Carming - Hanging-Pirating and Writing

Writing in the Solomons

• Farmers in heavily popula ted areas of the Solomons have been urged to learn the use of fertilisers to prevent deterio ration of the quality of their soil. The quarterly magazine.

Agricola, published by the

Ministry of Agriculture and

Lands, has said that use of fer

tilisers is especially important

in areas where crops have been planted for many years without rotation.

The magazine’s editor, Mr Keith Sanders, noted that some farmers in coastal areas are now moving inland looking for better land. This would not be necessary if fertilisers were used.

Agricola aims to publicise

the activities of the ministry, and to let its staff and extension officers in the field know what is being done throughout the country.

• Among early important

business to be discussed by the National Parliament of the independent Solomon Islands will probably be the rein troduction of the death penalty for murder. In a free vote in April, the old Legislative As sembly voted 17 to 16, with five members either abstaining or absent, in favour of restoring the death penalty. But it was thought unlikely that the mat ter would come up again, as re

quired by law, before

independence.

Hanging was abolished in the Solomons in the 19505. The assembly vote makes the Solomons the second country in the Pacific to move towards its reintroduction. Tonga has kept it, Fiji has reintroduced it, and there were recently sub missions made to the Papua New Guinea Government to bring it back. But there has been no parliamentary vote in that direction in PNG.

Background to the Solomons move is a number of recent unsolved murders in the country.

Speaking to his private

motion, David Kausimae (West Are Are), said: “If such a law is not reintroduced it

means that we are not respect ing our culture. According to Solomon Islands culture if any one kills a person he must pay for the life of that person, or someone related to him must be killed or otherwise pay com pensation.”

The Chief Minister, Mr Kenilorea, said that his govern ment had agreed on a free vote on the motion.

“Personally I feel the timing of the motion is not appropri ate. In reintroducing the death

penalty we are legitimising murder.”

The slim margin by which the Kausimae motion was adopted by the assembly suggests that its eventual out come is far from assured. • Fred Maedola, Solomon Islands singing star (PIM. May 1977, p 14), is “being robbed,” the Solomon Islands Broad casting Corporation has reported. Someone in Honiara is selling cassette tapes pirated from his original cassettes made in Australia by the music company, Living Sounds.

A company representative, Fraser Hickox, visiting Honiara, found many of Fred’s works in shops, apparently

imported from Singapore.

This means that some one has copied Maedola’s cassette on to other cassettes and is sell ing them at a fairly big profit without paying Fred his royal ties.

Living Sounds, which sells Maedola’s cassettes under the “Sing Sing Label”, is also

losing money.

Mr Hickox said Maedola should receive about 60 cents for each cassette sold. So far in the Solomon Islands only about 300 original cassettes have been sold.

The pirated copies might

have sold more.

Mr Hickox said he would see the Attorney-General in order to get government to inves tigate the matter. He wants action taken to protect Maedola’s interest. This could be done by government insist ing that whoever imports the pirated cassettes should pay Maedola 60 cents for each one sold.

People can recognise the pi

rate or stolen cassettes from their plain glass cases, he said. • A Solomon Islands Writers’ and Artists’ Associ ation was set up early this year to encourage Solomon Islanders interested in writing, painting and other creative arts. The association also aims to foster preservation of the best aspects of the Solomons’ traditional cultural heritage.

The founding meeting was

chaired by Mr Hugh Paia, per manent secretary of the Minis try of Education and Cultural Affairs. Mr Stephen Oxenham, a volunteer from the New Zealand Volunteer Services Abroad, who works for the University of the South Pacific centre in Honiara, will edit

journals to be published by the

association.

David Kausimae... not respecting our culture.

Fred Maedola... pirates' victim.