PNG Gossip Newsletter - 26 August 2006

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Neo Melanesian

"Pidgin English"

Tok Pisin English
tok / toktok talk / conversation / say / word
tok baksait gossip about
tok bilas ridicule
tok bilong bipo yet fable / myth
tok bilong ol tumbuna tradition of ancestors
tok bokis secret language / parable
tok grisim flatter
tok gude greet
tok gumi tall tale
tok hait secret
tok insait conscience
tok pait controversy
tok ples local language
tok tru speak the truth / truth
tokautim sin confess
tokim tell
toksave / tok save long explain advertisement / information
toktok long talk about
toktok wantaim converse with
tokwin rumour
 
Interested in having your own Web Site? Worried about the cost? It may be cheaper than you think. Take a look at pricing at the PNG Web Hosting site. Sites with space for 15,000 MB of data, 300 GB transfer per month and 24hour a day /7day a week ticket/phone support for less than US$5.00 per month. -- DOT COM Domains from US$9.00 per year.
 

Remember that this mailing list is meant (mainly) for people who have an interest and already know a little bit about the people and geography of Papua New Guinea. The PNG Kina, which is mentioned from time to time in this newsletter, is currently worth around

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but varies on a daily basis.

If you are really keen on finding out what the Kina is worth a currency converter for most world currencies can be located at -- http://www.michie.net/pnginfo/moni.html -- The PNG Business Directory also has daily rates based from a PNG perspective

Want to find out more about Papua New Guinea? Try searching at -- http://www.michie.net/pnginfo -- and -- http://www.michie.net/png_faqs or try the PNG Business Directory located at -- http://www.pngbd.com -- and the PNG Tourism Directory -- http://www.pngtd.com. Both are excellent places to look for information about the country.
For those who are not so familiar with the geography of Papua New Guinea I suggest taking a look -- http://maps.google.com -- and then click on the find a map option. Go to this link for a quick start to a link to a map of Port Moresby. -- http://www.michie.net/pnginfo/pom-map.html

 

A very special welcome is extended to any new readers. If you have comments or suggestions to make then please use the contact form

Articles for this newsletter

To send a message for submission to the PNG Gossip Newsletter -- please use the contact form

Warning: PNG web sites seem to come and go. The fact of life is that it costs money to host a web site and there is not much return on the outlay to most businesses in PNG. If you do click on a link and use the services or even have some comments to make then please contact the people at the relevant web site and let them know so they at least know that someone has gained some value from their efforts. If you are so inclined then mention that you heard about them from this web site. -- The PNG Gossip Newsletter.

 

Firstly I must make an apology to some new members who have experienced difficulties in signing up for the newsletter. My Web Service provider (not PNG Web Hosting! -- http://www.pngwebhost.com) decided to upgrade their servers and impose limits on the amount of email that could be sent out in one session. Of course the newsletter broke those limits and the PNG Gossip web site was banned from sending any more mail. Secondly this also means that some readers may have missed out on the 6th of August edition of the newsletter. Unfortunately I was overseas an unable to sort out the problem until I returned. Now if only I had a PNG Web Hosting account I would not have had these problems. If you did not receive your 26th of July 2006 edition you can find an online copy at -- http://pnggossip.com/news/g060726.html -- If anyone wants a plain text copy then please let me know and I will send a copy via email.




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Also remember that the accuracy of the information in this newsletter should not be relied upon - it is, after all, a gossip newsletter.

External links - while PNG Gossip Newsletter will not sell your email address to others many links on this web site lead to other sites that may not have the same policy regarding your valuable email address. Be careful when handing over your email address to others.


 


Links




Video Link



If you have the bandwidth then I recommend viewing the video located on the Air Niugini Japanese site -- http://www.air-niugini.co.jp/vtr/index.html -- produced by the Tourism Promotion Authority.




Anglican Church History



PNG Anglican Church History -- http://anglicanhistory.org/aus/png/

Port Moresby Anglican web site -- http://portmoresby.anglican.org




Other PNG Links



The National Research Institute -- http://www.nri.org.pg/

National Geographic -- http://plasma.nationalgeographic.com/places/countries/country_papuanewguinea.html




Plane Crashes



It is widely known that PNG is a difficult place to fly due to various reasons. Here is one report about an incident that happened to a Qantas DC-4 in Port Moresby on the 6th of February 1969 -- http://groups.msn.com/QANTASCabinCrewRetired/dc4.msnw

Here is another report about a plane with a bit of history and several crashes -- http://www.pngair.com/q=node/1341




No Trespassing



Report says Indonesian military treats PNG as its own territory. -- http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0608/S00306.htm




Caving in PNG



Summer Caving in PNG -- http://www.ee.usyd.edu.au/suss/Bulls/43(4)/batespng.html

Caving in PNG -- http://garamut.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/caving-in-papua-new-guinea

National Geographic - PNG caving -- http://giaman.com/pg/?20e9a7

http://giaman.com/pg/?d74ba8


News Items




Airlines of PNG



Airlines of PNG have started their Brisbane to Port Moresby and return service using a Boeing B737 aircraft. The plane is set up for all business class seats but the fares are economy class. If you are lucky there are limited seats available at K399 one way from Port Moresby to Brisbane. Check out the Airline of PNG web site -- http://www.apng.com -- APNG have also implemented web site bookings for their two international services. (Port Moresby - Cairns and Port Moresby - Brisbane).




