PNG Gossip Newsletter - 26th September 2005

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Neo Melanesian

"Pidgin English"

tok pisin English
wan one
tu two
tri three
foa four
five /faiv five
sikis six
seven seven
et eight
nain nine
ten ten
wanpela ten wan eleven
wanpela ten tu twelve
wanpela ten tri thirteen
tupela ten twenty
tupela ten wan 21
tripela ten thirty one
fiftifaiv fifty-five
wan handet 100
nambawan first / very good
namba tu second
namba tri third
nambaten terrible / tenth rate
nambawan nogut worst
 
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 24 / 7 ticket / phone support for less than US$3.00 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 30 - 31 United States cents 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 and Tourism Directory also has daily rates based from a PNG perspective

Welcome to the
Papua New Guinea Gossip Newsletter

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

Articles for this newsletter

To send a message for submission to the PNG Gossip Newsletter -- please click here and use the submission form to make initial contact.

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.

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Want to find out more about Papua New Guinea? Try searching at -- http://www.michie.net/pnginfo -- and -- http://www.michie.net/png_faqs. -- The PNG Business and Tourism Directory located at -- http://www.pngbd.com -- is also an excellent place to look for PNG information.

For those who are not so familiar with the geography of Papua New Guinea I suggest taking a look -- http://maps.expedia.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

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


 

 


Links

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 them mention that you heard about them from this web site. -- The PNG Gossip Newsletter.

Mention of a website or service does not necessarily mean that this newsletter endorses the website or service


Volunteer Web Log



Want to find out about the life of an Australian volunteer living in PNG? then take a trip to the blog located at -- http://pnglife.blogspot.com



Lae International School



The International School Of Lae (TISOL) has recently launched a school web site. It contains photos, useful information and downloads about the school in Morobe province -- http://www.tisol.ac.pg



Morobe Goldfields prior to WW2



Michael Waterhouse is well advanced in writing a book on the Morobe Goldfields prior to WW2, and is looking for photographs of people who were on the field at this time. He has arranged for a number of stills from some 1929-30 film footage to be added to the website of the PNG Association of Australia. These show a number of people from the goldfields and elsewhere in New Guinea whose names are unknown. They can be viewed on two pages at -- http://www.pngaa.net/Photo_Gallery/Morobe_Goldfields_research.htm -- If anyone has photos of people from this period and can use these to identify people in the stills; Michael would very much appreciate it if they could contact him by email -- (mhwaterhouse@hotmail.com) or on +61 2 9360 0226.

The website also lists a number of people, including Shark-Eye Park and Cecil Levien, whose photos he is particularly anxious to obtain. Could anyone with photos of these or other people from the goldfields between 1926 and 1942, particularly individual miners or pilots, please contact Michael. He will acknowledge the source of all photos used in his book.



Superannuation Funds



The Association of Superannuation Funds PNG (ASFPNG) has a website located at -- http://www.asfpng.org.pg -- ASFPNG is an industry body established in 2002 by interested industry participants with the common goal to protect superannuants retirement savings within a regulated environment whilst fostering a competitive industry.



Stories About PNG



http://www.pngaa.net/Articles/articles_A_Family_Matter.htm -- A FAMILY MATTER by Chips Mackellar -- just one of many articles that can be found at -- http://www.pngaa.net



Email Contacts



* Tailors
Kokoda Tailoring and Kokoda Collection can be contacted at -- kokodatailoring{@}daltron.com.pg
PNG tailoring -- pngtailoring{@}daltron.com.pg
Bismil Trading -- bismil{@}datec.com.pg

* Printers
Star Printing -- starprinters{@}thenational.com.pg
Times Printing -- timesprint{@}daltron.com.pg
Treid Print -- sales{@}treidpacific.com.pg



Superannuation Funds



The Association of Superannuation Funds PNG (ASFPNG) has a website located at -- http://www.asfpng.org.pg -- ASFPNG is an industry body established in 2002 by interested industry participants with the common goal to protect superannuants retirement savings within a regulated environment whilst fostering a competitive industry.



Misc Sites



Investment Promotion Authority -- http://www.ipa.gov.pg
Bank of PNG -- http://www.bankpng.gov.pg
Internal Revenue Commission -- http://www.irc.gov.pg
Milne Bay Tourism Site -- http://www.milnebaytourism.gov.pg
Air Niugini, National Airline of PNG -- http://www.airniugini.com.pg
TNT Air Cargo -- http://www.tnt.kenmore.com.pg
More links to information about Papua New Guinea -- http://www.uga.edu/cuda/PNG.html
Diversion Dive Travel -- http://www.diversionoz.com/en/index.html
Radio Australia Tok Pisin service -- http://www.abc.net.au/ra/tokpisin/



Newspapers



For the latest news about PNG visit the Post Courier web site at -- http://www.postcourier.com.pg -- or the National Newspaper web site at -- http://www.thenational.com.pg -- both offer up-to-date news about PNG. If you want to catch up on news or join a forum about PNG it is also good to visit -- http://www.pngbd.com -- The PNG Business and Tourism web site.

