Johnson Cult

No Swift End To

New Guinea's Odd

By Leslie Murphy, Reuters Correspondent, on New Hanover.

Thousands of natives on this beautiful tropic island still be lieve that America’s President Johnson will lead them into a

taxless, idyllic future.

THEY cling to this belief despite strenuous efforts by the Papua- New Guinea Administration to con vince them that they must take their part in building for the future.

The Johnson Cult, as it is known, still flourishes on this small island, 30 miles off the eastern tip of New Ireland, in Papua-New Guinea.

The natives believe that when President Johnson comes to rule them (there is no if, they are sure he will come) they will receive great wealth.

They believe he will give them planes, ships, cars, money and fine clothes.

New Hanover measures 30 miles long by 20 miles across, has a popu lation of 8,000, and between 3,000 and 4,000 of them are active fol lowers or sympathisers of this strange cult.

The leaders of the cult, Oliver, 40, and Robin, 28, have lived in hiding on Tsoi Island, six miles away, for two years and are still at large despite Administration attempts to hunt them down. Their followers know where to find them. There are 300 natives on Tsoi.

Cult Not Violent

The cultists are non-violent. There have been no riots or killings on New Hanover for several years. But on any day of the year you can find 50 to 100 cultists in the island’s gaol.

Most of them are there for tax evasion. The cultists refuse to co operate with Australian officials and claim they will recognise only Presi dent Johnson as their leader.

They are refusing to pay a head tax of $7.50 each to their local government council because the council system was sponsored by Australian policies on the island.

They say they have made a promise to God that they will never pay tax to Australia, Almost all of them are Christians and they say they cannot go back on their word.

Administration officials find it hard to talk to them.

“You think you are getting to them,” says the District Commissioner for the area, Mr. H. P. Seale, “then you mention the word tax and that is the finish.”

Perhaps the reason for the absence of violence among the cultists is the number of police on the island. There are 15 at Taskul alone, and when tax patrols move through the island, squads of riot police are brought across from New Ireland.

They are also present during the court hearings while tax evaders are being tried.

New Hanover people have always

had a reputation for being trouble some and uncooperative, right from the days of the first German settlers on the island.

Now they have adopted a sullen attitude to Administration officials and show little sign of dropping their cargo cult beliefs, District Officer on the island, Mr.

Bob Hoad, says the people seem to regard themselves almost as martyrs, “They will accept anything we do.

They don’t try to stop us. But they won’t do anything themselves. They will not participate in any community project,” he says, “Their attitude is one of passive political resistance.” (Over)

As the only non-cultist who can talk to the two fugitive leaders Robin and Oliver, at their island hideout. Mr. Stephen Taong has be come one of the key figures in the battle to overcome the Johnson Cult.

Mr. Taong, 29, is president of the Lavongai local government council.

Much of his time is spent in travel ling to the villages where the cult is most active. He always goes alone.

When Taong wants to talk to Robin and Oliver he passes a message to some of the other villagers on Tsoi. A meeting place in the bush is then arranged. Taong is taken there alone and sits down tO' wait for Robin or Oliver, whichever one he is to see. Sometimes he is away for two days.

“I have given them my word I will not tell anyone where we meet,” he says. “Our meetings are always friendly. We usually have dinner then sit down and have long talks about the cult, the government and the council. Sometimes some of Robin’s or Oliver’s followers come to listen too.”

An Improvement

Taong says he feels sure Oliver will pay his tax next year and join the local council, but Robin still re tains his very strong cult beliefs.

“But the people are much better now than they were before,” he says.

“They are good people but they just have these bad ideas in their minds.

I am trying to change their thinking and bring them into our council so we can work together.”

The reputed founder of the John son Cult. Bos Mailik, 22, now lives and works on the Administration patrol post at Taskul, on New Hanover.

Bos served four months in gaol earlier this year for his part in cult activities and since his release three months ago he has renounced all cult beliefs.

The handsome Mailik is a black Marlon Brando. There is a facial resemblance and Mailik has a similar way of speaking and some of the same mannerisms.

Bos shows none of the characteristic shyness of the typical native, whose only answer to questions often is only a shrug or a grin.

When I met him at Taskul, Bos said: “I suppose they have told you about me: That I was the man who started the Johnson Cult and that I have been in gaol for four months.

“But I did not start it off. I was just one of a whole group of people who decided we wanted to be ruled by President Johnson.”

Bos said this decision had been

made at the time of the 1964 elec tions for the territory’s first House of Assembly.

“We were given the names of six native men and told we must vote for one of them.

“But then we thought maybe we don’t want to elect a black man, maybe we should vote for a Euro pean. Then we thought maybe we would like a European from America.

We thought we would like the American leader to rule us too.

“We knew about President Ken nedy, but we knew he was dead so we thought President Johnson would be the man,” Bos said.

Bos said at that time his people had known a lot about America. The priest at the Roman Catholic mission at Lavongai, where the cult started, was an American and a group of Americans working on a geodetic survey had just spent several weeks in the area.

Several of the older men, includ ing Oliver, had fought beside the Americans during the war. Bos said it had not been his idea that instead of paying tax the people should save up their money to buy President Johnson.

Bos cannot see the cargo cult being broken down swiftly.