Land Compensation



The Government has voted to put a stop to excessive land compensation claims by landowners over State land. The amendments are to give effect to section 53(2) of the Constitution, which called for fair and reasonable compensation to be paid to traditional landowners if their land was to be acquired by the State for public purposes. It is hoped that the amendments would bring enormous benefits to future generations as well as give confidence to investors, simply because they would help to do away with excessive claims against the State as far as public institutions are concerned.




World War II Exploits



Here is an extract from the tinyurl article linked to below

Sailing from Brisbane, Australia, the Wahoo was ordered to reconnoitre the Japanese supply base of Wewak on New Guinea's north coast.

One small problem: No one had charts of the harbour.

A crewman who had purchased a cheap school atlas in Australia provided the solution - or at least an idea of Wewak's location.

-- http://tinyurl.com/ovn23 --




Gas Pipeline



A planned $3.5 billion PNG-to-Australia gas pipeline suffered a setback recently when Australian Gas Light Co. said it might have to suspend design work due to a lack of firm customers and rising costs. The decision knocked as much as 15 percent off the shares of the Australian-listed PNG oil and gas producer Oil Search Ltd. the key owner of the natural gas reserves that were to go into the pipeline from 2009.




Live Ammunition



The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) of PNG has raised concern that a growing number of trekkers in the past 12 months are boarding aircraft with artefacts and ammunition of various calibres collected from the Kokoda Track. This is both unlawful and dangerous as ammunition is regarded by the aviation industry as a dangerous good. Tour Operators must advise their trekkers to refrain from collecting and boarding aircrafts with these relics from World War 2 found along the famous track. The warning comes after a number of persons caught by Australian Customs, have had ammunition confiscated and have been fined for carriage of dangerous goods. CAA's Director of Aviation Security Division Andrew Scottney-Turnbill said carriage of ammunition within PNG aviation is also against the law and those caught can face imprisonment. The PNG Tourism Promotion Authority has also raised the matter with the Kokoda Track Authority to advise tour operators to warn their trekkers.




PNG Spy



A report that PNG officials have been passing information about West Papuan rebels in return for financial rewards has been refuted by a PNG government spokesperson. The report was originally carried in "The Bulletin" an Australian publication. The Bulletin reported that the Australian Defence Signals Directorate had intercepted telephone calls from Jakarta to the Indonesian Embassy in Port Moresby about payments to PNG counterparts.




Income Levels



Fiji with an income level described as "far from being high in comparison to other developing economies" still has a higher purchasing power per capita than PNG. In fact an Australian economist has said that it would take PNG 306 years at the present rate of growth for PNG's per capita income to catch up to the level Fiji was at in 2004.




Airways



After 15 years of having one of the best buffet lunches in town the Airways has upset many customers by changing the menu. Some customers have voted with their feet and are finding that other restaurants have just as good meals.




Internet Congestion



What have Telikom PNG done? Several weeks ago Internet access into and out of PNG was literally zooming along. Now the service seems to be less than what consumers had before the "upgrade". Some are saying that a new deal signed with Telstra in Australia for the "new" undersea cable has meant that only the 4MB of bandwidth supplied by Telstra can be used due to technical difficulties of load balancing the other satellite services others say that Telstra have backed Telikom into a corner to use the 4MB channels only. Whatever the real issue is it has meant that consumers cannot get adequate Internet access.

Several companies jumped on the bandwagon of better bandwidth and have been redeveloping their networks to suit and now after the point of no return are really suffering.




Aussie Army



A comment by Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, stating that the Aussies would expand their army due to anticipated problems in PNG and other Pacific Countries has irked Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare who says the extra army personnel will be used in places like Afghanistan and Iraq. He has said that Mr Howard should be honest with his Australian taxpayers and tell the truth.




