Back in the 1930's
No plastics
After plastics were introduced Charlie, took us into his village. Hanuabada is the name used for the area to the right of the Andersons. Hanuabada, however is only one village in this area.
We were lucky enough, to have our eyes opened up, we were enlightend on this day. I had lived my life knowing that, yes the rubbish situation was bad at Hanuabada but I had never experienced it myself. I was living in a bubble, going about my life not realising what was happening less than 10km away from my home.
Papua New Guineans are blessed. We come from a bountiful country, but how did we allow a situation like this arise in the capital. The capital!!! The place where it all happens, where we have all the International Aid Agencies where we have all our top politicians. How did we let this one slip under the carpet??
One answer, Greed!!! Self consumed, ego orientated and self obsessed, do they all say the same thing? I really feel for the Motu Koitabu people. All other provinces have come here and are guests here. What would we do if a whole city decided to land in our back yard. Take away the land we used to grow our food on and our hunting grounds. I don't think that we would be very happy. Just a thought.
Over time, plastics have accumulated in this area, the worst case senario that we found in here was Elevala. A beach where the sand was not visible.
How do we help in this situation? We found one rubbish bin on our travels through. No where to throw rubbish, no one to collect it.
The systems have some crashing down in this country. Not many of us care anymore, that has to change. We are a country in a stage of renewal. Lets shed the past and welcome a positive future.
12 comments:
I remember as a kid (40 years ago) walking through the black mud under the houses of Hanuabada when the main item of rubbish I trod on was tin cans. Even as a small boy I knew this litter was not right. There weren't many bottles lying around because you could get money for them. I haven't been back since a teenager, and now looking at your website I lament the worsened situation.
Could the council set up large re-cycle bins/stations located in a special spot for plastics/glass/tin or even non-recyclables? Incentives are the best motivator for participatipon - translate rubbish control into meaningful rewards - what about a system of providing government funded discount coupons at participating food stores (or cinema tickets, or school fee subsidies) per measure of waste brought in to the re-cycling/rubbish station? What about launching community 'clean-up campaigns'?
Hi, Thomas all of your suggestions are great. We are slowly working on awareness and ownership. The systems are not working in PNG and so it is the reponsilitliy of the communites to bring these incentives about. We are working on it one day at a time. It is a sad and shocking sight I know. It a situation on which the "Targedy of the commons" applies. Everyone is throwing the rubbish and their are no bins provided for the people to enven be able to throw the rubbish away. The problem is deep set and it is a matter of changing the mentality. It just shold not be allowed, it is a health hazard that needs to addressed. Step by step...
My mother just returned from HB where she went to attend to her sick and dying sister. Back in Australia now after the funeral, she expressed to me her sheer dismay and disgust at the state of not only HB Village, but also the hospital in which her sister passed away. "The hospital stinks!" she said. "It's dirty, the toilets are filthy and the staff don't care! There is no medicine for anything serious. It seems they just put a water drip in my sister and waited for her to die." She cried. How can this be? I ask. Australia gives so much money to PNG. Where is it all going? Why is the hospital in a state of disrepair? Why is the village like a dump? Why are the children playing in the rubbish instead of attending school? Why are the young village men fighting eachother, abusing their fathers and beating their mothers and sisters? These things my mother saw with her own eyes and soon I will see when I take my husband and children there at the end of this year. I feel ashamed to take my family there but I have promised my relatives and so I must. Your photographs on this site will help me prepare them for the insult on their visual senses but I know nothing will prepare them for the smell, the poverty and sense of dispair. Never mind the ‘slowly and surely’ approach, and never mind the government. The people directly affected by the mess need to take matters into their own hands. They need to work a lot more quickly, urgently, to find a way to clean up the mess and restore health and pride to this once happy and beautiful place of my childhood. The best and quickest way to get started is by launching a community clean-up campaign - raise funds for gloves, gumboots, shovels and get those villagers who have trucks to provide them to take the collected rubbish away. Then city councillors, seeing the great efforts of the villagers will be more inclined to pitch in, place mini-skips all over the village for future waste collecting and provide a collection service. It will take only one person or group to get that started, just cleaning up under and around their immediate area, then others will join in. It’s human nature. Hanuabada can be the first, then other villages will follow their example and eventually the people will have the power to claim their right to clean hospitals, good medicine etc. How can they demand these rights when it is obvious to government and the rest of the world that they really don’t care. People have gotten so used to the mess that they feel this is as good as it’s ever going to get but by God, do we know better. We know what is hidden under that rubbish heap – health, pride and happiness. Please, please clean up Hanuabada NOW!!
