P-NG Party

And What of the Sepik?

P-NG Party Is "Dead"

From a Port Moresby Correspondent Papua-New Guinea’s first ano

so far only political party, the

United Progress Party, seems to be dead and buried—at least foi the life of the 1961-64 Legis lative Council. fpHAT half of the six elected Euro A pean members now in Counci stood on the Party ticket is now helc to be in spite of the Party rathen than because of it. (Two of them were elected unopposed).

What leaks out from the private meetings of these six elected members is that there, too, the Party is re garded as a dead duck. Indications are that, as in the past, these elected members will show a united front on vital questions and that Party affilia tions won’t come into it.

Although some thought and pre-, paration may have gone into the formation of the Party, it always appeared to be a spur-of-the-moment job, born during the Legislative Council meeting of October 1960, out of the political uncertainty of that time.

Didn't Want It Few Territorians were convinced that any sort of a political party was necessary at this time; and the way I they voted gave emphasis to that opinion.

It was formed by Don Barrett, I R. F. Bunting and Simogun Peta, All were MFC’s at that time. None of them now is. Mr. Barrett was beaten in the New Britain electorate by Mr.

I. L. Chipper. Simogun, who had been a nominated member in the last Council, stood as native candidate for the New Guinea mainland elec torate and was beaten by Simoi Sigob, of Finschhafen.

Mr. Bunting was also a nominated member of the last Council. He did not offer himself as an elected mem ber in the present Council, and did not secure a seat as a nominated member either—in the circumstances not surprising, as the Administration was unlikely to offer this to anyone affiliated with a political party.

Amongst the political accidents that befell these three founding members

(Continued on p. 143)

of the Party, the most unfortunate was that which embroiled Simogun.

Under existing conditions, the huge Sepik district of 28,000 square miles is virtually disfranchised—as was pointed out at the April meeting of the Council by Mr. Lloyd Hurrell in whose electorate (New Guinea main land), the Sepik is. There are abour 800 Europeans in the Sepik, not suf ficient perhaps to warrant a European member for themselves, although this figure does not fall much, if any, short of the European population of New Guinea Islands and Eastern Papua electorates.

But there are 251,000 natives, and in the present Council their only rep resentative is Bonjui, one of the two nominated native members chosen to represent the “less advanced native population”.

It was stated in an official hand out that Bonjui lived at Korogo, near Ambunti, on the Sepik River, and exerts an influence over the 12,000 people of the Burui-Kunai and Chambri Lakes area.

That leaves about 240,000 people living in other parts of the Sepik where his writ doesn’t run—and where they are unlikely to have even heard of him.

Although it is next door to im possible to get anyone in the less developed districts of P-NG who can even remotely be described as a dis trict figure, it seems obvious that a huge area like the Sepik would have been better served by having an ad vanced native in the Council to speak for it, than to have one who is known only around the Pagui school area and the Chambri Lakes.

Bonjui, of course, doesn’t represent only the “less advanced” natives of the Sepik, but is one of two members

o represent all “less advanced” iple of the whole of Papua and w Guinea. t might have been a better scheme have a “very advanced” native— leone like Papua’s Reuben Taureka o is ambitious to weld P-NG into “nation”—to represent backward pie. And to chase him off often ugh amongst them for all con ied to learn about one another.