Sport Fishing



Baia Sport Fishing Lodge on the border of East and West New Britain Provinces is slowly but surely gaining popularity internationally as a top fishing location. Baia provides the best in deep sea and fresh water fishing. Nestled on the shores of Open Bay and facing the Bismarck Sea, Baia is a modern fishing lodge tucked away in the New Britain wilderness. Anglers looking for a fight with the biggest black bass, barramundi or spot tails should try Baia - you're sure to have the catch of your life. To get to Baia contact Riccard Reimann -- Email: scorpio@global.net.pg -- Phone: (+675) 983 5567 or visit the web site at -- http://www.baiafishingpng.com

Thanks to the Tourism Promotion Authority for supplying this article -- http://www.www.pngtourism.org.pg




Port Moresby Transport



http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=26193

A dispute between two highland groups in the National Capital of Port Moresby has sparked apparent revenge killings and caused a brief shut down of the city's bus services, forcing many schools to send children home. Many children had to walk many kilometres to get to and from school with the public transport out of operation. The trouble started earlier this month following the death of a Mt Hagen man from the Western Highlands when a bus was allegedly held up in the city by a gang of men originally from Tari in the Southern Highlands.




Hagen Water



Mount Hagen is once again suffering from a lack of water. The Western Highlands Chamber of Commerce and Industry has called on leaders in the province to address this matter once and for all. Many government agencies, including schools and hospital within Hagen, were forced to close and the ever-ready public servants took a day off from work. School students from the Hagen Park Secondary School also had to leave classes and head home. Mid this year, the water supply to the city and surrounding areas was stopped for about four days because of compensation demands by landowners over the land on which the main treatment plant and the water inlet station are located.




ANZ Expansion



The ANZ bank is expanding and is scheduled to open new banking offices in Alotau, and on mineral-rich Lihir Island within six months
It is expected that the bank will also open a new branch in Kimbe soon. Recently the bank opened a branch in Wewak, East Sepik province. The bank will also install 16 new automated teller machines (ATMs) nationwide to expand its reach to customers in partnership with Post PNG Ltd. It is reported that Daltron will also go into partnership with the Post Office to sell computer consumables around the country.




Why Do We Get Sick?



Advert - Why Do We Get Sick? If you want to know the answer to this question then I suggest a visit to the following web site run by a man married to a PNG lady. -- http://whydowegetsick.com -- or ask for more info by sending email to -- info@whydowegetsick.com




Southern Highlands



The state of emergency and the suspension of the provincial government in the Southern Highlands Province (SHP) appears to be uncovering many corrupt practices. Missing vehicles have been discovered as far away as Madang and over 200 ghost names are about to be removed from the provincial government payroll.

Some of the ghost names have proved to be very interesting. The mother of a Southern Highlands politician is down on the payroll as being a driver. A wife of a politician, who happens to live in Port Moresby, is receiving two pays, one from the SHP and one as teacher with the Teaching Services Commission. Other members of the MP's family are also employed by the SHP. Some examples are:

  • The brother of the MP
  • The cousin of the MP who is a church pastor
  • The mother-in-law of the MP
  • A fourth year student from the University of PNG
  • A bank accountant
  • The wife of the bank accountant
  • An Air Niugini employee
  • A community school headmaster and more!

The Southern Highlands Governor has said that if the allegations are true then he condemns them and he has distanced himself by saying that he was only dealing with policy matters and not the hiring and firing of staff.




Steamships



Steamships Trading Company (STC) has reported a 60 percent jump in its after-tax profit to K24.5 million in the half-year to June this year, compared to K15.2 million last year, same period, reflecting stability in the economy and acquisition of new businesses. This figure includes STC's equity-accounted share of the results of the associates.




Early Agriculture Pioneer



Once considered a "Neolithic backwater" by archaeologists, PNG is emerging as one of the handful of places on Earth where agricultural practices developed independently from other cultures.

see -- http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/06/0623_030623_kukagriculture.html -- for more information on this topic.




Coming Events



There will be a commemoration to remember the deceased and survivors of the Caribou Crash to be held at De la Salle Secondary School at Bomana on the 28th of August.

-- http://pnggossip.com/news/g040616.html#cr -- and -- http://www.postcourier.com.pg/20020906/weekend03.htm

The Institute of PNG Studies Exploratory Workshop - sometime in September

Price Waterhouse Coopers Walk for Life Challenge -- 3rd September 2006

42nd PNG Medical Symposium will be held in Madang from the 4th to the 8th of September 2006 -- http://www.medsymp.org.pg

PNG 31st Independence Anniversary - 16th September 2006

Hiri Hanenamo Quest and Hiri Moale Festival - 16th September 2006

Goroka Show, Eastern Highlands -- 16th and 17th of September 2006

Kiwi Ball - The fabulous ball held by the Kiwi's will be held on the 28th October this year. This year the New Zealanders hope to have a five-piece band to entertain the crowd

Morobe Show, Lae -- November 4th and 5th

Milne Bay Kundu and Canoe Festival, Alotau -- 6th to the 12th of November 2006






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-- THE END --

In Tok Pisin - em tasol

For other ways of saying the end please pay a visit to -- ../emtasol

Some of the ways of saying "that's all" are courtesy of Liz and her friends at the University of Technology in Lae. -- http://www.unitech.ac.pg

If you can add to this list then please send email to -- PNG-News@pnggossip.com

 






Created 26 Aug 2006
Updated 6 Sep 2006

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