25:06:93
PAPUA NEW GUINEA: FOUND - THE CLAN THAT TIME FORGOT.
By MARY-LOUISE O'CALLAGHAN.
A nomadic tribe has been discovered in a wild mountainous region of
Papua New Guinea.
Government officials said the 79 members of the clan worshipped a
rock they carry with them as they roam through the remote mountain
ranges of PNG's Sandaun province.
They were found when one crossed the path of a patrol led by a district
officer, Mr Peter Yasaro, last month.
Mr Yasaro was intrigued by the man's fascination with his axe and
steel bush-knife. He decided to travel to the tribe's settlement,
which lies between the remote Government stations of Telefomin and
Oksapmin.
Since then the tribe, the Liawep, who appear to have had no other
contact with the outside world, have been introduced to tea, salt
and sugar and a team from the Telefomin Baptist Mission have set off
to build them a church.
Mr Yasaro, who returned from the tribe's settlement this week, says
he plans to ask the national Government to provide clothing, cooking
utensils, knives and axes for the nomads.
Ms Helena Malager, a journalist with the PNG's National Broadcasting
Commission in Vanimo, the capital of Sandaun, said: "These people
have been worshipping a sort of statue, a rock, treating it as their
god, but the Baptists have already told them there their is only one
God," she said.
Ms Malager said a Department of Primary Industry officer, Mr Joe Fungi,
who had just returned to Vanimo from Telefomin, said the first of
the tribe to make contact with the outside world was overwhelmed by
the Government station.
"They had to reassure him about the planes, he thought it was a big
bird and tried to hide in case it might attack him," Ms Malager said.
"He was fascinated by the modern tools like axes and bush knives the
people were using.
"He wandered around (Telefomin) just fascinated by the buildings and
modern clothes people were wearing."
It may be that, apart from a lost tribe, the Government officers have
also unearthed an ancient language to add to more than 700 languages
already identified in PNG.
According to Mr Fungi, communication with the nomad was possible only
through sign language until he had spent several weeks in Telefomin
and was able to pick up some rudimentary tok pisin, a form of pidgin.
It was only then that Mr Yasaro realised the extent of the man's isolation
and decided he ought to investigate.
SOURCES THE AGE (MELBOURNE)
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