sensitivity

Culture and sensitivity

Dear Sir This is in response to some parts of Peter Walker’s letter in Pacific

Islands Monthly (January, 1997)

which I find very insulting because they were directed at me. I will not comment on his views regarding the environment and conservation etc, because my posi tion on this issue was clear in my last let ter.

I assure Walker I have never in my life “buried my head in the sand” as he insinuated. I am aware of current events affecting most Pacific countries, espe cially my homeland Kiribati. As an I- Kiribati, I find Walker’s figurative phrase “... as deep in the sand as Timeon loane does his head” extremely offen sive. I understand what he means accord ing to his cultural views and interpreta tions.

To me, however, mentioning some one’s head in such a manner, even in a figurative sense, is a direct challenge to the person’s name and honour. The per son making the bold statement (in this case Walker) should be ready to back up his words with deeds. The other person (myself in this case) should be ready to defend and regain his honour and digni ty and to restore his maligned named.

This is because I-Kiribati (including

myself) regard the person - espeecially the head - as sacred. Therefore, Waalker’s statement - even if it’s a figure of sspeech - really hurts me.

I find it amazing that peoplee like Walker would come to the islands?, stay for two or more years and become self appointed experts on the protection of the environment or contemporary cul ture. I will never do anything like that if I stay in England or in Hawaii (as I am right now because of schooling) for the same number of years.

When people, like Walker, try to sub tly impose their values that are alien on another society, I think it is an act of arrogance and smacks of cultural imperi alism. To Walker, Pacific Islanders who kill turtles are an ignorant group.

Therefore, they need people like him to save them from their “destructive” cus toms and traditions or they will perish from the face of the universe.

Apparently, Walker is one of those people whose main concern (among the numerous ones he has) is the welfare and well-being of the turtles. I have no prob lem with that; it is his business.

However, it is the ultimate indignity, insult, and humiliation when he com pares an entire group of people to ani mals because these people have “mind lessly” killed turtles for food. I can only comment on behalf of my fellow I- Kiribati. In applying his comparison or analogy, many I-Kiribati would qualify as animals because they sometimes carry out “mindless” killings of turtles for food. To me, this clearly shows Walker as someone who considers himself as possessing higher and worthier values, and probably considers those with dissi miliar values barbarians or worse.

I thought this attitude had gone into the rubbish heap of colonial history, but obviously it has not.

Finally, I would like to reiterate my point that I made in my last letter. In Kiribati, as I believe in most other Pacific nations, the family and the larger

community are the most important things

in life.

Timeon loane

Honolulu Hawaii