People

As noted in PIM (Jul p 6), Papua New Guinea’s domestic airline Talair recently marked its 30th anniversary. The anni versary celebrations were held at the airline’s Goroka head quarters.

Briefly, Talair originated as Territory Air Lines, started in 1952 by Ray Harris and John Gray. Harris left the airline, and when Gray was tragically killed, it came under its present owner, R. D. Buchanan, MBE.

No mention of the cel ebrations would be complete without a short tribute to Dennis Buchanan.

When Bobby Gibbes of Sepik Airways wrote to his old school at Bathurst, New South Wales, and asked the headmaster if he could recommend a lad who would be interested in becom ing a traffic officer-cum-general rouseabout in Sepik Airways, Dennis Buchanan was the re commendation. Dennis made his presence felt right from the beginning: he not only was a bundle of energy in the airline but very soon had his talents at work on various other ventures he even ran a book! ‘Junior’ Buchanan (as he was and is still known to many) in a few short years became a mem ber of the Papua New Guinea Assembly; a tour operator and one of the biggest, if not the biggest, operator of a third-level airline in the world.

The sheer audacity, guts and drive of this man are quite extraordinary, and although he does not enjoy the best of health his output is phenomenal. With his operations in the Solomons and Vanuatu he is the pace setter for the area and for him the word ‘indecision’ is non existent. He does not suffer fools gladly, but the number of persons supported by his air lines is considerable but difficult to pinpoint, as he never admits to being kind-hearted.

He has gathered around him at Goroka and elsewhere in PNG a loyal and efficient team

who are all on Christian name terms with him, from the lowest to the top, and the goodwill emanating from his staff at Goroka during the functions for the 30th anniversary was quite moving.

It is a privilege, along with many others, to have rubbed shoulders with this humble but outstanding Australian.

The celebrations took place over the weekend of May 7, and visitors were flown in from many parts of PNG as well as overseas. Overseas visitors were met at Port Moresby by Adrian Nesbit, Talair’s Port Moresby manager. He and his charming wife were host and hostess on the flight to Goroka on Talair’s Bandeirante, and were met there by Dennis and members of his family and staff. Ex employees and their families came, as did Bobby and Jean Gibbes, ex-Sepik Airways, and the widow of John Gray. Bobby Gibbes, apart from being the founder of Sepik Airways, was a wartime ace and Wing Com mander in the RAAF. It was heart-warming to see how he and his wife were regularly being stopped in the street and warmly welcomed by old Papua New Guinean friends.

All guests were entertained royally at the Talair Mess and the manager, his wife and staff did a fantastic job in supplying meals, welcoming all guests, and arranging transport and accommodation without fuss and bother.

A lunch-time barbecue at the mess was honoured by the presence of Sir Julius Chan and Michael Somare and their fam ilies, all of whom had flown up from Port Moresby for the occasion.

A formal dinner-dance was held at the Bird of Paradise Hotel (originally built by Bobby and Jean Gibbes) and guests were presented with a superb buffet of traditional roast pig and a vast collection of tasty dishes. Congratulatory tele grams from all over the world were read out and Sir Julius addressed the guests. Bobby Gibbes also spoke, as did Michael Somare. Dinner was followed by lively dancing until the early hours of the morning.

All in all, it was a fantastic weekend and a tribute must be paid to Dennis Buchanan and his staff for the genuine hos

pitality and superb organis ation.

May the 60th anniversary celebrations be as great a suc cess. Katherine Paul Professor Paul Zimmet of the Royal Southern Memorial Hos pital, Melbourne, has received a grant of SUS63O 000 to study diabetes among Pacific Islanders.

The grant, to cover three years, has been made by the National Institute of Health in the United States.

Professor Zimmet will study the incidence of diabetes in various Island countries and try to identify the environment and genetic factors responsible for it.

Hilda Lini, sister of Vanuatu Prime Minister Father Walter Lini, has been appointed co ordinator of the South Pacific Commission’s Women’s Pro gramme. The appointment has not pleased the Noumea press.

