... |
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