Pictures are worth, a thousand words! great article.
You are absolutly right and yes, I know that the work to clean up Hanuabada, Koki and other coastal communities needs to be done, and done quickly and I have been working on that. My approach is to bring attention to the importance of the environment and its protection. For Earth Day the 22nd of April we are having a big clean up on Ela Beach on the day. We have invited the whole of the Port Moresby community to come down for the day. Environmental NGO's will be showcasing their information and so forth. The aim of this day is to get the locals focused on where the rubbish comes from. It may be great to have a big clean up day but I am positive that this will highlight the need to actually stop the rubbish from arriving on the beach.
Through out this year we will be continuing to focus on the plastic marine pollution and investigating ways to solve this problem in the long run and netwoking with the wider commmuninty and organisations to solve this problem. It has to be a mental shift and has to come from the people themselves.
We are working on it.
Yes we could rush down there and clean the whole place up but if people do not fully understand or respect each other and their communities then this problem will continue.
Things are going to change but it takes time...not too long, but time is what is needed, you will see.
Come home and tell your people how you feel, they need to see that someone cares and is willing to help.
We have come up with those solutions that you suggested but the community has to take the lead. We cannot expect the government to provide anything. The people have to start to take their own initiative just like you said.
Yo man,
No one here is really from hanuabada so what are you guys talking about. This is to mebokekeni, hey we fight amongst each other bacause we have no money and when we are getting more than other people there it is, its time to put your hands up and protect your honor i will not identify myself but i along with other village people hate those dirty bastard goilalas matter of fact have shot/killed 4 and im not ashamed. They think they run our village, HELL no! We dont fight amongst each other as often as we fight against goilalas. I am only 14 but i am well known in the village for fights and all over the central region. The reason why kids are playing in rubbish is because we have no future. We smoke, we drink and do anything to keep ourselves occupied. Thats just what we are, Dirt. So we live with dirt thats just the way it goes. i know you may have not heard it like that but its true, your mother just doesnt want to talk about the village truth and she isnt the only one. You can hate it or love it but we cant change it...
Fuk da motuan gang man!!
We da real gang, Porebada nightstalkers!!
I know its you tamasi who just wrote that comment, dont try to act tough kio, we run everything down ere u hear!!
Oi be daka?!
E sinamu kiona geli geli!!
Oi heatu ouramu ah??
Okay, Baoma aviat club badinai baita heatu sinagagai...
Oiemu squad mailaia ibodiai be masem o kamonaim!!
Bona launa dia tamasi sinagai ina ia tadina junior sinamu kiona!!
Vaden anari keru keru iboumuai bo masem!!
E Porebada sinagagai oi lauegu hanua ladana oa dikaiam ah??
Sinagagai, your lucky im in australia cunt, Hanuabada 4 life u porebada small village cunts!!
Oh oh here da two natives go with the who's village is better again, my freind use to go to the same school as these 2 when they were younger and not gang affiliated with their race even though these 2 are the same race as centrals!! Come on guys cut it out you use to be freinds this is me regan remember, I was the half gabagaba and australian mix guy who always hung around you guys come on you're all the same people.
Hey I have been worked in pacific international hospital
I really like the place in new guinea.
Right now I am in California
i am searching for PNGian to get connected
I felt its my home ground.
On top of it I love hanbada
Please let me kniow if you stay in US
Bharath1948@gmail.com
Select a Community minded person to work together with the village people to improve your village health and well being. Instead of paying huge amount of money on Bride Price, donate money towards improving your village hiring a truck and volunteer to work togethers with the village people to clean the village by picking rubish and loading it on the truck to the dump.It has to start from your own house to the street.
Social Worker
From Down Under
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