Aust’s dark,

secret past

The sentencing of the three West New Britain men was another dis turbing reminder to many in Papua New Guinea and Australia of PNG’s first major hanging some 53 years ago at the Higaturu government station in the Northern province.

It was at Higaturu, on July 5, 1943, where more than 60 Papua New Guinean Orokaivans were hanged by the Australian army for allegedly collaborat ing with the Japanese in the deaths of 14 Europeans and those of mixed-race, including Anglican missionaries.

While some young Orokaivans are still angered by allegations that they were not

properly tried, there was also some degree of agitation among some Australians against any efforts to revive memories of what appears to be one of the darkest spots in the history of the Australian army.

Although the event will be 54 years old on July 5, 1997, it remains to be the least-publicised event of all time, as far as the history of the war in PNG is con cerned.

Up to this day, no one knows exactly how many locals were hanged by the army in Higaturu as well as in Bwagaola on Misima Island, Milne Bay province, on February 9, 1944 and in Aitape, Lae, Rabaul, Port Moresby and in the Sepik in the same period. Questions abound as to the length of the trials, translation facili ties and whether there was any counsel for the accused.

Barry Jones, MP in the Australian fed eral parliament, claimed that such details could not be established because the fdes

relating to the hangings were never made public. He said in parliament that the files were missing from all archive deposito ries in Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Melbourne and Port Moresby.

“They (archives) have all been destroyed by some miraculous coinci dence. I think this illustrates what I’ve sometimes called the ‘avoidance syn drome’ - the marked unwillingness of Australians to face unpleasant issues directly or to explain their actions fully,”

Jones said, claiming that his queries touched some raw nerves among the Australian public. “I received more hate mail after this speech than any other issue,” he said Efforts are being made by some Orokaivans to dig up the truth. Their research so far has indicated that there were more Orokaivans executed than the official figure of seven recorded by the army. ■