Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea (PNG), or Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, immediately north of Australia.

Geography

The country occupies the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, the world's second largest island. PNG borders West Papua, formerly called Irian Jaya, on the west, which is part of Indonesia.

Papua New Guinea also includes 1300 smaller islands. Many are very small, but major ones include New Britain, New Ireland, Buka, Manus, and Bougainville. Manam Island and Karkar Island are inhabited, but also are active volcanos. PNG is located in a region defined since the early 19th century as Melanesia.

Its capital, and one of its few major cities, is Port Moresby.

On a map, the main part of the country resembles the profile of a large foot, with the toes pointed to the southeast. Mountains reaching as high as 14,793 (Mt. Wilhelm) form a backbone the entire length of the country. Coastal plains stretch from the mountains to the Bismark Sea, on the north, and to the Coral Sea on the south. Both of these are part of the South Pacific Ocean.

Until the 1930s, the outside world did not know that these interior mountain were inhabited.

Language and culture

Population-wise, PNG is one of the most diverse countries on Earth, originally with over 850 indigenous languages, and at least as many traditional societies, out of a population of just under 6 million.

Another major centre is Lae, which was the last stopping point of Amelia Earhart in her attempt to fly around the world in 1937.

In 2001, officials stated that there were 817 native languages still in use. The most prominant spoken language in the Highlands is Melanesian Pidgin. It is a mixture containing about 1000 English words, many German words, and of course various tribal words. Eighty percent of what is published in PNG is English, and that is the official language of business, government, and most education.

Most of the people are warm-hearted and friendly, but there is a very serious crime problem. Christian missionaries have succeeded in bringing some peace among the highlands tribes, but tribal wars are still a major problem.

History

Germany colonised some coastal areas before World War I, but lost her colonies as part of the settlement of the war. Australia became the colonists until PNG's independence in 1975.

Many of the older people estimate their ages by how old they were when the airplanes of World War II came over, and many can still remember before they had metal tools.

World War II

The Markham Valley was the first place in the world that great numbers of soldiers were dropped into an active war zone by parachute. The Allied armies, under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, then liberated the city of Lae from the Japanese. The Japanese were intending to use New Guinea as a base for their takeover of industrialised Australia. Many native New Guineans served with great honour and helped the Allied soldiers.

Government

The government is a Parliamentary Democracy, and the country is part of the Commonwealth of Nations. The 109 parliament members are elected by the people. National elections are held every 5 years, (years ending with 2 or 7) and are usually accompanied by much crime, bribery, and violence. The Parliamentary members elect one of themselves to be the Prime Minister, and another to be the Governor General. The Governor General is then knighted by the British monarch, and is the king or queen's official representative in the country. Since Papua New Guinea became an independent state in 1975, Queen Elizabeth has been the only British monarch.

Major missionary endeavors, accompanied by faithful national workers, have provided health care, education, transportation, and spiritual guidance, helping to bring a better, and healthier lifestyle to the people of Papua New Guinea.

The dominant sport is rugby league.