Claiming that it was tanta mount to ‘deliberately introduc ing the worm into the apple’, the Noumea daily Les Nouvelles Caledoniennes recalled Hilda Lini’s support for New Caledonia’s Independence Front over recent years. The weekly Corail went further in reminding the SPC’s Secretary- General Young Vivian that em ployees of the commission should be politically neutral, and warning darkly that Corail would be keeping ‘a close watch’ on Ms Lini’s political activities. Helen Fraser in Noumea. (See also PIM Jul plO.) British High Commissioner to Fiji Viscount Dunrossil has been appointed high com missioner to Barbados. His suc cessor in Suva is Roger Barlthrop, who leaves his job as head of the Commonwealth co ordination department in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to take up the post. Mr Barlthrop has had diplomatic experience in a number of African countries, India, Tur key and the West Indies.

Nauru’s President Hammer deßoburt was in Fiji in June on a two-day official visit. He paid a courtesy call on Governor- General Ratu Sir George Cakobau, and later held talks

with Prime Minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara and govern ment ministers.

It is understood that Nauru is looking to Fiji to provide exper tise for training in a number of professions.

A former British diplomat, Michael Laidler, has been ap pointed as the European Econ omic Community’s new del egate to the South Pacific. He succeeds Eberhard Stahn, who goes to a new EEC posting in Nigeria. Mr Stahn held the Suva-based post for four years.

The new commander of Fiji’s military forces is Colonel Epelee Nai-Latiakau, who was installed in his new post at a colourful ceremony in Suva in June.

Colonel Epelee took over from a New Zealander, Briga dier lan Thorpe, who had com manded the forces for the previous two years.

Colonel Epelee is the son-in law of Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara.

High Commissioner to New Caledonia Christian Nucci has had his six-months term of office extended by three months.

Mr Nucci, a prominent Socialist deputy to France’s

Keith Jackson, a former station manager with the government broadcasting system in Papua New Guinea and later a senior officer of the PNG National Broadcasting Commission, is making a bid to enter Australian federal politics. The Australian Labor Party has endorsed him as its candidate for the Sydney seat of Mackellar. Jackson was awarded the PNG Independence Medal for services to broad casting, and since 1979 has been managing a Sydney radio station, 2SER-FM.

National Assembly, was as signed his prickly task by Presi dent Francois Mitterrand. His job has been to introduce a series of reforms which have aroused the ire of New Caledonia’s vocal conserva tives.

New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister Duncan Maclntyre re turned to full duties in June two months after underging major heart surgery. Prime Minister Robert Muldoon said Mr Maclntyre had made an excel lent recovery. He reportedly came near to death when he suffered a ruptured aorta on April 7 this year.

Rarotongans have rallied to assist 16-year-old Cook Islands schoolgirl Tipani Camming who was partly, paralysed in a swim ming accident in Rarotonga earlier this year.

Pledges amounting to SNZIOOO were quickly made.

The government said it would contribute a further $lOOO. The money will be used to buy special equipment to help Tipani’s rehabilitation. She has been under treatment at a spinal unit in Auckland.

Jacques lekawe of New Caledonia has been appointed director of the next South Pacific Festival of Arts, sched uled to be held in his country in 1984.

Mr lekawe heads a com mittee which plans to publish a quarterly review of Pacific artis tic and cultural life, as well as festival preparations.

The Western Samoan Cabinet has appointed Faamatuainu Tala Mallei as the government’s new senior commissioner to the South Pacific Commission. He takes over from Leota Ituau who has been in the job for the past two years.

The new commissioner is a former MP and public service commissioner in Western Samoa.

Papua New Guinea’s High Commissioner to Fiji, Dr Ako Toua, has been appointed direc tor of the Pacific Regional Advisory Service, which is based in Fiji. The service is a Commonwealth funded unit

within the South Pacific Bureau for Economic Co-operation, and helps developing countries in the region to obtain assistance from experts in other countries.

Dr Toua was to have re creational leave in PNG before taking up his new post.

His successor as high com missioner is Naime Doko, who has been counsellor at PNG‘s Tokyo embassy for the past three years.

On retiring after seven years as Chief Justice of the Cook Islands, Sir Gaven Donne had a few weeks in his native New Zealand, but then returned to take up his new post as Queen’s Representative in the Cooks.

