Description
His book compares the two sides of New Guinea: the independent country of Papua New Guinea (PNG) and the West New Guinea (WNG) that forms a part of the Republic of Indonesia.
By sharing the same island there are many similarities that apply to both sides such as the ethnic makeup in the eastern and western halves of New Guinea. Yet differences exist: geologies and geographies underlie some basic difference: outward maritime trade routes in the west focus toward the Moluccas while those in the east look towards the South Pacific. The inland trade routes are similar in the highlands following the dictates of the rugged terrain. Stone blades for axes and adzes were among the most important trade items everywhere, along with salt from local saline pools. The island’s Babel of over 1,100 languages has prevented any large-scale political entities. And while the art styles show some similarities, marked differences are found in the east and the west.
The colonisation process defines much of the current differences between the two sides. The west was colonised by the Dutch as part of their East Indies domain, now Indonesia. In the east, the British and the Germans were the first to take possession, with Australia taking over the entire west after 1914. Treatment of the Papuans differed considerably. In the west, it was almost complete neglect as the Dutch were mostly interested in the productive money generating parts of the East Indies, lacking in West New Guinea. In what became Papua New Guinea, working in plantations and gold mining depended on cheap Papuan labor, with their treatment showing considerable variation.
World War II affected the two sides quite differently. The Japanese juggernaut rolled over the north coast of West New Guinea, then that of PNG before being stopped in the Solomon Islands. The expulsion of the Japanese took nearly three years on the PNG side but only a few months in WNG. This difference had profound effects, quite different on the two sides. The post war history in PNG headed for eventual independence in 1975 while WNG came to resemble an Indonesian colony with practically no political voice for the Papuans. Only a rebel movement contests Indonesian hegemony.
The last chapter on mining shows the differences between the two sides on this most important element of their economies. Basic land ownership, individual and clan rights cause many problems in PNG while Indonesian control negated any difficulties for any mining approved by the central government in Jakarta.
About the author
Dr Muller spent 22 years working and living with two Papuan groups, allowing him access to excellent relations with not just the people but also prominent academics and scientists and their resources.
Table of Contents
1. Geology ………………………………………………………….1
Bibliography ………………………………………………8
2 Geography.………………………………………………..9
The main geographical features………………………………….. 13
Towns and roads in the highlands and coasts……………………………13
The main geographical features: mountains,
rivers, and lakes………………………………………………15
The mountains………………………………………………15
The rivers……………………………………………… 19
The lakes……………………………………………… 25
The offshore islands……………………………………………… 29
The PNG archipelagos……………………………………………… 30
The WNG archipelago……………………………………………… 31
Dolak Island……………………………………………… 32
PNG island provinces and WNG north
coast islands ……………………………………………… 33
Towns and roads, highways, and coasts……………………………………………… 35
The PNG Highlands……………………………………………… 35
WNG Highlands……………………………………………… 36
PNG coastal towns……………………………………………… 37
WNG coastal towns and the hinterland……………………………………………… 39
PNG south coast……………………………………………… 41
WNG south coast……………………………………………… 42
Bibliography ……………………………………………… 46
3 New Guinea Languages: Babel on an island.…………………………………………….. 47
Grouping New Guinea cultures……………………………………………… 51
Malayo-Polynesians and the Lapita culture ………………………………………………53
The Papuan languages (or Non-Austronesian NAN……………………………………………… 57
Police Motu and Pidgin English (Tok Pisin………………………………………………59
Bibliography ……………………………………………… 63
4 Cultures of New Guinea……………………………………………… 65
Some cultural similarities and differences
in New Guinea ……………………………………………… 69
Changes: evolution and revolution……………………………………………… 71
Social structure and leadership ………………………………………………73
Cannibalism, headhunting and homosexuality ………………………………………………75
Warfare ……………………………………………… 79
Role of women………………………………………………81
Cargo cults………………………………………………83
Land rights ………………………………………………84
Sorcery and witchcraft……………………………………………… 85
Ritual exchanges………………………………………………86
Trade (See also our chapters 6 and 7………………………………………………87
Bibliography ……………………………………………… 91
5 Art in New Guinea: east and west compared……………………………………………… 99
Collecting art in north-east (German)
New Guinea………………………………………………105
North-west New Guinea (Dutch………………………………………………111
The Sepik area ………………………………………………112
From the Sepik to Madang and on to the
Huon Gulf………………………………………………113
The Massim cultural area ………………………………………………114
Art of the Papuan Gulf………………………………………………115
Asmat and Kamoro art surviving………………………………………………116
Art and Christianity………………………………………………118
Bibliography ………………………………………………120
6 Maritime trade networks ……………………………………………… 127
The Dongson Connection………………………………………………131
Early trade in western New Guinea ………………………………………………133
Trade with Tidore, Seram and the Dutch………………………………………………137
Dutch control established………………………………………………141
Trade in bird-of-paradise skins and plumes. ………………………………………………141
Maritime trade in PNG………………………………………………143
Torres Strait–Kiwai trade ………………………………………………145
The ‘Hiri’ of the Motu ………………………………………………146
Mailu Island: boundary and transition………………………………………………148
The ‘Kula’ trade cycles renowned, intricate,
elaborate—and magical. ………………………………………………149
Trade in the southern Massim area………………………………………………150
Huon Gulf trading………………………………………………150
Traders of the Vitiaz Strait………………………………………………151
The Schouten network and the Murik middlemen………………………………………………153
Manus and other long-distance sea trade area ………………………………………………154
Bibliography ………………………………………………156
7 Inland Trade ……………………………………………… 163
The role of geography………………………………………………169