 


News Items

Fuel Prices



PNG fuel prices were mentioned in one of the overseas newspapers. The writer of a letter to the editor wanted to know how come PNG could have cheaper prices for fuel than what was currently being paid in Australia. Fuel prices have recently gone up but are still lagging behind prices in Aussie.

Petrol - K2.86 per litre in Port Moresby and K2.93 in Lae
Diesel - K 2.31 per litre in Port Moresby and K2.39 in Lae
Kerosene - K K2.26 per litre in Moresby and K2.33 in Lae



Aussie English



A retired public servant, Joe Maliaki, from Butibum village in Lae Morobe province has suggested that English teachers, from Australia, should be allowed to return to PNG to teach English in all schools around the country in order to improve the drastic drop in the level of written and spoken English. Mr Maliaki has said that if you walk around a school ground you will hear the students and the teacher conversing in pidgin. He said that even Balob Teacher's college, a college that trains teachers to teach subjects such as English, you will hear very little English being spoken. He says that English is an international business language and a main language for used with computers and if you want to develop the country the standard of English needs to be improved.



Internet Service Providers



It has been proposed that the four Internet Service Providers (ISP) in PNG adopts a Code of Practice. The Independent Consumer and Competition Commission (ICCC) has produced a draft code of conduct for the ISP's. The document is aimed at improving the quality of Internet service in the country. It has been mentioned that the cost of having Internet access in PNG is one of the highest in the world.

It has also been rumoured that the much talked about increase in bandwidth into the country will be happening soon. PNG currently only has 8mbit into the country and due to problems this has been reduced to half this amount recently for short periods of time.

The Internet Service Providers are:-

Daltron -- http://www.daltron.com.pg
Data Nets -- http://www.datanets.com.pg
Datec -- http://www.datec.net.pg
Global Technologies -- http://www.global.net.pg



PNG Flag Song



Thanks to Carole Saunders here is the PNG flag song.

This is our flag
Flag of our land
Proudly it flutters
And proudly we stand
Flag of our island
Home in the sun
Papua New Guinea
We are one
Papua New Guinea
We are one

Paradise bird
Flying on high
Lifting our vision
Right up to the sky
Shine cross of
Five bright stars
Never cease
Leading our land
To strength and peace
Leading our land to strength and peace.

Carole says the song was sung at Lae International Primary School in the seventies but asks does anyone know who wrote it?



Vanimo



Plans are underway to make Vanimo in Sandaun province an international shipping port. This is part of the Medium Term Development Strategy to upgrade ports and airports to help promote trade. Sandaun could become the gateway for ships to take timber to Asia if the plan was approved.



New Telephone System



ConXions PNG has launched a new small to medium telephone system. The new system, the Samsung DX, besides just being a telephone system also has added features such as voicemail, caller identification and direct in-dial, auto attendant, wireless mobility, automated call distribution and computer telephony integration. ConXions Limited trading as Ericsson Business Communications has been operating in PNG since 1967.



Regional Seat Law



The bid to amend the Organic Law on Provincial Local Level Governments to retain regional seats in 2007 is set to go before Parliament in October. Under the current Organic Law the provincial seats will cease to exist in 2007. Only a constitutional amendment would allow the seats to continue but a constitutional change would require at least nine months for it to go through the normal process and be voted in Parliament.



Rain



Port Moresby has had rain over several days and this has meant that the ever-present Port Moresby potholes are getting deeper and deeper. Luckily many of the larger ones on important roads, i.e. those to be travelled by VIP's, were patched in time for the 30th Independence celebrations.

Potholes are not just causing problems for drivers of road going vehicle. Some of the major airlines have had to cancel flights to Wampenamanda and Mendi due to large holes in the runway making it unsafe for big planes to land and takeoff. It is not just smaller runways that are causing problems. Travellers to other major towns have had seen the pilot dodging a pothole or two in the various town runways this year.



PNG Coffee



It has been estimated that the amount of coffee to be exported from PNG this year will fall short of the expected 1.1 million bags by at least 100,000 bags. The price of coffee has also decreased recently due to the very good outlook for the 2006-2007 growing season in Brazil because of the recent rains that was bringing on good flowering for the coffee crop.



