United in cultural diversity for better world tomorrow - Papua New Guinea

ONE of the most beautiful and heart warming things to see is individuals of differrent ethnicity engrossing themselves in a foreign culture with virtue. It is a deliberate attempt to close a great divide, to draw humanity together past differrences and understanding.
These acts are demonstrations of a great spirit and a humble heart. 

Let us be open to all cultures, especially of our 22 provinces. Let us bilas in a provincial bilas other than ours and singsing in their groups and learn their chants and appreciate a little of our diversity.

UNITED IN DIVERSITY FOR A BETTER WORLD!

Source: Facebook. Dilu Dee Okuk‎ - PNG Anti Corruption Movement (PNGACM)

Rabaul Play School celebrates 41 Independence

by ELIZABETH VUVU

STUDENTS of the Rabaul Play School in East New Britain celebrated the Independence Day anniversary with a cultural show yesterday.

Headmistress Relly Manning said it was important that students promoted and appreciated the culture and tradition of their provinces.

They represented and were attired in their seven traditional groups: East New Britain, Manus, Momase, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, New Ireland, Central and Eastern Highlands.

Manning said the annual programme was to educate students to value their culture.
The students exchanged baskets with their selected partners followed by a march.
Teachers and staff had been hard at work for the past weeks with students rehearsing for the big day yesterday, watched by parents and relatives.

The school is situated at Kenabot in Kokopo town. It has more than 250 students.

Source: The National

More than 100 singsing groups confirmed for the 2016 Goroka Cultural Show - "Pikinini Festival" to open the show

SINGSING groups registered for the annual 60th Goroka Cultural Show is now closed with 100. The show is scheduled for September 16-18 at Goroka in Eastern Highlands Province.

Organiser and Chairlady of Goroka Cultural Festival Keryn Hargreaves said the weekend will see 100 singsing groups displaying PNG's vibrant culture, dancing to the beats of kundu drums and tribal chants.

Hargreaves said: “We have singsing groups coming as far as Southern Highlands, Simbai, Madang, WHP, Simbu, Morobe and Southern.

“We have exciting activities like greasy pole for men and woman, greasy pig for adults and children, body building display, pony rides, traditional target shooting, wood chopping competition and a pillow fight.”

The show will kick off with the Pikinini Festival on Friday with the partners UNICEF and live performance for the children.

Activities also include police band, horse parade, Jokema shows and school parade with schools from EHP.

Other activities include floriculture and bilum display, local talents at the BSP Ampitheter and live performance by Jokema, fireworks display at the Peace Park and a Black and Red show ball.

Hargreaves also confirmed that a film crew from Hollywood will be filming the Goroka Cultural Show as well as a Chinese-based tour company coming to promote the Goroka Cultural Show.

She added that the show is already getting request for 2018 APEC Leaders’ Summit.

Dancer from Goroka

Dancer from Chimbu

Dancers from Jiwaka

  

Both young and old dancers from Simbu

Jiwaka dancer

Video: Goroka is the capital of the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. It is a town of approximately 19,000 people (2000), 1600m above sea level. It has an airport (in the centre of town) and is on the "Highlands Highway", about 285 km from Lae in Morobe province and 90 km from the nearby town of Kainantu also in the Eastern Highlands. Other nearby towns include Kundiawa in Simbu Province and Mount Hagen in Western Highlands Province. It has a mild climate, known as a "perpetual Spring".

Koroboro International School in Port Moresby starts independence celebration - with children participating in traditional dances

WHEN we were once kids, we become curious and thus curiosity takes us to clock down many things in life that we remember today. Most of them we learn by experimenting. Today's kids are no difference to those days.

Young Felipe below in traditional attire with his school mates take on the blunt challenge to try something new and this time they wanted to try a traditional dance called the "war dance" from the Ginigolo village in the Rigo District, Central Province, Papua New Guinea. 

In celebration Papua New Guinea's independence this week, the kids performed the war dance amongst many other activities that took place today at Koroboro International School in Port Moresby.

Have fun-full festive week and enjoy the celebrations!

Happy viewing!

Young Felipe in traditional attire

The war dance

At Koroboro International School for independence celebrations 

The War Dance from Ginigolo village in the Rigo District 

Kids and culture

War dance 

VIDEO: Papua New Guinea and Australia kids celebrating the 40th independence in style. Amongst many other dances, they also performed the war dance.

Video: The tribes of Papua New Guinea keep their traditions alive through participation and performance. Here young boys from Rabaul learn how to inherit their traditional dances.

Photographs courtesy of Titi Gabi. 

PNG Country Tours has a motto to encourage children to participate in cultural festival; a move for cultural preservation

ONE of the locally owned inbound tour operator specializing in cultural, bird watching and other special interest tours throughout the Highlands and other parts of Papua New Guinea (PNG), Country Tours Managing Director Wako Runi Napasu says the tour company's motto is to see every singsing group involves a child participation and they are rewarded the same as adults. 

"That's the right way to encourage and train and mould children to grow up with their culture because that's their identity," he said.

The Melanesian Way blog become interested in its motto whereby children are encourage to participate in the cultural events, be for fun or for reward, their involvement and participation is what caught the attention of this blog. The Country Tours motto is for cultural preservation through involvement of children. 

"Let's teach our children to bring our culture and traditions to the next century," writes Napasu on his Facebook wall, who hails from Tambul, Western Highlands Province. Country Tours has its office in Mt. Hagen,Western Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea. 

For bookings and enquiries with Country Tours, email: sales@countrytours.com.pg, phone: (675) 325-9309 / 542-1603 / 7676-5684 / 721 86760. 

The Wako Runi Napasu photographs below.......these children were part of a group who welcomed cruise ship passengers into Mt Hagen and Tambul from the 8-10th August 2016

Photographs: Wako Runi Napasu 

Culture and children - "Bilas tubuna pikinini"

CHILDREN and Culture! Many Papua New Guineans prefer to have their children participate in the cultural "bilas" and here in the photographs below are some exotic captures from the amazing moments from at the Walk for Life and World Youth Day Event in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea on Friday 25th, August 2016.

Photos: Youth Blood Drive Papua New Guinea - Facebook Page

Children are born into societies that indigenous culture is inevitable. Now do they grow up with their cultural heritage?

    EVERY child in Papua New Guinea (PNG) is born into a family, tribe and province that has indigenous cultural heritage. They inevitably inherit a culture through their blood linage. But with Western influence of lifestyle with modern music, dance and other forms of entertainment today they are brought into, it puts the indigenous cultural heritage at stake. 

What is the Government doing to keep our cultural heritage alive through generations? Can education system be seen as an avenue for the children to learn about Melanesian Culture?
Photos below are PNG kids having a feel of the South Pacific Games baton in their traditional attire, 2015.  

Source: Lilly PNG Magazine / Facebook Page / 2016.