Karkar, N.G.
pp. 34-35 · Read in the full issue
Why Should Rich Island be Kept as Close Preserve?
By W. Hall.
KARKAR or Dampier Island lies some ten miles as the crow flies from the mainland of New Guinea, and 35 miles or so to the northward of Madang, which is its nearest port.
It is some 150 square miles in extent, rising to an extinct volcanic cone, 4800 feet high, situated in the centre of the island; it has one small volcanic crater, from which smoke issues at the present time, and is apparently still active.
It has a population of approximately 8000 natives, contains 10 plantations (some being worked and others yet not producing), and a number of Mission leases, the property of the two Missions operating on the island, the Lutheran Mis sion and the Roman Catholic Mission.
Its principal drawback is a dearth of harbours, and the two best anchorages on the island are, as is usual in this country, in the hands of the Missions. It comprises easily the best fertile land in the terri tory, and its productiveness, and general
commercial possibilities, should easily make it an outstanding asset of this ter ritory.
Here, however, is the “nigger in the woodpile.” As is known, natives must consent to the alienation of their land, be fore it is leased by the Administration, although they may have unwanted land to burn, as in the case of the Karkar natives. Urged by inexperienced and un reflecting Government officials and non secular bodies, they refuse to let any ter ritory of theirs be disposed of and opened up, with its subsequent effect on the de velopment of the territory, and their own benefit. It is a purely dog-in-the-manger policy, as when the fertility of their land is taken into account, the extensive acre age of land which they do not require and which at present is lying dormant and unproductive, could be put to a com mercial use with due advantage to the natives.
If this island was closed to recruiting, except for local work, as was previously partly done (for the life of me, I do not know why it was reopened) and enough plantations formed to absorb the local labour offering, it would be of consider able benefit to the Karkar native; he would get money, sleep in his village every night (there is no village on the island he cannot return to for the week end), get regular food, medical attention, good accommodation and other facilities, and those (as a very experienced and cap able officer at present conducting an en quiry into European land titles on the Island told me) are the ideals which the Government is striving for in its efforts to improve and ameliorate the conditions of native labour.
The same officer is, as I said before, a man of some thirty years’ official ex perience, and his handling of natives and their problems, more especially land, on which he is an authority, makes him pre-eminent amongst inexperienced and inept officials. He is traversing all the land on the island and scouts the idea after scrutiny and investigation, I under stand, of the natives having insufficient land for their needs, and the matter ought to be left to him, with full powers. This is the first time an experienced and cap able man has dealt with the question thoroughly. Previously much piffle has been talked by persons who view the mat ter with jaundiced eyes and express gen eralities that will react only to their own advantage.
I have heard that in Papua, a land of outstanding and excellent administration it was found necessary to enact an ordin ance enabling the administration to use land not required by natives who would not otherwise dispose of it, and some thing similar will have to be done here
if the country is to be allowed to de velop coincidently with native interests.
The matter is such an urgent and serious one for one who has the interests of this territory at heart, that if no action be taken here (as usual) it might be found necessary to circularise our legis lators in Canberra on the matter when they meet, for after all they are respon sible for and have the last say in affairs in this territory.
It is to be remembered that the Mis sions operating at Karkar are foreign bodies, with their headquarters elsewhere than in Australia, on whose protection they exist, and it is not cricket as we know it to attempt to oust the control this Government is attempting to exert and to prevent the proper development of this territory. It is also to be remem bered that in the present unsettled state of European and Asiatic politics it may become necessary to ensure that the-con trol and supervision of these bodies be tightened, and their ultimate destiny re viewed.