GG Books




The Governor General, Sir Paulias Matane, has launched two more books recently. This brings the total number of books that he has written to 36. The two books are Time Traveller and Papua New Guinea, Land of Natural Beauty and Cultural Diversity. The vice-regal is now working on his 37th book scheduled to be released next year.



Aussie Air Traffic Control



Aviation sources have indicated that the three unions representing most of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) workers are working behind the scenes to make a formal complaint to the Government about the new arrangement with Airservices Australia (AA) to provide air traffic control services in PNG's upper airspace. A three-year deal was announced by the Transport and Civil Aviation Minister, Don Polye, saying that the Australian government-owned agency would manage the country's upper level airspace for planes flying above 29,000 feet . It is understood that a large number of experienced CAA-trained air traffic controllers could be made redundant in light of the decision to award the contact to the Australians.



Fake Currency



Once again the population has been warned to look out for fake currency especially in remote parts of the provinces. It has been estimated that over K60,000 of fake K20 notes could be in circulation.



Doctor Shortage



There is a shortage of doctors in PNG especially to serve the remote areas of the country. The current ration is one doctor for every 120,000 people. In comparison there is one doctor for every 400 patients in Australia. Making the problem worse is that around 50 doctors have left the country to work overseas where they have better conditions and pay.



Yet Another Political Party



Yet another political party is being planned for the 2007 elections. Several leaders from Enga and the Southern Highlands plan to form the party because they say that although the two provinces provide over 65 percent of national revenue very little is returned back to the provinces. Existing politicians are allowed to change political parties or form new ones after April 2006 - 12 months before the election in 2007.



PNG Power



The threat of a strike by workers of PNG Power still hangs over the head of all electricity users in the country. The union claims that the results of a recent secret ballot gives the union the mandate to take strike action of several issues. One of the issues in question is the proposed delocalisation of the CEO's position by an Australian. Strike action was planned for last week but the disgruntled workers agreed to delay the planned strike to avoid disrupting nationwide celebrations of PNG's 30th Independence anniversary.



Hiri Moale



Miss Hanenamo for 2005 is 18 year old grade ten Badihagwa High School student Hitolo Mase Talai from Manumanu village. She was crowned from a group of 20 young girls in front of thousands during the Hiri Moale festival held over the recent PNG Independence weekend at the Sir Hubert Murray Stadium. Last years winner was Mary Toua from Pari village.



PNG Economy



A budget strategy paper presented at the Consultative Implementation and Monitoring Committee has predicted that the PNG economy will grow by 3.4 percent next year (2006) This would be the fourth successive year that economic growth has equalled or bettered the population growth of 2.7 percent. This is a major improvement from previous years. The GDP per capita for Papua New Guineans currently averaged K600 per year compared with K27,000 for Australia and K20,000 for New Zealanders.



Motorcycle Police



The police force now has several new police motorbikes first used to escort dignitaries around during the Independence celebrations but primarily purchased for the visit by Princess Anne later this month. The motorbikes are 950cc Yamaha motorbikes and are the biggest ever purchased for the police force. Many years ago I can remember the sight of a 250cc Suzuki police bike rider attempting to pull over the now defunct Port Moresby Bus Company bus with great difficulty simply because the bus was nosier than the horn of the two stroke small capacity Suzuki.



International Coffee Competition



An International Coffee Competition is being hosted by Coffee Pacifica, Inc and the PNG Coffee Growers Federation from the 26th to the 30th of September 2005 in Goroka. Contact -- willemboot@bootcoffee.com -- and -- shailen@coffeepacifica.com -- for more details. Head judge of the competition will be Willem Boot.



HF Radio



The PNG Institute of Medical Research has had a High Frequency (HF) radio installed at its Madang site. The installation is part of the National Health Network through the Health Services Support Program being funded by AusAID. The program has been installing HF radios at rural health centres since 2001. The radios help to provide a medium of comfort to those in remote locations. The HF radios are replacing a Very High Frequency (VHF) Network that was not as reliable as the HF network.



Rice



Every year PNG imports 200,000 tonnes of rice at a cost of K300 million. This is a significant food bill that could be saved by placing an emphasis on growing rice within the country. The money saved could then be used on more important projects for the country.



Coming Events



International Coffee Competition -- 26th September to the 30th September 2005

Morobe Show, Lae -- 15th and 16th of October 2005

The Milne Bay Canoe and Kundu (drum) festival will be held between the 4th and 6th of November this year.

Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in March 2006.

2006 - April 8th to the 16th -- National Game Fishing Titles

PNG 31st Independence - 16 September 2006






PNG Media


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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 click here and use the submission form.

 



Created 26 Sep 2005
Updated 6 Oct 2005


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