Outweigh

Whiteman’s Laws Outweigh Malaita Justice

Prom Our Own Correspondent

Honiara, July 24.

MURDER story with a difference was told in Court recently in Honiara before the Judicial Commissioner (Mr. W. T. Charles) during the case of The King against Feoti of Koio, Malaita.

Feoti was charged with the murder of a young woman named Toriana. It was stated in evidence that Toriana and Fe oti lived in the same village until Toriana became a leper. She was then put out of the village, and was ordered to stay alone.

However, she would come into the vil lage and talk to people; she stole pigs and taro, and broke tambus, and her family had to pay out a good deal of money as compensation for the wrong things that she did. The villagers were angry with all her family because she would not stay alone and they were afraid that they would get leprosy.

Toriana was seen one day walking along a river bank in the Koio bush near the village, and the accused and another man were walking a little way behind.

She was never seen alive again, and her body was never identified, but a few days after she disappeared there was much distress and fright in the village because her ghost was appearing at night. The pagan priest of the village called a meet ing of all the people, and told Feoti and the other man who had been seen follow ing the girl, that if they had killed her they must admit it, and must pay 14 pigs and 14 moneys to be sacrificed to the local deity, so that the woman’s ghost would go away—otherwise the people would die.

Feoti told the priest quite cheerfully that he had killed Toriana. He said that he put a rope round her neck and strangled her because she was a nuisance and did so many wrong things, and that he would provide the pigs and money for the sacrifice.

Nobody looked for Toriana’s body when she disappeared, because she had leprosy, but nearly a year afterwards the police were taken to the foot of a big tree, where they found a complete skeleton with small delicate bones lying covered with leaves. There was no proof, how ever, that the bones were Toriana’s.

Feoti made a full confession, which it was thought might have resulted from fear of the priest. However, on being questioned again in Court, he said, “I have nothing more to say. I did it be cause she stole and ate a sacred taro. I got angry and killed her and told the headman, too.”

Because there was no proof of the woman’s actual death, Feoti was not found guilty of murder but of “an at tempt to strangle Toriana with intent to commit murder.” He was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment with hard labour.

NO evidence was given as to whether the lonely ghost was quietened by the 14 pigs and 14 moneys or whether it consented at last to go away all by itself.

Miss Mackie McCown, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. A. G. McCown of Nageledamu Point, Ovalau, Fiji, has completed her nursing training at Johns Hopkins Hos pital in the United States of America and has graduated Bachelor of Science at Johns Hopkins University. She received the degree of Bachelor of Arts from the University of Texas several years ago.