Sir Gaven will fulfil this role similar to that of Governor- General for the first year, which began on June 26.

Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Dr Pupuke Robati visited New Zealand and Aus tralia in June. He was ac companied by Cooks Public Service Commissioner Richard Chapman.

During their visits the two men had talks with senior gov ernment officials on matters affecting the Cooks public ser vice.

They also visited Cook Islands students on scholarship courses in the two countries.

Tevita Lupeitu’u, 50, is the first Tongan to be appointed one of the three managers of the Bank of Tonga.

He has become the bank’s personnel, services and adminis tration manager. The overseas and lending managers are re spectively Anthony Killingback and lan Mackay.

Tevita was in the Tongan civil service for 22 years before joining the bank on its forma tion in 1974.

Frank Hoy, manager of the Tuvalu Philatelic Bureau, was made an MBE in the 1982 Queen’s Birthday Honours.

Also honoured was Metusela Neia, a retired Tuvaluan public servant, who was awarded the

Bem.

Josefata Kamikamica, general manager of Fiji’s Native Land Trust Board, was honoured with

a CMG in the Queen’s Birthday Honours. He headed a list of 33 people in Fiji in the honours.

Taveuni copra planter Adrian Rood Tarte was awarded a CBE, and the outgoing com mander of the Royal Fiji Mili tary Forces, Brigadier lan Thorpe, a CBE (Military).

A long-serving medical officer, Dr Alan Harry Pennington, a Ba company di rector and cane farmer, LJday Singh, and Adi Litia Tavanavanua, from the chiefly island of Bau, received OBEs.

The OBE (Military) was awarded to Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Kikau Tuivanuavou, commanding officer of the Fiji Battalion serving in Lebanon.

Shell Fiji Ltd will have a local chief executive from the end of the year. Saimoni Lutu, 39,

becomes the company’s general manager from December 1. He succeeds Swain Christian, who will return to Australia.

Mr Lutu, an engineer, joined the company on a Shell scholar ship in 1963. After completing engineering studies in Austra lia, he returned to Fiji and worked for Shell in various capacities. He spent two years in New Zealand on marketing assignments and did similar work during a year’s service in Melbourne.

While in Melbourne Mr Lutu helped with the formation of Shell Fiji as a locally incorpor ated company. Since February, 1980, Mr Lutu has been deputy general manager and resident director of Shell Fiji.

In her homeland of Niue, Mrs Lagitafuke Viliko was never one for sitting on the sidelines.

She clocked up a number of ‘firsts’ in her 32 years as a

primary school teacher on the island, but she was not content to rest on her laurels when she retired in 1971 and came to New Zealand. ‘I suppose I have always been one for getting involved in things,’ Mrs Viliko said. ‘Getting involved in things’ has led to her appointment as an officer of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List for ser vices to the people of Niue.

Having kept quiet about the appointment for two weeks Mrs Viliko was feeling a ‘bit embar rassed’ when her workmates at an Onehunga woollen mill found out she now had OBE after her name. ‘My boss called me into his office and told me to sit down,’ she said. ‘} was really worried that something had happened to my family or I had done something wrong, until he told me he had found out about the award.’

Mrs Viliko was nominated for the appointment by the Niuean Advisory Council, of which she is a member and leader of its cultural group.

She is also president of the Niuean women’s section of Pacifica and president of the Relief Society of the Mormon Church in Mangere.

Mrs Viliko served on the board of governors of Nga Tapuwae College for a term and advises schools on Polynesian issues. ‘Teaching was my life,’ said Mrs Viliko, who was an organis ing teacher for a large part of her career, supervising European schoolmistresses in infant schools on the island.

She went twice to New Zea land to attend courses.

The year Mrs Viliko retired to New Zealand with her fam ily, she saw the full respons ibility for the running of Niuean schools handed over from the New Zealand Government to the island’s government.

Mrs Viliko said she was dedicated to retaining the tra ditions of her own people in New Zealand. ‘1 would like to uplift the culture of my Niuean people in New Zealand and see them retain their traditions es pecially the language,’ she said.

New Zealand Herald.

Saimoni Lutu