The leaders
p. 24 · Read in the full issue
say ...
What the New Hebrides leaders said in welcoming the festival: Chief Minister Father Gerard Leymang: ‘This first festival, our festival, is a very special
opportunity to appreciate our
culture in its entirety. All the best works of art of the archi pdago of the New Hebrides will be gathered together for a few days in Port Vila. Far more than an artistic exhibition, this festival on the eve of our independence takes on a sym bolic value. It is the living
image of our unity and of the rich variety of its roots.’
Deputy Chief Minister Father
Walter Uni: ‘Last year Fr Gerard Leymang as minister for social affairs laid plans for the New Hebrides National Arts Festival to be held in 1979.
Fr Leymang is now chief minister and I am minister for social affairs and we both feel very strongly that a National Arts Festival will not only bring together many of the varied arts and traditions of our country but it will also help to bring the people themselves closer together at a time when
the challenge of independence
is facing us all.’
Men from the New Hebrides’ Shepherd Islands, now living In Vila, build temporary accommodation for Festival visitors. Photo: Chris tine Coombe.