papua new guinea is a pretty stunning place on loads of levels, i was there for a month and i left with mixed feelings about the place as my last week was spent in the capital, port moresbey which isn't the world's most delightful place - tell ya why later.
papua new guinea really is the last frontier in terms of traditional culture getting swallowed up by all things western. there are about 1500 languages spoken in the world, over half of them are spoken in PNG, population 5 million.
each tribe has their own language, or wontok, which links them to their kin, where-ever they happen to be. this kin system is the basis for a part cashless economy where people trade favours within their tribe by doing work or giving goods or part or their wealth to the other members of the tribe.
it has loads of spin-offs, some good, some bad. it means that people can live off the land and don't need so much cash. each tribe will have people with certain things to offer the others, from excess bananas to coffee to some of their earnings. at its best the wontok system is a kind of community based socialism where everyone is looked after. at its worst the system is the basis for inter-tribal disputes, political corruption and nepotism. the wontok system is all about doing well for your tribe, even at the expense of others.
the white man is a very recent addition to PNG - some tribes still haven't been 'discovered' and many others saw their first white settlers/visitors in the last 50 years. the sadly predictable scramble for western goods and hard currency has led more people away from their wontoks to the cities and towns which has a lot of bad spin-offs. if you leave the tribe to go to the city, you have to come back with something for your wontok. those that don't do well in the cities are stuck between the shame of returning to their tribe empty hand and drifting into crime etc. in the city - the later is one of the main root causes of violent street gangs of robbers in PNG - they exist outside the tribal system and engage in everything from gang-rape to machine gun toting hold-ups. these rascals and political corruption where public money disappears routinely are PNG's two biggest problems from where I was standing.
the heartbreaking thing is that PNG is a truly beautiful place with really friendly people who really enjoy life. then there's the stunning scenery.
people in PNG don't go hungry as they mostly live on their own tribal lands, you rarely see people begging on the streets and there are plenty of natural resources.
i was there when PNG celebrated 25 years of independence after being handed back bu australia in a real hurry. there was a lot of talk when I was there about PNG's problems which is probably why I ended up getting steeped in the whole thing.
overall PNG is great but you can't help spending time there without encountering the ails affecting the country. any trip there won't be a theme park, you'll have to put with a few risks but overall it is definitely a place worth seeing. there isn't anywhere quite like it or so everyone swears!
the picture is me at goroka fair with a tribesman painted up for the occasion. i didn't know whether to hunker down or stay standing straight as i didn't want to cause offense!
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