Trade from the west to the highlands of West
New Guinea………………………………………………171
Highlands salt: production and trade………………………………………………173
Stone axes and adzes: the essential highlands tools………………………………………………177
Pigs: turning cheap sweet potatoes to valuable protein………………………………………………181
Difference between trade and exchange………………………………………………185
Bibliography ………………………………………………188
8 Exploring New Guinea ……………………………………………… 191
The Dutch explorers………………………………………………195
British and French explorers………………………………………………197
Major differences in the explorations between the
west and the east………………………………………………199
To the east of the Baliem Valley………………………………………………203
Further contrasts in the follow-ups to explorations………………………………………………205
Exploration accounts for New Guinea (also see our
bibliography………………………………………………207
Publications on explorations in PNG ………………………………………………209
Bibliography ………………………………………………213
9 WW II……………………………………………… 225
Essential background………………………………………………229
Japan’s blitzkrieg from Singapore to New Guinea
and the Solomon Islands………………………………………………229
The war turns: the Battle of the Coral Sea, the
Kokoda Trail and Milne Bay ………………………………………………233
Papuans during the war………………………………………………239
Papuans meet very different kinds of Australians………………………………………………243
Black Americans and endless ‘cargo………………………………………………245
The Papuan Infantry Battalion (PIB………………………………………………247
The second phase of the war after Kokoda and
Milne Bay………………………………………………247
The end of WW II in PNG………………………………………………249
The war in West New Guinea ………………………………………………251
Task Force Hurricane at the Battle of Biak………………………………………………255
West New Guinea and PNG: Papuan contrasts………………………………………………257
The Papuans and the Dutch resistance in West
New Guinea………………………………………………258
The end of WWII ………………………………………………260
Bibliography ………………………………………………272
10 Post WW II 1949 to 1969: Two decades that
achieved Indonesian control in WNG ……………………………………………… 275
Two different colonies………………………………………………277
Shifting the capital city and changing officials………………………………………………279
Pro-Indonesian and anti-Dutch problems………………………………………………285
Indonesian politics and West New Guinea ………………………………………………287
Eurasians………………………………………………289
Dutch vs. Indonesian arguments………………………………………………289
Other Dutch reasons………………………………………………291
Failure at the United Nations and expropriations………………………………………………293
A Melanesian commonwealth for all New Guinea? ………………………………………………295
Operation Trikora: Indonesian military attacks………………………………………………297
The New Guinea Council………………………………………………301
The New York Agreement ends the hostilities………………………………………………304
The Dutch exodus, the UN transition, and Indonesian
take-over………………………………………………305
Armed resistance to Indonesia: the OPM
(Organisasi Papua Merdeka………………………………………………306
The 1969 Act of Free Choice or the Act of No Choice ………………………………………………307
FUNDWI………………………………………………309
Freeport Indonesia begins mining in WNG………………………………………………311
Bibliography ………………………………………………312
11 Colonialism in NG: Dutch, British, German,
Australian and Indonesian……………………………………………… 317
Colonialism in New Guinea………………………………………………321
Land rights ………………………………………………323
Racism………………………………………………325
Politics………………………………………………328
Bibliography ………………………………………………329
12 PNG to Independence……………………………………………… 333
Education………………………………………………337
Political Progress: the Legislative Council ………………………………………………339
Three House Assemblies………………………………………………343
A constitution for PNG ………………………………………………345
Holding PNG together: keeping a lid on separatism………………………………………………347
Bougainville and other problem areas………………………………………………347
The Mataungan Association of the Gazelle Peninsula
(New Britain………………………………………………349
The economy………………………………………………351
The Panguna mine………………………………………………353
Cash crops and the Highlands Highway ………………………………………………354
The government bureaucracy and other Australian
jobs………………………………………………355
The judiciary (including village courts) ………………………………………………356
The land problem ………………………………………………358
The Papua New Guinea Defense Force (PNGDF………………………………………………359
Bibliography ………………………………………………360
13 Recent Developments in New Guinea .…………………………………………….. 367
Publications in PNG ………………………………………………371
Why is there little international pressure on Indonesia
to reform in West New Guinea………………………………………………373
Recent OPM activities ………………………………………………375
The Melanesian Spearhead Group ………………………………………………381
The Indonesian military (ABRI) and the Papua
New Guinea Defense Force (PNGDF………………………………………………385
The Papuan Spring: 1998–2001. ………………………………………………391
Diminishing powers of the DAP………………………………………………395
On the international scene………………………………………………397
Special Autonomy ………………………………………………399
Undermining special autonomy: divide and rule ………………………………………………405
PNG politics: much dividing and little ruling ………………………………………………408
The PNG Parliament: power, corruption, and
endless politics………………………………………………410
PNG and WNG elections………………………………………………412
Elections in WNG ………………………………………………414
Decentralization: an ongoing experiment………………………………………………415
Diverging economies………………………………………………416
A hoodwinked, deluded Australian………………………………………………418
Bibliography ………………………………………………421
14 MINING IN WNG and PNG……………………………………………… 427
The Bulolo gold rush………………………………………………431
The importance of mining ………………………………………………435
Mining at sacred sites………………………………………………437
Geology and geography………………………………………………441
Mining and the environment………………………………………………443
How to split the pie? Compensation to landowners at
Freeport ………………………………………………447
Compensations in PNG………………………………………………452
The problem of immigrants to the Freeport mine site ………………………………………………453
Mining communities in PNG………………………………………………455
Endless problems at the Porgera mine ………………………………………………456
Mine security: company guards, police, military,
and human rights abuses………………………………………………460
Panguna: the worst mining-related security tragedy
of all………………………………………………462
Addenda for early 2023 ………………………………………………463
Update for Freeport Indonesia ………………………………………………463
Freeport Indonesia social work ………………………………………………464
Update for PNG……………………………………………………………..466
Bibliography ………………………………………………………………468
BIBLIOGRAPHY …………………………………………………………….. 473
