Papuan and N. Guinea

Missions Director's Reference to Indentured Labour System

OF the 240 missionaries of the Eastern and Central Vicariates of the Man dated Territory of New Guinea, 120 r llled r or are musing, and 50,000 Catholic natives have been without spiritual help for three years,” said the National Director of Catholic Missions (Right Rev. J. H. Hannan, DD. PhD) in an interview published in the “Cairns Post” on June 20.

Describing the Vicariate Apostolic of Papua, which he visited the previous week, Monsignor Hannan said: “It is di vided into two parts—the Central Divi sion, with head-quarters at Yule Island, the personnel consisting mainly of French priests and brothers and Australian nuns' and Eastern Papua, which is staffed en tirely by Australians.

“The eastern part of the vicariate suf fered considerably during the New Guinea campaign, embracing Milne Bay, Samarai, Sideia and the Trobriands, but now work has recommenced. '’The central or Yule Island area, had a providential escape. Port Moresby, of course, was bombed, but the Catholic churches, con vents and schools in the area escaped substantial damage. Most of the build ings were taken over by the services for three years, but now they are being re turned, and the missions surrounding the port are resuming limited activity. Yule Island itself was heavily machine-gunned by the Japanese. Bullet-marks remain on the inside walls of the priests’ residence.”

The central area, he said, was threa tened from three sides early in 1942, from the north-west by the Japanese advance on Merauke, from the south-east as Port Moresby was threatened, and from the east by the imminent penetration across the mountains, which stopped short of the furthest mountain mission, known as “Ononge.”

“There is an actual shortage of food in the village,” said Monsignor Hannan.

“The gardens have been neglected, as most of the young men are either in the forces or working as labourers and .bearers in the New Guinea campaigns.

The little food there is very dear.” rE solution depended partly on the return of the civil administration in Papua. He added; “I am prepared to accord full credit to ANGAU for a diffi cult job efficiently carried out, but ANGAU is a military administration pri marily concerned with war conditions, and is, therefore, essentially transitory in character. Frankly, the position at pre sent is rather a ‘muddle,’ as the military is moving out and the civil administra tion is not yet coming in.

“The missionaries, on paper at least, are in favour of the indentured labour sys tem, as they regard it as of definite value to the natives. Anyone condemn ing the system should read the Papuan Labour Ordinance, As an Australian, I am proud of it, as a document unique in colonial administration, with the bal ance of justice definitely on the side of the Papuan.

“The missionaries, however, would like to see the application of the ordinance more strictly and honestly policed. Dis turbing rumours are prevalent every where in Papua, of serious infractions of the system, even to the extensive use of the ‘drum’ (flogging) to induce the con scripted natives to fill the letter of the law. This may be simply an abnormal, war-time condition. Let us hope it does not reflect the attitude of the future.”